[Episode 5: A Proposal And Agreement]
[Opening Song: Bling-Bang-Bang-Born – By: Creepy Nuts]
Eda had to admit that maybe arranging that meeting with Principal Hieronymus Bump of Hexside High School of Magic and Demonics, and Satoru Gojo, might have been a bad idea. Having slept on it after arranging the meeting between the two, several problems with having Luz attend Hexside came to mind, the least of which was her inability to use magic.
Oh, sure, that was definitely a factor, but not nearly as big of a factor as it should have been, taking into consideration everything else. Though, as was obvious, neither Gojo nor Luz seemed to be able to identify what those problems would be, seeing as neither of them realized it just yet.
It was frustrating, but there wasn't much Eda could do except spell it out to them. Something that she refused to do, mostly because she wanted to believe that Gojo wasn't stupid enough to walk into a bad situation unprepared. But, considering just the kind of person Gojo was, Eda figured that it wouldn't have mattered either way.
Chances were that Gojo knew, but either simply didn't care, or if he did, he didn't care enough to where it would be a problem. Which, considering what he had been able to do, Eda could see why he thought so highly of himself. Simply put, if you can beat anyone just by pointing a finger at them, any perceived danger of a situation is either irrelevant or immensely overhyped.
For the longest time, while she refused to admit it due to her pride, she was terrified of being caught by The Emperor's Coven. Not because she was afraid of them, but because she was afraid of speaking to her sister again after so many years. Especially after the incident regarding their parents. That was a night that was burned into her memory so clearly that every time she closed her eyes not drunk off of her rear, she could see it.
She could see the malformation that she had turned into that night slashing its large, draconic-like claws across her father's chest. She could see the crimson liquid splash against the wall. She could see the horrified and betrayed look on her mother's and sister's faces, and she could hear the pained, agonized cursings of her father calling her a damnable monster.
That night, she had fled, never to see them again in person.
She could only imagine what her sister would want to say to her after not seeing her in person for so many years. The amount of contempt, hatred, and rage that had most likely piled up over the years, it was probably overwhelming. She could almost imagine their interaction as plain as day, and it wasn't a pretty sight.
The hostile look and the sneer, the narrowed eyes and the seething rage underneath them, and whatever harsh words she had for her. All of it was justified. Her sister always held grudges and after she had attacked their father…. If her sister didn't want to kill her with her own two hands after such an incident, she would be shocked.
Because in all honesty? She would probably let her.
So, despite their disagreements on several issues, she was glad that Gojo was here. With her magical power waning thanks to her curse, having someone who could take on the legions that The Emperor commanded took a lot off of her shoulders. Not that Eda couldn't do it herself, but she wanted to hold onto as much of her remaining magic as demonically possible, just in case they one day did find her place of residence when Gojo wasn't around.
Looking back on that, it was probably really, really bad that she was shifting her focus to being dependent on Gojo's temporary power—especially considering that she knew he and Luz were going to ask to leave any day now, and were only sticking around because they found this place interesting—but if she could rest on her laurels for just a little while longer, and accumulate enough power to permanently find a way to stay in hiding without threat of detection, she would use that and abuse that for as long as she possibly could.
She might have been the strongest witch in all of the isles at one point, but those glory days were over a long time ago. And loathe as she was to admit it, it was the truth. Hence the paranoia and the collecting of Glyphs. Hence the mistrust she had with Hexside due to it being directly funded by the Emperor, among other things. Hence why she was so nervous to allow Luz to attend Hexside.
Eda watched both Gojo and Luz have breakfast; Gojo was having a cup of coffee the same as Eda had, while Luz was having Dragon Eggs with a slab of Jerkon Bacon. The two had been talking about something called "Cosmic Frontier" or something along those lines. It must've been a human show and a popular one given how the two acted like giddy children when discussing it.
That aside, something was bugging Eda, and it had nothing to do with Hexside—though that was still on her mind. Rather, what had been bugging her had to do with the argument that Gojo and her had. It revealed a few things to her about Gojo, things that she assumed that he was very tight-lipped about.
For starters, there was no longer a way to ignore it: Satoru Gojo was strong, which was obvious but that was beside the point—that Cursed Energy of his had been the major giveaway when it came to that. He was someone that, should they come to blows for whatever reason, she had no hope of defeating, let alone even scratching. Every time he unleashed his Cursed Energy, her curse—the Owl Beast—seemed to react negatively to it.
It made every bone in her body tremble, and every muscle in her body react in fear. It was like her curse was actively trying to run away from him. That alone made Eda nervous. If her Curse, something that even The Emperor's Coven feared, was afraid of Gojo, then what did that mean for everyone else? If Gojo turned out to be a bad person, then what would anyone be able to do?
At first, she thought about what he had said before. When he had said that he could be killed. If that was the case, then maybe there was that small amount of hope that if he was evil, and had nothing but the worst intentions for Luz, then maybe he could be defeated—not that she believed that, of course, but still.
However, that had been before he had clarified that the man who had been able to nullify whatever it was that was making him as strong as he had been was dead, and the weapon that allowed him to do such a thing was destroyed, by his own hands no less. Meaning any and all hope of getting a countermeasure for Satoru Gojo was dashed before it could even be thought of.
The only reason why she was thinking about the what-ifs was because Eda was a very paranoid woman, which was once again obvious due to her habit of stockpiling even the most mundane of items. Considering what it was that she had been labelled, and considering what she had done, and also considering the fact that the person who was currently leading the Emperor's Coven—aside from The Emperor himself—was someone who had a very viable reason for hating her guts, you would be paranoid too if you were in her situation.
Not to mention that, from what she had been able to garner from her interactions with Gojo, she was able to piece together that he wasn't exactly the most stable of people. To her, Satoru Gojo was a ticking time bomb. He just gave off that kind of energy. He was the kind of person who, at any moment, could snap and become a walking weapon of mass destruction.
She hadn't seen him in combat aside from that one time when they were being chased, but if he was able to wave away a Coven Guard, that showed to her that he was something else entirely. And that person was living under her roof, with King, Hooty, herself, and Luz.
And while Luz seemed to trust him, as did King and Hooty, albeit only because he hadn't shown himself to be dangerous, Eda wasn't a trusting person. And while it wasn't because she had been betrayed before, at least not in a super meaningful way, with an entire nation out for her head being a trusting person didn't allow for survival.
That said, so long as Gojo didn't try anything funny, she was perfectly fine with him being under her roof. Besides, Luz liked him, and Luz seemed to be a good judge of character. Kids typically were, no matter the age.
Speaking of Luz…. "Hey, Gojo. Can I talk to you for a moment?" Eda asked as she felt Gojo's eyes on her. It was hard to tell if he was looking at her due to his blindfold, but after a while, she was able to feel the difference. What she meant by that was whenever Gojo looked at you, a sense of anticipation came over that person. It was like as if the whole world was watching you, and as such, Eda knew when Gojo was looking at her because of the overwhelming pressure that came over her in that moment.
"Yeah, sure. What is it?" Gojo questioned as he put down his cup of coffee, walking over to her as Eda stood up, gesturing for him to follow. They walked into the living room, away from where Luz could hear, as Gojo stood next to Eda, who herself was standing around the corner. "Does this have to do with yesterday?"
"No," Eda replied bluntly, earning a sigh of relief from Gojo. "This has to do with the idea of Luz going to Hexside." Eda continued as Gojo raised an eyebrow.
"What's the matter? You said it was a good idea," Gojo said as Eda frowned, scratching the top of her head as she glanced in the opposite direction of where Gojo was. She had a feeling he would say something like that. "Oh well, here goes nothing…."
