JJK: Red Priest Pathway

The ceaseless cursed clash – such was the way of life for sorcerers, as described by the elders of the Zenin clan. In my own life, I had weathered numerous difficulties and obstacles, some of which were created by my own family. Therefore, the meaning of this phrase became clear to me from childhood. However, now, as I tried to keep up with the pace of this guy, the expression suddenly took on a new meaning for me.

"Twenty-second," the blond classmate reported, punching through the disgusting creature's head with his fist.

Once white walls and floors were now drenched in the purple blood of the curse. The smell of bleach and medicine gave way to the stagnant stench of something rotting. Cracks extended across the floor, and the walls and ceiling were gradually crumbling, showering debris around. Horrifying sounds filled the air – the creak of tearing flesh, the splashing through blood puddles, piercing cries of pain and anger. In principle, nothing unusual for a sorcerer, I would have thought if it weren't for the fact that all of this was created by a sorcerer.

My gaze met Sukehiro's dark eyes... They say it's better to see once than hear a hundred times. Even without using his cursed technique and cursed weapon, he was strong enough to nullify the curse's advantage in quantity.

"Now you understand why the power of this curse is between the second and first ranks?" Even in the heat of battle, Sukéhiro found time to utter a few words.

"And how is that supposed to help me?" Due to the intense fight, my voice was uneven and hoarse.

Cloning... one of the most annoying and unbearable techniques. At first glance, the curse seemed weak, to the point that a couple of my strikes could maim its form. But at the same time, its cursed cloning technique and a large amount of Cursed Energy made it a dangerous and exceptionally challenging opponent. The ability to create exact copies of oneself allowed him to neutralize the quality of strength with quantity. Moreover, the battle tactics in such a case were incredibly cunning and unpredictable.

At that moment, I sharply bent, dodging the attack of one of the clones.

Damn. In the midst of the battle, surrounded by clones and confined in the narrow space of the corridor, I had almost no time to fully analyze the situation.

My body moved instinctively: with a powerful swing of my spear, I severed one of the curse's limbs, then, without stopping, I stabbed its abdomen with the tip and, swinging to the side, slashed its belly. Simultaneously, Sukéhiro dodged one of the clones, throwing it off balance, and, grabbing its arm, threw it into the group running towards us from the opposite end of the corridor.

Everything around was chaos. Clones emerged from every shadow, pouncing on me and Sukéhiro. But no matter how complex the situation looked, I strangely felt calm, as if, watching the wide back of the special- grade sorcerer, somewhere deep inside me, a sense of confidence awakened.

Another spear swing, and I parried a clone lunging from behind. Another swing, and my spear separated the legs of the Cursed Spirit from its torso. However, in the next second, a pressing sense of danger rose from within me. Glancing around, I saw one of the clones, sneaking unnoticed, attacking me from the blind spot.

How? Just a second ago, I was looking in that direction, and there wasn't a single clone that could approach me so quickly!

However, the situation was critical, and I had to sacrifice something for salvation. Halting my attack, thereby disrupting my own rhythm, I was about to set up my spear for the unexpected attack but realized that something was holding my legs, preventing me from getting into position in time.

Down below, the clone split in two, grabbed my ankles and stared at me with undisguised malice and glee.

Insignificant creature! Because of him, I won't have time...

At this rate, a second passed, two, three... But I still didn't feel a blow or pain, just a light gust of wind, followed by the deafening sound of something hitting the stone floor.

"Move," Sukéhiro's calm voice sounded a meter away from me, pulling my mind out of its trance.

In any other situation, I would have looked around in confusion. But the sound of cracking under my feet and the confidence in my partner's voice made my body move.

One... I felt a jolt through my legs that made me feel weak in the knees, but it wasn't a sign of my dwindling stamina. Not at all; the entire floor beneath me was shaking.

Two... Sharp scraping and cracking noises shattered the silence, and the behavior of the ground beneath my feet became strange - as if it was disappearing beneath me, like an invisible abyss.

Three! The second floor, where our battle was taking place, collapsed with a crash. Stone debris flew into the air, clouds of dust instantly enveloped everything, and the clatter of falling metal beams echoed in our ears. From above, jets of water sprayed in different directions.

Skillfully dodging the falling boulders, I landed softly on the wet, debris- free floor.

"And with such force you try to separate your name from the Zenin family," diabolically unpleasant words sounded behind me.

Turning around, I saw Sukéhiro standing on one of the massive boulders. The water pouring down on him evaporated before it reached his body.

"Do you expect gratitude from me?" I asked, calmly looking at my classmate.

At that moment, an overwhelming amount of anger, irritation, and dissatisfaction overcame me. Instead of exploding with these emotions, I felt strangely calm... So much so that it seemed strange.

"No," Sukehiro continued, shaking his head. "I don't want you to die on the first mission the academy gives us."

For a few seconds, there was silence between us, broken by my partner.

