N/A: Hey guys! Okay, I'm here to announce the new chapter that I'm remaking.
But don't worry, remakes are "easier" to finish because they're already written, and well, I'm just here to announce the title of the next chapter 13.
"The first day of school"
Without further ado...
Let's Go!
[POV: Hades]
Infinite darkness surrounds me.
It's thick, suffocating, like a cold blanket clinging to my skin.
There's no sound. There's no light. Just the sensation of being suspended in a void, without direction, without answers.
Something inside me stirs, uneasy, restless. Then the silence is broken by a distant murmur, an echo of foreign memories that don't belong to me... but that, somehow, I know all too well.
A blink.
The stench of decay and filth hits me immediately, sharp and pungent, dragging me back to reality.
It's a dump.
I blink again, slower, letting the image settle in my mind.
There were mountains of rubbish, bags ripped open leaking their contents, rats scurrying through the debris.
And in the midst of it all, a child, a single, trembling child with his dreams almost stifled by his cruel reality.
I remain silent, observing from within this prison of flesh that is not mine.
The boy... this boy always admired heroes. He dreamed of being like them: brave, strong, an unwavering protector.
But the world was determined to never give him the chance to be one.
With a weak and malnourished body, he tried to train to exhaustion, pushing himself beyond his limits, unaware that his small and fragile body could never sustain such a load without food.
He didn't understand it. No one taught him.
He tried to study, he looked for a place in public schools, but the answer was the same, again and again.
—A vagrant has no place here.
His desire to learn didn't matter, nor did his effort. His last name was worthless. His origins were his doom.
He didn't know it... but he was cursed from the moment he was born on the street.
It hurts to look at it, I feel a stinging inside me, just witnessing these memories.
I close my eyes, trying to remember that these were just memories, but when I open them again, the scene changed.
And kneeling on the ground was the body of the little boy with his fists clenched and his shoulders trembling.
Tears streamed down her dirty face, falling into the dust, drowned out by a sob that no one else could hear.
He wasn't crying because he was hungry, he wasn't crying because he was cold.
He cries because he finally understands that no matter how hard he tries.
The world will never let him be a hero.
I close my eyes once more, and the scene changes to something even more daunting.
I see it.
Her small body hunched, trembling, dirty to the bone.
Her tears fall silently, sliding down her weather-beaten skin, drops of resentment and despair that are lost in the dust and grime. She doesn't cry out loud. She can't afford that luxury.
He feels anger. But not at the world.
He feels it against himself.
...
I try to look up from his gaze and the first thing I see is a small, open, grey can with the word "Tuna" printed on it in faded letters.
A miserable loot.
I feel their hunger as if it were my own.
The emptiness in his stomach is a bottomless pit, a beast roaring in his gut, devouring him from within. Every fiber of his being begs him to eat. His own body threatens to betray him if he doesn't.
But the guilt...
Guilt is a poison that burns hotter than hunger.
He can't stop chewing, he just can't.
Her teeth sink into the soft, salty flesh of the canned fish, but each bite feels like sand on her tongue.
Her hands tremble as she holds the can, her dirty, broken nails digging into the cold metal.
I wanted this, I needed this.
And yet, he can't swallow.
A lump forms in her throat, so tight it's hard to breathe. She knows what she did was wrong, but if she didn't do it... she would have died.
This boy's morality crumbles to pieces, one crack after another, as he struggles between hunger and regret.
Between life and dignity.
And for the first time in a long time... I feel sorry.
I closed my eyes once more, and this time, the image that appeared before me was...
Dazzling.
What I witnessed was the image of a girl with long, black hair, wrapped in the golden warmth of the sunset.
To the boy, she was the closest thing to an angel he had ever seen.
Her immaculate dress, her smile that seemed sculpted by the gods themselves. Her presence, resplendent and perfect.
For him, she was the promise that good things still existed.
For him, she was hope.
But that hope was nothing more than a simple illusion.
"Get out of here, you filthy vagrant. Can't you see this princess wants to breathe?" he spat, sealing her tiny nose with his fingers. "You... you're stinking up my air!"
The world stopped.
The sunset stopped being warm.
The gold stopped shining.
The girl stopped being an angel.
And the child felt an emptiness inside his stomach, it wasn't because of hunger, it wasn't because of tiredness.
It was the harsh reality that hit him.
But he didn't have time to react any further.
Something hot, scorching, seared his side, and before he could scream, a fist engulfed in flames collided with his abdomen.
Crack.
At that moment, the little one didn't know what broke first.
If a rib.
Or your hope.
He fell to the ground like a sack of bones, but he couldn't find relief there. A second blow struck his face, a thick-soled shoe slamming into his cheek with such force that the skin split and his skull crunched against the pavement.
