Word Count : 1590 words
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( Location : Kamino Ward )
( (F/N) (L/N) POV )
"Sports Festival?"
I stared blankly at the UA Traitor. "The fuck you mean, Sports Festival?"
"You don't know? It's this tradition in UA," they said, as they tore open another bag of chips. "It's where the best students are pitted against each other in battle---"
"I know what the Sports Festival is," I said disgruntled. "But, I thought we had done enough damage to stop it from happening. I even killed Cementoss, who has been acting as the mediator of the Sports Festival for over 8 years now. Can't believe they're actually gonna do it after the stunt we pulled off."
"That's true....." the UA Traitor said hesitantly, and popped a few potato chips in his mouth. "But according to sensei, it's a good way to free our mind off the burden and load that the villain attack had on us. A way to move on without lingering too much. Apparently, diverting our attention to the Sports Festival makes it a bit easier."
"I see. What do you wanna do?" I asked nonchalantly.
They looked at me with a confused look. "As in?"
"Do you wanna give it your all in the Sports Festival?" I asked. "If given a chance, do you want to shine in the Sports Festival?"
"I mean, I'm obviously gonna try my hardest, right?" they said in a matter-of-factly tone. "I'm not gonna sit back and watch the show like it's the countdown for the new Attack on Titan episode."
"Do well, kid," I said. "If you somehow get a podium finish, your reveal as the UA Traitor to the rest of the world will become much more dramatic. Plus, if you do manage to rope in a few potential top Pros for your work studies, all the better."
They stared at me for a good minute, before crashing back onto the sofa. "Oh, damn. I completely forgot about my reveal to the class..... it's gonna be so messed up....."
"Don't tell me you've already grown attached to them?"
"Hey, no!" they shouted. "It's just, you know, I spend more time with those guys than I do with you on normal weekdays. So it does feel kinda weird, you know?"
"So you are becoming emotionally attached?"
"That....."
They looked at me with a tense glare, and pursed their lips in a tight line. "Like, I don't even know, man. I'll think about it when the time comes."
"..... I see," I replied. "I wasn't going to ask you to severe relations with your classmates, by the way. It's natural to develop relations among the way. You just need to make sure you have your goal in mind, okay? Don't delve too deep into any relation. It'll just make it much more harder for you when you lose it."
"Damn, you give some solid advice....."
They muttered something under their breath, and leaned back on the sofa, munching on the potato chips.
"Hey, did you get those chips, or did you just take them out of our minibar?"
"Took them from your minibar."
"You sunnavabit---"
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( Third Person POV )
Keigo Takami was confused.
Keigo Takami, or in simple words, Pro Hero Hawks.
Hawks was confused.
His research on the (L/N) Family had not yielded any notable results. Being a top Pro Hero himself, he cursed himself for not being able to retrieve any details about the Massacre of the 28th.
Hawks was a part of the new generation of heroes, along with Mirko, Mount Lady, Kamui Woods and so. In other words, they were not aware of the details and mysteries surrounding the (L/N) Family, for they were not present as a part of the Raid Squad during the attack.
Keigo Takami's initial research started in the Archives Lab of the Hero Association Office, which had unfortunately not brought him even a single clue. He didn't even know where to start. The Archives is usually the place to count on when you need any information on a past event that had anything to do with heroes or quirks.
If that room had failed to produce any results, Keigo Takami was in quite a fix.
His private investigation into the (L/N) Family would not give any results this way. A complete waste of time.
It had already become clear to the Pro Hero that there was something much more grave and sinister lurking behind the mass genocide of the Families. There has to be a reason as to why there is no information on it in the Archives, right?
His thoughts were interrupted by the arrival of 2 people who he had called.
"What's up, chicken wing?" Mirko said in a smug tone, and planted herself down next to the winged hero. Behind her, Pro Hero Mount Lady arrived as well, seemingly confused as to why they were even here.
"I thought you wouldn't come," Hawks said in a happy-go-lucky voice.
"Just so you know, I'm not going on a date with you," Mount Lady said, and she sat down on the bench as well.
"It isn't a date. I wanted to ask the two of you for help."
