Chapter 1: A Request from the Strongest

"What? I going to enroll in a regular high school?"

"Yeah, that's right."

Two people were sitting across from each other on a cafe terrace in the afternoon.

One of them was a handsome young man, who seem to be his late twenty, dressed in all black clothing with white hair and wearing a mask that cover his eyes.

The other person was a young boy who seem to be 16 or 17 years old and he also wearing an all black outfit from head to toe, and his handsome features drew a little attention, but other than that he was a completely ordinary young man with black hair and eyes.

One of them was dressed in a rather eccentric way, but if you look past that, they were both tall and good looking. They would have been picture perfect if they had a cup of coffee in their hands, but what was in front of them was a large serving of parfait.

A parfaits is a dessert that's layered in a glass or jar such as a mason jar. It can consist of a fruit layer, a cream layer such as yogurt, whipped cream or ice cream, topped with layer of granola or nuts. However, it can also contain a layer of cake as in a strawberry shortcake parfait.

The two of them chat while munching on their parfaits, not seeming to care about how others around them see them.

"What, a regular school now? If I'm going to go to school, why not go to a KOSEN like Jujustu technical high ?"

The term "KOSEN" generally refers to a technical college, a school where students can study a specific field, mainly industrial, but the school they were talking about is different.

Official name: Tokyo Metropolitan Curse Technical College

As the name suggests, it is a school where students learn curses and sorcery. However, what it does is not only train sorcerers, but it is also the headquarters of the Japanese sorcery world, solving all kinds of mysterious cases, unnatural deaths, and cases involving curses.

In response to the black-haired boy's question, the white-haired man replied in a nonchalant tone.

"Well, if you go to a Jujustu high, you might attract the attention of old conservative people, right? If my cute little brother is to be taken advantage of by those useless old men, I will be so piss that I might even kill them."

He spoke with a laugh, as if he was joking, but at the end his tone of voice dropped slightly, exuding a mysterious intensity.

"...Don't say things like that in public. Even as a joke it makes me feel shiver."

"Oh come on something like this isn't enough to make you scared. I don't remember raising you like that."

This time he spoke in an arrogant tone that made one ask is he arrogant noble that you see in movies and TV shows. The young man in front of him sighed in exasperation at his playful attitude.

"So, what is the actual reason?"

"How cold. We're brothers, so let's have more fun talking. Oh, how about we trade bananas for strawberries?"

"No, don't take it while I'm listening. It's fine though."

Most people would be annoyed to some extent if they were to witness such a selfish attitude, but the black-haired boy seemed to be used to it and looked at it calmly.

He popped the strawberry he had picked into his mouth, chewed it to savor the taste, then he seemed to have calmed down, let out a sigh of relief, and said

"Well, seriously, the reasons I just mentioned are true, but there are other reasons too."

"...other reason?"

Given his continued joking attitude, the black-haired boy had a suspicious look on his face, wondering how serious the reason was.

The white-haired man continued speaking, either noticing the gazes or deliberately ignoring them.

"That's right. Before we talk about that, let me first talk about the school you will be attending"

"It is already been decided that I'm going?"

The young man called Mamoru shot him a look of annoyance, but the white-haired man again ignored him.

"Mamoru, do you know about Advanced Nurturing High School?"

"Oh, I've at least heard of the name. I think it's the most prestigious school in Japan that claims to fulfill 100% of students' career aspirations, right?"

"It's a school that produces many world-famous politicians, athletes, scholars, and other notable people in various fields; it's truly a school that nurtures the elite. It would be interesting if they could train comedians, but unfortunately that's not happening at all."

"No, It's fine."

Why is it that every time this guy takes a step forward in a conversation, he not only goes off on a course, but tries to steer in a completely different direction?

While thinking about this, Mamoru takes a bite of the parfait, hoping the sugar will calm him down.

"Well, there's no doubt that it's a prestigious school, but this school is a bit special. Once you enroll, you can't have any contact with the outside world until you drop out or graduate."

"Ah, now that I think about it, I think I've heard something like that."

"Apparently, it's to maintain secrecy because of the unique curriculum, but the problem is that even those affiliated with the Jujustu high have to go through a tedious process to get in."

"What if something happens inside?"

Mamoru asked in shock, as if he had never heard of that before.

Basically, since the Jujutsu Technical College is responsible for strange incidents all over Japan, it has strong connections with the government, police, and other relevant parties.

If an incident were to occur, detailed information about the incident would be disclosed unconditionally to anyone connected to the jujustu community, even if the individual was a child. That is how powerful the organization is.

"It seems that the government really wants to treasure this school, and it's managed by only the most select people in the Ministry of Education. It's difficult for people from here to get in."

"...So basically, I'm supposed to infiltrate as a student and solve any incidents related to cursed spirits that occur?"

"Ding ding ding ding, You got it right!, you'll get these cherries as a prize."

He said, trying to hand him the cherry topping, but Mamoru held his hand out in front of him to refuse.

"But I don't know. When it comes to cursed spirit incidents, isn't it normal to only act after a victim has been found? There's no proof that it will definitely happen, so is there any need to go to the trouble of enrolling and being held captive for three years?"

"Well, actually, it's already happening. It seems that in the past few years, the number of students being hospitalized due to poor health has been increasing. I decided to try sneaking in as well, and there were an unusually high number of cursed spirits for a school with such a short history. Well, they were mostly weaklings below grade 4. I guess a lot of them are under a lot of stress."

Cursed spirits are basically divided into five levels according to their strength.

Even within the same grade, there is a huge range in strength, but grade 4 is the lowest level. Anything below that is little more than a pest.