"Yeah, I did. But after thinking about it some more, I realized that there could be a few… problems," Eda began as Gojo crossed his arms, signalling for her to continue. "It has nothing to do with her capabilities. While I haven't seen much for myself, I can trust your judgment. I'm sure that she'll be alright in terms of what she can do, but there's something else that's bugging me…."
"Don't worry about it," Gojo said, a confident smile on his face. "Besides, if Hexside is anything like Jujutsu Tech, then Luz should be fine."
"But that's the thing," Eda rebutted, a slight edge to her voice, "Whatever you think Hexside is, it probably isn't!" As Eda said that, Gojo tilted his head, feigning ignorance as Eda groaned. "Look, Gojo, I'm telling you that Hexside isn't what you're thinking it is. Not to mention, I hate to say it, but Luz'll be the odd one out there! I mean, look at her!"
"What's wrong with her?" Gojo said, a serious tone forming in his words as Eda raised her hands placatingly.
"No, it's not like that! I mean, seriously, what's the major difference you've seen here with those who look like Humans?" Eda questioned as Gojo stroked his chin, only for him to have a split-second realization.
"Oh! I see what you're getting at here," Gojo said, pointing to his ears. "It's because she doesn't look like a Witch. So, racism, that's what you're afraid of?" He continued with an almost nonchalant tone bleeding into his words as he waved off her concerns with practiced ease. "She'll be fine, especially if it's just that," Gojo added, shrugging his shoulders as he placed his hands in his pockets.
"Besides, I've already set up the meeting with Principal Bump. I'm not going to cancel just because of that. And that's, what? In a few hours from now?" As Gojo said that, Luz walked into the room, Eda looking over Gojo's shoulder to peer into the kitchen to make sure Luz had put her dishes away. Sure enough, her plate was on the counter, so that's all that mattered.
Aside from that, when Eda glanced in Luz's direction, Eda saw that she looked excited, an ear-to-ear smile plastered on her face as she practically bounced with each step she took. It was charming to see a kid that excited, even if it was about school. But, then again when wasn't she excited? Even after yesterday when she was hurt, she was still excited to continue training with Gojo.
Eda couldn't understand Luz, despite their similar weird tendencies. Maybe it was because of the fantastical nature of what it was she was doing that she didn't see the danger that was in front of her. Gojo had said that he wanted her to remain blissfully ignorant until she couldn't be any longer. Her only question to that was why?
Whatever his reasoning had been, there was nothing that could be done about it. Clearly, Gojo was deadset on making sure that Luz remained unaware of the dangers, despite encountering them head-on. Or, maybe Luz knew? If she knew, then why would she recklessly endanger herself like that, just for the pursuit of some kind of power? Did she not have a sense of self-preservation or something?
"I can't get a read on her…" Eda thought, a neutral expression on her face as Luz spoke.
"Do you think I'll actually be able to make friends, Gojo?" Luz asked as the man in question ruffled the kid's hair, much to her annoyance, a smile taking up his visage as he did so.
"Anyone who doesn't want to be friends with you, Luz, is stupid. Besides, you're the best kind of person to be friends with. Honest, open, and caring. Those are the words I'd describe you with," Gojo replied as Eda chuckled to herself.
The more she thought about it, the more she had come to realize that their dynamic was less like student and teacher and more like brother and sister. The way they talked to each other, the way Luz acted when Gojo annoyed her, followed by the eagerness the two shared when it came to Luz's training; it was all so surreal. Maybe that was the point, and if it was, if it weren't for the glaring differences of them physically, it would make sense.
If only she had a similar relationship with her sister…. "No. That won't happen. Not since she joined the Emperor's Coven. The moment she did that, any chance I had to rekindle that relationship died…"
"Can you stop that!" Luz complained as Gojo retracted his hand from her head, Luz puffing out her cheeks, her face turning red in the process. "It's super annoying…"
"That's the whole point," Gojo quipped, Luz sticking out her tongue at him before pouting, earning her a scoff. After a few moments of grumbling to herself with her arms crossed, Luz went back to having that excited smile on her face, bristling with energy like she usually did. "Well, seeing as we have some time to kill, we can always get in some extra training. Go wait for me in the basement, okay?"
"Alright!" As Luz said that, she practically ran to the basement like a Worm Demon sniffing out Apple Blood. Eda then looked to Gojo who looked at her with a frown on his face, arms crossed and body language almost demanding in a sense—kind of like how a bodyguard would stand. That kind of demanding.
"What?"
"I can tell you want to say something, and that something has to do with Luz. Now that she's not here, out with it," Gojo said as Eda sighed.
"Look, it's nothing bad. I'm just worried," Eda said as Gojo nodded, uncrossing his arms. "Look, It's just that… I don't want her to be disappointed. She reminds me of me when I was younger. I had to learn things the hard way, and I don't want that to be the same for her. It sucks, and it got me in a lot of trouble…."
"I can tell," Gojo began, "but some people have to learn that way. And Luz is much the same. She has to learn the hard way because otherwise, she won't learn at all. But that doesn't mean we can't prepare her to face that reality. Hence the training, hence what I did yesterday. Hence bringing her with me to this meeting with the Principal. You can't coop her up here and pretend like she'll benefit from it."
There was a hint of sympathy in his voice, and Eda could tell that he meant every ounce of it. But it was hard to believe him, especially after yesterday. Was she a little bit protective of children? Well yeah, who wouldn't be? It was hard to see children in situations they shouldn't be in. But something told her that Gojo had seen that type of thing before.
It made her wonder…. "Hey, Blindfold. You said you've had students before. What ended up happening to them?" Eda asked as Gojo stiffened slightly, before relaxing, chuckling to himself.
"Well, right now, three of them are still in training, and the fourth one is off being trained by someone else who knows more about what he needs to learn than I do. The fifth is technically my son if we're talking adoption, despite it not being on paper… They're all alive and well, as far as I know," As Gojo said that, there was a hint of regret in his tone of voice. Even if it wasn't her place to, she wanted to know why. And so, she did just that.
"Something tells me that's not all of them," Eda said as Gojo immediately sagged like a floppy noodle. His shoulders slumped and his whole body language seemed to go from being confident to the complete opposite. Not in a comical way, either. He looked genuinely distraught, but despite that, his voice never wavered.
"Yeah. That isn't it. Tell me, do you know the saying: "You just don't forget your first", Eda?" Gojo asked as Eda raised an eyebrow.
"Yeah, I do…. Let me guess, something happened to your first student?" She asked, to which Gojo nodded. Once again, he looked forlorn and upset. Because of that, Eda felt bad. "Look, if you don't—"
"No. It's my greatest failure, and… You probably want to know anyway. It's better if I get this over and done with," Gojo said as he leaned against the wall, glancing up at the ceiling. King came around the corner, to which Eda felt the urge to shoo him off, namely because he didn't need to hear what Gojo was about to say. Before she could, Gojo began.
"His name was Juichiro Hando. The Elders dumped him on me because it was my first year after having graduated and having become a teacher, so they wanted to keep me busy. After all, I'm the strongest, and they wanted to keep a close eye on me. What better way to do that than to give me a student?" Gojo said, a mirthless chuckle rising from his lips as he did so.
"Hando had a rather simple Cursed Technique, one that allowed him to control and generate water with his Cursed Energy. It was one that The Elders hated due to it belonging to a foreign woman who had no major connection to the Three Big Families. One that, if he had been able to grow up, would've made his bloodline capable of reaching that level of status. Something that The Elders refused to allow," As Gojo said that, Eda felt a burning hatred in her blood.
