Gojo Satoru, who still hadn't gotten to soak in the hot springs, was feeling irritable. His mood only worsened when he saw Geto Suguru still talking with Conan.
"Suguru, remind me again—why did we bring the kid with us?" Gojo asked, sounding put out.
"Because Conan helped us find Kamo Chiya," Geto replied without looking up, scanning the area.
Behind them, Kurosaki Ichigo dragged Kamo Chiya forward. "So, how do we know when we've entered this 'cursed spirit realm'?"
Gojo pulled down his sunglasses, revealing his pale blue eyes. "Oh, we're already here. More specifically, we're inside a special-grade cursed spirit's domain."
"Then how do we get into the second layer?" Conan asked, craning his neck to look at the worn-out [Kumamoto Station] bus stop sign. "Last time, we got kicked out."
BEEP BEEP—
A shabby bus rolled up, hissing to a stop.
CREEEAAAK—
The doors slowly opened. The bus was still empty, but thick, blood-red veins covered the entire interior. The pulsating tendrils seemed to burrow deep into the vehicle's structure, even sinking into the ground.
Gojo stepped onto the bus first, flopping down into a window seat with all the casualness of an actual passenger.
Behind him, Ichigo nudged Kamo Chiya onto the bus. "So these veins are coming from that 'cursed heart'?"
Gojo leaned back lazily, hands behind his head. "What else? Gotta give credit to the Kamo family—only they would think of making a sorcerer's heart into a special-grade cursed object."
Geto boarded after them, followed by Conan, who—while unable to see the veins—picked up on everyone else's unease.
Kamo Chiya, despite everything, was still clinging to his Kamo pride. "Gojo Satoru, I'm the only one who knows how to enter the second rebirth realm. If you swear not to expose this—"
Gojo cut him off lazily. "Y'know, I'd be more interested in hearing about that… if my vacation hadn't been interrupted. Twice. By this whole mess."
Kamo frowned. "What does that have to do with—"
Gojo grinned. "Suguru, what do you think happens when I get annoyed?"
Before Kamo could react, a pulse of pure, chilling energy gathered in Gojo's palm.
A brilliant blue sphere of cursed power formed, shimmering with raw force.
BOOM—
The energy slammed into the densest part of the blood-veined interior.
The entire bus lurched violently.
A massive hole was blown into the front, and the cursed veins began unraveling, vanishing as the blue energy spread through the bus.
The destruction continued expanding—until suddenly, the entire world shifted.
It was as if they had been dragged into a bottomless abyss.
When Conan opened his eyes again, he was no longer on a bus.
Instead, he stood in front of a small, eerie mansion.
The house had an old, traditional design, like something out of a classic ghost story. A faint, dim glow shone from the first and second-floor windows.
"Is this the haunted house Ayumi mentioned?" Conan adjusted his glasses, studying it carefully.
"Nope." Gojo's voice came from above him. "This is the second rebirth realm. Everything here is a reflection of the soul—not all of it is real. Or at least… not entirely."
Kamo Chiya, looking increasingly unsettled, snapped at Gojo. "Do you realize what you've done?! If we provoke it, we could all be trapped here forever!"
Gojo shrugged. "Well, if Kamo Kimiyo's heart wants guests so badly, it'd be rude not to oblige."
With that, he stepped forward and rang the doorbell.
After a moment, slow, deliberate footsteps echoed from behind the door.
Then, a pale, wrinkled man appeared. His eyes were cold and hollow.
"Who are you?" he asked, voice eerily emotionless.
Gojo gestured to the group. "Oh, we're guests. Your master invited us."
The man studied them briefly, then opened the door without hesitation. "The master has been expecting you."
The moment they entered, the atmosphere changed.
The interior resembled a traditional Japanese home, but something felt off.
A faint scent of sandalwood lingered in the air. The living room was covered in tatami, and the lighting was oddly dim despite the electricity.
Two other figures stood inside:
A young boy, around ten, wearing a formal kimono. A teenage girl, maybe fifteen or sixteen, dressed in a maid outfit.
Both of them, like the doorman, were eerily pale.
Geto remained on high alert. "Where is your master?"
The wrinkled man—now identified as Kamo Nobu, the butler—smiled politely.
"The master is feeling unwell tonight. He has arranged accommodations for you instead. This is Kamo Amana, the maid. And this," he gestured to the boy, "is the master's son, Kamo Ryuichi."
Gojo's eyes gleamed.
"Interesting. So the kid really did have a son."
Kamo Chiya murmured under his breath, "If I remember correctly… Kamo Kimiyo did have a son named Ryuichi."
Gojo, completely unfazed by the eerie setting, flopped onto a wooden seat.
"Alright, Butler Kamo! Let's get to the important stuff—do you have Kikufuku? Or at least strawberry daifuku?"
Kamo Nobu hesitated, looking confused. "I'm afraid we don't have such treats here."
Gojo pulled down his sunglasses dramatically. "What?! No sweets? How about cake? Pudding? A lollipop?"
The butler shook his head.
Gojo exhaled in exasperation. "Unbelievable. And here I was, thinking I was an easy guest to please."
After a pause, he pointed directly at Kamo Ryuichi.
"Alright then! I'm staying in the same room as this kid tonight."
The entire room fell silent.
To Be Continued…