Chapter 16 – Winning Her Over Sunday Evening, April 30th, 2056 - New Student Council Building

Seven figures were huddled together inside a chapel that was attached to the recently rebuilt student council building. They were of varying genders, body types, and ethnicities, but they share one thing in common. That one thing was currently being used in earnest as the last screams of a dying low-on-the-totem-pole gangster rang off the church's walls.

"Ah...That hit the fucking spot." The gravelly notes of a male's bass voice came from one of the figures as he stood from hunching over the dying man. The figure looked to be about 6'4" and was a massive specimen of African heritage. His rich chocolate skin was held taut by the mass of muscles beneath it. His bald head shown in the low candlelight and his red eyes glowed softly as he ran the back of his hand across his lips, getting the last of the blood off.

"Agreed, Pride. The taste of his fear was amazing~...You know what else would be amazing right now...?" A woman moans in pleasure and then purrs up to Pride as she too wipes her mouth, though she uses a wet wipe to get the blood off her fingers and face. Just because she was a vampire didn't mean she couldn't be practical. She had distinctly Russian features. Platinum blonde hair, athletic build, a figure that made hourglasses jealous, and glowing pink irises.

"What's that? You want daddy's dick again?" Pride asks, crossing his arms and showing a cocky sideways grin on his face. The blinding whites of his teeth and fangs contrasting well to the darkness of his skin.

"Cut it out, Lust. You promised not to fuck in front of us anymore...And no one wants to see that...thing, Pride." A wisp of a man says bluntly as he ignores the blood on his face and hands as well as the others immediately around him. He proceeded to rifle through the dead man's pockets as if he owns them. His long face, gaunt cheeks, and pale almost sickly skin, make his distinctly European features look very rat like, and his two buck teeth do nothing to stop the image.

"Greedy prick," Pride curses and scowls at the thin, feeble man, "This is why we can't take you anywhere."

"Enough." A single word, simple and even soft in its tone, yet all those present feel its command and it sends a chill down each of their spines. The six sins stand and lower their heads respectfully to their leader. This woman...no...this monster has transcended the 7 deadly sins and is either called "President" or "Sir." There are no other options. No one fucks with her...at least not since she ripped the head off of the last Envy and drank him dry 3 years ago. The Seven had been reduced to The Six and each of them went pale at the thought of angering their master like their erstwhile comrade.

Spoiler :

The Student Council President

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"I have found a prospect for our new seventh." The President says, her red eyes glowing brightly in the darkroom. The few candle flames dance in the reflection from her silver hair. "You are tasked with bringing him to me before school starts tomorrow. He is hiding something that might be useful to us in our goals." Her eyes sweep The Six standing in deference before her.

"Do well and I will bring another snack for our next meeting...do poorly..." She smiles sweetly, her eyes showing danger hidden just beyond the beautiful outer appearance. "Well...make sure you do not do poorly." She finishes and The Six in front of her each gulp and nod as one.

"Good. See it done." At this, she throws a folder onto the alter next to her and turns to quickly walk out of the room.

The vampires all heave large sighs after The President leaves. Pride quickly makes his way over to the folder and opens it up to skim through the details.

"So? Who is the poor bastard that got on her radar?" Lust asks in her sultry voice.

"Some dweeb named Asuda Kuronobu." He says with a scowl down at the image contained inside the folder. "Looks like it will be an easy assignment this time."

* | * | *

Sunday Evening, April 30th, 2056 - Kitinara Estate

"Is there somewhere we can go to talk?" I ask her softly, "I have something important to discuss with you."

Azuza stares at me intently for several seconds, searching my face for something, before sighing and nodding once.

"Follow me." She says in a slightly dejected tone.

Hime leads me to another private chamber, this one attached to her personal quarters.

"The fox is outta the bag, huh?" She asks with a sigh as she flops down on a loveseat sofa located in the room. I thought of taking one of the two wing-backed chairs across from her but changed my mind. What comes next requires boldness.

"Hmm?" I hum in question. I have been so focused on my thoughts that I haven't paid attention to anything she said on the way here or since we entered.

'Not a great way to start, Zeneff...Come on, dude. Game face. Get your head outta your ass.'

"Me being a Goddess..." Azuza says softly, looking down at her hands in obvious nervousness.

"Oh, that? I've known about that for a while...or at least Zeneff did." I answer, making my decision and shrugging to the beautiful fox woman in front of me.

