The curse crouched low.
Its fingers dug into the cracked floor beneath it.
It was no longer looking at them like insects.
Now it was looking at them like prey that had finally decided to bite back.
The three of them regrouped near the collapsed doorway.
Dust drifted through the air.
Sora kept his eyes on the curse while speaking quickly.
"I'll fight it head on with Yuji."
Yuji nodded immediately.
Megumi stayed silent and listened.
"Megumi. Support us from the back. Keep your distance so that you won't get caught up in the crossfire. Save us whenever we screw up."
Megumi frowned slightly.
"How are you going to fight it head on? I will only be able to save you if you don't get obliterated the very second you fight."
Sora turned to him.
"Trust me. "
Sora reached into the inside of his uniform.
Hidden along the inner lining were fifteen tiny metal spheres no bigger than marbles.
Each one carried cursed energy sealed inside.
Emergency reserves he had yet to use.
His fingers brushed across them.
Then he activated Reversal.
The tiny spheres around his body began to glow faintly.
One after another, cursed energy flowed back into him.
It was like forcing a river through a narrow pipe.
The sensation made his nerves burn.
His muscles twitched.
His vision blurred and focused.
Every sound became louder and painfully clear.
The cursed energy inside surged into his body all at once.
Sora inhaled sharply.
The floor beneath his feet cracked.
Metal spread across his body in layers.
A full suit of armor formed around his chest, shoulders, arms, and legs.
A heavy gauntlet wrapped around his right arm.
Floating weapons appeared one after another around him.
Blades.
Spears.
Lasso.
Small spinning discs with sharpened edges.
Yuji glanced at him.
For the first time since entering the detention center, Sora looked dangerous.
"Three minutes is my time limit. Lets try to beat it before it beats us."
Then he launched forward.
The hallway exploded beneath his feet.
The curse's grin widened again.
Sora reached it first.
His gauntlet slammed into the curse's jaw.
BOOM
The impact cracked the wall behind it.
Before the curse could retaliate, two floating blades shot toward its neck and shoulder.
The curse tilted away from one.
The other sliced across its arm.
At the same moment, Yuji rushed in from the side.
His cleaver flashed through the air and cut across the curse's ribs.
The curse turned toward him instantly.
Too late.
Megumi slammed both hands together.
"Toad!"
A massive toad burst from the shadows.
Its tongue shot out and wrapped around Yuji's waist.
Yuji was yanked backward just as the curse's fist smashed through the air where his head had been.
The punch tore apart the wall instead.
Chunks of concrete flew everywhere.
"Totality!" Megumi shouted.
Divine Dog Totality lunged from the side and clamped its jaws onto the curse's shoulder.
The curse snarled for the first time.
Sora attacked again.
Metal wires wrapped around the curse's legs.
A spear shot toward its chest.
A spinning blade cut across its face.
The curse ripped through the wires with brute force, but every movement cost it time.
Every second it spent fighting the weapons gave Yuji another opening.
Yuji darted in again.
A slash across the back.
A kick to the side.
Then Megumi pulled him away before the curse could retaliate.
The fight became a rhythm.
Sora fought directly.
Yuji struck where he could.
Megumi controlled the battlefield from the rear.
The curse could never focus on one person for long.
Every time it turned toward Yuji, Sora slammed into it.
Every time it tried to rush Sora, Divine Dog or Megumi interfered.
The floating weapons around Sora swarmed constantly.
Not strong enough to seriously injure the curse.
But enough to force it to defend.
Enough to keep it angry.
Minutes passed.
The hallway had become a battlefield of shattered walls, broken pipes, and mangled concrete.
Sora's breathing became heavier.
His armor felt heavier too.
His skin burned.
His senses had become too sharp.
The sound of dripping water felt like needles in his ears.
The scraping of broken metal made his teeth ache.
His overloaded cursed energy was now at its limit.
His body was reaching its limit too.
'Time's almost up...'
The curse noticed.
Its strange eyes narrowed.
It had finally realized who the real problem was.
The floating weapons around Sora had slowed.
His movements had become a little less precise.
The curse's grin returned.
Its hands came together.
Cursed energy gathered between its palms.
Dark and dense.
The pressure in the hallway rose instantly.
Sora saw it too late.
The curse thrust its hands forward.
A blast of cursed energy erupted toward him.
Megumi reacted instantly.
"Nue!"
The winged shikigami burst into existence overhead.
Its talons grabbed Sora by the shoulders and yanked him backward through the air.
The blast tore through the spot where he had been standing.
BOOOOM
The hallway exploded apart.
Concrete walls collapsed inward.
Pipes burst.
Dust and debris filled the air.
Sora hit the ground hard beside Megumi.
His armor cracked apart and dissolved.
The floating weapons fell to the floor one by one.
His overload ended.
Pain hit him all at once.
His muscles felt like they had been torn apart from the inside.
Every sound felt too loud.
Even breathing hurt.
Yuji landed nearby after being thrown backward by Toad.
He rolled to his feet, battered but still standing.
Across from them, the curse stood in the middle of the wreckage.
Its pale skin was covered in cuts and scratches.
Its smile was gone completely now.
It looked furious.
Without Sora's overload, it no longer had anything stopping it from fighting seriously.
The curse raised one arm.
An enormous amount of cursed energy gathered in its palm.
The air around it warped.
Megumi's eyes widened.
"Move!"
He grabbed Sora by the arm.
At the same moment, Toad's tongue shot out and wrapped around Yuji's waist.
The three of them were dragged away just as the curse released the attack.
A massive wave of cursed energy crashed through the hallway.
The entire section of the detention center collapsed.
A huge part of the building caved inward beneath the force.
For a few seconds, all that remained was falling debris and a cloud of dust so thick it swallowed everything.