"Did you hear Princess Momo Yaoyorozu, trash?" one of the men spat.
The voice came from the one with his hand engulfed in flames. His Quirk burned a deep red, dancing between his fingers like a beast eager to devour.
—We should teach him what happens when a stray dog gets into something he doesn't belong in.
A hoarse laugh answered.
The other man raised his hand with absolute coldness, But he didn't need to make physical contact.
Out of nowhere, a stream of icy water emerged and enveloped the boy's body.
A deadly chill came over him.
The water wasn't like a refreshing wave. No.
It was a whip.
A liquid scourge that cut his skin like invisible blades.
Each impact of water burned as much as fire, only in a completely different way.
His flesh burned and his skin reddened with each new blow.
He tried to breathe, tried to move, but a boot dug into his stomach again, forcing the air from his lungs.
And then, they dragged him.
As if it were garbage.
As if it were worthless.
His nails scraped the floor. His bones crunched as he was yanked hard by his arms, leaving his clothes in tatters, his skin raw.
They threw him in front of the girl as if he were an animal that had to learn his place.
She, in her immaculate dress, looked at him with disgust.
As if their mere presence were an offense.
—You should thank me, scum. How many like you get the chance to be touched by worthwhile people in this world?
The laughter that escaped his lips was pure pride.
Pure blasphemy.
Pure ego.
The child trembled.
Not out of fear.
Not from cold.
But of something much darker.
Something he didn't understand at the time, but that would be etched in his soul forever.
Rancor.
A hatred so deep, so visceral, that not even death could extinguish it.
The echo of their laughter was etched in his mind.
The faces of men.
The fire.
The water.
The pain.
I would remember it.
I would remember them all.
...
I closed my eyes.
And when I opened them again...
I woke up.
A white room.
Silent.
Empty.
—Where the hell...?
In front of me, a stack of papers and a pen rested on a wooden table.
I blinked, my mind still trapped in the nightmare of my memories.
The feeling of those flames still burned on my skin.
The cold of the water still weighed on my bones.
And that girl's voice...
It still poisoned my thoughts.
My jaw tightened and my brow furrowed as I recalled that mortal's name.
But above all, something caught his attention.
—How did I get here?
[2 hours ago: UA Nursing]
[Point of View: Third person]
—Okay! When do we start?
His voice resonated with a childlike enthusiasm, a pure emotion that had no place in a body like that. It wasn't Hades speaking.
It was the boy.
He who, even after dying, continued to dream of being a hero.
For a moment, in that sterile white-lit room of the infirmary, her spirit dominated the body she shared with someone much older, more bitter, and more broken.
But, while his enthusiasm spread through the air, he didn't receive the response he expected.
The old woman beside him narrowed her eyes. Something in her expression tightened. She was quite certain that the drug she'd administered must have left him, at the very least, staggering.
A civilian without a physical enhancement Quirk would already be unconscious, and yet here he was, talking as if nothing had happened.
The muscular blond and the small rodent-like creature exchanged glances.
It was not their intention to attack a mere civilian, and although the boy had shown peculiar abilities, the fact that he was just a child caused them some remorse.
But the reality was that they had seen him fight.
And what they had seen did not fit the story of an ordinary civilian.
—Young Hades, if you really want to try... we'll give you a chance.
The answer fell like a stone on the surface of a lake.
And, the very instant those words were spoken, something changed.
The boy's eyes flickered for a brief second.
The glow of innocence faded.
And when he looked up again, the boy was no longer there.
Now it was Hades who inhabited the body.
The emotion vanished from his face, replaced by a disturbing coldness. His once relaxed posture became more rigid.
There was no joy in his expression. There was no trace of euphoria.
Just a calculating, icy calm, which contrasted with the warmth he had seconds before.
The difference was so subtle... and yet so marked, that those present noticed it immediately.
But, they put that strange moment aside, they had something much more important on their minds.
In them, there were many questions about his Quirk.
Because, in this world, a person's Quirk defined their destiny.
And Hades... didn't fit into any clear category.
All might and Nezu spent a long time reading the reports about the battle.
But, they didn't make much sense.
Mirko, the heroine who fought him head-on, reported seeing two Quirks in action.
One was enhanced regeneration, powerful enough to heal a broken bone and reposition a dislocated shoulder in a matter of seconds. The other... something far more disturbing: the summoning of skeletons.
But the rest of the heroes, those who observed him from a distance, reported something different.
They did not see the regeneration.
They only saw the skeletons.
To them, Hades had only one Quirk: one that allowed him to summon skeletal remains and use them as weapons.
