The villain had been defeated, and Allen walked toward Midoriya as his Spider-Man suit faded away.
"Everything happened so fast."
As a result, Allen hadn't had time to process it fully.
....
*Flashback – Allen's POV*
Just when I thought I'd finally have a moment to plan my next steps, someone in danger appeared.
Before I could even think it through, I had already pulled another template from my inventory... something that surprised me.
Why?
Why was my first instinct to help that person?
Even though I've done similar things before, I never do it out of pure goodness, not out of justice, not out of instinct. I do it because I hate it when someone abuses their power to hurt people who have none.
What's the difference?
Well, I believe dying in battle is honorable. I don't consider a warrior who kills his enemies a monster. Even if someone chooses to be evil, I don't usually condemn them. My own hands are soaked in blood, so judging others for theirs would be hypocritical.
Yet, the moment I heard someone in danger, my impulse was to run toward it. And in that moment, I realized the templates were not as simple as they seemed.
By using Superman—not the Clark I know or another version, but the symbol, the existence called Superman—when I equipped that template, something else came with all that weight, all those versions of Superman… and even if the template disappeared, something of it remained inside me. Now I know.
Of course, if something like that were enough to change my personality or values, it would be a disgrace to everything I've lived through until now—everything I endured, everything I learned, and all the changes I went through.
Even so… I can feel that a bit of that feeling stayed with me.
This is what Lucifer planned. He wants to change me. Maybe he thought that as long as Allen Walker remained Allen Walker, I'd be too hard to defeat. That's why he wants to twist me.
It took me a while to understand what happened with the Superman template, but now I'm ready to do it again.
A new card gleamed in my hand. I knew that if I used it, the same thing would happen again. Meaning every time I use a template, I'll have to withstand a different kind of weight.
Very clever. Very underhanded. Something only the devil himself could have thought of… but!
Don't underestimate me, Lucifer!
My mind isn't so weak that it'll collapse under a little weight!
*End of POV*
The glow of the card faded, and at the same time Allen was hit by a wave of emotions—thousands, hundreds of thousands, millions—belonging to the existence known as Spider-Man.
There was a lot of misery.
There was the grief of losing family. Misfortune after misfortune. Being rejected, being hunted, being despised. And even then… putting on the mask to do the right thing.
Allen was overwhelmed by these feelings, yet he was also impressed. Because no matter how much Spider-Man suffered, he always kept going—even when facing death.
He wasn't the strongest superhero, nor the smartest. He didn't have divine powers or protection from some higher force. If anything, it felt like the world itself hated him…
And despite that, enduring all of it…
When Allen equipped the full suit, something else came along with it.
It was a big responsibility, but there was also some happiness amid all the misery, and that was that each Spider-Man had a reason to wear the suit, and that's what gave them the meaning to keep going.
— "Who's laughing now?!" —
Sludge Villain's words didn't reach Allen. His mind was in another place.
'I get it now. As long as I'm wearing this suit, as long as I'm Spider-Man… I'm not allowed to give up, right?'
When Allen finally understood the last piece of what being Spider-Man meant, he couldn't help but smile.
"You have my respect! So I'll gladly carry this weight!"
With that declaration, the Spider-Man suit wrapped around his body.
*End of flashback*
....
The last piece of the suit disappeared from his hand.
"Thank you."
Allen shook his head, snapping out of his thoughts.
As expected, it had been another one-minute template.
In fact, all the templates he pulled from the five slot-machine spins were one-minute types.
My bad luck deserves a scientific study...
[Actually, I'm impressed they were all the lowest-rank templates. What were the odds of that?]
"Hey..."
[Don't worry. As I said, every ten spins guarantees a high-quality template.]
Spins were earned by defeating enemies. He got five from Giant Villain and now two more from Sludge Villain. Along with the starter one, he only needed two more for a high-quality template.
Allen turned his attention to the child kneeling on the ground.
"Are you okay?" Allen asked Midoriya.
Midoriya snapped out of his daze and stood up with a bright look in his eyes. "Ah, yeah... thank you, but you're–!"
"A passerby..." Allen cut off Midoriya's excitement. Midoriya froze for a moment before grabbing his notebook and flipping through all his notes.
"That's impossible. There really are no heroes with those characteristics, but how?!" Midoriya pulled out his phone and began searching the internet with an obsessed look. "You must be a foreign superhero!"
"No, nothing like that..."
But Allen's words didn't reach Midoriya, who had entered fan mode. So Allen grabbed him by the shoulders to snap him out of it.
"Ah..."
