"Of course, you can also choose another path. Become a Curse User."
Eichi's slightly mocking voice reached Choso's ears.
"But then your situation would be the same as the Curse User whose body you took. Constantly living under the threat of being subjugated by us."
He deliberately emphasized the word "subjugated."
Choso frowned.
Eichi seemed to offer a second option, but in reality, there was only one.
Because Choso could never allow his younger brothers to be subjugated by Jujutsu Sorcerers.
He didn't care about his own life, but he could never allow his brothers to be harmed.
"I can serve you, but I will not endanger my younger brothers."
Choso accepted Eichi's offer.
"In that case, let's make a Binding Vow."
Seeing the continued wariness in Choso's gaze, Eichi offered a compromise.
Soon, the two willingly formed a Binding Vow.
Choso would follow Eichi's instructions, but his younger brothers would retain the right to refuse and choose their own paths.
'Don't worry, little brothers. Oni-chan will protect you.'
After forming a Binding Vow that ensured the safety of his brothers, Choso finally relaxed.
As long as they could live happily, he didn't care what happened to him.
Eichi didn't say anything more upon seeing this.
After all, if someone suddenly treated you well without reason, any normal person would be wary.
They would assume you had some ulterior motive, like a weasel paying respects to a chicken.
So, Eichi didn't care about the content of the Binding Vow. It was just to put Choso's mind at ease.
Besides, among the Cursed Womb: Death Paintings, only Choso possessed the strength of a Special Grade Jujutsu Sorcerer.
Kechizu and Eso were not at that level. They were merely equivalent to Special Grade Cursed Spirits.
And in most cases, a Grade 1 Jujutsu Sorcerer could exorcise a Special Grade Cursed Spirit.
So the strength gap among the Death Paintings was actually quite significant.
As Choso sighed in relief, the shadow-formed table beside Eichi shifted.
To his surprise, the remaining eight Cursed Womb: Death Paintings were brought before him.
"...What do you mean?"
"You take care of your brothers yourself. I don't have time to be a babysitter."
Eichi waved his hand casually.
Hearing this, Choso immediately picked up his brothers and hugged them tightly to his chest.
The world was vast, but to him, his younger brothers were everything.
"First, go buy a bag. If you carry them like that, someone might think you're a criminal or a lunatic."
The appearance of the Death Paintings would definitely cause misunderstandings.
Cursed Objects were tangible, and like cursed tools, could be seen by ordinary people.
"By the way, do you know anything about the current era?"
As they headed toward the mall, Eichi suddenly turned his head and asked.
"I know a little. I absorbed some memories from the host's brain when I took over his body."
Choso nodded.
"That's good."
Eichi wasn't sure how much Choso had gleaned from the Curse User's memories, but as long as it wasn't nothing, it was manageable.
Still, just to be safe, he'd have Masamichi-sensei educate him a bit before letting him out freely.
"Now, let's go buy some clothes and daily necessities. Then, I'll send you to Tokyo Jujutsu High to enroll. Coincidentally, the current batch of students isn't very strong, so you can look after them too."
Ieiri Kiyotaka's strength was lacking, and his personality was soft. He was easy to manipulate.
With Choso around, things would be more balanced.
"No problem."
Choso nodded.
"Also, when you go out on missions, keep an eye out for Curse Users. You can collect new host bodies for your brothers. Once that's done, they can enroll together."
"Go to school... with my brothers?"
A memory that didn't exist seemed to surface in Choso's mind.
"That's right. You've never attended school, have you? This time, you can experience it with your brothers."
"...Is going to school fun?"
Choso searched the Curse User's memories and looked at Eichi.
What came to mind were the countless sweet and cheerful girls of Tokyo Jujutsu High.
The Curse User he had taken over was a street-drifting delinquent, and his strongest impression of school was the youthful and beautiful female students.
"It's very fun. You'll make a lot of new friends, and everyone gets to share the same space, regardless of their backgrounds, and enjoy youth together."
As Eichi spoke, Choso began to imagine going to school with his brothers.
"Oni-chan, I don't know how to solve this problem."
"Oni-chan, come chase me!"
"Oni-chan, let's play basketball!"
"Oni-chan is amazing!"
"Oni-chan daisuki~"
A flush slowly crept up on Choso's face.
Full of anticipation, he carried his brothers on his back and arrived at Tokyo Jujutsu High.
All other items were stored in Eichi's shadow.
But his brothers were different. Choso insisted on carrying them himself, saying that as the oni-chan, he had to take personal care of them.
Tokyo Jujutsu High, Principal's Office.
Masamichi stared solemnly at Eichi, his yakuza boss aura fully active.
His gaze occasionally twitched when he looked at Choso.
"Eichi, do you know what kind of consequences this will bring?"
Masamichi's voice was calm, devoid of the typical questioning tone.
Among the handful of third-year students, Eichi had always been the least troublesome.
Even less troublesome than Shoko, who could always find and drink two sips of sake no matter where he hid it.
"I know."
Eichi nodded.
He understood exactly what Masamichi meant.
Choso was one of the Cursed Womb: Death Paintings.
And the Cursed Womb: Death Paintings were Cursed Objects created through extremely cruel means by Kamo Noritoshi.
Back in the Meiji era, there was a woman with a peculiar Physique who could become pregnant with Cursed Spirits.
Because of her bizarre pregnancies, the villagers around her ostracized her.
Eventually, she was forced to flee to a temple deep in the mountains.
That was where her true nightmare began.
The master of that temple was Kamo Noritoshi.
Kamo Noritoshi was extremely curious about the woman and the deformed children she bore.
A woman who could give birth to human-Cursed Spirit hybrids was the perfect research subject for his twisted goals.
He repeatedly impregnated her with Cursed Spirit children and forced her to abort them again and again.
During this time, he also infused her with his own blood, granting the Cursed Womb: Death Paintings the ability to use Blood Manipulation.
This woman endured unspeakable torment in Kamo Noritoshi's experiments.
Later, when everything was exposed, Kamo Noritoshi was condemned across the Jujutsu world as an evil Curse User obsessed with fusing humans and Cursed Spirits.
He was publicly labeled the most vile Jujutsu Sorcerer in history.
The Kamo Family also disavowed him, calling him a stain on the clan and doing everything they could to erase him from the historical record.
But in truth, Kamo Noritoshi had taken the fall for Kenjaku.
Because the real Kamo Noritoshi had already died. His body had long been possessed by Kenjaku.
All those brutal human-Cursed Spirit fusion experiments, including the creation of the Death Paintings, were actually done by Kenjaku.
Once Kamo Noritoshi's identity was no longer viable, Kenjaku simply allowed "Kamo Noritoshi" to be subjugated.
Then he swapped to a new body and continued his research elsewhere.
Now, Eichi's decision to let the Death Paintings openly enroll at Tokyo Jujutsu High was undoubtedly a slap in the Kamo Family's face.
It dragged their darkest stain into the spotlight.
There was no way the Kamo Family would let this slide.
But would Eichi care?
Not at all.
(To be continued.)
◇◇◇
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)