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The night was deep and heavy.
Perhaps by coincidence, or perhaps everything had been planned from the very beginning, Konata Izumi now found herself in an extremely remote place. Most people's attention had already been drawn to the roaring flames and smoke rising from the center of the city—leaving very few eyes to notice this lonely corner.
Of course, Konata realized her current situation was extremely bad. Ahead of her stood Kurogiri and Shigaraki Tomura blocking the path, while at the end of the narrow alley behind her, a smaller Nomu—barely half the size of a normal adult—stood in the way as well.
If she wanted to break through, there was no way except brute force.
"Back to business, then."
Raising her head, Konata took a deep breath and glanced at the night sky.
"You've stirred up such a huge commotion in the city. Don't tell me your only goal was to steal my phone? Honestly, I've always been curious. I have no grudge with you people, neither past nor present. So why do you keep coming after me?"
"Grudge, huh?"
Shigaraki lowered his arm, his voice laced with mockery.
"Maybe there wasn't any grudge before. But ever since you kept ruining my perfect plans again and again… there's a grudge now. Not just me—honestly, I'm curious about you too."
Holding her phone with two fingers, he lifted it up to eye level and stared straight at her.
"Your history, your past—I know it all. The abnormal child abandoned by her parents in an orphanage, shunned by everyone, a lonely outcast. Before your so-called 'metamorphosis,' you never even used your quirk. Someone that isolated, that much of a loser… if you'd become a villain, I could have believed it. But then, strangely enough, in just a few short days you completely changed. For someone to undergo such a drastic transformation—there can only be one reason."
He let go. The phone fell, shattering on the ground in two pieces.
His tone was strangely knowing, as if he had peeled back every secret she tried to hide.
"Ugh…"
She didn't even have the time to mourn her brand-new phone—less than ten days old. Under Shigaraki's unrelenting stare, she felt as if all her secrets had already been exposed.
Wait… Is the system's arranged identity really this easy to see through? Sure, my change in personality could be explained away as a sudden shift, but wasn't that just to help me play this role more naturally? Crap… this is bad…
Her expression shifted, caught between confusion and irritation.
"Ah… so I wasn't wrong after all."
A smirk tugged at Shigaraki's lips.
"It's because of love."
"…Hah?"
"Midoriya Izuku. That boy who saved you, pulled you out of the darkness again and again… and you fell in love with him."
"Wait, wait, wait—you've got this completely wrong."
Konata slapped her palm over her face and waved the other hand dismissively, a headache pounding in her skull.
"Don't know how you came to that brain-dead conclusion, but let me make one thing clear—I'm 100% ironclad straight—"
"There's no point denying it now." Shigaraki cut her off.
"According to intel, you met him during the café incident. After that, your personality suddenly shifted—reborn, as if you'd been remade. You joined U.A. to follow in his footsteps. But your Quirk turned out far stronger than you expected."
His voice was full of certainty, as though she could never deceive him.
"Love transformed you. Because of love, you've grown into who you are now."
Konata: "…"
Right now, she really wanted to curse someone.
"f*ck your mother."
Konata's face was deadpan as the words slipped out.
"…huh?" Shigaraki frowned.
"I bought a watch last year."
"…"
He had no idea what she was saying, but suddenly, he lost interest in continuing the conversation.
Turning toward the empty lot nearby, Shigaraki's voice turned impatient.
"Sensei. Are you not ready yet?"
"…Sensei?"
Konata stiffened. She also turned to the vacant spot—where a tall man in a suit slowly revealed himself.
But his head was covered by a massive iron mask, muffling his voice.
"No, I've been ready for a while. But seeing you chatting so happily, I didn't want to interrupt."
"You… have a teacher too?"
Konata narrowed her eyes, her body instinctively dropping into a guarded stance.
The masked figure hadn't even moved yet, but from him radiated a suffocating sense of danger. Her instincts screamed—if I slip up here, I'll die.
"My apologies for disturbing you. But from here on, I'd appreciate it if you didn't resist."
That slightly aged, muffled voice drifted out from the mask.
"If you cooperate, I'll just borrow something from you. But if you resist… I can't promise you'll survive."
Can't wait any longer.
The killing intent pressed down on her like a blade to the back. Konata's instincts screamed for her to transform into Misaka Mikoto and force a way out.
But then—her blood ran cold.
The transformation failed.
"Impossible—?!"
"What's the matter? Surprised?" The strange, aged tone carried amusement.
"In this world, no one understands quirks better than I do. Against him, this trick wouldn't have worked. But against you… it's more than enough."
With slow, deliberate steps, the towering masked man advanced.
"Relax. It'll be quick. Only the beginning will hurt."
Konata: "…"
Buddy… could you please stop phrasing it like that? Thanks.
