Amber arrived at Jujutsu High without any trouble.
The campus wasn't particularly large, but with so few students, many of the dormitory rooms had been left vacant for years. Though they lacked basic amenities, they were more than enough for Seele to spend a single night.
Despite everything that had happened throughout the day, Amber didn't feel particularly tired.
However, whether it was due to this being her first time crossing worlds, or perhaps because she'd grown used to Fu Hua's body—which never required sleep—in the previous world, Amber, now in Seele's body, felt a wave of drowsiness wash over her.
She had barely laid down before she drifted off to sleep.
What she didn't know was that, at the same time, the Herrscher of Sentience had also found a resting place that met her approval.
"So, what do you think?"
The Special Grade curse, Mahito, led the Herrscher of Sentience into a rather ordinary-looking apartment building. But once inside, she found it was anything but—a hidden world unfolded before her.
Pleasant sunlight, a brilliant blue ocean, and warm, inviting sand—the environment here was completely different from the outside. Clearly, they were within the domain of some powerful being.
With Amber's memories at her disposal, the Herrscher of Sentience knew immediately: this was the domain of Dagon, a curse born from humanity's fear of the ocean.
"It's alright, I suppose. Though I've always preferred mountains and forests over the sea."
The Herrscher of Sentience voiced her opinion without the slightest hesitation.
Hearing this, Hanami, who had been standing silently under a beach umbrella like a statue, turned to look at her.
"Haha, sounds like you and Hanami will have a lot in common," Mahito laughed. "As I mentioned earlier, we curses are born from human fears. I embody the fear humans have of each other. The master of this domain, Dagon, comes from the fear of the ocean."
He then gestured toward Hanami, and then to Jogo, who was sitting nearby with a pipe in his mouth. "Those two represent the fear of forests and the fear of the earth, respectively."
"You've got quite the lineup covered," the Herrscher of Sentience remarked, rubbing her chin thoughtfully.
"Mahito, so this is the one who's been helping curses grow stronger?" Jogo rose from his beach chair and began walking over, studying the Herrscher of Sentience closely.
"I can't sense your depth at all. What fear do you originate from?"
"Me?" The Herrscher of Sentience wasn't surprised to be mistaken for a curse.
She'd already set up a continuous, wide-area cognitive filter around herself. Even if Satoru Gojo examined her with his Six Eyes like a magnifying glass, she'd still register as a curse.
After all, her plan was to lead the curses into the light—openly and honorably. Wrapping herself in the identity of a curse would save a lot of trouble.
"You've got the sea, land, forests, and humans all covered. Since I'm stronger and more capable than all of you, of course I represent the sky!" She grinned, pointing upward.
"Hohoho… To have such power despite seeming so newly born—if you say you're the sky, it wouldn't surprise me."
Jogo accepted her explanation easily. It was commonly believed that curses lacked emotions, but their group was different.
Among these exceptions, Jogo valued feelings the most. As long as someone was his comrade, whatever they did or said could be forgiven, even supported.
As the strongest among the curses at present, Jogo had the magnanimity for that—in fact, he'd be thrilled to have more powerful curses join their side.
"Welcome, then. By the way, Mahito must have mentioned that we have a human jujutsu sorcerer working with us?" Jogo asked.
"Wait, wait. I think you've misunderstood something." The Herrscher of Sentience shook her head, then spread her hands with a smile. "I'm not joining you. You're joining me."
"What do you mean by that?" Jogo looked toward Mahito, who merely shrugged helplessly. He turned back, frowning.
"Simply put, your plan is just too boring. You call yourselves the new humanity, aiming to replace humans, but have you ever stopped to think what would happen if you pushed them too far?"
"The strong survive; the weak perish." Jogo wasn't bothered by her question.
"Even if we drive humanity into a corner, they still won't be able to perceive curses. They'll only fear disasters striking from who-knows-where. That kind of massive negative emotion will birth even more Special Grade curses, giving us more comrades."
"No, no, no. If you push humanity that far, they'll just wipe this country off the map entirely." The Herrscher of Sentience chuckled. "You don't actually think this is the only country in the world, do you?"
Jogo: "…Humans don't have that kind of power."
"Oh, they absolutely do," she cut in. "Besides, how exactly do you plan to 'replace' humans?"
"We kill all the jujutsu sorcerers… then we kill humans, fueling endless fear to create more curses. Finally, we curses will walk the earth openly."
"And that counts as replacing humans?"
"What's wrong with that?" Feeling that his ideals were being trampled, even if she was a fellow curse, Jogo couldn't help growing angry.
"I'm just saying—isn't what you're describing less 'replacing humanity' and more 'self-gratification'?"
"What did you say!?"
"To put it bluntly, even if you don't kill humans, curses can already roam the earth as they please. It's only because jujutsu sorcerers exist that curses have natural enemies. But think about it—if curses didn't attack humans, do you think jujutsu sorcerers would bother with curses?"
Here, the Herrscher of Sentience added, "Oh, except for those sorcerers who keep curses around to boost their own importance. We'll deal with those rotten higher-ups sooner or later."
Jogo: "…Humans are the pests of this world. We must shrink their living space."
"So you're saying that while curses walk the earth openly, humans should not be allowed to."
The Herrscher of Sentience nodded.
Jogo: "…More or less. So what?"
"No 'so what,' really."
"??"
"Oh, actually, I was just asking about your ideas. But whether you like it or not, you're joining me today." The Herrscher of Sentience finally showed a bright, healthy smile.
"Your ideal is impossible anyway. Rather than pointlessly throwing your lives away, why not work with me?"
The volcano on Jogo's head was bubbling fiercely, but his tolerance for fellow curses was remarkably high. Even this enraged, he held back from attacking. Suppressing his anger for now, he asked, "Then what is your ideal?"
"Oh, I want curses to walk the earth openly, too," she said.
"???"
Jogo nearly lost it. "Isn't that the same as what I want!? You brat!"
"Hey! That's not right. You're trying to seize illegal rights through unjust means. I'm achieving my goal through legitimate methods! Besides, your plan has zero chance of success, while mine will be a piece of cake."
The Herrscher of Sentience paid no mind to Jogo's fury. "Oh, and by the way—I just made the laws. Since we're going to be open and honorable from now on, we'll probably need a legal system and all that. I'll add more rules as I think of them."
After being humiliated repeatedly, even Jogo's remarkable patience as a curse was wearing thin. "Then let's see just what backing you have for all this boasting!"
The next instant, blazing flames erupted from his hands, shooting straight toward the gray-haired girl.
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T/N: Senti slams
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T/N: Mihoyo x Multiverse Fanfic Up!
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T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
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If you guys wanna check it out.