As All Might went to surprise David Shield and get some pointers on how to manage his worsening injury, the students dispersed in various groups.
For some reason, Toru and Mina, who usually always preferred sticking around Luke on such occasions, had given him the cold shoulder.
Not only them, but even Momo seemed to be mad at him.
That didn't leave many choices for Luke.
It was hard to truly explore this place from the children's perspectives for him, anyway. Yes, it was all vibrant, full of joy and smiles. But Luke just couldn't see himself enjoying it as it was meant to.
So, to not ruin the wonderful trip for the others, he slipped away before Midoriya and the others could ask him to tag along with them.
A lot was going to happen on this Island soon.
It was not the time to confront Midoriya and start manipulating him.
Luke laughed as he thought of swindling the children all over again, a few of the passersby calling him a weirdo.
"Someone's following me?" he asked.
When Nyx shook her head, they went to the bathroom and took out their Topaz Pendulums.
Together, they divined the threat level of the event that was supposed to happen tonight.
Surprisingly, Luke's pendulum was spinning at a much faster rate than that of Nyx's.
"What the…" she cursed. "Why are you in more danger than me?!"
Luke also frowned. Typically, when they did this, Nyx always came out to be in more danger than him. But that was because of her overall strength. Still, it let them have a better overall idea about the future.
For Luke to be in more danger than Nyx only meant one thing.
"Someone… or Something…" Luke said, putting away the Pendulum, "might come after me specifically."
"Should we cancel the plan, then?" Nyx asked, not feeling shameless at all about the cowardice.
Luke also contemplated the idea for a moment when Miss Justice rebuked him in his mind.
[Oh, for Mr. Fool's sake! Will you two just grow balls!]
Luke's jaw dropped.
"What…" Nyx asked, hurriedly. "What?!"
Luke told her what Miss Justice just said, and the bird broke out in a cawing laughter.
"Miss Justice…" he asked, smiling wryly. "You don't know what growing balls mean, do you?"
[Huh? It means being more courageous, of course.]
As I thought… Luke facepalmed.
Then, holding back a laugh himself, he told the System.
[… I… NYX!!!]
To involve Nyx in the conversations, Luke had been bestowing the Telepathy Quirk upon her now and then.
As Miss Justice asked Luke to bestow Telepathy on Nyx again now, so that she could reprimand her, Luke let out a sigh.
The System was right.
I-Island incident, if he remembered it right, would present a great opportunity to do many tasks that would help him out in the future.
Letting it all go wasn't an option this time, it seemed.
"What do you think of Melissa?" Luke asked both Nyx and Miss Justice.
[
Not all Quirkless people are suitable for becoming Beyonders, Luke.
Kazuho and Iwao are special cases. You knew how to pull their strings to make them think it was their decision to become Beyonders. That, too, because you… could understand them and their struggles.
Even then, they are quite skeptical of you and Mr. Fool.
Melissa Shield's life is on a completely different spectrum.
Unless you force her through Quirks, I don't see why she would accept becoming Mr. Fool's Follower and a Beyonder.
It didn't seem that being Quirkless affected her much, no?
She's quite strong. Yes. That I would admit.
]
"You two look like brother and sister," Nyx cursed, feeling offended. "Don't even think of hitting that, or I will puke!"
"NYX!" Luke gasped.
Rubbing his head, Luke let out a sigh.
Miss Justice is right again, he thought. Let's focus on how things turn out for Melissa this time before working on her. But…
The higher degree of danger still puzzled Luke.
"Nyx," he said, snapping his fingers as he activated Descorrer within her. "Let's bring her here."
"Now?!" Nyx fluttered her wings in shock. "It's too soon… Sigh! Alright…"
Meanwhile, Luke turned the black coat white, putting up a mask and a top hat on himself, becoming Dr. Blessed.
Then, taking out a dummy mobile, he sent a text.
…
[Get Ready. Two minutes.]
Kazuho read the text, and her right eye widened.
Fumbling for her bag, she rushed out of the class as the professor shouted from behind.
"Jeez!" she cursed, pouting. "I told him to let me know at least half an hour earlier. Didn't he say he would call me in the evening?! Tch! Master is right. All fanatics are random…"
By the time she finished complaining, Kazuho arrived in the bathroom, whose location Dr. Blessed knew as well.
She hurriedly changed her clothes and made sure her new, geeky Costume was in her bag.
Suddenly, the space parted in front of her, a hand reaching out from the blackness.
"Oh, wait!" Kazuho screamed. "I need to set my hair… Ah!"
Uncaring, the gloved hand pulled her in.
…
Melissa Shield left her father and All Might alone and returned to the site of Expo.
She had already attended I-Expo over a dozen times. Still, she was very interested in All Might's students, especially in Midoriya and Luke, whom All Might mentioned to her father.
"I should have gotten their numbers…" Melissa grumbled, looking around.
Suddenly, she spied a bird coming out of the bathroom and flying away.
"Isn't that… Nyx?" Melissa recalled the name and went in the direction, knowing Luke must be coming out of the bathroom as well.
However, just a few minutes later, she had to stop, her jaw hanging low and her eyes going wide.
From the same bathroom that Nyx had come out, a pink-haired girl walked out, adjusting her hair and dress as if she had just put them on… put them back on.
Melissa couldn't move for a few moments, her gaze following the girl as she disappeared into the crowd.
Then, as Melissa brought her gaze back and looked at the bathroom again, she saw someone else walking out.
It was Luke in his Hero Costume —
— adjusting his black coat and his hair…
******************
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