Mirko and Mount Lady raised their eyebrows, and motioned for Hawks to go on.
"It's about (F/N) (L/N)."
As soon as he dropped the name, Mirko tightened her fists in anger, while Mount Lady shriveled back in fear. "Huh? You wanna talk to us about that murderer? The kid who killed a UA Student and Cementoss?"
"I know it is hard to accept," Hawks said calmly. "But it is very important. I wouldn't have called you guys if it weren't."
"Go on, then," Mount Lady urged. "What's the deal?"
"We're all a part of the New Generation of Heroes, the ones who started working as Pros only around 1 or 2 years back," Hawks said. "In other words, we're all in the dark about the Massacre of the 28th, aren't we?"
"The Massacre of the 28th? You mean the (L/N) Genocide?" Mount Lady asked cautiously. "What do you need to know about that?"
"I don't exactly believe what reporters say, or what's written on the internet," Hawks said, pushing back his messy blond hair. "So I tried to do a bit of research on my own. And that's when I found out. There is absolutely nothing on the (L/N) Family."
Mirko questioningly stared at Hawks. "What do you mean, nothing? We all know what really happened that day, right?"
"But how can we confirm its authenticity?" Hawks urged. "It's not like we were present during the raid. There's no written records, living proof, police testimonies, eyewitnesses, nothing. How can we even make sure that we really know the truth?"
"Are you doubting the Hero Society, Hawks?" Mount Lady asked, a serious tone in her voice.
"In simple words, yes. Yes, I am doubting the Hero Society," the male replied plainly. "We can't take them at face value."
"So what do you suggest, nugget?" Mirko asked. "We're gonna, what now, try to research and find out more about (F/N) (L/N)?"
"That is the plan. You're totally free to back out. And before you do," Hawks quickly added in, for Mirko had already stood up from her seat. "Maybe it would do you better to know this — there is absolutely no information about the (L/N)'s in the Archives. Literally nothing. I've already checked."
The Rabbit Hero stopped in her tracks, and furrowed her eyebrows. "There's nothing about them..... in the Archives?"
"No mention of them. Nothing related to the 28th, no references either. And to confirm, I also tried to check for the crimes that the (L/N)'s had been accused for — gangrape, money laundering, murder. But there are no records of them ever taking place. In other words, it's almost like they never even existed."
Hawks had successfully managed to pique the interest of his fellow Pros, and Mirko and Mount Lady fell into deep thought, trying to contemplate the meaning behind this.
"So you're saying..... it might be scripted?" Mount Lady asked uncertainly. "The (L/N)'s were wiped out for a reason..... that the Core Committee of Heroes don't want the public to know?"
"Precisely. And that fact that the 3 of us here don't know about it is enough proof," Hawks surmised. "We're quite distinguished Pro Heroes, right? We've made it into the Core Committee already. You would think that they would have told us about it already. But they haven't. Which means they're still trying to keep it under wraps."
"But what you're suggesting is an act of treachery," Mirko stated. "You're asking us to work together to uncover the truth, against the Pros?"
"I respect my line of work, Mirko," Hawks said. "As an individual, I have every right to investigate this situation on my own, as long as I don't trouble the officials. Besides, if we're stopped from investigating any further, then we can assume that there indeed is something that the Heroes don't want us to know, isn't it?"
Mirko bit her lips to avoid speaking back. Indeed, what Hawks had said was completely true. As Heroes, their duties were not to act in accordance to the Hero Association, but to protect innocent civilians, and to search for the truth.
"I'm in," Mount Lady said. "I really wanna know what happened too, after all."
"That's good to know. You're the only one still tentative, Mirko," Hawks said as he stifled a yawn.
"Tch..... I'll join your group. But don't expect me to act all buddy-buddy with you now," Mirko snarled.
Hawks let out a big smile. "Great! Then, shall we start?"
"Start? Do you even have any leads?" Mount Lady asked the Bird.
"Tsk, tsk. No leads at all. But we could visit a certain place," Hawks said, and he took off into the sky, with Mount Lady and Mirko trailing behind him.
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