Re:Satan

by Dexterminio

Summary:

Subaru woke up realizing he'd been gone for two years, and now he had white hair, and the worst part... That won't be the strangest thing that happens to him

Chapter 1

 

Pip... Pip... Pip...

The sound was constant, rhythmic, and utterly infuriating. It pierced the darkness of his consciousness like a fine, cold needle, forcibly pulling him out of a silent, black abyss where, for some reason, he felt strangely safe.

Pip... Pip... Pip...

"Turn that off..." he mumbled, or at least tried to. His throat felt like he'd swallowed sandpaper, dry and rough. What came out of his lips was more of an unintelligible croak than an actual word.

His head throbbed with a dull violence, a drumming behind his eyes painfully synchronized with that damned electronic beep. What the hell had happened? He tried to remember, but his mind was a thick swamp. He remembered leaving the convenience store. The cold night air, the plastic bag brushing against his leg with the familiar weight of his groceries: potato chips, instant ramen, maybe a new manga. He was walking, lost in his trivial thoughts about video games and dinner.

And then... nothing. Or maybe not nothing.

A blurry image flashed through his mind. A flash of lights. Headlights? Yes, they must be headlights. He vaguely recalled the roar of an engine at high revs, the squeal of tires burning asphalt.

"An illegal street race," he thought, trying to rationalize the throbbing pain in his temples. "Some idiot must have lost control. I saw the first car go by, but maybe there was a second one... yeah, that must be it. I got hit. Damn, my luck is terrible, even for going to buy potatoes."

With a herculean effort, he forced his eyelids apart. The light, though dim, struck him like a physical hammer, forcing him to close them again with a groan. Reflex tears welled in the corners of his eyes. It took several seconds, blinking rapidly, for his retinas to adjust to reality.

He wasn't on the street. He wasn't in his room full of posters and collectible figures.

The ceiling was white, an antiseptic, pristine white, dotted with recessed fluorescent lights and smoke detectors. He lowered his gaze slowly. He was lying on a mechanical bed, covered with pale blue sheets that smelled of chlorine and starch. To his left, a machine monitored his vital signs, the source of the incessant beep, beep, beep that traced green lines on a black screen. Several clear tubes extended from his arm, connecting him to IV bags that hung like artificial fruit from a metal stand.

It was a private room, quite spacious by the standards of a typical hospital. Through the half-open blinds of the window overlooking the corridor, he could see the blurry shadows of doctors and nurses moving about, hurried figures engaged in the dance of life and death. The low hum of the air conditioner kept the room at a coolly controlled temperature, a stark contrast to the heat he felt radiating from his own body.

He turned his head to the right, a simple movement that sent an electric shock of pain from the base of his neck to his shoulders. He clenched his teeth, hissing.

"Shit..." he whispered, his voice sounding strange, raspy, as if he hadn't used it in decades. "How hard did they hit me...?"

On the bedside table, the scene was a colorful chaos that contrasted sharply with the sterile atmosphere of the room. Flowers, some wilted and others fresh, vied for space alongside deflated balloons that read "Get Well Soon" and several carefully wrapped gift boxes. Who had brought all this? His parents? Guilt pricked him at the thought of his mother, Naoko, worried about him. And his father? He was the person he respected most. Would he be disappointed?

He tried to raise his hand to rub his temple and relieve the pressure, but the movement was clumsy, heavy. His muscles felt weak, as if they were made of molten lead. When he finally managed to bring his hand to his head, his fingers found neither the shaved skin nor the short, spiky hair he usually combed back.

Instead, her fingers became entangled in long strands of hair.

Subaru stopped.

She slid her hand down. Her hair reached almost to her shoulders, a messy, rough tangle.

"What...?" Panic began to bubble in her stomach. Hair doesn't grow overnight. If her hair was that long, how long had she been in a coma? A month? Two?

With her heart beginning to race, ignoring the protests of her aching muscles, she pulled a lock of hair in front of her eyes to see it.

He wasn't black.

The lock of hair she held between her trembling fingers was white. Not platinum blonde, not gray with age. It was a pure, snowy white, the color of cold ash or barren snow.

"No... this isn't..." Subaru tried to deny reality, thinking that perhaps it was an effect of the light, or maybe the bandages on his head.

I needed to see. I needed a mirror.

Her frantic eyes scanned the room and settled on the surgical metal tray on the side table, where a pitcher of water rested. With a jerky movement that elicited a stifled cry of pain, she stretched. Her fingers brushed against the cold metal, and she pulled the tray toward her.

The reflection was distorted, but undeniable.

The face staring back at him from the polished metal wasn't that of the seventeen-year-old boy who had gone out to buy mayonnaise. Or at least, it didn't seem to be.

White hair cascaded haphazardly around a gaunt face. Her cheekbones were prominent, her skin pale and sickly. But the worst part was her eyes. Her distinctive sanpaku eyes, which used to hold a spark of defiance or at least life, were now sunken in deep purple circles, as if she hadn't slept in years. Premature wrinkles, lines of stress and terror etched at the corners of her mouth and across her forehead. And scars... tiny white lines crisscrossing her neck, disappearing beneath her hospital gown.

He looked like an old man trapped in a young man's body. He looked like someone who had seen hell and crawled back down.

"What the hell...?" The question came out with a tone of pure horror.

CLANG!

The clang of metal hitting the floor made him jump, causing the heart monitors to go off in a cacophony of rapid alarms.

Subaru turned his head toward the door. A young nurse stood there, her hands over her mouth and her eyes wide open. At her feet, a tray of medicine and food lay scattered on the floor, liquid spilling onto the white tiles.

She looked at him as if she were seeing a ghost. Literally.

"D-Doctor!" she shouted, her high-pitched voice breaking the silence of the corridor as she whirled around and ran, completely forgetting the mess on the floor. "The patient in 304! He's woken up! Dr. Nakamura!"

Subaru froze, his breath ragged, staring at the empty doorway. His heart pounded against his ribs, causing him physical pain.

Less than a minute later, hurried footsteps echoed outside. A tall man, around fifty years old, with thin-framed glasses and an immaculate white coat, burst into the room. Behind him came the nurse from before, still pale.

The doctor stopped dead in his tracks at the foot of the bed. His expert eyes scanned Subaru with a mixture of professional disbelief and genuine amazement.

"Incredible..." the man muttered to himself before regaining his composure. He quickly approached, taking a small flashlight from his pocket. "Young Natsuki, can you hear me? Look at me here, please."

Subaru blinked as the bright light invaded his vision, first in one eye, then in the other.

"Yes... I hear you," Subaru croaked, turning his face slightly away. "Where... where am I? What happened to the car?"

The doctor turned off the flashlight and straightened up, exchanging a quick, serious glance with the nurse.

"You're at Kuoh General Hospital," the doctor replied in a calm but firm voice. "I'm Dr. Nakamura, your lead physician. You've suffered severe trauma, Natsuki-san. It's a miracle, frankly, that you're speaking so coherently right now."

"Kuoho Hospital...?" Subaru frowned. It was a large hospital, yes, but far away. He lived in the next town over, though on the outskirts, so they were closer to Kuoh than to the center of his city. In fact, he used to spend a lot of time there when he was younger. By car, it was only about 30 minutes. The center of his city, Musutafu, was 20 minutes away. Why were they bringing him here? This hospital was far from the store. "Doctor, my family? Do my parents know I'm here? I was shopping and... I think I got hit by a car. How long have I been here? A few weeks?"

Dr. Nakamura remained silent for a moment, a heavy silence that made Subaru's stomach churn. The doctor raised a finger, asking for patience.

—Before I answer that, I need to check your cognitive state. Can you tell me your full name?

"Subaru. Natsuki Subaru," he replied immediately, with a touch of impatience. "Look, my whole body aches and my hair looks like an old anime character's. I need answers."

Nakamura sighed, crossing his arms over his chest. His expression softened, tinged with a pity that Subaru didn't like at all.

"Your parents will be here in a moment. They're outside in the lobby, giving a statement to the police," Nakamura said gently. "Although it's likely to be no different from what they've already given. And the police should be looking for you too, to ask you about what's happened over the past two years."

Time seemed to stand still in the room. The hum of the air conditioner disappeared. The beep-beep of the monitor became a distant background noise.

"Two...?" The word caught in Subaru's throat. He swallowed, tasting something metallic. "Did he say... two years?"

"The police are going to question and interrogate you, but what's the last thing you remember, Subaru?" Nakamura asked, leaning slightly forward, with the intensity of someone searching for a key piece in a puzzle.

"I..." Subaru looked at his trembling hands, those hands covered in small scars and calluses he didn't remember getting. "I left the Seven Eleven convenience store near the park, on Third Street. I was going home. It was nighttime."

Dr. Nakamura nodded slowly, as if confirming a grim theory.

"That was the last time you were seen, Subaru," the doctor said, each word falling like a slab of cement. "Two years ago. You've been missing all this time."

"No..." Subaru shook his head, feeling the vertigo threaten him again. "That's impossible. I... I just stepped out. It was only for a moment."

"I'm very sorry," Nakamura said.

Before Subaru could process the collapse of his reality, the bedroom door opened again. The sound was soft, but it drew everyone's attention.

Kenichi and Naoko Natsuki were standing on the threshold.

Subaru felt like his soul was breaking.

His father, Kenichi, had always been a vibrant, strong man with an ever-present smile. Now, he seemed shrunken. His suit was wrinkled, as if he'd slept in it, and his hair showed more gray strands than Subaru remembered. His eyes were red and swollen.

And her mother... Naoko. She looked fragile, small. She held a handkerchief tightly against her chest with white knuckles.

—Subaru...? —Naoko's voice was a thread of sound, afraid of shattering an illusion.

"Mom... Dad..." Subaru tried to sit up, his son's instinct to comfort them overcoming his physical pain.

"Subaru!" Naoko sobbed, throwing herself forward with open arms, a dam of pain and hope breaking instantly.

"Mrs. Natsuki, wait!" Dr. Nakamura stepped in with surprising speed, gently but firmly stopping the woman and holding her by the shoulders. "Please. I understand your distress, but your son is in critical condition. His bones, his muscles... any sudden movement or tight hug could cause him severe harm."

Naoko stopped abruptly, trembling, looking at the doctor and then at her son with palpable anguish. Kenichi approached from behind, placing a hand on his wife's shoulder, holding her up so she wouldn't collapse.

"Okay, doctor... okay," Kenichi said, though his voice was breaking. "We understand. We'll be careful."