'If this is going to work, absolute honesty was going to be needed. I know, I know. I'm a hypocrite...but...she fucking deserves the truth, okay? Samantha, Tiamat, and Xerith already know and I am aware Hagiwara is starting to catch on. I plan to tell all my wives just before we get married anyway. That was always the plan, actually...I just didn't think it would happen so soon...or with so many women... What is one more person knowing my deepest, darkest secret? ...Not just someone...Hime.'

"You have!?" She jumps from her seat, startling me out of my thoughts again, and stares at me hard. Her 9 tails twitch about in agitation and start glowing golden. Her dazzling amethyst eyes bore into my red ones before she blinks and her head cocks to the side in confusion. "Zeneff...has? What do you-"

I interrupt her by standing and facing her directly. I am a couple of inches taller than her and this helps calm my speeding heart rate. When I stare down at her, she looks tired, dejected, and cautious, while also appearing extremely vulnerable. I could easily take advantage of this situation in many, many ways, but I know how I want to proceed. How I need to proceed for her.

'Moment of truth...'

I bring my hand to my heart and, in one fluid motion, pull a string of golden white essence out of my chest, making a piece of my divine soul manifest on the mortal plane. This is something I am able to do now as a God, and I woke with knowledge of what it is, how it works, and how to do it. As for what it does...well...

*Gasp* "Zeneff! Are you crazy? If I took that now, I would have complete control of you!" Hime yells at me and tries to back further away, but I swiftly reach out and grab her arm with the hand not currently holding my Soul Tether.

'Yeah...Soul and Divine Magic are indeed scary AF. A combination of the two? Fagitaboutit.'

I move my hand slowly and purposely down her perfect arm and take her hand in mine when I reach it. I pull her closer to me, she is very pliant as she is still in shock, and, when she is mere inches in front of my face, I speak.

"Azuza Tosuka Keiko Yaemika Kitinara," I speak her true name and her skin vibrates as her very soul resonates with my words. "I trust you implicitly. More than I have any right to. More than my paranoid brain wishes to admit. In my heart...in my soul...I know I can trust you...I take a great risk today..." Here I pause and give a nervous laugh before I bring the hand that holds my Soul Tether to hers. I close her fist around the immaterial thread and say, "...All I can ask is that you judge me fairly. Read my soul, all of my soul. Read it from start to finish, and when you are done, give me the answer I seek...My very existence is now in your hands..."

After I finish, I hold her closed fist in my own hands for several seconds, not breaking eye contact with her. I eventually nod slowly and, with my knees shaking in terror, I take a step back. Then another. Then unceremoniously flop down on the sofa behind me, feeling 100 years older and resigning myself to my fate.

'This may be the dumbest thing I have ever done in either of my lives. Even Zeneff was never this stupid, and he practically groomed the hero to kill him in the original story...'

The Kitsune Goddess does nothing but stare at me for several long minutes. Eventually, she sighs and looks down at her closed fist, still holding my Soul Tether.

"I have no idea what possessed you to do this, Zeneff...But I will do as you asked me..." She says with resignation, before finishing her thought softly, "I could never hurt you, we both know that."

'You could never hurt Zeneff. Not me. We will see how long that leash is soon...'

She sits down next to me on the sofa and stares at me once more, before opening her palm and looking down on my Soul Tether with blue glowing eyes.

What I feel at that moment is hard to explain. It is like I am standing in the middle of a crowded mall naked with all of my secrets set out like an art exhibit. Every hidden desire, buried feeling, and unfiltered thought is laid bare to the Kitsune and it is beyond uncomfortable to sit through.

I endure. For over an hour, I sit in silence as she reads through my very being. All that I am and all that I could be is seen by her. Any faults I have stand out like mountains on a flat plane. She reads me in silence, but she can't help but gasp or make other shocked noises more than a few times during the ordeal.

At long last, she closes her eyes and closes her fist around my Soul Tether again. I sit up from my relaxed, as much as I could be anyway, position and stare at her, waiting for a verdict. She opens her mouth to speak, then closes it. Then opens it again, only to squeak out an, "I..." before closing it again. She takes a deep breath and then exhales as she opens her eyes to stare hard at me.

"You are not my Zeneff."

"No, I am not."

"But...you are a better version of him. Everything he was... plus some good and minus most of the bad."

"More or less."

"You merged with him completely?"

"As far as I can tell. I am still myself, though."

"Your name is Mark?"

"I left that name behind in my last life."

"Yes...You have suffered through much...more than I would have thought a non-magical person could."

"We all have baggage."

"You know this is crazy, right? This shouldn't be possible."

"The proof is right there. No one can lie through that, not even us Gods."

"You are a child pretending to be a God."

"I am both 18 and over 60 million years old."

"I...I have no idea what happens next."

