Jin followed behind Kento Nanami as they walked toward the school exit.
He thought about Megumi’s situation for a while before ultimately deciding not to interfere.
There was no need to go out of his way to change the plot.
Yuji Itadori eating Sukuna’s finger was an inevitable event.
Besides, while Jin’s strength was still insufficient, keeping the story close to its original course was more beneficial to him.
With both hands in his pockets, Jin looked ahead, a faint curve appearing at the corner of his mouth.
‘I’ll finish this mission as quickly as possible.
If I make it in time, going over there to watch the show wouldn’t be bad either.’
The click of dress shoes against the floor echoed as Nanami suddenly spoke.
“Jin-kun, to be honest, the level of your evaluation mission surprised me somewhat.”
Nanami glanced sideways at Jin, sunlight reflecting from the edge of his glasses.
“This mission was originally assigned to me.
In other words, you are taking on work that was supposed to belong to me.”
He paused, withdrew his gaze, and continued walking.
“From that perspective, I sincerely hope you complete this mission successfully.”
“I see.”
Jin smiled, then curiously asked,
“By the way, jujutsu sorcerers get paid for completing missions, right?”
He was fairly short on money.
The identity provided by the system hadn’t come with much wealth.
And because his appetite was so enormous, he’d almost eaten through what little money he had.
Jujutsu High was also far too remote.
He needed to buy a car as soon as possible.
Nanami lightly nodded and explained,
“Yes.
Compensation is positively correlated with both the sorcerer’s grade and the danger level of the mission.”
“This mission is classified as Grade 1.
The compensation would normally begin at around three million yen.”
Jin leaned forward slightly, excitement and anticipation flashing through his eyes as his pace increased.
“Then how does the pay work for this mission?
If I complete it independently, the money goes to me, right?!”
Nanami stopped walking, his eyelids lowering slightly behind his glasses.
“Unfortunately, there is no compensation for this mission.”
His voice was steady and completely emotionless, as though he’d long since grown accustomed to things like this.
“Whether you complete it independently or I intervene and help you complete it, this mission provides no compensation whatsoever.”
Jin’s brows furrowed and he cursed under his breath.
“Fuck!
That’s straight-up capitalist exploitation!
Even jujutsu sorcerers have unpaid probation periods now?”
“That is correct.”
Nanami crossed his arms and continued in a flat tone.
“That is why I came to understand two things long ago.”
Jin stared at Nanami beside him, his expression suddenly becoming strange.
After a one-second pause, Nanami’s tone abruptly became passionate.
“Jujutsu sorcerers are shit!”
A gloomy aura poured from his entire body, completely different from the calm and reliable appearance he’d shown moments earlier.
“Work is also shit!”
Jin turned his head and pursed his lips, nearly failing to hold back his laughter.
Seeing this famous scene in person—only a vegetative patient could keep a straight face.
He lightly coughed, then nodded in agreement.
“I strongly agree with the second one, and I speak from personal experience.”
Nanami looked at Jin in slight surprise.
He’d said those words purely to complain and vent his dissatisfaction.
He hadn’t expected to actually receive agreement from someone one day.
Meeting Nanami’s gaze, Jin smiled with a teasing tone.
“As for the first one…
I’m starting to understand that too.”
The corner of Nanami’s mouth lifted slightly before he turned and continued walking.
“Just a little personal grumbling.
Let’s return to the matter at hand.”
………
Ome City, Sumiecho Shopping District.
Bright-yellow police tape had been put up, preventing pedestrians from entering the general store.
Dark-red bloodstains remained on the wooden floor.
Nanami turned his head and examined the interior of the store before slowly speaking.
“Within less than two days, two women died in accidents.”
“Judging from the manner of death, the killer was the same.”
Jin lowered his head and examined the dark-red bloodstain, continuing the thought.
“There are cursed energy residuals at the scene too.
It was probably caused by a cursed spirit.”
He raised his head toward Nanami beside him, some confusion in his voice.
“So…
we follow these residuals, find the cursed spirit, and exorcise it.
Then the mission is over?”
Based solely on the information revealed so far, this mission didn’t look remotely worthy of Grade 1.
Even calling it Grade 2 felt somewhat generous.
Nanami detected the doubt in Jin’s words and slowly answered.
“If this were an ordinary case…
then yes.”
“However, victims with similar causes of death were also discovered in an area fifty kilometers from here.”
A grave look appeared in his eyes.
“Cursed spirits generally do not travel long distances.
Therefore, the actual situation may be more complicated than we expect.”
The corner of Jin’s mouth rose, his tone relaxed.
“Is that so?
Then it’s a curse user.”
Nanami silently closed his mouth.
Every line he’d intended to say had been stolen one step ahead of him.
Jin’s behavior didn’t look remotely like that of a newcomer.
Many second- and third-year students might not be as experienced as he seemed.
“That is a possibility.
If we confirm that a curse user is responsible…”
At this point, Nanami’s expression became even more serious.
“Then they have violated jujutsu regulations.
They will be treated as a curse and killed on sight.”
“Okay, okay.
Got it.”
Jin waved a hand to show he understood while carefully studying the residuals on the floor.
The residuals were faint.
A decent amount of time had probably passed since the murders.
He’d already killed several cursed spirits, but this would be his first time facing a curse user.
Compared to playing around with low-level cursed spirits that barely possessed a brain, fighting a human sounded much more interesting.
Watching Jin identify the direction of the residuals, Nanami rested one hand on his hip and thought quietly,
‘There isn’t much I need to teach him.
But perhaps that’s for the best.’
During the brief moment Nanami was distracted, Jin had already reached the entrance of the general store.
He turned around and waved toward Nanami.
“Let’s go, Nanami-san.”
Jin stretched both arms above his head, interlocked his fingers, and leaned backward.
“Let’s hurry up and deal with that guy.
I still haven’t had dinner.”
He let out a comfortable hum, a lazy smile hanging from his lips.
“How about going to an izakaya for a drink afterward?”
Nanami looked at Jin’s figure and remained silent for a second or two.
He pushed up the glasses on his nose without directly answering Jin’s question.
“You were assigned a mission originally meant for a Grade 1 sorcerer immediately after enrolling.
It seems both the higher-ups and Gojo-san have considerable confidence in your strength.”
“However, please do not become careless.”
He walked forward two steps, crossed the dark-red bloodstain, and stopped in front of Jin.
“This is not a game.”
Nanami’s gaze met Jin’s at equal height, his tone becoming more solemn.
“In reality, mission grades can be changed at any time, and mission intelligence is not necessarily accurate.”
“If your luck is bad, you may even encounter an enemy with Special Grade strength.”
Control cursed spirits.
Special Grade.
There was probably only one person who matched both traits—Brain.
Jin narrowed his eyes slightly and thought to himself,
‘I can’t possibly be that unlucky, right?’