Author's Note: We're back! I developed this chapter to dive straight into the plot. A lot of ideas have been popping into my head, though I feel they might drift a bit from what I originally planned. If you guys want to drop your own ideas, that'd be awesome to help prevent writer's block. Huge thanks to everyone who always supports me!
Let's continue:
You know that damn feeling when you just instinctually know something is about to happen, and you're absolutely certain it's going to be bad for you? Well, that's exactly what was weighing heavy on my chest. I was just completely losing my mind.
I finally reached a beach in Japan after spending several full days on the move. Based on my route calculations, I spent a good chunk of time flying low over the ocean. At that moment, I was maintaining my true form: pure exposed bone, a tattered, eerie robe, and Eri's horn protruding from my forehead, ready to activate in case I needed to rewind my biological state to when I still had skin and human camouflage.
I had been using a pretty heavy concealment spell as I approached the Japanese islands, but the paranoia just wouldn't fade; I felt something off in the air. It was a sensation strikingly similar to when Billy gave me that monumental beating back in the day and locked me up in that damn amber prison. I mean, I know perfectly well that if someone in this world has enough brute force and power, they could actually kill me for good. But... I highly doubt All Might even knows where I'm standing right now, right? He'd have no reason to.
The moment I hit solid ground, I felt the cold texture of the sand slipping between my bony fingers as I stretched my joints, stiff from the journey. The sound of the waves crashing against the shore was the only thing breaking the silence.
Then, I simply let my magic flow to shift my appearance, taking on the look of an ordinary, everyday man before starting my walk toward the city. The urban landscape looked a bit more empty and desolate than usual due to the global panic, but what did I care? I walked around like I owned the place, with an almost cynical calmness.
I turned my head as I passed a dark alley and noticed there weren't even any criminals loitering around. I guess something good had to come out of all this chaos, after all.
After walking through the empty streets for quite a while, I reached the train station and casually boarded one of the cars. I sat near the window, resting my head against it as the cityscape began to blur past at high speed.
"A lot of times, simple things like this make life worth living..." I muttered to myself in a raspy, spectral whisper, trying to relax.
Though, to be completely honest, as I looked at the passengers around me, I felt a deep pang—an almost biological urge to slaughter absolutely everyone in the car. But I held back. I wouldn't do it. At the end of the day, I am infinitely stronger than them; I wasn't going to lower myself to massacring them on pure impulse... well, at least not for now.
The trip lasted a few hours. The entire way, I spent my time mentally cycling through the Lich's old memories. The unsettling part was that, with each passing day, I felt those memories becoming practically my own—a real part of my identity. I mean, every day I felt significantly less human... if I ever even was one to begin with. Was I actually human at some point? Or was I just an entity implanted with these Earthly memories? Have I always been the Lich, just given a different perspective or window into reality? The doubts ate away at my mind as the train came to a halt.
Finally, I arrived at ground zero—the nuclear epicenter where I detonated my first bomb in Japan. The landscape looked straight out of a nightmare. I immediately noticed the mutants I had left behind, the ones I gave strict orders to kill anyone who dared to trespass, whether it was a dog, a cat, a kid, a teenager, or an adult. Any living soul that stepped onto this ground was as good as dead.
Looking closely at the place, I noticed the biological changes that had occurred in my absence. There was now a considerable number of small mutants; others had mutated from local animals, taking on deformed shapes of dogs and cats, but with a distinctly Lovecraftian style: bizarre limbs, eyes where they shouldn't be, and a slimy skin that oozed darkness.
I made my way through the toxic mist and walked straight toward what used to be my base—my home. At the entrance, some of the mutants acting as guards lunged at me, baring their teeth and trying to stop me, failing to recognize me in my human form. But it only took a single word loaded with magical authority:
"Back," I said in a dry voice.
The spell didn't just scare them off instantly, making them recoil like beaten dogs, but it also completely wiped this encounter from their hive minds. I've been improving my mystical abilities quite a bit with practice. Pretty cool, right?
As I walked down the dark corridors of my hideout, a slight smirk played on my lips. I looked out one of the cracked windows and noticed it had already become pitch black outside. The mental and physical exhaustion of the last few days was finally catching up to me.
Maybe getting some rest and letting my mind unwind wouldn't be a bad idea at all.
POV Shift
The hallway of the 1-A dorms felt dragged down by a funeral-like inertia. When I got back from Gym Gamma, exhaustion dragged at my feet like liquid lead. Several of my classmates said their goodbyes as they headed up the stairs, but the shift in the atmosphere was staggering—almost violent compared to the first few months of the year.
Kyoka Jiro, who used to be one of the loudest or quickest to joke around about music, now walked past us like a ghost, her eyes glued to the floor and her earphones unplugged. Ever since Momo Yaoyorozu was kidnapped back at the festival, Jiro had just shut down. She didn't say a word. No one knew what to say to her either.
