Chapter 9: He Vanished
Third Person POV
Cough. Cough.
The man who had been keeping the barrier active doubled over, hacking blood as he fell to his knees the moment Aaron broke through.
Leonard barely spared him a glance. "Pathetic." His scowl deepened as his gaze snapped to the one cutting down his villain army with terrifying efficiency. "Who is that?" he demanded, gesturing toward Aaron.
"That's Hero, young Lord," the butler replied.
The moment Leonard realized this was the same figure who had been foiling his plans again and again, his eyes burned with unrestrained rage. "I'll kill him. Finally."
Leonard took a step forward, but his butler raised a hand, blocking his path. "You shouldn't, young Lord. He doesn't seem weak. If you aren't at your peak when Stars and Stripes arrive, the battle could tilt in her favor."
Leonard clenched his jaw. "I don't have to take care of every pest myself," he muttered, displeased, but heeded the warning. His last fight with Star and Stripe had been too close for comfort. If not for his butler's quirk—Gatewalker, which allowed him to open portals to any place he had physically visited—he would have been captured.
Instead, he turned to the man in the crimson suit. "Bring that bastard to me. Alive."
The man smirked, casual in his arrogance. "As you wish. I'm only here for my money anyway." He walked toward Aaron.
When he was close enough, he raised his arm. WHOOSH! A torrent of roaring flames burst forth, rushing toward Aaron.
Aaron's POV
"…He'll carve you apart personally," the man in red muttered like a chatterbox.
I followed his gaze toward the so-called boss—some kid in a pristine white suit standing beside a butler straight out of an old movie. The young guy was glaring at me like I had personally stolen his breakfast cereal.
I turned back to the fire-spewer. "You talk too much."
His grin twitched. Just a little.
"Well," he drawled, "I had planned to finish this quickly, but maybe I'll take my time. As long as you're alive, the young master won't mind if I roast you a little." He thrust his hand forward, sending a beam of fire screaming my way.
I vanished from my spot in an instant. The beam detonated where I had been standing, shaking the ground with the force of a bomb.
I circled him at blinding speed, a phantom on the battlefield, waiting for an opening. The moment he lost sight of me, I appeared at his back, blade slicing forward. The steel bit into something, but… the sensation was wrong.
I leapt back to see the blade's edge had melted, dripping uselessly onto the ground.
"Well, shit. That's useless now."
Without hesitation, I tossed the ruined weapon. The force of the throw cracked the air like a cannon shot. But I didn't stop moving—by the time the blade was midair, I was already on him, closing the gap faster than his eyes could follow. The weapon came from the front; I came from behind. For a moment, he looked like he had seen death itself.
Then fire erupted from his body. A roar—primal and furious—shook the air. The flames surged so hot I had to coat myself in wind manipulation just to survive. My blade was incinerated before it even reached him.
I jumped back hard. My forearms stung, skin blistered where the flames had licked me before I managed to shield myself.
All eyes turned to us—heroes and villains alike—as we faced off.
"You bastard!" he bellowed, flames dancing wildly around him. "I don't care what that fucker Leonard wants—you're mine! I'll burn you alive!"
'The heat's unbearable. I have to finish this fast,' I thought, frustrated that I couldn't openly unleash my quirks.
This time, he pressed the attack, launching sweeping torrents of fire. The battlefield became a sea of flames, every step a trial. Dodging was getting harder; I couldn't stay on defense forever.
So I made a decision.
I pushed my body to its absolute limit, accelerating like a bullet, charging straight into the inferno.
Gasps erupted from heroes and civilians alike. To them, it must have looked like suicide.
The moment the flames seared my skin, I wrapped myself fully in wind and dove through. An instant later, I was in front of him—my hand at his throat, wind coiling tightly around my arm.
His eyes widened in horror. He opened his mouth to speak—
SNAP.
I didn't let him. His neck broke clean under my grip. At the same time, I stole his quirk.
The body crumpled, lifeless. The flames around us vanished with him.
Silence.
The battlefield froze, stunned at how quickly it had ended. Disbelief etched into every face—villain and hero alike.
