Chapter 77: Night
The Sports Festival was over. The audience had left. But this didn't mean the students could relax. The Hero Course was fine; the school, understanding that they had just competed, did not require them to participate in the cleanup. However, the students from the other departments—with the exception of Mei Hatsume and Hitoshi Shinso, who had advanced to the second round—were all forced to stay behind and clean.
After all, it was a venue that held tens of thousands of people. Even with several hundred students cleaning, it would take a long time. The "glory of labor" was not a sentiment they were feeling. All of them were shooting resentful glares at the assembled Hero Course students in the center of the field.
Shota Aizawa didn't care about their stares, but looking at his own group of students, who were staring at the ground and refusing to meet anyone's eyes, he sighed.
"Remember, you are the Hero Course. You are different from ordinary people," Aizawa said suddenly. "If you want, you are free to join the cleanup crew. I won't stop you. But I believe that this privilege—not having to clean—is something you have all earned as contestants."
"Earned...?" Midoriya repeated, muttering.
Aizawa pointed a finger at the stands behind him, his voice uncharacteristically earnest. "These people behind you... to put it nicely, they are your classmates. To put it bluntly, they are the civilians on the street. In the future, they may work any number of jobs, living busy but safe lives. But one day, they might run into a robber on their way to work, a robber they have no power to fight. At that moment—"
Kirishima pumped his fist in the air, his voice excited. "At that moment, it's time for the Pro Heroes to make their entrance!"
Aizawa nodded. "That's right. In the future, these people—men, women, old, and young—will all be under your protection. So, is there anything wrong with them providing silent support from the sidelines for the people who are risking their lives for their safety?"
"So, don't feel awkward. Hold your heads high and look forward. Your journey... is to the sea of stars!"
Tsuyu put a finger to her chin, her voice laced with surprise. "I never knew Mr. Aizawa could be such a chunibyo..."
"Wanting to be a hero in someone else's eyes... is a pretty 'chunibyo' concept to begin with." The homeroom teacher of Class 1-B, Vlad King, walked over and nodded to Aizawa. "I'm taking my students back to the classroom. Congratulations on your excellent results this time. I didn't expect your teaching skills to be so much better than mine, Eraser Head."
Aizawa replied with a half-lidded gaze, "I didn't do much. It was all their own hard work. Besides, I saw some promising seedlings in your Class 1-B. If they can find the right Pro Heroes to guide them during the upcoming work-studies, I'm sure they'll achieve great things."
Vlad King was stunned. He hadn't expected such a serious response from Aizawa. He nodded and laughed heartily. "You're right! That's what I think too. The next time our two classes face off, the winner is still undecided!"
Vlad King left, laughing. Kaminari raised his hand, his eyes hopeful. "Class B is going back to the classroom. What about us? Can we just dismiss and go home?"
"Dismiss?" Aizawa snorted, turning to follow Class 1-B. "You seem very satisfied with your results. All of you, run back to the classroom. You will each write a 1,000-word self-analysis of your performance at the Sports Festival. You can only leave after you've finished."
"No way!" Denki Kaminari's face instantly fell. "We just finished competing! Does Mr. Aizawa have to be this cruel!?"
"If you're unwilling, then you can add a 30-minute individual Quirk training session. I will personally supervise."
All of Class 1-A glared at Kaminari. "If you've got something to say, just say more!"
"I'm sorry!" Kaminari said, chasing after Aizawa to haggle. "1,000 words is too much! How about 500? 800?"
Midoriya followed behind with a wry smile. He couldn't help but think that if Iida were here, he would probably be praising Mr. Aizawa with a serious face for his excellent training methods. But... he probably doesn't have the mindset to care about these things right now.
Izuku Midoriya had already found the news about Iida's older brother, Ingenium, on a website dedicated to the latest hero information. He had been seriously injured while pursuing the Hero Killer and was currently in the hospital.
Ingenium... for Iida's sake... you have to be okay!
"Yo, Kira! You're okay?" Denki Kaminari spotted Yoshikage Kira walking toward them and greeted him naturally. "I heard that move from Bakugo knocked you out cold until just now. How did that attack feel?"
The teachers hadn't told the students that Kira had recovered during the awards ceremony, so Kaminari assumed he was just now waking up.
"I don't really know how it felt, but I know it was at least ten times stronger than your electric shock," Kira teased, easily falling into step with the jogging group. "By the way, where are we going now?"
"It's all Kaminari's fault for running his mouth!" Kirishima replied with a sigh. "We have to write a 1,000-word essay, and we can only go home after we're done. Honestly, at this point, I'd rather be helping with the cleanup. At least that doesn't require thinking."
Midoriya noticed the medal around Kira's neck. "Class Rep! Did you see All Might? He gave you your medal."
Kira saw no reason to hide it. "Ah, yes. That's what happened."
Although Kira confirmed it, he didn't elaborate on the details, and Midoriya didn't ask.
The students of Class 1-A ran on, the setting sun dyeing them orange. A bright light seemed to shine in everyone's eyes, their hearts full of hope for the future.
"Running at sunset... This is the youth I've lost!" Minoru Mineta suddenly exclaimed. Seeing himself falling further and further behind the main group, he panted, aggrieved. "Hey! Wait for me!"
Night had fallen. Under the neon glow of the city streets, Yoshikage Kira walked along the sidewalk, his hand in his pocket, clutching an exquisite hand.
No one knew that the well-mannered U.A. student passing them by, Yoshikage Kira, was smiling and greeting them, while secretly sizing up their hands, selecting his prey from the crowd.
On the surface, Kira kept his gaze forward, only occasionally letting his eyes drift to the hands of the people around him to see if they were up to his standards. But don't misunderstand—Kira had no intention of taking anyone's hand. He was just like Minoru Mineta, whose eyes were involuntarily drawn to girls' skirts. Kira was simply admiring women's hands.
The world doesn't lack beauty; it only lacks the eyes to find it.
"Big brother, aren't you the person on TV today who was glowing?" A little girl tugged on the corner of Kira's shirt, looking up at him with curious eyes as she asked shyly.
Kira looked down and smiled at the little girl. "That's right. That was me."
As if encouraged, the little girl summoned her courage. "Can I... can I give you a hug? I think you're super cool, big brother!"
"Is that alright?" Kira asked, directing a questioning gaze at the young mother holding the little girl's hand.
Perhaps Kira's face was just that popular with women. The mother smiled and nodded, lifting her little daughter up. "As long as you don't mind the trouble."
Kira took the little girl, a smile on his face. He looked at her calmly, letting her small hands grasp his.
The little girl stared at Kira's face, a blush gradually creeping onto her own. She suddenly leaned forward, pecked him on the cheek, and then, beet red, struggled to return to her mother's arms, burying her head and refusing to come out.
The mother smiled, embarrassed. "My daughter is a little shy. What she means is, she really likes you. She's encouraging you to become a great hero."
Kira smiled and nodded. "A hero... I will."
As he spoke, Kira saw a woman stumbling out of a restaurant, talking loudly on the phone, clearly a little tipsy. As she walked past him, Kira's attention was fixed on her hands.
"Well then, I'll be going."
After smiling and saying goodbye to the mother and her daughter, Yoshikage Kira silently began to follow the tipsy woman.
❃❃❃
⤑ Show your support with Power Stones!
⤑ Unlock a Bonus Chapter every time we hit 400 Power Stones!
❃❃❃
♕ Get early access to 30+ advanced chapters on Patreon!
🔗 https://www.pat-reon.co-m/c/Hollowborn
(Just remove the hyphen (-) to open the link!)
💬 Enjoying the story? Drop a review!
Your support really helps the series grow—thank you!