The more Gojo talked about these "Elders", the more she was convinced they had to be the human version of Belos. Because only someone as evil as him would do something like that. It also made no sense! Why wouldn't they want to have another powerful form of magic to help them in their fight against something that supposedly threatened all of Humanity? It sounded counterproductive.
She wanted to ask, but she knew that the moment she did she'd get a headache. She knew Humans to be petty. She had been to the human realm countless times before to know that. But even so, it was still stupid just how petty they could get, even if it meant that they would self-sabotage themselves, and all for what? To maintain some kind of status quo? A status quo that was actively harming them?
It was frustrating. Both because she had experience with a broken system like that, and frustrating to know that the humans were making the exact same mistakes she was currently living through. But, unfortunately, it didn't stop there, as Gojo continued.
"It was because of their bias to his Cursed Technique and to the fact that he was of foreign blood that they were planning on letting him die alone—something I'm sure would've happened to Luz if they had known it was a person and not something completely up in the air that they had detected. However, because I was inexperienced at the time, they decided that it would've been better to hand him off to me. Because that way, he'd die quicker," Gojo continued, his right hand clenching into a fist.
"Except, they didn't expect me to be competent in taking care of kids. I even nurtured his Technique to the point of putting him on par with a Semi-Grade 1 Sorcerer at the age of 12. To some, that might sound incredibly quick without knowing his age, but he was inducted into the society at nine and was subsequently given to me then.
"But even then, to have that kind of power and the ability to get it to that far at such a young age? It was damn near matching my skill level, just with a different technique.And that potential? They refused to acknowledge it. He was forced into being labelled a Grade 3 Sorcerer, one of the lowest grades imaginable for a Sorcerer excluding Grade 4, and no higher.
"However, because he was a kid, and seeing as kids are always ambitious and want to impress their parental figures—which is what I had essentially become—he wanted to ascend the ranks. So when I was on a vacation, they gave him a chance to seek an audience with them," as he spoke, Eda noticed how his fist became tighter, and how the knuckles on his fingers whitened.
The way his blindfold wrinkled and how his frown turned into an almost full-on sneer showed that he was glaring. Not to mention the way his forearms shook, and the way she could tell he was trying to suppress himself made it apparent he was angry, although Eda could've already guessed that. And she couldn't fault him, especially considering that she was also getting angry too, though was far better at keeping it hidden.
"All he wanted to do was to ascend the ranks, and they took advantage of that. They sent him on a suicide mission without my knowledge, and by the time I came back after hearing what happened, I was too late. His body burned into my mind when I saw it. I can't even describe it without getting sick—and I've seen a lot of disturbing deaths…. But that one?"
Gojo shuddered slightly, genuine discomfort washing over him as Eda felt her stomach churn. "I'm… sorry you had to go through that," Eda said, sympathy in her words as Gojo shook his head. He sighed, calming himself as he stood up straight. Eda glanced over where King was, and the way he stood there with wide eyes made it clear that he was more than a little spooked.
"Crap, was he there the whole time?" Gojo asked as Eda nodded.
"Yeah, I was gonna say something before you started, but it was already too late, and I didn't want to be rude," Eda said as King came down the stairs and looked up at Gojo. There was a heap load of worry in his eyes, and the way his little body trembled in what Gojo assumed was fear made him feel particularly bad for having said all of that.
Granted, he didn't know he was there, and hindsight was 20/20, but the last thing he had wanted to do was scare the child dog thing. Especially considering how pathetic he looked right about now.
"Luz won't have to go through that, will she?" King asked as Gojo frowned. He didn't know, and that was the scary part. Would they treat her the same way that they did Juichiro? He was Japanese but still foreign to the clans, but Luz was worse in that regard. She was an American who was far and away the most separated from the three big families.
The only reason the Elders tolerated Yuta was because he was a distant relative of Gojo, but Luz? She had no connections as far as he was aware, and that made things even worse. However, there was a massive difference between him back then, and him now. And The Elders knew what that difference was.
"If they laid so much as a finger on a single strand of her hair…" Gojo began, his sneer turned frown turning into a full-on scowl, the air around Gojo shifting from sombre to one of bloodlust and rage at the mere thought of something bad happening to Luz. "I would personally see to it their bloodlines would be cleansed from Earth. I already lost one of my students to them because of their beliefs. I refuse to lose another one, especially one with as much potential as her."
As that thought ended, a stray thought entered his mind. "What about Megumi? It's already been a week since I left… The Elders already showed annoyance at my taking Megumi under my wing…. I swear if they gave him to The Zen'in Clan in my absence…" Gojo thought, dismissing the thought entirely. "No. The Elders are gutsy, but they aren't stupid. They already know that provoking me is a bad idea. Even if I'm gone, trying to make a move against me was dumb of them. I already showed them what I'd do to them if they pulled what happened to Juichiro to me again. I doubt they need another reminder."
When he had created the Great Fuji Cavern using nothing but a Boosted Hollow Purple after enchanting it, despite their bellyaching at his actions, it wasn't as if they could do anything about it. So even if they did try to do anything to Megumi, or even Luz, they'd have hell to pay for it.
Clapping his hands together, startling King, Gojo smirked. "Well, enough depressing stuff! I got to get down there and train the kid. We still have three hours until the meeting, and I'm going to make the most of it!" As Gojo said that, he teleported into the basement, which had been where Luz was. She had been patiently sitting on the second-to-last step, kicking her legs in the air, humming a tune as she waited.
When Gojo suddenly appeared, she was briefly startled, jumping backward and nearly tripping over her feet, catching herself with the railing as Gojo laughed. "You should've seen the look on your face!" He remarked, earning a frown from Luz.
"Did you have to do that?" Luz remarked, walking down the stairs as she did so. Gojo shrugged as if to say that he didn't care, which didn't make Luz's mood any better. She'd let it go for now, but she would definitely get him back for that!
"Well, yes and no. See, the moment I scared you, you lost control over your Cursed Energy. But I bet you didn't feel that, did you?" Gojo said as Luz blinked, and it was only then that she realized that he was correct. Before being scared, her Cursed Energy was calm, and now it was erratic, something she quickly fixed, but still. The point had been proven, and it had been one of those things that she knew was objectively correct, but still didn't like.
"See, now do you get why I scared you?" Gojo added, a smirk present on his face. "Anyways, get ready to go. I took you to the basement as a formality, but we're going to be shifting scenery quickly. We're going to be working on your combat training some more, except this time, your opponent is going to be different."
As Gojo said that, he grabbed Luz by the back of the hood and teleported them. No longer were they in the basement, but rather, they were back in the woods. What was with Gojo and taking them to a forest? Maybe it was because it was the best place to train. Or maybe there was some reason behind it. Either way, it was kind of bland.
Then again, they had only been there once. So maybe it was just happenstance. Gojo let go of her hood as she placed her feet on the floor as gently as she could, leaves crunching underfoot as she looked around her surroundings. Much like last time, they appeared to be in a clearing of sorts. Unlike last time, there was nothing around them. Nothing but forest for as far as the eye could see.
"So… what now?" Luz asked as Gojo smiled. It wasn't a happy kind of smile, but rather the kind of smile one would see moments before the person who was smiling would play a prank. And, as far as Luz was concerned, that was not going to be a good thing.
"You get to fight me. You have to try and land a single hit on me, and during that, you'll also have to dodge my attacks. I won't hit too hard, but I won't exactly be gentle either," Gojo said as Luz blinked, as a brief stint of confusion washed over her. It was only when Gojo reared back his right arm that she realized he was serious, and as soon as he extended his arm, Luz had no choice but to dodge.
