Well, hello to my readers.
You can thank one of you for today's 40th chapter, who inspired me to write it today.
Jim. Thank you. And now I demand that you all leave a "Jim, thank you" in the comments.
Do it. Otherwise, I'll blackmail you, and there will be even more cliffhangers.
Chapter 40
Night. Ibara's room.
Ibara watched the stream on her laptop.... She saw a lone white-haired boy walking around the ship... facing several villains....
The advanced microphones on the drones picked up his every word.
"I don't want to kill you. I'm not a sadist, so I'll give you a choice, just as I give it to almost all sentient beings. Drop your weapons and leave, and I won't harm you."
Ibara crossed herself, thanking God that Vesemir wasn't a cold-blooded killer.... There was still hope that he would see the world of the Lord and return from the path of evil.
She breathed a sigh of relief when the villains accepted his grace.... Immediately afterward, she shuddered at Vesemir's next words.
"Before you go, I have something else to tell you. If I catch you even once in the act of any crime... murder someone, rob someone, deprive them of their freedom like you did here, or even just take candy from a child... I will kill you."
From the moment she first saw him in person in the park... she began following his story online.
She remembered his last words to her well...
"Because it's the right thing to do. Someone else might fail."
She couldn't understand how someone so young could think so heroically... until she watched the UA press conference.
The music video, created from Vesemir's memories, was terrifying... but it explained a lot.
She now understood why Vesemir did what he did. She was convinced he believed he had no other choice.
She must find him... and help him understand his mistakes....
On the stream, Vesemir and two villains clashed.... Throughout the fight, she cried, covering her mouth with her hand to avoid waking her parents.
She closed her eyes as Vesemir coldly killed someone again. Then she listened to his conversation with Edgeshot.
Then even more information about him emerged... Prince of Nilfgaard... Knight...
He truly believed he couldn't do otherwise... all because of the oath he had sworn.
Ibara experienced another shock when a shot rang out and Vesemir fell to the ground. Then she began sobbing loudly enough that her mother came to check on her....
But before she could say a word, Ibara threw herself into her arms. Her mother looked at the laptop and immediately understood what was happening.
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Ochaco sat on her bed in the cramped room of her parents' house, her knees drawn up to her chin.
She couldn't tear her eyes away from her cell phone screen. Her savior had gone off to rescue more girls from hell.
Fear gripped her that she might have ended up the same way if it weren't for him.
The white-haired boy who killed the villains in the warehouse... saved her life... treated her with respect... and asked for nothing in return...
She hid the money he gave her from the police, like the other girls... and gave it to her parents...
The money was enough for her father to be able to restart his company... pay his employees their back wages...
After all, they weren't on the verge of poverty... they might not have been rich, but her family had rebounded... All thanks to Vesemir... the boy... no... the knight from another world.
She couldn't understand why she blushed every time she looked at him... or heard his voice.
She watched helplessly as he was wounded... as he killed... but she saw no satisfaction on his face....
And then he revealed who he truly was....
Vesemir is a Prince....
How she wished... he were... her Prince Charming.
A moment later, she began sobbing loudly as he was wounded. Her parents burst into her room... her mother hugged her... but her father... didn't come closer. He was afraid to hug his own daughter... because it was his fault he'd borrowed money from the Yakuza.
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Midnight, aka Nemuri Kayama, was sitting in her apartment in UA with a cup of tea.... She left Yui and Nejire to rest together. The girls had grown very close thanks to Vesemir... and now, with his escape, they were inseparable.
"I don't want to kill you. I'm not a sadist..."
She watched sadly as the stream unfolded.... She knew she wouldn't make it in time, and three Pro Heroes were already on their way.
She breathed a sigh of relief when the villains surrendered, but his threat made her clench her fists.
Aizawa wasn't answering his phone. He hadn't returned to UA. The idiot probably got drunk and now he's lying unconscious in the street.
A fight broke out on the stream with two swordsmen. Then she watched sadly as he killed... She no longer knew how she could help him....
Once he was caught... he would face trial... that was certain.
Her confidence in her teaching skills had faltered with his escape. Aizawa had screwed up the most, but she herself was not without blame.
She could have spent more time with him...
She could have become more interested in his art...
She was wrong to leave it to Yui and Nejire.
And then the shot rang out.
"No! Damn it, no!"
She stood up, spilling her tea, and immediately began changing into her Pro Hero uniform.
Now Edgeshot will be able to capture him..... Vesemir will be transported to the hospital.... and since Aizawa won't be with him.... then she must.
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Yui and Nejire sat on the bed, cuddled up together, Nejire's phone propped against a pillow. The two girls had grown closer thanks to Vesemir. His presence in their lives had bonded them like sisters, and his sudden absence had caused them to cling to each other, seeking solace in mutual understanding.
They couldn't tear their eyes away from the screen. Vesemir was giving the villains a chance to leave.
Yui managed to whisper, worried.
"He... he always tries to be good... He's not a villain..."
Nejire nodded, tears forming in the corners of her eyes.
"That... idiot... I love him and at the same time... I hate him for leaving us."
A fight broke out on the stream with the two villains. The girls held their breath. Nejire covered her mouth with her hand. Yui almost jumped when Vesemir was wounded... but there was nothing she could do...
They both cried silently when he killed... they cried when he delivered his speech...
Suddenly, they heard a shot. Vesemir fell. They panicked.
"VESEMIR!"
