"Wake up."
A muffled voice echoed through the darkness.
"Mmh… Komari, stop it. Wake me up when it's time to eat," I groaned.
"Huh?" The voice sounded annoyed. "I said, wake up, brat."
THWACK!
"Ow! What the hell?!" I shot upright, rubbing my ass. "Who did that? The old man?"
I blinked and looked around.
"…Huh?"
This place…
"Wait a second. I know this void."
It looked almost identical to the one I was in before I got reincarnated.
"No, this isn't that void from before, idiot."
The voice spoke again.
"…Huh? Kami?"
"What? No. I already told you."
There was a brief pause before the voice sighed.
"Man, you're really killing the mysterious-being vibe I had going."
"Oh." I scratched my head. "Well... long time no see, I guess. What's it been? Three... maybe four years?"
Man, it really has been a while since I last saw him.
"Sigh... It's been seven years," Ka—... no, ROB corrected me.
"Oh... has it? Huh."
Another pause.
"Well, anyway, why'd you drag me back here? I was in the middle of a god-tier nap, so I hope this was important."
He stared at me for a moment.
"…Because you're a bum."
"…Excuse me?"
"It's been seven years since I reincarnated you, and you've done absolutely jack shit. Most people would've spent that time training, getting stronger, becoming famous... maybe even ending up as one of the strongest in the world."
He pointed a finger at me.
"But you? Take away your bloodline and those overpowered abilities, and you're only a little stronger than an average kid."
"…Harsh. But I don't really see what that has to do with me. I've been doing perfectly fine since I got reincarnated."
"That," ROB said, pointing at me, "is exactly the problem. You've been fine. That's all you've been."
He let out a tired sigh.
"Do you have any idea how many worlds exist alongside yours? How many abilities you could've copied by now? Hundreds. Maybe thousands. And you haven't even bothered trying."
He paused before giving me a strange look.
"Hell, I'm honestly surprised you never tried your mother yet."
"Ayo... pause."
I looked at him like he'd just said the weirdest thing imaginable.
ROB stared back with a completely deadpan expression.
"You know damn well what I meant."
"…Yeah, I know," I replied with a grin. "Still, kinda walked into that one."
I rubbed my chin.
"Although... now that you mention it, I never actually thought about it." I frowned. "Wouldn't that require mana or something tho?"
"Hmm... I wonder if there was a convenient way to get mana. Or maybe a way to train it."
ROB slowly pinched the bridge of his nose.
"…oh I know The fucking system I gave you."
"…Huh?"
"The. System."
He pointed at me like I was the dumbest person alive.
"And before you say anything, think back to what Great Sage told you. Missions are generated either through a strong desire... or by the system itself."
…
"Oh."
"Yeah, 'oh.'" He let out a long sigh. "I guess I should've expected this, though."
He shook his head.
"It is you, after all."
"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?" I asked defensively.
ROB looked at me for a few seconds before answering.
"…Can't say. Spoilers."
I blinked.
"…What do you mean, 'spoilers'?"
"Don't worry about it."
He waved a hand dismissively.
"You were supposed to be entertainment, you know? Instead, you've somehow turned this into a nine-to-five."
"…Rude."
"And if I hadn't shown up, you probably wouldn't have gotten another mission until you were ten."
"…Wait, seriously? Until I'm ten?" I stared at him for a moment before narrowing my eyes. "Hold on. Did you just openly admit I was entertainment to you?"
ROB looked at me like I'd asked the dumbest question imaginable.
"Did you honestly think beings like me just go, 'Aw, poor soul. You died too soon. Here's a new life with overpowered abilities. Now go have fun,' and expect nothing in return?"
"I mean…" I scratched my cheek. "When you put it like that…"
Then another thought hit me.
"Wait, you were actually serious about the whole 'until I'm ten' thing?"
Sigh.
"Yep."
He folded his arms.
"Honestly, you remind me of another idiot."
"…There was another one?"
"Oh, yeah." He nodded. "Asked for overpowered wishes, spent ten years doing absolutely nothing, then his entire family got killed."
I blinked.
I blinked.
"…That sucks."
"It gets better."
"He snapped, declared himself all supernaturals greatest enemy, and basically turned into fantasy Hitler."
…
I stared at him.
"…Did that actually happen, or are you just messing with me?"
"Nope."
ROB shrugged.
"That one actually happened."
"…Well, is that all you called me here for? Just to nag me about not doing anything?"
"…Yeah, pretty much."
ROB shrugged.
"That should be enough to get the ball rolling now."
I frowned,I don't like the sound of that
"You don't mean anything dangerous, right?"
ROB's lips curled into a wide grin.
"Wouldn't you like to know, weather boy."
He gave a lazy wave.
"Alright, off you go."
"Wait, that's not an answer—"
Before I could finish, everything faded to black.
…
"Brooother wake up!"
WHAM!
"Argh! What the hell?!"
Something heavy had just crashed into my stomach.
I opened my eyes to find Komari sitting triumphantly on top of me, laughing her head off.
…Seriously.
What's with people assaulting me just to wake me up?
"Komari… why are you on top of me? And could you get off, please?" I groaned, still trying to catch my breath.
"Mom told me to wake you up, but you wouldn't wake up," she said as she climbed off the bed. "So I had no other choice."
"…Okay, but did you have to jump on me?"