That discrepancy set off alarm bells in the minds of those present.
Principal Nezu and the number one hero exchanged glances.
They couldn't ignore it.
A child with no records in any system.
A child with abilities that didn't fit into one category.
A boy with multiple Quirks.
The possibility was there.
And they couldn't afford to discard it.
Could he be a lackey of his?
Or perhaps an experiment that escaped?
They couldn't risk leaving doubt hanging.
That's why he was immediately transferred from Musutafu Hospital to the UA to be closely monitored.
To understand what or who he really was.
"For now, young Hades, I suggest you rest," Nezu chimed in with his unchanging smile, raising one of his paws casually. "Tomorrow we'll conduct some tests to determine if you're suitable for the entrance exam."
He had barely finished speaking when Hades felt a crushing weight on his body.
A sudden drowsiness hit him like an unstoppable wave.
Her eyelids grew heavy. Her vision blurred. Her body swayed, and no matter how hard she tried to hold on, she couldn't resist.
He couldn't fight the artificial fatigue that was dragging him to the abyss.
Within seconds, his body fell onto the stretcher.
Silence fell over the infirmary.
Those present turned around in unison, fixing their eyes on the old woman who was still holding a syringe.
His expression was visibly upset.
The muscular blond opened his mouth, trying to say something.
—I don't think it was necessary—
A single withering glance from the old woman reduced him to absolute silence.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~•~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
[Currently: ???]
[POV: Hades]
I opened my eyes once more.
The initial confusion dissipated as the memories returned to me in a relentless torrent.
—That mortal old woman...
I gritted my teeth, still feeling the latent annoyance of having been so easily subdued.
"How dare he..." I muttered to myself, my voice still rough from lethargy.
But before I could continue cursing the old woman and her insolent audacity, a door in front of me opened with a soft creak.
My attention was immediately drawn to the two figures who entered. They were men dressed in black, with inscrutable faces and postures so rigid they almost seemed automatons. One of them carried a huge bundle of papers in his hands.
Papers. A considerably thick stack of papers.
Without saying a word, the man walked over to me and slammed them down on the table.
"You have two hours." His voice was brief, sharp, mechanical.
Before I could ask anything, they both turned on their heels and left with the same expressionlessness with which they had entered.
The hinges creaked and, in the blink of an eye, the door swung shut again.
Leaving me alone once again.
I looked down at the strange material in front of me.
A papyrus... no, it wasn't papyrus.
The texture was completely different. Its immaculate white color felt artificial, as if it had been manufactured in a way beyond my understanding.
It reminded me of wool soaked in fermented urine for bleaching, but as I ran my fingers over it, I noticed it was softer, more refined.
"This is... impressive," I whispered, marveling at the detail of its workmanship.
It was then that I noticed an object on the side of the table.
A small stick, simple in appearance, but with a tip made of what appeared to be metal.
I took it in my right hand and turned it between my fingers.
A thin trail of black ink came from the tip as I slid it across the paper.
"It looks like a reed..." I said in a low voice, intrigued.
But my interest in the writing instrument was soon displaced by something more important.
The content of the documents.
I squeezed my eyes shut in slight uncertainty. If I could now understand the language of this world by inhabiting this body... then I should be able to read it too.
However, when I tried to focus my eyes on the letters...
All I saw were blurry spots.
I frowned. I blinked a couple of times and tried again, but the words remained a confusing jumble of lines and shadows.
-What is this?
It was strange. I could make out the larger strokes, but the smaller characters seemed to be lost in an indecipherable haze.
A dull ache began to grow in my chest.
Am I missing any sense?
—Tch...
As I tried to deal with my sudden bewilderment, a voice echoed through the room, pulling me from my thoughts.
—Is there a problem, Hades-san?
I tensed up.
It was a male voice, calm and polite, it was Nezu, the talking rodent.
My eyes scanned the room, searching for his presence, but there was no one else there.
Where is he? How is he talking to me?
I stayed calm and answered truthfully.
—I... can't read. My vision is... slightly blurry.
Even though I kept trying, the problem persisted. The finest letters dissolved into the paper, as if my vision simply couldn't grasp them.
A feeling of unease crept into me. In my previous life, I'd never had vision problems.
It wasn't long before the door opened once more.
The same man as before came in, but this time he was carrying something in his hands.
A small, thin object with two glass structures connected by a metal bridge.
I watched him cautiously until he came closer and, without warning, placed it in front of my face.
And then...
My world changed.
From one moment to the next, the blurred veil disappeared.
The words that had previously seemed like jumbled scribbles took on a surprising clarity. The lines became defined, the strokes became legible. I could see as clearly as I had in my old body.
