The courses at Tokyo Jujutsu High were far more complex and boring than Eichi had imagined.
The first week mostly covered the history of Jujutsu Sorcerers and the significance of the Jujutsu Headquarters.
Following that came the Cursed Spirits Encyclopedia and practical combat training.
Occasionally, there were some basic theory lessons sprinkled in.
No wonder Satoru always dozed off in class.
The Gojo Family probably covered all of this material already.
That said, Tokyo Jujutsu High's library was genuinely impressive in terms of its collection.
Outside the dormitory building, Suguru sat along the corridor, flipping through the Cursed Spirits Encyclopedia in his hands.
At his request, Yaga had helped him acquire the special version of the Encyclopedia treasured by the Jujutsu Headquarters.
Unlike the teaching edition, this one documented all 16 Special Grade Cursed Spirits identified by the Headquarters to date.
Suguru, who had always coveted Special Grade Cursed Spirits, had been engrossed in studying it lately.
If only it were in color, he thought.
The content was detailed, but all illustrations were done with a brush, making them a bit abstract.
Then again, maybe that was just how Cursed Spirits were.
["Special Grade Cursed Spirit: Inugami."
A Cursed Spirit born from the legend of the Inugami, fused with the Special Grade cursed tool sesshoseki, ultimately becoming a Special Grade Cursed Spirit.
Currently sealed and used as a shikigami passed down through generations.]
Suguru's gaze drifted downward.
[Note: Due to the immense power of the Special Grade Cursed Spirit Inugami Shirayuki, the Jujutsu Sorcerer Family that seals it can only utilize a portion of its power, exhibiting Grade 1 level combat strength.]
"To seal and command a Special Grade Cursed Spirit... seems like a very old Jujutsu Family. I'll ask Satoru about it later."
Suguru turned to the next page.
[Special Grade Cursed Spirit: Ootengu (Sealed)]
"Sealed?"
His interest was piqued. He began reading the details carefully.
Unlike Inugami, which was already under a master's control, Ootengu had no such handler. Since it was only sealed, perhaps he could break that seal and tame it himself.
"An immortal and indestructible body? So that's why they sealed it instead of eliminating it."
The book described a campaign spanning a thousand years against Ootengu. Suguru absorbed the information quietly.
"I remember Eichi said Mahoraga's Sword of Exorcism could reduce even Special Grade Cursed Spirits to ash in one strike. I wonder if it would work on Ootengu."
Suguru, unfamiliar with the true nature of the Sword of Exorcism, could only speculate.
"But if it turns to ash, I can't subjugate it..."
He sighed and shook his head, flipping to the next section.
What surprised him was that the next entries were two similarly named spirits.
[Special Grade Cursed Spirit: Nine-Tailed Fox (Tamamo-no-Mae)
Special Grade Imaginary Vengeful Spirit: Incarnation Tamamo-no-Mae]
Both were labeled Tamamo-no-Mae, yet they were classified as different Special Grade Cursed Spirits.
That intrigued Suguru even more.
"So the Nine-Tailed Fox was born from the death of Tamamo-no-Mae, a Jujutsu Sorcerer from the Heian period. After she was subjugated, she turned into the cursed tool sesshoseki."
Sesshoseki again?
Suguru flipped back to the earlier entry and saw that sesshoseki was also connected to Inugami.
"So... is Tamamo-no-Mae the mother of Byakuei?"
His thoughts wandered briefly before returning to the page.
[The sesshoseki was eventually split into nine fragments, each sealed by different Jujutsu Families.]
[Special Grade Imaginary Vengeful Spirit: Incarnation Tamamo-no-Mae
Formed after Tamamo-no-Mae's death, shaped by public imagination and legends.]
"I see. One is the real entity. The other, a product of collective belief."
Suguru flipped again.
[Special Grade Cursed Spirit: Shuten Dōji]
"Yo, Suguru, what are you doing?"
Satoru emerged from the dorms and walked over quickly, his white hair blocking part of Suguru's view.
"Reading."
"Oh, this one. I think I saw that book at home when I was a kid."
"Hmm? Then do you know where this one is sealed?"
Suguru had the book turned to the Ootengu page.
"This one? If I remember right, it's in Hokkaido. Why, you want it?"
Satoru's tone was teasing, a mischievous glint in his eye.
"No. Just curious."
Suguru snapped the book shut.
If he had answered yes, Satoru would have immediately followed up with, "Then say, 'help me, handsome and invincible Satoru-sama.'"
Seeing Suguru didn't take the bait, Satoru wasn't discouraged. His gaze shifted to someone nearby.
Eichi was squatting on the ground, staring at a toad's belly with intense focus.
"What's he doing?"
Satoru turned to Suguru, puzzled.
"No idea. He was already staring at it when I got here."
"Hmm?"
Satoru stroked his chin for a second before giving up on thinking.
Whoosh.
He squatted beside Eichi and joined him in staring at the toad's belly.
"Croak, croak."
The toad sat motionless under their gaze, occasionally flicking its tongue at passing insects.
"I just have this feeling... it looks tasty."
Satoru muttered.
The toad shivered violently.
Eichi, still focused on the markings on the toad's stomach, suddenly thought of stir-fried bullfrog for no reason.
The toad trembled even harder. If Eichi hadn't told it to stay still when he summoned it, it would have bolted already.
"This is a shikigami. You can't eat it."
Eichi stood up and dispelled the summoning.
The toad vanished instantly, as if fleeing from certain doom.
"Then why were you staring at its belly? Wait, don't tell me... is the toad pregnant?"
"No."
Eichi was speechless at Satoru's mental leap.
"Then what were you looking at?"
"The pattern of the eito mirror on its belly."
"What's wrong with it?"
"Do you know the historical whereabouts of the eito mirror?"
"I don't. Isn't that a legendary item?"
"I don't think it's just a legend. I believe it was a real cursed tool that existed in ancient times."
"You suspect the eito mirror is in the toad's belly? Should we get an X-ray?"
"You can't X-ray a Cursed Spirit."
"Don't you have other cursed tools in your lab? Swap to a different one."
"..."
Should I really take the toad for a scan?
Eichi found himself led completely off track by Satoru's nonsense.
"No. If the mirror was inside the toad, the toad wouldn't be this weak."
"True."
"Satoru, do you know the origin of the Ten Shadows Technique?"
"That one? Taira no Masakado, I think. Our clan descends from Sugawara no Michizane."
"Is that so..."
Eichi looked thoughtful.
"I've been researching shikigami lately. I want to compare them to the ones used in the Ten Shadows Technique."
"According to the book, there are two ways to contract a shikigami. One is a binding vow. The other is to imprint your own cursed energy onto the shikigami's body."
"You think the pattern on the toad's belly is the second kind?"
"Exactly."
"Hmm. Alright then. I'll investigate the origin of the Ten Shadows Technique for you."
"No need. I'll ask the Zen'in Family to help me with that. You go help Suguru find some Special Grade Cursed Spirits."
"Fair enough."
(To be continued.)