Curse Returns, a gamble from the start, I awaken dual spells

Eight o'clock in the evening, outside Jixiang Temple.

"Riri, feed him~"

Shunpei stood outside and spotted Rito's figure from afar.

As usual, half of his face was covered by thick bangs.

This is evidence of the long-term oppression he suffered at the hands of Kenta Ito and others, and it is also a manifestation of his inner resentment.

"Shunping, you're here early." Rihime was touched as she looked at the popcorn wrapper that Shunping had squeezed out of shape in his hand.

"Haha, I haven't been here long." Shunping laughed, trying to hide his unease.

Then, an awkward expression appeared on his face.

"Um... Rito, I was thinking of buying you a Coke, but I accidentally dropped it and broke it. You... won't mind, will you?"

Rihime smiled slightly, "It's alright, let's go inside!"

Shunpei looked up at Rito's smile and slowly relaxed.

"Um!"

With more than ten minutes to go before the movie started, the two entered the cinema and chose their seats.

The crowd from the previous event hadn't completely dispersed yet; couples sat in pairs in the back row, reluctantly leaving one by one.

At this moment, Shunping placed the popcorn bucket on the armrest between the two of them.

The movements were very light, as if afraid of making a sound.

Rito noticed that after he finished, he turned the bucket half a turn with his hand so that the open side faced Rito.

"Riri," Shunpei suddenly spoke, his voice low against the background music in the theater.

"Um?"

"You didn't actually need to come today." Shunping stared at the still-unlit screen in front of him, his thick bangs covering half of his face. "I know you must be very busy."

Li Ren did not respond.

After a few seconds, Shunping whispered again, "My mom used to take me to the movies and she would always buy popcorn. But later she didn't have time, so I came by myself."

He paused, his fingers unconsciously gripping the edge of the popcorn bucket.

"Watching a movie alone is actually quite nice. You don't have to talk to anyone or think about school. It's just that I can never finish the popcorn."

He smiled faintly in the dim light, as if he were speaking to himself.

"I stopped buying popcorn after that."

Rito looked at the popcorn bucket that Shunpei had carefully turned around.

The opening faces directly towards him, so if Shunping wants to eat, he has to reach his hand across the entire armrest.

"Then why did you buy it today?" the manager asked.

Shunping was taken aback, as if he hadn't expected him to ask further questions.

He lowered his head, his bangs completely obscuring his eyes, and his voice became even softer: "Because I'm not alone today."

After a few seconds of silence, he quickly added, "But if Rito doesn't like sweets, don't force yourself, this is very sweet."

Rito reached into the bucket, took a popcorn kernel, and put it in his mouth.

The sweetness of the syrup melted on the tip of the tongue, becoming somewhat cloying.

"It's alright," he said.

Shunping looked up, his eyes flashing briefly through the gap in his bangs.

The light was brief, quickly obscured by his habitual lowering of his head.

But the smile on his lips didn't disappear.

Li Ren turned his gaze forward.

The screen was not lit yet.

But he suddenly realized that the boy might have invited him to the movie not just to express his gratitude.

He just wanted someone to sit next to him, with the popcorn bucket facing them.

At this moment, the three figures in the front row caught Li Ren's attention.

Those three unlucky guys were killed by real people!

Although there are differences between anime and reality, based on the approximate location and the fact that the three people showed no signs of leaving, Rito was certain that these were the three people who were about to be killed by real people.

"Rito, what's wrong?" Seeing Rito's thoughtful expression, Junpei followed his gaze.

When he saw the three people in the front row, his expression changed, and he involuntarily shrank back.

Rihime noticed Shunpei's unusual behavior. "Shunpei, do you remember what I told you before?"

Shunping stiffened, as if recalling something.

A few seconds later, he slowly straightened up, and most of the fear in his eyes disappeared.

Li Ren nodded and said nothing more.

Ten minutes later, the movie started, showing the latest horror film. Just like in the original story, the three people in the front row were making a lot of noise and disorder.

Li Ren knew that, barring any unforeseen circumstances, the real person would appear soon, and the fate of these three would be the same as in the original story—a tragic death on the spot.

Thinking of this, his fists clenched slowly.

It's not that I pity these people's lives, but rather that I feel a deep sense of powerlessness because I have no ability to change the status quo.

These three bullied Shunping, and their deaths didn't affect him at all, but what if it were someone he cared about?

