[ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED: Admission to Tokyo Jujutsu High]
[REWARD ACQUIRED: 3,500 System Points]
[REWARD ACQUIRED: Grade 2 Cursed Tool - 'Nightfall' (Katana)]
Ren blinked, the bright blue text reflecting in his dark eyes. A slow, genuine smile broke across his face.
Three thousand five hundred points. That was a massive payout compared to the five points per kill he was grinding in the Harajuku alleys.
But the second reward was what really mattered.
"Inventory," he muttered into the quiet room.
The gray grid materialized next to the notification screen. Sitting in the second slot, right next to his tantō, was a long, sleek katana with a dark, tightly wrapped hilt.
He didn't pull it out to inspect it. He couldn't risk Gojo randomly teleporting into his room or Maki walking in to check on him while he was holding a massive cursed sword. But just knowing it was there shifted his entire tactical approach.
The tantō was fine for close-quarters stealth, but a katana gave him the actual reach he needed to survive a real fight.
Ren swiped his hand through the air, dismissing the screens. The room plunged back into the dim light of the streetlamp filtering through his window.
[Current Balance: 5,045 System Points]
He reached over, kicked his shoes off, and closed his eyes. The real work started tomorrow.
...
Sunlight hit Ren's face, waking him up before his phone alarm could go off.
He sat up, rubbing the back of his neck. The twin mattress was stiff, but his body didn't ache at all. That was the one undeniable perk of having Maki's physical stats—eight hours of sleep felt like he had just spent a week at a luxury spa.
He swung his legs over the side of the bed, his bare feet hitting the cold wooden floor. The dorm room was quiet.
As he sat there, the adrenaline of yesterday's chaotic transfer finally wore off, leaving his brain clear to actually process what had happened. Specifically, Satoru Gojo.
Ren leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. He let out a slow, heavy breath.
He pushed himself off the bed. The cold wooden floorboards grounded him.
There was no point stressing over Satoru Gojo right now. If the strongest sorcerer alive wanted to expose him, he would have done it yesterday in the classroom. Gojo was playing a game, and for now, Ren just had to keep playing his part.
He walked over to his duffel bag, pulled out a clean black t-shirt and his denim jacket, and quickly got dressed.
He didn't have a high-collared school uniform yet, which made him stick out even more, but he couldn't do anything about that. He unlocked his door and stepped out into the open-air hallway of the second-year floor. The crisp morning air of the mountains hit him immediately.
A few doors down, the sounds of a very weird breakfast argument echoed from the communal kitchen.
"I'm just saying," a deep, calm voice rumbled. "It's suspicious. Satoru doesn't just bring random civilians here. And he certainly doesn't put them on our floor."
"He's a transfer student, Panda. Drop it," Maki's voice snapped back, sharper than usual.
"Tuna mayo," a second voice added flatly.
Ren shoved his hands into his pockets, and walked toward the kitchen. He rounded the corner and leaned casually against the doorframe.
Maki was standing by the counter, aggressively buttering a piece of toast. Sitting at the small dining table was a giant, black-and-white panda bear wearing thick armbands. Next to him sat a guy with platinum blonde hair, the bottom half of his face completely buried behind the high collar of his uniform.
Maki saw Ren first. She instantly stiffened, dropping her butter knife onto her plate with a loud clatter. She forced her shoulders to relax and cleared her throat, her expression completely blank.
"Morning."
"Morning," Ren replied smoothly. He kept his distance, playing the polite stranger. "Hope I'm not interrupting."
The giant panda turned around in his chair. His beady black eyes locked onto Ren, studying him from head to toe.
"You don't look like a sorcerer," the panda said. His voice was deep, but it sounded completely casual.
Ren blinked. He knew exactly what Panda was, but seeing a six-foot bear sitting at a kitchen table in real life was still jarring.
"I'm not," Ren said, staying near the doorway. "Just a normal guy."
"He's the anomaly Satoru found," Maki cut in quickly. She picked up her butter knife again, focusing way too hard on her toast. "He tripped into some cursed residue in Harajuku. It messed up his physical limits. Satoru dragged him here so he doesn't accidentally kill someone by opening a door too hard."
Panda rubbed his furry chin, leaning back in his chair. "An anomaly. Right. And Satoru decided the best place for him was the room directly across from yours?"
Maki's knife stopped moving. "It was the only clean room left."
"Bonito flakes," the guy with the high collar muttered. He looked back and forth between Maki and Ren, his eyes narrowing slightly in skepticism.
Ren figured he needed to step in before Maki snapped her knife in half. He walked into the kitchen, keeping his posture slouched and relaxed, and pulled out a chair next to the table.
"Look," Ren said, making sure he sounded a little tired and out of his depth. "I don't really know how any of this jujutsu stuff works. The guy with the blindfold told me I had to come here or I'd get locked up by some higher-ups. I'm just trying not to cause trouble."
Panda stared at him for a few seconds. Then, the bear reached a massive, heavy paw across the table. "I'm Panda. That's Toge. Welcome to the second-year floor."
Ren reached out and took the paw. It felt like gripping thick, coarse carpet.
Panda gave a sudden, firm squeeze. It wasn't enough to break a bone, but it was definitely a test to see how a 'normal guy' would react to a cursed corpse's strength.
Ren didn't wince. Thanks to the Heavenly Restriction, the pressure felt like nothing more than a firm handshake. He just squeezed back politely and let go.
Panda's black eyes watched him closely for a second before he pulled his arm back. He didn't say anything, but he clearly noted the lack of reaction.
"Get your own breakfast," Maki told Ren, breaking the brief silence. She grabbed a loaf of bread and tossed it across the counter toward him.
Ren caught it effortlessly out of the air. He noticed Toge's eyes track the quick movement. He needed to be more careful.
"Thanks," Ren said, walking over to the toaster. He looked over his shoulder at the group. "By the way, Fushiguro told me to get some sleep last night, but he didn't tell me what I'm actually supposed to do today. Do I have classes?"