I exhaled slowly, relief flooding me, before lifting my gaze to Leonard.
He was glaring at me like a rabid dog. Rage twisted his features, and my smirk—half-hidden by the mask that had been burned away-only made it worse. "Heh," I muttered. His expression was almost comical.
That was the final straw. Leonard snapped.
The butler tried to restrain him, but it was too late-he launched forward, madness fueling his charge.
But my eyes weren't on Leonard. They were on the butler.
In the blink of an eye, I vanished from Leonard's line of sight and reappeared behind the old man. He was the real variable-the one I couldn't afford to leave unchecked. He seemed to hold some importance to Leonard.
Before anyone realized what happened, my fist smashed into the back of his head, slamming him into the ground. The impact knocked him out instantly, and when my bare knuckles connected, I stole his quirk as well.
Leonard's eyes went wide. He hadn't even realized I'd never been aiming for him.
"Watch out!" someone shouted-
WHAM!
An invisible force slammed into me, hurling me across the battlefield like a ragdoll. I bounced twice, rolling until a pro hero caught me before I could skid further.
"Fuck, that hurts," I groaned, metallic tang of blood filling my mouth.
"You need to be careful," the hero warned. "He's dangerous—even for Stars."
"You seem to know him," I said, forcing myself upright. "Tell me what I'm dealing with. Strengths, weaknesses."
"His quirk is Telekinesis. He coats himself in it like armor—nothing can touch him. That's why Stars couldn't use her quirk on him. He can also attack at range—what hit you earlier was just him swinging his arm."
"Noted," I muttered.
Electplant rushed over. "Thanks to you, we've taken down most of the villains. But we only have a handful of heroes still able to fight. Please—help us once more. Hold him until Stars arrives."
I cracked my knuckles. "Let's see what I can do."
I rushed Leonard, dodging as telekinetic blows hammered into the ground around me. So long as I could see his movements, I could anticipate the invisible force and sidestep.
But then he raised all the debris around us, hurling it my way like a storm of missiles. I punched through one, masking the push of wind so it looked like brute strength alone.
Finally, I closed the gap and slammed a fist toward his chest.
BOOM.
Nothing. My fist stopped short—like it had struck an invisible wall.
'It's like Gojo's Limitless,' I realized. 'But instead of slowing things, it just blocks them outright.'
I jumped back. But Leonard grinned, eyes wild.
"Gotcha."
He swung—and even though I was out of range, the invisible force extended, smashing into me. I raised my arm in time, but the impact sent me crashing through a building. My left arm shattered under the blow; ribs screamed with pain.
Coughed blood spilled from my lips as I dragged myself from the rubble. The battlefield had gone quiet… heroes broken, civilians terrified. Leonard stood tall, grinning, waiting for me.
No words. Just the next clash.
I grabbed a stone mid-dodge and hurled it at him with everything I had. It struck.
He flinched, groaning.
'So that's it. He can't maintain the barrier when he's actively attacking.'
A plan formed.
We traded blows, until finally I set it up—launching a diagonal wind slash from my kick. Leonard ducked with a smirk, proud of himself.
KHRSSHHHH.
The sound of something massive collapsing filled the air. Behind him, an entire building—cleaved in two by my earlier slash—began to topple.
His smirk fell into horror as he caught it telekinetically, straining to hold the weight.
That was my chance.
In an instant, I was at his side, fist cocked back for a decisive hook.
But I underestimated his madness.
He let the building fall and attacked me instead.
BOOOOOOOM.
Our clash detonated, the shockwave ripping the air apart as debris exploded outward. Then, with a final thunderous crash, the building came down on us both.
Third Person POV
Smoke and dust swallowed everything. Silence reigned.
Every hero, every civilian, every viewer watching the live broadcast held their breath.
Seconds passed. Then—cheers erupted.
"He's defeated! We… we won! HERO WON!" the reporter cried into her microphone.
More police forces flooded in, tending to the wounded. Five minutes later, Star and Stripes arrived with reinforcements.
But her frown didn't fade when she heard the report. She ordered the debris cleared immediately.
When the dust finally settled, only one body was recovered.
Leonard.
Hero was gone.