Future Yuji Itadori Joins the Chat Group

After a period of rest and reorganization, Yuji Itadori's group departed for the Sanctuary.

Beatrice was by Yuji Itadori's side, and Natsuki Subaru accompanied them as well. He had already learned how to drive a Dragon Carriage during this period, so he could be of some help.

Emilia had initially expressed a desire to head to the Sanctuary with them to help as much as possible, but she was politely turned down by Yuji Itadori and Natsuki Subaru.

After all, Emilia was a half-elf, and Roswaal had mentioned that if she stepped into the Sanctuary, she would be restricted by the barrier.

The Sanctuary was no ordinary barrier; it was capable of acting upon the soul.

Even if one used forceful means to carry a person out, their soul would be left inside the Sanctuary, which was instead far more dangerous.

Once Natsuki Subaru learned about the matters regarding the Sanctuary, he also dissuaded Emilia from going.

Roswaal had intended to travel with them too, but there were numerous affairs back at the mansion. Especially after the world learned that 'the Witch Cult was defeated in the Roswaal Domain', many nobles and officials had taken the initiative to visit the mansion to foster closer relations with them. Consequently, he had to stay at the mansion to assist Emilia with political matters.

Furthermore, as far as Yuji Itadori and Natsuki Subaru were concerned, having fewer people made it more convenient for them to communicate and move around, so they did not have Ram and Rem travel with them either.

However, Roswaal still gave them a Pyroxene Necklace to guide their way through the forest.

That was the key to the Sanctuary. If one did not use it, anyone would lose their way within the forest.

"Senior Itadori, do you have any plans for afterward?"

Sitting at the very front and responsible for driving the Dragon Carriage, Natsuki Subaru turned his head and inquired.

"For now, the plan is to find Echidna and communicate with her regarding Soul Transference," Yuji Itadori replied.

"In addition, we also need to find a way to break through the Trials and liberate the Sanctuary."

Yuji Itadori remembered what Roswaal had told him earlier: the half-bloods within the Sanctuary were all bound by that barrier, completely unable to leave.

Yuji Itadori wanted to liberate the Sanctuary and grant them their freedom.

However, Roswaal had also mentioned that there were people within the Sanctuary who did not wish to leave.

All Yuji Itadori wanted to do was simply undo the barrier. As for whether they wished to leave, that would be their own business.

Yuji Itadori was merely providing a choice.

"What exactly are those Trials?"

"I'm not sure either; Roswaal said he didn't know."

Yuji Itadori shook his head.

"He only knows that only half-bloods possess the qualification to participate in the Trials. As for what specific form or requirements they entail, Roswaal is unclear about that too."

"Then the few of us probably can't participate in the Trials either."

"Perhaps I can, because in a strict sense, I'm not considered a complete human either."

Yuji Itadori lowered his head, looking at his own hands.

His current constitution could be considered half-human and half-Cursed Spirit, so perhaps he also possessed the qualification to participate in the Trials.

"Even if it doesn't work, we can check out the situation over there first to prevent any unexpected incidents from occurring. Since Betty is with us anyway, it's convenient for us to go back and forth—"

"Wait a minute!"

Natsuki Subaru seemed to notice something. He abruptly turned his head, his gaze focusing on Beatrice's face.

"Wait a minute, wait a minute, oh yeah! Betty has Teleportation Magic! Since Betty can use magic to teleport us, can't we just come straight over? Why did we have to ride a Dragon Carriage?"

"Don't look at Betty for this kind of thing, in fact! Wasn't it because you were just shouting like an idiot back at the mansion about wanting to drive a Dragon Carriage?!"

Beatrice crossed her arms over her chest, looking at Natsuki Subaru with a furrowed brow.

"Well, about that!"

Natsuki Subaru rubbed his head, trying to find a way to change the subject.

"Betty, what do you think the Trials inside the Sanctuary look like?"

"Betty doesn't know either, in fact. Betty hasn't been to the Sanctuary in several hundred years."

Beatrice clearly remembered when she had last come to the Sanctuary.

An existence known as the Warlock of Melancholy had broken into this place, and lacking combat capability, she had been forced to hide deep within the Sanctuary.

Roswaal had been smashed to pieces and brought to the brink of death during the battle against that opponent, only surviving in the end by relying on Soul Transference.

In order to remember that day, he had imitated the appearance of the Warlock of Melancholy, putting on clown makeup and speaking with a strange intonation.

