The kitchen stood still in the pre-dawn quiet, a sanctuary before the chaos of the day. A perfect laboratory for a man with fresh powers and limited options.
I stared at the unlit gas stove, contemplating the strange knowledge now embedded in my mind. Twenty-four hours since my Gacha pull, and I still hadn't fully explored what I'd gained. The house was silent. Natalia wouldn't be up for another thirty minutes.
"Time for a field test," I whispered.
I stretched my hand toward the burner, palm up, and focused on the new mental pathway I could feel inside my mind. It was like remembering how to ride a bike—if that bike was made of fire and you'd never actually ridden one before.
Ember.
A small flame sprang to life just above my index finger, dancing in the kitchen's dim light. The heat caressed my skin without burning, responding to my will like an extension of my body. I guided my finger to the stove burner and watched as the gas caught, blue flames spreading in a perfect circle.
I extinguished my finger-flame with a thought, the sensation like closing a mental faucet.
"Convenient," I murmured. "But let's see what Freezing Breath can really do."
I opened the refrigerator, pulling out an empty ice cube tray I'd prepared last night. Setting it on the counter, I filled it with water from the tap and took a centering breath. The knowledge flowed through me—how to channel the cold, how to control its intensity, how to direct the flow.
Freezing Breath.
A stream of crystallized air flowed from my lips, enveloping the tray. Water transformed to ice in seconds, crackling as it expanded. The kitchen temperature dropped noticeably, my breath fogging in the suddenly frigid air.
I ran my finger over the ice cubes, smooth and solid. "Instant freezing. Useful."
My System status screen materialized before me, confirming what I already knew:
Name: Satori Watanabe
Title: Fat Fuck
Level: 1
Class: [NONE]
Strength: D-207
Dexterity: F-192
Agility: F-187
Endurance: D-263
Magic: F-31
Active Abilities (2/2):
[EMBER]
[FREEZING BREATH]
Passive Abilities (0/4):
Traits:
[CHARMING EYES]
Three weeks of punishing workouts had pushed two attributes to D-Rank. Still pathetic by this world's standards, but a legitimate improvement. The gacha pulls had filled my ability slots. I was no longer a true Zero—I just had to keep that fact hidden.
I opened the inventory screen next, my gaze lingering on the small bottle of Aphrodite's Virility Pills. A tool for another time.
The quiet sound of a door opening down the hall snapped me back to reality. Natalia was up early. I quickly closed my System screens and turned to the coffee maker, adopting a casual stance as I measured grounds into the filter.
Footsteps approached, and I kept my back turned, listening to the rhythm of her movements. The shuffling gait told me she wasn't fully awake yet. Perfect timing.
"Morning," I said without turning, keeping my voice neutral.
A grunt was her only response as she entered the kitchen. I heard the scrape of a chair against the floor, followed by the soft thud of her dropping into it. Only then did I turn around, coffee pot in hand, and look directly at her.
===
Natalia clutched her phone, scrolling through social media without registering anything on screen. Her brain refused to function properly before caffeine. She'd woken earlier than usual from a strange dream—something about ice and purple flames dancing together—and couldn't fall back asleep.
She expected the usual morning routine: ignore Satori, make coffee, retreat to her room.
What she didn't expect was to find him already in the kitchen, moving with a strange new confidence as he prepared coffee. His greeting barely registered as she slumped into a chair, still half-asleep.
Then he turned.
"Want some?" he asked, holding up the coffee pot.
Natalia opened her mouth for her usual dismissive response, but the words died in her throat. She found herself staring at Satori's eyes. Had they always been that shade? The color seemed richer somehow, more vibrant, with an unexpected clarity that held her gaze for a heartbeat too long.
She blinked, disturbed by her own reaction.
"What are you staring at?" she snapped.
"Just asking if you want coffee." He shrugged, unfazed by her tone.
Natalia frowned. "Whatever," she muttered, sliding her mug across the table. "Black."
She dropped her gaze to her phone, unsettled by the strange flutter in her stomach. It was probably just hunger. Or disgust. Definitely disgust.
===
I poured Natalia's coffee, observing her from the corner of my eye. The brief moment of confusion on her face told me everything I needed to know. Charming Eyes was working.
"Black, right?" I asked. The question was a simple piece of bait, designed to make her look up one more time.
"I literally just said that," she snapped, but she glanced up reflexively.
I slid the mug toward her, then leaned against the counter with my own coffee.
"Got a big day planned?" I asked, keeping my tone casual. This was the first real conversation starter I'd offered since my arrival in this world.
Natalia's eyebrows shot up, surprise momentarily overriding her default scowl. "Why do you care?"
"Just making conversation." I shrugged, sipping my coffee. "Figured we could at least be civil."
"Civil," she repeated, as if testing a foreign word. "That's new for you."
I allowed a small smile. "Lot of things are new for me lately."
She narrowed her eyes, studying me with suspicion. I could almost see the gears turning in her head, trying to reconcile the slob she'd known with the increasingly unfamiliar person standing before her.
"You look different," she finally said.
"The workouts are helping," I offered.
Natalia sipped her coffee, then frowned slightly. "This is... good."
"Thanks."
"Don't get used to it," she added quickly. "I just meant it's not terrible."
"Such high praise."
The kitchen lapsed into silence again, but the quality had changed. It was a thoughtful silence now, both of us recalibrating our understanding of the other. The morning sun began to stream through the windows, catching in Natalia's purple hair, transforming it into a halo of lavender and magenta.
Beautiful, in an objective sense.
"I should get ready," Natalia said abruptly, standing up. She hesitated, then added, "Thanks for the coffee."
The simple courtesy felt monumental in the context of our relationship. I nodded, watching her retreat from the kitchen, coffee mug in hand.
When she was gone, I finished my coffee and went to the refrigerator, opening the freezer to examine my earlier handiwork. The ice cubes were perfect—clear and solid. I picked one up, rolling it between my fingers, enjoying the cold bite against my skin.
Fire in one hand, ice in the other. And best of all, no one in this world knew. Not the Academy administration, not the Hunter's Association, and certainly not my contemptuous stepsister.
I was a ghost with teeth. A Zero with an arsenal.
The entrance exam was still over a month away, but my clock was ticking faster. Five weeks to seduce the purple princess. A daunting task for anyone, but for a former Zero? Nearly impossible.
Nearly. But I'd never been interested in fair fights.