17 Mirror Curse

Hey Guys!

Thank you for 150k and 1K collections! 🎉

This chapter was kept in draft, so I decided to just upload it.

The fic is on hiatus; this is just a special case since the chapter was already half done. It's to celebrate the milestone we reached within a week.

Ah, also, some of you are commenting that you don't like how the MC is just a plaything for gods and all... well, he is. I am annoyed with those fics that mention how there are kind-hearted, powerful beings who would grant overpowered abilities to others for free and all. My ideology is that there is no free food in the world, and since the MC gets these abilities, there should be some price for him to pay. That's my ideology, and I would stick to it throughout this fic. So, if you don't like this, you can just stop reading, and yeah, there would be no further mention of higher beings and all in the fic, just in some places like inner monologue and all.

And yeah guys I hope you all are just as enthusiastic as me to finally watch Sukuna Vs Yuta

I just hope that gege.. Oops no red flags! Red Flags!

***

'A Curse?'

Unconsciously, the thought of a curse came into Yuuya's mind as he looked at the dark alley from which the ominous energy was being radiated.

Walking towards the alley, Yuuya couldn't help but notice how many people unconsciously avoided the lane, leaving the whole place completely isolated.

As Yuuya entered the alley, his senses immediately picked up on the traces of curse energy present in the alley. Looking around, he immediately located the source of the energy.

An old double-storied building located at the end of the alley... the building looked old, almost as old as Yuuya's house if not older.

Looking at the old building, which seemed to be abandoned, Yuuya furrowed his brows.

'Should I enter it?'

Looking at the curse energy radiating from the building, which, though incomparable to his own, Yuuya thought cautiously.

There is a high possibility of a curse inhabiting the building and emitting the energy.

'The building or the curse isn't something of my concern, so it's better to just leave this place and not engage in any sort of combat...'

'...but I might also get to encounter a curse if I enter the building.'

Curses are powerful creatures that are dangerous for any individual to confront. So, it is wise for Yuuya to just leave the place for now. Still, it's also a waste of an opportunity.

Yuuya, who is new to the world of curses, though knows a lot from watching anime and reading manga, still doesn't quite literally know the power a curse truly holds within itself, how strong these curses are, and just what his standing is amongst them and other sorcerers.

This encounter with a curse can grant him basic knowledge about the strength a curse can possess and also give him some battle experience.

Though he had killed monsters before, they were all due to the overpowered weapons he possessed and not by himself. So, calling them fights won't be fair at all. Also, fighting monsters and curses are different things.

Where monsters can be harmed with magic and physical attacks both, curses can only be exorcised by curse energy. Physical attacks, unless infused with curse energy or by the use of curse tools, are all nothing but useless to exorcise curses. Hence, this encounter can serve as a crucial experience for Yuuya if he chooses to engage in the battle.

'Ha, screw it... Let's just fight it.'

Thinking for a while, Yuuya finally made the decision to check on the house. It may be logical not to confront a curse for the first time without having an experienced fighter to guide, but where can Yuuya get an experienced fighter to coach him? And he can't just go around being cowardly to not confront any curse because of this reason.

Looking around, Yuuya checked for any human presence nearby but, after not finding any, he summoned his [Omni sword] from the item box and made his way towards the house.

Opening the door of the derelict building, Yuuya finally entered the house.

***

'Hmm? Strange, I could feel the curse energy around me, but... I couldn't pinpoint the source.'

Standing in the middle of what appears to be the living room, Yuuya thought to himself in confusion.

It's been a while since Yuuya entered the house but was unable to locate the curse spirit at all. Just as he entered the house, the curse energy, which was radiating from the house strangely, instead of coming from a single source, appeared to be radiating from all over the house, making Yuuya unable to determine the location of the curse.

To say it simply, think of a laser light show in a room with multiple mirrors. The laser beams bounce off the mirrors, creating a dazzling display that seems to come from various angles. However, tracing the laser's exact origin becomes challenging, as the reflections contribute to a mesmerizing yet elusive source. Much like this simple phenomenon, the curse energy, which is supposed to originate from a single source, seems to be reflected all over the house in such a way that Yuuya is unable to determine the location of its origin, making it hard for him to find where the curse is supposed to be hiding.

As Yuuya thought, his instincts suddenly riled up, causing Yuuya to move his body on his own while swinging his sword backward, attacking whatever his body felt danger from.

BOOM

You have acquired [Danger Sense]

You have acquired [Nocturnal Vision]

A sound of a loud crash echoed throughout the halls of the abandoned building, and another screen popped up in front of Yuuya, informing him about the new skill he had acquired.

Ignoring the screen in front of him, Yuuya tightened the hold on his sword as he looked at the grotesque creatures that stood in front of him.

"ARenT I BeUTIFUL"

A short gray-colored half-humanoid creature with two hands and a deformed body adorned with various objects that looked like fragments of a mirror now stood in the place Yuuya was just a second ago, grinning wildly, showcasing his ugly mouth, which was the only organ that was present in his face.

"HEHEHE ARenT I BeUTIFUL"

The curse spoke again with a rasping voice, but as it did, the curse immediately raised its hand, swiftly releasing a slash of curse energy.

Seeing the attack coming his way, Yuuya immediately dodged it, and the attack hit the wall behind Yuuya. But as the attack collided with the wall, the slash of curse energy suddenly bounced back from the wall and once again aimed toward Yuuya's direction.

'Reflection?!'

Using his extraordinary agility, Yuuya once again avoided the attack, which was reflected back from the wall. But as he did, the curse spirit also took in the action and ran towards Yuuya with supernatural speed no normal human could keep up with. Glass shards began to protrude out of its hand, forming a blade out of glass.

'Ah, I see... a mirror curse.'

As the mirror curse approached Yuuya, a grin broke out on his face. Crimson curse energy of his began to swirl around Yuuya's body as he held his blade with both hands, which also began to get covered with a crimson aura.

"[Curse Attire]"