Gojo floated in midair, looking down at the small figure. He raised an eyebrow, a little surprised. "Huh. Didn't expect there to be a cursed child still out here."
To make sure every cursed child in Tokyo got the serum and had their curse lifted, Seitenshi had ordered a full-scale search. Even the sewers had been searched several times. Every cursed child had been found and sent to the special school.
Running into one in a place like this was surprising, and a little strange.
The girl had been about to run. When she heard Gojo's voice and saw him floating in the air, her body went stiff, and fear showed on her face.
But she reacted fast. Almost the instant she saw him, she pulled a pistol from the case and opened fire.
The bullets flew at Gojo at high speed. She'd obviously been professionally trained, and her aim was very accurate.
Too bad she was up against Gojo.
Her reflexes were good and her aim was good, but none of that did anything against him.
Gojo lifted his hand slightly, and an invisible cursed energy barrier appeared again. It stopped every bullet. They hit the barrier, lost all their force, and dropped to the ground.
Then Gojo raised his hand a little, and an invisible force wrapped around the girl. She couldn't move, like something was holding her down, and she was pulled straight toward him.
She struggled as hard as she could to break free, but it was useless. Her strength was tiny and insignificant compared to his.
Seeing that she was no match for him and had no hope of escaping, the girl did something even more extreme. Her eyes turned resolute, and she pointed the pistol at her own temple, trying to end her life right there.
"Seriously, at least value your own life a little."
Gojo sighed at her determined expression. What he hated most was people who gave up on their lives so easily, especially a girl this young.
He could tell she didn't really want to assassinate Seitenshi. Most likely she'd been coerced or brainwashed. Otherwise, she wouldn't have tried to kill herself the moment she failed.
As soon as he finished speaking, Gojo flicked his fingers. A faint burst of cursed energy shot out and knocked the pistol out of her hand. It clattered to the ground, putting a stop to her attempt.
"Don't even think about killing yourself. I can heal any injury you have, anytime. Trust me."
Gojo looked at the girl. His tone was flat, but sincere. "Killing yourself won't do you any good except bring you pain. It's not going to set you free or anything like that."
"The people who forced you into this and used you won't lose a thing if you die. They'll just find the next scapegoat and keep doing bad stuff."
The girl stayed silent. Her face was blank and her eyes were empty, like there was no soul inside. She'd clearly been brainwashed deeply.
Gojo didn't push her. He kept her bound with cursed energy, took her with him, and vanished from in front of the abandoned building, reappearing beside Seitenshi.
He set the girl on the ground and spread his hands at Seitenshi. "Found your guy. How you deal with her is up to you."
He sympathized with the cursed children. He knew most of them were innocent and had been hurt by this world. But if a cursed child chose to do evil and hurt innocent people, he'd treat her the same as anyone else.
Like this girl. She'd tried to assassinate Seitenshi and meant to hurt an innocent person. Whatever her reasons, that couldn't just be forgiven.
He wasn't going to let her off just because she was a cursed child. She'd get the punishment she deserved. How exactly to handle it was Seitenshi's call.
"Thank you, Gojo-sensei."
The assassin who'd been troubling her for so long had been dealt with by Gojo with a wave of his hand. Seitenshi's tense shoulders dropped, and relief spread across her face, like someone who'd just survived a disaster. She quickly bowed deeply to him, full of sincere gratitude.
Earlier, she'd even been able to feel the assassin's hostility and killing intent. It was the kind of danger that could easily have taken her life. If Gojo hadn't shown up in time, she didn't want to think about what would have happened.
"Okay, problem solved. I'm heading out."
Gojo waved it off like it was nothing, faint traces of cursed energy still on his fingertips. He stretched big, his joints giving a small crack, and turned to Betty beside him with a lazy smile.
But the two of them had only just turned and left. They hadn't gone far, and they still had a way to go before getting back to the school.
Suddenly, a familiar, emotionless mechanical voice sounded in Gojo's ear.
[The anime Black Bullet Season One is about to end.]
[All content for this season has finished airing. Season settlement will now begin.]
[Popularity Points bonus awarded based on supporting character performance.]
It wasn't the first time he'd heard a system notice like this. In the previous world, Re: Zero - Starting Life in Another World, he'd gone through a settlement moment just like it.
But hearing that familiar voice again, Gojo still stopped in his tracks. His lazy smile faded a little, and clear surprise flashed in his eyes.
Because this time, the anime had ended way too fast.
Compared to the Re:Zero world, where things moved step by step alongside the protagonist as he grew, Black Bullet had wrapped up a lot faster. Fast enough that it was beyond what he'd expected.
Is it because the protagonist got completely sidelined?
Gojo stood with his hands in his pockets, tilting his head slightly as he thought about it.
He went back over everything that had happened to him in this world. The more he thought about it, the more that seemed like the most reasonable explanation.