I opened my eyes in surprise and brought a hand to the object on my nose.
What is this wonder?
Before I could ask, the man's voice interrupted my fascination.
—You have one hour and fifty minutes left.
And, without waiting for an answer, he turned on his heels and walked out, leaving behind only the sound of the door closing.
I raised an eyebrow and looked down again.
Now that I could see clearly, the leaves on the table revealed their contents to me.
History.
It was an endless number of questions about history.
I examined them carefully, allowing myself to absorb the information that had previously eluded me.
However, there was something that immediately caught my attention.
A few words, highlighted in a darker tone than the rest.
"Mark the correct answers."
I smiled with interest.
So this is a test.
I placed the strange artifact on my face and held the writing instrument with renewed determination.
—Very well... Let's see how much this world knows about its own history.
And without wasting any more time, I started writing.
With pen in hand, I read the statement and, without hesitation, began to answer.
The questions were absurdly easy.
Human history? Please! I had witnessed the rise and fall of entire empires. I had seen kings rise and fall, armies march to glory or ruin. I knew more about the history of mortals than any book they could put in front of me.
The answers flowed naturally, and within minutes, I had completed several sheets. But then, my vision met a new challenge: the numbers.
Math.
The questions no longer had any marking options. There were only unsolved problems and blank spaces waiting to be filled.
My eyebrow arched.
"Interesting..." I murmured, resting the pen on my lips as I analyzed the equations.
[Meanwhile: Observation Room]
In the observation room, a group of people followed his every move with growing amazement.
They knew the boy had no formal education. An orphan with no access to books or teachers... And yet, he had gotten half the history questions right.
They expected him to fail miserably. At best, to get a few right by pure luck.
But now he was dealing with mathematics, and there was no such thing as chance.
"That's it..." a woman with long, jet-black hair murmured, without taking her eyes off the screen.
"It's something..." added a disheveled man, crossing his arms.
"Outdated," Nezu concluded with an amused smile at what Hades had just pulled out.
An abacus.
There was a brief silence.
"Where did he hide it?" the woman asked with a mixture of curiosity and resignation.
Nobody knew how to answer.
One Hour Later / Hades's Point of View
—Why are there letters in math...?
My complaint was lost in the air as I leaned my forehead against the table with a sigh of defeat.
Yes, I had met Pythagoras at one point. A man with a brilliant mind, although quite eccentric... but I never thought mathematics would evolve to this point.
This was an insult! Since when did numbers and letters get mixed up as if they were the same thing?
I had done my best to solve the problems, but many of the equations didn't make sense to me. At least I had managed to complete the rest of the classes without too much trouble.
With the mathematical frustration still simmering in my mind, I let out another sigh.
"How much longer do you intend to keep this god confined?" I muttered in annoyance.
As if my words had been a signal, the door opened with a slight creak.
I looked up and saw a scruffy man walk in, accompanied by the small, chatty rodent.
I raised an eyebrow. I was about to say something, but Nezu got in the way.
—Congratulations, Hades-san. You passed the written test.
My lips curved into a victorious smile.
—Of course. For me, Hades, a god, to pass a simple—wait, written test? —I repeated the last part in confusion, realizing the term felt strangely foreign to me.
Years of being locked away in the Underworld had left gaps in my knowledge of outside life.
Those present rolled their eyes in exasperation before dropping the papers onto the table.
And there, at the top of the page, a huge red number stood out.
My smile remained firm.
"You barely made it through, brat," the scruffy man commented, staring at me in disbelief.
But I simply crossed my arms and, with total haughtiness, replied:
—To pass is to pass.
A heavy sigh escaped his lips, but the rodent just looked at me with amusement, enjoying the situation as if he were a simple spectator at a comedy show.
"Easy, Aizawa," he said, suppressing a smile as he looked back at me. "Okay, Hades-san, get ready for the physical test," he announced in his usual tone, filled with a joy that I found strangely irritating.
He signaled me with his hand, urging me to follow him, and without wasting any time, I obeyed without question.
Silence spread between us like a thick blanket, enveloping us in an almost suffocating calm.
It wasn't uncomfortable, but it was heavy.
Aizawa walked beside me, his expression permanently annoyed, while Nezu walked forward with calm steps, lost in his own thoughts.
So...
—Hades-san.
His voice cut through the stillness like a knife.
I turned to look at him, curious.
—Why do you want to become a hero?
The question came without warning, striking me like a bolt of lightning in the darkness.
My steps slowed.
My mind went blank.
I didn't have an immediate answer, but... something inside me stirred strongly.
A strange, primitive emotion ignited in my chest.
It was a foreign, unfamiliar sensation... but at the same time, as natural as breathing.
