Miko's expression dimmed instantly. The last bit of hope in her eyes was completely gone.
She knew Gojo was telling the truth. If she spent her whole life inside a barrier, unable to go shopping or eat ice cream with her best friend, unable to live the life she wanted, it really would be no different from prison. A life like that would be worse than death.
Miko opened her mouth to say something, but she didn't know what to say. Her whole life just felt dark, with no hope in sight.
She was just an ordinary high school girl who wanted a plain, peaceful life. How had she suddenly ended up dealing with something like this?
Fighting those terrifying monsters? Could she really do that? Sometimes she even got nervous just speaking up. How could she ever work up the courage to face cursed spirits that could hurt her, or even kill her?
But if she didn't learn and didn't work to get stronger, what would happen to the rest of her life? She'd be haunted by cursed spirits forever, living in fear every day, with her life in danger at any moment. Could she really keep going like that?
Countless thoughts swirled through her head, leaving her torn and miserable.
Luckily, all the fear and hardship she'd been through had made Miko tough. She quickly forced herself to calm down, steeled herself, and made a decision.
She looked up, her eyes steady again, and looked at Gojo. "Gojo, if I wanted to learn this kind of power, would I have a chance?"
"You mean become a jujutsu sorcerer?"
Gojo raised his eyebrows, and a pleased smile spread across his face. "Of course you would. As long as you're willing to learn, I can teach you. Or I could take you to Jujutsu High. They've got proper teachers and classes there that can teach you step by step how to use your talent and how to deal with cursed spirits."
"But I'll tell you up front, being a jujutsu sorcerer isn't as nice as you might think. It's not easy, either."
His smile faded, and his tone turned serious. "While you're training, you'll already start fighting cursed spirits so you can learn how to deal with them and how to protect yourself. Sometimes you might get hurt, or even end up in real danger."
"And if you decide to stick with this line of work afterward, the missions never stop. You could be facing all kinds of cursed spirits every day. There's no fixed time off, and there's no such thing as 'safe.'"
"Of course, you don't have to be a jujutsu sorcerer forever. Nobody's going to force you. Once you've learned how to protect yourself and can handle the weaker cursed spirits, you can go back to living like a normal person. You'll still be able to see cursed spirits then, though, and you'll still have to stay on your guard all the time."
Gojo didn't hide anything. He laid out everything about being a jujutsu sorcerer, without exaggerating the good parts or covering up the dangers. He wanted Miko to make her own choice once she knew the whole truth.
Right now, Miko looked as serious as a high school senior filling out college applications. Her brows were knitted tightly, and her eyes were full of hesitation and thought.
She was standing at a crossroads in her life.
One path was staying an ordinary person, living in fear every day, with her life in danger at any moment. The other was becoming a jujutsu sorcerer, working hard to learn how to protect herself, but facing endless danger and challenges.
She needed to think carefully about which one to choose. This would decide the rest of her life, and she couldn't afford to be careless about it.
"Is fighting cursed spirits dangerous?"
After thinking for a long time, Miko finally looked up and asked seriously. That was what she cared about most right now.
If fighting cursed spirits was basically a death sentence, she'd rather keep living in fear. At least once she got used to it, she wouldn't be facing death so directly.
"Hmm, that actually depends on the person."
Gojo scratched his cheek, his tone light again. "If you're really talented and really strong, then there's no danger at all. Whatever kind of cursed spirit you run into, you can deal with it easily."
"You're talking about yourself again, aren't you?"
Betty rolled her eyes beside him and snapped, "Can you stop bragging every single time? Would it kill you to be a little modest?"
"Well, aren't I the best example?"
Gojo spread his hands, completely unapologetic. "She wouldn't know anyone else I could use as an example. Besides, I'm just telling the truth. I really am the strongest jujutsu sorcerer."
Watching the two of them bicker, Miko relaxed a little. But she didn't forget her question, so she pressed on. "What about ordinary jujutsu sorcerers? I mean, not geniuses like you, Gojo. Sorcerers with normal talent, like me."
"Let me think."
Gojo dropped the joking tone and thought about it properly. "Generally speaking, the survival rate for ordinary jujutsu sorcerers is pretty high. Around fifty-fifty, I'd say."
"Before you're sent to deal with a cursed spirit, someone's always sent ahead to do a rough check on what grade it is, how strong it is, and whether it's beyond what you can handle."
"They won't give you a mission that's completely impossible. Training a jujutsu sorcerer isn't easy, after all. Nobody's going to just send you off to die for nothing."
"Of course, since it's only a rough check, sometimes they get it wrong. A cursed spirit could be a little stronger or weaker than expected. Every now and then you'll run into one that's stronger than the report said and beyond what you can handle. That's when things get dangerous."
"Aha!"
Gojo suddenly clapped his hands together mid-sentence, a big, excited smile on his face, like he'd just thought of a great idea.
"Miko, if you're interested, why don't you come with us and see for yourself?"
As he spoke, he pulled out his phone, unlocked it, and held the screen up in front of her. "Actually, we're in the middle of a mission right now. This is the perfect chance to show you what cursed spirits really look like, and how I deal with them."
That got Miko's attention. Without thinking, she leaned in and took a careful look at the screen.
