Chapter 22 The Main Body Eleven Days

On the coffee table in the living room is a bag of Xijiufu, matcha flavored, from the familiar Miyagi Sendai.

I know who left it.

When there is only one possibility or one choice, some questions can be answered without thinking.

You might even find the answer just by looking at the question itself.

Gojo Satoru.

After I left the vocational college, everything related to sorcery gradually faded from my life.

Yokohama is a magical city.

Despite the somewhat chaotic situation regarding supernatural abilities, Yokohama remains peaceful when it comes to cursed spirits.

Aside from occasionally exorcising a few simple curses, I haven't done anything related to sorcerers in Yokohama.

Although I told Ji and the others that we could still keep in touch when I left, both of us probably understood that my words were mostly just a polite way of comforting them.

We don't keep in frequent contact.

Apart from Yigu visiting me in Yokohama before going abroad, we haven't seen each other since.

I wasn't too surprised by this situation, as it was entirely a predictable development.

Just like me, Oikawa, and Iwaizumi back then.

The fading of each other's lives is an inevitable result of different life trajectories and the forgetting of perspectives.

But that doesn't stop us from being as warm and friendly when we meet again as when we parted.

Just like now, I don't feel the slightest bit unfamiliar with them when I mention them.

I naturally distanced myself from everyone at the college.

Maki, Tsubasa, Otoko, Panda, Sister Glass, Mr. Nanami, Mr. Ichichi.

Without exception.

Only the fifth one is enlightened.

I still see him often, and I can still feel his presence in every corner of my life, just like before.

But this makes me conflicted.

I truly love the profession of a sorcerer and aspire to become a sorcerer like Gojo Satoru, with exceptional skill in sorcery. I know that such a level is difficult to reach, and I know that hard work doesn't guarantee success, but hard work will never betray me.

If the probability of failing is infinitely high, then at the very least, in the most humble way, please let me have the satisfaction of "at least I tried my best."

but.

I've said it before, I'm not stubborn or inflexible.

If even the premise of being able to work hard is not solid, I won't keep torturing myself.

I have struggled, felt lost, pondered, and hesitated in the deepest of nights, but in the end, I can let it go.

I don't care about my prematurely destroyed dreams, I don't care about all the distorted developments in my life, and I don't care whether the system kidnapped me or accompanied me.

So a long time ago, Oikawa said that he really didn't know whether to call me open-minded or easygoing.

I smiled and didn't say anything, because I didn't know either.

Who would have thought that after all these years, although I always felt I understood myself well, I still couldn't distinguish whether I belonged to the former or the latter category on this issue. Perhaps human emotions are just that peculiar, sometimes so complex that even we ourselves can't tell the difference.

I gradually adapted to the new, chaotic, and busy life.

I respect Mr. Kobayashi, admire Oda Sakunosuke, and strive to meet Mr. Fitzgerald's expectations of me. I get along well with John, Mark, and Poe. Although Miss Louise prefers to be alone, Lovecraft is not very talkative, and Montgomery often utters some insincere and malicious remarks, I still consider our relationship to be good.

That's how it should have been.

But Gojo Satoru made me hesitate.

He made me wonder if I should choose that carefree or easygoing approach without looking back.

I tried to let go of this hesitation.

Instead of doing something meaningless, it's better to exorcise the curse.

That's what I was planning to say back then.

This statement is actually a bit absolute and heartless; I almost never say such things.

—But I'll be very happy if I happen to bump into or wake up on those two occasions.

This is how Gojo Satoru cut me off.

That's really too much, Mr. Gojo.

With just that one sentence, I gave in.

The whole game is lost.

****

There was only one bottle of milk left in the refrigerator. I checked the cupboards, but there was no more milk in the house.

Time to go out and buy some supplies.

I realized that.

The weather today is fairly sunny, with warm and bright sunshine.

As we all know, cherry blossoms have a short blooming period. The cherry blossoms on both sides of the street have long since fallen, and there is hardly any pink left on the branches.

Yokohama is a big city, and there's a high density of convenience stores. There's a convenience store not far from my house, and I go there often. Plus, my distinctive hair color makes me stand out, so the cashier recognizes me pretty well.

"Are you buying milk today too?" See, I told you the cashier recognizes me.

"Hmm," I said.

"Huh? You also bought a bento box. It must be one of the newest flavors on the shelf."

Yes. I'd like to give it a try.

Of course, the real reason is simply that I don't want to cook anymore.

In the life of someone living alone, there's no need to consider others, so cooking is the step that can be omitted the most.

"You look a little tired. Have you been sleeping poorly lately?" That's what I asked.

"Sigh." She tilted her head. "Indeed, it's probably because I'm too tired from work."

I felt the power of the curse flowing through my body.

It's been so long!

"Give."

"Thank you for your help." I took the bag that was handed to me. "You need to make sure you get plenty of rest. I'm sure you'll have a good dream tonight."

She smiled, her eyes narrowing, "I understand, thank you for your concern."

I left the convenience store.

Yokohama is filled with buildings of varying sizes and styles. But almost everywhere you look, you can see five towering buildings standing tall – the symbol of the Port Mafia.

When I worked at Manhasset Security, I could often catch a glimpse of the Port Mafia building in the distance through the huge floor-to-ceiling windows.

Compared to the Armed Detective Agency occupying only the fifth floor of one building, these five buildings practically give the Port Mafia the most prestige.

A ding-dong sound.

That's the notification sound for an email.

I heard a crisp notification sound, but for a moment I couldn't remember who sent the email.

From: Panda

[Hey! Long time no see! How have you been?]

I:……

I seriously doubt whether someone overheard my inner thoughts today, because everyone is doing the opposite of what I'm thinking.

For example, I just said that Yokohama is so peaceful in terms of curses that I almost never do anything related to curse masters, and yet the curse appeared.

For example, I just mentioned that I haven't kept in touch with Maki, Thorn, and Panda since I left the vocational high school, and Panda sent me an email.

To: Panda

[Long time no see! I'm doing well. I wonder how you all are. There must be so much to handle at the vocational college; it must be very tiring. Please give my regards to everyone.]

send.

I put my phone away and looked up.

? ? ?

I was wondering if I hadn't paid attention when I was sending the email and thus took the wrong turn, because I shouldn't have turned into this alley. But compared to the current situation, taking the wrong turn was obviously insignificant.

It's a waste that I was just admiring how peaceful you are when it comes to curses.

Yokohama, you have truly disappointed me.

"Expanding the Domain—'Mountains and Rivers'."