"Hand it over…" the monster said casually as the other students filled the bus's insides with cacophony.
Yuga Aoyama, seated next to Luke, was unlike his usual flamboyant self now.
He wasn't boasting that he had visited France during the break anymore. Nor was he joining the fun along with Kaminari, Kirishima, Uraraka, and others.
If it were up to him, he would have scrunched up in his seat even more, keeping his head down until they reached the destination.
It wasn't up to him, though.
"… They will…" Yuga gulped. "… They will kill my parents…"
The boy didn't even dare to look at Luke while uttering those words. If he were any dumber, he wouldn't have realized who Luke truly was. But playing the part of a double agent had forced him to think smarter, as the lives of his parents depended on his decisions, too.
Yuga couldn't reject any command that his parents had received from All For One.
He also couldn't reject Luke, who knew all his secrets — even the matter of his fake Quirk that he hadn't been born with.
Yuga was Quirkless…
Now, seated next to Luke, he wished to return to those days when he used to curse his fate. When he didn't have a Quirk, at least… everything was simple, even if it hadn't felt like it. Now that he had a Quirk, every other day had become a quest of survival, pressed between two monsters.
It was a little too late to wish for impossibilities now, though.
All For One and Dr. Blessed…
Sooner or later, one of them would end up getting annoyed by him.
And Yuga couldn't fathom what would be worse, then — All For One killing him and his parents, or… his classmates and teachers finding out his secret.
Yuga licked his lips and saw Luke's open palm.
He did a quick scan up and around the seat, making sure that no one was looking at him. Then, fumbling into his pockets, he took out a small, button-like device and put it in the monster's palm.
Luke flicked his wrist, and the GPS device… vanished.
Yuga gasped.
"… Impressed?"
Yuga lifted his face and saw the monster smiling at him… gently.
A chill ran down his spine. It was as if a primal beast was baring its fangs toward him before ripping out his throat.
Unlike everyone here… Unlike all the Pro Heroes…
Yuga was dead sure that it was this monster who had attacked Sir Nighteye, sending the Pro into a coma.
He remembered how Luke had acted innocently later in front of Erasure Head.
If he hadn't known that Luke was Dr. Blessed, then he would have fallen for it as well.
In a way, Luke was a much bigger monster than All For One, planning and carrying out his nefarious purposes right under the noses of all Pros, including All Might.
Every time this monster smiled at him, Yuga's teeth chattered.
How could someone so evil… look so innocent and trustworthy?
"… You…" Yuga's mouth moved as if a ghost had possessed him. "… are a devil."
…
Luke stared at Yuga, dumbstruck.
With Spirit Vision letting him observe the boy's emotions, and coupled with Decryption, he could fairly guess Yuga's thoughts.
Still, to outright call him a devil…
Is he secretly a Tarot Club member? Luke lampooned, amusing himself with the question, broadening the smile on his face.
Next to him, realizing what he had just said, Yuga's face lost all color.
Before Yuga could let out a stuttering cry, Luke chuckled. "… Are you praying daily?" he asked, misdirecting the scared boy's thoughts.
Within a few moments, as the ritual he carried out every night replaced the black thoughts in his mind, Yuga calmed down and nodded. He again hurriedly looked in all directions and then put his right hand on his chest.
"… Praise be to Mr. Fool," Yuga bowed a little, sensing his booming heartbeat.
Luke's mouth twitched at that.
He had grand plans for Yuga, as the boy was Quirkless.
Once the matter with All For One was over, hopefully, Yuga would survive as the boy had in his previous life, Luke thought. It wouldn't be so bad to turn Yuga into a Beyonder, then, by making him Quirkless again.
Also, Luke needed followers for Mr. Fool.
Not only because he needed to grow His faith, but also because the time to unlock the next series of Sequences was approaching fast.
Luke had needed one follower before unlocking the Sequence 2 Potions, he remembered. Nyx had outright accepted Mr. Fool's faith, becoming His first follower, then.
Before unlocking the Sequence 3 Potions, Luke had needed at least three followers. With Kazuho and Mr. Iwao accepting Mr. Fool's faith, he had met that condition as well.
Meeting the conditions to unlock the Sequence 4 Potions was becoming trickier, though.
Luke needed at least six followers to accept Mr. Fool's faith to unlock the next set of Sequences. Dr. Sam had already occupied one of the three slots. Surprisingly, Mushroom-nimi, despite being a cyborg, also held Spirit Points and sapience, and accepted becoming the fifth follower. The last slot was destined for Melissa, completing the requirement.
However, when Luke learned that Amon had most likely kidnapped Dr. Sam, even he felt ashamed to count the guy as Mr. Fool's follower.
So, one slot opened up, glaring at Luke.
He had no choice but to take the easy way out with Yuga Aoyama, almost forcing the guy to pray to Mr. Fool daily. With Dr. Blessed and All For One making his life hell, the boy dearly needed faith to keep up his spirit, Luke believed.
"… We are stopping for a break in five minutes!"
Erasure Head's shout jolted Luke's contemplative thoughts.
Taking a deep breath, he eyed Yuga. "If you keep praying diligently," Luke said, bringing a touch of reverence to his voice, "then Mr. Fool will bless you… just like He had blessed me."
"…bless me?" Yuga stuttered.
Luke smiled. He reached forward and created a small rectangular door in the seat in front of him, opening it slightly. From the little door, he took out the GPS device he had made vanish beforehand.
Yuga's jaw dropped like a child seeing magic for the first time.
"Now, ask yourself this," Luke said, as the bus stirred to a parking spot, "…is this magic because of a Quirk?"
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