The two parents approached the bed as if they were approaching a crystal relic about to shatter. They dragged in the visiting chairs and sat on either side. Naoko took Subaru's left hand, that scarred and strange hand, and cradled it against her cheek, bathing it with warm tears. Kenichi took the other, squeezing it gently, unable to speak, just looking at his son with a mixture of infinite relief and heart-wrenching pain.

Subaru looked at them, confused, scared, and with a gap in his memory where those two years should have been. He didn't know how to feel. He had literally stepped out for a moment, and now he found out he'd been missing. And his parents... What had he done to them? Why did they look like they'd lived through hell? What should he feel? In his mind, he'd just gone for a normal walk, he hadn't done anything wrong... And yet he felt as if he'd committed the worst possible sin... Making his parents cry. Why should they have to go through such a terrible time because of such a useless son as him? A son so useless he didn't even know what he should apologize for.

"Sorry..." Subaru whispered, not knowing why he was apologizing, but feeling it was the only thing he could say. "Sorry for not washing the cup before leaving."

That was his last memory, the last offense he committed, although the apology wasn't the only thing he thought he could apologize for, although the apology was truly... For everything, everything he didn't know how to say in those moments... And they knew it

That broke Kenichi, who let out a choked sob and lowered his head to the mattress.

Dr. Nakamura observed the scene for one more moment, making sure Subaru's vital signs were stable despite the emotion, and then gave a silent bow.

"I'll give you privacy," he said quietly.

The doctor stepped out into the hallway, closing the door softly, leaving the Natsuki family in their private bubble. He walked toward the nurses' station, rubbing the bridge of his nose.

"It's him, isn't it?" she heard one nurse whisper to another. "The boy Natsuki."

—Yes, they say he turned up in the same place where he was kidnapped. Did you see his scars? Poor kid... the police didn't do anything because they thought he'd run away.

—And now it appears like this... it's chilling.

Nakamura didn't reprimand them; he shared their bewilderment. He had seen cases of abuse, of prolonged kidnappings, but Subaru Natsuki's condition was... anomalous. Muscle atrophy, yes, but also a strange bone density, scars unlike any he had seen before, not fire or accelerator burns, not even consistent chemical burns and sword cuts, and that white hair... How did it turn like that? He himself had gone white too young from stress, but this child... he just hoped they would give him some breathing room.

She walked toward the hospital's main entrance to get some fresh air. However, as she approached the automatic glass doors, she saw the flash of security cameras.

A group of reporters and photographers—paparazzi, vultures—crowded the sidewalk, barely held back by two hospital security guards.

"Doctor! Doctor! Is it true that Subaru Natsuki has woken up?" "A statement regarding the victim's condition!" "Do you know who kidnapped him?!"

Nakamura sighed deeply, watching as the flashes illuminated the gray afternoon.

"I spoke too soon," he muttered to himself. The world wasn't going to leave that kid alone.

The doctor sighed, but saw an officer approach and stand behind him. They spoke for a moment, all in front of the cameras. The doctor then returned to the hospital.

"Attention, please!" the officer called out, drawing the attention of the reporters. "I'm Detective Tsukauchi Naomasa, in charge of the case. At this time, young Natsuki is stable. That's all we can say at this time. This is an ongoing investigation." The detective spoke to get the reporters to leave the hospital entrance, though it seemed to further inflame them, something Tsukauchi knew and did on purpose. This allowed one of the parents to leave to get clothes for their partner and son. Kenichi came out, and upon seeing the scene, he wiped away the last tears from his conversation with his son. He gave the detective a grateful look, knowing he was about to get into trouble.

Naomasa saw that gesture and smiled, before sighing in exasperation when a journalist uttered the phrase he knew would be hell for him.

"Detective Tsukauchi! What statements do you have regarding the disappearance? Is it true that the police were negligently and prematurely closed the case and did not investigate further?"

That was the damn question he had to ask himself, wasn't it? —"I can't comment, I wasn't on this case. But I'm sure my fellow officers took the case seriously at the time."— This was the question that would turn this into a public relations nightmare.

First, was there negligence? A little, yes. His fellow officers reviewed the boy's history: a runaway who stopped attending classes and became a hikikomori, with only one real friend he chatted with online. It all seemed like a runaway case. But if you ask him, how did they think it happened? He left with only what he had on him, didn't move any money from his parents' account, and his only friend couldn't help either, since he was even younger. He supported the investigation, and he and his entire family were among the first to ask the authorities to continue the search, right after the Natsuki family, of course.

So there was negligence, but understandable, a mistake that could happen to almost anyone. And with how overloaded the system is, it's no surprise that this case wasn't taken seriously. But since he thought there was negligence, his colleagues on that case would be investigated. And since he was investigating, any clue they found would be taken as an attack on the investigators of that case. He imagined Internal Affairs sitting in front of him saying, "Detective Tsukauchi found it, why didn't you? Was it negligence, or are you just terrible detectives? These cases are like putting your hands in the fire." And as a newly transferred officer at this station, he didn't exactly have anyone to defend him. And if he didn't find something... that wasn't even an option. He wanted these guys locked up.

Then there was the family. The Natsuki family had maintained all this time that Subaru hadn't escaped, but they weren't listened to much. The Natsuki family had every right to sue, arguing that the authorities' indifference contributed to Subaru being held captive longer, suffering who knows what.

And then the press: a minor disappeared, bad but unfortunately common. It could have been a case that tarnished the local police, but understandable. However, the case—his disappearance, reappearance, and eventual discovery—made the press dust off the story. They were in the public eye; everything was being scrutinized, from past mistakes and the anguish of the family to the pleas that fell on deaf ears. And how many more young people like Subaru were there? And what must they be going through?

In short, Naomasa was screwed in this case. Internally, reviewing the case would be like being in internal affairs... but with lower pay. He wasn't going to do a bad job so as not to hurt his colleagues' feelings. If they asked him to, he'd say, "Screw them!" but even so, he didn't want to be seen as bad for doing his job. It was a mess.

Then there was the legal front. Their bosses would demand results, any kind, to avoid a lawsuit, not to mention the pressure from the newspapers, which is even more pressure to prevent heads from rolling.

And if he sneezes even slightly, there would be a thousand cameras following him to take everything out of context and attack him for the most ridiculous nonsense possible... Anything to sell.

...

Will that supernatural detective position still be available?

With his Sacred Gear, he would be in high demand... As long as he didn't have to deal with politicians; the last time, he was almost silenced for "knowing too much" and being a "danger to diplomacy."

Why do I reject it?

...

Oh, right.

The one who asked him was literally "Constantine." So he'd better do nothing; better a police drama than waking up under a bridge to discover he slept with a troll.

As the detective tightened the noose around his own neck by talking to the paparazzi to get Kenishi to come out, Kenishi paused for a moment before getting into his car, which was parked in front of some tables where the staff sat down to eat.

—"Tell Cao Cao...Thank you...I'll fulfill my part of the deal once Subaru recovers."— He said without turning around; the glare of the sun's reflection prevented anyone from seeing his eyes through his glasses. Behind him, a woman in a white coat was smoking.

—"Bah, don't be so stuck-up, I'm sure that ass-face will give you time, he's very understanding in that area, but he won't wait too long either, although bringing your son here immediately after he arrived, do you really distrust him?"— Kenichi didn't answer, instead he got into his car, closing the door audibly.

"Clever kid. I wouldn't trust him either. With geniuses of great ambition, it's best to speak only when it's absolutely necessary, and the fact that I'm one of his doctors is clever, considering I have no interest in the supernatural world." She said this as she watched the car start and drive away, and it was true; she had seen many allies die. Although she did occasional jobs for that faction, she wasn't loyal to them, nor did she have any interest in them.

He stood up, taking a drag on his cigarette as the sun shone on his long brown hair. "Even so, bringing him into this minefield? Either very smart or very stupid." After saying that, he threw his cigarette to the ground and stepped on it, dusted himself off, and went to the hospital.

It was an idiot because this minefield was about to explode. First, it was Japanese soil controlled by the Shinto pantheon, but it was territory controlled by demons. How so? At the time, the relationship between the demon faction and the Shinto gods was neutral, neither good nor bad. Besides, it wasn't uncommon for high-born demons to manage territories as long as they reached an agreement with the authorities and the gods of the local culture, another reason why it wasn't rejected.

It was Sona Sitri and Rias Gremory, sisters of two demon kings, who requested them. Serafall Leviathan was the strongest woman in Hell, and in the entire history of her race. Even while still studying at the Jujutsu Academy, she went to Hell and discovered it had its own Antarctica. How? It turns out that during the civil war, the current Mao cast a spell that froze a portion of Hell beyond habitability. The ice itself was the size of a continent, 9.7 million km², not counting snowfall and climate change. She went to investigate the corpses of her enemies still trapped within that eternal ice. Without a doubt, she was the most powerful woman of her race.

And from Sirzechs Lucifer

...

He was undoubtedly the most powerful demon ever born

The "Ultimate Super Devil"

The "Embodiment of Destruction"

Surpassing the combined power of the previous Maos, definitely Top 10... Maybe fifth place? I wasn't familiar with the top 10.

Naturally, her sisters would be respected, so the gods saw no problems as long as they didn't negatively affect their believers.

That was before the Nekoshou incident, as they called it, but all the other pantheons know it by another name.

...

The Nekoshou Massacre

From there, the relationship between the demons and the Kyoto faction became a powder keg about to explode. Besides that, Lucifer's sister had Baraquiel's daughter, one of Gregori's cadres, as a member of the nobility, so if it explodes, the fallen angels will be involved.

That's not counting the cursed spirits generated, but part of the contract between the Gremori and Sitri heiresses was to take care of it.

Everything was a barrel of shit about to explode, although nobody wanted to be the one to bear the stigma of throwing the first stone.

So getting your son involved was both idiotic and ingenious.

Clearly, the Natsuki didn't trust Cao Cao, which was a wise decision. They couldn't do much here without attracting attention, and that was the last thing they wanted right now. What better place to keep something safe than in a place so dangerous that no one could touch it? That was the logic she used to come here, where no one could do anything for fear of causing a war and with it, mutually assured destruction.

The brunette stopped in front of the room where Subaru was. A nurse came out... that nurse smelled like a bat. A demon? Bah, as long as she didn't harm the patient, she was fine.

The former witch entered and saw that the patient had fallen asleep again; his mother was sitting beside him... an old acquaintance.

—"How time flies, doesn't it? Nao."— The woman who had her head on the bed got up and upon seeing her former companion she was surprised but also happy.

