Akira could feel her emotional shift clearly. Maki Zenin was the type who wore everything on her face. After thinking for a moment, he spoke.

  “I cannot demonstrate ‘Black Flash’ in sparring, but maybe there will be a chance when dealing with a Cursed Spirit later. Besides that, I learned quite a few other things this time. If you want to see them, I can show you.”

  “I want to,” Maki Zenin said instantly, her face lighting up with a smile as bright as the sun. “Right now.”

  “Then I will,” Akira admitted he was momentarily dazzled.

  “Wait. Finish the serious business first,” Satoru Gojo interrupted at the crucial moment.

  “If there was serious business, you should have said so earlier,” Maki Zenin complained.

  “Sorry, I forgot,” Satoru Gojo said righteously. “Because it is not a big deal. Ari’s Jujutsu Sorcerer rank went up by one. He is now a Grade Three Jujutsu Sorcerer.”

  “This is not a big deal, right?”

  Maki Zenin snapped back by habit, then immediately caught herself. She paused and tilted her head, as if reconsidering what she had just said. “It does seem like it is not a big deal.”

  “Why is it not a big deal? Getting promoted should be something to celebrate, right?” Yuta Okkotsu, the least experienced among them, asked in confusion.

  “It is only Grade Three. You are a Special Grade, so act like one.” Maki Zenin slapped Yuta Okkotsu hard on the back, nearly knocking him over.

  “Actually, it is because…”

  After Panda explained it, Yuta Okkotsu finally understood what was going on.

  Akira’s strength was obvious to everyone. Forget moving from Grade Four to Grade Three, even pushing him straight to Grade One would not be a problem, with only the Special Grade title needing debate. In the first-year group alone, there was already one Special Grade, one Grade Two, and a Grade Three, so aside from Akemi Aki who was stuck at Grade Three, no one would really care.

  “That is strange.”

  As he spoke, Panda frowned, scooping up a wildly running Pancham with one hand while scratching his chin with the other. His expression turned thoughtful as he pieced things together.

  “Even without knowing the details, confidential missions are never low level. Ari even landed a Black Flash, and with his past record added in, this should not stop at Grade Three. Even if Grade Two needs discussion, a provisional Grade Two should be guaranteed.”

  As the son of Principal Masamichi Yaga, Panda was born and raised in Tokyo Jujutsu High. He knew the internal rules clearly and had access to plenty of information.

  “Gojo, did something go wrong?”

  At that, Satoru Gojo’s eyes cooled instantly, and a playful smile appeared on his face. “Because that bunch of dim old men dragged out rules that should have been thrown in the trash long ago. They said a Grade Four Jujutsu Sorcerer should not take part in confidential missions, so they did not count this mission toward Ari’s record. Pretty disgusting, right?”

  In other words, Akira’s promotion relied entirely on his previous grind clearing areas and hunting Cursed Spirit. The biggest contribution this time was not counted at all.

  The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

  “So it was your mistake.” Maki Zenin looked at him with disdain. “You should have sorted things out before assigning the mission.”

  “No, it might not be a mistake.” Akira shook his head. “The higher-ups could have done it on purpose, because I am Satoru Gojo’s student and was sent by him.”

  When it came to scheming, even all the first-years combined could not match Akira. What Panda saw was only the second layer, while Akira had already stepped into the third.

  “As expected of my most capable student.” Satoru Gojo flashed a wide grin, his teeth gleaming in the sunlight. “The better this incident was handled, the more face certain people lose.”

  “It is a shame it was long-distance communication.” He shrugged casually. “Otherwise I could have enjoyed watching them want to kill me but fail. Still, those old guys did not go too far. They did not dock a single bit of the mission reward, or I would have gone to have a nice talk with them.”

  “That is barely acceptable. No, wait, it is not acceptable at all.” Akira suddenly realized something. “This is not restraint, it is a calculated retreat that achieves multiple goals.”

  “What do you mean?” Satoru Gojo was used to being invincible and did not really understand workplace tricks.

  “Teacher, you reported all my past records together with this mission, right? And the reason was probably to scare the higher-ups a little.”

  “Why not stop being called Akira and change your name to Satoru Gojo Kong?” Satoru Gojo replied with a grin. “We can tell people you are my half-brother from another mother and debut as the ‘Goku’ duo.”

  That answer was a clear admission.

  “Go convince my mom first.” Akira sighed, then continued seriously. “Second, my participation itself broke the rules, so it would be reasonable not to pay me at all. Even if you say you will go talk to them, you still have to show up. If I were in their place, I would never give in. I would wait for you to make a scene, preferably hurt someone, and blow it up so I could take the moral high ground.”

  In short, the higher-ups were betting on two things. Satoru Gojo would not actually kill them, and rotten rules were still rules.

  “Good thing you are not one of them.” Even Satoru Gojo showed his teeth in irritation.

  “I think I get it now.” Panda, the second strategist, finally caught up. “Not counting the record is suppression against you, Gojo. Paying the reward is them saying the rules belong to us. As long as you leave Gojo and come to our side, we guarantee you wealth and status, with a Gold Ticket to sweeten the deal.”

  “Dream on.” Akira blurted out.

  “Relax, I am not even angry.” Satoru Gojo waved a hand. “Why are you?”

  After a brief silence, Akira spoke again. “If they had just given me what I deserved without obstruction, I might have respected them more and thought maybe you were too extreme. But now, all I see is people obsessed with their own authority and ignoring the development of the Jujutsu World. You were right, teacher. They are a bunch of useless old corpses.”

  “If that is the case, as long as you are my students, this kind of thing will keep happening.” Satoru Gojo smiled lightly. “Scared? You can still quit now.”

  It was obvious that Satoru Gojo was skilled at showing off, but provocation was not his strong suit. Not a single person took the bait.

  Maki Zenin said, “What nonsense are you talking about, idiot teacher. Without you backing me, I would have even less chance to stand out. I am already prepared to stay at Grade Four forever. A Grade Four beating a Grade One would embarrass certain people even more.”

  Panda said, “I am Panda. Human rankings do not really matter to me.”

  Yuta Okkotsu said, “I…”

  “Do not bother, Special Grade.” Maki Zenin cut him off mercilessly.

  Some people were born at the top, even more unfair than Satoru Gojo. At least Satoru Gojo climbed step by step and only reached Special Grade near graduation.

  “Mayonnaise.” Cursed Speech, watch me.

  He held up his phone, a line of text displayed on the screen. His rice-ball filling speech habit allowed only short phrases, so longer thoughts had to be typed.

  “I will work hard to reach Grade One, then recommend you all together with Yuta.”

  Under Jujutsu Society’s rules, Grade One was a massive dividing line from the lower ranks.

  Promotion to Grade One required three conditions.

  First, simultaneous recommendations from two Grade One Jujutsu Sorcerer. Second, carrying out several missions together with a current Grade One Jujutsu Sorcerer and being judged suitable, which granted provisional Grade One status and the right to be assigned solo Grade One missions. Finally, the results of those missions would determine whether the candidate could officially become a Grade One Jujutsu Sorcerer.

  This rule had the highest priority and was absolute.