A Matter of Equations

Yuki crossed her arms and let out a deep sigh, her eyes fixed on Ryosuke with a mixture of astonishment and disbelief. "I wasn't expecting that. When you told me you awakened your potential barely a month ago, I thought it would be a moderate surge of energy, especially given how late you are in your jujutsu awakening."

She slowly shook her head.

"At this point, I expected your energy to be quite weak. But this..." She paused. "What you released earlier… it's beyond anything I've ever seen, and trust me, I've met a lot of sorcerers. Maybe that delay is what makes you so abnormal."

Ryosuke lowered his gaze for a moment, listening intently to his aunt's words. Inside, he felt strangely reassured by what she said. It was as if all his reflections, doubts, and questions finally made sense. He had always sensed something boiling within him, a vast force, but he had never known how to explain it. Now, he understood. His cursed energy reserves weren't just present; they were phenomenal.

"But you know," Yuki continued, suddenly clapping her hands with a cryptic smile, "it's one thing to have a lot of energy, but it's even better to know how to use it properly. Because a vast amount of energy is useless if you can't channel or wield it effectively. Now, tell me, do you know why, since the beginning of our conversation, I've been calling this force inside us 'cursed energy'?"

Ryosuke remained silent for a few seconds, pretending to think before answering. "Well, every time I try to control this energy... it's like I feel something deep inside. A swirl of negative emotions rising in me. Anger, fear, pain—it's like a vortex, though it's subtle."

Yuki raised an eyebrow and let out a small laugh. "Not everyone figures that out on their own. You're absolutely right. That's exactly what cursed energy is. It's the result of the negative emotions every human carries within them."

She paused before continuing. "Cursed energy is the manifestation of humanity's inner darkness. Every time we feel fear, anger, or any other negative emotion, this energy grows stronger."

Yuki slowly uncrossed her arms and let out a soft sigh. "Every human being, sorcerer or not, produces negative emotions. It's a universal truth. You can't escape it. Anger, fear, sadness—it's all part of human nature. And these emotions… they generate what we call cursed energy. But the difference between us, jujutsu sorcerers, and others is that for us, this energy stays contained inside. It never really escapes; it just keeps accumulating. In us, it's an internal fire that never burns outward. But for non-sorcerers, it's completely different. The cursed energy they produce... disperses. It's projected out of them, into the atmosphere, where it combines with other energies."

She paused again, her voice turning more serious. "And this dispersion, this uncontrolled release of cursed energy... that's what causes problems. When this scattered energy gathers in large amounts, it becomes unstable. That's how curses are born—those hideous, monstrous creatures you've seen spreading everywhere."

Yuki clapped her hands. "But let's get back on track. First of all, what you need to understand is that cursed energy, by itself, doesn't have any real value. It's just raw force, inert energy that accomplishes nothing useful unless you know how to manipulate it. Most people think cursed energy is a source of immense power in and of itself. But the truth is, it's worthless if you don't know what to do with it. Not in its raw form, anyway. It's just potential, lying dormant. To make it useful, to turn it into something powerful, you have to know how to exploit it. Like this."

With a swift gesture, she pointed to the black, translucent curtain surrounding them.

"This veil that hides us right now is a simple example of what can be done with cursed energy when it's used properly. It's a barrier, a protection, but it's much more than just an accumulation of energy."

Yuki let a mysterious smile spread across her lips. "You told me you tried some spectacular attacks, like a Kamehameha, and other stuff like that…" She paused, then added teasingly, "So, tell me, did it work?"

Ryosuke blushed slightly, embarrassed. He scratched the back of his head before replying, "No... not really."

Yuki burst out laughing. "I would've been surprised if it had! That's normal. You see, a lot of young sorcerers make that mistake. They think that to cast a spell, you just need to concentrate the energy and release it in one go, like that. But it's not that simple. The step you missed is the creation of the spell."

Ryosuke furrowed his brows, becoming more attentive. Up until now, his aunt was discussing topics he was already familiar with from manga.

As he mentioned before, he had tried, like any respectable otaku, to perform a Kamehameha. But to his surprise, the result was just generating energy without any real purpose. Not to mention the other techniques. Only his Overhaul seemed to work naturally.

"A spell isn't just a burst of raw cursed energy," Yuki continued. "A spell is a formula. And cursed energy is what powers that formula."

"A formula? Like in mathematics?"

TO BE CONTINUED!

Next Chapter: Cursed Energy Understanding Part 1