Chapter 37: The Tally is Roughly Twenty-Seven
If the malice ordinary Cursed Spirits hold towards humans is merely an instinct stemming from their very existence, then the current situation is far more sinister.
Judging by the way that individual deliberately lured Emiya to a secluded corner to display the 'result,' if it truly was a Cursed Spirit, its level of intelligence would be no less than that of a human.
Given that even Grade 1 Cursed Spirits only possess unusual learning abilities, the Cursed Spirit manipulating all of this should be a Special Grade, shouldn't it?
First, there was a sneak attack by a Curse User, and immediately afterward, there was this act that bordered on a demonstration... Are they working together? But is it truly possible for humans and Cursed Spirits to cooperate in this way?
However, the true mastermind aside, the doctor at Jujutsu High said that the essence of this Cursed Technique involves body modification, meaning the true victims are definitely not limited to the one they saw.
Wantonly destroying and modifying human bodies not only ruthlessly took their lives but also inflicted endless suffering beforehand.
Regardless of whether the perpetrator is a Curse User or a Cursed Spirit, Emiya would never let them go for such vile actions. Would someone who treats human lives as mere materials for a Cursed Technique experiment curb their behavior for any other reason? Clearly, that's impossible.
For every day that individual is left unchecked, an unknown number of victims will suffer.
"Ijichi-san... have you found any information related to this type of Cursed Technique?" Emiya looked at Ijichi, the Assistant Supervisor who remained in the room.
Even if appearances could be changed with the aid of technology, a Cursed Technique is an inherent property that neither a Curse User nor a Cursed Spirit can ever change. Any Cursed Technique that has ever appeared should be traceable by Jujutsu High, as it is, after all, an official organization.
"The records failed to locate any similar Cursed Technique, not even one with a close effect... so it's safe to assume the culprit is a newly emerged Curse User."
"As for a Cursed Spirit... based on what Emiya-san described—that it could attract you to the scene yet avoid you beforehand—if it's a Cursed Spirit, that's simply too..."
The reason Ijichi reached this conclusion was simple: there has never been a phenomenon to suggest a Cursed Spirit possesses such a degree of intellect.
High-grade Cursed Spirits possess strong learning capabilities, true, but their inherent volatility and vast individual differences preclude them from evolving into a human-like social
civilization. It would be difficult to convince most Sorcerers that a Cursed Spirit capable of calculating and strategizing like a human could exist.
"No... it's actually more likely to be a Cursed Spirit," Emiya suddenly countered. "If the culprit is human, to modify an unrelated bystander like that right after first awakening a Cursed Technique... is that truly something a member of the same species would do?" Emiya was unaware of the habits of Cursed Spirits, but both instinctively and cognitively, he believed the culprit in this incident was a Cursed Spirit, and he actually hoped it was one.
Ijichi knew he shouldn't argue at this moment, so he tried to say, "Pure speculation won't lead to a conclusion, so it would be better to try and find and capture the culprit as soon as possible." Anyone who saw their own kind transformed like that would likely be in a poor state of mind.
"Then let's go, Ijichi-san." Emiya stood up from the sofa and walked toward the entrance with firm steps.
"What?"
"If empty words won't lead to a conclusion... if that individual is truly a Cursed Spirit, then by carrying out all the Cursed Spirit extermination missions, we will eventually catch it."
"No matter how large the area of this city is, the number of Cursed Spirits is ultimately finite, right?" A monster can hide for a long time beneath murky waters, but what if the entire pool is cleaned out? Even a tiny fish fry couldn't escape under those circumstances.
"But, that's just too..." Unbelievable?
Is it truly advisable to use the most clumsy yet effective method of elimination in Cursed Spirit extermination to find the true culprit? Logic told Ijichi that this was virtually impossible to achieve, yet a different voice in his heart constantly whispered: What if he really can do it? Since Emiya had decided to proceed this way, Ijichi, as the Assistant Supervisor, had no reason to refuse.
Don't forget, Emiya already had several pending Grade 1 Cursed Spirit missions. Without any hesitation, Emiya immediately confirmed the location of the next mission, and Ijichi drove him there.
Since Emiya left, Yotsuya Miko naturally had no reason to stay either. Before leaving, however, she made sure to save Ijichi's contact information.
Twelve days passed in the blink of an eye. To facilitate his Cursed Spirit extermination missions, Emiya requested temporary lodging at Jujutsu High, avoiding lifestyle complications.
In fact, on the first night, Satoru Gojo had already returned from seeking justice from the Higher-Ups.
The Higher-Ups did not directly admit to colluding with the Curse User, but they still gave Emiya a series of compensations, under Gojo's demand, using the pretense of "failing to adequately investigate the mission."
However, Gojo's expression was quite poor after returning from the Higher-Ups that day, as if he had learned something bad.
Emiya knew he didn't want to talk about it, so he didn't ask. The next day, though, Gojo resumed his cheerful, flippant demeanor and rushed off to carry out Cursed Spirit extermination missions.
During his own extermination missions, Emiya realized that what were called Grade 1 Cursed Spirits had become completely non-threatening to him.
He initially believed Grade 1 Cursed Spirits were similar in strength to a Servant, but after gradually mastering the Cursed Energy within his body, the Cursed Spirits' true strength was exposed.
They were only similar to Servants in terms of physical durability. However, Heroic Spirits are who they are because they first had the qualifications to be such beings before ascending to the Throne of Heroes.
Consciousness, skill, and strategy—Cursed Spirits completely lack these elements.
Even with the addition of a Cursed Technique, it is merely comparable to a single Noble Phantasm, and they still fall short of a true Servant.
After mastering Cursed Energy and learning to use it effectively in combat, Emiya's efficiency in Cursed Spirit extermination was roughly three to seven splits (meaning 30% time fighting, 70% time traveling/locating). For a full twelve days, Emiya spent almost all his time exterminating Cursed Spirits. The combat time was almost negligible, with most of the time spent traveling and locating them. Therefore, the efficiency wasn't extremely high, averaging two Cursed Spirits eliminated per day.
Over the span of twelve days, the total number of Grade 1 Cursed Spirits exterminated by Emiya within the Tokyo area was 27.
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