Curse Reply: After choosing Nawa, the cursed spirit cursed me for being cruel.

She pushed her sunglasses down a bit, her gaze sweeping back and forth between Duanmu Yan and Li Zi, her eyebrows slowly rising. "Oh~ it's Duanmu here. Well then, you're on leave today."

"But I haven't finished my training for today..."

"Just double the training tomorrow to make up for it." Ninety-Nine pushed her sunglasses back up and winked at Duanmu Yan. "It's rare for your little sweetheart to fly all the way here to see you. I'm not the kind of coach who doesn't care about feelings."

Riko's ears peeked a thin layer of red from beneath her hair. "He's not a lover! He's just someone who happened to be passing by."

“Yes, it’s on the way.” Duanmu Yan said at the same time.

The two looked at each other, then simultaneously shut their mouths.

Yuki chuckled, put on his helmet, started the motorcycle, and reminded everyone not to go too far before twisting the throttle and disappearing at the end of the coastal highway.

Now that she doesn't have to worry about this apprentice, she can finally relax and enjoy life.

Only two people remained in the courtyard. Riko looked at Duanmu Yan beside her and said, "Why didn't you say so before you came?"

"It was a last-minute decision."

Riko opened her mouth, then burst out laughing, tossed the training equipment into the room, and said, "Come on, I'll take you to town. There's a shop here that's full of weird things."

As she walked out, she turned back to see if he was following. Her bangs were a mess from the wind, and she tucked a stray strand behind her ear. "By the way, how did you know we were coming here? You didn't tell me beforehand. Were you here to pick me up? You just happened to be going that way. Yes... you just said you were going that way."

Duanmu Yan followed behind her, and couldn't help but laugh as he watched her stutter.

"It was Jiujiu who sent me the location a while ago, and I just happened to have removed a near-Special Grade Cursed Spirit in this area!"

Riko couldn't help but sigh, "Ah, as expected of Duanmu. Master Jiujiu said that I might only be at the level of a third-level mage now, and the gap between me and you is huge."

Duanmu Yan patted her head and said, "So what? After all, I'm here."

Riko immediately lowered her head: "Um~ Let's not talk about this anymore, let's hurry up and go!"

……

In a side alley in the small town, the vintage clothing store without a sign that Riko mentioned was located deep in the alley.

There were only two customers standing side by side in the shop, their clothes hanging higher than they were.

Riko pulled out a suit jacket from the men's clothing section. It was probably an old item from the Showa era, with shoulders wide enough to fit two Duanmu Yans inside.

She then pulled out a pair of bright orange flared pants from the next shelf; the legs were so wide they looked like two overturned buckets.

She picked up the two pieces of clothing together and looked at them, then started laughing. Halfway through her laughter, she looked up and shoved the coat and pants into Duanmu Yan's arms.

“You look so beautiful in this, it’s almost like… pfft.” She laughed again, a little water glistening in the corner of her eye.

Duanmu Yan looked down at the two pieces of clothing in his arms. Before he could speak, she pulled out a pair of round sunglasses from the accessories section, put them on his face, took two steps back, squatted down, made a camera gesture with her hands, squinted her left eye, and opened her right eye wide, pretending to press the shutter a few times.

Seeing how interested she was, Duanmu Yan could only sigh inwardly and think that he would just have to bear with it.

"You can wear it if you like."

“This is men’s clothing. You’re a man, so it’s your turn to wear it.” She unfolded the bell-bottoms and held them up against his legs, then let out a muffled laugh.

"Then you're a woman, so wear a skirt for me to see."

“No, unless you wear it too.” She put down the trousers she was holding and pulled out a dark green long skirt from the women’s clothing section, with faded hibiscus flowers printed on the hem.

She held the dress up against herself, then looked at the dress on her body and then at the Showa-era drummer's jacket in Duanmu Yan's hand, and suddenly stopped laughing.

"Wait here, I'm going to the fitting room."

A moment later, the two stood facing each other in the aisle between the shelves.

Duanmu Yan was wearing a drummer's jacket that could fit two of him and bright orange bell-bottoms, the pant legs of which were folded up twice but still dragged on the ground.