—"Shoko?".—

"Here. You'll need it."—The now-identified Shoko handed one of the coffees she had to her companion. Naoko Natsuki hesitated for a moment but took the cup.

The room fell silent for a moment... What did they have to say? They hadn't seen each other since she left the Jujutsu school at the same time as Nanami, due to the depression caused by Yu Haibara's death.

...

"You look terrible, and you always had style even after all the chores Yaga gave us."

The witch doctor told her friend, who could only let out a sarcastic laugh.

—"If we're talking about looking terrible, you take the prize. How long has it been since you slept?"

That was true, Shoko looked like she'd been in a plane crash and had undergone surgery for days on end, with pronounced dark circles under her eyes that were as much a part of her as the smell of cigarettes and the aura of constant tiredness.

In contrast, the two former Jujutsu students seemed worn down by life's journey.

—"Give me credit, I was Satoru and Geto's classmate, and I still don't have a single gray hair," she said with a tired and slightly awkward smile. It was nice but strange to see each other like this again. They both chuckled at that.

—"Well, what did I expect from that? Don't monsters get along with each other?"— Naoko put her hand to her mouth and looked at Shoko as if she were being insulted

"Monster! Look at me, I'm beautiful! The monsters were those two."

—"Well, Gojo comes from one of the three Jujutsu families, and Suguru had a really weird ritual. It was only natural that they were monsters. And you, on the other hand? No one else made a name for themselves so quickly."

It was true, though those two were monsters, they had everything to rise above the rest. Shoko, on the other hand, had no knowledge of the supernatural; there was no record of her relatives being attuned to any energy, no rituals, no Sacred Gear. And yet she stood shoulder to shoulder with those monsters of her generation. With her skill alone, she became an expert in reverse techniques, the best jujutsu medic, combining magic and reverse energy.

She, on the other hand, despite her family and her last name, was average. She didn't inherit any rituals, she wasn't born blessed, she wasn't born with the blessings of either side of her family tree.

Although it didn't matter, she never knew what a family was... Not that it mattered, she knew it wasn't and she knew what not to do when raising her son. She didn't know if she did it right, but she did what she could, loving her son and her incredible, slightly idiotic husband.

"Should I be offended or flattered?"

"Anyway, by the way, I saw your husband. Is he always like that?"

"When I first met him, he was worse. He changed over time. You should have seen him when Subaru was born. I'd never seen someone's face light up so much before... But this is making him fall back into old habits."

Another truth: they both knew what the supernatural was capable of, they were shocked by that world, and they decided that Subaru shouldn't see it.

Silence returned.

"I heard Nanami-san is back. Is that true? I mean, that guy always hates work."

"If I return, it will be about five years or so, although most likely I will retire as soon as I have an investment fund in Malaysia."

—"Hehe, is she still on about that?... But I think you beat her to it, didn't you?"— Naoko knew her friend had stopped affiliated with the academy, but she hadn't paid attention when. She was too consumed by her grief at that moment to care. Cruel, but back again, she was searching for her son

 "...I think I left for the same reasons as you... Too many fallen comrades, even if I'm just an idiot who got lost along the way... Just because those imbeciles think they're alone, they end up making themselves alone."

Seriously, was it so hard for those two to notice her? Were they so blinded by their position? Well, you know the saying, if you want to be strong, lose a few screws.

—"And how do you do it?"— Naoko asked, since it was impossible for them to leave her alone; she was too valuable.

"Huh? I'm a semi-special grade, although my field is medicine, I'm strong enough to deal with most beings. It's easy because those who come with the desire to enslave me are the weak and idiotic; the strong are aware enough not to anger me... Besides, I made contracts with leaders of various factions for such cases."— He explained calmly.

—"Speaking of levels. Did your son always have that much cursed energy? He's like twice as strong as that Okkotsu kid. I can only imagine Hakari surpassing him, and only with Japock."

Naoko remained still for a moment, carefully considering what she should say. This was a sensitive subject in the family—"More or less... We planned to explain it to her when she's old enough."

"Huh? Doesn't she know about the supernatural world?" Shoko seemed genuinely astonished but understood, knowing her friend's story. "Well, even if we hope she doesn't become a Sorcerer, she'll have a lot of potential if she knows how to harness that energy. If she has a ritual with that amount, no matter what it is, she'd be promoted to first class quickly, not to mention if it's your ritual..."

The cursed energy exploded around Naoko. Shoko cut her off as the translucent, ethereal fire aura enveloped her. Certainly, Naoko wasn't of a negligible level; at the time of her retirement, she was a semi-first-degree rank. But she was sure that if she hadn't resigned, she would currently be a special first-degree rank, and now, with Mama Osa's instinct active, it wasn't something she wanted against her.

"I understand... I think we've gone over our allotted time for talking. I have to heal your son. You know I won't heal him completely? That will raise suspicions. It will be gradual, about two months of treatment between what I give him here and physical therapy with me as well," she said as she approached the sleeping Subaru, passing by Naoko who extinguished her aura, allowing Shoko to place her hands on Subaru, which glowed with a translucent white aura.

....

The morning newspaper landed on the polished mahogany table with a dry thud.

THE MYSTERY OF NATSUKI SUBARU: THE RETURN OF THE MISSING YOUNG MAN.

By Kaori Tanaka, Kuoh News.

"Exactly two years ago, our quiet town's community was shaken by the disappearance of Subaru Natsuki, a seventeen-year-old who vanished without a trace after leaving a local convenience store. At the time, the lack of security camera footage and the absence of witnesses led the local police to close the case prematurely, classifying it as a 'voluntary teenage runaway,' despite the vehement protests and pleas of his parents, Kenichi and Naoko Natsuki, who never stopped searching."

That police theory collapsed on the night of February 15th.

Subaru Natsuki was found unconscious in the same alley adjacent to the store where he was last seen. Sources close to Kuoh General Hospital, who have asked to remain anonymous, describe the young man's condition as "deplorable and heartbreaking." The leaked preliminary report mentions severe signs of malnutrition, muscle atrophy consistent with prolonged confinement, and numerous scars suggesting systematic torture. Furthermore, the young man exhibits complete graying of his hair, a physical symptom commonly associated with Marie Antoinette syndrome, caused by extreme levels of stress or trauma.

This morning, the Kuoh Police Department issued an official apology to the Natsuki family, admitting negligence in the initial investigation and promising to deploy a special task force to locate those responsible for this heinous crime. However, to date, there are no leads as to the young man's whereabouts or the identities of his captors.

In a surprising turn of events, it has been reported that Subaru Natsuki, who is currently recovering in the intensive care unit, has expressed a fervent desire to "move forward." According to family spokespeople, the young man has formally requested to re-enter the education system as soon as his health allows, intending to make up for lost time and graduate, seeking a return to the normalcy that was brutally stolen from him.

The question the whole city is asking now is: What really happened to Subaru Natsuki during those two years of silence?

Slender, elegant fingers adjusted the glasses on the bridge of a delicate nose. Sona Sitri finished reading the article, her expression impassive, almost icy, concealing the mental machinations taking place behind her violet eyes.

Beside him, on the desk of the Kuoh Academy Student Council, lay an official document: a registration form. The attached photo showed a boy with an intense gaze, though the photo was old, from before his disappearance, with black hair and an arrogant smile that didn't match the newspaper's description.

"So..." The calm voice of Student Council Vice President Tsubaki Shinra broke the silence in the room. "Is it a done deal? Subaru Natsuki will be one of those entering Kuoh Academy now that it's becoming co-ed?"

Sona looked up from her newspaper and gazed at her Queen.

"Probably," Sona replied pragmatically. "Your application was given priority due to the special circumstances. Legally, you have the right, and academically... well, that was the surprising part."

Sona gently tapped her index finger on a sheet of test results attached to the file.

—They sent the placement tests to her home two days ago. She completed them in record time. Her knowledge of history and literature is a bit rusty, which is to be expected after two years of… “captivity,” but her mathematical logic and analytical problem-solving skills are well above average. She passed the tests to enter directly into the third year.

Tsubaki frowned slightly, adjusting his military posture.

—That's impressive, considering his condition. But, Kaichou... you said this would be a troubled year.

—And it will be, Tsubaki.

Sona stood up and walked to the window of the Council Room, watching the schoolyard that would soon be filled with male students for the first time.

"It was I who personally facilitated the rapid approval of his registration," Sona revealed, without turning around.

Tsubaki's eyes opened in surprise.

—You, Kaichou? Why? Is it out of pity for your case? 

"Pity is an inefficient emotion for managing a school or a territory, Tsubaki," Sona said coldly, though there was a hint of curiosity in her voice. "I did it because there are inconsistencies that worry me."

That tone could fool anyone, however Tsubaki knew her Friend/Mistress well and knew that she was interested, contrary to what is expected of a demon, she is warm and kind, hence her servants adore her and the Sitris like the Gremori are the ones who treat their employees best 

Sona turned around, leaning on the windowsill, crossing her arms.

“My contacts in the police and the hospital gave me the full report, not the sanitized version in the press. Subaru Natsuki claims to remember nothing from the last two years. Dissociative amnesia, the psychiatrists say. But his injuries…” Sona narrowed her eyes. “The scars on his body don’t match conventional tools. Some look like burns from residual mana. Others look like bites from beasts that don’t exist in modern biological taxonomy. Neither human nor supernatural, although the latter isn’t very well documented.”

Tsubaki tensed up, immediately understanding the implication.

—Do you think he was involved with the supernatural?

"It's a high possibility," Sona agreed. "A human disappears without a trace, and reappears two years later in the exact same spot, broken, with white hair and no memory, but with an aura that, according to reports from my family at the hospital, feels 'Evil.'"

Tsubaki also una seja— "Evil?"

—"Cursed energy, it seems, but even those I have who are sensitive to it say it's strange and different."

Tsubaki was now interested and saw the point: "Could it be a perverse shaman? How different is his energy? And was he attuned to it before or after the kidnapping? If it was after, it's experimentation, and that would be problematic."

Sona sighed, returning to her desk and picking up Subaru's file.

"If there's a supernatural being abducting people in my territory, or if any faction—whether supernatural, shamanic, or of another race—used him as a guinea pig, I need to know. And the best way to keep an eye on Natsuki Subaru is to have him here, under my direct supervision. I want to know if his amnesia is real or a side effect of some mind-sealing spell."

"I understand," Tsubaki said, nodding respectfully. "We'll keep a close eye on him. But... he mentioned he'd be problematic for another reason."

"Oh, yes." Sona pointed at the newspaper disdainfully. "The paparazzi."