She twisted her upper body to the left, avoiding the fist as it just barely grazed her cheek. Tripping over herself, Luz tried to run backward but failed, as Gojo followed her movements. When she fell, he went to kick her, only for her to get up just in time, jumping up as Gojo's foot stomped into the ground right where her chest would've been. The ground cracked under his strike, Luz's eyes narrowing.
"Okay, this wasn't what I was expecting to happen, but I guess this works…" Luz thought, panic washing over her. Fighting Gojo was something she didn't have on her bingo card, but it wasn't the end of the world. All she had to do was get one solid strike on him and it was over. She let her Cursed Energy travel to her fists, the blue light covering them as Gojo smirked.
"Good! You're adapting to the situation, that's great!" As Gojo said that, he lunged forward faster than her eyes could perceive, and even faster than he had appeared, his leg was already extended, his boot firmly planted on her belly as the lightning-fast kick connected. A pained look momentarily took up Luz's visage as she was sent skidding backward. It wasn't all that far, and it didn't hurt nearly as much as it most likely should have. Then again, Gojo said he was going to be holding back.
"Dead. In a real fight, you would've died right there. Keep your guard up, Luz," Gojo said as Luz narrowed her eyes, a bead of sweat trailing down the side of her face. Bringing her fists up to below her chin, she got in a fighting stance, her dominant hand in front of her with her non-dominant hand closer to her face. Her body was turned so that her dominant hand was more prominent and vice-versa for her non-dominant hand, with the same holding true for her legs.
"Just like when she was fighting that Cursed Spirit, she's using that same fighting stance..." Gojo thought, frowning. "She's relying on what she's seen in movies. That much is obvious. Seems as If I'm going to have to teach her some real fighting moves. However, that stance isn't all that bad. Her legs need to be a little wider, but aside from that, it looks good," Gojo thought, narrowing his eyes under his blindfold. "Well, let's see how well she can hold it up while I'm getting into her personal space."
With that, Gojo dashed forward, getting up in Luz's bubble and closing the distance between himself and Luz, shock taking over her visage at his sheer speed. He went in with a lightning-quick left-handed jab, something she was just barely able to avoid. He went for a gut check with his right fist, something that she was able to block but not without her block being disrupted.
Capitalizing on that, Gojo went for a spinning helicopter kick, which landed on her shoulder, sending her flying to the right, with her only being able to stop it mere centimetres away from the tree she would've made direct contact with. Before what he was doing now, he had been using the same strength as a Grade 4 Cursed Spirit. Now, he had upped his strength and speed to match that of a Grade 3 Cursed Spirit. He wanted to see how she would adapt.
Luz, from what he could tell, was the type of person to take things slowly. That wouldn't do in a real fight. He wanted her to learn that now before it got her killed. Hence why he was ramping up the stakes. He wasn't going to kill her or try to, but he wouldn't refrain from breaking any of her bones if it meant teaching her a lesson.
"Still, I need to watch my strength…" Gojo thought, walking toward Luz as he rolled his right shoulder, cracking his neck in the process. Luz slowly stood up, pain evident in her body language. Maybe he hit her too hard, but that didn't matter. If it became a problem, he'd have Eda heal her when they got back.
"Dead, once again," Gojo commented, as Luz held onto her shoulder, gritting her teeth as she did so. "You have good form, but horrible reaction speed. Right now, I'm going at you with the same strength and speed as a Grade 3 Cursed Spirit. You can hardly keep up without faltering. Right now, we're trying to make sure that you can go toe-to-toe with a Grade 3 Cursed Spirit, that way when you encounter Grade 4's you'll be able to take them out easily and be able to match a Grade 3. I won't stop attacking you until you land a hit, so don't get comfortable."
Luz gulped audibly, getting back into a fighting stance. And as soon as she did, he closed the distance between them. Except, this time, right before he went to hit her with a right hook, she sent out a left jab with Cursed Energy attached to it. A part of him wanted to activate Infinity the moment it came close to his actual body, but he decided against it, letting the jab hit.
When it did, he felt her Cursed Energy penetrate his own, staggering him slightly. "She's got impressive strength when it's backed by her Cursed Energy. But…." As he thought that, she tried to follow it up with another jab from her right, only for Gojo to slap it away, leaving her open. Before he was able to capitalize on it, she kicked him with a Cursed Energy-infused spartan kick. He blinked, the kick hitting him square above the waist, which had been able to make him nearly fall over had it not been for him following the flow of the attack.
"Well, I'll be!" Gojo thought as Luz closed the distance between himself and her, rearing her arm back for a proper punch, with the same speed he had done with her before. Except, unlike her, he was able to react to it. He put out a block, guiding her fist away from his chest, before completely turning her around, and burying his foot into her back, sending her to the ground, and grabbing her dominant arm and pulling it back as she landed belly first on the ground. He put a tiny amount of pressure on her back as he held her there.
"Ow…" Luz groaned as Gojo smirked.
"You did well, Luz. You landed not one, but two hits on me. You even caught me off guard! You still need some work, but we have plenty of time to do that," Gojo said as he helped Luz up. She dusted herself off, rolling her shoulder in the process.
"Did you need to pin me to the ground…" Luz asked as Gojo shrugged.
"Probably not, but it got you to stop, didn't it?" Gojo replied as Luz frowned, crossing her arms and looking away from him. It honestly reminded him of when Shoko and him were kids and when they would spar all the time. Those were the good old days. Back when there weren't nearly as many problems to deal with as there are now.
Gojo sighed internally. None of that mattered now. Dwelling on the past was only ever a bad thing. "Plus, you adapted pretty well! Hurray!" Gojo did a mock cheer, earning an even deeper frown from Luz. "Oh, c'mon, you gotta admit that was—"
"Cheesy, very cheesy," Luz replied, cracking up a bit, which Gojo smirked at. Never let it be said that Gojo Satoru wasn't a funny man. He was quite funny, even funnier than most when he wanted to be. He simply hadn't had the time to be his usual self. Truth be told he had been on guard the moment he arrived in this strange new place, and not a moment since.
But, he was slowly starting to feel more and more comfortable with being here. He shouldn't be, but he did. He couldn't tell if that was a good thing or a bad thing, but nevertheless, it was progress. He had already been there for a week, and so much as happened. From Luz taking up the challenge of learning how to use her Cursed Energy, to them being labelled as criminals, to Luz taking down her first Cursed Spirit—so many things in such a short amount of time, and yet despite that, it wasn't even all that tiring.
Just like Juichiro, Luz had an insane amount of potential and the progress she was making was insane. However, unlike Juichiro, there were no pesky Elders to get in the way of her growth. Not that they would, mind you, as they had already tried and failed to do that with Yuta when he arrived. Besides, they weren't even here right now, so that only made things easier.
"Alright, let's do it again. We have plenty of time to spare, still nearly three hours. Hope you're not tired~!" Gojo said as Luz blinked, as it finally clicked for her that the next three hours of her life were going to be a living hell.
And they were. By the time it was all said and done, Luz was covered in bruises and every part of her body ached. And yet, despite that, Gojo had a few solid bruises on his face too. He hadn't used Infinity to block anything, and while he was considerably less damaged, and with a single pass of the Reversed Cursed Technique it was all gone, the fact of the matter was that Luz had been able to make him hurt.
Granted, it wasn't anything major, and it was without his biggest asset being active, and he hadn't used Blue or Red, nor had he covered his body with Cursed Energy to absorb the blows. In reality, it wasn't that much of a feat to beat up Gojo when he wasn't taking anything seriously, but the point still stood. The fact that he had been hurt by those attacks had proved to him that Luz was strong.