They both managed to scream through their tears... Edgeshot moved towards the shooter, but the camera continued to show Vesemir... he was moving... but he was wounded... a girl ran up to him... then a portal opened... and they both entered through it.
Nejire suddenly got out of bed and ran to the clothes rack. She wanted to get dressed, but she noticed a piece of paper sticking out of her pocket that she hadn't put there.
She pulled it out and unfolded it in her hands.
It had a phone number on it with a name underneath.
Vesemir.
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Professor Clark Palmer was watching the live broadcast from Japan. He was deeply interested in Vesemir's fate. As a history professor, he was genuinely interested in the boy's knowledge and life. He wanted to interview him in the future and learn more about how people lived in his world.
He sipped his tea, but when he looked at the glowing golden runes on the sword, he spat all over the television screen. He paused the recording and rewinded to the appropriate moment, revealing the sword in all its glory.
He practically leaped to the shelf of old books and reached for a copy of a book written in Latin, the original dating back to the 5th or 6th century AD.
He leafed through the book, which he had read dozens of times before. He knew what to look for.
He stopped at a page with a drawing of King Arthur's sword, which, according to legend, the Lady of the Lake had given him... Excalibur.
Palmer froze, comparing the drawing with the frozen frame on the screen. A blade forged on the Isle of Avalon.... not fiction.
The runes were identical.... and the hilt too.... The sword truly exists.... and with it....
The legend of King Arthur is not a legend at all.
What could this mean for the world? What could it mean for Great Britain and the current ruling dynasty?
Palmer began to wonder.... if Vesemir couldn't lay claim to the English Throne....
No.... of course not.... this is just a legend....
No.... this is not a legend....
The only way to find the truth is to interview Vesemir....
If the Lady of the Lake exists, he must find her....
This will be his life's work....
He will forever be remembered as the man who proved beyond a doubt.... that the legends were true.
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Letho wasn't in a hurry to get back to the UA. He drove slowly through the city, pretending to be on patrol.
That was his excuse. However, not everything went according to plan. Vesemir was wounded, but he would live.
He would have to be caught soon... or persuaded to surrender. He didn't really believe in the second option.
Letho stopped at a red light and looked at the large group of people watching a replay of Vesemir's fight.
He smiled. The boy had managed to win people over.
Mainly by saving their children from kidnappers and rapists. That same night, a list of those involved in the case leaked online.
Letho had provided Vesemir with the tools, but he had hidden many things from him.
The flash drive Vesemir had given Edgeshot contained only a small selection of names...
Letho had the real list... Nearly 200 people. It included not only judges, police officers, and politicians... but also their families.
Like, for example, the son of a certain high-ranking man in the HPSC... who was very fond of using fire.
The city mayor's third son was also a psychopath. He used knives.
And the judge's grandson was simply a rapist.
He didn't release that little bit of information to the media... Letho intended to use his advantage over these people to prevent them from punishing Vesemir...
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Yui and Nejire sat on the bed, staring at the piece of paper as if it would answer all their questions.
It had been over an hour since the stream ended. They didn't know what to do. Yui wanted to tell her aunt about the note. Nejire wanted to keep it a secret... at least for now...
But they both wanted one thing... to call Vesemir.
They were afraid he wouldn't answer because he was unconscious... they were afraid he would answer and say he wasn't coming back...
They had to do something. They had to figure something out.
Nejire broke the silence first, her voice shaking, but she blurted out everything at once.
"Should we call? We have to... right? He... he could have been hurt! You saw that shot! What if... what if he needs help? Or... or he just won't answer because he doesn't want us? Why did he even leave that number? How did he know I'd find him? It was him, right? He must have done it before he ran off... idiot!"
Nejire pulled her knees up to her chin, rocking back and forth slightly.
"What if he's in trouble? Or thinks no one understands him? Remember what he said on that stream? That he kills monsters... He truly believes that's the only way! We have to tell him he's not alone! That we... we love him! Or at least I... well, both of us!"
Yui finally interrupted.
"We're calling, Nejire-sempai..."
Yui grabbed Nejire's phone and dialed the number. She immediately selected the video call option.
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Himiko took a shower and raided Vesemir's closet, searching for makeshift pajamas.
She appropriated his T-shirt... which hid her figure perfectly...
She moved closer to the bed where Vesemir lay unconscious... now she could examine him closely.
He slept shirtless, but with bandages covering his body. Here and there, smaller and larger scars were visible... Himiko allowed herself to run her fingers over each one.
She wondered... how it was that such a young boy had so many scars.
Vesemir turned onto his side in his sleep. Himiko could now see his back. There were unnatural indentations in his skin... as if someone had... cut out pieces of skin.
She didn't smile. She simply... watched. She listened to his breathing. She grabbed the covers and slowly slipped in behind him. She snuggled against his back, her hand finding his, and they intertwined.
She felt him respond to her touch. At first, his muscles stiffened. And so a minute passed... two... three....
Himiko was about to pull away when Vesemir finally relaxed, breathing heavily... and his hand responded to hers. She felt her hand grow warm. Vesemir unconsciously pulled her hand closer.
She felt his heartbeat... slow... but strong. Her face flushed. She had never felt anything like this...
Before her quirk had shown itself, her parents had been her... parents.
They held her, let her sleep with them when she was scared.
Tears rolled down her cheeks.
They pushed her away.
They punished her.
They beat her.
They sold her.
And now she was clinging to the back of a boy who had endured torture... far worse than hers.
He would understand.
He saved her.
He trusted her.
He didn't abandon her.
End of Chapter 40