"How'd it go?"
As Maki emerged, the others quickly gathered around her.
"Feels fantastic!"
The smile hadn't faded from Maki's face. Her tone was relaxed, but carried a hint of underlying excitement.
Of course, 'fantastic' wasn't just describing the recent sensation: "It boosts the body's damage resistance and also provides pretty remarkable recovery abilities. The compatibility with me is excellent. It'd probably be the same for Yuji and Panda too, assuming the healing works on cursed corpses."
For Fushiguro, Kugisaki, and Inumaki, this cursed tool would shore up their weaknesses.
But for the three of them, who primarily relied on hand-to-hand combat, it not only covered their shortcomings but also enhanced their strengths.
Increased damage resistance meant they could tank more powerful bursts head-on, while the added recovery would let them sustain combat for much longer.
"Next one, head on in."
She was itching to test the effects of this cursed tool.
After seeing Inumaki head straight through the door, she gathered everyone together, moved a short distance away, and drew the dagger at her waist across her palm.
Everyone stared intently at the wound on Maki's hand.
The cut wasn't terribly deep, but it wasn't shallow either—about what you'd expect from a normal injury in combat.
Under their fixed gazes, the wound visibly closed up at a steady pace, even skipping the scabbing process entirely.
In just a minute, aside from the blood that had already spilled, there was no trace left that there had ever been a wound.
"That's way too fast!?" Yuji couldn't help but widen his eyes.
Maki was also somewhat surprised. "It's even more effective than I imagined."
She was under a Heavenly Restriction, unable to sense or control cursed energy.
She'd already learned that the cursed energy healing her was supplied by Amber, so she couldn't judge how much had been consumed, only that the effect was potent.
It wasn't long before Inumaki Toge pushed the door open and came out. "Okaka!"
"He means he's never felt better," Panda translated, then added curiously, "Speaking of which, I wonder if Toge's technique counts as an injury. If it could be healed like Maki's, that'd be incredible."
"Shake."
"Seriously...?"
Panda scratched his head. Though he didn't say it explicitly, his attitude made it clear he was impressed.
"So then, Inumaki-senpai could talk freely?" Yuji felt happy for him.
"Bonito flakes."
"Toge's technique is a passive type," Panda explained.
"It isn't activated by injecting cursed energy; it's active all the time. Even if he could be healed constantly, it wouldn't change the fact that his Cursed Speech activates. Besides, using the recovery effect of the cursed tool still consumes cursed energy."
"What about Maki-san?" Kugisaki looked at Maki.
"In my case, Seele filled me with cursed energy. I'll need a refill when it runs out," Maki said, then glanced at Yuji.
"This guy here might be the one who benefits the most. His physical prowess is already strong, and with the fingers inside him, he's never short on cursed energy. Seele's cursed tool could probably be in a permanent active state for him."
"Eh? Really?" Yuji's eyes lit up.
"Only one way to find out, right? You're next," Maki said.
"Right!" Yuji nodded and entered the cafeteria.
"Yuji-senpai."
Seeing that the next person to enter was Yuji, Amber smiled at him, feeling a bit more relaxed inside.
Although she'd spent some time with Inumaki too, she was more familiar with these three classmates of her same year, making interactions with them easier.
"I'm up next. I'm counting on you, Seele-chan." Yuji greeted her with a grin, then promptly pulled the hem of his shirt up and over his head, exposing his back as he sat down in front of Amber.
Amber drew the pattern of the Stigmata on his back, then directly equipped the Stigmata with a single command.
Just as she was about to clap her hands and say 'all done,' she suddenly heard Sukuna's voice: "Little girl, the thing in your hand and the totem you speak of are two completely different matters. I sense no homologous cursed energy."
"Sukuna?" Yuji furrowed his brows. "Don't just pop out like that, you jerk."
"What exactly is this red pattern?" Sukuna couldn't be bothered to acknowledge Yuji and continued directing his question at Amber.
He was genuinely very interested in this pattern.
Clearly, there were no traces of a cursed technique on it, yet it could grant enhancement effects to the person it was drawn on and slowly heal injuries.
As the King of Curses born in the golden age of jujutsu, he had never even heard of a cursed tool like this.
"We have no reason to tell you, right? Seele-chan, don't pay any attention to him."
Yuji's attitude towards Sukuna had drastically changed since the incident at the juvenile detention center.
Before, although he'd heard Sukuna was dangerous, having never really encountered anyone outrageously evil in his life—the worst being maybe delinquents—he thought it might be possible to reason with Sukuna and coexist to some extent.
But after the juvenile detention center, he didn't think that way anymore. Even if he had to be killed, Yuji wouldn't consider letting Sukuna out.
Let alone letting him out, he didn't want to communicate with him at all.
"Brat, I'm doing this for your own good. Don't forget, this girl is just a novice who's been in the jujutsu world for less than a month. Do you really think she truly understands this thing?"
Sukuna's tone was coaxing, almost reformed.
"Remember, we are both curses. Even if that curse inside this girl is up to something, she wouldn't notice. Better to let me take a closer look."
"The other Seele-chan isn't like you. She's a good curse."
Yuji wasn't buying it. He knew he wasn't the smartest guy and might easily be fooled by an old monster like Sukuna, so he adhered to one simple rule of conduct.
Rather than make a mistake, it was better to do nothing.
If Sukuna wanted something, he just wouldn't give it to him.
Besides, he genuinely didn't think Black Amber would do anything bad to them. On the contrary, Sukuna was the real danger here.
So he just took it as sowing discord.
Black Amber was actually amused by Yuji's steadfast, single-minded opposition to Sukuna, but she also couldn't stand Sukuna's attempts to both sow discord and satisfy his own curiosity.
After discussing a few words with Amber, she directly took over the body. "There's no need to show you. After all, you wouldn't be able to discern anything anyway."
The sudden shift in tone and cadence was obvious even to Yuji, who realized immediately the girl had switched.
"Sorry about this," he said, somewhat embarrassed. "But I can't really control him showing up..."
Not only was he embarrassed, he was also intensely jealous.
How great was this? The other Seele-chan not only shared her cursed technique with Seele-chan, but also used her knowledge to help Seele-chan enhance everyone's strength.
Yes, even though Amber had said it was Black Amber's creation, everyone understood clearly that the reason Black Amber made this thing was surely because of the recent incident, which had left Amber feeling apprehensive, worried they might get hurt or even die somewhere she couldn't see.
That's why she asked the other her inside for help.
In comparison, Sukuna had never once mentioned sharing his techniques, and was always doing things Yuji hated.
Seeing Black Amber, Sukuna didn't look pleased either—after all, he'd been thoroughly beaten last time—but that didn't stop him from talking tough.
"How would I know without looking? Or perhaps... you're afraid I'll decipher your cursed tool?"
"Decipher it? Hahahaha! An ignorant human from a thousand years ago,deluding himself into believing to decipher this product that has reached the divine realm?"
Black Amber laughed, her tone dripping with sarcasm. "I've told you before. You and I exist on completely different levels. To me, you're merely a mortal born in an era I did not inhabit."
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.