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The night hung heavy over the city, casting long shadows across the sleek and modern structure of the mall. Its neon lights flickered in the distance, giving it an eerie, desolate appearance. Despite its polished exterior, the mall felt like a breeding ground for curses, especially at this hour. Rina Nakamura Kamo stood at its entrance, her eyes sharp, assessing the surroundings with precision honed from years of battle.
Nanami had been right— there was a thick, oppressive aura lingering in the air, like something foul festering just beneath the surface. She could feel the cursed energy pulsing faintly, scattered throughout the mall. It was faint, but strong enough to warrant attention. This wasn't the work of low-level curses. Something more dangerous was lurking inside, waiting for the right moment to strike.
Rina set her bag down, her movements fluid and calculated, and began to unfurl the talismans. Her fingers danced with precision, laying them out in a careful pattern as she focused her cursed energy through them. The barrier materialized instantly, a large dome-shaped curtain that wrapped around the entire mall. It shimmered with dark energy, turning the sky inside the barrier to an inky black night, effectively hiding what was happening within from the outside world. The inside of the mall grew unnaturally quiet, as if the air itself was holding its breath.
The curtain's unique design would lure the cursed spirits out from their hiding places, drawing them toward her. Rina straightened, feeling the familiar weight of her cursed energy hum around her body. She had customized the barrier with an additional condition, one that made it more efficient for eliminating curses in a confined area like this. Her approach was methodical, her mind already working through potential strategies as she surveyed the empty corridors of the mall.
As she stepped deeper into the heart of the building, she sensed movement—something subtle, creeping along the edges of her awareness. It was as if the shadows themselves were shifting in anticipation. The cursed energy spiked suddenly, alerting her to the presence of a nearby curse.
Without a second thought, Rina spun on her heel, her hand crackling with cursed energy as she launched a devastating punch toward the source of the disturbance. The force of the impact rippled through the air, and the curse—a grotesque, amorphous figure—was obliterated before it had the chance to fully materialize. Its dark essence disintegrated into the air, leaving nothing but silence in its wake.
Rina didn't pause. She moved with fluid grace through the deserted halls, her senses alert to the cursed energy shifting around her. She felt the curses gathering, drawn to her presence like moths to a flame. One after another, they lunged at her from the shadows, their distorted bodies twisting unnaturally as they tried to overwhelm her.
But Rina was faster.
With a swift roundhouse kick, she dispatched another curse, her movements sharp and deliberate. Her fists struck with the force of a hammer, each blow infused with cursed energy, tearing through the curses like paper. She barely broke a sweat, her confidence unshakable as she fought her way through the ambush. Each curse was dispatched with ruthless efficiency—her martial arts expertise and control over her cursed energy in perfect harmony.