"Your answer?"

"You can't seriously expect-"

"I do."

She again stares at me for a long time. Her eyes and lips quivering with suppressed emotions. A war is being fought in her head and I have no idea who is winning.

"You know...If he would have asked me..."

"You would have said yes."

"...And if you would have asked me before all this..."

"...You would have said yes."

"But it is different now. You are different. How can you expect the same answer?"

I smile at her, though I feel tears of resignation stinging the corners of my eyes. "Because I trust in you, Hime. Even if they were originally Zeneff's memories, they are mine now. Everything he felt and everything you went through...they are all mine now...And that is why I believe in you. You have never given me a reason not to."

"But why do you want this? I'm sorry Zen, but this is too much..."

"...Because...You are the first one...for both Zeneff and Mark...and the only one as of now..."

"One what?" She demands with tears leaking from her eyes.

"You know what," I answer, tears dripping from mine as well.

"Then, say it." She commands through clenched teeth.

"I love you," I say softly and clearly.

In a flash, Hime is on top of me. She tackles me into the floor, destroying the sofa in the process. One hand holds my shoulder pinned to the ground, claws extended, the other still holds my Soul Tether closely to her chest. She is straddling me, but not at all in a pleasant way. Her teeth are bared and golden energy spikes wildly from and around her tails. Where the energy strikes matter seems to dissolve.

I wait for my end to come.

'Well...This was a dumb way to die...But at least it happened on my own terms...Figures that my first confession leads to my death...Almost poetic in a sense-'

"Baka..."

'Hmm? Oh, fun! I get to die while I am being insulted by an anime babe...All things considered, not a bad way to go!'

"Why are you such a fucking idiot! And why the hell did it take you two lives to confess! You already have 7 fiances, you fucking man whore! One is my own daughter!!! And, what, you expect me to just accept this bull shit!?! You are a fucking moron! Idiot! Bakayarou! Dolt!" Azuza accents each of these with a hit to my body. With her claws extended, it is a miracle I am not shredded to pieces. Divine Claws are no joke.

Tears pour freely from her eyes and she yells and screams at me for at least 10 minutes. Towards the end, her voice is hoarse and I have several small cuts on my torso leaking blood from her claws' glancing blows.

'These will add to my bruises nicely! Maybe she is just tenderizing me before she eats me?'

I say nothing and just smile up at her through my own tears. Look, I never said I was a badass or all-knowing. I have no idea what to do in this situation. The only thing I can think to do right now is to smile at the beautiful Goddess in front of me, meteoric punches be damned.

Hime stares down at me with a savage, teeth-bared snarl as she wipes her tears away violently on her sleave.

"You want an answer, Zeneff? Fine! I'll fucking give you an answer."

Here, she moves her fist back to her own chest and does something so crazy and so fast that my brain cannot even process it. My Godly brain temporarily died in this moment. What does she do that is so unbelievably remarkable?

She pulls her own fucking Soul Tether out from her chest, it is glowing with a golden and purple light, and brings it to mine in her other hand. Then, faster than normal eyes can perceive, ties the two Soul Tethers in a fucking knot. Like, bunny ears and everything.

'Um...Can you...even do that!?!'

I suddenly feel different and...bloated? Like I drank a lake and it is looking for a place to explode out of my body...only it doesn't. Instead of the substance releasing violently from every available orifice, the container, my soul, seems to expand to accommodate the new substance. I realize quickly what it is as I suddenly understand illusions and soul magic to a Godly extent.

"Did...did you just combine our portfolios?" I ask in astonishment, looking at the woman smiling down victoriously at me.

"Yup." She says, popping the 'P.' "You wanted an answer? Well, Zeneff, here it is. Yes. But I will not just be a wife in your harem, I will be your Godly Partner. We just created a fucking pantheon, Zeneff. Now my divine shit is your divine shit, and vice versa. We will be together from now on and nothing and no one can truly separate us. We share portfolios and worshipers. You gained a portion of my mana pool that I have been cultivating via a secret art for over 8 thousand years, and I gained a portion of your dragonly power that you cultivated over millions of years. Don't worry, we are both now bound to Tiamat, but this way, my people can still be bound to me; to us. How's that for a fucking answer, huh?"

I...am at a loss. I just wanted a girlfriend...now I have...whatever this is. A pantheon? Really? This...

...

...

...

'Nah. I just won't think about it. It will be fine, I am sure. Everything is probably just fine. Nice big happy family!...'

Resigning myself to my fate, I smile up at her and say, "Perfect."

Then I reach up and pull her head down to mine in a passionate kiss. We did technically just get married.