My heart beat faster, as if responding to something beyond my understanding.
It was almost as if the body I was inhabiting... was reacting on its own.
The remains of the will of the child who owned this body.
That same child who died alone, with no one to protect him.
I closed my eyes.
I tried to give form to my thoughts, to put into words what I felt... but it was difficult.
Finally, I sighed and opened my eyes.
—I... don't know.
I stopped.
The duo did it too.
Aizawa and Nezu looked at me in surprise. Not because of the answer itself, but because, in all their years of experience, they had never heard anyone respond that way.
Silence fell upon us again, but this time, it wasn't heavy or uncomfortable.
I was expectant.
As if the world was expecting something more from me.
"I... I just want to prevent more children from having a bad time," I murmured, my own voice sounding firmer than I expected. "I want to care for, protect, and show hope to the children who fight day and night against the evil of this world."
My words floated in the air.
They weren't planned. They weren't a lie.
They were... mine.
A raw thought, born not from my divinity, but from my humanity.
I sighed again, more calmly.
For eons, I was a mere spectator of human cruelty. I could only watch, without intervening.
But now...
Now I have hands to stop him.
Now I have a body I can act with.
Now I can root out evil before it grows.
"That's an... interesting answer, brat," Aizawa muttered, with a tiny smile that barely lasted a second before it returned to its usual expression.
I didn't give it any more importance.
I just walked back, and they did the same.
Several minutes passed in silence, but this time, it wasn't as heavy as before.
Finally, we stopped in front of a gigantic metal door.
As we approached, the door opened by itself with a slight mechanical whir.
I raised an eyebrow.
My first assumption was that someone was opening it from the other side, so I didn't think much of it.
But for some reason, the feeling that something was about to happen settled in my chest.
Nezu moved forward a little and, with his characteristic joy, extended his arms toward the room that opened before us.
—All right, Hades-san. This will be your practical test.
My gaze went where he was pointing.
And what I saw...
They were beasts of all kinds.
Furless wolves with razor-sharp jaws, mechanical birds with glowing eyes and sharp limbs, even monstrous-looking bipedal creatures with an unnatural coloring that made my hair stand on end.
But the most disturbing thing was the absence of life. I couldn't feel the soul that resides in all living beings.
These things weren't alive... and yet they moved as if they were.
"What the hell are those things?" I asked cautiously, without taking my eyes off the creatures.
"They're robots specially designed for recommended applicants," Nezu replied with his usual smile, the one that never made it clear whether he was having fun or plotting something.
"Robots...?" I muttered to myself, watching the way they walked. The precision of their movements, the lack of hesitation, the mechanical yet disturbingly realistic way their metal "muscles" contracted with each step.
Before I could ask any more questions, Nezu turned on his tiny paws and headed for the door.
"Alright then, good luck, Hades-san," he announced cheerfully before walking out and leaving me alone.
It wasn't long before his voice sounded again, a mechanical clicking noise echoing through the speakers.
"The combat simulation will begin in ten seconds," his voice reported.
I frowned and raised a hand. A sphere as dark as night appeared in my palm, vibrating with dense energy.
—Raise your weapons, my faithful lackeys... rise from your eternal rest.
Thick purple smoke emerged from the sphere, winding as if it had a will of its own.
—Arise, lost souls... arise and come to me... Army of the undead!
Cracks emerged from the ground with a dry, harsh sound. From the earth, skeletal warriors emerged, their whitish bones covered in a faint, spectral light. But this time...
This time, something was different.
Alongside the others, a new figure emerged. A larger, more robust skeleton, with a distinct presence. There was something about him... something strangely familiar.
My breathing became a little labored.
I knew him.
But from where?
Still, there was no time to think.
"Let the mock battle begin!" Nezu decreed, and the metal monsters launched themselves at me like a rabid pack.
I acted on instinct.
—Corpse Equipment!
The unknown skeleton crumbled in a burst of light, its essence flowing into my outstretched arm. In the blink of an eye, I felt the weight of a new weapon in my hand.
It was a huge sword, a single-edged monstrosity, its outline covered in a whitish sheen.
But it didn't have a traditional point. Its left side had a strange curve, while the right side formed a right angle.
And the first thing I felt... was the weight.
—Tch...!
It was overwhelming.
The joints in my arm creaked and I had to bury the sword in the ground to keep from losing my balance.
I didn't have time to analyze it. A metallic beast leaped at me, jaws agape, claws extended.
I rolled back and narrowly missed it, but the air whistled over my head as one of the mechanical birds swooped down.
Shit.
I was cornered.
The four-legged beasts surrounded me, closing the circle. The cursed bird prevented me from jumping, and the sword in my hand was too heavy to wield quickly.
