Rei didn't sleep that night.
Not because he was training or patrolling. Because he couldn't.
Every time he closed his eyes, he saw that girl. Her sharp eyes. Her knowing smile. The way she'd said his vigilante activities like it was common knowledge.
'Someone knows,' his mind kept repeating. 'Someone tracked me. Someone found me.'
Saturday morning came with gray skies and the promise of rain. Rei sat on his apartment floor, back against the wall, staring at nothing.
His phone said 6:47 AM.
'I should eat something. Train. Do something productive.'
But his body felt heavy. His mind was foggy. The exhaustion he'd been pushing down all week was finally catching up.
'Maybe she was right,' Rei thought. 'Maybe I am burning out.'
His phone buzzed. A text from an unknown number.
Unknown: Roof of your building. Within 30 mins. Come fast.
Rei stared at the message.
'Has to be her.'
He should ignore it. Block the number. Pretend it never happened.
Instead, he found himself getting dressed and heading to the roof.
---
The roof access door was usually locked, but someone had propped it open with a small rock. Rei pushed through and stepped onto the rooftop.
The city stretched out before him, gray and quiet under the overcast sky. And sitting on the roof's edge, legs dangling over the side, was the girl from yesterday.
She didn't turn around when he approached.
"You came," she said. "Wasn't sure you would."
"You knew where I lived." Rei stopped a few meters behind her. "Seemed rude not to show up."
"Fair point." She patted the space beside her. "Sit. I don't bite."
Rei hesitated, then walked over and sat down, keeping a careful distance between them. His enhanced senses were on full alert, tracking her every movement.
Up close, he noticed more details. Her school uniform was from some private academy he didn't recognize. She had a small scar on her left hand. And her posture was relaxed, but her eyes were constantly scanning, always aware.
'Trained,' Rei realized. 'She's had combat training. Professional level.'
"So," the girl said, still looking at the city. "Sleep at all last night?"
"Does it matter?"
"It does if you want to survive UA."
Rei's head snapped toward her. "How do you—"
"Know you're applying?" She finally looked at him, smiling slightly. "Please. Everyone with a decent Quirk applies to UA. And you've got a really decent Quirk."
"You don't know anything about my Quirk."
"Spider-based abilities. Wall-crawling, enhanced strength and agility, organic webbing, probably enhanced senses too based on how you reacted when I moved just now." She tilted her head. "How'd I do?"
'She's good,' Rei thought. 'Really good.'
"Why are you here?" he asked instead of confirming.
The girl was quiet for a moment, her smile fading. "Because I was you. Two years ago."
"What?"
"Fifteen years old. Strong Quirk. Thought I could do everything myself." She looked back at the city. "Trained all day, patrolled all night, barely slept. Told myself I was fine, that I could handle it."
"What happened?"
"I collapsed during a fight." Her voice was flat, matter-of-fact. "Civilian got hurt because I was too exhausted to react fast enough. They lived, but..." She trailed off. "I learned my lesson. The hard way."
Rei processed that. "So you're here to... what? Save me from making the same mistake?"
"Something like that." She stood up and brushed off her skirt. "Look, I'm not trying to be your mom or whatever. But you're clearly talented, and it'd be a waste if you burned out before you even made it to UA."
"I'm fine."
"You're not." She turned to face him fully. "You look like you haven't slept in days. Your hands are shaking. And right now, your reaction time is probably half of what it should be."
Rei clenched his fists, trying to stop the trembling. She was right. He hated that she was right.
"What do you want me to do?" he asked, frustrated. "Stop training? Stop helping people? Just give up?"
"No." The girl's voice was surprisingly gentle. "I want you to be smarter about it. You can't do everything. Not alone. Not at fifteen."
"I don't have a choice."
"Why not?"
"Because—" Rei stopped himself.
Because he knew what was coming. Because the League of Villains was forming. Because people were going to die if he wasn't strong enough.
But he couldn't say any of that without sounding insane.
"Because I need to be ready," he finished lamely.
The girl studied him for a long moment. "Ready for what?"