Tsubaki looked at the sensationalist article.

—Kuoh has the security to keep them away from school grounds, Kaichou. They won't be allowed in.

"I'm not worried about them coming in, Tsubaki. I'm worried about the circus they'll create at the gates." Sona massaged her temples, anticipating future migraines. "Kuoh Academy becoming co-ed is already a seismic event in this city. Conservative families are nervous, female students are hysterical about the arrival of boys... and now, we add to the mix a 'tragic celebrity,' the mysterious boy who returned from the dead."

Sona looked into her vice president's eyes with absolute seriousness.

—The press will be camped out at the entrance waiting for a photo of the "Survivor Boy." Students will gossip. The academic atmosphere will be disrupted. And if my suspicions are correct and the supernatural is involved, any incident surrounding him could expose the Secret on national television.

Tsubaki sighed, understanding the magnitude of the logistical headache.

With a fluid motion, Sona stamped the Student Council seal on the application for admission.

APPROVED.

...

One month later

Rim

Rim

Rim

A calloused hand fell upon the still-sleepy alarm clock.

Cursing the alarm clock, he got up and sat on the edge of the bed. The white-haired man, still groggy from sleep, stretched.

—"Do I really have to set the alarm so early?"

The once dark-haired boy wondered, stretching. Something that was noticeable in the days following his kidnapping was that he had muscle, although atrophied, it was clear that he had it. The fact that the physiotherapy helped to recover it partially, he still didn't know how healthy he was so he exercised before going to the academy, hence why he had gotten up early, as if the sun had not yet risen

Putting on her slippers as she got up, she left the room. Upon passing through the doorway, she found herself in a hallway and followed it, arriving at the comfortably furnished living room. However, she did not stop and, passing through the living room, entered the hallway in front.

*Blim*

The sound of a bell informed him that he had a notification. He took his phone out of his pocket, still amazed to have this model, although he craved his flip phone which, although already old even before it disappeared, had a certain sentimental value, although he didn't complain about touchscreens.

I noticed that the notification was a reminder, nothing special, but further down there was a notification, and another one a little further down, a voice message from her parents.

Too early, but I didn't blame them; they must already be on foreign time. He played the message and continued on his way.

—"Oh, hi champ, it's Dad. I wanted to talk to you before you left for the academy... Are you asleep? I guess the foreign time zone is starting to take its toll."

Subaru sighed; that was an understatement, and because it was the same thing he had thought seconds ago.

"We love you. Oh, by the way, Escanor is moving! Isn't that great! It's a place closer to the apartment."

That made Subaru raise an eyebrow. Uncle Escanor in town? He always wondered how he managed to stay afloat if his bar was so far removed from society, and why he did it? He was annoyed at the thought that it might be to babysit for him. But that was impossible; no matter how much of a sworn brother he was to his father, he wouldn't move for that.

TRUE?

—"I'm too young for this crap..."—Subaru decided to push that thought away. He wasn't sure if his hair would ever go back to normal, but stress was what had turned it white, and he preferred to avoid it to see if it would turn black again over time... Dyeing it had gone horribly wrong

I went into the bathroom and, opening the shelf behind the mirror, took out my toothbrush, but not before noticing the device that was next to my toothbrush.

He always tried to shake off his usual pessimism; he didn't want to be known for always having a sour face, so he always tried to start the day in a good way, which included...

—"Music"—I ordered, and the speaker turned on.

[Sorry, please be more specific]

Subaru rolled his eyes at the robotic female voice.

"Play my personal playlist, anyone,"

[Playing Grateful by Neffex]

Always do it on my own

So I gotta get through it
And the only thing I know
Is to love what I'm doing

Subaru brushed his teeth and when he finished he looked at himself in the mirror. When he came out of the bathroom he was already wearing his tracksuit, an exact copy of the one he had on that night he disappeared.

Never give up, never slow
'Til I finally prove it
Never listen to the no's
I just wanna keep moving

She served herself toast with eggs and bacon for breakfast. When she finished, she started washing the dishes, shaking them out. Afterward, she put them in the cupboard with the other dishes, which weren't many, just a few for visitors, who were practically nobody. Maybe she should invite someone over? Aika? Even though she was a pervert, she was a good friend. The student council? Maybe.

Keep my head up when I act
Head up, that's a fact
Never looking back
I'ma keep myself on track
Keep my head up, staying strong

Rolling up his sleeves, he started cleaning the house, washing the floor, finishing dressing in sportswear, and putting on his shoes before heading to the door and opening it, closing it behind him as he left.

Always moving on
Feel I don't belong
Tell my thoughts to move along
Push myself to be the best
Die with no regrets
Live with every breath
See my message start to spread
And I had so many dreams
Then you hit your teens
Life ain't really what it seems
Try to find out what it means

Subaru started running all around the place, passing through the park, greeting people, happy to say hello. He saw some dogs being walked; certainly their owners were just as early risers since the sun hadn't yet risen. At one point, passing through the park, his path crossed with a woman who ran every day. They saw each other daily at this racetrack and met in the park to test the machines at the track and have sparring sessions together.

Always do it on my own
So I gotta get through it
And the only thing I know
Is to love what I'm doing
Never give up, never slow
'Til I finally prove it
Never listen to the no's
I just wanna keep moving
Yeah, I put out all this art
It's my only medicine, yeah
Everything I do
I'm just being genuine, yeah
I'm sick of being screwed
Feel my own adrenaline, yeah
I do just what I do
And I hope you let me in, let me in, yeah

"Arba," as he discovered his name was "Peculiar." He was always winning and arrogant, but he always had that sly smile and he always got back up.

After the white-haired man was humiliated for a while, they both sat on a bench, sharing a conversation while drinking water. If anyone who knew the blonde-haired woman saw her, their jaw would drop at the sight of how the arrogant red-eyed woman managed to laugh... a real laugh. How was it possible that a man as weak as Subaru could make that crazy woman laugh like a normal girl?

The only person the combat teacher knew was another combat teacher

When Maki saw her superior looking like a normal girl, her jaw dropped and they continued talking together, teasing the beautiful red-eyed girl, with whom she began to argue as if they were friends fighting.

Moments later, Subaru sparred with Maki. At one point, Subaru was going to hit her with the wooden sword, but she let herself fall, doing a split to dodge the thrust, and with a quick movement, she took the sword from Subaru while immobilizing him with a key.

I'm grateful, oh yeah
Able, oh yeah
I'm stable, oh yeah
No label, oh yeah
You know me, I have
Only a path
I'm lonely, but damn
I'm going to win, yeah

After finishing the sparring, Subaru returned home, took off his shoes, took a bath, and changed into the Kuou male uniform.

She quickly prepared some cereal, ate it, slung her backpack over her shoulder, and left. The sun was rising over the horizon. She headed to the academy, still with a soda in her hand and another one in her backpack for later.

I don't want no fake love
I want the real stuff
Everybody listen up
'Cause I'll only say it once
I'm gon' show you all the path
If you want it bad
I'm gon' show you where it's at, yeah

I arrived at the train and boarded it for the journey to the academy. On the way back, why did I have to go to that exact academy when my apartment was on the other side of the city?

The train stopped, the doors opened, and he stepped out. Now, in front of him stood the imposing Victorian castle, surrounded by a group of students chatting with their classmates... And there he was, with no one approaching him... He hated feeling like this. He just hoped his attitude wouldn't be too noticeable today. Most of the time, people thought he was an idiot, and their comments didn't help matters.

In fact, apart from Aika, the council, and Issei, there was no one else she could talk to naturally.

"Wait. Sanji?" The former black-haired boy bumped into Sanji at the door. It was strange, very strange, when he kept running into the newest member of the student council. This time they arrived at the same time. Strange, but he didn't complain and approached.

—"Subaru San. It's been a while since we last spoke alone, hasn't it?"— Sanji was a blond boy with messy hair, wearing the academy uniform, but without the jacket and wearing a shirt with closed sleeves.

"Saji...again?" Subaru asked, his tone not very friendly but not curt either; to many it seemed apathetic, but he still took something out of his backpack and, while greeting him with his hand, then tossed him a juice box, which he caught.

—"How's everything going? Did you officially join the council?"—Subaru asked, knowing he was on probation.

However, Sanji seemed a little nervous about the comment — "Well. Yes, I'm no longer on probation."

"I hope Shitori-san doesn't give you too much work. She seems dedicated to her duties, but I don't think she'll exploit you like a slave driver," Subaru said calmly, though he didn't dislike the president. In fact, he considered her a friend on many levels, even though that made Sanji more nervous.

"Well... If she's a slave owner..." Sanji was saying this on many levels, firstly because, theoretically, he was her slave... And she was exploitative when it came to schoolwork, but he had to change the subject. "You're right, but I still like the president," Sanji said cheerfully. He changed the subject to something that was true and that he genuinely felt, and thus he left the delicate matter with an undeniable truth.

"Yes, about that... I don't know how you could like her," Subaru commented. She was pleasant, true, but rigid, though he admitted she had qualities; surely that was what attracted him...

 "Both you and I think she's cute, right?" Saji asked, watching him nod. With wide eyes, the white-haired young man wanted to strangle Sanji. What kind of closet perverts had he stumbled into?

"Of course, I'm not an idiot who can't see the difference, but I'm not interested in any of the girls at this academy, much less some controlling, demonic bureaucrat who always ends up scolding me and leaving me in her office for hours for something I didn't do... I don't complain about spending time there since they have good snacks, but why do they always end up leaving me there?" Subaru asked, not noticing Saji freeze slightly when he said the word "demonic." He looked at Subaru as if he'd grown a second head.

—"Does he know?" — Sanji dismissed the thought. His president had told him to keep an eye on Subaru, but he doubted that was the reason. The way she said it... He doesn't know, does he?

I didn't even notice when Subaru left, but I realized he was gone and decided to go to class.

<Current Events>

—...What could that dream be?—"Subaru knew this wasn't the time. He was in class, and his teacher was giving a lesson on the history of famous poets, who, for some reason, wasn't exactly a favorite of many.

But still, what was that dream? At first, she thought it was something related to her kidnapping and began to write a diary, but that quickly turned into a fictional story. Dragons? And a red one so big, whose eye was as big as buildings and whose neck was longer than Mount Rushmore.

The teacher noticed his student's distracted gaze, and he wasn't the only one; several others noticed it too. The teacher felt sorry for what had happened, but that didn't give him the right to be in another world in the middle of his class and distract his other students.

Coughing to get the white-haired man's attention, he didn't even flinch, and the professor, finding that this wasn't working, had to call him more directly. 

