"Riko! Are you okay?"
Satoru pushed open the classroom door. A room full of middle school girls turned to look.
The next second, stars appeared in all their eyes!
"Ahhh! So handsome!"
"White hair! Is it natural?"
"Is he mixed race?"
"He must be 190cm! Tall and handsome!"
"Handsome guy, can you take off your sunglasses?"
Facing the requests of his fangirls, Satoru sassily lowered his glasses, flashing a crooked, charming smile.
"KYAAAAA..."
Riko Amanai looked at her classmates going crazy with utter confusion.
Where is this scumbag handsome?
"Quiet! Everyone back to your seats!"
The teacher banged on the desk. The students reluctantly sat down.
"Sir, who are you looking for?"
Satoru leaned in. "Hello, Sensei. I'm looking for Riko Amanai. I'm her... brother!"
The teacher nodded. "Then Riko, go with your brother."
Suddenly, the teacher turned around and discreetly slipped a piece of paper into Satoru's hand. "Hello. This is my number!"
"..."
When Satoru and Riko walked out of the classroom, Souma and Misato Kuroi had already arrived.
On the way, Souma had casually dealt with a curse user hired by the Star Religious Group—a guy wearing a paper bag who used a "Cloning Technique." Souma beat him up thoroughly.
Although the immediate crisis was resolved, this incident signaled that Riko's free time was over.
The higher-ups had even issued a strict order: deliver the Star Plasma Vessel to the Tombs of the Star immediately.
Hearing the news, Riko didn't look depressed. Instead, she seemed relieved.
"It's time. Let's go!"
Satoru watched Riko's back and suddenly spoke. "Bro!"
Souma scratched his head. "Actually, being one day late isn't a big deal, right? What do you guys think?"
Satoru grinned. "Agreed!"
Geto spread his hands. "No objections!"
...
Okinawa, the beach.
"Woohoo~"
Satoru and Riko ran around on the sand, having the time of their lives.
Kuroi watched with a gratified smile. "I haven't seen Miss smile this happily in a long time!"
Souma, standing next to her, had a deadpan expression.
Are you roleplaying the loyal old butler of a wealthy family?
Geto looked at the energetic Satoru, then turned to Souma. "Souma, you and Satoru have been maintaining the Limitless continuously, and you haven't slept for a day. Can you hold out?"
Souma waved his hand. "Daijoubu!"
Geto took a sip of coconut water and muttered with dead fish eyes, "Don't act so nonchalant. Be careful or you'll fry your brain!"
"True. I should make some arrangements."
Souma picked up his phone, typed a long paragraph, and hit send.
Geto glanced over. "Sending flirty texts to someone?"
"Get lost!"
Souma laughed. "It's an email to Yaga-sensei!"
"Oh? About what?"
"Secret!"
"Tch~"
"Hey, Suguru!"
"What?"
Souma suddenly turned serious. "Do you think Riko merging with Tengen is really okay?"
Geto fell silent. After a long pause, he spoke. "From the perspective of the 'greater good,' sacrificing one person for the stability of the entire world is the optimal solution."
"Even if the one to be sacrificed was me, I would gladly die. That is my resolve!"
"What about from your personal perspective?"
Geto's eyes were firm. "This method... is dogshit!"
Souma laughed.
"Suguru, I have a favor to ask you..."
"What?"
Geto's eyes widened in disbelief. "You're saying you and Satoru might lose?"
Souma didn't confirm it outright. "Just a hunch. Like a grim reaper's scythe is resting on my neck."
"Anyway, if that happens, I want you to take Riko to the designated location immediately."
"Can I trust you? My best friend!"
Geto rolled his eyes. "If you ask, of course I'll do my best. But it's hard to believe hearing 'Satoru and I might lose' coming from your mouth!"
"I said it's just a hunch!"
"Don't have hunches like that. People die from jinxes!"
Souma rubbed his nose. "Sometimes, dying a little might not be a bad thing."
"Ha?"
Geto looked at him like he was crazy. "Souma, is your brain finally fried?"
"Suguru, do you know why the three of us can't learn Reverse Cursed Technique?"
"Why are we talking about this again?"
"Be serious, Suguru. Don't you think it's weird?"
Souma held up a finger. "Remember when the three of us learned Black Flash?"
"Of course."
The scenes replayed in Geto's mind.
Black Flash!
When the gap between physical impact and cursed energy impact is within 0.000001 seconds, space distorts.
It was a special technique that no one could use at will... except for the three of them!
Yes, after Souma used Black Flash for the first time, Satoru and Geto copied him.
Incredibly, they found that if they calmed down and followed the flow of cursed energy, unleashing Black Flash was as easy as breathing.
This completely defied common sense and previous records!
"Being able to use Black Flash at will proves our talent is unmatched!"
"...I'm not here to listen to you brag!"
"My point is, with our talent, learning Reverse Cursed Technique shouldn't be this hard. Even with Shoko's abstract teaching, we shouldn't be completely clueless!"
Geto blinked. "So..."
Souma smiled. "Comfort! We are too comfortable!"
"Wearing the title of the 'Strongest Trio,' we've breezed through every mission. We have no motivation to get stronger!"
"Reverse Cursed Technique is defined by its ability to heal fatal wounds. But we barely even get scratched. We lack the pressure of life and death!"
"So I was thinking... maybe if we walk along the line of death, we might finally grasp it!"
"Like that quote by Martin Heidegger... what was it..."
Geto sighed. "Only by approaching death can one realize the true meaning of existence!"
"Ah, right, that's it!"
"...Don't you think your idea is a bit extreme?"
"Are you scared?"
"Everyone is scared of death. Saying otherwise is a lie!"
Souma leaned back in his chair, basking in the warm sun. "Alright, alright. It's just a hypothesis!"
Seeing Souma close his eyes to nap, Geto shook his head.
"'Approaching death to realize the meaning of existence'... sounds pretty unreliable~"