Space parted up and down in Midoriya's room at midnight, and Luke walked out, Nyx perched on his shoulder.
He had bestowed a Presence Concealment Quirk of High Complexity upon her that hid smell and noise in Nyx's immediate surroundings, covering Luke within.
Luke yawned.
With daily classes that included one or other training by a Pro, then midnight research on Nomu and other lifeforms, he was getting less and less time to do anything else. Sleep was the last thing on his mind these days.
Now, he was just another grand performance away from digesting the Magician Potion.
Also, if UA sent Class 1-A for Hero Site Visit to the place which Momo had mentioned to him in his previous life, then he would get the chance to perform soon.
However, with Conformity's organization — The Claws of Conformity, and It making Stain partner up with All For One and the League of Villains, it was hard to tell if there wouldn't be any unexpected changes in the series of events.
Luke dearly hoped that he would get a favorable outcome today.
Ever since the Sports Festival, where he had first faced the Vestiges, Luke had been avoiding them altogether, going as far as to never use Spirit Vision on Midoriya.
The Vestiges — who were the Will of the past users of One For All, transferred to Midoriya because of the passed-down Spirit Particles — had pulled Luke and Nyx without their consent.
Though the Vestiges were all Heroes, Luke didn't trust them.
If they believed that harming Luke would let them deal with All For One, then would they not stoop to that level?
Before, in his previous life, Luke would have confidently said NO to this question.
Now, he wasn't so sure.
So, when Luke activated Spirit Vision this time, he had already decided to play the hard hand if he sensed any duplicity in their words.
…
With his jaw hanging low, Luke gawked as Nyx plunged herself between Nana Shimura's boobs, calling her Heaven No. 2.
Luke instantly learned why Aina had dropped by a level on Nyx's list.
And, from the way the older woman kept stroking Nyx's feathers, it felt like this was something they did often.
"… So when you said you needed Evening Flights for inner peace…" Luke hissed, feeling betrayed.
He had known that she had been going to Midoriya during the Term Break. However, he had thought it was only to prepare for the new Quirk he and Nyx were working on.
"Oh, shut up!" Nyx cawed. "You are just jealous. Come here. There's enough space for both of our heads…"
Luke's lips twitched as the entire persona he had decided to put up against the Vestiges crumbled with Nyx's few words.
Speaking of Vestiges, Luke looked around and noticed that the only one present here was Nana Shimura, the Seventh User and the Sixth Inheritor of One For All.
"You sure took your sweet time," Nana, covered in a golden hue, said, approaching him. "You are needlessly cautious against us, you know. And… too cautious for your age. Youth. It should be bold. Courageous. Unwavering when confronting risks. You — You are like an old man, thinking the entire world is out to get him. Senile, I mean."
Luke ignored the jabs. He did not know much about Nana Shimura, other than her being a user of One For All before All Might.
What kind of person was she?
What were her ambitions, desires, and ideals?
Luke did not know. Nor did he have any intention of knowing them before coming here.
He had been avoiding meeting Vestiges because he needed to become friends with Midoriya first. Good friends.
Luke needed Midoriya to trust him.
He did not know how much Vestiges knew about his Quirk, or the fact that he had powers beyond Quirks. However, in case they ended up revealing that to Midoriya, Luke wanted Midoriya to come straight to him instead of ratting him out.
Of course, when he ended up truly becoming friends with Midoriya, he didn't know, either.
"Last time I came here," Luke said, coming straight to the point, "Mr. Yoichi said you have the answers I seek."
Nana looked at Luke with fascination.
Then, holding her stomach, she laughed.
"Haha…" she laughed as if Luke had made the funniest joke. "Man… You are easy. He just said that to make you return and interact with us… How would we know what answers you seek?!"
Both Luke and Nyx, pressed against Nana's chest, looked at her in disbelief.
Luke's entire figure was covered in a blackish fog.
Despite that, when he clenched his fingers, the Will eying him sensed that.
"This was a waste of time, then," Luke said flatly. He didn't want anything to do with Vestiges anyway, especially knowing they couldn't help him out against Conformity and Singularity directly. "Nyx…"
Nana Shimura grabbed Nyx as the bird tried to fly away.
Her boobs were only one of the reasons why Nyx kept coming back.
She just wanted to make sure that coming here with Spirit Vision wouldn't cause long-term damage or something. It was better to experiment on herself than to let Luke succumb to unknown forces.
But if Nana didn't have anything to help Luke, she could always find better boobs.
"Wait…" the Vestige said, clicking her tongue. "You really are like an old man. We don't have the answers you seek because… we don't know what you are seeking."
Luke, who had almost deactivated Spirit Vision, narrowed his eyes. To test how far she could help him, he decided not to discuss Conformity right off the bat and said, "All For One…"
Nana's eyes shook.
Then, she let out a smirk. "Why didn't you say it before…"
The sense of falling into an abyss came out of nowhere and drowned Luke with a boom.
Luke found himself standing on a battlefield. In front of him, Nana Shimura was facing All For One, terrifying bolts of lightning rumbling around him.
On one side, an adult Gran Torino took away a young All Might, barely 18 years old.
Bleeding, smiling, Nana Shimura pointed at All Might and… strangely also at Luke.
"This is the evil that we must face — together," the Hero said, making a fist, looking her shoulder, her eyes shining bluer than blue. "I am counting on you…"
A chill ran down Luke's spine.
For some reason, he wanted to scream. He wanted to help her. He wanted to stand next to her and face the evil. Together.
But the world blackened once again, and Luke found himself at the place of Vestiges, gasping for breath.
Nana Shimura towered above him as Luke's figure blurred, his Spirituality running out.
"Help us reach out to young Midoriya," she said gently, stroking Luke's head. "And… We will tell you everything you want to know —
"— and more."
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