"Then," Genji said, his calm and gentle voice filling the study, "Katou-san, if you don't mind, I would like to examine your constitution in detail."
Megumi Katou nodded, put down the oolong tea in her hand, and sat up straight. "What should I do?"
"Just sit still," Genji floated in front of her and reached out a hand—slender fingers, neatly trimmed nails. He didn't touch Megumi Katou directly, but hovered his hand a few centimeters away from her body.
A very faint indigo thread emerged from his fingertips, like a living tendril, slowly extending toward Megumi Katou.
Eriri held her breath. Utaha also stopped typing, her crimson eyes watching the scene through her glasses.
The moment the faint thread touched Megumi Katou's skin, an amazing change occurred.
Under normal circumstances, when cursed energy from an external source touches a human body, it creates ripples of cursed energy, like a drop of water falling into a calm lake. Even the most ordinary "Heavenly Restriction" with zero cursed energy affinity would produce some kind of "repelling" or "penetrating" reaction.
But Megumi Katou was different.
The indigo thread of light simply… melted.
It wasn't absorbed. It wasn't repelled. It was like an ice needle in warm water—quietly dispersing, diluting, and finally disappearing without a trace. The whole process was eerily smooth, leaving not the slightest residue of cursed energy.
Genji frowned slightly. He withdrew his hand, his fingertips condensing more delicate, finer threads, this time splitting into over a dozen strands, simultaneously reaching toward different parts of Megumi Katou's body—her forehead, shoulders, wrists, knees…
The result was the same.
All the cursed threads "dissolved" seamlessly the moment they touched her. Megumi Katou's body was like a perfectly smooth plane. Any cursed energy falling on it would naturally slide away, leaving no mark.
"Interesting…" Genji murmured to himself, his deep indigo eyes shining with analytical light. "It's not 'repulsion' or 'absorption,' but 'transparency.' It's like light passing through glass, or water flowing through a fishing net. Cursed energy cannot remain on you or interact with you."
He paused and added, "This is another manifestation of the same phenomenon you mentioned earlier—'faint presence.' Since cursed energy cannot leave a 'trace' on you, your 'existence' also becomes weak at the level of cursed energy perception. Ordinary people's vision and cognition rely heavily on subconscious cursed energy perception. When they can't 'feel' you, they naturally ignore you."
Megumi Katou listened quietly, her expression unchanged, but her eyes widened slightly. "So… is that why I'm often forgotten?"
"That's one reason," Genji nodded. "But it's not a disease or a curse. Just an extremely rare constitutional variation. If you insist on a term…"
He floated back to the bookshelf, crossed his arms, thought for a few seconds, then snapped his fingers.
"You could understand it as a kind of 'transparency at the cursed energy level,'" he said. "Your body has a cursed energy film. Any cursed energy that falls on it will disappear without leaving any 'scent' that belongs to you. So when others can't 'smell' you at the level of cursed energy perception, they subconsciously ignore you. And this constitution is innate—you've had it since birth. It's not acquired, nor is it the effect of some technique."
Eriri listened and suddenly felt a slight ache in her heart.
She looked at Megumi Katou. The black-haired girl still sat calmly, her hands on her knees, her expression as indifferent as if she were listening to someone else's story.
"Is that… good or bad?" Eriri couldn't help asking.
"It's neither good nor bad. It's just a trait," Genji said. "Just like some people are born able to run fast, and some are born with good eyesight. Katou-san's constitution makes her 'transparent' at the cursed energy level, which brings some inconveniences—like being easily ignored—but there may also be advantages we haven't discovered yet."
"Advantages?" Megumi Katou tilted her head.
"For example—" Genji floated over to the mini-fridge, naturally opened the door, and took out a bag of potato chips and a cola. This action made Eriri's eyes widen, because that was her last bag of chips. "You have a natural 'resistance' to most cursed energy attacks. Not immunity, but techniques that rely on cursed energy to lock onto a target will have difficulty targeting you. Since you're 'transparent' at their perception level, you're easy to overlook."
He tore open the chip bag, popped a slice into his mouth, and squinted with satisfaction. "Mm, these snacks are really delicious… Ah, where was I? Oh yes, and since cursed energy cannot remain on you, it's unlikely you'll become an active target for cursed spirits. Cursed spirits are usually drawn to strong negative emotions, but your 'transparent' constitution will make them subconsciously ignore you—unless you provoke them yourself."
Megumi Katou processed this information and asked quietly, "Is… is this what you call 'Heavenly Restriction'?"
Genji was about to reach for the cola, but stopped. He turned his head, a flicker of surprise in his deep indigo eyes, followed by a hint of apology.
"Ah, that… I must not have explained the concept of 'binding' to you in detail earlier," he said, floating back to the sofa. He put the cola can on the low coffee table in front of Megumi Katou and sat down cross-legged—though still floating, his posture was more formal.
"In the jujutsu system," Genji began to explain, his voice clear and methodical, like a patient teacher, "there is a special mechanism known as 'binding.' Simply put, it's a way to gain additional advantages by setting 'limitations and vows.'"
He traced in the air, and indigo cursed energy condensed into two ancient seals—one in the shape of a "chain," the other in the shape of a "handshake."
"The most common bindings come in two types," Genji pointed to the "chain" seal. "The first type is a binding that a sorcerer establishes with themselves. For example, vowing 'to use a certain technique only under specific conditions' or 'not to take a certain action during a fight.' In exchange for keeping the vow, the amount of cursed energy, the effects of the technique, or the explosive power under specific conditions will significantly increase."
"It's like… setting rules for yourself and receiving a reward?" Utaha pushed up her glasses, her crimson eyes intently watching the two seals in the air. Her fingers were already on her laptop keyboard.