—"Natsuki San"

"Eh"—Subaru seemed as if he had been woken from a dream, jumping in his seat in surprise, which caused giggles from his classmates, and made the teacher's eyebrow twitch. Seriously, he wasn't paying attention?

"Please state your name and recite the poem 'Glory in the Flower.'" The teacher didn't want to be cruel or humiliate the boy, but if he was going to miss classes, he would have to face the consequences. He hoped this would make him pay attention and prevent him from being bullied by the other students.

Subaru stood up calmly and began to say — It was written by William Wordsworth in 1807 with the title " glory in the flower". It is one of the poems that make up the Ode to Immortality.  

Its translation is: " Though the splendor that once was so bright is now forever hidden from my sight. Though nothing can bring back the hour of splendor in the grass, of glory in bloom. We must not grieve. For in memories we shall find strength, for  beauty always subsists in remembrance. In that first sympathy which, having once been, shall be forever; in the comforting thoughts that sprang from human suffering, and in the faith that looks through death. Thanks to the human heart by which we live; thanks to its tenderness, its joys, and its fears, the humblest flower as it blooms may inspire in me ideas that often prove too profound for tears."

Subaru said without even checking his notes, or changing his tone, as if reciting an entire poem, its original title, author, and almost all its details was the most common thing in the world

The professor swore his jaw hit the floor; many of his colleagues also watched in amazement.

Others who knew the professor's thing was a joke to get Subaru's attention stifled their laughter; that was a real twist.

—"...Did I say something wrong?"—Subaru asked, frowning at everyone's reactions

—"Nothing. Natsuki-san, nothing, just... Go back to your desk."— The teacher said with a sigh and heard a giggle. He didn't know where it came from, but he heard it, which made a vein pop out in his head.

Luckily, a few minutes later the bell rang and the students left. The teacher made a mental note to ask the student council to tell him to pay more attention in class, and no, it wasn't his bruised ego talking. But how did he find out the answer? He was sure he hadn't been paying attention in class.

While outside Subaru was mentally jumping for joy, little Chibi Baru would be celebrating because he got that poem of all of them; he certainly didn't pay attention or study, but above all else he was a geek addicted to television series.

That phrase stuck with him after the third season, mostly because Ried was the "protagonist," and not to mention those directed by Matthew Gray Gluber. Simply put, after that episode, he looked up the complete poem and remembered it; it was one of his favorite scenes.

...

Anyway, afterwards he would revel in watching another episode or watching the episode that was responsible for giving him an addiction to the series, regardless of the fact that every time he saw Mosley Lane it awakened a depression in him with the "So my son was alive just yesterday"

He decided to take a walk, making the most of his free time.

"Is that a no?"

"Are you sure he was kidnapped?"

"I was... Pretty normal, are you sure it wasn't an act?"

Subaru decided to ignore those comments. It wasn't the first time they'd talked behind his back. He'd just go somewhere secluded... where no one could see him, and try to ignore all those idiots' comments.

Or that was the plan until he saw them

First I heard lewd laughter, following the sound I walked behind the dojo... With just that I knew what to expect, but it was still disappointing to see what my old friend had become

Hyoudou Issei was a 17-year-old high school student of average height with short brown hair and light brown eyes. He wore the same standard academy uniform as everyone else at Kuoh Academy, though he also wore a red T-shirt and blue sneakers. There wasn't much else that could be said about him. 

His almost unnatural amount of lust. Hyoudou Issei was one of the greatest and most perverse beings in existence. The kind of pervert who would send women running for the hills, or into a violent fit of feminine rage. He, along with his two other friends, Matsuda and Motohama, was known as one of the  Hentai San'nin-Gumi  . Or the Perverted Trio.

And unfortunately, the chestnut-haired one in the group was someone he had called a friend since they learned to walk.

This perversion that Issei possessed would also explain his current activity. An activity in which he and his two friends were participating with great relish.

He was spying on the kendo club while the girls were changing in the locker room. Just looking at all that beautiful female flesh, the soft, milky skin, and the incredible variety of breast sizes was enough to make him and the other two perverts nearly burn themselves alive.

—"You seem to be having a good time?"

Issei's smile widened as he nodded. "Yes..." His friends nodded as well, unaware that the voice didn't belong to any of them, too busy watching.

"It's a lovely view, isn't it?"

Issei's drooling showed how much he agreed with those words. There might also have been some nosebleeds, but it was hard to tell since his face was practically pressed against the wall. "If..."

"I'm glad the three of you are enjoying this so much. It's good to enjoy something while it lasts."

The three of them stood around confused, none of them would say that, they confirmed it when they turned around and saw that their companions were the same as them, they moved their heads and saw Subaru looking at them emotionlessly

...

—"Please... We're friends"—Issei pleaded as his companions stood pale and trembling

"Mmm. No"— Those were Subaru's words, spoken without changing his lifeless tone, before he gave an evil smile. He took a breath before screaming at the top of his lungs in the most feminine voice he could muster.

"EEK! MEMBERS! PERVERTS! DAMN IT! HOW DARE YOU LOOK IN THE GIRL'S CLOSET!" he shrieked behind them. The Perverted Trio's eyes widened as their danger senses kicked in like a turbocharged 512 engine revving up. That was serious power there.

-"Traitor!

The trio screamed as they ran, which Subaru likened to frightened pigs; they even squealed, running and hiding in a hurry. Subaru could only laugh like a madman at this.

This was pure comedy, although there's a question here: Why are those three still here? If he were a parent, he'd sue the school for allowing this behavior, so how are they still here?

She didn't stop laughing, she didn't even notice the sound of footsteps running towards her location

—"What do we have here?"— A female voice said from behind him

Subaru turned and saw a small army of girls behind him, all dressed in their Kendo uniforms, each holding their Shinai and with killer looks on their faces, searching for prey.

"Ah, that's why." Subaru understood; they preferred to resolve it with violence, something perfectly understandable and justified considering what had happened, but it was still sadistic. Did they let her see it so they'd have an excuse to use violence? Anyway, he was sure both groups would be expelled, but apparently they decided to leave it at that, and who is he to...

—"Natsuki Senpai? I never would have thought it of you. But of course, what else can you expect from the friend of one of the friends of one of the  Hentai San'nin-Gumi?" —The face of the Kendo captain, Katase, contorted; she seemed angry, and disappointed? Hurt? It was difficult to concentrate on that when she had the "sharp" part of her shinai against her face

"Huh? Wait! It wasn't me, I was the one spying, it was that trio again. Damn it! I was the one who screamed!" he said, somewhere between indignant and scared. He wanted to get rid of this before it escalated.

"...Heh! If you wanted to get away with this, you should come up with better excuses, senpai. That scream was clearly feminine..."

"Kyaa, help, they want to hit me."

...

...

...

"Well. That scream was very feminine." Katase said, blinking in amazement and lowering the shinai slightly. The former black-haired man sighed in relief, then smiled.

"You can call me Natsumi Schwartz"— She said it in the same kind, feminine tone.

"...A pleasure, Schwartz Senpai." She said, blinking in surprise at her senpai's strange talent, and let out a small giggle.

"Sorry to bother you. And thank you for scaring them away."— Katase apologized with a slightly strained smile, clearly annoyed by the misunderstanding.

—"You're welcome. I've been friends with Issei since childhood, but I know when he deserves a beating... or maybe a night in jail. By the way, you're intense."— Subaru told Katase, who had the decency to blush.

"I'm sorry for the confusion, senpai. But where are those perverts?" said a member at the back of the group.

Subaru could only narrow his eyes suspiciously. Were his previous thoughts real? These girls are sadistic—"Why?"

...

"What do you think? It's those three, isn't it?" "Why am I not surprised? I thought he'd learn his lesson the last time this happened, but it seems he needs to be taught using more... forceful methods..." said another, swinging her sword, but was stopped by a gesture from Katase.

—"I'm sorry, senpai, I know he's your friend but..."— Subaru stopped her with one hand

"Will they strike them with their swords in their family jewels?"

"—"...Most likely," Katase said, embarrassed but not wanting to lie

"...Go hard, Matsuda climbed that tree, Motohama jumped into that bush and...".—Saubar said in chibi mode pointing to the places, however as soon as he said their names the places where they were shook, releasing leaves, and they came out of their hiding place and started running, not without first shouting a loud

"Traitor to masculinity!"

As they fled, preventing him from revealing Issei's location, the girls, seeing them escape, couldn't wait to find the last member of the trio and let out a war cry.

"Behind them!"

They chased after them, leaving the former black-haired man behind, nodding his thanks for telling them. They raced to catch the perverts. Subaru noticed their devilish smiles and almost felt sorry for them...

"Catch them and pull down their pants!"

In most cases, this would have led many men to succumb to lust. That was not the case here.

Even from a distance, it was noticeable how pale they both looked, and Subaru emphasized that he almost felt sorry for them.

Issei emerged from behind some trash cans, clearly angry. "You're a damn traitor to masculinity! We were following the desires of all men! Unlike you, I'm honest about my own desires!"

—"...Hey you too, buddy. Do you know there's a banana peel in your pants?"— Subaru said with boredom, dismissing Issei's complaint. Issei saw it was true and frantically moved his foot to throw it away.

A silence fell between the two friends, but it wasn't uncomfortable for either of them.

"Are you seriously going to tell him where I was?" Issei asked his friend fearfully.

"No, I was going to tell them you ran around like a headless chicken, screaming in fear and with your pants stained."—Subaru said calmly; he'd been planning to play that prank on him for a while.

"That's even worse!" he said, frightened.

"Are you sure?" Subaru asked Issei incredulously, since such a lie wouldn't affect his nonexistent reputation, while the Kendo club... Well

Issei seemed to realize this, as after a few seconds of thinking he turned pale.

"I take it back. Those women almost destroyed my family 'jewels'."

—That explains the "Pull down their pants, is it really worth the risk?" thing.— He said, laughing a little.

"For a masochist like him, yes. It's part of the fun."

Subaru and Issei turned around; the brunette couldn't help but make a face of absolute disgust when he saw the girl with glasses.

—"Oh, hello Aika-san—"

"What the hell are you doing here, Kiryuu!" Issei exclaimed, pointing a finger at the enemy of all men (in his opinion), a fujoshi.

Aika Kiryuu was a brown-haired girl with braided hair in two pigtails that reached a little below her neck and green eyes with round pink-framed glasses. She wore a denim skirt that reached above her knees, a sleeveless black top that revealed her navel, and white sneakers. She also came with a purse and a bag in her hands.

