Curses possess two unique traits: "Invisibility" and "Intangibility." They only manifest a physical form when they actively channel Cursed Energy to attack humans.
When they aren't using Cursed Energy, they can cling to a human body without the host ever noticing.
This means conventional kinetic weapons are completely useless. Bullets and artillery fired by humanity pass right through them.
Consequently, the Association—composed entirely of Jujutsu Sorcerers capable of killing Curses—became humanity's final lifeline.
This is how Sorcerers cemented their transcendent status in human society.
As far back as a thousand years ago, Sorcerers were guests of honor for the Japanese aristocracy, the Shoguns, and even the Imperial Court. Today, the Jujutsu Association has evolved into a colossal behemoth.
They possess a massive degree of autonomy and criminal immunity. Only the Jujutsu Association can judge a Sorcerer. The laws of human society are null and void where they are concerned.
Some extremist Sorcerers even view themselves as a superior species, treating ordinary people who cannot wield Cursed Energy as nothing more than low-level "monkeys."
Although the Association exists to protect humanity, public order is often collateral damage in the hands of some ambitious Sorcerers.
In recent years, the Japanese government's tolerance for this has hit rock bottom.
And so, the Ministry of Defense's "Supernatural Countermeasures Headquarters" was officially established, dedicated to researching terrifying Cursed Spirits and Cursed Energy through the lens of science.
Today, that ambition finally became a reality. They had even invited the "Cleaners"—the Association's specialists in assessing high-grade threats—to witness the event.
"Exorcising Curses with scientific methods?"
Kenmei was genuinely surprised. He thought his method of blasting Curses with Psychic warp energy was groundbreaking enough, but these guys had actually weaponized science against the supernatural.
---
In the sky, two Black Hawk helicopters carrying the other eight members of the "Cleaner" team hovered into position, arriving at the battlefield where the Curses were running rampant.
This was Mr. Akutagawa's request. They needed to see the Ministry of Defense's attack methods with their own eyes to provide the most professional assessment and report back to the Association.
For the first time, Kenmei found himself riding in a military attack helicopter on official business.
Akutagawa and the veteran hunters didn't need headsets to dampen the rotor noise, nor did they need night-vision goggles. Their mastery of Cursed Energy was so refined they could enhance their senses naturally.
Kenmei, however, needed the goggles. He could dampen the noise with Psychic energy, but his vision... ever since the trauma with Eru Chitanda, he had a psychological block. Without absolute certainty, Kenmei didn't dare use his Psychic sight to peer into things indiscriminately.
The night-vision goggles the staff gave him were equipped with a small LCD screen. With this tech, even a normal human could see Cursed Spirits.
Kenmei tested it out. It worked. A bird-type Cursed Spirit flew past the helicopter earlier; on the screen, it appeared as a rough silhouette. The terrifying, twisted details of the Curse's face were obscured.
This was a huge plus for the soldiers' mental health. Not everyone could be like Kenmei, staring indifferently at tentacles covered in eyeballs.
"Have they started engaging?"
Kenmei peered through the binoculars. Two Chinook transport aircraft had already touched down on the elevated highway. Dozens of soldiers quickly formed a neat phalanx, with riot shields at the front.
The streetlights on the highway had been shorted out by the dense concentration of Cursed Energy in the area, leaving only flickering sparks to provide weak illumination.
"Here they come!"
Kenmei's eyes narrowed.
BAM! BAM! BAM!
In the next second, the ten heavy trucks used as barricades were flipped simultaneously, tossed high into the air before crashing heavily onto the surface streets below the highway. The explosions and tremors felt like a natural disaster, lighting up the sky.
It was as if an invisible legion was charging out of the darkness, rushing straight for the soldiers. Massive, depressed footprints appeared on the pavement one after another, closing the distance fast!
"Hold your positions!"
Sensing the soldiers' fear, the field commander roared.
"Just like in training! OPEN FIRE!"
Their opponents were a horde of over a hundred Grade 3 Cursed Spirits. These were genuine Cursed Spirits, not the low-level trash Kenmei had been farming at the school.
TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT-TAT!
Muzzle flashes painted the darkness. Forty soldiers fired in unison, the hot brass casings ejecting from their rifles and hitting the ground with a rhythmic, metallic melody.
"It's actually effective."
In Kenmei's vision, the Curses—which looked like Lickers from Resident Evil crawling on all fours—were shredded by the incoming metal storm. Their Cursed Energy armor lasted less than a second before their heads were blown apart. Limbs and torsos were torn into countless fragments.
It was a massacre. Facing a wall of death dealing metal, the horde of over a hundred Cursed Spirits was annihilated in less than two minutes.
"Report. Hostiles completely silenced."
It went impossibly smooth.
Hearing the exhilarating news from Special Tactics Unit 1, the command center erupted in applause.
This was a monumental step for humanity in the fight against Curses!
"How about that? The power of the Ministry of Defense!"
Sitting in the commander's chair, Lt. General Kazuo Mafune smiled triumphantly.
"Even without you Sorcerers, we can protect ourselves."
---
"What is that?"
In the command center, a researcher stared at his instruments. The readings had hit critical levels, screaming in the red. A cold sweat instantly soaked his back.
He screamed:
"Target at 300 meters! High-energy reaction detected!"
"It's too late..."
Deep in the darkness of the highway, a terrifying behemoth materialized. Black Cursed Energy roiled around it like thick fog.
The massive spike in Cursed Energy erupted as if out of nowhere. Even experienced veterans like Akutagawa only sensed it the moment it launched its attack.
The expressions on everyone's faces, including Kenmei's, turned grim. The two Black Hawk helicopters hovering at three hundred meters were well within the attack range of this unknown horror.
"Kenmei, bail out!"
Akutagawa exchanged a single glance with the other members. He kicked the cabin door off its hinges, grabbed Kenmei, and jumped.
The others didn't hesitate for a split second. Grabbing the pilots and support staff, they dove out of the choppers behind Akutagawa.
Professionals are professionals. From the onset of the "emergency" to their response, less than two seconds had passed. Their execution was terrifyingly efficient. They knew the helicopters were already locked on; staying inside meant death.
Dragged by Akutagawa, Kenmei instantly felt the wind howling in his ears and the stomach-churning sensation of weightlessness.
In that exact instant, two blinding beams of black and white light—condensed from an absurd concentration of Cursed Energy—sniped the hovering Black Hawks with surgical precision.
The black metal didn't even last 0.01 seconds. It melted instantly, and the machines were blasted into dust.
The explosion happened less than fifty meters from Kenmei in straight-line distance.
The Black Hawks, costing $49 million a pop, were turned into two blazing fireballs in the sky by the Cursed artillery.
As for the soldiers of Special Tactics Unit 1 on the ground, whom the Ministry had pinned their high hopes on? They received special attention—three blasts.
You can imagine the result. They didn't stand a chance.
Forty members, along with the two Chinook transports and all their precious weaponry, were vaporized by the terrifying heat.
The command center, which had been thundering with applause just seconds ago, fell into a deathly silence. The smiles froze on everyone's faces.
The live feed on the screens cut out, replaced by the zzzt-zzzt of static snow.
Kazuo Mafune staggered backward as if his soul had left his body. He hit the wall and slid down to the floor, muttering in a daze:
"Is that... is that really something humanity can defeat with technology?"