"Hey, are you alright?"
"Huh?... yeah, I'm fine."
"You sure?" Allen raised an eyebrow. "I'm not a doctor, but having a villain enter through your mouth doesn't sound particularly healthy."
Midoriya stepped back, turning pale as he remembered the experience. He almost threw up.
"Ugh... don't remind me."
Allen laughed. "Well, see ya."
"Wait!"
Midoriya stopped him.
Seeing the green-haired kid, messy hair, teary green eyes, and that expression of someone clinging to the edge of a cliff—there was a strange mix of hope and desperation in his gaze.
If I ignore someone with eyes like that, I'd be a monster, Allen thought before giving in. "Alright, what is it, kid?"
A moment of silence lingered between them as the wind lifted leaves off the ground.
"So... when you turned into that other hero, you used some kind of card, right?"
"So you saw that?" Allen shrugged and joked, "Looks like my secret identity lasted even less than Tony's."
"Don't worry..." Midoriya's voice turned serious, and his eyes filled with determination. "I swear I won't reveal your secret identity. Definitely!"
Allen was surprised. Despite looking so fragile on the surface, this boy had resolve and determination. With renewed interest, Allen answered Midoriya's question.
"I will trust you, regarding your question... Yeah, that's right."
Midoriya's eyes widened. He lowered his head for a moment before looking back at Allen.
"I know it's your secret, and you don't have to answer if you don't want to. I know I'm being selfish, but..." Midoriya clenched his teeth. "Is there any way I could obtain them too?"
Midoriya regretted speaking the moment the words left his mouth. He knew they could come across as rude. Who would share their secrets with a stranger? Maybe those cards were something priceless—so why would someone give them to anyone else?
"You want power?" Allen asked the young Midoriya, but he shook his head.
"I want to be a hero, but I don't have a Quirk."
"I see..."
Allen understood why he couldn't sense Midoriya's Quirk—he didn't have one. Under those circumstances, it was normal for him to desperately search for another path. However...
"I'm sorry, that's impossible."
Midoriya opened his eyes slightly before closing them again. He wasn't disappointed; it was the answer he expected.
"Thank you, and I'm sorry."
"Don't misunderstand me."
Allen's words made Midoriya lift his head. Then he saw Allen summon one of those cards, which floated above his hand.
This one had the image of a woman dressed as a knight holding a sword. It was clearly Artoria—her template.
"These aren't physical objects. They're a representation of my power. In their inactive state, they look like this, and they disappear when used."
Allen wasn't lying. Since they were part of his system, they were simply aspects of his abilities.
"It's not something others can use."
"That's a shame." Midoriya smiled as he heard Allen's words, but immediately turned pale and began bowing repeatedly. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to force you to reveal so many of your secrets!"
"Don't worry."
Allen didn't mind. He'd never been the type to maintain a secret identity—though he should be. He simply wasn't very good at it.
Midoriya kept apologizing, unaware that Sludge had discreetly crawled closer. He had not been defeated and was preparing to attack once more.
"NOT YET!" Sludge appeared behind Allen with a vicious grin.
"You're really persistent..."
Allen smiled. From the beginning he knew Sludge was still alive; both his instincts and his Spider-Sense had warned him. He summoned another card in his hand, ready to finish the villain, but before he could use it, a loud, booming laugh came from the sky.
"HA HA HA! FEAR NOT, FOR I AM HERE!"
Sludge froze, then looked up to see a massive, muscular man descending. He clenched his fist as the air around him surged.
"DETROIT SMASH!"
"No—"
Sludge didn't get the chance to escape before being hit, his body blown to pieces. The shockwave knocked Midoriya down while Allen stayed rooted in place.
The man laughed even louder as he landed.
"Are you two alright, young ones?!"
"All Might!" Midoriya screamed like a fangirl, while Allen was genuinely surprised to see the man.
The current Number One Hero, the Symbol of Peace—All Might.
"We're fine," Allen answered the hero, who stood with his hands on his hips and a wide grin.
"I'm glad! Hahaha!" All Might seemed like he wanted to say something else but simply nodded. "In that case, I'll be on my way!"
All Might jumped into the distance, arriving like a hurricane and leaving the same way.
"So..."
Allen turned to look for Midoriya but didn't see him anywhere. At that moment Midoriya had latched onto All Might while he "flew."
"He's gone," Esdeath said while stepping on Sludge's head.
"Yeah, he's gone" Allen laughed, perhaps he had witnessed a predestined encounter.
Allen stayed still for a moment before turning around.
"Whatever."
"That can't be right!"