"For UA. For being a hero. For—" He struggled to find words that wouldn't reveal too much. "For whatever comes next."
"And you think running yourself into the ground is the way to do that?"
"It's worked so far."
"Has it?" She crossed her arms. "You almost got crushed by that stone villain Thursday night. If those heroes hadn't shown up, what would've happened?"
Rei didn't answer.
"You would've lost," the girl said quietly. "Because you were too tired to think clearly. Too exhausted to fight at your best."
"I held him off."
"Barely. And that was against a mid-tier villain. What happens when you face someone actually dangerous?"
'She doesn't know,' Rei thought. 'She doesn't know about All For One. About the Nomu. About everything that's coming.'
But she didn't need to know. Her point was still valid.
He was running on fumes. And if he kept going like this, he'd crash at the worst possible moment.
"So what do you suggest?" Rei asked, genuine curiosity in his voice now.
The girl's expression softened. "First, sleep. Actual sleep. Eight hours minimum. Your body needs rest to build muscle and process training."
"I don't have time for eight hours."
"Then make time. Cut something else. You know what's less important than sleep?" She waited for him to respond. When he didn't, she continued. "Nothing. Sleep is when your body repairs itself. Without it, your training is half as effective."
Rei wanted to argue, but he couldn't. In his previous life, he'd learned that lesson the hard way too. Sleep-deprived assassins made stupid mistakes.
"Second," the girl continued, "stop trying to do everything. You're training, studying, and patrolling. That's too much. Pick two and focus on those."
"I can't stop patrolling. People need help."
"There are heroes for that. Licensed heroes. With backup and support systems." She held up a hand when he started to protest. "I'm not saying never patrol. I'm saying be strategic. Don't go out every single night. Give yourself recovery time."
That... actually made sense.
"Third, and this is important—" The girl stepped closer, her eyes serious. "Stop thinking you have to do this alone. When you get to UA, you'll have classmates. Teachers. Resources. Use them."
"I work better alone."
"Nobody works better alone. That's just what people tell themselves when they're afraid to trust others."
The words hit harder than Rei expected.
Because she was right. Again.
He was afraid to trust people. In his previous life, trust got you killed. Partnerships were vulnerabilities. Solo work was safe.
But this wasn't his previous life.
This was a world of heroes. Of teamwork. Of people who fought together and saved each other.
'Can I do that?' Rei wondered. 'Can I actually trust people again?'
"I'll think about it," he said finally.
The girl smiled. "That's all I'm asking." She pulled out her phone and tapped something. "I sent you a training schedule. It's what worked for me. Balanced training, proper rest, strategic patrol nights."
Rei's phone buzzed. He pulled it out and saw a detailed document—workout routines, study schedules, recovery protocols. It was thorough. Professional.
"Who are you?" Rei asked again. "Really?"
The girl's smile turned mysterious. "Does it matter?"
"You know who I am. Seems only fair."
"Fair doesn't exist in hero work. You'll learn that soon enough." She walked toward the roof access door. "But if it helps you trust the advice—I'm a second-year at Shiketsu High School. Hero course."
Shiketsu. One of the top hero schools, rivaling UA in reputation.
"You made it," Rei said. "To a hero school."
"I did. After I learned to pace myself." She paused at the door. "You're talented, Spider-boy. More talented than I was at your age. But talent means nothing if you destroy yourself before you can use it."
"Why help me?" The question came out before Rei could stop it. "You don't know me. Don't owe me anything."
The girl was quiet for a moment. When she spoke, her voice was soft. "Because someone helped me when I was drowning. And they told me to pay it forward when I could."
She opened the door.
"This is the last time I'm coming to check on you," she said without looking back. "Next time we meet, it'll probably be at the Sports Festival or some inter-school event. Try not to embarrass yourself by collapsing from exhaustion."
"Wait—"
But she was already gone, the door clicking shut behind her.
Rei sat alone on the roof, the gray sky overhead, her words echoing in his mind.
Stop thinking you have to do this alone.
He looked at his phone, at the training schedule she'd sent. It was smart. Efficient. Built for long-term growth instead of short-term burnout.