In the Re:Zero world, Natsuki Subaru had basically been by his side the whole time. Whether it was facing danger or solving problems, Subaru had plenty of screen time, and it was full and continuous. So naturally, the anime took longer to finish.
This time was completely different.
Pretty much everyone around Rentaro Satomi had turned their backs on him. His old friends had all left. Even the cursed children who used to be with him had been sent to Gojo's school and properly taken care of.
Now, the only one left with him was Enju Aihara. The two of them depended on each other, hiding in a corner of this world and carefully getting by.
That meant Rentaro, the protagonist, had almost no chance to appear. It made sense that the anime ended so quickly.
"What's wrong?"
Betty noticed Gojo had suddenly stopped and that his expression looked a little off. She stopped too and tilted her head at him, sounding confused.
The drone beside her stopped as well, hovering by her shoulder. Its camera turned slightly, like it was curiously looking at Gojo too.
"Nothing. It's just about time for us to head back."
Gojo snapped out of it and put his usual smile back on. His tone was as casual as ever, like the surprise a moment ago had never happened.
"Hm? Already?"
Betty raised an eyebrow, a little surprised too. But she quickly counted on her fingers, working out how long they'd been in this world.
"If you really think about it, it's about time. There's nothing else here I want anyway."
Betty had gotten quite a bit out of this trip to the Black Bullet world. It hadn't been a wasted visit.
For one, there was the drone she loved so much. It was small and agile, and it could take pictures and do recon. Whether she was killing time or helping out in a fight, it was really useful.
There was also the custom mechanical battle suit. Its materials and design couldn't compare to the gear from her original world, and for someone as strong as her, it didn't really boost her power much. But! She loved it anyway. She treated it like a collector's item and carefully kept it stored in her space.
To Betty, every world had its own unique charm and its own things worth collecting. The drone and the battle suit were her biggest prizes from this one.
"So are we going back to say goodbye to them, or what?"
Betty pulled herself out of her thoughts and looked up at Gojo. By "them," she meant Seitenshi, Sumire Muroto, and the others.
"Probably not enough time. Let's just send a message."
Gojo glanced at the system screen in his mind, where the settlement was still running. The numbers kept jumping, so it clearly needed a little more time. As he talked to Betty, he took his phone out of his pocket, unlocked it, and got ready to message Seitenshi and Sumire.
He didn't have many friends in this world. The only ones worth saying a proper goodbye to were Seitenshi, Sumire, and a few others.
Seitenshi was the ruler of this world. She was kind and gentle, and she'd always worked hard to protect the people here, especially the innocent cursed children. Gojo respected her for that.
Sumire was a bit of a slob, but she had a good heart. She'd dedicated herself to finding a cure for the cursed children, and she'd helped him when he needed it.
He sent a few simple goodbye messages and put his phone away. Right then, the system settlement in his mind finished.
The result was even better than he'd expected.
The number was even more ridiculous than last time in the Re:Zero world. The system gave Gojo a full 400,000 Popularity Points.
That many points made even the usually calm and composed Gojo's eyes curve up behind his dark glasses. They were full of amusement, and he couldn't stop the corners of his mouth from rising. He couldn't hide how happy he was.
He had to admit it. Betty had gotten a lot out of this world, but he'd gotten even more.
Never mind the Adaptation he'd picked up here. The 400,000 Popularity Points from this settlement alone were a fortune.
Adding in the points from the last episode screening, Gojo now had 650,000 Popularity Points.
With a little over 300,000 more, he could redeem the Divine Protection of the Phoenix from the System Store.
When that happened, he'd have the Divine Protection of the Phoenix, his Adaptation, and his already incredibly powerful talent for jujutsu.
Just picturing it, Gojo could hardly imagine how absurdly strong he'd become, or how terrifying that level would be.
But that was all for later. Right now, the most important thing was getting back to his own world.
"Let's go. We're going home."
The moment he said it, faint cursed energy lit up at his fingertips and wrapped around him and Betty.
Their figures blurred, like they were being distorted by some invisible force. Then they quickly vanished from this world full of Gastrea and conflict, without leaving a trace.
When the dizziness faded and their vision cleared, they were already standing in the world they knew.
There were no rampaging Gastrea here, no Monoliths to hold back monsters, and none of the annoying conflicts and trouble.
The air felt familiar. The streets and buildings around them were familiar. Everything seemed peaceful and comfortable.
"Whew. We're back."
Gojo looked around at the familiar surroundings and took a deep breath. He smiled, relaxed, and his tense nerves finally loosened completely.
The other worlds hadn't really given him much trouble. With his strength, he could handle any world with ease.
Still, being in his own world was more comfortable. He didn't have to stay on guard against danger all the time or deal with all kinds of messy stuff.
"Compared to those places, your hometown is pretty backward, I suppose."
The drone next to Betty started buzzing again. She crossed her arms and grinned at Gojo, clearly teasing him.
To her, this world had no powerful magic and no advanced mechanical gear. Compared to the world she came from, it really did seem a little behind.
"Well, sorry for being so backward."