But what exactly was this skeleton doing...?
I didn't know.
But I had to find out quickly.
[Meanwhile: Observation Room]
[Point of view: Third person]
Several people sat in front of monitors, adjusting parameters and controlling the robots' routes in real time. However, unlike them, Principal Nezu and the scruffy pro hero, Aizawa, just watched.
His eyes were fixed on the main screen, where the combat simulation was unfolding in all its intensity.
And then they saw it.
The boy summoned a sword.
A huge bone sword, whitish and imposing.
Nezu narrowed his eyes. That ability wasn't in the reports.
"What do you think of the boy, Aizawa-san?" the rodent asked without taking his eyes off the screen.
Aizawa watched silently for a moment before letting out a grunt.
—He has potential. Although his personality is... eccentric.
Nezu let out a light laugh and nodded.
It was true, the boy's Quirk was fascinating, worthy of study. But his personality...
It might be difficult to handle.
"Are you really going to let him attend UA?" Aizawa asked, raising an eyebrow.
The director smiled.
—Of course, Aizawa-san. It's better to have him here than to see him turn into a villain capable of knocking out Mirko herself.
Aizawa sighed.
—You know that pesky woman won't leave him alone, right?
Nezu laughed heartily, his small eyes twinkling with mischief.
—Of course I know! And that makes it even more exciting!
Aizawa didn't respond. He just sighed again and looked back at the screen.
[Back to the testing ground]
[POV: Hades]
—Damn... this is going from bad to worse.
I moved quickly, dodging the charges of the mechanical beasts that tried to corner me. Every time one of them jumped, I spun around or slid across the ground. But I knew I couldn't keep this up for much longer.
At some point they would corner me.
And that would be my end.
Without wasting any more time, I summoned Larry.
—Wake up at my call, come to your master and give me your soul... Larry!
The ground cracked and, as always, the small skeleton emerged from the earth.
But something was wrong.
The sword had disappeared.
My eyes opened wide.
-What the devil...?
But I didn't have time to think about it.
A mechanical dog-like beast lunged at me with its jaws open, ready to rip my throat out.
I jumped to the side and reached out.
—Corpse equipment!
Larry crumbled into light, and in a blink, the sonic gauntlet appeared on my right arm.
I felt it instantly.
The strength, the improved speed, the energy vibrating in my bones.
A smile spread across my face. No, a big smile.
While I wanted to summon Larry to hold the sword, I had no idea why he disappeared. But that didn't matter anymore.
A roar caught my attention.
A metallic lion charged toward me, its imposing body streaking across the ground with murderous speed.
But this time, I didn't run away like a filthy mortal.
This time, I stood firm, raised my gloved arm, and grabbed him tightly by the neck.
And there I felt it.
There was no body heat, no frantic beating of a struggling heart. Just a hard, metallic, dense structure.
He wasn't alive.
I released the lion just before a gigantic bird swooped down on me. I ducked, feeling the wind slashed by its talons, and rolled to the side.
But I didn't have time to recover.
Two mechanical beasts launched themselves at my sides.
With a savage grin, I spun around on my heel and slammed my gauntlet into the mechanical dog on my left. The impact was sharp, but it barely staggered him.
Then the other one hit me full in the side.
The pain was immediate, a metallic blow that sent me flying several meters and rolling on the ground.
But when I rejoined, something felt different.
My right arm, the one with the gauntlet, was vibrating.
An electric tingle ran through my fingers.
—This again...?
I didn't have time to analyze it.
The metallic lion charged again.
This time, I didn't dodge.
I raised my gauntlet and punched him straight in the face.
A "crack" echoed in the air as his mechanical jaw dislocated and his body bent backward from the force of the blow.
But the vibration in my arm grew.
—Are you taking the hits yourself?
My lips curved into an even wider smile.
The bird beast swooped down again, but this time, instead of dodging, I leaped toward it.
My gauntleted fist collided with his metallic chest in midair, shattering part of his frame and sending him crashing to the ground with a metallic clang.
But in the process, a brutal blow hit my back.
One of the mechanical dogs had attacked me while I was in the air.
I fell, rolling, feeling the sting of the blow run down my back.
My muscles screamed, but my stifled laughter emerged.
This.
This was a battle.
I stood up, breathing heavily.
My right arm was buzzing.
The vibration became intense, almost unbearable.
And then, I saw the wobbly bird prepare for another attack.
"Come after me, you bastards!" I raised my fist and clenched it firmly, my smile widening from the adrenaline rush.
And at that instant, a burst of sound erupted from the gauntlet.
The roar was deafening.
A sharp, deadly whistle cut through the air.