"Studying, that's what people do at a school, Hyoudou." —Aika said simply, which made Issei sigh.

"That's not what I meant! Besides, you don't come here to study! You come here to fantasize out loud!" Issei retorted, but Aika ignored him, looking at Subaru, who just muttered, "The pot calling the kettle black."

"Wow. How's my favorite albino?" Aika said, throwing herself at the former black-haired boy, trapping him in a tight hug and deliberately pressing her breasts against his side. Subaru, for his part, put on his best poker face; he didn't want to give her any more ammunition for future jokes.

"Aika-san. What did we say about personal space?" Subaru said in a neutral tone, but Aika only pressed harder.

—"I don't know? Was that before or after I told you to call me Aika-chan?"— Aika said in a sweet tone as she pressed her body closer.

"... After" 

—"After what?"—

"...Aika-chan." He said that without losing his neutral tone. Did he feel more and more like he was stepping on a landmine? Why did he still consider this woman a friend?

"Ugh, why does he always have to be indifferent to my affection? Whatever! You're still sexy."— She said with a smile, letting go of his arm but still holding onto his.

"You call us perverts and then you hang out with her, pure hypocrisy, and I've known you since you were a baby"—Issei retorted, because his oldest friend was violating all the rules of conduct in the "Book of Brotherhood and Manhood"

—"It's a privilege of beautiful people, something you don't understand. The first time I saw you, I had to look at you twice to make sure you weren't some shaved primate who enrolled in the school as a prank by a senpai with too much free time," Aika replied, making Subaru stifle his laughter.

"I'm not ugly! Besides, what are you laughing at, traitor! You're just like me!" Issei retorted to Subaru. He was far from handsome. Why on earth did he have girls chasing after him? Issei's only consolation was that those women were the crazy ones he wouldn't touch... Maybe he would, but that wasn't the point. The point was that Subaru was just as ugly as him, or even more so because of his terrifying eyes.

Subaru seemed offended by this and retorted, "What do you mean, you bastard! I know my eyes are weird, but you look like you've been in a car accident!"

Issei was about to reply but was interrupted by Aika — "Ugh, you're a bad liar. I admit that Senpai won't be the second Kiba Yuto, but he has his strengths, his exotic eyes and hair. Even with black hair he looked quite nice."

Aika defended Subaru, which caused both of them to look at her. Subaru tried to hide a blush so she wouldn't have to deal with too many compliments.

"That's just your opinion," Issei growled.

"It's the truth... Besides, look at these muscles."—Said the woman with glasses, fondling Subaru's torso. He struggled to squeal and forced himself to keep his next words as neutral as possible. 

—"Personal space"

"Yes, yes, that's important, but... Issei, you have to admit that between the two of us, you're just a twig," Aika said shamelessly... And without stopping her massage of his muscles until Subaru slapped her hand away.

Issei, who seemed indignant about this, was about to reply—"For your information, you fifth-rate Fujoshi, I'm in good shape. I exercise my—"—Issei couldn't finish speaking when the pair of students in front of him spoke up

"Right hand"

...

Aika and Subaru looked at each other for a few moments, then laughed, much to Issei's anger, who was red with rage, although he then remembered something

—"Speaking of black hair. Did you come with black hair that day? What happened?"— Issei asked curiously. He knew his friend had suffered from Marie Antoinette syndrome and was now white-haired, but the first day he had come with black hair, and in the following days he was albino again.

"That..." Subaru seemed embarrassed. "I dyed it. I was planning to dye it regularly between classes and be black-haired again."

"Well... I'm not criticizing, but it looks good on you, there's almost no difference from how you were before. Why didn't you continue? I know! You wanted attention!"— Issei said, remembering that his senpai's hair was too well colored, but then he realized it was because of the girls.

—"Well, it's worked for you so far, you have my attention. When are you going to ask me out on a date?" Aika played along, —Although if you asked me with black hair, I'd still accept.

"Ugh. Stop! I stopped dyeing my hair because it wasn't worth the effort," Subaru told them to stop. They both raised an eyebrow. What did he mean? The albino blushed but decided to say it because otherwise they wouldn't leave them alone. "My hair looks good, one of my talents."

—"Why am I not surprised... Schwartz"—Issei, who was aware of Subaru's talent for feminine touch and cross-dressing, couldn't help but tease, which made one of his eyebrows twitch and Aika raise hers. But before the bespectacled pervert could ask more, Subaru continued, hoping she'd forget about the subject.

—"As I was saying... My hair turned out well. The bathroom, on the other hand, looked like the scene of a squid orgy. I spent three days cleaning it," he said, remembering the disaster. Thank God his mother didn't see it... either she would have had a heart attack or he would have gotten hit with a frying pan.

...

"Ha ha ha".

Issei and Aika couldn't help but laugh when they saw that image in their heads.

—"Ah, how nice that you find that so funny"— Subaru couldn't help but grimace and feel the urge to punch these two idiots

Issei, wiping a tear from his eye, said, "Oh, oh. You'll have to excuse me, but I'm actually glad that's the reason. Between your rejections of Aika, the Natsumi thing, and the hair, I thought you were gay... Not that there's anything wrong with that!" He shouted the last part hoping he wouldn't get canceled by whoever was listening, even though he didn't know he was being spied on. He said it because there are always ears everywhere.

Unbeknownst to him, he narrowly escaped, as Subaru saw him with squinted eyes, as did Aika, but because she knew who Natsumi was. Koneko, watching him, also squinted, as did the readers and any dramatization of this fic.

Subaru was about to protest, but Aika spoke first, seeing an opportunity to annoy and perhaps traumatize Issei—"Oh, that would explain a lot about you. This perversion of yours is a cover-up. You're a closeted gay man. No wonder they talk about porn so openly. I can just imagine you and the others watching porn in a dark room, masturbating, but not really to the porn itself, but to watching the other two doing it. Then one thing leads to another, and the three of them stop pretending and give in to their sinful desires. I can just picture you in the middle with Matsuda in front and..."

"Stop!" Subaru shouted, pale. He didn't need that mental image; they were chatting, not asking for the plot of his Fujoshi fanfic that he was sure to upload to Wattpad. He looked like he was about to throw up. Issei, for his part, wasn't doing any better; he was on the floor, laughing hysterically, trying to keep his breakfast from coming out of his stomach... Unfortunately, because of Aika's description, seeing Issei like this now made him imagine him in that pose, but with his two friends, even worse... "Ah! My eyes!" Now he looked like he was about to lose the fight against vomiting.

Issei, who seemed to realize the situation and stood up trembling, said, "You're sick! Seek therapy!" In the distance, Koneko stopped spying on her target and ran to the nearest trash can to vomit.

—"For your information, I'm completely heterosexual, that's not up for debate. I like women, heterosexual!"—Issei replied, no longer caring if he sounded homophobic; this joke had gone too far.

—"...Heterosexual... By choice?"— Subaru asked with a raised eyebrow, unsure whether to laugh or continue vomiting

"Yes, I'm heterosexual by choice!" Issei shouted, now heard by anyone close enough, which wasn't many; in fact, many in the distance heard him.

"Ha ha ha"

Issei turned his head and saw one of Subaru's classmates, David Martinez, a young man of Hispanic ethnicity with fair skin and a slightly tanned complexion, typical of his ancestry. He had dark hair and expressive light brown eyes. Slim but short, he was muscular with an undercut haircut featuring a long strand styled upwards and shaved sides in a pattern, giving him a rebellious, bad-boy appearance. He had a lean and athletic build, and beneath his uniform, he wore two golden chains.

However, he was attacked by an albino girl with pink streaks in her hair and pale skin. Lucy took away her boyfriend who was making a fool of himself in her eyes.

The Venezuelan/American boy complained but preferred not to upset his girlfriend

"Hehe, that was fun, Sergei." Subaru said, but Issei and Aika didn't understand. But Issei thought he stabbed himself with the dagger. How did he screw up?

"What happened?" Aika asked, confused, but Subaru didn't answer.

—"I won't say it"

They decided to Google it but found nothing, which confused them.

—"There she is!"—Subaru turned around in amazement... and that's when he saw her... Murayama, one of the two leaders of the Kendo club, with a teacher beside her... Looking at them with a serious expression

Subaru shifted his gaze from the teacher to Aika, to Murayama's angry/hurt expression, to Issei's pale face

He was on Issei's side, a total pervert, facing a teacher and a girl he was spying on.

...

He realized what this looked like

-"I-"

—"To the principal's office"— said the teacher

—"Per..."— 

"To the principal's office!" he said louder. The former inmate glared at Issei, who shrank back in fear, but they both obeyed. Subaru whispered to Issei that he would reveal to Aika that Issei was a Brony because of this, which made Issei pale. He tried to beg Subaru not to, but the teacher silenced him, so Issei could only cry mentally from helplessness.

Aika, for her part, didn't even pay attention to the scene, preferring to ignore it and disappear. She focused more on Subaru's comment, which she didn't understand, but the student of Latin descent did, so it might have something to do with a South American country. Luckily, this academy has another Hispanic student whom no one can hate and whom everyone wanted.

Later, when I asked Yasutora, better known as Chad, about the matter, the student just smiled, suppressing a laugh, still maintaining that "Chad" persona, and showed me a video on his phone. Even with the language difference, it was enough to make me laugh, especially with the video's subtitles.

—

Student council room...

—"Haaaa...why does this school have so many problem students?"— Sona wondered, completely tired, looking at the papers.

—"President, you should take a break" — said a girl next to her, handing her a cup of tea.

She was a very voluptuous girl with long, straight black hair that reached her knees, with parted bangs and brown eyes. She also wore half-frame glasses with square lenses and wore the girls' uniform of the academy.

She was Tsubaki Shinra, the vice president of the student council, and she was now serving her president a cup of tea to calm her down.

"Thank you, but I need to see all this..." she said, looking at the papers.

"Why are there complaints about Natsuki?" was the common question in these cases.

—"The perverted trio is understandable, and as always, it gets resolved with blows. But Natsuki? First, we have a complaint from a teacher saying he doesn't pay attention in class, and minutes later he was seen in the area where they were spying on the Kendo club members. Is he under a curse?"—Sona said, taking a sip of tea.

"Come on, Kaicho, Natsuki-san isn't bad. I mean, even Issei, who just left, confirmed that he didn't participate. Most of the complaints are due to being in the wrong place at the wrong time... with the wrong company," Momo said to her mistress, seeing her like this, knowing that her Senpai hadn't done anything wrong. In fact, the Kendo club retracted their statement, saying that Subaru was the one who told them.