Four hundred years had already passed since then.

"Betty, what kind of person do you think your mother is?"

Right at this moment, Yuji Itadori also inquired.

Beatrice would occasionally mention Echidna, an existence she viewed as a mother, as well as Betty's creator.

Coupled with Roswaal's frantic obsession with Echidna, this made Yuji Itadori somewhat curious as to what kind of person Echidna actually was.

"Mother is the gentlest person Betty has ever interacted with, tied for first place with you, Yuji!"

A fondness for the past flashed through Beatrice's eyes.

"I'd really like to see her with my own eyes too."

Although she bore the title of a Witch, if it came from Beatrice's mouth, then she was absolutely not a bad person.

The contract regarding 'that person' that Echidna had forged with Beatrice was perhaps because she wanted Beatrice to be able to make her own decision one day and actively choose to leave the Forbidden Library.

If that were the case, things would be easier to handle.

Right at this moment, Yuji Itadori felt a brief distortion ripple through the surrounding space, as if a light breeze had brushed past, yet it concealed a strange sensation.

He realized that their group had already entered the Sanctuary.

"There seems to be something ahead!"

Following a shout from Natsuki Subaru, Yuji Itadori also cast his gaze through the carriage window, looking ahead.

A towering building stood erected before them.

It was constructed piece by piece from massive stones, but it was already completely covered in moss and other vegetation, which was enough to illustrate its long history.

"Roswaal mentioned that Echidna's tomb is inside the Sanctuary, and it's highly likely that it's the building right before our eyes—simultaneously serving as the venue for the Trials."

Yuji Itadori spoke—

But right at this moment, he narrowed his eyes slightly, as if capturing a certain presence.

"Subaru, stop the carriage."

"Stop the carriage?"

Although Natsuki Subaru was somewhat puzzled, he trusted Yuji Itadori unconditionally and immediately brought the Ground Dragon to a halt.

At the same time, he heard a certain sound.

It was the sound of something moving at high speed and tearing through the air!

In the next instant, Yuji Itadori, who had been inside the carriage carriage, instantaneously moved outside the Dragon Carriage.

As Yuji Itadori unleashed a Slashing Attack, a crisp crashing sound echoed in midair. In the following second, a golden-yellow figure that should have been charging forward in a rapid assault instantly retreated several steps.

"To think you'd enter the Sanctuary so openly, you've got some nerve! Outsiders!"

A fiercely aggressive male voice rang out from that figure, and Yuji Itadori cast his gaze toward that direction.

A blond youth stood there. He wasn't particularly tall, but the muscle definitions on his body were as sharp as if carved by a knife. As he spoke, he revealed a row of sharp, non-human fangs, and there was a large X-shaped scar across the bridge of his nose. The pyroxene pendant hanging from his chest gleamed with a faint light.

The moment Yuji Itadori saw the opponent, he knew the opponent's identity in his heart.

Garfiel.

Before they departed, Roswaal had specifically mentioned to Yuji Itadori that among the Sanctuary residents who were unwilling to leave, there was a very dangerous existence.

He was a half-blood and possessed immensely powerful combat capability.

However, Roswaal had also added another sentence.

"Of course, as far as you are concerned, Itadori-dono, he is not worth mentioning."

Yuji Itadori looked at Garfiel before him, his tone exceptionally calm as he spoke as amicably as possible:

"You must be Garfiel. We are—"

"This great me doesn't care who you are!"

Without giving Yuji Itadori any chance to speak, Garfiel rushed straight over like an arrow released from a bowstring, throwing a right fist directly toward Yuji Itadori's face.

A loud explosion erupted between the two of them!

But to Garfiel's surprise, Yuji Itadori was not sent flying backward by his strike.

If it were an ordinary person, their skull would probably have shattered.

Yet the Yuji Itadori before him remained completely motionless.

Or rather, the attack just now hadn't hit at all.

Garfiel's fist had been intercepted by something invisible, and at the same time, he felt a wave of pain.

He hastily took a step back, only to see that several bloody gashes had already surfaced on his fist.

It was as if his fist had just smashed into a wall embedded with countless blades.

"You bastard!?"

His previous attack had been blocked by some kind of invisible impact, and now it was happening again, which made Garfiel realize that the Yuji Itadori before him possessed a power that surpassed his imagination.

His battle intent grew even thicker!

In an instant, the wounds on Garfiel's hand were completely healed.

