The Hero Who Returned Remains the Strongest in the Modern World Chapter 8

Next day, morning.

I walked towards school while feeling blues.

"I made Abeno-senpai hate me…"

A mixer with shrine maidens is my 3rd greatest goal in life.

Although yesterday I was approaching it at realistic pace now it feels like it's further than the moon.

I was walking while looking towards the sky so my tears won't fall… And I heard a cat meowing.

I saw a kitten left behind in a cardboard and was crying from hunger.

"This'll do."

Today's lunch is sweetened bun and 500 ml milk pack.

Having just sweetened bun will make the insides of my mouth sugary, but there's no other way.

I took out the milk pack and put it close to the meowing kitten.

Before long the kitten got close to the milk pack and began drinking it.

At that time.

"Good morning. Morishitkun."

"Ah… Hello, Abeno-senpai."

"I'm sorry for yesterday, okay? I didn't think that you were such an amazing being… Frankly, I looked down upon you."

It seems she saw me feeding the kitten.

However, calling me an amazing being is exaggerating and somehow it's embarrassing.

"No, I'm sorry actually. I think I might've overdid it a bit too much…"

"Um, truly."

Abeno-senpai eyelashes were drooping.

Certainly the mail it made the other party mad… I was seriously reflecting on it.

"No, I'm truly sorry."

"So, what are your intentions…?"

"I would like to know… more about Senpai. I sincerely want to get close with Senpai. I want to be… your friend."

"Why go so far?"

"There's no person like Senpai… around me."

You're a key person for the shrine maiden mixer, after all.

Besides, meeting a beautiful girl like you… It's probably my last chance in my life.

"Can I make sure there is no falsehood in your words?"

The same time she said that Senpai grabbed my head with her hands.

And then rubbed her forehead against mine.

Rather, our noses tips were touching, and I feel a little bit more and an accident like kiss will occur.

Uhaa… Senpai breaths were hitting my lips… I am… super… happy.

【Skill：Mind Barrier（Minimum）has ――not activated】

Why did a skill at this time pop up?

And then released my face and senpai laughed in astonishment.

"I see. You really just want to be friends with me."

"Is that not what I've been telling you?"

For a moment senpai was contemplating and asked me seriously.

"You… are you a natural?"

"That's right."

Now that I remember, the princess and the great magician girl told me often that I was a natural airhead. (TN: 天然 she's asking him if his power is innate as in he was born with it, but he confused it for natural airhead. Because the kanji has primary meaning as natural, but it's also a abbr for natural airhead.)

Also the younger sister often called me a pervert. (TN: He's talking about the ones in the previous world.)

Well, senpai slightly nodded and said.

"I understand. I'll consider you positively."

"What does that mean?"

"First, me and you are equal in status. That's obvious if you say you want to be friends."

Abeno-senpai who's at the top of the school caste… She's going to come down to my position?

This person said that I was bitch bastard yesterday, but in truth she's a really nice person.

"Today, there's going to be a trial period. If we hit off pretty well… How about starting from mail friends? And once we become mail friends, I'll tell you one of my secrets. Probably it will be necessary this time."

"I look forward to it!"

It's a very welcoming proposal.

I thought she would've wanted to end it already but I can say that it's a godsend.

Rather, what kind of secret?

"From now on, I'm going to make contact with you as the plain me. The rule is simple, okay. If you ruin my mood today then it's over. Naturally, if I ruin your mood then it's fine to cut me loose instead. Well then, have a fair day, Morishitkun."

Senpai headed to school with her hands behind her back.

And then I took a guts pose on that spot trying to endure my screams.

I don't understand it a bit… but the mixer which was further than the moon… It was now approaching in front of me!

Side: Abeno Kaguya

I thought about it all night and the conclusion is to apologize obediently.

Sending something like shikigami on your first meeting with a fellow superhero is equal to a declaration of war.

And, he turned out to be higher-ranked superhero than me.

Then, it's better to apologize as soon as possible.

