Chapter 38: Come and Fight Me, Emiya-kun!
Exorcising a full twenty-seven Grade 1 Cursed Spirits in twelve days is practically unheard of in the Jujutsu world.
If there were any monster capable of breaking this record, it would likely be Satoru Gojo, the "Strongest."
But the problem is, the Jujutsu world cannot allow such a valuable top-tier asset to waste time searching for and exorcising Cursed Spirits below Special Grade.
His time is almost entirely spent traveling the world to exorcise Cursed Spirits and tackle tricky problems that local Sorcerers cannot solve, all of which are virtually Special Grade level. Therefore, even if Gojo's rate of Cursed Spirit elimination isn't that fast, no fool would ever question his title as the "Strongest."
Grade 1 Sorcerers handle Grade 1 Cursed Spirits, Grade 2 handle Grade 2, Grade 3 handle Grade 3, and Grade 4 handle Grade 4—In the Jujutsu world, which is constantly short-handed and has high casualty rates, ensuring that the Sorcerers assigned to a grade are 100% capable of exorcising Curses of that strength is the best they can do. It's common for high-grade Sorcerers to exorcise lower-grade Cursed Spirits because even though it's difficult for most Sorcerers to make substantial power leaps, the sheer number of low-grade Cursed Spirits is far more terrifying than imagined. The Sorcerers execute missions non-stop just to maintain the situation so that it isn't discovered by most ordinary people.
However, even a Grade 1 Sorcerer, who is claimed to be able to exorcise a Grade 1 Cursed Spirit 100% of the time, is considered quite formidable if they can maintain a pace of one Grade 1 Cursed Spirit every few days.
They can win, but their physical stamina and Cursed Energy will inevitably be depleted to some extent, and even being cautious in the face of an unknown Cursed Technique makes injury highly likely. Under extremely bizarre Cursed Techniques, casualties are not out of the question.
But none of this affects Emiya.
As long as the enemy is within the Grade 1 Cursed Spirit scope, the current Emiya can successfully exorcise it using only Kanshou and Bakuya.
Physical exhaustion is recovered after a brief rest, and Cursed Energy is completely worry-free due to a certain reason.
Although his Magical Energy is consumed, the amount he accumulates is even greater. The reason Emiya hasn't increased his Cursed Spirit elimination speed further is partly because he has spent a significant amount of time projecting and stockpiling various Noble Phantasms.
Since he is unaware of the abilities of the enemies he will face in the future and the possibilities of Cursed Techniques are diverse, he has tried to create several versatile Noble Phantasms that can be used in critical moments.
Preparation is essential to ensure the enemy can be completely dispatched when it matters most.
Of course, the overall number of Cursed Spirits is indeed so vast that even the Jujutsu High cannot accurately estimate it, but the generation of high-grade Cursed Spirits is ultimately limited.
If a Grade 1 Cursed Spirit were to appear in a village with poor transportation, a tragedy with hundreds of casualties could easily occur. Even in cities, the emergence of every Grade 1 Cursed Spirit almost certainly results in casualties... Fires, gas explosions, missing persons, bus accidents... nearly half of these reports each month are "non-accidents" caused by Cursed Spirits.
If the number of high-grade Cursed Spirits were to increase further, human society would truly struggle to maintain the current balance.
In fact, precisely because Grade 1 Cursed Spirits are more intelligent, they instinctively avoid densely populated areas rather than engaging in pointless slaughter.
However, the monster is merely hiding; it hasn't turned over a new leaf.
Most of the Cursed Spirits Emiya has exorcised were those found hiding somewhere that Jujutsu High couldn't spare anyone to handle, or those that Sorcerers had been sent to but had temporarily failed to exorcise.
Without exception, he took care of all of them. Being recorded by Jujutsu High means they only came to attention after causing a disturbance.
By taking on all these extermination missions, Emiya single-handedly dealt with the majority of the Grade 1 Cursed Spirits in the area, giving many Grade 1 Sorcerers a "break." This is because Jujutsu High can confidently dispatch them to mass-exorcise lower-grade Cursed Spirits.
Unfortunately, Emiya still couldn't find the trace of that individual from before, and they seemed to have completely vanished since then, as if the malicious provocation was a mere accident.
But he won't give up; whether it's a Cursed Spirit or a Curse User, there is absolutely no possibility of someone like that retiring.
Emiya is even beginning to suspect it might be a tightly-knit organization. But would anyone believe an organization composed of both Cursed Spirits and Curse Users?
The only good news during this period is that his body isn't worsening; on the contrary, it's gradually improving. Is this a sign that the former rejection is gradually weakening?
Bang—!
The accumulated missions at Jujutsu High had almost been cleared out by Emiya alone. He was contemplating how to find clues about the culprit when the door to his room was suddenly kicked open.
The person was Satoru Gojo, whom Emiya hadn't seen much of lately, although he actually sneaks in every day to freeload a meal, as if Jujutsu High couldn't afford to feed him.
This guy walked in with exaggerated strides, hands in his pockets, and quickly arrived at the dining table, sitting silently opposite Emiya and staring at him.
"Your food is over there." Emiya skillfully pointed to the steaming curry rice on the counter.
"No, no! I didn't come here to eat this time! Do you really see me as that kind of person, Emiya-kun?" Gojo's expression looked quite wronged. But since he dared to ask, what else could Emiya do?
He simply nodded in response.
"..."
"Well, I admit I've been eating a bit much recently, but at least this time, that's not the reason I came." After a brief explanation, Gojo quickly leaned his head closer to Emiya and asked curiously, "I heard Emiya-kun solved two Grade 1 Cursed Spirits cleanly and efficiently today. All that was left at the scene were the Cursed Spirits' bodies sliced into three pieces and two knife marks.
The battle was resolved quite quickly, wasn't it?
But... how can you feel any novelty or excitement fighting against such weaklings? You just solve the opponent in one hit, which is less interesting than eating dessert, I think." It's not that Gojo necessarily loves fighting, but having to pull weeds in the field every day—a trivial matter—would inevitably become boring if done too much.
"Then, Gojo-san, what do you mean...?"
"Emiya-kun, you—" Gojo extended his hand, pointing at himself, then at Emiya.
"Come and fight me!"
Read ahead (60 chapters) by supporting me on buymeacoffee / VarieTL