—"I know, but it's still frustrating."— Sona said, frowning. That was what made it worse; she couldn't blame him for anything since he hadn't actually done anything.

—"Wrong time, wrong place, are you sure his last name isn't Murphy?"— Sanji, sitting in a corner, asked half-jokingly, wanting to lighten the mood, however

—"..."

"Right?"—The rookie demon didn't know why his president and companions had that expression.

—"Unfortunately, we're not sure that statement is false."— Tsubaki said, adjusting her glasses.

"Hey?"

Upon hearing the statement, the blond man looked like an idiot... even more so than usual, but understandable since he wasn't fully informed.

—"Do you remember when we asked you to keep an eye on him?"— Sanji looked at her but nodded, still remembering the word "Demon" from that morning

"About that... I don't know if I imagined it, but... I think he knows what we are." He still struggled to refer to himself as a demon, yet his companions' eyes widened in shock.

"That!"

Sona, in a rare display of losing control, slammed her hand against the desk, which startled Sanji a little, both because of the noise and his president's reaction. He expected astonishment, but not a complete loss of control, something more like Tsubaki, who looked on in amazement. But the others also seemed to find their King's reaction reasonable, which it might be... for anyone but Sona.

—"What are you talking about? Explain yourself."— Sona didn't ask. She ordered what he meant by this.

"W-Well... I don't know if that's what she meant. We talked, and she made a comment," Sanji said, a little fearful as he recalled the conversation. He preferred not to say that he had insulted Sona... but it would come out sooner or later, and the friendship/hate/rivalry between them was no secret to anyone. "I told her I joined the council, and she told me not to let you exploit me, calling you a 'slave owner' and a 'demonic' bureaucrat..."

Sona almost had one eyebrow twitching, some of her pieces were laughing a little, Sanji decided to continue

"Well, the way she said it, I don't know if she really knows or if that's just how you two are," Sanji tried to change the subject before everything exploded.

"...Regardless of what you believe, if it's about Natsuki-san, we can't ignore it."—Tsubaki said, returning to the topic.

"If it's a possibility, even if it's just isolated comments, we can't dismiss it... Not if it's Natsuki," Sona said, annoyed, adjusting her glasses. "Tomoe, let it go. We need to verify that information. Besides, she must be waiting there for a long time." The pink-haired girl nodded somewhat doubtfully as she went to find her friend.

"Wait? Why?" Sanji asked curiously. Why was everyone acting like this? Was Subaru dangerous?

No one answered him, and a few seconds later he saw the white-haired man enter.

—"Oh. Hello glasses"— Subaru greeted with a smile, Sona grunted

"Natsuki. I told you. Call me Kaichou."— Sona said, frowning.

"It's fun to tease you, Shitori-san."— Subar sang, it was always fun to see someone so stoic change their expression, besides, the student council leader

—"You're beyond help. How do you get into trouble?"— Sona said, showing the two complaints.

"You know it wasn't my fault!" he shouted, all under the gaze of the group, especially Sanji who didn't understand any of this.

...

"I have a proposition... Shall we play chess?" Sona asked, showing her her chessboard, and Sona smiled.

30 minutes later...

"I won!" Subaru shouted, his voice filled with joy as he jumped for joy. For the first time, he had won, while the student council members opened their eyes and approached the table with the finished chess game, also noticing Sona with a nervous twitch in her eye.

"I should have been so focused on other things ,"  Sona thought, watching Subaru jump for joy, ignoring how everyone was staring at him.

She planned to make Subaru obey her and owe her a favor through a game where she would have a significant advantage, and this game was played through chess. While everyone watched the game unfold, some members, specifically Tsubaki and the bishops, cast magic—very powerful magic, but with an intentional flaw so that it would break upon approach. 

Sanji, not noticing, almost jumped, nearly smashing his head against the ground. When he got up, everyone, even Subaru, saw him. However, Sanji got up, embarrassed. 

"What happened to you?! Are you okay? See, Glasses, you're a demonic bureaucrat! You exploit that idiot Sanji so much he's going crazy! He's a student, not a Supreme Court employee, much less an animator at Studio Mappa!!" Unable to explain, Sanji could only blush with embarrassment while shooting death glares at Subaru for mocking them, especially when he noticed several girls giggling quietly, except for Sona.

But she also glanced at the council members, not understanding what was happening. He jumped every time he felt the spell come out, something they all shared, but Sanji was the most affected. Sona kept an eye on him, observing his jumps from the attacks, his muscular reactions, and her conversation with Subaru. It was complicated because every so often Sanji would jump, Subaru would see him and then mock him, and Sona would say that she had driven him crazy with so much work.

This should have been easy, right? But this time, it was different... First, she had to prove he knew what he was doing, and that's why the president took a different approach. She decided to propose a game of chess to him, to get him to do something with his friends, extract information from him, and so on. While he played, his companions attacked with magic that shouldn't harm him, but that anyone with the ability to sense magic would react to... But the only reaction was to mock Sanji, who couldn't help but react.

They had played together before. The first time, it was just a conversation on the first day, and then it happened for various reasons. At first, she hadn't accepted it, but then she ended up playing with Sona a few times.

For Sona, it was Christmas, even though demons didn't celebrate that day, but it was Christmas nonetheless. She always won, so today there were no problems. 

Minutes later, he realized that wasn't the case...

Everything that happened in the room caused Sona to lose focus and her sight, something she was ashamed of, something Sona was not going to concede and would ask for revenge but after an argument that in retrospect was childish he took her glasses and all the members went after him to be able to recover their glasses.

Result...failure.

The room was a mess after everyone tried to catch him...

Now they doubted that he was an ordinary human, but the problem was that no one had felt any kind of power during his pursuit.

It wasn't that he was faster; they were all faster, no doubt. They saw him move in slow motion. However, he was more agile at dodging them. Did he have spider-sense?

They were already wondering if they were the useless ones or if Subaru was just really good at dodging problems... Figuratively, not literally, problems seek him out.

After Sona recovered her glasses due to Subaru's compassion upon seeing her blind (Sona knocked him off balance and ended up on top of him in a position that dislocated the jaws of the entourage; when Sona noticed, she stood up trying to regain her dignity, smoothed her skirt and coughed into her fist; Subaru, although he tried to hide it, was worse than Sona, showing a blush).

Subaru paid no attention to the reprimand; instead, he was pleased by the change in the president's expression.

—"Alright...I'm done for today...I'll be waiting for you when trouble comes looking for me..." — said Subaru, pulling everyone out of their own thoughts.

"Goodbye," Subaru said as he grabbed his things and ran out of the office, very happy to be able to do so...

Sona opened her eyes as she realized she was leaving and had stopped...

—"Wait...and he's already gone"— Sona said, finishing with a sigh, she didn't stop him...again.

"If you'll allow me to say something, President," Saji said, seeing a nod from his president.

—"I recommend you surrender to him completely. He literally doesn't get into trouble. Trouble seeks him out. Why are we watching him? He hasn't done anything to justify it," Saji said, and all her companions nodded in agreement.

...

The members looked at each other — "Why didn't we tell him already?" — Momo said, gathering her white hair.

"We told him. But he was really distracted at the time, he only paid attention to the part where we told him to keep an eye on him," Reya explained to her Kaichou to avoid problems. The blond boy looked at his classmate with a hint of betrayal, since she had just knocked him under the bus... And the worst part is, she's right.

—"Let's not dwell on it any longer"— Sona said with a sigh, asking Tsubaki to explain to Sanji. The vice president walked to a drawer and took out a folder and a newspaper.

Sanji looked at him confused, why were they showing him this?

—"This is a newspaper article from when he reappeared"— Tsubaki paused for a moment; what was coming wasn't pleasant, but it was necessary. She pulled out a medical report. Sanji looked away; he couldn't bear to see his friend like this.

"When he appeared, some of his injuries were consistent with magic, so we believed he was tortured by a mage, so we investigated. Can you imagine a mage kidnapping people from Kaichou's territory? We simply can't leave it like this," Tsubaki said, sighing and covering the report and the pictures they took at the hospital.

"...So... This is in case the one who kidnapped him returns?" Sanji thought he understood, but he was confused when he saw the queen shake her head.

"That was the beginning, but first of all, she apparently has amnesia, so we can't question her. However, because of that, we did more research," Tsubaki said, and Sanji listened attentively, as did the others, who didn't take their eyes off their superior...

—"Her recovery was quick, very quick. We discovered that there was a renowned healer at the hospital, and that she knew Natsuki-san's mother. I sent someone from outside, and they confirmed it: she and Subaru-san have cursed energy, and it seems he might be a sorcerer. Specifically, Natsuki-san has such a strange cursed energy that it seems to be something else entirely. Perhaps it is something else, but that set off my alarm bells," Sona said, taking the floor seriously, something the older members knew, but Sanji was confused.

"Sorcerers? Cursed energy? Am I missing something?"

"You're still new to this, I don't blame you for not knowing, but an example of that is your Sacred Gear," Sona said, and Sanji drew his gauntlet. "The dragon on your arm doesn't appear anywhere in the Jewish pantheon; it's from another pantheon. Just as there is heaven, hell, and earth, there is Valhalla, Olympus, Nirvana, and other pantheons. Not only are there pantheons, but there are also different energies like Ki, Chakra, Ryatsu, and Cursed Energy. While each could be considered magic, they are actually different types of energy that can be used in various ways. Specifically, cursed energy is used by sorcerers, but in reality, all beings except gods and angels can use it, though only a small percentage of the population can." Sona explained, and Sanji could only nod and blink. He understood, but now he had many questions. For the moment, he let his king continue.

—"Because of this, I investigated further. The records of students at Jujutsu academies are classified, so I wouldn't find anything there, but I investigated in other ways... and I found nothing, nothing until nine months before Subaru's birth. Before that, there was no record of Natsuki Naoko or Natsuki Kenichi. The first time her name appeared was on a wedding certificate, and nine months later, with Subaru's birth," she said, making even the others, not just Sanji, open their eyes. This information was known only to her and Tsubaki.

"What do you mean, Madam President?"

"What I mean is, before that they didn't exist; they reinvented themselves from scratch, possibly escaping the past," Sona revealed, leaving them in silence.

—"Do you think he knows? Something like sleeper agents waiting to strike? I thought that was fiction."—

...

"I doubt it. He was affected by all of this. Besides that, and the mental state of Subaru that I learned from his psychologist, which I won't go into detail about for privacy reasons, I doubt that befriending one of the perverted trio since childhood is part of that plan," Sona explained, not wanting to admit that she had had those thoughts for a while. He was social and pleasant even after what happened.