The creatures stopped in their tracks.
—Stunned?
I didn't miss the opportunity.
I moved forward with speed.
My fist, charged with an energy I didn't yet understand, struck the head of one of the mechanical dogs.
A dull sound echoed as his metallic skull crushed like a helmet made by a novice blacksmith.
I turned just in time to see the lion staggering, trying to recover.
With a grunt, I threw another punch with all my might.
This time, the vibration built up in my arm exploded upon impact.
A sonic flash accompanied the impact, and the metallic lion's head simply imploded, leaving its inert body falling.
My breathing was heavy.
My body ached.
But the euphoria in my chest was undeniable.
Before he could do anything else, a voice echoed in the air.
—You've disabled the robots and thus passed the practical exam.
I stopped.
—Strange speaker?
My eyes scanned the sand, but I didn't see him anywhere.
I clicked my tongue, annoyed.
But it didn't matter.
With nothing else to do, I headed to the door I had originally entered through and left the coliseum, the gauntlet still vibrating slightly on my arm.
[Several minutes later]
The minutes passed like raindrops falling on a window.
Slow and persistent.
I was tired of waiting.
Bored, sitting in the same hard chair where I woke up, wondering, once again, why I continued to tolerate this human stupidity.
—If it weren't for you... I wouldn't do this...
The whisper escaped my lips as I closed my eyes. Images from the dream still clung to my mind: the pain, the despair, the sacrifice. Everything that child had felt before his death.
Despite everything, he had chosen to do good.
I had decided to remove evil from this world, to protect others...
What a fool.
I'd seen children with that same look before. With the same determination. And all of them, without exception, met the same end.
They died alone, torn apart by the justice they defended. They suffered while humanity hailed them as heroes.
Because?
Why were they happy when they died?
After all, they gave their lives for people who weren't worth it.
Why did those children have to sacrifice themselves to save others?
Why did their souls end up corrupting in the afterlife, turning into broken fragments of what they once were?
"Why?" I murmured, opening my eyes.
And at that moment, the door opened.
The infamous rat and the tramp entered the room.
No one spoke. I had no intention of asking questions.
Or so I thought.
A strange feeling twisted in my chest. A void, an unfulfilled expectation.
I didn't understand what it was, but... something inside me longed for something.
"Congratulations, Hades-san," the rat finally said in his sharp voice. "You're eligible to go straight to the practical portion of the entrance exam."
I raised an eyebrow.
That was all?
"But..." the rodent continued, with that sly little smile that irritated me.
Oh, of course. There was always a "but."
"In exchange for something," he confirmed.
I decided to keep quiet and listen first.
Nezu tilted his head slightly, expectant.
"I thought you'd ask the condition, but I see you're not a man of words," he commented, almost disappointed. "Well, what we need from you is simple. Just tell us what your Quirk is based on."
I raised an eyebrow, surprised at the simplicity of his request.
Honestly, I had no reason to hide it.
—My power as God of the Underworld is based on summoning the souls of Hades to serve me as an army of hundreds of billions... or to strengthen myself using their wills.
A heavy silence fell over the room.
The two mortals looked at me blankly.
Then the tramp spoke.
—Basically, you summon skeletons and make weapons out of them.
I frowned.
"A mere mortal like you could not possibly understand the power of a deity," I stated coldly.
Then, his eyes changed.
For a moment, they turned a deep red.
A chill ran down my spine.
My instincts warned me of danger.
But I wasn't going to let a mortal intimidate me.
"A mere human dares to bare his fangs to me?" I asked with a confident smile.
The tramp gave a sly smile.
—Then summon your skeletons, you damn brat.
My jaw tightened.
—What did you call me?
In all my years of existence, I have never seen mortals as disrespectful as these.
I gritted my teeth and raised my hand, conjuring a sphere as black as the abyss.
—Emerge. Come to me. And silence this filthy mortal... Larry!
The ground cracked slightly.
Larry's skull emerged, followed by his jumbled bones.
The rat and the tramp's eyes widened in surprise.
A superior smile appeared on my face.
But then...
Larry collapsed.
The little skeleton fell to the ground in pieces, its bones rolling lifelessly.
Nezu and the vagrant blinked at the same time.
I frowned and took his skull in one hand.
—... You forgot your soul again.
Silence.
Aizawa closed his eyes, as if he had seen something impossible.
Nezu brought a paw to his mouth, visibly surprised.
I, on the other hand, only felt a pang of shame.
It wasn't the first time Larry had forgotten his soul.
Or at least... that's what I think happened.
Here's the scene with the changes you requested:
—Um... that was quite a... extravagant demonstration—the little rodent's voice broke the awkward silence as he snapped out of his initial stupor.