This was the Divine Protection of Earth Spirits. As long as he stood upon the earth, Garfiel would possess a self-healing speed far exceeding that of ordinary people.

Not only that—

He could even alter the ground beneath his feet.

"Please calm down, I—"

"Who wants to calm down! This great me is going to thoroughly beat you outsiders to a pulp right now!!! I'm going to turn you into a masochist crashing all over the place!"

Garfiel bellowed, simultaneously stomping his right foot violently against the ground.

The hard ground was instantly torn apart, and that terrifying impact rippled forward, concealed within those continuously expanding cracks.

Yuji Itadori sighed.

He didn't really understand what the allegorical-sounding phrase suddenly spouting from the opponent's mouth was supposed to mean—

But it appeared this guy was simply incapable of listening to him properly.

In that case, he could only deal with him first.

This person seemed to have a self-healing capability, so—

Yuji Itadori narrowed his eyes slightly.

In the next instant, he vanished, disappearing from the position where he had just been standing, while the ground beneath him was completely torn apart under the effect of Garfiel's Divine Protection.

"What?!"

Garfiel was greatly shocked. He hastily looked around to find Yuji Itadori's figure, only to see that the opponent was already standing a few meters behind him.

"You bastard, don't think you can run!"

Garfiel laughed wildly, immediately turning around to continue slaughtering Yuji Itadori.

But suddenly, his eyes widened.

He couldn't move!?

Garfiel strained with all his might to make any movement, but his body felt as if it were completely bound by some invisible existence, unable to move even a fraction of an inch.

Unseen Hand.

Garfiel was completely unable to see that the limbs released by the Authority had entirely entwined his body.

And this was merely the beginning—

Because after the very next breath, another fist that could not be captured by the naked eye, carrying a terrifying Cursed Energy, smashed directly into his body.

Black Flash!

The Cursed Energy rampaged within Garfiel's body, while a massive impact force knocked him away like a small pebble, sending him flying dozens of meters away. He crashed through the surrounding trees, breaking them all, and finally left a massive trench on the ground before Garfiel's body gradually came to a halt.

His mind was completely muddled, and a sensation of pain enveloped his entire body.

Just now... what had happened?

That hooded guy had clearly done nothing, so why did he go flying?

What exactly was this force?

Garfiel was entirely unable to comprehend what had occurred. He only thought about quickly using his Divine Protection effect to heal himself and return to the battlefield.

No matter who the opponent was, knocking him away was a mistaken choice, as it would grant him ample time to perform self-healing—

This was what Garfiel thought.

But right as he was thinking this, that familiar voice rang out from beside him.

"My apologies, but may I ask if you can listen to me properly now?"

Garfiel opened his eyes in terror.

Yuji Itadori stood beside Garfiel with his hands in his pockets, looking down at him as he lay on the ground.

"Don't look down on this great me, you bastard!"

"I'm sorry."

A few minutes later, Garfiel knelt on the ground, apologizing to Yuji Itadori, Natsuki Subaru, and the others.

He was completely unharmed, but just a minute ago, he had been in a thoroughly beaten and swollen state.

Garfiel had previously still maintained an defiant attitude toward Yuji Itadori—however, after it lasted for less than two minutes, he had already been physically convinced.

Fortunately, thanks to his Divine Protection effect, the injuries on Garfiel's body were mostly healed, so Yuji Itadori did not need to use his Reverse Cursed Technique to provide Healing either.

"Wouldn't it have been fine if you just said right from the start that Roswaal told you to come? This was literally a case of using your joints to think instead of your brain!"

"It was clearly you who was completely unwilling to listen to us speak! And is there some kind of bug in your language system?"

Natsuki Subaru stood to the side, looking at Garfiel with a face full of disdain.

This guy was purely a case of developed muscles and a simple mind.

"Are you called—"

Garfiel looked toward Yuji Itadori, but after the opponent's gaze swept over, he subconsciously shifted his eyes elsewhere.

The pain from just now still seemed to be spreading through his body, and his form even shuddered uncontrollably.

"My name is Yuji Itadori, pleased to meet you."

Yuji Itadori introduced himself in a calm tone, as if what had just occurred was merely a trivial matter.

'Who wants to be pleased to meet you...'

Garfiel responded thus in his heart, but when it came to his lips, it ultimately turned into nothing more than a weak "Oh."

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T/N: If you spot mistranslation, do tell me.

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