That's why I waited for him at the school route.

"Good morning. Morishitkun."

"Ah… Hello, Abeno-senpai."

"I'm sorry for yesterday, okay? I didn't think that you were such an amazing being… Frankly, I looked down upon you."

"No, I'm sorry actually. I think I might've overdid it a bit too much…"

"Um, truly."

The scouting shikigami were destroyed even without sending information to the practitioner.

You can't even laugh at it.

It's a feat that can't be done unless there was no difference of power between children and adults… And yet that was done by somebody in the same generation as me…

I laid my lashes down pathetically remembering that I called myself a prodigy.

"No, I'm truly sorry."

"So, what are your intentions…?"

Whether he's hostile or not, and if he is hostile then there isn't room for negotiations.

Since this incident is my fault and if negotiations are possible I can prepare souvenirs.

"I would like to know… more about Senpai. I sincerely want to get close with Senpai. I want to be… your friend."

What is this person talking about all of a sudden.

My head went into a panic from his indecipherable actions.

"Why go so far?"

"There's no person like Senpai… around me."

I thought for a bit and then asked Morishitkun.

"Can I make sure that there is no falsehood in your words?"

The technique I'll do is the most difficult technique mind reading.

It's like a lie detector where it confirms whether the previous words were lies or not.

I gripped his head with my hands and overlapped my forehead with his.

And then I read his heart and opened my eyes in surprise.

"I see. You really just want to be friends with me."

"Is that not what I've been telling you?"

I am so surprised, I can't say anything.

The success rate of this technique is extremely low.

Even on normal humans my technique doesn't work properly.

It should be even less in his case.

But, it's a different story if he himself accepts it.

That's why I was able to read his heart.

But, you have to intentionally take away the minimum mental barrier that normal people have.

However, once you've taken the mental barrier then you can't do other mind controlling techniques.

I had half-joking intentions of doing it so I never thought that it would actually go through.

Because, I didn't think he would really want to be friends… There's no reason for a superhero user to approach me who's from the Abeno family.

But, he magnificently responded.

I don't know why he would go so far in our first meeting…

And, I sighed.

Yesterday, the first time I saw him… I thought he was a natural superuser.

He activated abilities without any training or belong to any organization… A wandering person who knows nothing of beneath the world.

Yesterday, from him flicking my shikigami I've abandoned the possibility of him being a wanderer.

Unexpectedly, this person might be an actual superhero.

And then, he sincerely wanted to be friends with me because I am the first superhero he met?

"You… are you a natural?"

"That's right."

As I thought it was.

Saying it frankly I can understand those feelings.

I who am living in the darkness of the world, I am trying not to be deeply involved with normal humans.

That's why I'm keeping distance from everyone in school, and I'm being called like a refined lady but… something like that is not true.

I just simply, parting is… Repeating something like that again is scary.

I'm afraid of repeating the same event where my middle school friend Misaki-chan got taken as a hostage and got killed.

Perhaps, no, I'm certain that Morishitkun also had a similar experience like me.

That's why he has no friends he can trust.

That's why he wants friends.

I fully understand the pain and feelings of wanting to have friends of equal status.

Because, I'm like that as well.

Me being alone, eating by myself, going home by myself… is painful.

I know people who have superpowers, but I have no friends.

Most of the superpower users belong to a different organization, and I can't let relax because my cousins and siblings are embroiled in a family inheritance dispute.

So I gave up on something like trying to make friends.

Or so… I thought.

Then what about this person who's a natural superhero without connections to organizations?

"I understand. I'll consider you positively."

"What does that mean?"

"First, me and you are equal in status. That's obvious if you say you want to be friends."

It's clearly obvious that he's a cut above me.

It might not be awkward to call ourselves friends in this situation.

"That's no problem."

For him to be my friend he would need to know a bit more about me.

I should still do an investigation of whether he's trustworthy to be entrusted with my secret.

"I understand."

Chapter end

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