Chapter 22 – Tsumiki in a Coma, Seeking Tengen
"Hey, uncle… what do you think is the meaning of life?"
At the dinner table, Amanai seemed absent-minded, suddenly dropping a philosophical question out of nowhere.
Maki and Mai were busy stuffing their faces, completely focused on eating.
Zen'in Shinsuke froze for a moment, giving her a strange look.
"What triggered this? Don't tell me… you're about to go dark side too?"
"What the hell, I was just asking."
Amanai propped up her chin, rolling her eyes at him.
It was just that after everything she had gone through lately—and with too much free time on her hands—her thoughts had started drifting toward heavier questions like this.
"…That's a deep question. You'll have to figure it out yourself."
He had no time to play therapist for someone who was just bored.
"Come on, uncle, you live so disciplined every day—you must have figured out the meaning of life by now, right?"
Amanai studied Shinsuke with curious eyes, trying to understand how he could live so relaxed every day.
Ever since becoming a sorcerer, most of her time had been spent exorcising curses. Only then did she start to understand why Suguru Geto had gone down the path of a curse user.
She wasn't about to destroy non-sorcerers like him, but… deep inside, she was tired.
Being a student and being a sorcerer were worlds apart.
She missed the days when she was just a student.
"I don't know about the meaning of life. All I know is—eat well, drink well, play well."
Shinsuke leaned back in his chair, completely at ease.
Meaning? Who cared?
Do what you want—that was enough.
And if there were things you wanted to do but couldn't? That only meant you weren't strong enough yet.
"Ugh, uncle, that's way too shallow."
Amanai pulled a face. With his strength, how could his goal be that small, that easy to reach?
"What, do you want me to turn into that brat Suguru and stress over world peace all day?"
"Hey hey hey, uncle, don't drag Geto into this like that!"
Amanai reacted as if he'd stepped on her tail.
No way she'd ever go as far as Suguru—that was way too extreme.
"Just eat already. Even with all this food, your mouth still won't stop."
"Exactly! Amanai-oneechan talks too much. Cousin said no talking during meals."
Mai chimed in, nodding along.
"Hmph! Little Mai, did you just scold your big sister? You looking for a beating?"
"Bleh~ I'm not scared of you!"
Watching the two of them squabble like this, Shinsuke felt a vein pop.
Yep… things really were getting noisier around here.
Riiiiing—
Just then, Shinsuke's phone went off. He glanced at the screen—Toji was calling.
"What is it?"
"Tsumiki's in trouble."
Shinsuke's brow furrowed, his eyes hardening.
Even under Toji's watch, someone had managed to get to her?
"You guys eat. I need to step out. When you're done, just leave the dishes. Don't go into the kitchen."
With that, Shinsuke got up and left. The others didn't think much of it.
It didn't take him long to arrive at Toji's home.
"What happened?"
Shinsuke's gaze fell on Tsumiki, lying unconscious on the bed, unresponsive.
Toji's face was grim. "It started not long after she came home from school. The hospital says all her vitals are normal."
"I checked the school too. The teachers said nothing unusual happened there."
Clearly, Toji had already eliminated every obvious possibility. With no leads left, he'd turned to Shinsuke.
"Dad, Uncle… Tsumiki's gonna be okay, right?"
Megumi looked at his sister, eyes filled with worry.
"Don't worry. She'll be fine."
Shinsuke reassured him, then turned to Toji. "You had sorcerers look at her?"
Toji nodded. He had.
"I'm guessing she's caught in some kind of technique. Don't panic. I'll ask around."
Of course, Shinsuke already knew the truth—Tsumiki had been marked by Kenjaku as a vessel.
But whether that was a cursed technique or some other kind of mark, he couldn't be sure. Nor did he know exactly what method had been used.
What he did know was this: at least for now, her body wouldn't be taken over.
Leaving Toji's place, Shinsuke headed toward Jujutsu High.
If anyone in this world understood Kenjaku better than him, it was someone at Jujutsu High.
"What a poor girl!"
"Quick, call the police!"
As Shinsuke was lost in thought, wondering where Kenjaku might be, a commotion broke out up ahead.
A crowd had gathered—looked like there had been a car accident.
"Yuta… Yuta… Yuta!"
Through a gap in the crowd, Zen'in Shinsuke spotted a girl's corpse sprawled on the ground—her tragic death had already birthed a vengeful spirit in just a matter of seconds.
In front of it stood a dazed little boy, frozen in shock, looking about the same age as Maki and Mai.
Shinsuke instinctively reached for his waist… only to realize he hadn't brought Playful Cloud with him today.
"Tch. Fine. Since you two are still in the 'pure love' stage, I'll let this one slide."
His first instinct, upon seeing Rika manifest as a special-grade curse, was to cut her down on the spot.
But after a moment's thought—there was no need.
The world would spawn plenty of curses in the future; one more or less didn't matter.
Besides, this particular special-grade wasn't an easy one to deal with. No point in causing a massive scene in the middle of a crowded city just to grab a bit of extra power.
Ignoring the incident entirely, Shinsuke continued toward Jujutsu High.
Unnoticed by anyone, he slipped through the barriers of the Tombs of the Star Corridor like a phantom, moving deep into its hidden sanctum.
Before him, countless doors floated suspended in the air. He began to still his mind, preparing to sense Tengen's presence.
But the very next second, he abandoned the idea and simply shouted:
"Hey, old hag! You're not even gonna come greet your guest?"
Probing through each door one by one would take forever—better to just call her out.
"Old hag? My, my… such disrespect. Don't young people know any manners these days?"
The doors swayed. One of them creaked open, and from within came a voice—neither male nor female, tinged with faint irritation.
What an impolite brat… just like that troublemaker Yuki Tsukumo.
Passing through the door, Shinsuke finally laid eyes on Tengen—sitting cross-legged on a cushion, a low tea table before her.
Her face was inhuman, already showing signs of the evolution she had begun.
"So this is the legendary Tengen-sama, huh? Not exactly what I pictured."
Tengen cast him a sideways glance.
"No cursed energy… You must be one of the two oddballs from the Zen'in clan."
She'd heard whispers from the higher-ups about the peculiar brothers of the Zen'in family.
"What business do you have with me?"
Unhurried, she poured tea, her demeanor calm. She had no fear that he might mean her harm.
"My niece has been marked by Kenjaku. Tell me what can be done. Can you remove the mark and return her to normal?"
Shinsuke didn't bother with pleasantries—not with this thousand-year-old hag.