"What the hell happened?!"
Present Mic's voice almost shattered everyone's eardrums.
But nobody cared.
They were all completely stunned.
What was going on?
Why did so many riders suddenly fall down, and why did they all have knives stuck in them?
"Get the injured students out. Eliminated teams, leave the field."
Midnight shouted immediately.
Soon, people brought stretchers and took all the injured, led by Monoma, away.
The students who got eliminated as riders were all shaken, cold sweat running down their backs. They weren't angry. They were terrified.
Because getting stabbed without even realizing it was seriously terrifying.
Especially for these Class B students, unlike Class A who'd already faced real enemies like the League of Villains. In an instant, the arena looked way emptier.
Arthur's eyes shifted.
The remaining teams… Todoroki's team with Kaminari, Kendo, and Iida.
Midoriya's team with Uraraka, Tokoyami, and Yoarashi.
Bakugo's team with Kirishima, Ashido, and Sero.
Shoji's team with Tsuyu, Mineta, and Hagakure.
All Class A students except for one Class B mixed in.
These four teams hadn't attacked right away. That made the two-second time stop a bit too short. He didn't have time to deal with them.
"Should I do it again?"
Arthur muttered to himself.
At that moment, Yaoyorozu, Jiro, and even the kind of clueless Hatsume were completely lost.
As teammates, they didn't even know what Arthur had done.
From their perspective up in the air after using Hatsume's thruster, they just suddenly saw more than half the riders below all fall down.
And they all had knives made by Hatsume stuck in them.
"What exactly is his Quirk?"
The inspectors sent by the Hero Commission exchanged looks.
"Keep watching. We have to figure out his Quirk."
Another one gritted his teeth and said.
Inside the venue, everyone else looked at Arthur with deep caution.
Their earlier guess about teleportation was wrong.
The real nature of that Quirk definitely wasn't teleportation.
"W-what should we do, Todoroki?"
Cold sweat was dripping down Iida's face. He frowned and said quietly, "Fall back. Don't fight Arthur."
"Engage from a distance."
Todoroki planned to attack from far away.
But honestly, he was struggling inside.
Because fighting like that meant he was scared of Arthur.
He didn't dare to go forward.
"So scary!"
Mineta, clinging to Shoji's back which had been enlarged by his Quirk, was freaking out. He pulled on Shoji's shoulder and cried, "Don't go against that psycho Arthur! Let's change targets. Change!"
Shoji nodded. "Agreed."
Their team had the lowest score right now, so they needed to steal points from other teams.
Like Todoroki, Shoji moved fast, picking up headbands that had fallen on the ground.
But then an explosion happened, sweeping all the headbands on the ground in one direction.
Shoji and Todoroki's expressions shifted. They both shouted the same name at the same time. "Yoarashi?!"
"Hahaha! Sorry, we'll take these points."
Sure enough, Yoarashi used his Quirk to sweep all the headbands that eliminated contestants had dropped and Arthur hadn't taken, sending them in a whirlwind straight to Midoriya's hand behind him.
In an instant, Midoriya's team shot up to second place.
And at that moment, Shoji and Todoroki's targets immediately switched to Midoriya's team.
Todoroki didn't want to back down, but he chose to secure his advance first.
But there are always people with reckless courage.
"You half-and-half bastard! Give me the ten million!"
Todoroki and Shoji had backed off after witnessing The World.
But Bakugo? It lit a fire in his pride.
No matter what your Quirk is, I'll crush you.
If he didn't know what the Quirk was, he'd test it himself.
Using explosions from his palms to propel himself, Bakugo jumped off Kirishima's back and charged straight at Arthur.
"There really are people who aren't afraid of dying, huh."
"Go, Explosion Boy! You got this!"
"Do it! Let us see what that transfer student's Quirk really is!"
Bakugo's move got loud cheers from the audience.
The crowd loved an underdog. Plus they all wanted to see what Arthur's Quirk actually was.
"Arthur?"
Jiro looked at him, checking if he wanted to give orders.
"Hmph."
Arthur smirked. The World surged out.
"A Stand? Hurry up and show me your ability!"
Bakugo roared, extending his explosive right hand like he was about to punch The World.
Arthur didn't use time stop.
But just as Bakugo's fist was about to hit…
Sero's tape suddenly shot out, wrapping around Bakugo's waist and yanking him back behind Kirishima.
"What are you doing?! You tape bastard!"
Bakugo froze, then immediately screamed at Sero.
"Don't be stupid, Bakugo. There's a difference between not giving up and seeking death."
Kirishima ignored Bakugo's protests and also rushed toward Midoriya's team. "Let's change targets. You can't beat Arthur."
"What did you say?!"
Bakugo's veins popped.
"If you don't even know what his Quirk is, how are you supposed to beat him? What we need to do right now is try to advance."
Even Ashido spoke up against him.
Bakugo gritted his teeth and finally let out a roar. "DAMN IT!!! You half-and-half bastard! Just wait! I'll definitely beat you!"
"That guy's mouth is as foul as ever."
Arthur sat in the folding chair Hatsume had pulled out, looking at Bakugo like he was watching a clown. "Too bad. He's already out of The World's range."
The whole situation flipped fast. What started as a siege on Arthur's team turned into Katsuki Bakugo's team, Shoto Todoroki's team, and Mezo Shoji's team all ganging up on Izuku Midoriya's team.
But honestly, anyone who knew even a little about Class A could guess how this match was going to end.
