Thud.
Without any surprise at all, Felt was yanked straight down.
She scrambled back to her feet, her delicate, palm-sized face flushed red with anger.
Without a word, she sprang up and did not even bother running. She lifted her leg and kicked hard at Satoru Gojo.
"You bastard!"
"You jerk, I'll—"
"Alright, alright. I get how you're feeling."
"After all, running into each other again in such a huge capital city, you must be pretty excited."
Gojo caught Felt's incoming kick with one hand. The grin on his face looked downright infuriating to her as he spoke in a perfectly serious tone.
"You people have really pissed me off!"
"Gojo, watch out!"
Behind him came Rachins' low, ominous voice.
And Subaru 's anxious shout.
Even Felt, whose kick had just been blocked, widened her eyes and stared past Gojo.
"Get out of the way…"
"Hm?"
"What are you two talking about?"
Faced with their warnings, Gojo did not react at all.
Without even turning his head, he spoke cheerfully.
Behind him, Rachins stared down at the two daggers in his hands, his face full of disbelief.
Because he had not stabbed Gojo at all.
And yet…
When the blades neared Gojo, it was as if they were stopped by an invisible wall.
No matter how much force he put in, he could not push them through that unseen barrier, much less hurt the man in front of him.
Subaru and Felt both saw this shocking scene clearly.
Their hearts were filled with the same disbelief.
"Oh, you mean this guy?"
Gojo finally seemed to realize what they were talking about. "I thought something serious was happening."
"If this is all he's got, he shouldn't even dream of touching the hem of my clothes."
As he spoke, Gojo turned around, looked at the stunned Rachins, and raised his hand, flicking his finger lightly.
"Robbery and attempted assault are serious crimes pretty much anywhere, right?"
"What kind of trick are you pulling?!"
Rachins stared at Gojo's mocking expression, fear and shock mixing in his chest. He swung his daggers again, desperately trying to break through that invisible force.
No matter what he did, it was useless.
"I'll help you!"
Seeing this, Gaston rushed forward and swung his massive fist at Gojo.
Unfortunately…
Neither daggers nor fists could breach that invisible defense.
Instead, the two of them just ended up looking ridiculous, like clowns putting on a show.
"And me too!"
Camberley charged in as well.
To be fair, even if these three were scum, they were at least loyal to each other.
"How touching. In that case, I can't very well play favorites."
Gojo gently flicked the finger resting in front of Rachins' forehead.
A terrifying impact slammed into all three of them at once.
Like cannonballs, they were blasted straight out of the alley and into the wall outside, collapsing unconscious on the spot.
"Alright. Now no one will interrupt our little reunion."
Gojo smiled as he turned back to Felt.
Her ankle was still firmly in his grip, leaving her no way to escape.
Felt snapped out of her stunned daze.
"Bastard, let go of me!"
"Now! Hurry up!"
After witnessing what had just happened, she knew full well that she posed no threat to this guy.
Even so, that did not stop her from kicking and punching him wildly.
"Hey, why are you being like this? I thought we were good friends."
Gojo teased her with a hint of mischief as he watched her panic.
"Who's friends with you, you robber!"
"Robber, huh?"
"Then that just means we're even better suited to be friends."
"Don't you think, little thief?"
At some point, a finely crafted badge had appeared in Gojo's hand.
A giant dragon was engraved on it, and at its center sat a thumb-sized gem that looked almost jewel-like.
With Gojo's eye for value, he could tell at a glance that this badge was anything but ordinary.
Even in the modern world, it would have been worth a fortune.
"You stole my stuff again!"
"Give it back!"
"Give it back!"
Felt reached into her pocket and found it empty. She instantly panicked.
Even with one leg still held, she bent down with astonishing flexibility and snapped her teeth toward Gojo's arm, trying to force him to return it.
But just like the three thugs before her…
She could not touch Gojo at all.
She could only snap helplessly at empty air, like a fish dying of thirst.
"Alright, alright, I'll give it back. You're really not cute at all."
Gojo shrugged. He had only meant to tease the girl a little.
Who she stole from or how she got things was none of his business. He had no interest in playing the role of some moral instructor.
"But in exchange, shouldn't you at least tell me your name? This is our second time meeting, after all."
"I'm Satoru Gojo, just a traveler who happened to pass through. He's Subaru Natsuki. Same deal, so we're traveling together."
"Felt. My name's Felt, okay?!"
"Huh. You didn't even lie. That's kind of surprising."
"Here you go."
Gojo tossed the badge toward Felt and released her leg.
She finally relaxed and quickly caught it.
The moment Felt touched the badge, Gojo noticed a faint red glow bloom across its surface, strangely eye-catching.
It glows?
In an era without electricity, Gojo could only chalk this up to magic.
No wonder Felt treasured it so much.
Anything with supernatural power was bound to be expensive in any world.
Just like the cursed tools used by Jujutsu Sorcerers.
It would probably fetch a high price.
"Seriously, don't let me run into you again!"
Felt pocketed the badge, threw out a final threat, and turned to bolt.
But the instant she moved, Gojo lifted his gaze toward the other end of the alley.
"Don't let her get away!"
"Give me back my badge!"