If such a thing happens and you are powerless to change it, how should you deal with it? The case of Japanese knotweed is a perfect example.

"Liren, Liren?" Shunping gently touched him, thinking that the noise from the three people in the front row had upset him.

"It's nothing," Rito said, shaking his head gently.

Seeing Rihime's absent-minded look, Shunpei felt a tightness in his chest.

Li Ren is a good person. This is the first time I've invited him to a movie, and I can't let him be bothered by these people, at least... not this time.

Thinking of this, Shunping's eyes gradually hardened.

He looked at the three people in the front row, mustered his courage, and tried to persuade them to be quiet and stop making noise.

Just as Shunping was about to stand up, an unexpected figure blocked his view.

The movie was shown in very dim light, and Shunping couldn't see the man's face clearly. He could only see stitches that looked like centipedes crawling all over his body.

In an instant, it felt as if an invisible hand was gripping his throat, and the extreme fear made it almost impossible for him to breathe.

Under Shunping's horrified gaze, the real person gently placed their hand on a student.

The next second...

"Don't look," Rito said softly.

His eyes remained fixed ahead, without glancing at Shunping even once.

Shunping's attention was successfully drawn to him. "Riri...Riri, then..."

"Don't look," Rito repeated.

This time, Shunping didn't speak again, and even lowered his head, not daring to look any further.

puff!puff!puff!

Three soft sounds echoed in the large movie theater, but they seemed insignificant due to the interference of the movie's sound effects.

Rito sat in the back row, his eyes reflecting the scene of the three students' heads swelling like balloons and then bursting. He didn't make a sound until the real person left.

"Shunpei, let's go." Before Shunpei could react, Rito grabbed him and walked towards the back door without looking back.

"Huh?" Shunpei was confused, but he still obediently followed behind Rito.

Just as he stepped out the door, his curiosity got the better of him, and he turned around to look behind him.

"vomit--!"

Almost the instant he saw the bloody scene, Shunping turned pale, broke free from Rito's hand, and squatted in the corner, vomiting violently.

Rito didn't speak, just watched quietly. After a while, Junpei finally calmed down a bit.

He stood up, looked at Rito, and his eyes still held a lingering fear.

"Ri...Rito, you know him, right?"

Looking into Shunpei's eyes, Rito hesitated for a moment, then slowly nodded. "It's dangerous. You know that won't do you any good."

Shunping was stunned for a moment.

Was Rihito protecting me? But he clearly knew this would happen, so why did he still come?

Did he agree to come to the movie not because of my invitation, but because of this?

Thinking of this, Shunping slowly lowered his gaze.

Rito naturally noticed that he was in a low mood, but now was not the time to think about such things.

Rito felt he had done enough for Shunpei. He had learned to resist and averted tragedy.

They're already very lucky.

"Let's go," Rito said.

Shunping nodded slightly, his face obscured by thick bangs, making it impossible to see his expression or guess what he was thinking.

Soon, the two walked out of the movie theater.

At the same time, piercing police sirens blared through the streets.

"Rin-jin," Shunpei asked softly.

"Hmm?" Rito stopped and looked at the timid boy beside him.

"Why did you help me out today?" Shunpei slowly raised his head, looking directly at Rito, as if trying to find the answer in his eyes.

"Because I already consider you a friend"—Liren couldn't bring himself to say those words.

Today, when he approached Shunping to help him out of his predicament, he did so with a purpose in mind, not out of a genuine desire to help the boy.

If Junpei weren't a key figure in Jujutsu Kaisen, Rito would be almost certain that he wouldn't care whether Junpei lived or died.

But after spending half a day together, he already considered Shunping a friend.

Those kinds of words... let's just forget about them.

"I happened to overhear it, so I went to check it out." Rito's expression remained as calm as ever, revealing nothing about her.

Upon hearing this, Shunping's body visibly relaxed, and a light shone again deep in his eyes.

"Thank you, Rito. I'll be going now. I'll treat you to a movie again next time."

He sincerely thanked him and turned to walk back.

He took a few steps and then stopped, seemingly wanting to ask something more, but in the end he just clenched his fist and continued walking forward.

Watching Shunpei's retreating figure, Rito shook his head and chuckled, "Hehe, what a cute boy."

"Rito-chan, that's not right."

In an instant, Rito froze, his whole body trembling uncontrollably.

The next second, a real face emerged from the shadows, the horrifying stitches clearly visible under the streetlights.