Constant Variable (Senku x Reader)

15: The Culmination of Two Million Years

"I'll leave the village for now," Gen informed all of you, his lips still curled into a small smirk from Ginro's victory at the Grand Bout earlier on. "You wouldn't want to have to deal with an outsider who isn't even a contestant, right, Kinro-chan the guard?"

Said blonde stiffened up at the mentalist's remark, understanding the double meaning behind those words while the grin on Gen's lips widened in amusement before turning his attention to both you and Senku, "We can talk about your end of our deal after you've captured the village, Senku-chan and (Name)-chan."

"Sure," The green-haired scientist answered without a beat, not bothering to turn around to look at the other teen.

Meanwhile, you lifted your hand in a wave and said with a small smile, "We'll see you later, Gen!"

The bi-coloured teen nodded his head in acknowledgement, light blue softening slightly before he turned on his heels and headed out of the village towards the science shed.

"Chrome..." Ruri said breathlessly, relieved that said brunette's injuries weren't that severe while her heart was brimming with joy at his claimed victory over the strongest man in the village.

"Ruri-ch—" The blonde snapped out of her thoughts and looked at Ginro, who had called her name, standing outside near the hut with his back facing her. "Priestess, you're going to have to marry the winner, huh?"

"Don't worry," Ginro whispered as he turned his head towards her and grinned," Now it's just up to me or Senku to give up the victory. The winner is going to be Chrome. I can tell, you know. You really wanted Chrome to win, didn't you?"

Ruri couldn't reply, her face sporting a troubled look as she gazed down at said person who was currently being teased by Senku.

Meanwhile, said scientist was stepping on Chrome while praising him for his quick thinking during his fight with Magma. "Good job figuring out the difference between convex and concave, Chrome."

"Ow, ow, ow!" The brown-haired teen cried out, but you knew Senku's action didn't hurt if the large grin on his face was anything to go by.

You, on the other hand, was attempting to fight the grin that was threatening to break out on your lips as you tried to pull your green-haired friend away from Chrome. "Senku, that's enough! I think Chrome has gotten enough beating for today!"

Seeing this, Ruri made up her mind as she finally answered Ginro's question from before; a small, peaceful smile painting her lips, "No, as the priestess, I have no such thoughts. I'm only a servant of the gods. I will marry the winner of the Grand Bout."

There was a moment of confusion as Ginro tilted his head to the side while processing the blonde's words. "Really? Huh, I always thought...Wait a second...Does that means you don't really care who wins?!"

It was Ruri's turn to be puzzled as she replied hesitantly, "Huh? Well...That's right."

Meanwhile, Jasper, who overheard the conversation between the two, stared at Ginro with a deadpan expression and thought to himself, 'Try to read between the lines a little, Ginro. What else is Ruri-sama supposed to say?'

As the priestess' words slowly sank in, an idea began to form in the blonde's head as Jasper announced the fighters for the next round. "Match two of the semi-finals will begin shortly. Contestants, get ready."

Hearing that, Senku finally stopped teasing Chrome and got ready for his fight against Ginro. However, just as he was about to enter the arena, he was stopped by tiny fingers latching onto his hand and tugging.

Glancing down at where your fingers were wrapped around his hand, the scientist raised a questioning brow before shifting his gaze to meet yours, "What are you doing? The next round's about to start."