Sure, Mezo Shoji, Minoru Mineta, Tsuyu Asui, and Toru Hagakure weren't weak, but their overall strength was pretty average.
And yeah, Izuku Midoriya usually ranked lower because he couldn't control One For All properly.
But Inasa Yoarashi and Tokoyami were genuinely strong, and Ochaco Uraraka wasn't bad either. They could easily make up for Izuku's lack of control.
After a brutal fight, Midnight finally called it.
"Cavalry Battle, over!"
Tsuyu Asui, who'd been squatting behind Mezo Shoji with Minoru Mineta, let out a heavy sigh. "That sucks."
Yeah, their team got eliminated.
"Now, time to announce the teams moving on to the final round!"
Present Mic shouted as the big screen lit up with team photos and info:
First Place:
Arthur
Momo Yaoyorozu
Kyoka Jiro
Mei Hatsume
Second Place:
Shoto Todoroki
Tenya Iida
Denki Kaminari
Itsuka Kendo
Third Place:
Izuku Midoriya
Yoarashi Inasa
Ochaco Uraraka
Tokoyami
Fourth Place:
Katsuki Bakugo
Eijiro Kirishima
Hanta Sero
Mina Ashido
He didn't even make top three again. And worse, he was ranked below Izuku Midoriya.
Katsuki Bakugo's eyes went bloodshot. Looked like he was about to grind his teeth into dust.
"How... how lucky..."
Kyoka Jiro stared at her name under "First Place" in disbelief. She hadn't done anything. Literally just existed and won.
"Alright, let's start the final event. One-on-one elimination tournament!"
Midnight held out a lottery box and shouted, "First place team, you're up first!"
"One-on-one elimination?" Ochaco Uraraka asked, surprised.
"The events change every year, but the final round is always one-on-one matches. Last year I think they used soft swords," Tenya Iida explained.
After everyone took turns drawing lots, Midnight raised her right hand.
"Here are the match-ups for the 16-student elimination tournament!"
But the moment the bracket appeared, Izuku Midoriya's face went pale.
First Match: Izuku Midoriya VS Shoto Todoroki
Second Match: Denki Kaminari VS Eijiro Kirishima
Third Match: Kyoka Jiro VS Mina Ashido
Fourth Match: Yoarashi Inasa VS Hanta Sero
Fifth Match: Katsuki Bakugo VS Itsuka Kendo
The big screen kept flashing:
Sixth Match: Tenya Iida VS Mei Hatsume
Seventh Match: Arthur VS Tokoyami
Eighth Match: Ochaco Uraraka VS Momo Yaoyorozu
All Might, watching from the stands, swallowed hard when he saw the bracket.
His first opponent was young Todoroki?
"Rules are simple. Push your opponent out of the ring, incapacitate them, or make them say 'I give up.' That's a win."
"To prevent accidents, supervising teachers and Recovery Girl are on standby outside the arena."
"Now, we're on a one-hour lunch break. Contestants for the early matches this afternoon, make sure to get to the arena early."
After Midnight finished, the venue finally relaxed. Crowds of spectators and students headed for the cafeteria and outdoor stalls.
As for how the 16 finalists were feeling... that was another story.
During lunch, most students went to the cafeteria. Momo Yaoyorozu looked around but didn't see Arthur, so she furrowed her eyebrows.
Outside the arena, under a tree.
Arthur stood in the middle of the lawn. Pet Shop flew to his right shoulder, sharp eyes locked onto the three men in black suits walking from the arena exit.
Those were the Hero Association inspectors he'd intimidated earlier.
And the guy standing in front of them? That was Pet Shop's main target.
The Number 3 Hero. Hawks.
This was already the third time Arthur had greeted him.
"What do you want?" Arthur said flatly.
"Relax. First, some good news." Hawks's tone was still lazy. "Based on your performance at the Sports Festival, U.A. has temporarily stopped pursuing that bird."
"And since that bird hasn't done anything dangerous, the Hero Association has decided to leave it in your care for now."
"Pursuit?" Arthur chuckled, then suddenly raised his right hand. Between his thumb and index finger was a crimson feather.
Hawks's face went pale. He looked at his own wings, still intact, and thought, Wait... my feather? When did he take it?
Arthur tossed the feather back. Mid-air, it seemed to move on its own, slipping back into Hawks's wing.
"That's terrifying. What kind of Quirk is that?" Hawks asked with a nervous laugh.
Arthur didn't answer.
"Whatever. That's all I had to say. But the Hero Association actually does need your help with something."
Hawks tossed something over. Arthur caught it easily. A plane ticket.
"Things have been getting messy there lately. We want you to check it out. The target's identity is pretty sensitive, so pro heroes can't get involved directly," Hawks explained.
"What's in it for me?" Arthur shot back.
Hawks rubbed the stubble on his chin. "We... take down your pet's wanted poster?"
Arthur moved to tear the ticket.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Chill, chill, chill." Hawks waved his hands. "Not just that. All the trouble you've caused before gets wiped clean too. Not a bad deal, right? I mean, if they really pressed charges for everything you've done, you'd be looking at over ten years."
Arthur thought about it for a second, then put the ticket away.
Seeing that, Hawks didn't say anything else and left with the three inspectors.
They'd been gone less than five minutes. Arthur had just sat down in the shade, about to close his eyes and nap.
Then Pet Shop suddenly shot out an ice pillar, snapping several large trees on the right in half and filling the air with freezing mist.
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