"And what, exactly, are you?"
"You—!"
Jinichi Zenin's face went scarlet. He sucked in several harsh breaths before regaining his composure, then slammed his fist into the floor. Splinters flew.
"All right, all right."
Masamichi Yaga stepped in to smooth things over, waving a hand. "It's not that big a deal. Kira, you're here now—no need for gifts..."
"Come on in, take a seat."
His close-combat ability is supposed to be average at best, Yaga thought. How did he haul a Cursed Spirit that heavy all the way up here? I didn't see him use a shikigami, either...
Kira gave a slight nod, stepped over the corpse sprawled across the doorway, and picked his way carefully around the blood, making sure none of it touched his trouser cuffs.
He didn't walk fast, but his stride brooked no argument. Every step was spaced exactly the same. No matter the circumstances, Nanami Kira always maintained this one habit.
Habit was humanity's greatest virtue.
He settled into the seat at the very center, asked a nearby attendant for a cup of tea, and set it beside his knee.
"I hereby announce: the trial of semi-special grade sorcerer Nanami Kira—"
The speaker was an old man seated at the head of the room. He propped up half his face with one hand, his aged eyes narrowed to slits as though he were about to doze off.
"—is now in session."
This was the head of the Zenin Clan.
Having delivered those words, he rose, picked up a jug of sake, and shuffled lazily toward the rear courtyard.
"Nanami Kira, I'm asking you." Jinichi spoke first, aggressive as ever. "Monday, around noon—where were you?"
"Matsugami Open-Air Restaurant. The sardines there are excellent."
"You were at the cinema."
Kira took a sip of tea, letting the faintly bitter liquid flow into his stomach. Warmth spread through him.
"Please be more specific. I was at the cinema at 11:30."
He narrowed his eyes slightly and slipped his continuously growing fingers into his pocket.
"Do you deny that your shikigami possesses the ability to kill at long range?"
This question came from the Kamo Clan's representative.
"I don't deny it."
The questioning continued.
"Where were you the two days following?"
"Tokyo Jujutsu High."
"Every moment?"
"Every moment."
"Did you or did you not say the following: 'I'll sit on my couch, eat my bread, and watch you all die—one by one, nice and easy'?"
Kira glanced at Yaga. Yaga gave him a look that said I only reported what you actually said, with an apologetic press of his palms together.
"...Yes." Kira turned back toward the Tokyo Jujutsu High contingent, his expression unchanged. "And I stand by it: you will die. One by one."
Hoshino Ei sat hidden among the crowd, meeting his gaze. She blinked and offered a small smile.
"Kira!"
Jinichi smashed the table beside him, roaring. "You arrogant little—!"
Shut up... Kira stared at the brown tea leaves floating in his cup. Shut up. It's like ten million little people chattering in my ears.
Shut up...
"Nanami Kira—do you or do you not deny that yesterday, at noon, you left the school grounds without authorization?"
"I don't deny it."
"Why? According to our intelligence, you first returned to your own home—a villa in northeastern Tokyo."
Went home to water the cat... He wanted to say that, but what came out was: "I was concerned my students couldn't handle this particular curse on their own. As a responsible adult, I had both the obligation and, given that I was on scene, the duty."
What a sorry sight I am, he thought. What a sorry sight. Sitting here like a prisoner, answering their questions. What a sorry sight...
Hoshino Ei was in the crowd somewhere. She was probably watching and laughing.
He couldn't claim that Hoshino Ei had lured him out—that he'd fallen into her trap and left the school. Her stealth was too terrifying. She hadn't left a single trace at the scene.
To everyone else, if Kira made that accusation, he'd be slandering a sixteen-year-old girl out of desperation.
What a sorry sight.
"Nanami Kira—do you acknowledge that at 2:30 PM, you passed through Crow Town?"
"I do."
"Why?"
"It's a shortcut to the cinema."
"Are you aware that at that exact time, nearly a hundred families in Crow Town were massacred?"
"I am."
"Are you aware that the only trace detected at the scene was the aura of your shikigami, Killer Queen?"
"I am."
"I believe the truth is perfectly clear."
Naoya Zenin delivered his conclusion with a cold smile. "My apologies, Kira-kun. You know everything. You've admitted everything."
"Did you come here to turn yourself in?"
"I deny killing anyone."
Kira looked at Naoya. Beneath the table, his fingernails had already dug into his own flesh.
