Feliacia

"What is this weak, tiny creature?" Sukuna looked down with absolute disdain at the pink-haired baby who bore a striking resemblance to him.

The sorcerer he knew all too well flashed a sly smile. "Sukuna-sama, this is the result of an experiment I conducted using your blood. This is your child."

Sukuna’s brow twitched as his expression grew even more disgusted. He knew that damn sorcerer, Kenjaku, would eventually pull something using his blood. Initially, he had been somewhat intrigued by how the sorcerer lived completely devoid of morality just to perform various experiments.

His curiosity about what kind of experiment Kenjaku was pulling had made him let his guard down for a split second.

And somehow, this weak creature was created... Sukuna snorted in irritation and said, "Get rid of this thing. I have no use for it."

Why should he even bother himself with a weakling that had somehow been brought into existence?

Sukuna was certain he couldn't have offspring, but Kenjaku had likely done something using only the blood he had taken, shaping it into a fetus.

It was already generous enough of him to keep a subordinate like Uraume around, so he wasn't going to waste his time dealing with yet another weak creature.

"Sukuna-sama, don't you get bored of just fighting constantly with no one left to match you? Why don't you find a hobby? For instance, try raising this child. It ought to be interesting, considering he comes from you." Kenjaku didn't back down, continuing to persuade him.

Sukuna narrowed his eyes at the sorcerer, who clearly had a hidden agenda.

"What is your angle?" He finally lost his patience. His four arms crossed over his chest, and his four eyes glared sharply at Kenjaku.

He could have cleaved both Kenjaku and that weak creature right then and there, but that would be tedious. He despised doing anything bothersome.

Kenjaku chuckled. "My angle? Well, I am simply curious to see if a being like you is capable of showing mercy to your own child."

Sukuna turned around and walked away. "Don't waste your breath being curious. I am not interested. Just throw the thing away."

Mercy? Heh, as if I have any of that... He had already devoured his own twin brother while still in the womb, and had lived as a monster ever since, doing exactly as he pleased. He had no room for such a troublesome thing as mercy.

…

Yet, that damn sorcerer refused to give up on persuading him, acting as though he was deeply invested in the success of his experiment.

Sukuna did, in fact, feel utterly bored. There was no one left to challenge him; most sorcerers of this era had turned into cowards, fleeing the moment they sensed a trace of his presence.

Those damn, weak sorcerers haven't improved at all... Sukuna couldn't comprehend why they failed to defeat him, especially when some possessed cursed techniques far more unique than his own.

They simply failed to utilize their potential and didn't grasp the true nature of cursed energy.

Out of sheer boredom, he began to hunt more frequently, ordering Uraume to cook his catches. It was merely a way to kill his endless time.

This era is no longer entertaining...

The sole reason he still tolerated Kenjaku was because Kenjaku knew a method to turn him into a cursed object—one that could be awakened in a far more interesting future.

Kenjaku had even proposed the cursed object arrangement through a binding vow, but Sukuna despised the terms. He refused to comply with a binding vow that would only satisfy that damn sorcerer.

Some time passed, and Sukuna began to exhaust his entertainment with sorcerers who couldn't even put up a fight.

Suddenly, Kenjaku’s disgusting offer regarding the weak creature he had briefly glimpsed crossed his mind again.

Is raising a child really that interesting?

After all, he was already bored of meaningless massacres, tired of watching humans curse him, and sick of looking at the piled-up corpses of sorcerers.

Sukuna reconsidered Kenjaku’s offer, weighing a new possibility. What if I raise the child to be just like me?

A baby resulting from Kenjaku’s experiment shouldn't be an ordinary, weak human. At the very least, he must have something unique about him.

Thus, Sukuna eventually sought out Kenjaku and accepted the offer to take in the weak creature. If it turned out to be boring later on, he would simply kill it.

Kenjaku said nothing regarding the threat, merely replying, "Sukuna-sama, I look forward to your next visit."

Those unpleasant words made it seem as though Kenjaku had already predicted something would happen that would force Sukuna to seek him out again. It was undoubtedly related to that weak creature.

Well, it didn't matter, as long as it could cure his boredom. He couldn't care less about whatever moral boundaries Kenjaku had crossed.

…

Sukuna had Uraume carry the baby, and they returned to his estate.

It was a massive mansion equipped with plenty of prepared entertainment—dancers, performers, opera, and various other amusements.

"Sukuna-sama, it appears this baby is sensitive to loud noises," Uraume spoke cautiously while cradling the crying infant.

Uraume didn't understand why Sukuna-sama had decided to take care of this weak creature, but since it was their master's wish, they must not oppose it.