The paranoia had already claimed its first casualties inside the classroom. Two people had made the definitive choice to drop out of the UA hero course just a few days ago. Kaminari and Mineta signed their voluntary withdrawals. They felt, with good reason, that if they stayed in this actual line of fire against nuclear monsters and death magic, they'd end up six feet under before even making their professional debut. And who on earth could blame them? I vividly remember Kaminari's broken words as he packed his things into cardboard boxes, tears streaming down his cheeks:
"If Yaoyorozu, who had the most protection at home because of her rich family, was taken just like that... what the hell would happen to us? We're just mere mortals, Deku. I can't handle this... I just can't."
A lot of us cried that afternoon. There was no room for judgment. We put together a small farewell meal for them in the common room—something very quiet and respectful. We weren't about to throw a party knowing one of our classmates was still missing somewhere in Japan, and none other than the smartest one in our group.
Ochako Uraraka was another one who had been on the verge of a breakdown. I knew perfectly well she wanted to drop out of the hero course too, out of pure fear of leaving her parents alone, but she was hanging on by her fingernails more than anyone. Her motivation remained the same, but with a twisted edge: her family needed the money now more than ever. Ironically, thanks to the mass destruction caused by the bombs in Yokohama, her parents' construction company had more contracts and clients than ever to clear debris—even if it felt awful to indirectly benefit from a tragedy.
And speaking of her...
"Hey, Deku!" a soft voice called out, snapping me out of my thoughts.
Ochako stepped right in front of me in the hallway leading to the second floor, forcing a kind smile to try and lighten the tension.
"Hey, Ochako..." I replied, offering a somewhat sleepy, dragged-out smile in return.
"You look like a total zombie," she commented, tilting her head and looking at me with a genuine worry she couldn't quite mask in her eyes.
"I'm just... mnnnn... I'm just incredibly sleepy," I said, stretching my arms upward in an attempt to wake up, though the mental fatigue from the muscle regeneration made me feel like my brain was floating in cold water.
"You've been training way too hard, Deku," Ochako said, suddenly closing the distance between us. She grabbed my hand firmly, her fingers radiating a nervous warmth.
At any other point in my life, physical contact like that would have made me float from nervousness; I would've blushed or started stuttering like an idiot. But now? Ever since I practically landed dead-center on the heroes' radar and the weight of the world crashed down on me, I just didn't have the time or the mental energy to get flustered by stuff like that. Real fear forces you to grow up the hard way.
I gave her a tired smile, squeezing her hand lightly in appreciation.
"You already know why I have to do it, right?" I whispered, keeping that slightly forced smile so I wouldn't fuel any more panic than she was already carrying.
"It still blows my mind..." she admitted in a low voice, awestruck as she processed reality.
Not long ago, I had trusted her with a piece of the truth, explaining that I was the direct heir to All Might's power and why the teachers were training me like a soldier during night sessions.
We talked a bit longer about tomorrow's schedule. While we conversed, I noticed several classmates passing behind Ochako on their way to their rooms; Kirishima and Iida looked over from a distance and gave me a thumbs-up, silently cheering me on. I just responded with a slight nod and a static smile.
After finishing my chat with Ochako, I said goodbye and walked slowly toward my room. Once inside, I closed the door behind me and leaned against the wood, letting out a long sigh. The accumulated exhaustion hit my back like a wave.
I walked straight to my bed without fully taking off my uniform and dropped face-first onto the covers. I lay motionless in the dim light of my room, staring blankly at the wall, obsessively thinking about what tomorrow would bring.
"Mnn?..." Izuku mumbled as he opened his eyes.
He was back in that space where he always spoke with the past users, who were sitting in those chairs. At first, there were two who didn't support him as the successor, but it didn't matter now; they were helping him with their Quirks too.
"What's wrong?" I asked, addressing them.
"Izuku, we need to talk," Nana Shimura said as she stood up.
"What's going on?" I murmured, looking at the other users.
"Something is happening out there," the first user said, stepping forward as well. It was usually those two who delivered the news.
I nodded, listening intently.
"All Might's vestige, even though it's motionless, has been more or less feeding us details about what's happening in the real world. But what he just sent us is alarming."
Izuku tensed up.
"What is it?" Izuku asked, now confused.
"Off the coast of Japan, sensors detected something moving at high speed... something that's almost on All Might's level right now."
Izuku tensed even more upon hearing that.
"But the weird thing is, nothing shows up when they check the cameras."
"Do you think it's something bad?" I asked, confused.
Nana cut into the conversation.
"Unfortunately, it is, kid. The fourth user said Danger Sense is off the charts; it just triggers every single time that thing is mentioned."
Izuku nodded as he felt his mental space begin to fade away and he started to wake up.
"You have to warn All Might about this..." Nana said as her figure completely vanished.
When he woke up, he noticed it was 6:00 a.m. Another day to continue his training and deal with the crushing mental exhaustion.
"Deku! Breakfast is ready!" Ochako yelled from outside the room.
"I'm coming!" I called out with a smile as I got up, now in better spirits to face the day.
End of Chapter 18.