escape

Rin lay in her bed, staring at the ceiling in deep thought. As she woke up, she yawned and sensed a difference in her body. She felt an unfamiliar clarity and connection to her cursed energy.

"Is this the taste of my cursed energy?" Rin murmured to herself. "I understand now the big difference between putting the ingredients together without tasting them and knowing what they taste like, and truly understanding what you are doing."

She recalled the battle, the desperate moments when she pushed herself to the brink. The Black Flash had been a revelation, a moment where she felt her cursed energy in its purest form. It was as if she had unlocked a new level of understanding and control.

Rin's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of footsteps. She turned to see Azrael standing in the doorway, a faint smile on his face.

"Good morning, Rin," Azrael greeted her. "How are you feeling?"

Rin simply looked at him without saying anything, her eyes cold and resolute. She got up and walked past him, her mind seething with determination. As she moved, she silently vowed to herself that she would kill this old man the moment she had the chance.

Azrael watched her go, his expression unreadable. He sensed the shift in her demeanor but said nothing, allowing her to process her thoughts and emotions.

Rin walked outside, feeling the morning air fill her lungs. She clenched her fists, feeling the pulse of her cursed energy. The clarity and control she had gained from landing the Black Flash coursed through her, a newfound strength surging within.

"Can I open my domain twice a day now?" Rin thought to herself, considering the heightened efficiency of her cursed energy control. The experience of executing the Black Flash had elevated her understanding and mastery, and she felt the difference keenly.

Rin's mind raced with possibilities. With her enhanced control, she could push her limits further and explore new techniques.

...

Six months passed swiftly, and now Rin stood in the middle of an arena, surrounded by sorcerers and sorceresses of various calibers. Their gazes held a mixture of emotions—caution, hatred, admiration, even lust. The arena buzzed with anticipation as they awaited the upcoming test.

"Rin, this is a test to see if you can defeat an enemy without heavily damaging them, so be careful not to kill anyone," Azrael announced, his voice commanding the attention of everyone present.

Rin, her face etched with disdain, responded with an annoyed tone, "Yes, yes." She felt the weight of the stares around her but paid them no mind. Looking left and right, she smirked and spat on the ground, a clear indication of her disrespect.

Instantly, the crowd was triggered. Anger and indignation filled the arena as curses and shouts erupted from all sides.

"Who does she think she is?"

"Arrogant brat!"

"Show some respect!"

Rin's smirk widened, enjoying the reaction she had provoked. The disdain in her eyes grew as she looked at the sorcerers around her. Their anger only fueled her resolve. She had no intention of earning their approval or respect.

With a smile on her face, Rin began forming her domain hand sign. Instantly, everyone noticed what she was doing and started panicking. Even Azrael raised his eyebrows, skeptical yet aware that Rin wasn't foolish enough to cause a fight with him—a fight she couldn't win yet.

"Domain Expansion: Seas of the Crystal Forest," Rin chanted, her tone dripping with sarcasm.

Her domain instantly unleashed, surrounding all the sorcerers. Upon entering her domain, 85% of them were instantly frozen into statues, and the rest felt their bodies gradually freezing. This all happened in just 0.2 seconds as Rin opened her domain for only that brief moment, closing it as quickly as she could to avoid killing them.

The arena fell silent, the sudden shift in power leaving everyone stunned. Rin looked around, her eyes cold and unyielding.

Azrael approached Rin, clapping his hands. "Opening your domain for a short moment to imply its sure-hit effect to paralyze everyone, rendering them incapable of fighting—it's impressive."

"But it's pretty useless against an enemy on the same level as you. After closing your domain, you will be in an unstable state, making it extremely difficult to control your cursed technique."

He paused, his eyes reflecting a mix of genuine admiration and calculated analysis. "Truly impressive skill. Did you come up with this idea, Rin?"

"It's totally my original technique. Who could think of these impressive abilities except me?" Rin responded shamelessly, maintaining a straight face despite knowing she had stolen the technique from Gojo.

Azrael raised an eyebrow, a slight smirk forming on his lips. "Is that so? Well, regardless of its origin, your execution was flawless."

Rin shrugged, the corner of her mouth twitching in a restrained smile. "Execution is everything. The rest is just details."

