"It got Tsuyu!" Midoriya shouted, sending a shiver running down all spines.
Gathered in the thick of the forest, surrounded by inhumane roars and rustles, the remaining students smelled fear in the moist, chill air.
Not many were left of the group.
When they had started from the bottom of the cliff, the entire Class 1-A had been brimming with confidence.
Once they had figured out that the beasts attacking them were made of clay, none of them had held back.
These Earth Beasts, created by Pixie-Bob using her Earth Flow Quirk remotely, possessed great strength, but only rudimentary intelligence. The only thing that could have worked out in their favor was their versatility and numbers.
Fortunately, one year of hardships and Hero Classes had given the students enough time to contemplate their shortcomings and improve their Quirks.
However, even then, they had grossly misjudged the situation.
The consequence?
Students had begun disappearing from the group one by one.
First, it had been Toru who had been baiting the beasts since the beginning. Then, Kyoka, who had been keeping an eye on blind attacks from small Earth Beasts using her Quirk. Mineta, Kaminari, and Sero had disappeared without leaving behind a gasp, too.
And now — Tsuyu was gone… vanishing out of thin air.
The students had realized late, but they could conclude only one thing.
Something, or someone, was targeting the students, taking advantage of their lack of coordination, Earth Beasts' attacks, and the forest's natural terrain.
Now, Luke, Midoriya, Todoroki, Tenya, and Bakugo were spread out circularly, eyeing the distance darkness. In the middle, Ojiro, Shoji, Sato, Kirishima, Fumikage, Momo, Uraraka, and Mina were huddled, their backs pressing against each other.
Crawling at a snail's pace, the children were advancing toward the campsite, rotating between the guard post and the protected ones.
Only once had Bakugo refused to follow Momo's strategy.
They had lost Tsuyu as a result, forcing even him to accept it begrudgingly.
"… Is it a Villain?" Midoriya shouted their worst fear.
"Unlikely," Tenya said. "How would Villains know about the Training Camp's location? Also, Pixie-Bob is keeping an eye on us, right? It's impossible that she hasn't noticed our numbers…"
Todoroki looked at Luke, who was casually standing in his place, looking out. Then, he looked up and spied a black dot circling against the afternoon sky.
It had always astonished Todoroki how Luke remained so… confident and calm when Nyx wasn't around him. Or, at least, when she was not within 50 meters of Luke, in which he could activate a Quirk.
If he lost his Quirk, would he remain so… unnerved as well? Todoroki couldn't find an answer to that question.
Suddenly, Luke looked toward him and smiled. "You are losing focus, Hot'n'Cold. I know I look more handsome than yesterday. Still… You are making it too obvious."
Todoroki's entire face crumpled.
He was about to curse when the ROAR shook the entire forest.
"Incoming!" Nyx cawed from above, diving like a missile toward Luke. "It's a f****** dragon!!"
"NYX!!!" Luke shouted from below. "Language! There are children here!!"
"…?!" That was the only reaction the students could give before their eyes landed on a massive clay dragon blanketing the narrow gap in the forest, darkening everything.
On the ground, from one side, a massive boar came charging toward them.
From the other side, a pack of wolves hounded them, barking and howling.
If it had been before, then the students would have lunged at the beasts, making it a competition. It was especially so for Bakugo, who had been blasting them to pieces with one move so far.
Now, they didn't dare leave the formation.
Because they didn't need to be as smart as Momo to know that this could very well be a distracting technique.
However, it mattered little if it were indeed an attempt to distract them, as the threat of the beasts was as real as it could get.
The dragon pounced from above as Nyx joined Luke, Bakugo shooting up, firing an explosion. As the boom rang out, Todoroki froze the entire forest in the direction of the incoming boar. Meanwhile, Tenya and Midoriya worked overtime, blurring between the several wolves.
Luke turned around and faced the students, his eyes for scanning any oddity.
Unlike students, he knew this could only be a Hero, put in the forest for an extra level of difficulty.
With the students' original pace, they would have easily reached the campsite by afternoon. Not in time for lunch, still, they wouldn't have been too late, either.
Now, it would be a miracle if they crossed the forest by midnight, it felt.
"Spirit Vision?" Nyx suggested, narrowing her eyes, her head snapping in all directions randomly.
Luke… shook his head.
If he had been alone here and had needed to cross the forest as a test of his strength, then he wouldn't have waited even a moment before using Spirit Vision to find the Hero.
However, if he used it now, it would defeat the entire purpose of this Training Camp.
Luke knew this camp wasn't about him. It was about the students of Class 1-A — to prepare them for the next year. With the Final War around the corner, if they didn't grow, then many of them would end up dying much before playing their part.
Still, it bothered Luke a bit.
If, for a moment, he forgot that he had Spirit Vision, then even he found this Hero a match for him.
Just who is it? Luke thought, keeping an eye on the kids. Who could be…
In the very next moment, his Danger Intuition shot through the roof, spooking even Nyx as she took off.
Caught in the moment, the Magician's body moved unnaturally, his waist twisting backward as if he didn't have bones.
And, hissing like a gust of wind, a fist struck the space where his head had been.
"… Whoa!" A round face appeared in Luke's vision, carrying shock. "… You got eyes in the back of your head or what?!"
For the first time, Luke's face reflected an unnerved expression similar to his classmates, seeing who the Pro Hero was.
It was a recent graduate from UA — one of UA's Big Three — Sir Nighteye's newest Sidekick, and…
— The Future No. 1 of Japan — Comedy Hero: Lemillion!
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