"The top four teams from the second event will advance to the third event!" Midnight announced excitedly, her voice brimming with energy as she hyped up the crowd and clarified the rules.
The first-place team was Todoroki's Cavalry, consisting of Todoroki, Yaoyorozu, Kaminari, and Iida.
Second place went to Hagakure's Cavalry, made up of Hagakure and Nekoyama.
Third was Bakugo's Cavalry, which included Bakugo, Kirishima, Hanta, and Ashido.
Fourth place was claimed by Midoriya's Cavalry, consisting of Midoriya, Hatsume, Uraraka, and Tokoyami.
The first team secured victory by successfully protecting their own headband. Meanwhile, the third team was too focused on chasing the first-place team and ended up falling to third instead of taking second.
The second team smoothly stole other teams' headbands using their Run and Steal tactic.
As for the fourth team, their ability to fly—combined with Tokoyami's shadow and Midoriya's sharp intellect—helped them barely secure the final qualifying spot.
"Uyeay!" Hagakure climbed down from Nora's back and enthusiastically threw her a high five.
"It really worked," she said, her voice tinged with slight disbelief.
"I told you so."
"Hehe, honor students really are different," Hagakure said, savoring the thrill of victory while the defeated teams watched with vexed expressions.
"By the way, Toru—"
"Yes?" she replied, still riding her excitement.
"You remember what happened, right? It hasn't even been that long," Nora said, stepping closer.
"Aha ha ha… what do you mean?" Toru laughed nervously, taking a step back and feigning ignorance.
"The next event will be a one-on-one tournament!"
The announcement abruptly cut off their conversation.
Phew… Hagakure sighed in relief and quickly put a bit more distance between herself and Nora.
"We will select sixteen contestants from the winners of the second event! That's right—you guessed it! Since there are only fourteen contestants, we will choose two additional participants from the fifth group: Shinso's Cavalry. So, who's going to advance?"
"I'll decline."
The first to speak was Mashirao Ojiro from Class 1-A. "I don't think I can continue like this," he explained, admitting that he had no memory from the moment the second event began until it ended.
"Same here," another student from Class 1-B said, also declining advancement for nearly the same reason as Ojiro.
"That settles it! The sixteen participants for the next event have been decided!" Midnight declared. "After a short break, we'll begin the first round! And don't forget to subscribe~" she added with a strangely cheerful flourish.
***
"That was quite a strange fight," Nora commented from the special audience seats.
These seats were reserved exclusively for Class 1-A to watch the match.
"Agreed," Ashido nodded. Even without speaking, the rest of the class shared the same sentiment. After all, the match had been between Midoriya—their classmate—and a student from the General Course. Naturally, their support leaned heavily toward Midoriya.
"From the start, they were staring into each other's eyes so intensely, and then they ended up moving in perfect sync."
"Pfft—!"
"Ghk—!"
Several students who had been drinking immediately spat water everywhere, coughing violently after it went down the wrong pipe.
"D-do you have to say it like that, man?!" Kaminari complained, water dripping from his mouth and nose as he glared daggers at Nora.
"But you can't exactly deny it, can you?" Nora replied calmly.
"Ugh, I hate my imagination," Kaminari groaned as he slumped to the floor, utterly dejected. It seemed he had become yet another victim of the internet. Sometimes, there were truly wicked people who refused to suffer alone—people who would recommend a certain infamous anime, 'B*ku no P*co', to newcomers just stepping into the anime world.
Damn them!!
"?" Asui tilted her head in confusion. "Is there something wrong with what Nora said?"
"Guh—! This purity…!" Kaminari clutched his chest, acting as though he were being purified by her innocence.
"Nothing," Ashido quickly interjected, waving it off. "There's no special meaning behind it." She smoothly diverted Asui's attention.
"What a mess, hehe," Hagakure laughed as she watched the chaos unfold among Class 1-A.
"Anyway, I'm up next, so I'll go get ready," Nora said, standing up and heading toward the preparation room.
"Good luck, Nora! Hanta!" someone called out.
***
"Well, well, well… I guess this is our first time meeting and actually talking like this."
"…Are you really going to do this?"
Hanta Sero, one of the Class 1-A students, replied with a tired look. They belonged to different cliques, but in a class of only twenty people, everyone got along well enough.
"Haha, but haven't you ever wanted to act like this at least once?" Nora said, speaking as if he were some kind of Demon Lord from a fantasy story.
"Sigh… I can't say I never have," Hanta admitted. Despite his laid-back tone, there was a sharp gleam in his eyes—an unmistakable ambition to win.
If someone were to ask who the strongest student in Class 1-A was, every single one of them would answer, "Me."
They had both the confidence and the skill to back it up.
But if the question were who was the most exceptional—
That answer wouldn't come as easily.
Three names would inevitably surface: Bakugo, Todoroki, and Nekoyama.
They stood apart from the rest. And if the list were stretched further, other names would appear—exceptional in their own unique ways, like Mineta or Aoyama.
Piiii!
The moment the bell rang, announcing the start of the match, Nora moved instantly. He was a close-range fighter, while Hanta specialized in mid- to long-range combat.
As expected, Hanta fired his tape and widened the distance between them.
Jumping left and right to avoid the incoming tape, Nora charged forward. He was faster—far faster than Hanta. In an instant, he was right in front of him without being caught even once.
"Geh—!"
Hanta let out a strange sound and quickly raised his guard. Nora gave him no time to retreat, launching a roundhouse kick straight into it.
"Agh!"
Even with his guard up, the impact rattled his bones. Using the force, Hanta pushed himself backward while secretly attaching his tape to Nora's leg.
"Woooahhh!!"
Cheers echoed through the arena.
With distance restored between them, Nora glanced at the tape wrapped around his leg, then at Hanta, who was rubbing his aching arms.
"Thanks," Nora grinned. Grabbing the tape with his hand, he yanked hard.
PULL!
He expected Hanta to be dragged helplessly toward him—an easy opening for a punch to the face.
But tape wasn't rope.
The length was completely under Hanta's control. He allowed Nora to pull it freely from the roll, leaving nothing but excess tape behind. In the same motion, he fired another strip, binding everything together.
With a confident smile, he said, "Don't underestimate me too much."
The moment Nora's movements faltered—if only slightly—Hanta seized the opportunity. He wrapped tape around him relentlessly, from head to toe, leaving nothing behind for the next exchange.
In other words, he went all in.
What remained was an exhausted Hanta Sero—and Nora, bound like a mummified spider's prey, completely cocooned in tape.
"WOOOAAAHHH!!!"
The crowd erupted, cheering louder than ever at the sudden comeback.
"Haa… haa… Now I just have to push you out," Hanta said, forcing his breathing to calm.
Then—
"God's strength…"
A whisper echoed.
Crack.
The tape began to tear apart, piece by piece.