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At the same time, somewhere else—
Just as Konata Izumi had predicted, Iida Tenya was drowning in hatred.
Because of the Hero Killer, his older brother—his beacon, his idol, the hero Ingenium—had been crippled and forced to retire.
Even though Iida acted normal back at school, that was just a mask. He had received internship offers from better agencies, but deliberately chose the city where Stain had once appeared. His one and only goal: revenge.
So, when chaos erupted in the city and Nomus began appearing, he broke off on his own to hunt down the Hero Killer. And the result was obvious.
With his current strength, defeating Stain was impossible. Worse, his personal vendetta made Stain label him as the very thing he despised most—"a false hero who uses his power only for selfish desire."
If Midoriya hadn't arrived in time, Iida would've already been cut down beneath Stain's blade. And while facing Stain head-on, Midoriya, knowing he wasn't strong enough to win alone, secretly sent out his location to others.
Stain's Quirk was Bloodcurdle. As long as he licked your blood, your body would become paralyzed, up to eight minutes depending on blood type. That meant even a single scratch in battle could decide victory or defeat.
Without a doubt, this was the most terrifying control-type Quirk known so far. Even All Might himself—if his blood were taken—would be rendered immobile.
And on top of that, Stain's combat ability was already formidable. Midoriya quickly fell into a desperate struggle. In the heat of battle, his arm was nicked by Stain's blade—and instantly he collapsed, helpless.
Stain acknowledged Midoriya's resolve, but still raised his sword to execute Iida in front of him.
It was then that Todoroki Shoto arrived, having received Midoriya's message just in time.
"Stain says he's got one thing to say," Konata would've joked—but the Hero Killer wasn't here for comedy.
Fortunately, this wasn't some 'Z Fighter vs Cell' tragedy where everyone takes turns getting wrecked. Bloodcurdle's effects had a limit, and its duration weakened depending on blood type. With the combined efforts of the three, they managed to knock Stain down.
After a fierce struggle, all three bore injuries, but Iida's wounds were the most severe.
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"You're saying… Konata was with you?"
As they tied Stain up and prepared to call for pro heroes, Midoriya heard something from Todoroki that made his stomach drop.
"Why is that strange?" Todoroki replied calmly. "Her internship is at Endeavor's agency. Since I came here, of course she would be here too."
Somewhere during the fight, a bond of camaraderie had formed. Todoroki, no longer as cold as before, spoke patiently as he explained what had happened: how Kurogiri's ambush had been repelled, how Konata had chased a flying Nomu and casually blasted it down to save hostages, and how he then rushed over after receiving Midoriya's location.
But at the end, his brows furrowed.
"I told her to bring professional heroes here. But… it's been too long."
"…The Nomus are bait."
Midoriya's face hardened as everything clicked together in his mind.
The flying Nomu that lured Konata away wasn't just random—it was bait. Its purpose wasn't only to waste one of her transformations, but also to draw her somewhere else. The other Nomus tearing through the city were also bait, meant to drag every pro hero, police officer, and bystander's attention away.
Even Stain himself… might just be bait.
If that was true, then—where was Konata now?
"Tell me where you two split up."
Though he tried to stay calm, a crushing sense of dread coiled around Midoriya's heart, whispering that he was about to lose something irreplaceable.
"I'll take you there," Todoroki answered, now realizing how dire things were. He turned back to Iida with a quick instruction, then despite the blood still seeping from his own wounds, sprinted back the way he'd come.
Midoriya followed close behind.
Running at full speed, they soon reached the alley where Todoroki and Konata had separated. But it was empty.
The streetlights cast crooked shadows on the pavement, their glow fractured and patchy.
The city's riot had driven nearly everyone away. In this remote corner, not a soul remained.
Face tightening, Todoroki pulled out his phone and dialed. He hoped she would answer like always, after three rings, her voice dripping with sarcasm—"What, you actually listened to me and came looking? Seriously, do you guys think I'm that reliable? Haha, idiots."
But instead, the ringtone came from the roadside.
Midoriya bent down silently, retrieving the phone from the shadows. Once brand-new and barely ten days old, now shattered into two useless pieces, kicked aside like trash.
On the cracked screen, one notification was still faintly visible.
Incoming call from Aircon-kun.
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Time rewound to five minutes earlier.
"Hey, hey, hey! I'm warning you right now—going after a loli is at least a three-year sentence to start with! One more step and I'm screaming for help!"
Facing the tall figure walking steadily toward her, Konata Izumi discreetly hid one hand behind her back, voice tense as she yelled.
"Since Quirks can't be used here… you're planning to settle this with that fire of joy behind you? Strange. That kind of thing should also count as part of your Quirk's range. By right, you shouldn't be able to use it."
The masked man's steps halted for a brief moment as his eyes flicked toward the great sword of fire behind Konata. He shook his head.
