The words hung in the air. While Yuji didn't say much, both Maki and Nobara couldn't suppress their shocked excmations.

  They fully uood the implications of being trapped in a domain.

  "What? You don't trust me?"

  Hearing the shift ione, Sukuna's voice emerged with a mog edge.

  "…"

  Maki and Nobara exged uneasy gnces. It wasn't a matter of trust, there was no reason to doubt Sukuna's observation. His experiend sharp intuition as the King of Curses were undeniable.

  "No," Maki said finally, breaking the silence.

  Of the group, she was the most posed. Her experience dealing with high-level cursed spirits gave her an edge in keeping her cool. However, her brow furrowed as she voiced her thoughts.

  "But if this really is a domain, shouldn't it have a guaranteed hit effect?"

  Though she wasn't capable of domain expansion herself, Maki uood the basics. A true domain carried a guarahat its attacks would nd. If that were the case, they should have been overwhelmed the moment they stepped inside.

  Instead, they'd been aimlessly wandering the forest for three days. Was the cursed spirit toying with them? Or was there another expnation?

  "Ha!"

  Sukuna's sharp ughter rang out, cutting through Maki's reasoning like a bde. It was filled with derision, as if he were mog their limited uanding.

  "Tsk."

  The sound grated on Nobara, who clicked her tongue in annoyance.

  "What's so funny, you smug bastard?" she muttered under her breath, her fists g.

  Even Maki, who typically kept her emotions in check, tightened her grip on her on, her face darkened by frustration.

  "It's simple," Sukuna said, finally ceasing his ughter. "This isn't a plete domain."

  His expnation silehe group.

  "A plete domain?" Maki repeated, narrowing her eyes.

  "Precisely," Sukuna said, his tone dripping with arrogance. "What you're dealing with is inplete. It's just the prototype of a domain. The cursed spirit likely hasn't yet fully mastered the teique."

  An inplete domain. That would expin the ck of a guaranteed hit effed why they were being trapped rather than attacked ht.

  "Which means the cursed spirit's abilities are still in the early stages," Sukuna cluded. "It's probably a special-grade spirit that's only retly been born."

  His words carried the weight of a final judgment.

  "A newly born special-grade?" Yuji echoed, his curiosity piqued. "Do you know what kind of cursed spirit it is?"

  "If this were the past, I might've known," Sukuna admitted. "But now? I haven't the fai idea."

  For all his arrogance, Sukuna wasn't the type to feign knowledge. If he didn't know something, he said so without hesitation.

  "Tsk. What good are you, then?" Yuji grumbled, clearly disappointed.

  Sukuna s the boy's audacity. "Watouth, brat."

  "Yeah, yeah," Yuji said dismissively, rolling his eyes. "You're supposed to be this big, scary Curse King, but you 't eveify a special-grade spirit. Some king you are."

  "You i—" Sukuna's growl cut off as he restrained himself.

  In his prime, Sukuna wouldn't have tolerated such disrespect. A thousand years ago, he would've sin anyone foolish enough to talk ba without a sed thought. But now, limited to only a fra of his power, Sukuna found himself grudgingly holding back.

  "Fine. Laugh while you ," Sukuna muttered darkly. "If I were at my full strength, no cursed spirit, no matter how powerful would dare stand before me."

  Though his words were soaked in arrogahey wereirely baseless. Sukuna's strength during his prime had been so overwhelming that few, if any, could rival him.

  However, the world had ged ihousand years since his reign. The sheer number and variety of cursed spirits had grown expoially, fueled by modern humanity's collective fears and aies.

  This shift had created hreats that even Sukuna found unfamiliar. Still, his fidence remained unshaken. If he ever regained his full power, no oppo—old or new—would pose a challenge.

  "Yeah, yeah, you're amazing. Happy now?" Yuji said sarcastically, waving off Sukuna's boasting.

  "You little—" Sukuna bit back his anger, deg against tinuing the argument.

  There was o waste time bickering. Sukuna was nothing if not patient. He could wait for the day when his strength returned in full, and then Yuji would see just how terrifyiruly was.

  For now, though, Sukuna's focus was elsewhere. This era fasated him. The chaos, the sheer abundance of curses, the merging of urban legends with reality, it ectacle unlike anything he'd ever seen.

  "Haha… I'll bide my time," Sukuna chuckled, his ughter tinged with anticipation.

  Yuji frowned, fused by Sukuna's sudden amusement. "What are you ughing at now?"

  "Nothing you'd uand," Sukuna replied dismissively. "Now, let me rest."

  With that, his voice faded, leaving Yuji, Maki, and Nobara to face their predit once more.

  For a moment, none of them spoke.

  "So… we're trapped in a domain," Nobara said finally, her to. "Great. That's just great."

  "Even knowing that doesn't ge much," Maki admitted. "We're still stuck, and there's no clear way out."

  Yuji sighed, scratg the back of his head. "Guess we just have to wait it out, huh? The school will send someoo find us eventually."

  His words carried a note of forism, but her Maki nor Nobara could deny the logic.

  "Let's eat first," Yuji suggested, gn

  g at their supplies—or ck thereof.

  Three days had passed, and they were pletely out of food. While their sorcerer physiques allowed them to endure hunger for a while, they couldn't go without eating forever.

  "Guess we'll have te," Maki said, rising to her feet and sing the forest. "We don't have much choice."

  With that, the trio prepared to search for whatever resources they could find.