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

"What's your name, sir? You seem so familiar."

Alluka tilted her head in confusion, her gaze settling on the uneven suture line on the forehead of the person in front of her.

The person in front of him felt very familiar, but he couldn't quite put his finger on why.

"It's just a name; other people call you whatever they want. It's not important."

Lu Suo gave a stiff smile, and a bead of cold sweat unknowingly appeared on his forehead.

Ryomen Sukuna sat cross-legged to the side and laughed at Lu Suo's appearance without any politeness.

"I've delivered the message, so I'll be leaving now."

Lu Suo had no intention of making his past scandals public. He flicked his sleeves, turned around, and left.

Ryomen Sukuna casually stood up, not caring about Lu Su's departure.

Sunlight streamed in through the gaps in the bamboo lattice, and Sukuna walked toward Alluka, backlit, his body completely enveloped in shadow.

"Having only the ability to make wishes is so fragile and utterly useless."

Perhaps for others, hearing that they can make any wish would cause them to consider many things. Then, their greed grows like a snowball, and their desires will eventually explode at a certain point. A mind dominated by desires will do something irreversible.

Just like the people in the Fujiwara Kita family.

But for the current Ryoumen Sukuna, what he wants is readily available, so he doesn't have many complicated thoughts.

"I'm sorry, brother."

Alluka lowered her eyelashes, her gray-blue eyes slightly misty.

He didn't know his brother's real name, nor could he help him. He seemed rather useless. Nanika could easily fulfill the wishes of the adults in the Fujiwara family, but when it came to his brother, it seemed they really didn't know what his brother wanted.

The two-faced Sukuna's scarlet eyes flickered, and it called out towards the direction outside:

"Rime!"

The silver-haired boy appeared swiftly at the shoji doorway as if he were invisible.

"Lord Sukuna, what are your orders?"

Rime was wearing a hakama (traditional Chinese skirt) to cover herself from the dust and was carrying a sharp kitchen knife, clearly coming from the direction of the kitchen.

"I'm going to find Orochi. I'll be back in a couple of days."

Rimei watched Su Nuo leave, her rose-red eyes filled with sorrow.

"Am I too weak...? Sukuna-sama always took me with him wherever he went before."

Rime's face looked as dejected as if it had been drenched in rain.

"Xiaomei, you're not weak at all. My brother said I'm the useless one."

Alluka smiled sweetly, her wisps of hair brushing against her soft cheeks, making her look very cute.

"..."

Rime wiped her face with the back of her hand and shifted her gaze to Alluka.

Rime never regarded Alluka as a weakling.

He had witnessed how Alluka could transform an ordinary person into such an extreme being in the shortest amount of time. If it weren't for Lord Sukuna's mercy, he would have died at Sugawara Kazuka's hands.

However, his body, devoid of any magical power, was so frail that it seemed as if it would shatter at the slightest touch. Even with immense strength, he couldn't unleash it when someone like Wan, who disregarded martial ethics and only used his hands without speaking, was incapable of using it.

He straightened his expression and said, "You'll come with me to the back mountain tomorrow."

"Why?"

Alluka's fair cheeks flushed with excitement.

During his time at the shrine, he was treated like a precious, fragile object, kept on a high shelf. People were afraid that he would suffer any harm. What was he doing in the back mountain? Was he playing some fun games?

With this anticipation, he was dragged out of bed by Rimei in the morning.

Alluka thought Rime wanted to play a game with him, but Rime was actually thinking about strengthening Alluka's weak body.

"Curses are the excretions of negative human emotions; the overflowing curse power gathers together to form all sorts of cursed spirits..."

Upon realizing that Alluka truly knew nothing, Rime sighed and began to explain.

Even if he doesn't have magical power in his body, he still needs to understand the principles of that kind of thing, lest he accidentally run into it and die.

He also needs to buy a magical artifact for Alluka.

Rime felt she was really worried sick.

"Why?"

Hearing these unfamiliar words, Alluka was bewildered and had no idea what Rime was talking about.

"...Anyway, let's run two laps first."

Noticing Alluka's gaze, Rime abandoned the idea of ​​explaining.

He also wanted to explain the principles of spell power to Alluka, but then felt it was somewhat unnecessary.

His idea was beautiful, but reality was cruel.

Just a few minutes later, Alluka collapsed to the ground, exhausted, and even the ahoge (cowlick) on her head drooped.

"Xiaomei, let's not run anymore, okay?"

Alluka spread his hands and started to act coquettishly towards Rime. Because he was a little tired, his voice trailed off, sounding as sweet as if it were mixed with maple syrup.

"ah."

Rime lifted Alluka up.

He had expected Alluka to be physically weak, but he hadn't imagined she could be this weak. Even the common people at the foot of the mountain were running faster than Alluka when they were escaping the curse.

"Xiaomei, can I pat my head?"

Alluka was carried obediently on Rime's back, continuing to act coquettishly.

Rime paused as she raised her hand, suddenly recalling the scene before Sugawara Kazukazu became a monster.

Lord Sukuna once said that all those rope dolls were made by the being inside Alluka.

Sugawara Kazuwa became like that after fulfilling Alluka's three wishes; the rope people must have appeared after she refused...

No way...

He turned around and gently placed his hand on Alluka's head.

Alluka in front of me had a harmless smile on her face, and a few beads of sweat were still on the tip of her nose from her run.

"Xiaomei, give me a compliment."

Alluka blinked and made her request once again.

"You're amazing."

Rime sighed, thinking to herself, "Just as I thought."

When he saw the boy named Nanika, he knew he had guessed correctly.

Aside from Alluka's own choice, it takes granting three wishes to awaken her?

"What is your wish?"

Nanica's pale face was fixed intently on Rime's direction.

She, like Alluka, really liked Rime.

When she couldn't help her brother, she thought of helping Rimei fulfill his wish.

"this……"

Rime knew that Nanika could truly grant wishes, so he thought about it carefully and asked, "I want Lord Sukuna to eat the most delicious meat."

Rime didn't know that Alluka's wishes required an equivalent exchange, and he thought about it and realized that he didn't have any wishes he wanted to fulfill.

If he truly wanted to provide Lord Sukuna with the finest and most delicious food, that would be the goal of his life's work.

"……good."

Nanika twisted her head, and a teeth-grinding crunching sound followed.

The moment she agreed, all the meat in the noble households of Heian-kyo vanished, and all the missing food was piled up in Sukuna's mansion.

It was so full that it overflowed outside the mansion.