Chapter 24: Villains and Heroes
Author: Geraint
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(MC's POV)
After getting back home, All Might was in charge of dinner, so I went straight to my workshop to continue working on the miniature Arc Reactor. I was soldering copper wires when I noticed the core was still giving off a faint smoke.
I blew the smoke away, glancing at the glowing reactor.
"Okay, that should be it... Let's power it up."
I turned on the power supply.
Tiktiktiktiktiktiktiktiktik
The arc reactor lit up, making a series of ticking noises. I watched as the core stabilized, and the noise eventually died down.
"So... it really is possible to make this here. Why didn't anyone think of this? With their advanced technology, this should be a piece of cake for them."
I looked up at the poster of All Might on the wall.
"Don't tell me..."
The reason I was making this was because I looked up to superheroes like Iron Man, Spider-Man, Batman, and others. I was a big fan of Star Wars too.
But now, in this world of quirks, people rely so much on their abilities that the only true role model they have is the #1 Hero, All Might.
"Having a musclehead for a number-one hero is really contagious, but I guess that applies to me too. As Captain Falcon, I don't need gadgets—my quirks are enough to be a hero. But sometimes, when you're a fan of someone, you end up copying them, forgetting that you have your own path."
I glanced back at my miniature Arc Reactor.
"Most people here are born with quirks and rely too heavily on them. They forget what it truly means to be a hero. Some of them even treat the role like a job to earn money or fame. This is what could cause society to fall apart in the future."
Just then, All Might's voice boomed from behind me.
"Ichika! The dinner's ready!"
"Wah?!"I jumped in shock as All Might appeared behind me in his muscle form.
"Dad! Since when were you standing there?!" I shouted, a little annoyed.
"Ever since you called me the number one musclehead hero," he said, grinning.
"Ugh... You were listening?"
"You were mumbling so loudly, I heard all of it."
"But I said the same thing to myself. When I was still Captain Falcon, I used to use violence against any villains who got in my way."
"Well, we're alike after all. No wonder we became father and son, my friend. Hahaha!"
"It's annoying, but I don't have much of a choice. It's better than being a burden to others. Besides, I'm under the watchful eye of the Hero Association. I'm thankful you adopted me; if not for that, I might've become one of those infamous villains, just like my real father. I'd have made society bend to my will."
"...That sounds frightening."
"Yeah, but that's very unlikely now since I'm in your care. You let me live peacefully, without the Hero Association constantly breathing down my neck. You just need to report that I'm acting like a normal kid, and that I'm doing fine in school."
All Might looked at me seriously.
"Falcon! Heroes or villains? Which side are you really on?"
I smiled at him, leaning against the workbench.
"Heroes and villains... huh? The two are more alike than you realize, All Might."
"...What do you mean?"
I stood up, walking over to the window, looking out at the city.
"In childhood, we all love heroes. But as adults, we begin to understand villains."
I turned to face him, my voice softening.
"You'll realize that, just like heroes, villains aren't born—they're made by the people around them. Some of them are broken, shaped by their circumstances. No one wakes up one day and decides to destroy everything."
All Might clenched his fists, his face filled with confusion and anger.
"Then what about All for One? Are you telling me there's a reason he became a villain?!"
"Oh, you mean my real father?" I said, my voice growing colder. "He's just a crazy old man who became drunk on power and lost all compassion. We might not know why he turned evil, but we do know he needs to be erased from this world. So many people are suffering because of him."
"..."
All Might went silent. I could tell he was struggling with my words, but I walked past him, heading for the kitchen.
"Anyway, Dad, you made curry tonight, right? I can smell it from your shirt. I want mine a little spicier."
"Yeah, I got a medium hot version."
Ding!
I heard an email notification pop up on my laptop.
"This must be it."
I quickly opened the email, All Might coming up beside me to look at the screen.
"Those are...?"
"Yeah, it's from the old man barkeeper. He finally gathered all the information I needed about Hagakure Toru and her family."
"Ichika, doesn't this make you look like some kind of stalker?"
"No way," I replied, dismissively. "I'm doing this to stop All for One's future plans! It's for the greater good of humanity! I'm saving Japan from destruction."
"You're saying something heroic, but this doesn't feel right to me."
"Good grief, we're already past the point of no return. I've already spent a lot of money on this info."
All Might was completely shocked.
"What?! Where did you get that kind of money? I thought they confiscated all your funds and closed your bank accounts!"
"They say they took everything, but do you really think I'd let them have it all for free? The money came from my blood and sweat. I came prepared in case something like this happened. If they try to touch the orphanage's bank account, the people would get angry. And that's just a small portion of what I had left there. The truth is, all my money is not in my possession. So, they got nothing from me. I'm telling you this because I trust you."
"Then where is it hidden?"
I shrugged.
"I don't know."
"Huh?"
"I said it's not in my possession. Do you think a kid like me can hold onto that much money? I needed help from an adult."
"You mean..."
"I left it all with the old man. He's been managing my transactions anyway. I'm planning to invest all my money into a new technology industry I'm creating. I'm calling it Yagi Industries."
...
All Might was speechless, staring at me with a look of disbelief.
"What? Aren't you proud of your son?"
"In such a short time... you've come up with so much. How far ahead do you think? You're so genius, it's kind of frightening."
He rubbed his temples, clearly overwhelmed.
"I am Captain Falcon after all."
I focused back on my laptop, scanning the email.
"Hagakure Toru... 9 years old... Lives in Tokyo... Her favorite food is caramel... She likes to watch hidden-camera prank shows... Wait! Why is the old man including this in here?! I never asked for this kind of information—What?! She's already this big at her age?!"
I quickly skipped past that page.
"Ichika, what are you reading? You should stop that!" All Might scolded.
I kept going through the next pages.
"Her father's salary is above average, and her mother's is the same... Hmmm..."
I didn't find anything suspicious—no involvement from her grandparents or ancestors. They all seemed to live normal lives. Their quirks were inherited, but there was no reason for them to be tied to All for One.
This cleared her of any suspicion as a traitor. My friend from the past had either lied to me or been misinformed.
The final page mentioned All for One. It referenced rumors about someone who could distribute quirks, which seemed to be the real value of this information.
It listed several people who had gone missing after the rumor spread. Most of them were from wealthy families, and none of them had been reported in the news or on TV. This rumor was only circulating among the upper class.
(I found some useful info. For now, I can rest easy knowing All for One isn't closely watching me.)
I closed the laptop.
"So, how was it? Is she innocent?"
"Yeah, I'm 100% sure now. She's innocent."
"You really went that far just to prove it?"
"It's better to be sure."
I stood up, stretching.
"Let's eat, Dad. Your curry must be cold by now."
"Oh, right. I forgot about that."
(To be continued)
A/N: Ultron is coming. I'll fix my mistakes later.