A girl's shout interrupted him. When he turned, Allen found himself surprised. A girl was wearing the Seira Private School uniform.
She was tall, with black hair tied in a high ponytail and a large strand hanging over her face. Her sharp black eyes gave her a mature vibe, her face was stunningly beautiful, and her body—especially her chest—was on the level of a succubus.
[Momo Yaoyorozu
Quirk – Creation]
Allen should have known her, since they had been attending the same private school for years. However, Allen had no idea, so he didn't recognize her, but seeing the uniform, he assumed she was a classmate.
"Can I help you with something?"
The girl pointed at Allen. "How can you be so relaxed about the situation?!"
Allen snorted. "The other person involved is All Might. Do you really think that kid is in any danger?"
"Huh?"
Momo was left speechless. It made no sense to worry about Midoriya if he was with All Might.
"Well, if we're done here, I'm leaving."
Allen turned around and started walking, but the girl suddenly panicked.
"Wa–"
Momo didn't know what to say to stop Allen. She couldn't just tell him she came to confront him because he had spent the whole day ignoring her friend Itsuka Kendo.
It was true they weren't close, but Allen's avoiding them completely had hurt Itsuka, who had been trying so hard to become friends with him.
Momo knew she had no real reason to stop him, but she didn't want to give up and ended up following him.
This continued for five minutes before Allen stopped and looked at her tiredly.
"Seriously, the shamelessness of stalkers nowadays is incredible. At least try to hide it."
"Huh?!" The girl blushed. "Who's stalking you?! I just..."
Momo couldn't say she was following him for Itsuka's sake. She didn't want to expose her friend's feelings.
"That's right, I've been interested in you for a while, so I'm stalking you!" the girl declared proudly, crossing her arms and unintentionally emphasizing her large chest.
Allen laughed. "You're the boldest stalker in history, but fine—I like that courage. Want me to treat you to something?"
....
Before she realized it, Momo ended up in a café with Allen. She was dazed as she ate a dessert, and the sweetness of the chocolate finally brought her back to reality.
"Mm, it's delicious!~" Momo held her cheeks in delight.
"So then, my personal stalker," Allen watched her while sipping his coffee. "What do you want to know about me?"
"...!"
Momo froze. Slowly, her own words played back in her mind, filling her with so much embarrassment that her head felt like it was steaming.
Being a girl raised with a silver spoon, she had no idea how to deal with a situation like this. Not only had she said something so embarrassing, but now Allen probably thought she liked him.
'Damn it, Itsuka-chan is going to kill me!'
Not knowing what to do, Momo lowered her head, burying it against her chest, refusing to speak to Allen.
He simply smirked while drinking his coffee.
"Well, why don't we try getting to know each other better?" Allen said, breaking the ice. "It's not every day I meet such a peculiar stalker. How about you tell me your name?"
Momo clenched her teeth. She was sure Allen was mocking her. He obviously knew who she was, yet he treated her like a stranger.
Momo smiled without smiling. "Fine. I'll introduce myself. I'm Momo Yaoyorozu, sixteen years old, and I've been your classmate for three years, Allen-kun."
"I see. Doesn't ring a bell, but it's a pleasure, Momo." Allen grinned like a shameless bastard.
Momo was speechless. Was this really the same Allen she'd known for three years?
Unable to tolerate that expression, Momo slammed the table in embarrassment.
"Are you making fun of me?!"
"No, I'm being honest." Allen leaned closer. "But I'll warn you—I'm not easy to win over. You'll need to put in effort. For starters, a maid outfit with cat ears will earn you points."
Momo couldn't take it anymore and used her Quirk. Her ability allowed her to create objects from her skin, and that's exactly what she did—she pulled out a grenade.
Allen walked out of the café as an explosion of smoke went off behind him. It wasn't a lethal grenade.
"What a violent girl," Allen said as he escaped.
"Wait!" Momo ran after him like a beast. "In the name of justice, I'll make you pay for playing with a maiden's heart!"
Allen looked sideways at her. "Maidens don't throw grenades at people out of embarrassment."
"Shut up!"
Allen laughed. It had been a long time since he'd made someone this angry.
....
Saeko – I'm speechless. Is this really our reliable leader?
Saya – What did I just witness?!
Erza – In our world, Allen acted like this most of the time.
Lucy – That's right. It's been a while since we saw Allen in shameless mode -_-
Gwen – In an apocalyptic world full of death, Allen had to act more seriously than usual, but this shameless version is the same Allen you all met.
Rei – I see. His smug smile really does make you want to punch him.