4 I ain't human? what am I? <<Edited>>

"Cooperatively, I believe we are off to an auspicious start," Benihime remarked, her piercing gaze fixed upon Sato. Her eyes radiated an intense crimson glow, yet this time, Sato found himself unaffected by any trepidation. He maintained his composure and responded in a composed manner, "My name is Sato Inugami."

A murmur instantaneously reverberated through the room, emanating from the women who were seated around them. Sato observed their perplexed expressions as they directed their inquisitive gazes toward him.

The name he had just uttered seemed to have piqued their curiosity, sparking a multitude of questions within their minds. Isla, with a mixture of disdain and bewilderment, voiced her query, her head tilting to the side in a disapproving manner. "What manner of name is that?"

Sato, feeling slightly bemused, couldn't fathom why they found his name peculiar. In truth, "Sato Inugami" was an exceedingly common name in Japan, recognized by many. 

He pondered silently, "What is the meaning behind their reactions? Are they truly serious?" His gaze wandered around the room, scrutinizing their faces. Amidst the sea of confusion, only Benihime's countenance remained tranquil, devoid of any perplexity.

A fleeting smile graced Benihime's lips as she gracefully rose from her seat, her regal attire billowing around her like ethereal tendrils as the gentle breeze whisked by. 

With a purposeful stride, she approached Sato, her presence commanding attention. She reached him, her hand delicately tilting his jaw upward, her eyes locking with his in a magnetic gaze. A mischievous smirk played upon her lips as she inquired, "Sato? That is quite an unusual name. Pray tell, from whence do you hail?"

Internally, Sato's mind erupted in a whirlwind of confusion. "What on earth should I say?" he shouted inwardly, his panic threatening to overwhelm him. Collecting himself in a fleeting moment, he mustered a stoic expression and, with a firm resolve, replied, "From a distant land."

Benihime, taken aback by his enigmatic response, released her grip on his jaw, taking a step back to create a subtle distance between them. A flicker of surprise danced across her features as she sought further clarification. "A distant land?" she echoed, her voice tinged with curiosity and intrigue.

Benihime's expression shifted subtly, a hint of concern crossing her features as she absorbed Sato's response. "I see... You must surely possess some recollection of your origins," she murmured softly, her voice laced with a touch of disappointment.

Sato, his frustration mounting, vigorously shook his head in agreement with her inquiry. "No, I don't. I was... I can't remember," he groaned, his hands instinctively finding their way to his temples as he attempted to coax elusive memories to the surface. 

"I'm sorry, I truly don't know. All I recall is awakening in a dense, enigmatic forest," he confessed, his voice tinged with a hint of desperation.

<<Notice, Skill acquired: Deceit>>

Sato's inner thoughts resounded with an uneasy laugh. "That is certainly not a skill I desire," he mused silently, grappling with the implications of his newfound ability.

Suddenly, an outburst interrupted the tension-laden air. Hina, a young woman donned in a striking black ensemble with subtle accents of white, emerged from the group. Her long, vibrant purple hair cascaded down her back, and in her hands, she brandished two formidable blades, each possessing a distinctive circular motif at their tips.

"You bastard!" Hina's voice pierced the air, laden with accusation. Her gaze burned with intensity, fixed unwaveringly upon Sato.

Hina was standing behind Sato, with her body enveloped in her magic power. She was brimming with anger as she slowly stretched out her blade, which was partially taking some of her magic to embody itself.

Sato turned to look at her before slowly raising his two hands to the sky. "Wow, calm down," he voiced out.

"Who the hell do you think you are? I saw you take on a grim reaper... So stop with the lies and die already!" Hina yelled, tightening her grip on her double blade, which came pouring with a full force of dark energy packed into it.

Sato was a bit startled. "W-what do you mean lies? I really don't remember. Are you sure it was me you saw... It was pretty dark, you know–"

Hina immediately dashed toward him, so fast that some of the females in the room didn't see her move. The whole place came flowing with a huge force of wind when Hina stopped in front of Sato with one of her blades aimed at his neck.

