--
And the whole expulsion thing? Just a logical ruse to make you all give 100%," Aizawa said flatly.
"WHAT?!" the entire class yelled.
Momo crossed her arms. "You guys should've realized it was a bluff."
I snorted. "Oh, Momo, so innocent. You really think this guy—" I jabbed a thumb toward Aizawa "—would hesitate to kick you out? He expelled his whole class last year for 'lacking potential.'"
Momo's eyes widened. "He… he did?"
"Yep," I said, grinning at her shocked expression.
Class was over, but nobody had recovered yet.
--
Next day
--
It started as a usual school day with English class taught by Present Mic. After that, Hero Basic Training began.
Suddenly, a loud voice boomed: "I AM COMING THROUGH THE DOOR LIKE A NORMAL PERSON!"
ALL MIGHT burst in, wearing his Silver Age costume.
"ALL MIGHT!" everyone shouted.
"I am going to teach Hero Basic Training today," All Might announced with a wide grin, "and we're going to have combat training!"
"Combat?!" Bakugo exclaimed excitedly.
"Training…" Izuku muttered nervously.
"You know what they say—clothes make the hero!" All Might continued. "Get changed into the costumes we prepared based on your Quirk registrations and the requests you submitted before school started. Once you're ready, head to Ground Beta!"
"Yes, sir!" everyone replied in unison.
--
Ground beta
--
As everyone gathered at Ground Beta, I stepped out of the changing room. All the others were wearing the exact same costumes as in the canon series. As for me, I had submitted two costume designs and asked the support course to install a switch so I could change between them instantly.
The first was a pitch-black, skin-tight bodysuit with a flowing black cape.
The second was a sleek black suit with a long black trench coat draped over my shoulders.
They had built it exactly as I requested. When I walked out, I was in the skin-tight version with the cape. Momo tilted her head and asked, "Lucifer-kun, why is everything black?"
I smiled and answered, "It helps my quirk absorb sunlight more efficiently."
Everyone nodded in understanding.
All Might then began explaining the exercise:
"Today's combat training will be indoor battles! One team will play the villains guarding a nuclear weapon inside the building. The hero team has fifteen minutes to either capture the villains with this special capture tape or touch the bomb. The villain team wins if they prevent that until time runs out or if they capture the heroes. Teams and opponents will be decided by lottery!"
The teams were drawn as follows:
Team A: Izuku Midoriya & Ochaco Uraraka
Team B: Shoto Todoroki & Mezo Shoji
Team C: Momo Yaoyorozu & Minoru Mineta
Team D: Katsuki Bakugo & Tenya Iida
Team E: Yuga Aoyama & Mina Ashido
Team F: Rikido Sato & Koji Koda
Team G: Denki Kaminari & Kyoka Jiro
Team H: Fumikage Tokoyami & Tsuyu Asui
Team I: Mashirao Ojiro & Toru Hagakure
Team J: Eijiro Kirishima & Hanta Sero
Team K: Lucifer Tsukuyomi (me)
Since there were an odd number of students, another lottery decided which team I would join. I was added to Team C with Momo and Mineta.
The match-ups were announced:
Heroes (Team A) vs. Villains (Team D)
Izuku Midoriya & Ochaco Uraraka vs. Katsuki Bakugo & Tenya Iida
Heroes (Team B) vs. Villains (Team I)
Shoto Todoroki & Mezo Shoji vs. Mashirao Ojiro & Toru Hagakure
Heroes (Team J) vs. Villains (Team H)
Eijiro Kirishima & Hanta Sero vs. Fumikage Tokoyami & Tsuyu Asui
Heroes (Team G) vs. Villains (Team C + Lucifer)
Denki Kaminari & Kyoka Jiro vs. Momo Yaoyorozu, Minoru Mineta, & Lucifer Tsukuyomi
Heroes (Team E) vs. Villains (Team F)
Yuga Aoyama & Mina Ashido vs. Rikido Sato & Koji Koda
The first battle ended with massive property damage, Izuku's arm broken again, and Bakugo storming off in a rage.
The second battle saw Shoto freeze the entire building in one move.
Then it was our turn.
Team C (with me) was assigned as the villain team.
Inside the control room, Momo turned to us and asked, "What's our strategy?"
Mineta immediately started staring at her chest with that creepy grin. Without hesitation, I smacked the back of his head. He clutched it, whirling around to yell at me, but I cut him off.
"Focus. We have a match to win."
I turned to Momo and continued, "My quirk can absorb both electricity and sound energy, so I'll take Kaminari and Jiro head-on. You two guard the bomb."
While speaking, I pressed the switch on my belt. In an instant, the skin-tight suit and cape dissolved into dark particles and reformed as the sharp black suit with the long trench coat flowing behind me.
The buzzer sounded.
Match start.
I cracked my neck, adjusted my coat, and began walking calmly down toward the ground floor to greet the "heroes."
--
Denki Kaminari & Kyoka Jiro POV
--
We were standing outside the building, waiting for the match to begin. I turned to Jiro and asked casually, "Between the three villains inside, who do you think is the most dangerous?"
Jiro thought for a second, then answered seriously, "In terms of raw power, Lucifer is probably the strongest in the entire class. In terms of brains, Yaoyorozu is on another level."
I nodded. "Good analysis. Let's go."
All Might's voice crackled over the speakers: "Heroes, you may now enter the building!"
We stepped inside. Jiro immediately extended her Earphone Jacks into the walls to scout the enemy positions. A moment later, her eyes widened.
"Someone's coming down the stairs… alone," she whispered.
I stepped forward, electricity crackling around my arms. "I've got this." I took a wide stance and unleashed a full-power lightning blast the second the figure appeared at the bottom of the staircase.
The hallway lit up in blinding white—then nothing.
In the blink of an eye, he was already in front of us. Before either of us could react, Lucifer grabbed my head with one hand and slammed me face-first into the concrete floor. The impact knocked the air from my lungs and short-circuited my brain; I went limp.
He turned calmly to Jiro, trench coat swaying slightly.
"Your choice," he said in a low voice. "Surrender, or join him on the ground."
Jiro's heartbeat pounded in her own ears. She dropped to her knees instantly. "I surrender!"
From the observation room, All Might's booming voice declared, "Villain Team wins!"
The exercise ended. Medics rushed in to check on me while the rest of the class filed out.
Later, as I was heading home, I overheard Bakugo cornering Izuku in the hallway.
"this quirk wasn't my from the start! Someone gave it to me,
Before Izuku could answer, All Might appeared in his buff form, pulling Bakugo aside and giving him the usual "give him the push your limit" speech. Once Bakugo stormed off, All Might turned and scolded Izuku for letting the truth slip.
I stood quietly in the shadows, listening to everything.
I shook my head, exhaling slowly, then turned and started walking home, my mind already racing with what this information could mean and what I should—or shouldn't—do with it.
--
To be continue
--