Luz sat underneath a tree, tired and bruised and in pain. Gojo didn't go too hard on her, just as he had promised he would. He kept the same pace as he had when she "beat" him the first time, only ramping it up to about Semi-Grade 2 levels of strength near the end. Luz was able to partially keep up with him when he was pushing himself a little bit, but she was still getting tripped up by basic things.
But, as for her growth? She was able to throw a proper punch now without missing her target. She was able to channel her Cursed Energy no matter the circumstance and she didn't have to focus all that much anymore—it simply came to her naturally. She was able to guard and counterattack fairly well, and by far the best development out of the whole ordeal was that she was starting to learn how to cover her body in Cursed Energy to absorb the damage from Cursed Energy-related attacks.
It was clear that, near the end, when she tried doing it she had done so on reflex, meaning she hadn't realized that she did it, but the fact of the matter was that she had done it. And because she had, Gojo now had a new way of training Luz.
He was also able to see just how flexible and fast Luz had been. It was clear she was no slouch. She was bending, dodging, and weaving like crazy. She had even been able to pull off a full duck a single second away from getting punched, and following it up with a backflip-style kick. It had hit him square in the chin, and it had left him staggered for a solid few seconds. If he ever got to meet her cheerleader teacher, he'd have to thank them in person, because they clearly knew what they were doing.
"Alright, Luz," Gojo began as she groaned, looking up at him with a disinterested look in her eyes. She was tired beyond belief, and it showed. The way her shoulders slumped, the way her breathing had become heavy, and the way sweat poured down her forehead all indicated to Gojo that she was beyond tired and had ventured into the realm of exhaustion.
"Please… tell me… we're done?" Luz asked through her breathing, as Gojo nodded. She sighed, relaxation kicking in as she practically deflated.
"We have fifteen minutes before the meeting. Do you want to get something to drink back at Eda's?" Gojo asked, even though it wasn't needed. He already knew her answer would be yes, as was obvious by her frantic nodding. Gojo helped her up, taking her by the hand and pulling her to her feet. She nearly collapsed into Gojo, but she kept herself standing, wiping her forehead of sweat with her left arm, keeping her balance with her right.
After she got her balance, Gojo teleported them to the kitchen in Eda's house, where Eda was sitting at the table reading a newspaper. When she saw Luz, she raised an eyebrow. Gojo was glad she didn't blow up like last time, though the lack of blood probably had something to do with that. "I take it you're done training? She looks like she got trampled by several Jumboflies," Eda remarked as Gojo felt a shiver run down his spine. Whatever a Jumbofly was, he didn't want to know. And, if he were to guess, it wasn't what he was thinking about, i.e. a massive housefly.
"Nope! I was just teaching her how to fight!" Gojo said as Eda raised an eyebrow.
"So… you let her fight a Curse… and only after that you teach her how to fight? Sounds kind of backwards, don't you think?" Eda said, a slight edge to her voice as if to say "Are you stupid" to which Gojo would probably promptly reply with no, because he was so obviously the smartest in the world, even if he did have his dumb moments, this definitely being one of them.
"Hindsight is 20/20," Gojo replied, to which he turned to get Luz something to drink as she sat next to an air vent blowing out cool air, practically melting into it as she did. Pulling out a jug full of Apple Blood—non-alcoholic—he poured Luz a glass before passing it to her. The second Luz took the glass, it was empty with her having chugged the whole thing down in a single breath. With a sigh, Luz put the glass up on the counter above her head, making sure it didn't fall over, and when that was done she stood up, almost as if that was all she needed for another round of training.
"Okay! All ready to go!" Luz said, a smile on her face as Eda chuckled. Gojo found it admirable that she had a boundless amount of enthusiasm, even after having been practically dragged through the mud. Once again, he was reminded of one of his students from last year, specifically Yuta before everything went down. Before The Night Parade of 100 Demons….
"Well, we still have ten minutes. Eda, do you think healing magic would be able to heal bruises or sprained muscles?" Gojo asked as Eda shook her head.
"If you're precise with it, yeah. But I'm not. You know the saying: Jack of all trades, master of none. I can use all forms of magic well, but I can't do focused stuff. I mean, I used to be able to, but that was before my current situation," Eda said as Gojo raised an eyebrow. He always did wonder what that was. He knew it had something to do with a curse, that much was obvious, but what the specifics were he didn't know.
Whatever it was, it had been weakening her, and by how she said it it had been like that for years. What Gojo was currently looking at was a far cry from what she had used to be. It was a cruel fate, but there was probably a reason behind it. One simply didn't curse another just for the sake of it. Not that he believed it was deserved, but still, there had to have been a reason for Eda being cursed.
On the other hand, the information she gave was useful. He'd have to ask her more about the limits of healing magic. What a basic healer could do and what they couldn't. Eda most likely fell into that category, and from what he could tell minor flesh wounds were things that could be healed by basic healers.
"Good to know," Gojo said, looking over to Luz and then to his phone to check the time. There were still nine minutes left, and so with that in mind. "Luz, go take a shower. You reek and I can smell you from here. Don't want this Bump guy to think you're a slob, right? And Eda, I'm sure you can clean her clothes with magic, can't you? It's the only stuff she has in her size."
"Yup. I can just use water magic mixed with healing magic to get rid of the dirt and grime. I do it when I'm feeling particularly lazy and I don't want to do a load of laundry. It doesn't make it smell fresh and clean but it does make it look clean," Eda said as Gojo nodded.
"Uh, small problem, how am I going to give you my clothes if I'm in the shower?" Luz asked as Eda raised an eyebrow.
"I grab them? Either that or I can have Hooty pop in from the sink and snag them. Either way, it works," Eda replied as Luz blinked, feeling stupid at the obvious answer to the very easy-to-solve problem. She was uncomfortable with both, but if it was the only way then it was the only way.
"Fine. You can grab them. No offence to Hooty but, I'm assuming Hooty's a guy, yeah?" Luz asked as Eda shrugged.
"Dunno. I never bothered to ask." As Eda said that, a very distant "Hooty is a guy" echoed out from the furthest living room wall of the house and answered Luz's question, to which Eda did a "there you go" gesture with her arms. Without delay, Luz ran up the stairs to the second floor, Eda following suit. Gojo stayed on the first floor, his mind drawing back to his thoughts. Specifically, his thoughts about Luz and how similar she was to Yuta.
For starters, as he had noted before, just like Yuta Okkotsu, she had boundless Cursed Energy, though a little less than Yuta. Unlike Yuta, her Cursed Energy came from herself rather than from a Cursed Spirit that was attached to her. Granted, it wasn't like Yuta didn't have Cursed Energy of his own. It was still his, but it was thanks to Rika that he had so much of it. Luz was different.
Luz, despite her cheery and overzealous attitude, clearly harboured a lot of negativity. There was something that she was hiding. Whatever it was, though, Gojo wasn't going to poke and prod, even though he really wanted to know. It was in his nature to be naturally curious about that kind of stuff, especially when it revolved around people he knew and or cared about. He blamed his early maturing and his not being able to be a kid for the stupid inane stuff he did.
For example, the day before yesterday, where he sat upside down for no reason for half the day. Or, the time when he tried to get Eda to play "eye-spy" despite her saying multiple times that she had no interest—of note, King, Hooty, and Luz did, and they had a blast. Or when he decided to lay across the roof and stare up at the stars with Luz.
Luz had told him that she'd used to do that during the winter since it never really snowed where she lived, and the skies were usually clear. The stars were leagues different from Earth, and they had their own constellations and everything. It was strange. The Boiling Isles were both very different and very similar to Earth. It almost made him wonder if it really was a different dimension they were in or if they had simply warped from one planet in the Milky Way Galaxy to a different planet in a different Galaxy.
