…We selected our team and submitted our list.
It seems Germany finalized theirs within an hour, while we took nearly half a day.
Night fell—the party before the festival begins tomorrow.
This hall is filled with so many heroes… even Star and Stripe is here.
Guess America's No.1 hero can't skip an event like this.
As I stood there, I overheard people whispering—
"Hey… it's Arjun Dev…"
"The legendary hero from India…"
"You know… they say he can even break mountains in an instant."
"Whoa… he's so tall…"
Arjun Dev—from India.
They say he has the highest chance of becoming the champion.
He's the tournament favorite.
…
"Hey… it's Kaiser Richter," a girl said.
"He looks so handsome…"
"Kaiser-sama…"
Looks like all the girls are fawning over him.
Well… he does have a model-like face, I'll admit.
I didn't expect him to be such a big shot, considering the way he treated me earlier.
"Izuku," he called out.
Eh?
"It's nice to see you, senpai. Can I call you senpai?" he asked.
"Senpai…? Kaiser-kun, I'm eighteen. I think we're the same age," I replied.
"I'm sixteen, though."
Sixteen…?
He's younger than me?
What kind of height genetics does this guy have?
"Huh… who's that, Kaiser-sama?"
"…Who knows?"
"Wait… he's Izuku Midoriya from Japan."
"Izuku Midoriya… that hero from Japan… the one who sacrificed his quirk…"
"Looking at him… he's pretty good too. Not as good as Kaiser-sama, though…"
Hey—I can hear that.
I've got plenty of fangirls in Japan too… wait, why am I even thinking like this?
"Senpai, I hope I can face you in the tournament," Kaiser said.
"…Me too, Kaiser-kun."
"Drop the formalities, senpai. Just call me Kaiser."
"Okay… Kaiser. I look forward to facing you too."
"What the hell are you doing, Deku?" Bakugo shouted.
"Ah… Kacchan," I said.
"…Our friends are waiting, Izuku," Shoto added.
"…Who's are these clowns, senpai?" Kaiser asked.
"…Who are you calling a clown, you blond monkey?" Bakugo snapped back.
Wait—why is he picking a fight?
Wasn't he supposed to be a nice kid… my fan, even?
"Oi. Who are you? Are you trying to pick a fight?" Shoto asked.
"No. I'm just speaking my mind. This clown interrupted my time with Izuku-senpai."
"…Senpai? Are you a kid?" Shoto asked.
"Then you should call us senpai too, you monkey," Bakugo retorted.
"Senpai, are these your friends? Because I'm getting really mad at this clown here," Kaiser said.
"…I'll kill you," Bakugo growled.
The atmosphere grew tense.
Everyone around us started staring.
"Kaiser, these are my friends—Kacchan and Shoto. Guys, this is Kaiser from Germany. Please keep it down… everyone's looking at us," I said.
"I'll see you later, senpai," Kaiser waved before leaving.
"Why are you making friends with everyone you see? Are you a puppy?" Kacchan barked.
"He seemed nice…" I replied.
"There's nothing nice about that tall monkey," Kacchan shot back.
"You should be careful, Izuku. They might try to sabotage us using underhanded methods… like poison," Shoto said seriously.
"Shoto, this isn't some drama. Things like that don't happen. Kaiser seems like a nice guy to me."
As we walked toward our friends—
The crowd suddenly shifted.
As if mesmerized by something.
There stood a girl.
A girl whose silver hair shimmered brilliantly under the lights.
Her features were sharp, intense—almost unreal.
Even Kacchan and Shoto were stunned, which was rare for them.
She's Zhang Meilin from China.
Like a living sculpture.
The aura radiating from her told me everything I needed to know.
She's dangerous.
A beauty so lethal it could kill you in an instant.
She's also one of the tournament favorites—alongside Arjun Dev from India.
…And then, thanks to the crowd surging toward her, I got separated from Kacchan and Shoto.
"…Why are you gawking at her?" Nana-san snapped.
"Nana-san, it's not like that—"
Then Kurohane appeared out of nowhere.
"I see… you're so greedy, Izuku-kun. Even though you have me… and the other three girls… why are you still so greedy?" Kurohane said, her tone slightly harsh.
"Kurohane? When did you get here?"
"I arrived when you were gawking at that woman. Even though you have me—someone completely devoted to you, body and soul—you still look at other women… I'm so sad," she said, her bloodlust slowly rising.
"Kurohane… don't. We're at a party."
Just as her bloodlust was about to spike—
I grabbed her hand and ran toward the balcony.
"What was that about? This place is full of heroes. You could've died in an instant, you know," I said.
She didn't answer.
"No… why, Izuku-kun? Even though I'm the one who's known you the longest… why won't you look at me? I just want you to look at me the same way you look at those girls of yours…" She was on the verge of tears.
"…I'm sorry, Kurohane. For ignoring your feelings all these years."
"I may have been a jerk… but I lost count of how many times I held you. I thought maybe you were just messing with me. But not anymore. Not after seeing you cry like this," I said, gently wiping her tears away.
"Please forgive me, Kurohane," I said, taking her hand.
"I'm sorry too… when I saw you looking at that girl… I just couldn't help it," she said, hugging me tightly.
"Ah… by the way—you're still a softie, you know. You can't help it when you see someone in trouble," she said softly.
"…If I had met you ten years earlier… or if I were born ten years later… you would've saved me again, right?"
As she said that—
She kissed me.
This time, I didn't resist.
I melted into her kiss, and under the moonlight, we kissed for a long while.
Then I pulled back.
"That was the first time, Izuku, when you didn't resist," she said, smiling.
It was a genuine smile—not her usual fabricated one.
My heart skipped a beat.
"What can I do? How could I resist when I have such a beautiful lady beside me?" I said.
"Ah… Izuku… you…" she said, blushing.
I'd never seen her like this before.
It felt like the shell around her had finally shattered.
"I'll be waiting in our room," she whispered. "Come quickly."
Even though we had shared each other's warmth many times before…
This time felt different.
Like tonight was the day I finally saw the real her.
After the party ended, I went straight to my room—
Where she was already waiting.