She stood sideways next to the shelves, lifted the curtain of the fitting room, and walked out wearing that dark green vintage dress, looking like a princess from a fairy tale.

She looked down and tugged at the hem of her skirt, causing it to sway. She then reached out and straightened the shoulder pads that had slipped off Duanmu Yan's shoulder. "It looks pretty good. This coat isn't actually that funny."

She folded the two pieces of clothing and put them back on the shelf.

Duanmu Yan changed back into his own clothes and stood by the cashier waiting for her.

She picked up the Showa-era jacket and bright orange bell-bottoms and stood in front of the cashier for a while.

"Please wrap up these two items, and that dark green dress from earlier."

The two argued about who should pay first. In the end, Duanmu Yan lifted her up and she was able to pay, which made Miss Tianlizi unhappy. It took a long time to coax her, and she promised not to rush to pay next time.

As I left the vintage clothing store, the tram glided along the tracks in the afterglow of the setting sun, with only a few scattered passengers in the carriage.

Outside the window are vast sugarcane fields and a gray-blue sea, with egrets flapping their wings on the occasional passing field ridges.

Riko leaned against the window and counted the telephone poles, lightly tapping each one on the windowpane with her finger as it passed.

As she nodded, her shoulders slowly tilted to the side, resting on his shoulder, her even breathing audible through him.

She fell asleep.

Her eyelashes were trembling slightly; she was probably dreaming about someone.

The silver ring hung in front of his eyes, quietly embracing the setting sun.

Duanmu Yan didn't move, keeping her in that position, until the moment before the tram arrived at the station, when he gently woke her up.

"The car is here, get up, you lazybones."

Chapter 112: Do I need to open my domain to deal with a level two cursed spirit?

The tram's announcements repeated the departure times overhead, and a dense crowd began to surge towards the tram doors from the platform.

People carrying briefcases, pushing strollers, and carrying travel bags lined up in a crooked queue behind the yellow line.

Duanmu Yan and Li Zi both tilted their heads at the same time; something was wriggling deep inside the carriage.

A man was sandwiched in the middle of the crowd, wearing a dark gray suit, his tie askew, and his eyelids were almost closed.

A large clump of translucent paste stuck to his back, its edges still seeping outwards, leaving a wet trail on the ground.

The surrounding passengers were completely oblivious, squeezing past it shoulder to shoulder, stepping on each other's feet, without a single glance down. It remained in the crowd, inhaling resentment, growing fatter and fatter.

"Overtime...overtime."

"...Level 2?" Riko asked softly.

"Hmm. A standard level two." Duanmu Yan's gaze followed the clump of paste. "However, it's absorbing the resentment of these office workers, and its curse power is increasing rapidly. Give it some more time, and it might even reach level one or even quasi-special level."

A near-Special Grade is nothing to him. Let alone a near-Special Grade, even a Special Grade standing here wouldn't be able to withstand three of his strikes.

But this one in front of me is just enough for one person to practice on.

He turned his head to look at her. This well-trained Starmaw lady was staring intently at the cursed spirit, her fists clenched tightly, extremely excited.

"Duanmu, do you have a way to let me be alone with this guy for a while? I want to show you the results of my hard work over the past few months."

Duanmu Yan nodded. He didn't speak, and walked towards the man in the suit.

As he passed by the cursed spirit, he pulled his right hand out of his pocket, and cursed power condensed into a giant palm at his fingertips. He then closed his five fingers and grabbed the struggling, pasty mass off the man's back.

Before the cursed spirit could react, it was immobilized by the powerful curse force and could only angrily shout, "Overtime! Overtime..."

The man relaxed his shoulders, straightened his back a bit, looked around blankly, and continued walking towards the car door.

The toilet door closed behind Duanmu Yan. Two people shared a stall; the cursed spirit was left at the stall door.

Duanmu Yan clasped his hands together, and amber light leaked from between his fingertips, turning the tiles of the entire toilet into a golden-red hue.

"Domain Expansion - Infernal Prison: Binding All Evils".