"So…" King spoke up, sitting on the same chair Eda had been a few moments ago. "How can you use magic? I thought humans couldn't?"
"It's not magic," Gojo replied as King tilted his head.
"It feels like Magic to me," King retorted. "Eda says it feels gross, but to me, it's just normal magic. Same as when Eda uses hers. Does that make me special?"
Gojo chuckled, "Maybe. Or maybe you just can't pick up on the differences between Magic and what I use," Gojo supplied as King shrugged, leaning into the chair, tilting it slightly.
"Doesn't make a difference to me, The King of Demons! So, ha!" King said as Gojo smirked. If he wasn't so obviously a kid, Gojo probably would've made a joke that he really shouldn't have. Either way, King seemed to have an overinflated sense of self. Maybe it was because he didn't know any other person of his species.
From what Eda had said, King wasn't anything that she'd ever seen before on The Boiling Isles. In a bestiary of wildlife near Bonesborough, there wasn't a single thing that matched King's appearance, nor any type of Demon. King was, for all intents and purposes, most likely a part of an extinct species, and the last of his kind. Meaning that when he died, his species would be fully wiped out.
Of course, Eda wasn't heartless enough to tell him that, nor was Gojo. Whatever it was he thought himself to be, Gojo wouldn't try to squash it, unless it would wind up getting him hurt. Aside from that, Gojo would leave it be. A faint sigh left Gojo as he glanced out the window and into the forest. He could feel more Cursed Spirits come into existence. Some pathetic, others weak, and a very very small amount of them being decently strong but nowhere near the level where he would have to worry about Luz and what it would mean for her.
They were all spread out across the Isles, too. It wasn't just located in Bonesborough or the area around Bonesborough. He had the chance to look at a map, and he knew all of the major locations. Glandus, the Castle, and other places such as a remote village on the foot of the Titan's corpse that didn't have an official name and a rumoured population of 20, mostly populated by Demons with a single Witch family that lived in a manor, though not much was known about them.
"If nothing else, it's good training fodder for Luz to use," Gojo thought as the aforementioned teenager came running down the stairs, dressed in a cleaner version of what she had been wearing before. Her hair was still wet, but it wasn't going to pose a problem, not unless the winds started to pick up. The last thing he wanted was for her to get sick. "Alright! I'm ready to go!" Luz said as Gojo glanced at the clock. They had about a minute or so left to spare, which was good.
"Alright then," Gojo said as Eda finished coming down the stairs. "Be back in a bit," Gojo said, before teleporting both himself and Luz to the location where the meeting was to be had, which had been near a remote area during the convention. When he showed up, he found himself standing outside of a building that reminded him of a regular convention center. Then again, he guessed it made sense all things considered.
Not but a few feet in front of him stood a rather elderly-looking man. His face was wrinkled, with light-beige skin. Atop his head seemed to be a red-skinned creature that covered the top half of his face and his hair, said creature appeared to look like a stereotypical demon from the Christian Bible with pointed horns and a spike-like tail. The man's eyes, be they the eyes of the creature or his actual eyes Gojo hadn't even the foggiest of an idea, were teal with yellow sclera.
He was dressed in a traditional academic long black gown adorned with a golden yoke, and a black cape, and the sleeves of the gown and the hem of the cape were lined with golden silk. There was a blue stole draped over his shoulders, and on his feet were a pair of black pointed shoes that reminded Gojo of what an elf would wear.
His hands were bony, and they had long overgrown black fingernails. It was a strange appearance all things considered, but aside from that he looked like what an old man would appear to be. Though, once again, Gojo had to hold himself back from blowing off the top of the old man's head upon seeing that strange creature seemingly eating half of his head.
"In all of my years of life, never once have I seen anyone simply… appear before me. Even with illusion magic, it takes a moment for the spell's effects to end, but with you, it was as if the world corrected a mistake and blinked you into existence. Fascinating…. Very fascinating indeed, Mr. Gojo," the old man said as he stroked his bare chin.
"I take it you're Hieronymus Bump, yeah?" Gojo asked as Bump nodded, dropping his hand to his side.
"That would be correct, Mr. Gojo. It is a pleasure to meet you," Bump said before looking over to Luz, a quizzical look on his face. "And I take it that this young lady over here is Luz Noceda? She's the child you spoke about over the scroll, correct?"
"That would be me!" Luz introduced, outstretching her hand for greeting. Bump, amused, took her hand and shook it. Retracting their hands, Bump looked back over to Gojo, his expression neutral.
"I must say, if I hadn't gotten a look at you myself, I would've never guessed that either of you were Human. Oh, and another thing. I would allow you two to peek around the Covention, but because it is restricted to Hexside Students only, I cannot let you in. I hope you take no offence to that," Bump said as Gojo shrugged.
"Nah, I get it. Rules are rules. Right, Luz?" Gojo asked as Luz pouted.
"Awe… I wanted to meet some people my age," Luz said, crossing her arms as Bump chuckled in that same way a wise man would.
"I am sure you will soon, Young Luz," Bump said as he cleared his throat, the slightly cheerful expression on his face slipping back to what it was prior. "I also have to say that you're rather gutsy meeting with me, despite knowing that The Emperor's Coven is looking for you two. It is known that you were spotted with Eda Clawthorne. Not that I would report either of you, but still. You had no reason to trust that I wouldn't simply report you and lay a trap for your capture. It takes great courage for such a thing," Bump noted as Gojo shrugged.
"Even if you did, It wouldn't have amounted to anything, honestly." As he said that, Bump chuckled to himself before his expression dropped and turned sour.
"That being said, allow me to be honest with the two of you, I do not believe that it would be wise to enroll young Luz into Hexside. As far as I am concerned, it would be a waste of time for both sides," Bump said, and as he said that, Luz seemed to look offended. Before Luz could say anything, Bump raised his hand, silencing her as Gojo frowned. "And no, it has nothing to do with her being a human. It's quite obvious that the two of you possess some kind of special talent, something that, if I recall correctly, you called Cursed Energy, correct?"
"That would be correct," Gojo replied as Bump hummed.
"Yes, thank you. Now, that being said, I'm assuming you've only just started your training, Luz?" Bump asked as Luz glanced to the ground muttering a quiet "yeah" which earned her a nod from Bump. "I see. Then that only further galvanizes my stance. You see, most people who attend Hexside, aside from the young children in the Junior Track, have been practicing magic their entire lives. As such, they are judged for that level of training. From what Gojo has told me, due to your Cursed Energy, you cannot use Glyphs, so our scoring system wouldn't apply to you. Furthermore, your peers have more experience than you do, and fighting one another is far more common than you'd think. Disputes usually end in Witches Duels, which for someone as inexperienced as you could lead to grievous harm being done unto you."
The more Bump spoke, the more disillusioned Luz seemed to become, practically shrinking into herself at the crushing realization that, for as much as Gojo wished to refute Bump's points, he was right. Luz had only been training with her Cursed Energy for a week, whereas her supposed peers had years of practice on their belts.
In other words, it would not be wise for Luz to go to Hexside. Both for her safety and for her dignity. And yet, Gojo had a feeling that he could turn this around. After all, if what Eda had said was true, and that she had witnessed Luz's Cursed Energy seemingly destroy the magic in the Glyphs that she came into contact with….
"You raise good points, Principal, but I believe in my student. I believe that she can compete with the rest of the witches at Hexside. I can prove it, too, if you give me the chance to do so," Gojo said as Bump chuckled without opening his mouth, a small, hardly noticeable smile taking up his visage as he did.