Sato squeaked, pulling his head backward as he felt the tip of the blade on his neck. 'Shit, she was really trying to kill me!'.

Benihime sighed before walking toward Hina and using her fingers to push the blade down away from Sato's neck. "Learn to control that anger of yours, Hina. Calm yourself," Benihime uttered before changing her focus back to Sato.

"I'm sorry, that was irrational, but this monkey is too shady to just believe everything he says," Hina dispatched her blades and gave Sato a deathly gaze.

Benihime smiled. "You don't need to worry about it. I'm sure we can clear this up."

Sato stood behind Benihime, giving out a relieved sigh. 'I thought I was a goner, even though I did see her coming... still, damn.'

"She's obviously weaker than I am, but fighting back will only make things worse." Sato accidentally thought aloud.

Benihime changed her focus back to Sato. "And we are to believe that you are telling the truth?" she asked.

"Of course," Sato replied instantly. 'Damn it, how the hell did I get into this mess?'.

"Akari, please do your thing," Benihime said before walking over to the wood to sit down.

A girl with long black hair, wearing a kimono complemented with the hand fan she was holding, stepped forward. Akari used the fan to cover the lower part of her face before moving toward Sato.

She stared at him for a bit and smiled. "You don't have to be so nervous," she whispered to Sato.

"Yeah-Yeah... Of course," Sato stammered as he tried to give a straight response.

Akari giggled. "I'll begin now," she voiced out, stretching out her right hand for a sparkling white magic orb to appear. It hovered above her hand, giving a mysterious vibe.

'What is that?' Sato thought to himself.

<<Notice, that is an ancient relic called The Eyes of the Ancient. It's a used to view into hearts people and also forelook possibilities about certain effects.>>

'Tch! You speak now? You were quiet for so long that I thought you powered off or something.'

<<Notice, I was running analysis on the grim reaper you have stored in your dimensional space.>>

'My dimension what?'

"Please place your right hand on the orb," Akari said, drawing Sato's attention back to her. "Oh, okay... Here I go, then," Sato muttered.

He carefully placed his hands on the orb, and the light began to shine inside the room. "That would be enough," Akari uttered, pulling the orb away from Sato and placing her own hands on it.

Everyone waited in their spot quietly, watching as Akari was meditating. Even Sato could feel the seriousness in the atmosphere. Akari suddenly gasped, opening her eyes and looking at the orb with confusion.

"What's wrong?" Isla asked.

"Is he our enemy? I'll gladly cut him down if he is," Hina also asked.

'Damn it, what's with this girl and killing me!' Sato yelled inward. 'That aside, why is she so dramatic all of a sudden?' He changed his view back at Akari.

"Everybody settle, don't just throw questions at her," Benihime sighed. "Akari, what did you see?"

Akari spread her fans and covered the lower part of her face with it before giving a response. "The orb couldn't get a read on him. His entire existence is unknown to this world."

They all gasped and didn't think twice before standing to their feet to pull out their weapons.

"Normally, you'd have to belong to a race or species, either you're a demi-human, human, elf, Valkyrie, God, dwarf, something, at least one of any categories. It's impossible to not belong to any. My!!!" Hina yelled, trying to convince herself that what Akari said was a mistake.

"I'm afraid to tell but he isn't. His race is unknown, and although he looks human, he isn't. I've never seen something like this before, no crystal on his forehead and no animal features also." Akari muttered as she stared at Sato.

Sato was just as confused as the rest. He looked around, and their eyes went from confused to terrified.

"I'm not human?" Sato walked over to Akari and held her arms tightly. "I didn't quite catch that, did you say I'm not human?" He uttered looking her in the eyes as he pulled closer.

. . . . . . .

A/N

Author's note: I would really appreciate your comments and support of this novel with your power stones. Your active comments would motivate me to write more chapters