The screen was packed with addresses. Each one had a short note after it about the situation, and quite a few had been crossed out with the photo editing tool. Those were probably finished missions.
"There are... this many missions?"
Looking at the crowded list, Miko's expression soured right away. She frowned, sounding surprised and a little like she wanted to back out.
If missions were this frequent, she'd rather just stay a normal person. Even living in fear every day was better than facing those horrible cursed spirits every single day. Even adults with full-time jobs didn't work that hard. Endless missions every day? Just thinking about it was scary.
"Nah, it's not like that."
Gojo could tell she was getting cold feet and quickly waved his hands, laughing as he explained. "I was off traveling for a while, so a lot of missions piled up. Now that I'm back, I'm just clearing them all out at once. Normally there aren't this many."
"But why doesn't this list say anything about the cursed spirits' grades?"
Miko still wasn't reassured. She pointed at the screen and asked, puzzled, "Gojo, aren't you worried about running into a cursed spirit that's stronger than you?"
Gojo broke into a wide grin, full of confidence and a bit of pride. "Nope, it's fine."
"I'm the strongest. Whatever grade a cursed spirit is, it's no match for me, so I don't have to worry about that kind of thing at all. Whatever I run into, I can handle it easily."
Miko looked at the supremely confident Gojo and fell silent again.
She didn't know if he was telling the truth or not. But seeing how sure of himself he was, her anxiety seemed to ease a little.
"Hey, hey, hey, what's with that look? Don't tell me you don't believe me?"
Gojo picked up on her mood right away and leaned in, sounding wounded and a little impatient. "I'm seriously strong, you know! If you don't believe me, I'll take you to see right now. I promise I'll show you what I can do!"
"No, I..."
Miko quickly shook her head. She wanted to explain that it wasn't that she didn't believe him, she was just hesitant. But before she could finish, Gojo cut her off.
"Let's go!"
Gojo wolfed down the rest of his ice cream in a few bites, set the empty cup on the table, stood up, and brushed off his clothes. "Come with us to take care of a cursed spirit. It's at a shrine around here, not far at all. You'll get a good look at what I can do, and you can think it over properly and decide whether you want to be a jujutsu sorcerer."
Miko was tempted.
She really was torn. She didn't know if she could become a jujutsu sorcerer, or if she could handle those terrifying cursed spirits.
If she could see a cursed spirit up close and watch how Gojo dealt with it, maybe she'd be able to make the right choice.
After thinking it over carefully, she took a deep breath and pushed down the fear inside her. She was about to nod slowly and accept Gojo's offer.
But just then, she remembered her best friend, Hana Yurikawa. She frowned again and quickly asked, "Wait, what about Hana?"
Hana was still at another table in the ice cream shop, looking down at her phone. She had no idea what they'd been talking about.
Miko cared a lot about her best friend. She didn't want to leave Hana alone in the shop, and she definitely didn't want Hana to get into any danger.
"Just bring her along."
Gojo didn't see a problem and waved it off casually. "The more the merrier. Besides, with me around, nothing's going to happen to her."
"But if she sees those..."
Miko was still worried. She knew Hana wasn't very brave. If she saw those ugly, terrifying cursed spirits, she'd definitely be scared out of her mind.
"It's fine."
Gojo cut her off with a smile. "Seeing one once doesn't mean she'll be able to see them from then on. Most normal people who catch a glimpse of a cursed spirit just think it was their imagination, and after a while they forget about it."
"And you should know your friend is different, right?"
He paused, then added, "Ordinary cursed spirits can't hurt her. Her life energy is really strong, so there's nothing they can do to her. Instead of worrying about her, you should be worrying about yourself. You can already see cursed spirits clearly, and you have no way to protect yourself."
Miko felt a little envious when she heard that.
If only she could be like Hana and not get hurt by cursed spirits. Then even if she saw them, she wouldn't have to worry about her own safety.
Unfortunately, she wasn't that lucky. She could only rely on herself and work hard to get stronger if she wanted to protect herself.
She gave a small nod, agreeing to Gojo's suggestion. "Okay. I'll go get Hana."
With that, she stood up and walked over to Hana's table.
Hana had just finished a round of a phone game. She looked up, saw Miko coming over, and immediately smiled sweetly. "Miko, are you guys done talking?"
"Hana, I've decided to go with Gojo in a bit to..."
Miko started to tell Hana that she was going to a shrine with Gojo and Betty to see a cursed spirit and wanted Hana to come too. But before she could finish, Hana cut her off.
"Got it, got it, I understand. I won't get in your way."
Hana nodded quickly with a knowing look and winked at Miko, like she was telling her not to worry about it. "Go ahead. I can get home by myself. Don't worry about me."
"But you have to keep in touch, okay?"
As she said it, she shook her fist at Gojo a short distance away, putting on a "don't mess with me" face, and warned him, "Don't even think about doing anything bad to our Miko, or I won't let you off the hook!"
"Hana, it's not what you think..."
Miko was at a loss. She hurried to explain that they weren't going on a date, they were going to deal with a cursed spirit, and she wanted Hana to come along. But Hana didn't give her any chance to explain.
Hana waved her hand, grabbed her bag, stood up, and smiled at Miko. "Okay, okay, I'm heading out first. Have fun, you two, and remember to text me!"