'Joy of Fire—'
Konata froze for a heartbeat, then her face twisted in sudden realization.
"Oh, I get it now! You must've watched the U.A. Sports Festival, right? So you guys are my crazy fans, huh? Alright, alright, I understand the feelings of a fanatic chasing their idol— Wait, what the hell?! You villains are supposed to play along at this point!"
She leapt aside, barely avoiding the eerie green vines erupting from the ground, her blade swinging in front of her defensively.
"Sorry. At another time, maybe I'd sit down, let you finish your speech, hell—I might've even offered you tea. But right now, I'm in a hurry."
The man's muffled voice suddenly sounded behind her.
"Your power is too dangerous. Hand it over."
Darkness swallowed everything.
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"Sensei, can we leave now?"
Shigaraki Tomura's irritated tone cut through the silence. He glanced at the girl dangling like cargo in the masked man's grip, then casually kicked aside the phone he had smashed earlier.
"This night's main character isn't her," he muttered. "It's me. My grand performance of destruction—I won't miss the fun."
The masked man paused, sensing the battlefield beyond.
"Most of the Nomus are already restrained. A few were even killed. Endeavor… he's still strong. Now isn't the time to reveal myself. All Might isn't here either. And Stain, defeated by three students—interesting."
He turned toward Kurogiri.
"Open the portal. Someone's rushing here fast. I've no interest in wasting effort right now. Whatever you two plan to do, do it."
He had risked his half-healed body to act, but finally, the powerful Quirk he sought—Fantasy—was in his grasp. He had no mind for anything else.
The black mist warped and twisted—and just as it vanished, two figures arrived at the scene.
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Black. Cold. The suffocating weight of drowning in a thousand fathoms of seawater.
That sensation of death replayed perfectly.
Konata's ears caught faint, indistinct whispers, drifting farther until silence returned.
She forced her eyes open.
She lay on a rooftop beneath the starry sky, the city's flames still visible in the distance.
"You're awake at last."
The strange voice came from beside her.
Konata tried to sit up—but pain surged like tidal waves through her body, as if every bone had been pulled out and shoved back in again. Her endurance alone kept her from fainting outright.
"Extracting and returning a Quirk is… excruciatingly painful. You're lucky to wake up at all, without losing your sanity."
Polished shoes appeared in her vision.
"How do you feel?"
So Quirks could be stolen and given.
"...Alright," Konata thought bitterly, "I see why they came for me. Damn it, System, this is your fault again, isn't it?"
Grinding her teeth, she spat out the only words she could muster—
"Son of a—!"
The masked man fell silent.
Even if she couldn't move, Konata would never lose her momentum. Insults were her last weapon, and she wasn't about to call him something lame like 'big dummy' or 'bad guy.'
She didn't know why she was still alive, why he had gone through all the effort to steal her Quirk only to return it. But swearing at him? That was always safe.
She hadn't seen what happened while she was unconscious. But for the man himself… it had been a nightmare.
The Quirk Fantasy, with its infinite possibilities. Yet when he wielded it, all he could manifest was imitation. Worse—he could only mimic female forms.
When he transformed into a twin-tailed, cutesy little loli, the masked man had nearly collapsed from sheer shame.
Not even mentioning the crimson-haired warrior girl with firepower beyond reason—he couldn't even summon the flaming sword properly.
Fantasy was supposed to turn imagination into reality. But for him, it was nothing but a second-rate mimicry Quirk. Useless in combat.
After spawning an army of lolis, the man nearly questioned his existence. At least Shigaraki and Kurogiri hadn't been present to witness his disgrace—or he might never hold onto his dignity as "teacher" again.
Finally, he reached a conclusion: the Quirk was bound to Konata herself. Only she could unleash its true form. For anyone else, it was nothing but a broken toy.
And so, after hesitation, he returned it to her.
The man crouched down, looking into the girl's eyes.
"Enough about before. I have only one question. Will you strike a deal with me?"
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Alright, confession time.
Your author—StarfallEmpyrean—is without question… the most dazzlingly beautiful creature to ever touch a keyboard. ✨
Don't believe me? Hmph, that's fine. But a hundred kindred spirits already recognized my radiance in the fandom. Clearly, they've seen the truth. (Translation: please, oh please, leave me a long review already~)
Now then, about those chapters I owe you… ahaha, yes, yes, I haven't forgotten! They're waiting in the wings, shimmering and ready. Tomorrow I'll be holding a special reward event—just like last time. Extra chapters will rain down depending on your support, up to fifty max!
Why? Because we're not just here to coast—we're here to surpass the others in the rankings and shine brighter than every name below us. Let's climb together until no one can ignore our glow.
That's all for tonight from your ever-lovely author.
Good night, my stars~ ✨
With love,
StarfallEmpyrean ♡
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