"Since you want to play so badly..."
Mahito looked at the resolute figures of Yuji Itadori and Aoi Todo standing side by side, a flash of extreme irritation and impatience crossing his eyes.
What he hated most were these self-righteous bonds between humans and their so-called hope.
"Then let me show you what true fear looks like."
Mahito sneered and slowly crouched down, pressing his pale palms heavily onto the blood-stained platform floor.
"Idle Transfiguration: Soul Multiplicity!"
Vroom—!
A massive, sinister surge of cursed energy, like a black tide, poured frantically from Mahito's palms into the ground!
The once-silent B5F platform suddenly began to tremble violently.
Crack, crack, crack...
Hair-raising sounds of grinding bone and tearing flesh rose from every dark corner.
The corpses of ordinary people that had been lying scattered across the platform began to twitch and bloat in a bizarre fashion the moment they touched that twisted power.
"What on earth is that?!"
Arata Nitta, standing in the back, was so terrified that he collapsed onto the steps, his face pale as a ghost.
He watched as the corpses were forcefully kneaded and fused by Mahito's technique, transforming into Transfigured Cursed Spirits of various forms!
Some had torsos bloated like mountains of meat, their limbs withered into sharp bone spurs;
Others had multiple heads sewn together, letting out shrill, mournful wails;
Some had even turned into flowing, violet-black liquid monsters, emitting a strong, corrosive acidic stench.
In less than ten seconds...
The entire platform, the tracks, and even the ceiling were crawling with these revolting Transfigured Cursed Spirits.
There were hundreds of them at a rough estimate!
Like hungry wolves that had caught the scent of blood, they surrounded Yuji and Todo. Thousands of cloudy eyes flickered with extreme malice toward the living.
"The subway station... has it become a nest for curses?"
Yuji gritted his teeth as he looked at the hellish scene before him.
These people had been ordinary office workers, students, even children.
Now, they were being used as expendables and toys by Mahito.
"Unforgivable..."
Cursed energy began to surge from Yuji's body, the pale blue light on his fists growing brighter.
"Calm down, my brother!"
Aoi Todo slammed a hand onto Yuji's shoulder, his wild eyes flickering with absolute calm and battle intent.
"Don't let anger cloud your judgment. This guy is trying to use these minions to drain our stamina!"
Todo scanned the army of curses flooding toward them like a tide, a cocky smile tugging at his lips.
"Listen up, my brother!"
"I'll handle these disgusting small-fry!"
"You have only one task—"
Todo pointed sharply at Mahito's main body, who was standing behind the swarm with a playful smirk.
"Charge in and smash that bastard's face in!"
Yuji took a deep breath, his anger focusing into sheer concentration.
"I've got it!"
"Let's go!"
The moment the words left his mouth, Aoi Todo made the first move!
He took a violent step forward, raising both hands high.
Clap!
The crisp sound of the clap was exceptionally piercing amidst the cacophony of the curses' roars.
Boogie Woogie, activate!
Shua!
Space instantly displaced.
Todo's figure vanished from the spot, swapping places directly with a giant spider-like Transfigured Cursed Spirit in the center of the swarm!
"Ora!"
The moment he landed, Todo's massive fist, wreathed in violent cursed energy, smashed heavily into the head of another curse beside him!
Bang!
The curse's head exploded like a watermelon, black fluids splashing all over Todo.
"Come on, you pieces of trash!"
Like a wolf among sheep, Todo began a frantic melee within the dense army of curses.
Every punch and every kick was accompanied by the shattering of a Transfigured Cursed Spirit.
Whenever he found himself surrounded, he would immediately clap his hands to swap places with another curse, leading the monsters trying to mob him in circles.
"Nice one!"
Taking advantage of Todo drawing the majority of the curses' attention, Yuji Itadori lunged forward like a leopard!
He ignored the sporadic attacks around him, his eyes locked onto Mahito's main body.
"Divergent Fist!"
Yuji's speed was at its limit, crossing half the platform in a blink as he threw a straight punch aimed directly at Mahito's chest!
"How naive."
Mahito sneered, his body melting into a liquid state once again.
Yuji's fist hit empty air, blowing a large hole into the wall behind where Mahito had stood.
"Where are you looking?"
Mahito's upper body suddenly emerged from the ground beneath Yuji's feet, his hands transforming into sharp bone spurs that stabbed toward Yuji's thighs.
Bang!
Yuji's reactions were lightning-fast. He pushed off with his right leg, narrowly avoiding the spurs while sweeping a whip kick toward Mahito's head.
The two engaged in a fierce close-quarters struggle on the narrow platform.
Fists whistled through the air as bone spurs gleamed coldly!
Although every one of Yuji's attacks carried a significant impact, Mahito's Idle Transfiguration—which allowed him to change his shape at will—rendered him nearly immune to most physical damage.
"It's useless, useless!"
Mahito dodged Yuji's attacks like an eel, letting out a piercing laugh.
"As long as you can't hit my soul, these soft punches won't kill me even if you hit me ten thousand times!"
On the other side...
Though Todo was slaughtering his way through the swarm, the number of Transfigured Cursed Spirits was simply too great.
Mahito seemed to be continuously drawing cursed energy from below to spawn even more monsters.
"Huff... huff..."
Fine beads of sweat appeared on Todo's forehead. The high-intensity cursed energy output and the frequent use of Boogie Woogie were taking a massive toll on his stamina.
"So? How much longer can you last?"
Mahito effortlessly parried Yuji's attacks while glancing mockingly at the two of them.
"Once your strength is gone, I'll turn you both into lovely toys too, hee hee hee..."
Hearing Mahito's mockery...
Aoi Todo, who was currently fighting in the middle of the swarm, didn't show a hint of despair. Instead, he suddenly stopped moving.
He casually crushed a curse's head and turned to look at Yuji, who was still locked in combat with Mahito.
A flash of cunning and madness glinted in his wild eyes.
"Hey, my brother."
Todo's voice reached Yuji clearly through the noisy battlefield.
"Do you trust me?"
Yuji forced Mahito back with a straight punch, panting slightly as he nodded without the slightest hesitation.
"Of course!"
Todo grinned, revealing a smile that made Mahito's heart skip a beat for some inexplicable reason.
"Good."
"Then let's put on the most magnificent magic show for this self-righteous idiot!"