82 Chapter 81: Talk with Shiranui

Zenkichi blankly stared at the sky.

"... It's so blue." He muttered absentmindedly. Even when the teacher called for his name, he barely registered it. It was as if he had fallen into a trance, captivated by the expanse of the sky above him.

Next to him, Shiranui stared at him in confusion while stealthily eating a donut.

'It isn't like for Hitoyoshi-kun to act so out of it so early in school. Well, he isn't exactly a model student but he'd at least pay attention when the teacher calls for his name.' she inwardly thought as she gulped down her 13th donut of the day.

She tried to think about the many possibilities of why he was acting this way and one possibility stood out.

'Ah! Is he thinking about that date he had with Nabeshima-senpai? To make him that deep in thought... Did they go all the way?!' Shiranui slowly blushe, her eyes glazed over as many lewd thoughts entered her mind before she shook her head.

'No way! The guy is too much of a virgin to do that with a girl on the first date. There's got to be another reason...'

She then remembered about a certain new student, and having researched that student's past, she guessed that it might have something to do with him.

'Ugh. But it's just a possibility as well! Might as well ask Hitoyoshi-kun, he wouldn't keep any secrets from me, his best friend in the entire world.' she inwardly giggled.

Time passes by and the bell rang, signalling lunch time.

As students stood up to head towards the cafeteria or took out their lunch boxes, Shiranui quickly approached the still-distracted Zenkichi.

"Hey, Hitoyoshi-kun!" she called out, trying to get his attention. "What's with you today? You've been zoned out since class started."

Zenkichi blinked, finally snapping out his thoughts. "Shiranui, what's up?" he asked, not hearing Shiranui's question.

Shiranui sighed and rolled her eyes, realizing that getting Zenkichi's attention might be more difficult than she initially thought.

"I asked why you've been so out of it today," she repeated, raising an eyebrow. "You didn't even respond when the teacher called your name. Is something bothering you?"

Zenkichi stared at her blankly for a moment before a small smile tugged at his lips. "Nah, nothing's bothering me. I was just...captivated by the sky. It's so blue today, you know?"

Shiranui blinked, furrowing her brows. "Okay. Spill."

"Spill what?"

"You know what I'm talking about! About... whatever's going on with you right now!" she paused, looking up and down at him with raised eyebrows.

Zenkichi chuckled and replied, "Well isn't this rare? Shiranui, are you... worried about me?"

Shiranui blushed and looked away, trying to hide her embarrassment. "W-What? Don't get the wrong idea, Hitoyoshi-kun! I'm just...curious. That's all."

"Oho, tsundere Shiranui? I haven't seen that side of you before. How cute~" saying that, he proceeded to whip out his phone and started taking pictures.

Shiranui frowned, feeling slightly annoyed at his teasing. "Cut that out, Hitoyoshi-kun! And stop changing the subject. Seriously, what's going on with you?"

Zenkichi sighed, realizing he couldn't evade her questions any longer. "Alright, alright. I guess I can tell you. It's just... it's about my dad."

"Oh. Did he finally come home with milk?"

"No." He said with a straight face before letting out a sigh. "But first, let's go someplace more private."

"Hm." Shiranui nodded.

....

They went outside at a secluded area; behind the school building, they both sat on a bench under a tree.

"Hey Shiranui, give me a donut please."

"..." Shiranui stared at him.

"Oh come on, I'm going to talk about my private life here. The least you could do is feed me." Zenkichi grumbled.

"The least I could do is listen to your dad problem and help you out," Shiranui retorted, reluctantly handing Zenkichi a donut. "But next time, bring your own snacks."

Zenkichi took a bite of the donut before sighing again. "Thanks. But, didn't I give you a lifetime supply of ramen?"

"Not gonna, it was great eating a seemingly endless supply of convenience store ramen," she emphasized the "convenience store" with her fingers. "but they're convenience store ramen. After eating 360 of it, I needed a break."

Zenkichi chuckled, "Fair enough. I'll make it up to you somehow."

Shiranui crossed her arms, snorting. "You better!"

"Now spill it, Hitoyoshi-kun," she said, her tone becoming serious. "What's going on with your dad?"

Zenkichi took another bite of the donut, gathering his thoughts for a moment before deciding to just be blunt with it. "Well, you see, my dad... is the king of hell, Satan. And I don't know how to handle the situation."

Shiranui blinked, her eyes widening in surprise. "Wait, what? Your dad is... Satan? Like, the devil?"

She expected a lot of things out of Zenkichi's mouth about his dad, like he was a secret agent or a legendary assassin, but never the devil from hell!

This...sorta explains why there has been no information about Zenkichi's father, even though the Shiranui clan has the greatest information network in the entire country! It's not because he was hard to track down, but because the information was purposely hidden or erased.

After all, isn't the devil some kind of higher being on par with the Christian God? Or was it the Abrahamic God? Wait a minute, Gods are real as well! Eh, she wasn't much of a religious person when knowing about a certain powerful woman and a sealed hero in their village.

This sudden revelations shocked her for a moment before shaking it off when she remembers about a certain Godly Hero sealed in her village.

'Wait, am I going to hell by being friends with Hitoyoshi?' Shiranui pondered on it for a moment before shrugging it off again. Even if she was, she was sure that with Zenkichi's personality he would do everything in his power to make her life luxurious even in hell.

Zenkichi nodded, rubbing his head. "Yeah, it's... complicated. I just found out recently, and it's been weighing on me ever since."

He knew about his demonic bloodline since Ragnarok but it just hits so different when his father was Satan.

Ever since he found out it, Zenkichi had been plagued by questions and doubts. What did it mean for him to be the son of the devil? Would dear old dad come home one day and suddenly appoints him as the successor of hell? And most importantly, how would it impact his relationships with others, especially his friends?