It was clear he didn't expect my Quirk to be practically immune to his employee's Erasure.
...
I stood up and nodded, still feeling the shame burning in my chest after such a ridiculous scene.
"We were also informed that you possess a regeneration Quirk, Hades-san," the rodent continued, trying to steer the conversation to more comfortable ground.
I frowned. Regeneration?
I didn't remember having such a power.
Then my mind flashed back to my confrontation with that beastly woman, Mirko.
I clearly remembered the moment my left arm had been shattered by a kick. And I also remembered how, shortly afterward, the pain disappeared... and when I looked at my arm, it was completely restored.
Without saying anything, I turned my gaze to one of Larry's bones on the ground. I picked it up and, without hesitation, used it to cut my wrist.
A scarlet thread sprouted from the wound and began to slide down my skin.
Wait.
Time passed.
But nothing happened.
I frowned. Why wasn't it working? Didn't my body have that power after all?
Then my gaze lifted and met the tramp's.
His eyes glowed a deep red, serene, watching me as if he knew exactly what was happening.
Suddenly, I felt a slight dizziness and the blood stopped flowing.
My wound... closed.
I squinted at him. Something didn't fit.
And at that moment, a strange sensation ran through my body.
I felt my eyelids heavy, my shoulders relaxed from tiredness.
"What did you do?" I said firmly, staring at him despite my tiredness.
Aizawa held my gaze with the same calm as before, as if my reaction was nothing more than an expected formality.
The rodent, however, smiled slightly.
"Your regeneration Quirk is curious, Hades-san. You seem to use it unconsciously... until someone blocks it," he said, slowly stroking his chin. "You are... Fascinating," he added, a small, disbelieving smile spreading across his face.
At this, I felt strangely happy.
It was a strange feeling, it was like I was happy for such a basic compliment.
—Okay, now... How about you go back home and prepare for the entrance exam, Hades-san?
I nodded at the rodent's statement and with the help of a man in a black suit, I left these facilities.
[Several hours later]
[Outside Musutafu]
-I am lost.
The murmur escaped my lips as I wandered through the labyrinthine streets of this colossal mortal settlement.
Damn. Why do humans have this unhealthy obsession with building such large, stupidly complicated cities?
"This day is going to be long..." I sighed, massaging my temples as I tried to remember the way back to my "home."
I continued walking for several minutes, feeling more and more exasperated, until I finally saw him.
The bridge.
It was old and uncrowded, removed from the bustling city, forgotten by time.
I sighed.
—Damn... Why does a God like me have to sleep here?
My steps led me to my makeshift shelter, and there, beneath the rusty structure of the bridge, were my few belongings.
An orange camping tent, faded by the sun and wear, was held up by a couple of patched-up ropes. It had been given to me some time ago, though calling it "home" was an insult even to a homeless person.
The scene was depressing.
Inside the tent, my "bed" consisted of a pile of old, worn clothes, used both as a pillow and as a spare when the others were wet from washing in the river.
On the floor, some cans of preserved food were piled haphazardly. I could read the names: tuna and nuk cola.
—Well... so this will be my dinner.
I sighed, ignoring the hunger pang in my stomach, and slumped down onto the pile of clothes.
I closed my eyes and tried to connect with the Underworld.
And then, I felt it.
A tiny fraction of my power remained with me. A vestige, a shadow of what had once been my absolute dominion over death.
I frowned.
It was pathetic.
Hades himself, God of the Underworld, reduced to this... a mere mortal with barely enough strength to summon one soul at a time.
Frustration burned inside me.
I sighed, trying to ignore her. Trying to sleep.
But I couldn't.
A sound from outside brought me out of my thoughts.
A scandal, shrill and annoying voices that only irritate my eardrums.
But then...
I heard a scream.
A child's cry, full of fear and despair.
Accompanied by laughter.
It wasn't normal laughter. It wasn't just fun.
They were macabre, mocking, rejoicing in the misery of others.
I didn't want to go out.
Seriously, I didn't want to.
But something inside me wouldn't let me ignore it.
A stabbing pain in my head. A pain in my chest.
It was as if a voice... a voice deep within me, was screaming at me to take action.
-Fuck...
The whisper escaped my lips as I hurried out of the store.
And then I saw it.
A little girl was struggling desperately in the cold waters of the river next to my camp.
Her little body thrashed frantically, trying to swim, trying to breathe, trying to live.
I looked up.
On the bridge, a group of children watched her.
Laughing.
Mocking.
As if watching someone drown was just a game.
My blood boiled.
The beating in my ears became a war drum.
And without hesitation, I ran straight to the river.
TO BE CONTINUED.