"Yes."
She nodded proudly
"I'll be downstairs!" she called before running out of the room.
Sigh.
That kid…
Who does she take after?
Definitely not me.
Then again, I'm probably the last person who should be saying that.
I stretched with a yawn and dragged myself out of bed.
Please let this be dinner.
With my luck, it was probably another lecture.
Still, there was only one way to find out.
I slowly made my way downstairs.
As soon as I reached the living room, I spotted Mom waiting for me.
"Oh, honey, you look like a mess. Go get yourself cleaned up, okay? We have guests coming over."
Hmm? Since when do we have guests over?
"Ayano, since when do we have people visit?" I asked as she quietly stepped to my side.
"Master Rudra, we actually have guests quite often," Ayano replied. "They usually visit while you're at school or asleep. We have tried waking you several times so you could greet them, but you never did. Eventually, Madam Yurin decided it wasn't worth the effort."
Huh.
Now that she mentioned it…
I vaguely remembered something like that.
Who knew?
I turned back to Mom.
"Then why wake me up this time? I thought you gave up trying."
She smiled.
"Because today's guests aren't the usual visitors from the Monster World. An old friend of mine is coming over today."
She walked over and gently straightened my collar.
"So I want my son looking his best."
"I still don't see why," I protested.
"Just do it, okay?" Mom smiled. "Besides, there's a little surprise waiting for you. Ayano, help Rudra get ready. I'm afraid he'll just crawl back into bed."
"As you wish, Madam."
"Don't be so formal, Ayano. You're family to us, remember?"
"As you wish... Lady Yurin," Ayano corrected herself, hesitating slightly.
"That's better."
Did they just forget I'm standing here?
Do I not get a vote in this?
Sigh.
Apparently not.
"Alright…" I grumbled as I headed back upstairs, Ayano quietly following behind me.
A few minutes later...
After getting cleaned up, I headed back downstairs.
Since I was already awake, I might as well find out who all this fuss was about.
"So, Mom," I asked, "who's coming over exactly?"
"A friend of mine," she replied with a smile. "A Jujutsu sorcerer I met years ago."
A Jujutsu sorcerer?
Before I could ask anything else—
"Mom!"
Komari came running into the room at full speed.
"What's a Jujutsu sorcerer?" she asked, practically bouncing with excitement.
Mom giggled.
"They're people who use a special kind of power to fight curses and protect others."
Komari's eyes sparkled.
"That's so cool!"
Jujutsu sorcerers...As in Jujutsu Kaisen?
Well... that confirms another world exists here.
No wonder ROB said I could've copied a bunch of abilities by now.
Too late now.
Wait.
Didn't he also tell me to try copying Mom's ability...?
Great Sage, can you copy Mom's Core Explosion?
[{Affirmative. Now attempting to acquire ability: {Core Explosion}.}]
[{Acquiring ability... Successful.}]
The moment the notification disappeared, a wave of exhaustion crashed over me.
"…Ugh."
My vision blurred slightly, and I had to steady myself.
Great Sage... did that use all my mana?
[{Affirmative. Mana reserves depleted. Acquisition would normally have failed. However, due to your direct blood relation to the target, the probability of success increased significantly.}]
How much mana would it have cost if I wasn't related to her?
[{Estimated requirement: 50 MP.}]
...Damn.
That was over three times what I currently had.
Before I could think about it any longer, Mom frowned.
"Rudra, you look even more tired than before. Do you want to sit down?"
"Nah, I'm fine, Mom," I replied, giving her a small smile.
She studied me for another second before nodding.
"Alright... if you say so." She glanced toward the front door. "Ah, looks like they're here."
She walked over and opened it.
"Hanako! It's been so long."
"Yurin!" the woman replied warmly, returning the hug. "It's good to see you again."
After they separated, Hanako looked behind her with a smile.
"Oh, and I'd like you to meet the daughter I told you about."
"Ayaka, come say hello."
A young girl stepped inside.
She looked about my age.
Long white hair with streaks of blue framed her face, matching a pair of clear, crystal-blue eyes.
...Were there people like that in Jujutsu Kaisen?
Before I could think any further—
"Hello, ma'am," the girl said politely. "My name is Ayaka Fuyuki."
"Aww..." Mom clasped her hands together. "She's adorable. And so polite!"
Then she looked at me.
"Rudra, come introduce yourself."
"Ah... yeah, okay."
I walked over and stopped in front of her.
"I'm Rudra. Nice to meet you."
[Ding!]
[Mission Complete.]
[Find something interesting to do.]
Description: Things have been stagnant since your rebirth. It's time for a change. Go out there and find something interesting to do with your life.
Rewards:
• Shop Unlocked
• 100 SP
...
Huh?
Why did it complete now?
Great Sage, do you know what happened?
[{Analysis: Mission completion is directly correlated with the individual before you.}]
Her?
I looked back at the girl standing quietly in front of me.
What does she have to do with anything?
...
Somewhere, in a dark and empty void...
A pure white figure floated alone, staring at a screen.
"Everything is going according to plan."
A smile slowly spread across its face.
"Hehe... hehe... hahaha..."
The laughter grew louder.
"Bwahaha—"
It suddenly stopped.
"...Cough. Cough."
"Okay... that's enough of that."
The figure rubbed its throat.
"Damn... I need some water."
And with that, it casually floated away.