"I quite like that attitude of yours, Mr. Gojo. Allow me to be upfront and honest with you. Normally, I would've outright denied your request, seeing as just how much of an advantage any one of the students would have toward young Luz over here in the age bracket she would be put with. However, I am a curious man. Some might say that one day it could be my undoing, but I digress. I want to see just how this Cursed Energy stuff works. As a matter of fact, should Luz be able to prove herself, I'll even offer you a position as a member of staff at the school. How does that sound? I'll pay you quite handsomely, if money is even an issue," Bump offered, as Gojo flashed a toothy grin.
That was just the kind of offer he was hoping to get. He'd admit to himself and himself alone that he had been slightly worried that Bump would outright refuse his offer. But, he had his curiosity peaked. While he hadn't banked on that being the deciding factor, he'd take what he could get. He didn't care about getting the job, but it definitely added incentive.
"That's what I'm talking about. So, gramps, what're you thinking?" Gojo asked as Bump hummed in thought for a moment before a spark of an idea came to his mind as was indicated by the small smirk spreading across his lips.
"Well, as I said, it's common for disputes to be solved with Witches duels. So, how about this? If Luz can beat one of the top first-year students at Hexside, I'll allow her to come to the school. But, should she fail, I will prohibit her from even stepping foot on campus. What do you say to that?" Bump asked as now it was Gojo's turn to think about the offer.
"Luz fighting a top student… A first year, mind you, but still a top student. That could range from anywhere from a Grade 3 Jujutsu Sorcerer, to a Semi-Grade 1 if the ranking system were to carry over…" As Gojo thought the idea out, he looked to Bump, who patiently awaited his answer, a certain fire in his eyes that could not be ignored. Beneath that grandfatherly appearance was a man with a burning passion for knowledge, but also an insatiable love for competition.
Gojo would admit that he had underestimated the old man. Something he should've known not to do given Gakuganji and the fact he was still considered a Grade 1 Sorcerer and used to be a Special Grade when he was younger and had better mobility skills.
He was going to accept the offer… However, he needed to know one more thing before he did. "This request might seem strange, but it'll help me decide should you answer it. If you were to rank this specific student who you wish Luz to fight in terms of a grade, with Grade 4 being the worst, Special being the best, with Semi-Grade 2 and 1 being halfway points between Grades 3 and 2, and 2 and 1, where would you place this student?"
It took a moment for Bump to process the information he was given, and after another few moments of thinking, he responded. "If I were to grade them based on that criteria, while adding my own expectations because, I'll be honest, I don't fully understand what this grading metric would represent, I would comfortably put this particular student in Semi-Grade 1. I hope that was the answer you were looking for."
The information that was given to him made Gojo draw back into his thoughts. He wasn't entirely against the idea of Luz fighting someone at that level. Luz was already on the same level as a Grade 3 Sorcerer, if not Semi-Grade 2 with a little bit more training. However, she would most likely plateau there until she either achieved Black Flash or even that Cursed Technique buried deep within her.
However, in regards to her Cursed Technique, that third lock was still on the metaphorical Black Box, with the other two also remaining, so it would have probably taken a miracle for the latter to happen. Besides, due to how well she had been controlling her Cursed Energy after their sparring lesson, she was far closer to being able to at the very least discover Black Flash.
All of that to say, despite the power gap, Gojo was willing to let her fight this mystery student. After all, you didn't get anywhere in life without taking a few risks. And considering just how fast she had been progressing, that power gap could probably be shortened by the time this supposed fight would be taking place.
He looked over at Luz, then frowned. She looked desperate to prove herself, and as such, her Cursed Energy flowed erratically. Despite her control over her Cursed Energy, and despite her control of her emotions, she hadn't mastered her emotions quite yet. And as such, it was causing her to lose control. It seemed they needed to work more on that. And it was because of that he was starting to have reservations.
"On second thought, this might be too risky. I was overconfident in thinking that Luz would be able to fully control her Cursed Energy in overly emotional situations. That could wind up getting her seriously hurt or worse. Then again, I'll most likely never get this chance again…. I'd offer myself, but that would be way too overkill. And, I tend to get carried away in fights, not to mention I would be fighting a child…. Yeah, no. That's not a good idea either."
"Having second thoughts, Mr. Gojo?" Bump questioned with a hint of disappointment in his voice and an underlying, hidden tone of mockingness, which had been the final deciding factor in Gojo's decision. If there was one thing that Gojo couldn't stand, it was being taunted by old people. It hurt his pride far more than anything else that he experienced, the obvious notwithstanding.
"Far from it, Principal. We'll take you up on your offer," Gojo stated as Luz smiled, nodding excitedly as she did. Bump's smirk turned into a toothy grin of his own, earning them a nod of confirmation from the man. He outstretched his hand, it glowing a bright blue.
"Then if you accept the terms and conditions, take my hand, and we'll seal the deal," Bump said as Gojo stared at it for a second. Despite his better judgement, he accepted the offer, taking the hand. A blue ring formed between both, the ring glowing a bright yellow after the fact. "There. The Everlasting Oath has been pledged. Tomorrow, at 3:30 Pm when school goes out, head to the Bonesborough Arena. I'll have it scheduled for Luz's fight with the aforementioned student. Don't be late."
Gojo hummed, letting go of Bump's hand, and crossing his arms in the process. "What's an Everlasting Oath?"
"Oh, it's nothing to be worried about. Not this one anyway. All it does is compel the people involved to keep up their end of the bargain. Some use it for gambling, others use it to remind themselves of deals they made. There's nothing sinister unless the pact maker entails it so," Bump clarified as Gojo internally sighed in relief, his arms dropping to his sides. Seriously, sometimes his impulsiveness was bad, and that was a good example of it.
In all honesty, an Everlasting Oath sounded a lot like a tamer version of a Binding Vow. In concept, they were the same thing. In practice, it was entirely different. Binding Vows' had much harsher punishments to them, though that was due to the fact that they were vows and not oaths. Oaths could be broken, and there would be hardly any consequences. A vow was something someone made when they were dead serious about their promise, and it was usually linked to the Gods; at least, in concept anyway.
"Alright. Then it's settled. We'll meet at the Arena tomorrow. That gives us a day to prepare," Gojo said as Luz spoke up.
"Hey, uh, quick question, but what's that thing on your head?" Luz asked as Bump blinked, before chuckling to himself. He tapped the creature on the head, and upon doing so, it tugged itself off of his head, revealing a pair of golden-brown eyes—at least, Gojo assumed, as one of them had been sewn shut—and long black locks of hair that stretched down to his waist. A scar went from the top of his scalp, cutting through his hair and leaving a bald spot, before stopping just above his eye.
Then came the red-skinned creature that was now perched on his right shoulder. It was small, just about the size of Gojo's forearm. It sat like a cat, despite it not being such, being some kind of devil. It had pointed devil horns, and it confirmed to Gojo that the eyes he had been looking at belonged to the creature and not Bump himself, although they probably acted as eyes for Bump, now that he thought about it.
"This is Frewin. He's what's known as a Palisman. Each Palisman boosts a witch's magic, acts as a flying device, and is an all-around loyal and steadfast companion. Frewin here is special, as he has a special ability that allows him to act as my eyes. My vision is fading in my left eye, and my right eye is sewn shut due to a nasty accident. He and I have been companions since I left Hexside and became its Principal. Though, that story is for when you are a part of the school's registry, assuming you succeed, of course."
Luz frowned, deflating at the fact she didn't get to know the whole story, but quickly got out of her funk when Gojo snagged her by the hood again—something that was starting to get annoying. Like, seriously, why the back of her hood? Why not her arm or wrist or hell, even her collar? What if the hood slipped and her shirt came off?! She wasn't wearing anything underneath the damn thing because she didn't need to!