"Then get rid of them." Sukuna glared at the performers, who instantly halted their dancing. They were trembling, consumed by sheer terror.

The baby suddenly stopped crying, as if understanding the shift in the room.

"Hnmm?" Sukuna shifted his gaze to the infant, who had abruptly calmed down and fallen asleep.

Indeed, this baby was different from ordinary infants. Sukuna had successfully tested something from the baby’s reaction, which seemed to comprehend the situation.

…

From that moment on, Sukuna grew intrigued by testing the baby's reactions to his actions. For instance, if he intended to kill a human while the baby was present, the infant would cry, disrupting him with incredibly loud wails.

Conversely, if he refrained, the baby would remain calm, as if acutely aware that his crying could stop an event or cause something to happen.

Gradually, more interesting traits emerged from the baby. For one, the way the child looked at him was far from the innocent gaze of a normal infant.

When the baby finally learned to crawl and grew a bit larger, he strangely kept following Sukuna everywhere.

"Take him away." Sukuna ordered Uraume to tend to the baby, demanding he only be brought to him when he wished to glance at him briefly.

Yet, somehow, the baby always managed to slip past Uraume’s supervision and find him.

For example, while Sukuna was sleeping in his quarters, the baby would suddenly crawl up out of nowhere, settle onto his lap, and start snoring.

Sukuna would instantly wake up, staring down at the baby with a complex expression.

Normally, weak creatures would be terrified of him and avoid him at all costs. That was why he initially had no interest in raising a weakling—because the child would ultimately shun him anyway, making the endeavor entirely pointless.

However, his assumptions were proven wrong. The baby kept trailing after him, showing absolutely no fear. He wasn't afraid of the possibility of being killed by him at all.

Look at how peacefully the brat slept on his lap, as if Sukuna were a safe haven.

"Hey, brat." Sukuna lifted the baby by the collar of his clothes, hoisting his tiny body up.

"Ba?" The baby couldn't speak yet and merely opened his mouth.

"Do you understand my words?" Sukuna shook the baby, who felt incredibly light and small.

"Ba ba." The baby laughed, flailing his two tiny hands toward Sukuna’s face.

Sukuna’s four eyes stared at him, and the corners of his mouth began to curl upward. "Indeed, raising a baby is quite amusing."

Ultimately, he decided to see the child more often from then on.

Perhaps that was the beginning. Sukuna began to view the baby as his own.

…

Once the baby could walk, Sukuna finally remembered to give him a name. He found a name that seemed perfectly fitting for the boy.

Yuji.

After all, the boy was only the second human he had ever permitted to remain by his side. The first, of course, was Uraume.

…

Yuji was quite fascinating because his gaze was entirely different from Uraume’s, which was filled with absolute reverence. Instead, Yuji occasionally looked at him with a hint of disdain, yet strangely continued to loiter around him.

The exasperating part was that Yuji kept preventing him from killing humans—something that was starting to become an issue for Sukuna.

He despised people of this archetype. Humans with high moral standards were no different from losers who were easily exploited.

If this had been the past, Sukuna would have killed the brat without a second thought. But things were different now.

In the midst of his tedious life, the boy offered him a new perspective on humanity—a path of morality he had abandoned long ago.

He had already chosen a path where he could do whatever he pleased, free from anyone's control, free from the burden of morality, and free from attachments...

Regrettably, Yuji’s presence disrupted the path he had chosen.

Sukuna had attempted to kill the boy several times so he wouldn't interfere anymore, but in the end, something always held him back. It was a fact he loathed to admit.

The boy, who had initially been nothing more than an entertaining toy, had somehow become someone Sukuna found difficult to kill.

Sukuna recognized the problem. This seemed to be the very human emotion he had discarded. Something akin to attachment. To prevent himself from falling deeper, Sukuna stopped seeing Yuji and distanced himself, even ordering Uraume to prepare a separate residence so he wouldn't have to lay eyes on the boy again.

However, things went even more awry.

Especially at that moment...

When the boy was injured by sorcerers who targeted him, viewing him as Sukuna’s weakness.

Somehow, rumors had spread. Sukuna suspected there was a spy within his estate.

In the end, the boy had truly become his vulnerability.

What a nuisance... Sukuna slaughtered the intruders until nothing remained, then took the wounded boy into his arms. He healed his injuries.

Sukuna had to admit that he had fallen straight into the trap Kenjaku had laid out. A trap named Yuji. He had no idea what the outcome of developing mercy would be for a monster like himself. Nevertheless, he would simply see it through rather than run away from it.

~~~