Kill him. Kill them all. Irritation.
Irritation!
"There exists an unknown Special Grade Cursed Spirit called Mahito. His Cursed Technique transforms humans into monsters—but those monsters aren't Cursed Spirits. They're still human, which is why they carry no Cursed Spirit aura. Before I entered that alley, he had already turned every resident into one of those creatures. I was attacked and had no choice but to eliminate them."
For the first time in a long while, Nanami Kira told the truth.
Everyone laughed—everyone except the conservative faction and the representatives from both schools. The entire hall erupted.
Jinichi slapped his own thigh, tears streaming from laughter.
"Kira—Kira-kun, you are truly hilarious! A Special Grade Cursed Spirit? Could you at least come up with a better story? Saying Vegeta showed up to wipe out humanity would be more believable!"
Endure it.
"The corpse at the door."
Kira's expression remained perfectly calm. "That is a human being—a modified human being. It has the body of a monster, but at its core, it's still human. No Cursed Spirit aura whatsoever."
"Every creature in that alley was the same."
A ripple passed through the room. Spines straightened on reflex. Yaga frowned and leaned over to murmur something to Ieiri.
She nodded reluctantly, descended the steps, walked past Kira, and crouched to examine the creature—thoroughly, meticulously.
The hall waited in silence.
At last, Ieiri spoke. "No Cursed Spirit aura. No Cursed Tools concealing its energy signature. Every aspect of its anatomy is consistent with a human being. This is an ordinary human corpse."
"Absurd! Absolutely absurd!"
Jinichi overturned his table and glared at Kira. The great scar on his face seemed to come alive, flushing crimson. "How is that possible?"
Gakuganji spoke, measured and deliberate. "Zenin-kun, please respect the evidence. This is, in fact, a human corpse."
"...This doesn't prove anything."
Naoya shook his head. "Even if we accept that the things Kira killed that day were these creatures, we still don't know where they came from. For all we know, Kira manufactured them himself."
Let it go. Just let it be.
"Why would I create monsters only to kill them myself? Why would I walk straight into the trap? Why would I commit a crime so blatantly, when far better methods exist?"
"What's my motive?"
Kira raised his head and held Naoya's gaze.
"What is my motive?"
"...I don't know."
"For power? I voluntarily declined the Special Grade evaluation. To satisfy a killing urge? I helped save Kyoto. What would my goal be?"
"You still have no definitive evidence proving your innocence."
Let it go. For the sake of a quiet life.
"No, I don't."
Kira gazed at the teacup in his hand. "But you can't prove I killed anyone, either."
Just let it be.
"I propose we suspend this trial. I will personally track down and apprehend the Cursed Spirit. You're welcome to send people to monitor me."
Just let it be. For the sake of a quiet life. Keep being an ordinary salaryman. Keep doing the work.
With the backing of both Kyoto and Tokyo Jujutsu High, plus the support of Gakuganji's conservative faction, combined with the reputation and trust Kira had built over years—a suspended sentence should be possible.
When the time came, he would make Mahito pay in the most brutal way imaginable. Tear him to pieces. Grind him to pulp. And then—
Return to his quiet life.
Just let it be.
Kira's proposal visibly moved the room. Even some of the Zenin representatives wore thoughtful expressions. It was true: the Zenin Clan despised Kira, which was exactly why they'd pounced at the first sign of weakness. But they weren't fools. Setting personal feelings aside, it was genuinely hard to believe Nanami Kira capable of something so savage.
Because he was Nanami Kira—that ordinary, dedicated salaryman. As Kasumi Miwa had once said: What could Kira-kun possibly be scheming?
"Kira..." Naoya started, hesitant.
"Zenin—let this old man have a word."
Gakuganji stepped out from the crowd. People parted for him. Everyone knew Kira had saved his life, so they assumed Gakuganji was seizing the moment to speak in Kira's favor.
This is where it ends, Kira thought. Because I'm Nanami Kira, and people trust Nanami Kira.
"Kira-kun."
Gakuganji paused. Then, under every eye in the hall, he spoke—softly.
"How can you prove that you are Kira-kun?"
"What if... what if you are—"
"Hasegawa Kaede?"
"The Special Grade Curse User who has taken over Nanami Kira's body?"
Kira glanced toward Hoshino Ei in the crowd. Said nothing.
The scale in his heart began to tip.
Sliding toward the abyss.