He tried talking about it with Brunhilde and, well...

"Huh? You just realized it?" Was what she said, surprised that he didn't know about it.

Their relationship didn't change much as they talked about his dad but Zenkichi's concerns didn't fade away.

After all, Brunhilde was a Valkyrie. Sure she was part human, but her mindset still differ from that of a human.

What happens if his human friends were to find out? Because in this troublesome world, it would be a matter of time before they do.

Would they feel fear? Disgust? Anger?

'Dammit, just for a few years, let me live a normal life.' Zenkichi closes his eyes.

He knew he couldn't live a normal life, due to both his system and his bloodline, but at the very least he wanted to live out his younger years as memorably peaceful as it could.

"... Hitoyoshi," Shiranui's voice broke through his thoughts, bringing him back to reality. Her expression was a mix of concern and curiosity. "Are you...okay? I mean, finding out something like that about your dad must be really heavy."

Zenkichi forced a smile, trying to alleviate her worries. "Yeah, it is pretty heavy. But I'll figure it out. I just...needed someone to talk to, you know?"

He closed his eyes for a moment, letting out a sigh. 'Just like when despair engulfed the world and I had to fight a God to save everyone, I'll keep on moving forward. No matter the problems I come across, I'll keep on living. For myself, my mom, and my friends. I'll strive further for a happy ending!'

Shiranui nodded, her eyes softening. "Of course, Hitoyoshi-kun. You know I'm always here for you, right? No matter what kind of crazy stuff you discover about your family."

Zenkichi's chuckled, opening his eyes, his smile became genuine at her words. "Thanks, Shiranui. That means a lot to me."

"Still though," she continued, a mischievous glint in her eye. "your mom banged the devil?"

"....I don't want to talk about it."

"Shishishi. Come on, you're curious as well right? I mean, how did your mom managed to do the dirty with the king of hell! That's like, one in a million chance and a one in a billion with you turning okay-ish."

"What do you mean "okay-ish"?!"

"Gasp! This could only happen if your mother is either a satan worshipper, which considering she's a well known and respected doctor in the community the possibility is low, so...she probably went to Los Angeles and got wasted in a certain bar!" Shiranui snapped her fingers, as if she had just solved a great mystery.

"...What?" Zenkichi was confused.

She turned towards him, shocked. "What? You don't get it? Los Angeles? A bar? Ring any bells?"

"You're suggesting that she went to a bar, got wasted, and met the devil. I can get that but...why Los Angeles?" Zenkichi tried to understand what she was saying but failed.

Shiranui was in disbelief.

"You haven't watched that show?!" she yelled, throwing her arms up.

"What are you talking about?"

Despite the huge bombshell Zenkichi dropped on Shiranui, the two acted as usual; talking, arguing and laughing at each other until the school bell rings.

*Bzzt*

As they were walking the stairs to their classroom, a small invisible electrical current hit the back of Zenkichi's head.

Reading Minds, as its name suggests, is a Abnormal skill that lets the user read anyone's mind or specifically their emotions in the user's proximity through electrical signals. In the original's hands, Mizou Yukuhashi, it drove them on the brink of madness as they had zero control over it. Making them constantly hear the people's emotions around them.

But they were saved due to having met Oudo, who held the Abnormal skill: Weighted Words. It's a skill that lets him to create and control electricity and electrical signals, which he uses to control human motor skills and technology.

Zenkichi had both skills on hand. Also tired of hearing people's emotions, he controlled his Reading Mind ability to make anyone in his proximity who thought of him be transmitted to him. Of course, he also had the ability of either rejecting the transmission or not.

Thinking that it was Shiranui's, Zenkichi let the signal enter.

'—So that's the majesty's Ninth Son, the Half-Blood Prince. How...unexpected. He has already...'

Zenkichi's eyes shot up.

The voice that entered his mind wasn't in Shiranui's voice or anyone that he knew.

He turned his head around, trying to find the person that had thought of him with with interest, envy and...desire?

He tried everything he had but he failed to find the person who had emitted that thought.

"Hitoyoshi-kun, what's wrong?" Shiranui asked, noticing his sudden change in expression.

Zenkichi shook his head, a frown forming on his face. "Nothing... I just... heard something weird is all."

"That so..." Shiranui tilted her head and shrugged. "Must be your devil, or demon, powers working its magic."

"Yeah... probably." Zenkichi muttered, narrowing his eyes before following after Shiranui.

As expected, his life wasn't going to be as peaceful or as normal as he had hoped.

.....

(Sad AN incoming. Read at your own risk.)

AN: Hey Guys... This week, the previous week? These last couple of weeks is just... not it for me. I got sick for a few days, fucking hell that was painfully gruelling, and... my cat died. A few days ago.

Just... Fucking Hell. This is the third pet we've had died this year, all because some douchebag drivers can't be patient and drive carefully by our small road! I... I loved that cat, I loved all my pets.

I'm saying this now because I'm not gonna post anything next week, even in my other stoy. I'm gonna... grieve and sort out my thoughts for the week. I just feel so... depressed right now.

RIP to Gamay, my cat and asshole friend. RIP to Lexsus, my dog and best friend. RIP to Spike, the newest pup and... the greatest boy I've known for a while.

❄️Shout-outs to the best Reincarnators of my world of patreon:

•terrence L mccall

•swift arrow

•LowTierDood

•Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh

•Nawaf Rashed

•Davide Cordivani

•ronald.foster

•Maxwell Sarabi

•momon

•Edgar Osvaldo Chavez Sacramento

❄️A bigger shout out to the who ascended to become a One Above All!!

•Daniel Reis

•Luis A Montoya

•Vora