"Well, it's been nice chatting, Gramps. See you tomorrow," and with that, Gojo disappeared, leaving Bump by himself. He had to admit, that Gojo was far more interesting than he had initially given him credit for. For starters, his presence had been intimidating. The fact that his blindfold didn't seem to act as a blinding agent like he had assumed it had, what with his Wanted Poster having been the only thing he could base him on, proved to Bump that Gojo was special.
And the Girl, Luz. She too gave off a presence, but it was different. Less intimidating and more inviting, like she was actively looking for people to talk to and befriend. Two very polar opposite people, and yet they seemed to have a very stable teacher-student dynamic. However, he had to assume that he was only getting a surface-level insight into who they were as people.
Humans were very different from Witches, but in a lot of respects, they also weren't. And, if the humans were evolving to have their own form of Magic—this Cursed Energy stuff—then it would be truer than ever to say that the gap between humans and witches was closing tighter and tighter with each passing generation.
Although that being said, he wasn't about to just simply allow a human entry into Hexside without gauging their skill. His curiosity might be towering, but his adherence to the rules was unwavering. Hence the Witches Duel he had set up for Luz. At first, he hadn't a single idea as to who to pit her against. But, after a moment of thought, he had chosen exactly who it needed to be.
After all, she was looking to prove herself. Why not allow her that chance?
Entering the Covention Center, Bump was greeted with rows and rows of stands depicting several Covens, all of which were surrounded by droves and droves of students. He had expected that, obviously, but the turnout this year was far more than it had been any other year. It was a good change of pace, especially considering last year's lacklustre turnout.
On the right side of the building, there was the Beast-Keeping Coven symbolized by a hatching egg, there was the Healing Coven symbolized by a blue bandaged hand, there was the Oracle Coven symbolized by a watchful velvet eye, and there was the Construction Coven symbolized by a cracked rock-like fist. Finally, at the very end, there was the Bard Coven symbolized by a red Lyre.
On the left side of the building, there was the Illusion Coven, which was symbolized by a hand mirror and a false mirror behind that one, the Plant Coven which was symbolized by a closed chomper flower, the Potion Coven which was symbolized by an exploding yellow potion, the Emperor's Coven—which had been stationed near the front of the Covention as it always had been—symbolized by a winged sword and shield encrusted in a golden triangle. And finally, the one he had been looking for, The Abomination Coven, which had been symbolized by the face of a standard Abomination, that being of a magenta sludge monster with glowing green eyes and a goofy half-melted smile.
Standing at the booth, with quite a distance separating herself from everyone else at the booth, was the person that Bump was looking for. Her most outward feature was her two-toned, chin-length hair styled in a high-up ponytail, with it primarily being aquamarine-green, with brown roots just barely sticking out. She was thin, and while she had her back turned to Bump, he could never quite forget her piercing yellow eyes as they shone with the same competitiveness that he had in his youth.
Much like everyone else, she was dressed in the school uniform, which was a dark gray cowl, gray tunic, dark gray boots and magenta sleeves and leggings signifying that she was in the abomination track. A silver belt kept her tunic from falling apart, and another noticeable part of her outfit was the fact that she wore small, hardly noticeable black-triangle earrings along with pink-painted fingernails.
Clearing his throat, he caught her attention, the teen turning to face him. For a brief second, she looked annoyed, but when she realized who it was that was trying to get her attention, her expression switched from annoyed to shocked. "Oh! Principal Bump, uh, what is it?" Amity Blight asked, as Bump faintly smiled.
"Amity. May I have a word with you in private, please?" Bump requested, as Amity wordlessly followed him to the rear end of the Covention building and into a staff-only room. It had a table, two chairs, and some cabinets, but that was about it. Upon entering the closed-off staff room, Bump turned to face Amity, clearing his throat again. He had been talking far too much today. He still had a presentation to do, too….
"Is something the matter, Principal? I'm not in trouble, am I?" Amity asked, a slight hint of worry in her voice at the prospect of being in trouble, to which Bump brushed off.
"Nonsense. It has nothing to do with you being in trouble. I am, however, asking you to do me a favour," Bump said as Amity raised an eyebrow, a signal for him to continue. "You see, I am gauging a potential new student to enter Hexside."
"What?" Amity blurted out as Bump sighed.
"I know, it sounds ridiculous considering how late into the first semester it is, but there is a lot more at stake here than normal. That being said, I am not about to break the rules to let a new student in. They agreed to do a Witches duel with one of the top first years in Hexside, and you just so happen to be one of those," Bump continued as Amity's eyes widened.
"You want me to fight someone to gauge their talent?" Amity asked as Bump nodded.
"Correct. You see, I know you have a lot to prove. I know how controlling your mother can be, she used to be a shareholder in Hexside, and she was very demanding. I can only imagine how she treats you given your… interest in Abomination magic rather than Oracle like herself. This works as a win-win for both of us. You prove to your mother that your work in Abomination Magic is worth more than just a passing fade, and I get to see this person's skill with their… rather interesting form of magic."
"Interesting form of magic?" Amity questioned as Bump, once again, waved her off.
"That's for me to figure out and for you to find out. However, let me warn you, despite appearances, if the report is to be true and that the creature that killed Viney was indeed destroyed by this person, then no matter what, do not let your guard down. Even if their appearance is that of a human," Bump stated as a serious expression etched itself on Amity's face.
No words were exchanged, just a simple nod, and afterward, Amity exited the staff room, leaving Bump to his lonesome once more. A sigh escaped his lips. Tomorrow would be interesting, and highly enlightening.
"Now, I just have to prepare that speech for the Emperor's Coven…."
Just outside the Covention Center, Lilith stood in the alleyway next to the Covention Center. She had listened in on both conversations eavesdropping by and amplifying the sound that she could hear using Sound Magic, and what she had learned was very enlightening.
Even though those two were criminals, Principal Bump would forgo standard procedure to cure his voracious appetite for knowledge. It would be noble, if not for it being highly stupid. However, she couldn't completely fault the man, due in part that, because of his hubris, he unintentionally opened an avenue for them to be captured. And it was all thanks to them setting up a Witches Duel.
Her idea was now foolproof. Especially considering that he had chosen Amity Blight to be his champion! It was as if the Titan itself was blessing her with untold luck! Truth be told, Lilith had eyes on Amity since she took up an interest in Abomination Magic, and now because Bump chose her to be the person to "test the merit" of the human girl, he had inadvertently given her all the necessary checks to go forward with her plan.
All Lilith had to do was balance the scales in Amity's favour. Sure, she was a prodigy with Abomination Magic, and that alone would allow her to beat the human girl, but Lilith wanted to make sure it would be an absolute one-sided beatdown the likes of which would be known worldwide. That way, it would prove that defying The Emperor was nothing short of career suicide.
While what she had planned was cruel, and it would most likely ruin Amity's reputation and turn it into someone who used a cheat against a human, if it could get her in a position to capture Satoru Gojo and Luz Noceda—their names she had been able to overhear due to amplifying her hearing range—then she would be golden. Not to mention, she could make up for the blunder she made in her first attempt to capture Satoru Gojo.
She would not, nor could she not, fail The Emperor again. Failure was not an option. She would capture Satoru Gojo and Luz Noceda tomorrow. Come hell or high water, she would not allow Luz to win her fight with Amity, and when Gojo falls into despair when his student fails to beat Amity, then and only then will she jump in and take the glory for the pair's capture.
Tomorrow was going to be an excellent day.
[-To Be Continued-]
[Ending Song: 怪物/Kaibatsu/Monster – By YOASOBI]