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As soon as Kai spoke, the Slit-Mouthed Woman appeared right behind him.
"Am I beautiful??"
"..." The Heavy Stone Crab stopped thrashing right away. The Simple Domain was working.
The target was entirely paralyzed until they answered "yes" or "no." It was an exceptionally effective crowd-control technique. That split-second of paralysis was all the Spider Woman needed to drag the massive entity directly to Kai's feet.
"A wish-granting Cursed Technique? Not bad... It belongs to now."
The Heavy Stone Crab's ability was risky for anyone making a wish, but the curse itself had no real downsides. Since its legend wasn't well-known, it wasn't particularly powerful.
Still, the technique made it worth catching.
"Cursed Spirit Manipulation."
Kai activated the technique and pulled the Heavy Stone Crab toward him. Its huge body shrank and twisted, turning into a sparkling ball of Cursed Energy between his hands. He swallowed it, and the heavy feeling in the shrine disappeared, leaving only a strange, empty silence.
"Is... is it over?" Mai asked, her voice shivering slightly.
Mai already knew Kai was obscenely strong—she'd seen him defeat the Slit-Mouthed Woman. But watching him destroy the Heavy Stone Crab so quickly still gave her chills. Seeing his power made her heart beat faster. She couldn't help but feel drawn to that kind of strength.
"Was there ever any doubt?" Kai called back the Spider Woman and the Slit-Mouthed Woman. He turned to Mai with a confident smirk. "Or did you think I'd have to fight a bloody battle to win, Mai-senpai?"
Mai quickly averted her eyes, unable to hold his intense gaze. "I didn't say that!"
"Hah."
Kai thought her flustered reaction was adorable and let out a quiet laugh.
All in all, tonight had gone really well.
Taking in the Heavy Stone Crab didn't give Kai a huge boost in Cursed Energy, but getting such a flexible technique was a big win. After rging with the curse, he realized its power wasn't just about granting wishes. It worked just like a Heavenly Restriction.
Like Toji Fushiguro—who gave up his Cursed Energy for incredible physical strength—the Heavy Stone Crab's power was based on trading one thing for another. The scary part was that it could force these Restrictions on others. Mai had unknowingly given up her presence in the world because she wanted to disappear. Even more, unless a Sorcerer had more Cursed Energy than the user, they wouldn't even notice the technique was being used.
Kai quickly thought of many sneaky ways to use the Heavy Stone Crab's power. It was a dangerous technique.
"So, can people see now?" Mai finally ca back to her senses. With the Cursed Spirit gone, her invisibility should have ended.
"Not quite."
So Cursed Techniques don't go away when the caster dies, and the Heavy Stone Crab's curse was one of those. Victims stayed stuck in the Restriction unless they had enough Cursed Energy to break it themselves. Otherwise, the Heavy Stone Crab had to remove it.
"Huh?" Mai stared in confusion.
Before she could ask what he ant, Kai raised a hand. The translucent form of the Heavy Stone Crab slowly materialized right behind him.
"W-What is that doing here??"
Seeing the monster again made her panic for a mont, and she stepped back. Then she rembered—Kai had absorbed it, so it was under his control now. There was nothing to worry about.
She noticed Kai watching her, obviously amused.
"You really are the worst," she grumbled, rolling her eyes. "Do you enjoy watching girls make fools of themselves?"
"If it's any other girl, I couldn't care less. But when it's you, Mai-senpai? I find it incredibly cute." He even shot her a deliberate wink.
"..." Mai tried to reply, but couldn't get the words out. Her heart fluttered in her chest. She just couldn't keep up with his teasing.
"Alright, let's fix your little problem."
Kai hadn't expected her to answer back anyway. He gave a ntal command, and the huge Heavy Stone Crab leaned down over Mai.
Even though she knew Kai was in control, having the monster so close was scary. But looking at Kai helped her calm down.
"Hum!"
A wave of Cursed Energy swept through the area.
Monts later, the heavy Heavenly Restriction on Mai disappeared.
"Is... is that it?" Mai looked at her hands. She didn't feel any different. Everything seed just like before.
"We'll know for sure once we go outside and see if anyone notices you," Kai said with a shrug, not explaining any further.
Right... the easiest way to check was to say hello to a stranger. But she wasn't about to admit she was too flustered to think of that. She kept her head down and quietly followed Kai out of the shrine.
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"MAI SAKURAJIMA! IT'S MAI SAKURAJIMA!"
"OH MY GOD, IT REALLY IS HER!"
"CAN I GET AN AUTOGRAPH??"
Even though Mai trusted Kai, she felt nervous as they walked back into the city. But her worry disappeared almost right away.
The quiet streets were fine, but as soon as they entered a busy area, soone recognized her. As a top teen idol, she had a huge fanbase.
In less than a minute, a crowd gathered, asking for photos and autographs.
"This..."
Being noticed again made her almost cry with happiness. But the growing crowd soon got overwhelming. She hadn't expected to be back in the spotlight so suddenly.
"Kai..." She instinctively turned to him for help, only to find him standing safely outside the mob, arms crossed, enjoying the spectacle like he was watching a movie.
"..."
What a jerk... but honestly, she wasn't surprised at all to see him acting so selfish.
"Can I get an autograph?" a fan asked eagerly.
eting the bright, expectant eyes of her fans, Mai forced herself into work mode. "O-Of course!"
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The crowd kept getting bigger. After what felt like her fiftieth autograph, things were getting out of control.
She loved her fans, but it was getting late and the crowd was blocking the street. She gave Kai a desperate look, hoping he'd help her out.
He just looked back at her, acting like he had no idea what she wanted.
Mai finally had enough. She pushed through her fans, grabbed Kai's hand, and ran off with him as fast as she could.
"Ah! She's running away!"
"Wait, is that guy her boyfriend??"
"No way!"
"They look so cute together!"
By the ti the crowd realized what was happening, Mai had already pulled Kai halfway down the street. Dozens of people took out their phones, snapping blurry pictures of her as she ran away with a mysterious boy.
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"You did that on purpose! You just wanted to see struggle!" Mai said, out of breath after they finally got away from the paparazzi.
"Why would you think that?" Kai asked, looking innocent. "You seed to be enjoying the attention, Mai-senpai. I didn't want to interrupt."
"You—!" If he hadn't been wearing that infuriating smirk, she might have believed him.
"Still, dragging out of there by the hand... aren't you worried about the rumors?" Kai teased. "A famous teen idol suddenly getting a boyfriend is going to break a lot of hearts. I might just end up as the most hated guy on the internet tomorrow."
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Don't forget to drop so power stones!
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