Its presence only poses a level of danger that makes you feel a little sick, but that doesn't mean you should just ignore it.

This is because once a cursed spirit is born, the possessed person becomes even more prone to harbor negative emotions, which can lead to an even greater curse being born.

"This case was also requested by the school's superiors. Since it's a school that the country has invested a large amount of money in, they're afraid of getting a bad reputation. So I told them that I'll send someone who can deal with the situation before it gets too serious."

"If that's the case, we can just have someone from the college stationed there as a security guard."

"No, it's not possible. Jujustu High is already short-staffed, and they can't send people to a place where there are only small cursed spirits for long periods of time. The higher up have an unnecessarily high level of pride. They were unhappy just having restrictions put on their access to the premises, but when they were asked to do something like that, they got angry and refused."

"Even if they refused, wasn't this a request that came through the Jujustu High?"

"That's right. I personally took on the request that the higher up turned down."

"What are you talking about… I hate to say it, but it's no wonder the higher-ups are angry about this. Please provide security for the school. However, you will not be given special treatment. There will be restrictions on entering and exiting the school, so please remain on the grounds at all times. That's basically what you're saying, right?"

It's pretty ridiculous, since they are the ones making the request and yet they are refusing to make concessions and are forcing us to do unreasonable things.

This situation suggests that the people in charge of running that school underestimate the existence of curses.

On the other hand, many sorcerers generally have a tendency to look down on non-sorcerers, and this is especially evident among the senior members of the technical college's upper echelons.

It's like oil and water. They can't possibly go together.

"But there is an advantage to it. You know my dream, right Mamoru?"

"...Reform of the Japanese Jujustu World"

"That's right! to do that, I think we need to create a new pipeline apart from the one the upper echelons currently have."

"I understand the reasoning, but three years... that seems troublesome."

"Don't say that. This time, I can only ask Mamoru for help. With Mamoru's cursed technique it would be easy to get out of the school without being noticed, and since he's a member of one of the three Families he isn't required to attend Jujutsu Technical High."

Basically, a sorcerer must graduate from Jujustu Technical High in order to be officially allowed to work as a sorcerer.

However, there are exceptions: the three great families of Jujutsu with long histories, Zen'in, Kamo, and Gojo, are guaranteed their status as Jujutsu sorcerer even if they do not enroll.

"Another big reason is that it keeps the higher-ups away from Mamoru. At the moment, the higher-ups have no interest in Mamoru. The Gojo family thinks of Great Teacher Gojo Satoru as a one-man team."

"Well, I suppose so."

Depending on how you listened, those words could be interpreted as people looking down on him, but Mamoru simply nodded without showing any particular discomfort.

This is simply because he knows the strength of the white-haired man before him, Gojo Satoru.

"The higher-ups only think of Mamoru as a Third Grade sorcerer who has some handy techniques. Even though he actually has the power equivalent to first grade."

A first grade sorcerer is the second highest rank that an sorcerer can attained, and is someone who possesses powers on a par with that of a strategic weapon.

However, the person who was said to be equivalent to first grade had a blank look on his face, as if it was none of his business.

"Even if you call me first grade, I'm still nowhere near your level."

"Hey, you know that - I'm the strongest."

The strongest, if used by an ordinary person it would be an overly conceited phrase, but when he says it he is simply stating the simple truth.

Gojo Satoru is acknowledged by himself and others as the strongest sorcerer of the present age, and is known to all sorcerers.

That person is Gojo Mamoru's older brother.

"Besides, even though you keep saying that you're not as good as me, I don't want to fight you. Honestly, there's no guarantee that you'll win."

"But on the other hand, I never lose. I'm just good at running away. It's nothing to be proud of."

"In the first place, there aren't many sorcerer who can escape from me. Anyway, let's get back to the topic. Personally, I'd like to see the old men just go to a technical college and panic when a first grade sorcerer appears, but that would mean a lot of unnecessary restrictions."

"What? Surely nothing has happened to you? I'd rather believe you if you told me a meteorite was going to fall tomorrow."

"Yes yes, I'm glad that my younger brother trusts me that much.

But, by "something," I don't just mean danger to myself. I have a position to fill. There are times when I can't just move around as I please."

(How dare you say that)

In front of me,braggingLieLooking at the damn thing, Mamoru inwardly retorted as hard as he could.

Not only me, but anyone who knows Gojo Satoru as a person would think the same thing.

Just as the conversation came to an end, the parfait was finished and the high-pitched clink of the spoon echoed against the empty bowl.

"And so, starting next year, Mamoru will be enrolled in Advanced Nurturing High School."

"...I understand."

Mamoru had no intention of refusing a request from his brother in the first place, but putting up with this tension for so long had left him exhausted for no reason.

Mamoru breathed a sigh of relief that it was finally over, but the story didn't end there.

"Oh, by the way, the exam is in three days, so thank you."

"teeth?"

With that comment, my brother disappeared with a bang.

On the table was a 10,000 yen note and a piece of paper. On the paper was a deformed picture of my brother, who was pointing to the address of what seemed to be the exam venue and saying, "This is it!"

"... Eh? Are there any tests to enter on a request?"

There was no one to answer that question.

I am aware that I have been rather forceful in bringing the story to the point where the protagonist enters school.

The current timeline, in the Jujutsu Kaisen side, is before Okkotsu-san enters school.

I intend to focus on the Yohmi part for a while, but I have not yet decided on future developments. In

particular, whether to avoid the death migration. Should I avoid it and go for the Yohmi route, or not, and go for the Jujutsu Kaisen route?

Well, I'm not confident that I can write that far in the first place, so I'll think about it if I can finish writing the first year arc.