CHAPTER 13: RYOIKI TENKAI BY NOBARA!?!?

Tokyo's sky was tainted with cursed clouds, thunder rumbling in the distance like a war drum. Beneath the neon glow of flickering signs, two figures walked side by side—one laughing loudly, the other rolling her eyes.

"Listen, Kugisaki," Todo boomed with his usual bravado, "I admire your courage, your resolve, your cursed technique… but alas—" he paused dramatically, "you still aren't my type."

Nobara clicked her tongue. "Good. Because I wouldn't date a guy who calls himself a 'boogie-woogie' freak."

Todo laughed harder. "Ah, such fire! But not enough muscle."

Their banter was cut short. From a veil of darkness ahead, something grotesque crawled from beneath the ruins—Kurourushi, the death-eating insect sorcerer, his grotesque mandibles clacking with cursed hunger.

"Dinner," Kurourushi hissed.

Without hesitation, Todo launched forward, his fists glowing with cursed energy. He delivered a ground-shaking punch to the creature's torso, but Kurourushi didn't even flinch—instead, he retaliated with a spear of cursed rot, sending Todo crashing into a vending machine.

Nobara stood in silence, the streetlights flickering above her.

"I've had enough of this."

She slammed her heel into the ground and raised her hammer.

Ryoiki Tenkai — Crimson Sonata: Nail of Judgment.

The cursed space erupted into a violent symphony of red light and sharp vibrations. The air cracked with the sound of hundreds of cursed nails being driven into reality.

Kurourushi's exoskeleton cracked, impaled from every direction by Nobara's relentless resonance. A final hammer strike echoed like a bell toll—and the insect king was no more.

Points: 100 for Nobara. 100 for Todo.

Todo stood up from the debris, brushing glass off his shoulder.

"Damn…" he said, impressed. Then smirked. "But she still isn't my type."

Nobara sighed. "Good. Because you were never even on the list."

They both walked on, ready for the next battle.