"You know, while we were fighting, I watched you and noticed something. Your problem is not that you are not a sorcerer in the conventional sense of the word, but that you fight like a sorcerer even though you are not one."

"What do you mean?" His words surprised me greatly... Maybe it was the first time someone had started such a conversation with me.

"When you fight like a sorcerer, you always give yourself a choice, whether it's with your cursed technique or by revealing the area. Sorcerers often have a second option," Sukéhiro said and scratched his cheek. "But you're not a sorcerer, and all you have is a spear, fists and legs. Therefore, your fighting style may be effective against weak opponents, but when you face truly deadly challenges, it becomes ineffective."

"I don't think that's why I got caught in the trap," I replied skeptically. "If I were physically stronger, this wouldn't have happened."

"You clearly don't understand me... Even if you were ten times stronger, with your mindset, you would die as soon as you met a strong opponent. Not someone stronger than you, but someone really powerful... I understand

what my old man meant now," Sukéhiro said with a light sigh and a friendly smile.

Right after that, the sound of many footsteps could be heard from somewhere far away.

"I suggest we postpone this lesson until later," I said, trying to make out the curse through the dust.

"You still don't get it, do you?" Sukéhiro sounded somewhat discouraged.

"If there's something to say, say it faster," I heard the sound of footsteps getting louder and tightened my grip on the spear.

A sigh came from behind me.

"For such a straightforward person like you, I'll explain as simply as possible," Sukéhiro continued after a short pause. "Forget the brakes, you have to work with the gas. Squeeze out the full power of your body and refine it."

My eyebrows raised at such a blunt explanation. Even if it sounded a bit childish, there was still meaning in it.

As much as I didn't want to admit it, what I was taught in the clan always seemed strangely alien to me. And I'm not talking about the martial arts or the basics of combat, but the philosophy of the sorcerers themselves. I always felt it was overly contrived. However, I didn't attach much importance to it, because as much as I disliked it, this training allowed me to fight curses. But now a sorcerer of a special rank is standing in front of me, saying that I should put aside my sorcereric essence and become...

"I am no samurai to walk this path," I stared at Sukéhiro skeptically. But he only shook his head in disagreement.

"Exactly, you're more of a samurai than a sorcerer."

Without waiting for my answer, the guy jumped into action, and the speed and power of his leap were so great that he dispersed the cloud of dust that had been lingering around.

Was he really going to charge into battle after saying such a presumptuous thing? How bold!

I didn't think too much about our conversation because the timing wasn't right, and I entered the battle as well. To my surprise, now that the stone blocks were lying around and the pace of the curse was interrupted, it became much easier for us to fight together. Our joint battle became more effective, and we struck blow after blow, giving the curse no chance to impose its conditions.

Meanwhile, I had more time to think, and I was able to analyze Sukéhiro's words carefully. It was strange to realize how easily I accepted his opinion, but all discomfort and doubts disappeared when I started to act according to the advice of that annoying guy. Maybe I didn't become stronger, but fighting became much easier, as if a weight had been lifted from my shoulders. And all I had to do was decide to put my whole self into each strike and concentrate only on defeating the opponent without thinking about anything else.

So our battle continued until I realized that there were only lifeless bodies around us.

"Did we drive it away?" I asked uncertainly, catching my breath. But the answer was silence.

When I turned around, a strange sight awaited me: Sukéhiro was staring at the ground, and at the same time, two bright flames were burning in his eyes, where the pupils should be.

"What are you doing..." I didn't finish my sentence, because the blond guy rushed towards me without any explanations.

He was so fast that I didn't even have time to blink before I found myself on his shoulder, and the next moment we were "hovering" ten meters above the hospital porch.

Suddenly, behind us, there was an incredibly powerful thud on the ground, followed by an explosion. Being in a rather embarrassing position, all I had to do was raise my head to see the hospital, or what was left of it. The entire right wing, where we were fighting, had been reduced to rubble, with a disgusting monster towering above it. About fifteen meters high, it was made of the bodies of numerous clones.

After taking on a new form, the curse roared.

"I think it's getting angry, or is it just me?" Sukéhiro said with a slight grin, looking at the curse.

"How annoying," I continued with a tired sigh. "Now, it's clearly the first rank."

"First, second - the difference is small," the blond shrugged. "Too bad, I wanted to minimize the destruction."

Sukéhiro bent his fingers into a pistol shape and aimed this "gun gesture" at the curse. In the next moment, where the curse stood, numerous bright small crimson lights twinkled. They merged into one in a fraction of a second, and then, with an unpleasant squeak, burst into thousands of sparks, followed by an ear-shattering explosion, flooding everything around with crimson light. The explosion was so devastating that it not only engulfed the curse, but also reached the adjacent wing of the hospital, shaking its foundation to the core.

"A beautiful sight, isn't it?" Sukéhiro addressed me and threw me onto his shoulder.

"Maybe you'll put me down already?"