"..."

...

"Follow me, Rin. I have a mission for you," Azrael demanded after looking at her for three seconds before turning and leaving.

Rin, a bit confused but curious, followed him anyway. They walked through the winding halls in silence until they reached Azrael's office. The room was dimly lit, filled with ancient tomes and various cursed artifacts.

Azrael closed the door behind them and turned to face Rin, his expression serious. "There's a situation that requires your particular set of skills."

Rin sat in a chair and leaned back like she owned the place, a hint of defiance in her posture. "What?" she asked, clearly not taking the mission seriously.

Azrael ignored her manner and continued, "One year ago, we sent two Grade 1 sorcerers on a mission to collect a special-grade cursed object. We lost contact with them and have no idea if they are lost or dead."

Rin's eyebrows raised slightly, her interest piqued. "And you want me to go find them?"

"Not just find them," Azrael said, his tone stern and unwavering. "You need to retrieve the cursed object and, if possible, discover what happened to the sorcerers. We need to know their fate and secure the artifact at all costs."

Rin yawned, feigning indifference. "What do they look like if, by some miracle, I find them alive?" she asked lazily, stretching her arms.

Azrael reached into his desk and pulled out a detailed painting of the two sorcerers. Rin instantly recognized them. She had watched them die at the hands of the One-Eyed King. Her heart skipped a beat, but she quickly concealed her shock, maintaining her facade of boredom.

As Azrael continued to provide more information about the mission, Rin's mind wandered. She couldn't concentrate on his words because she already knew the place. She had been there, witnessed their deaths, and regretted not scavenging their bodies for valuable items at that time.

"I should have searched and looted their bodies back then. Fuck, I thought they wouldn't have anything valuable, worthless piece of shits" Rin thought to herself, mentally kicking herself for the missed opportunity. Her mind was a whirlwind of thoughts and regrets, but she forced herself to focus as Azrael continued.

"What's the special-grade cursed object's abilities and how does it look?" Rin asked curiously, trying to gather as much information as possible.

Azrael sighed, his frustration evident. "We don't know," he admitted, a hint of exasperation in his voice. "All we have are vague descriptions from ancient records. They mention its immense power and the fact that it's a small talisman. Beyond that, its specific abilities and appearance are unknown. It's a mystery shrouded in secrecy. Your task is to find it and bring it back here safely."

Rin nodded, her expression serious. "I will take my leave now," she said, turning on her heel and leaving the room as fast as possible, leaving Azrael confused.

…

After three days of relentless travel, Rin finally reached the remote location where the sorcerers had vanished. The air was thick with the scent of decay, and the area was eerily quiet. She scanned the surroundings, her eyes narrowing as she spotted the skeletal remains of the sorcerers.

Approaching cautiously, Rin began scavenging their skeletal bodies. Her hands moved with practiced efficiency, searching for any clue or object that might lead her to the cursed talisman. As she rifled through the bones, her fingers closed around a peculiar-looking ring on the woman's skeletal hand.

Rin's curiosity piqued, she channeled her cursed energy into the ring. Immediately, a strange distortion in space occurred, and the woman's skeleton was sucked into the ring in an instant. Rin's eyes widened in astonishment.

"Is this... like those storage rings from the Chinese novels I read in my previous life?" she muttered to herself, a mix of excitement and disbelief in her voice. The concept was familiar to her from countless stories where characters used magical rings to store items and corpses.

Determined to be certain, Rin continued testing the ring. She picked up various objects—stones, branches, even a discarded weapon—and channeled her cursed energy into the ring. Each time, the items were instantly absorbed into the ring's mysterious space.

Satisfied with her discovery, Rin knew she had found something incredibly valuable. The ring's abilities opened up new possibilities for her, and she was determined not to lose it. The thought of handing it over to Azrael didn't sit well with her. She wanted to keep the ring for herself, to use its power for her own purposes.

As she planned her next move, a sly smile crept across her face. She had no intention of returning to Azrael. Instead, she decided to make a bold move—one that would take her away from Azrael's control and into a new world of opportunities.

"Can I join the Akatsuki?" Rin muttered to herself, her smile widening as she considered the possibilities.