'Can I actually do this?' he wondered. 'Can I trust her advice?'
His hands were still shaking slightly. His body was screaming for rest. And deep down, he knew she was right about everything.
He was burning out.
He was making mistakes.
He was going to crash if he kept going like this.
"Okay," Rei said to the empty rooftop. "Okay. I'll try it your way."
He stood up and headed back to his apartment.
For the first time in two weeks, Rei Mizuki went to bed at a reasonable hour.
And for the first time in two weeks, he slept through the entire night.
---
Sunday morning, Rei woke up at 9:34 AM.
His alarm hadn't gone off because he'd actually turned it off for once. The apartment was quiet. Sunlight streamed through his window—the rain had cleared overnight.
Rei sat up slowly, expecting to feel guilty for sleeping so late.
Instead, he felt... good.
His mind was clear. His body felt rested. Even his hands weren't shaking anymore.
'Huh,' he thought. 'Sleep actually works. Who knew?'
He checked his phone. The mysterious girl's training schedule was still there. He opened it and read through properly this time.
-:Weekly Schedule:-
- Monday/Wednesday/Friday: Strength and combat training (2 hours)
- Tuesday/Thursday: Quirk development and technique (2 hours)
- Saturday: Long training session (4 hours)
- Sunday: Active recovery (light exercise, stretching, rest)
- Patrol: Maximum twice per week, only when fully rested
- Sleep: Minimum 7-8 hours per night
- Study time: 1-2 hours daily for UA prep
It was balanced. Sustainable. Nothing insane or superhuman.
'She's treating this like a marathon, not a sprint,' Rei realized. 'Long-term growth instead of burning bright and fast.'
And the scary part? It made sense.
The UA exam was in two and a half weeks. But UA itself was three years. Then professional hero work after that. If he burned out before he even started, what was the point?
"Alright," Rei said to his empty apartment. "Let's try this for real."
He got up, made actual breakfast—scrambled eggs and toast instead of instant ramen—and started planning his new routine.
Sunday was recovery day according to the schedule. That meant light stretching, maybe a short walk, nothing intense.
Rei did exactly that. Went for a walk around his neighborhood. Did some basic stretches. Read through UA entrance exam information.
It felt wrong. Like he was wasting time.
But by the end of the day, he felt more energized than he had all week.
'Maybe she's onto something.'
Monday came with renewed focus.
School at Aldera Junior High felt less exhausting. Rei actually paid attention in class, took proper notes, didn't zone out every five minutes.
During lunch, Midoriya tried to ask more Quirk questions, but Rei deflected politely. Bakugo glared at him in the hallway but didn't say anything.
After school, Rei went to the forest for his scheduled training session. Two hours. Strength and combat focus.
He worked on striking power, drilling combinations against trees, pushing his enhanced strength to lift heavier objects. By the end of two hours, he was tired but not exhausted.
He went home. Made dinner. Studied for an hour. Then went to bed at a reasonable time.
No patrol. No pushing past his limits. Just discipline and structure.
It felt weird.
But it also felt... sustainable.
Tuesday and Thursday followed the same pattern. Quirk development sessions where he worked on web techniques, wall-running efficiency, sensory control.
Wednesday and Friday were combat days again. By Friday, Rei noticed something.
He was getting stronger. Faster. More precise.
Not from training harder, but from training smarter. His body had time to recover and build muscle. His mind had time to process techniques and commit them to muscle memory.
'She was right,' Rei admitted to himself Friday night. 'Rest makes you stronger, not weaker.'
Saturday came with his long training session. Four hours in the forest, going hard on everything.
By the end, Rei was exhausted, sweating, every muscle burning.
But it was the good kind of exhaustion. The kind that came from productive work, not burnout.
He went home, ate a huge meal, and crashed early.
Sunday was recovery again. And this time, Rei didn't feel guilty. He'd earned it.
Two weeks until the UA exam.
Rei Mizuki was ready to finish strong.
------
Author's Note:-
Chapter 7 done! Rei learns an important lesson about balance and sustainability. Sometimes the hardest thing isn't training harder—it's training smarter.
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