.

"Although it's understandable that they're friends now. Issei is one of the few in the entire institution who seems capable of ignoring the elephant in the room. Along with Aika and several of us. While other students murmur about Subaru's kidnapping or look at him with pity or morbid curiosity, Hyoudou treats him with complete normalcy. They meet at lunch, read manga... they're genuine friends. Even Natsuki-san hits Hyoudou-san on the head when he gets too perverted." Sona preferred not to mention that this girl named Aika had been bothering him, and Subaru was playing along. The most perverted girl in the academy with the tragic boy of the academy... What kind of couple were they, or rather, did they have any kind of relationship at all? There were rumors, but judging by how they behaved, it was all false, and they just enjoyed teasing people...

...

—"And what about your family life?" Sona began, but choked up for a moment and waited for Tsubaki to continue.

Tsubaki hesitated for a moment before answering, a rare gesture for her.

—That's the most disconcerting thing. According to our relatives who monitor the Natsuki residence... the house is empty most of the time.

"Empty?" Yura paused, her teacup halfway to her lips. "Kenichi and Naoko fought the police for two years to get them to search for their son. They cried, they shouted, they plastered the city with posters. And now that they've got him back, they just leave him alone?"

“They communicate daily by phone, and there are constant video calls,” Tsubaki explained. “But physically, the parents stopped coming around shortly after Subaru’s second month of recovery, citing ‘urgent work reasons’ abroad. This is odd, since Naoko-san started working at the local CSI from the moment Subaru was born, and while Kenichi traveled a lot, he didn’t explain much except for his tax returns.”

"The psychological profile we drew up of them indicated codependency and an extreme attachment to their son, especially after the trauma. That they would leave him alone in a large house, fresh out of dissociative amnesia and physical rehabilitation... it doesn't make sense. It's illogical."

"Just like everything else about them before they left, we spied on them. It seemed like they knew. Once, Kenichi turned in the direction of a relative. I don't know how, but it traumatized him. And when we studied him from a distance, he had no presence, which is impossible even for a human. I mean, he's good at hiding it. In that sense, he's the most dangerous, since at least we know something about Naoko-san, that she was a sorceress... We know nothing about him." Sona placed the cup on the saucer with a soft clinking sound.

—"That family has secrets and a connection to the supernatural, without a doubt."

"Is that the reason? If he's causing problems and you're afraid he's an infiltrator, why don't you transfer him to another institution?"

"Unfortunately, I can't do it."

"He says that because he wants me to join our group..." Momo Hanakai asked.

"Partly, but also because he's a strange human... didn't you notice he dodged us? That indicates good reflexes, not to mention the cursed energy he doesn't know how to use. With enough knowledge and training, it would be something to consider," Sona asked, watching everyone grimace at what had happened minutes before. They had been completely defeated by a human, and while not everyone had given it their all, it was still a surprising feat without using any magic or energy.

—"So? You'll ask him to join the entourage?"—Sanji asked at the idea of ​​his senpai joining

...

"It's more complicated than that. That guy has too many mysteries, whether he's aware of it or not. First, he has a certain tragic reputation here, as you know. Then there's his cursed energy. His parents' affiliation is uncertain. Whether he knows it or not, he's involved, at least by descent, with some Jujutsu clan, which—"

Against his better judgment, Sanji interrupted Sona, which caused the others to look at him, either with astonishment that he interrupted her or with anger for the same reason.

—"President, just answer one question: if you knew, would you still ask him to join?"— I asked Sona. She thought for a moment, then sighed and nodded.

"Yes, I would ask him."

"So what's he waiting for? The questions about his family history are extensive, and even he doesn't know them. That would take years. I feel like you're dragging it out, like when you have a band-aid, it's better to rip it off right away," Sanji explained.

...

"You have a point there, however there's no certainty that he knows about the supernatural and we could overwhelm him with information and he would be shocked."

Sanji dismissed that with a wave of his hand, downplaying its importance. "It's a risk, sure. But dragging this out is one too. I know you investigated me before asking me to join, but between that and what we're investigating about Subaru, if he joins and finds out how much we know, it could cause a rift and he might not want anything to do with us. For better or worse, we have to be honest. Maybe keeping some secrets is okay, but hiding it and dwelling on it will only make things worse."

Sanji explained that both sides were presenting their respective problems, which surprised his companions that the new pawn could make a good argument. Did he finally put his two brain cells to work?

However, one hand was raised, with Nimura Ruruko, the other pawn of the entourage, being a girl with brown hair in long twin pigtails with a pair of green clips and eyes of the same color. She wore the academy uniform, but with green striped stockings. —"If I may speak, Kaichou. If the problem is overwhelming him with information, you could first give him contracts and have him make pacts with us so he can see more or less how everything works and then ask him." 

...

"It's... a good strategy, I have to concede," Sona admitted with a sigh.

— "Yes!"—Sanji exclaimed happily. The entourage was also happy and they talked about their possible future compatriot under the gaze of Tsubaki and Sona who gave a small smile.

"Don't sing ahead of time, I'm not going to force you, it's your decision"— Sona decided to remind him, even though she didn't want to; she knew she had to burst his bubble before it was too late

"Well, I'd like Subaru-senpai to join our group, he's kind," Ruruko said with a shy smile; she had feelings for him. 

And she wasn't the only one; there were many girls who wanted him to be their boyfriend. Not only was he above average in intelligence, but although he didn't show it much, he proved to be athletic in physical education, kind, and funny, even though his sense of humor was somewhat twisted. And what gave him even more points was that he wasn't a pervert.

But what he didn't know was that, among his group, there were other girls who were interested in him, especially...

" Just as I imagined,"  Sona thought. She always put her studies first, and as the heir to one of the 34 pillar clans of the underworld, she never thought about anything other than her job. And yet, completely outside of her future plans, it happened...

I would never understand how she fell in love...

*Tap, Tap, Tap*

Someone knocked on the door and Sanji went to open it. The others raised an eyebrow but decided to wait. A few seconds later, Sanji returned and informed the others.

— "Kaichou, the rest of the  Hentai San'nin-Gumi  trio have left the infirmary. Would you like me to bring them?"

Sona could only sigh. This was undoubtedly going to be a long day, and she gestured for Sanji to go look for them, so he headed off to find him.

"By the way, since we're talking about reincarnation, Kaichou... I've noticed movements from the Gremory Clan."

"Rias," Sona said, understanding immediately. "She believes Hyoudou possesses a Sacred Gear, doesn't she?"

—That's right. Buchou has been watching him.

Sona leaned back in her chair, interlacing her fingers. She knew the time was approaching when Rias would need to complete her entourage. Her friend had her own problems.

"She was also interested in Subaru for a while. Tell her I have no problem with Hyoudou. But Natsuki-san is someone I plan to recruit... Speaking of which, lower your guard. Issei and Subaru are together, and excessive surveillance would alarm them both. Besides, if Subaru-san is going to be part of the entourage, I have to give him space. A show of good faith, right?"

...

 In an unknown place

Caocao, the leader of the heroes faction, was holding a weapon wrapped in bandages that, judging by its shape, was a sword.

—"I'm not going to ask how you got it, but is this the sword that carries the "Chaos" Gyoro Gyoro?"

I ask a humanoid figure eight meters tall sitting on a custom-made rock throne, the being resembling some slimy monster with a single eye, no visible facial features, and eight arms sprouting from its head; it has a spherical, chubby, pink body, with short legs and three fingers

—"Well, if the question is offensive, I was one of those who helped defeat the "King of Chaos" during the Nara era. Or was it the beginning of the Heian period? Oh well, never mind. Although, to my regret, my contribution wasn't exactly helpful. But like many sorcerers, after his death, his technique remained engraved in his weapon. However, since it was so special, he cursed it so that only "worthy" relatives could use the technique within it... Even so, it's still inferior to the original."

The creature's voice was a constant mockery, but at the same time, it was clear it wasn't lying, and at this, Cao Cao frowned. "And what makes you think Lady Natsuki is worthy?" Cao Cao was annoyed. Was this whole operation a waste of time? Although he still didn't know what Lord Natsuki was capable of, except that Heracles had challenged him, and he didn't even know what happened when he woke up completely beaten. Was this Sacred Gear for real?

"Don't worry, I promise she's worthy. You don't have to worry. Aren't we all comrades? What good would it do me to lie to you... or hide anything from you?" The amorphous being spoke with a mocking, playful tone, and Cao Cao let out a "Tsk" and left. He wasn't going to be discussing his strategies with that thing.

"How cruel!" The cyclops feigned injury when Cao Cao rudely left him talking to himself. "I suppose that despite not having all the details, I have to thank you. Not only did you save Subaru-kun, but you also allowed me to continue with my plan."

While saying this in Kuo, Subaru walked towards the train without noticing a pink flying eye in the distance watching him.

 

"Normally I couldn't get that close without my son killing me, but that's another thing to thank Cao Cao for. That experiment, despite being successful, got out of hand... I wonder if anything I did affected him? Wow, I guess we really do soften and expect more from our grandchildren... Will it be useful?"— As he spoke, the flying eye noticed the black-haired female figure in the crowd, and despite not having a mouth, it smiled with its eyes.

And elsewhere, a female figure also smiled, seeing that her plan was still underway.

—"If humans are so easily manipulated, what about fallen angels? Hehehe, I suppose they really do have pigeon brains."— It was the sarcastic laughter that the three of them, the original and his puppets, gave.

End

Hello, how are you? First, Happy New Year! I apologize for the delay. I started writing this chapter on the first, around the time Re:Devil came out, and I wanted to publish it on the third, but that day I received the best news I could have as a Venezuelan.

And then I added some tweaks, including David Martinez from Cyberpunk as a cameo, and taking advantage of the fact that he's of Latin descent (though I didn't specify which part), I made him a descendant of Venezuelans. Sorry if I offended anyone, since personally I see him as more from the Dominican Republic.

I made more tweaks because I wanted to show more of the main plot and subplots, like Naomasa's, who might be the only one from MHA to appear... Maybe.

There are other anime to add lore to the Natsuki family, too. If you can even call it that.

Between the change and the change, I got to the sixth day, but I got very sick and that's why it's like this now.

It should be clarified that this fic expands on what was seen in the prologues of Re:Devil's with things that I didn't have time to include but that did happen. One way to look at it would be that the prologue of Re:Devil's is a Web Novel and Re:Satanas is a Light Novel.

That said, in a few days I'm going back to university and I'll have less free time so XD