Curse Returns: What did the human-shaped wishing machine do wrong this time?

The second day of the 11th month is the "Nijinsai" (New Tasting Festival).

Popular belief holds that this day is the day the sun dies and is reborn. On this important day, the emperor would offer new grain to ancestors and deities to pray for national peace and prosperity and abundant harvests.

That's how it should be, in theory.

However, this emperor had just ascended the throne, and the "Niijō-sai" of the first year of his reign was called "Daijō-sai," which was one of the three most important ceremonial events after his accession.

When an official proposal was made to invite Ryomen Sukuna to be worshipped in the festival, the Emperor dared not speak out in anger and simply claimed to be ill and refused to see anyone.

The ceremony was supposed to begin at night and continue until the early hours of the next day, but the oppressive aura of Ryoumen Sukuna was too strong, and the ministers were forced to move the ceremony time to around 3 p.m.

On the altar, the two Su Nuo glanced indifferently at the civil officials wearing lacquered gauze hats below, while Ri Mei stood behind him with her eyes closed.

In Rime's view, it was truly ironic that these hypocritical officials were both afraid of Lord Sukuna and forced to pretend to be very respectful.

In the opposite direction from the Imperial Palace, Alluka was dressed in an elaborate and luxurious kimono, with layers of outer garments trailing at her feet, and her straight, black hair, like brocade, cascading down her back.

He had an exquisite headband tied around his forehead, embroidered with four expressions: joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness. The embroidery was mixed with gold leaf and gold thread, and the bright colors looked rather eerie.

Unlike the Daijosai at the Imperial Palace, the Fujiwara family invited a high-ranking monk to recite prayers in order to ensure the success of their wishes this time. Normally, there would be a special Kagura dance to invite the gods during the festival, but they thought that this might offend Lord Naniga, so they gave up this procedure.

Fujiwara no Michimitsu had considered inviting Lord Alluka to the Imperial Palace, but he abandoned the idea for fear that something might go wrong.

The many elders of the Fujiwara family sat to one side, and apart from the faint chanting of sutras, there was nothing else in the entire space; the whole scene was eerie and absurd.

At the end of the prayer, at the same time as the Daijosai (Great Sacrifice), when the Emperor was supposed to eat the sacrificial grains and divine food, an unknowing and unaware offering was forced forward by two warriors like livestock.

"thump."

With a muffled thud, the sacrificial offering was forced to kneel with its knees together in front of Alluka.

"Where is this? Who are you?"

He stared at the unfamiliar surroundings with a mixture of surprise and disbelief.

Several months ago, a fellow villager told him that this year's harvest was not good, but an official from Heian-kyo would come to collect the grain. On his way to see that official, he was knocked unconscious.

When he woke up again, he was in a prison-like place. No one spoke to him, and he had no roommates. The feeling almost drove him crazy.

Having finally escaped the dark room, he was led to this altar-like place. He was terrified and wanted to scream when a warm hand suddenly touched his forehead.

He looked up, and a calm gaze looked down at him, as gentle as a spring breeze.

"What's your name?"

Alluka slowly walked to the offering, her blue eyes filled with a glimmer of expectation.

"My name is Duo Shuai Wan (meaning 'misfortune pill')."

He answered the boy's question in a somewhat daze.

For a fleeting moment, he felt as if he were in a dream where cherry blossoms bloomed all over the mountains. When he returned home after a long day's work and saw a delicious meal and his beloved wife and children, the feeling was like the morning sun gently caressing his brow, making him feel incredibly comfortable.

"Tosaumaru."

While Tashiro was still reminiscing about the happiest moments of the past twenty years, the serene-faced priestess before him uttered words in a calm tone that filled him with utter terror:

"Could I have your liver?"

The black-haired boy stood in the center of the altar, dappled light shining on his face, completely dispelling the illusion of returning to his homeland from the dazed Duo Shuai Wan.

His expression froze halfway through, then turned pale with terror as he noticed the words he was speaking.

His pupils trembled violently, and he turned to run away, but his head was pressed back onto the high altar by two warriors.

"I was wrong, please help me, I was wrong..."

Duo Shuaiwan had no idea what he had done wrong. He just wanted to sell the harvested grain with his fellow villagers. What kind of place was this? What were these people doing...?

He knelt down and begged for mercy without any regard for appearances, tears streaming down his face, quickly blurring his vision.

"Damage pills, could you give me your liver instead?"

Alluka tilted his head, a look of confusion on his face. He didn't understand why the sacrifice in front of him was crying.

"No!!!"

Duo Shuaiwan shook his head, tears and snot rolling down his cheeks. His body was curled up in pain, his calves cramping as he knelt on the ground. He buried his face in the ground, trembling, as if that would allow him to escape this absurdity.

"Damage pills, could you give me your kidney instead?"

Just when he thought he was going to die, the voice of the black-haired boy in front of him echoed in the darkness.

If the two requests hadn't been different, Duo Shuaiwan would have thought he was dreaming.

"I do not want."

He shook his head frantically once again, tears streaming down his face. Fear, disgust, dread, hatred and other negative emotions reached their peak at this moment.

The Fujiwara family elders below the stage watched indifferently as the cursed spirit gradually formed around him. Even with this level of hatred, the resulting cursed spirit was only of the lowest level, and they had nothing to worry about.

"Damn it, could you give me your spine instead?"

The black-haired boy nodded, and after being rejected a second time, he simply asked a third question.

"I don't want to..."

Duo Shuaiwan knelt on the ground, his teeth chattering, a feeling of utter bewilderment weighing on his mind.

He didn't understand what these people wanted. Had they just brought him here to watch this joke of rejection?

His vision blurred with gushing tears, and his body shrank back again and again.

"Damage pills, could you give me your heart instead?"

This was the fourth time the boy had asked him a question, and each time he requested a different organ.

The moment he heard the sound of his heart, Duosuimaru seemed to have reached his limit. His previously weak voice suddenly rose, and with an unknown source of strength, he broke free from the samurai behind him and stood up abruptly.

"I already said I didn't want it! What more do you want? Is it fun to play with people like this? Aren't we commoners human beings too? I..."

Just as he was about to say something more, the black-haired boy in front of him slowly raised his head.

Only then did Duoshuaiwan notice that the boy in front of him was no longer the exquisite face he had just seen, but had somehow turned into a monster that looked like a mannequin.

When the monster looked over, he seemed to hear the creaking and clanging of bones.

"Heh... what an interesting scene."

Just as the Fujiwara family elders were waiting to watch Dossai-maru get twisted into a rope by Lord Naniga, a somewhat lazy voice rang out above them.

Everyone looked up at the sound and saw that the monster that should have been on the Great Sacrifice was now sitting on the roof, looking at the direction of the altar with interest.