Hiromi Higuruma stopped walking.
His brows slowly furrowed.
Was it a bluff?
No.
The boy standing before him showed no hesitation in his eyes.
No fear.
Only calm confidence.
The kind of composure forged through countless life-and-death battles.
That confidence wasn't fake.
"Even if you possess excellent physical ability…"
Higuruma said slowly.
"Without your cursed technique, you cannot defeat the Executioner's Sword."
His grip tightened on the weapon's hilt.
The tension whitened his knuckles.
Perhaps he was convincing himself as much as his opponent.
"This blade carries the authority of judgment."
"Anything it cuts will die."
Yagami Sora shrugged lightly.
"So?"
His smile widened.
"Then let's test it."
The moment the sentence finished—
BOOM!!
The floor beneath Sora's feet exploded.
Concrete shattered outward like a grenade.
Dust erupted into the air.
Fragments slammed into the walls.
Yagami Sora launched forward.
Like a cannonball.
Pure physical force propelled his body.
Muscles contracting with terrifying efficiency.
His speed created a blur of afterimages.
Fast.
Too fast.
Higuruma's pupils shrank.
That speed was impossible for an ordinary human.
Even elite martial artists would not move like this.
Instinctively, he swung the Executioner's Sword.
The blade carved through the air toward Sora's chest.
"You're throwing your life away!"
Higuruma's voice hardened.
If the blade touched him—
The battle would end immediately.
The sword cut downward.
And yet—
Yagami Sora didn't dodge.
He charged directly toward it.
Like a beast charging straight into a hunter's rifle.
Then—
CLANG!!!
A metallic crash rang through the theater.
Sparks exploded between them.
Higuruma felt his wrist shake violently.
The impact surged through his arm.
Up into his shoulder.
Through his entire body.
His sword nearly slipped from his grip.
"What…?"
His eyes widened.
In disbelief.
Yagami Sora had caught the blade.
Two fingers.
Only two.
They clamped around the Executioner's Sword like iron tongs.
The weapon refused to move another millimeter.
"Rules are rigid."
Yagami Sora said calmly.
"But people are flexible."
He looked directly into Higuruma's eyes.
Their faces were only inches apart.
"Your rule says one strike equals death."
"But that only matters…"
"…if you can hit me."
Higuruma's mind froze.
The domain had confiscated Sora's cursed technique.
He had felt it clearly.
The flow of cursed energy tied to the technique had disappeared.
So why—
Why was this boy still this powerful?
"You think vector manipulation is just a cursed technique?"
Yagami Sora asked.
A hint of amusement flashed in his eyes.
"You're wrong."
"Cursed energy is just a lever."
"What I control is something deeper."
"Vectors."
"Force."
"Momentum."
"Impact."
"The physical laws of the world."
"Even without cursed techniques…"
"I can still manipulate how force travels through my body."
At the instant the sword touched his fingers—
He had shifted the contact angle.
Redirected the impact.
Neutralized the momentum.
Pure physics.
Precise control of muscles and leverage.
Then—
Yagami Sora squeezed.
CRACK.
The Executioner's Sword snapped.
The blade split cleanly in half.
The broken fragments clattered to the floor.
Higuruma stared in shock.
"That sword…"
His voice trembled slightly.
"…is a manifestation of the domain's rules."
"How could it break?"
Yagami Sora released the broken blade.
It hit the floor with a hollow clang.
"Lawyers make the same mistake all the time."
He said calmly.
"You rely too much on rules."
"And eventually…"
"You become prisoners of those rules."
He stepped forward.
Slowly.
Each step carried overwhelming pressure.
His presence alone made the air heavy.
Higuruma instinctively stepped backward.
Until his back hit the wall.
The sword hilt in his hand dissolved.
The domain's authority had vanished.
He had lost.
Completely.
Everything he believed in—
Rules.
Law.
Judgment.
All of it collapsed before overwhelming power.
"…Go ahead."
Higuruma said quietly.
He closed his eyes.
"The points are yours."
But the expected killing blow never came.
Instead—
A hand tapped his shoulder.
Higuruma opened his eyes.
Yagami Sora stood beside him.
"I already told you."
Sora said casually.
"I'm not interested in your points."
Higuruma stared at him.
Confused.
Sora's voice softened slightly.
"What I want…"
"…is you."
He extended his hand.
"Join us."
"Help change this broken system."
"Help rewrite these rules."
"Hiromi Higuruma."
"For once…"
"Let justice win."
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