The cursed spirit was pulled into the domain, its mushy body shrinking into a ball under the glow of the golden-red flames.

It looked up at the boundless amber sky above, then down at the flowing fiery stone slabs beneath its feet, then turned to look at Riko, who was standing at the edge of the domain, rubbing her hands together in anticipation, and finally fixed its gaze on Duanmu Yan.

Level 2 Spell Spirit: ...Use a domain against him? Could he be the legendary genius Level 2 Spell Spirit?! Just because his unparalleled potential has been discovered, is he going to be nipped in the bud?!

It's unfair! He hasn't even been given a name yet! His journey of struggle has only just begun, the first chapter, the first section. The resentment of the working class is invincible! You capitalists... no, you sorcerers are too despicable!

So what if you're a top-tier sorcerer! Fine, you win, but my spirit will never die. One day, someone will break free from the cage of overtime!

(The above paragraphs are purely for comedic effect)

Duanmu Yan stepped back, giving the fighting position to Riko. "It's up to you now. I'll keep watch from here. Let me see... the results of your training."

Riko rolled up her sleeves, revealing a section of her snow-white wrist. She looked at the spirit that was still rambling on about working overtime, a smirk playing on her lips. She then drew a training dagger from her waist.

"Level 2, perfect for practice. Don't yell, I'll go easy on you... I guess, hehehe."

Riko twirled the short sword in her hand; this was her first time facing a cursed spirit head-on.

He pushed off the ground with his right foot, and his whole body sprang forward. With a horizontal slash of his short sword, he sliced ​​off a small piece of the cursed spirit's mushy body, from which black liquid flowed out.

The cursed spirit felt pain, and its paste-like body suddenly swelled up, whipping out two thick tentacles that lashed out at her face.

Riko leaned back to dodge the first one, but the second one immediately swept towards her waist. She didn't have time to dodge, so she raised her left hand in front of her waist, and her magical power instantly strengthened her arm.

Her spell: Blessing of the Stars.

It can heal, and it can also increase spell power and attack power. It can be used not only on others, but also on oneself.

The tentacle lashed out at her forearm, sending her staggering back two steps, tearing a gash in the bandage on her arm.

"Is that all the strength you have?" She flicked her wrist, switched the dagger to her left hand, and raised her right hand in a loose fist above her head, gathering incantation on the tip of her fist as she began to chant incantations.

"Starlight shines upon me, and my fists are the hammers that shatter nightmares! Star Strike!"

She slammed her right fist down, smashing the cursed spirit's tentacles, which it couldn't retract in time, into flat pieces. The cursed spirit let out a hoarse scream and dragged its broken body backward.

"It's not over yet..." Riko stabbed the dagger into the ground, formed a hand seal in front of her chest that only she could understand, closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and her magical power expanded around her, even her hair fluttered slightly. "Star Blessing - Double Incantation, my legs will be faster than the wind, my fists will be heavier than mountains!"

She suddenly opened her eyes, lowered her body, and became a blur, punching the cursed spirit squarely in the center. The mushy mass was dented, howling in pain.

The cursed spirit suddenly contracted, drawing all the mucus back into its core, and then violently launched dozens of fine tentacles, like a net, simultaneously attacking from all directions.

Riko's short sword was still stuck in the ground, and she didn't have time to pull it out. Instead of dodging, she took a half step back with her right foot, bent her knee slightly, and poured all her magical power into her right calf. She quickly chanted, "Star Blessing - Instant Enhancement, Star Kick!"

He slammed his right leg forward, the magical power exploding beneath his foot, the impact shattering all the tentacles that were shooting at him from the front into dust.

Instead of being pushed by the reaction force, she slid backwards for several meters on the stone slab, looking a little disheveled.

Duanmu Yan stood at the edge of the domain. The range of the tentacles that the cursed spirit had just used was indeed quite large, with a few attempting to circle around to Riko's blind spot.

He slightly spread his fingers, and flames appeared beside the cursed spirit, burning the tentacles that had quietly reached towards her back to ashes. Then he put his hands back in his pockets.

Riko was completely unaware; she was busy naming her next move.