Curse Training

"I never thought you'd be able to use my black flames."

"Me neither, I was surprised too."

After the Augustus Mansion Raid concluded, Chifuyu told Ariel he was able to use her curse after drinking blood from Patrick. They're currently out by the pool that they haven't used yet.

"This is great, with a curse you can get even stronger. First, you need to know your current limit. Make the biggest flame you can, I'll disperse it after."

"Okay."

Kagura and the rest are watching by the side.

"Ohh, I'm excited." The leader can't hold back her usual enthusiasm.

"Here I go." Black veins appear on Chifuyu's face as he activates the curse bestowed upon him by Ariel. Holding both hands in the air like he's trying to gather energy for a spirit bomb, flames begin to surge above him.

"Woah."

"Damn, that's cool."

Not knowing how to react, Iris just starts clapping slowly. Chifuyu is pouring all he can into a massive black fire above him. Not condensed at all, the flame reaches several meters up. He falls on one knee feeling completely exhausted, Ariel promptly comes flying to kick the fire apart.

"Not bad."

"Heh. Thanks."

"Remember, your pool of curse blood increases with the amount of blood you drink. Since your pool is tiny right now, it probably won't take long for it to recover itself, plus you shouldn't get too hungry from using such a small amount."

"It seems like a decently big amount to me, but I guess it's nothing compared to yours. You were more hungry from your last battle than your fight against your sister."

"Yeah, I went past my limit in the labyrinth."

"Surpassed your limit?! You might be a member of the Black Bulls."

"Haruka Mirai e!" Iris sings a lyric from one of the only songs she's remembered a line from. The moment the others look at her, she dies from embarrassment.

"Let's continue tomorrow."

"Bet."

Tomorrow.

"Were you able to gauge how much curse blood you poured into that fire yesterday?"

"Give or take, yeah."

"Alright, we're both gonna wrap our arms in a moderate amount of flames and spar for a minute."

"Sounds good. It's been a few months since we last sparred."

"Let's see if you've gotten any better."

"Oh, oh. Lemme be the referee."

"Kay. Let us know when to start, Kagura."

The two activate their curse, and wait for Kagura's signal.

"Ready? 3… 2… 1… Start!"

Chifuyu goes on the offensive first, relaying a fury of blows. However, Ariel blocks them all and counterattacks by grabbing him and tossing him away. Chifuyu's flames begin to disappear.

"Don't lose focus."

"Right!"

Adding more flames back to his arms, he pushes once again. Ariel isn't just guarding anymore and throws some punches of her own. Naturally, she's holding back, so Chifuyu's able to keep up. Black flames flutter about as the two exchange blocks. Without saying anything, they came to the conclusion that they'll continue at this steady pace, therefore Chifuyu can perfectly keep up and Ariel won't land any attacks. That was the spoken plan at least, Ariel ignites her leg and does a sweeping kick causing Chifuyu to land on his bottom.

"Augh.. No fair, you only said to wrap our arms."

"Expect the unexpected."

"Guys."

"Hm?"

Shinatsu gets the attention of the other 3.

"Are we just gonna sit here watching them the entire time? Let's get some training done ourselves."

"Ha. I thought you'd never ask." Diego gets hyped.

"O-Okay."

"You're pumped up, are you? That's a good thing. Chifuyu and Ariel shouldn't be having all the fun."

Everyone is reminded that they can't fall behind. Being motivated by each other, they take up some wooden swords and start sparring.

***

"HUFF… HUFF… HUFF…"

In a distant district, a lone man is running for his life. Two assailants follow, merely playing with their prey. The man trips over himself, losing all the adrenaline in his body. His legs could no longer move.

"DON'T… PLEASE! I MADE A MISTAKE, I'LL NEVER BETRAY YOU GUYS AGAIN. I WANT TO SEE MY WIFE. SO PLEASE, LET ME LEAVE THE HIDDEN DIS—"

A gunshot silences the pleading man.