Curtain Call - Chapter 67

Curtain Call - Chapter 67

Ren was walking back to his dorm, his hands in his pockets, his thoughts swimming through binding vows, cursed circuits, and blood vessels. His feet moved on autopilot—he was practically living in his head these days.

But then—

A hand landed on his shoulder.

Ren froze.

There were only a handful of people insane enough to sneak up on him like that.

And only one who could do it without him noticing.

"Oi, Ren," a too-familiar voice chirped. "I've noticed you're not really talking with your classmates. Are you one of those quiet kids?"

Gojo.

Ren's eye twitched.

The man was standing behind him in his usual posture: too close, too casual, and far too smug for Ren's liking.

Ren turned and casually brushed Gojo's hand off his shoulder. "Classmates?" he said with a blank look. "I don't have time to make friends. Simple as that. Plus, don't you remember our deal? This place is where I learn cursed energy. Nothing else."

Gojo blinked behind his blindfold. "Hmm. I did not know you had problems talking to people your age!" He gasped theatrically and clutched his chest. "Sorry, my fault, okay? So now you'll be going on a little exorcism trip with your classmates! Mostly Maki, Panda, and Inumaki!"

The shift in tone from cold adult to enthusiastic game show host gave Ren whiplash. Gojo sounded like he was pitching a magical soap that also turned you into a better person.

Ren blinked. "Is this compulsory?"

Gojo nodded aggressively, like a bobblehead that had just been booted into life. "Yup yup yup! Compulsory!"

Before Ren could protest, Gojo grabbed his arm and began dragging him forward like a misbehaving puppy.

"Oi—what the—!?" Ren muttered and tried to dig his heels into the ground, but it was useless. Gojo didn't even break stride.

In his head, Ren was already boiling. "I need to make a technique. Something, anything, to beat this bastard up one day. Dragging me like this? Like I'm some plushie on sale!?"

He didn't even have the energy to yell out loud. He just stared at the sky, face frozen in an expression of bitter annoyance.

A few minutes later, Ren found himself standing outside what looked like a completely broken-down building. The windows were shattered. The walls looked half chewed through. Graffiti sprawled across the sides in every direction.

And next to him… was Maki.

Of course it was her.

Neither of them looked happy about this.

Gojo, however, looked like the happiest man alive. "Ah! Okay!" he beamed. "So! This is the building! Which broke down! Because—reasons!"

Ren sighed under his breath.

"Now," Gojo continued, "for some mysterious reason, a few teenagers have gone missing here! Your job is simple: exorcise the curse, rescue the teens if they're alive, and retrieve the bodies if they're not."

And just like that, Gojo clasped his hands together and muttered a short chant. The atmosphere shifted. Darkness swept through like an invisible tide, and a curtain formed—sealing the area in a field of cursed energy.

Inside, it was now just Ren and Maki.

Outside, Gojo was still standing there, smiling.

Ren muttered, "Ugh, there was nothing about curtains in the books he gave me… scammer."

He looked over at Maki, who already had her weapon out and was moving ahead without even glancing at him.

"Why did it have to be Maki? For God's sake. Last time the comment I made on her was really shit…" Ren thought. "Ugh. Whatever. It'll be fine. Just don't say anything weird."

What he didn't notice was the small grunt Maki gave as she looked ahead.

"UGH! Why did that stupid blindfolded guy tag me with HIM?! Of all people!" she thought, annoyed and slightly stressed. "I swear if he says one more thing that sounds like flirting, I will spear him into next week..."

Inside the curtain, the air was heavy, tainted with the bitter aftertaste of cursed energy. The sky had turned a shade of lifeless gray.

But outside the barrier?

Gojo was sitting atop a car, sunglasses now down, grinning like he'd just pulled off the perfect prank.

"Hmm, I've been watching Ren for a while now…" Gojo thought, spinning his phone in one hand. "He only studies. Good. That means he wants to learn. But bad… because he's barely trying to connect with anyone else."

He thought back to the short exchange he'd witnessed between Ren and Maki a few days ago. Nothing too special, just a weird comment that had clearly flustered Maki and gone entirely over Ren's head.

Gojo giggled. "Hehehe… I saw that little chat. Let's just see what happens when we put them in a high-stress setting together~"

He hummed to himself and pulled out a bag of sweets, tossing one into the air and catching it in his mouth with stupidly practiced precision.

Meanwhile, inside the building, Ren and Maki were moving in tense silence.

Not a word between them yet.

It was like being partnered with a fridge that had a grudge.

Ren glanced around, scanning the interior for signs of cursed energy. His thoughts were already shifting away from Gojo and toward the job at hand.

But one thing stuck in the back of his mind.

"This was all his plan, wasn't it? To get me paired with her again… That blindfolded clown is stirring drama just for fun, but this also means he is keeping his eyes on me... huh? I never noticed... I have to be more careful around him..."