Pain.
That was the first sensation that hit me when I saw the faint midday light slipping through the yellowed gaps in the curtains, illuminating the floating dust motes in the air.
It was not the sharp kind of pain from a knife cut.
It was a dull, lingering ache that pulsed from the base of my spine all the way down to the tips of my toes.
I shifted slightly on the creaking mattress.
Creak.
The dry sound echoed through the silent, cheap rented room.
My mind was empty.
Completely empty.
It felt like being drained until there was not a single drop of strength left to think about tomorrow, about the world, or about anything complicated.
My mind was now like a blank sheet of paper, with only the residual warmth and the rusty scent of blood still lingering on my skin.
All over my body, from my shoulders and collarbones down to my waist and thighs, there were scattered purple bruises and vivid red bite marks.
Last night… was truly wild.
Ryuu-kun had held nothing back, and neither had I.
We had thrown ourselves at each other like two starving wild beasts, biting, screaming, and craving each other to the point of wanting to become one.
The way he flipped the situation, pinned me down onto this mattress, that sharp and wild look in his eyes… just thinking about it made a strange fire of excitement flicker in my chest.
But right now, the physical consequences were truly miserable.
I did not even feel like getting up.
I just sprawled there, savoring this sweet exhaustion.
I rolled to one side and reached out to pull the familiar warmth closer.
But the space beside me was empty.
Cold.
Ryuu-kun must have already left.
I blinked, clearing a little of the fog from my head so I could sit up.
Pulling the thin blanket over my bare body, I looked around the moldy-smelling room.
On the rotting wooden table beside the bed, a stack of cash had been neatly placed, held down by a yellow sticky note.
Of course he had to leave.
Ryuu-kun still had that “hero internship” thing.
How could he just lie around here with me all day?
I dragged my trembling legs off the bed and tiptoed toward the table.
On the sticky note, the familiar sharp and decisive handwriting appeared: “Buy food.
Don’t go out looking like yourself.
I’ll be back in the evening.”
I picked up the stack of money.
This amount was more than enough for me to eat well and live comfortably for a whole week just from convenience stores.
“Ryuu-kun is such an idiot…” I whispered, pressing the money and the sticky note against my cheek.
He was always cold, always calculating, always acting like someone who cared nothing about any moral boundaries.
He manipulated me, kidnapped me, used blood to bind me, yet still carefully left money for breakfast and warned me not to get caught.
This twisted, tattered, and dark affection… was the only thing in the world that made me feel alive.
I did not care what the outside world thought.
I did not care about those fake heroes or the society that always looked at me like a blood-thirsty monster.
I only needed Ryuu-kun.
This dependence was a poisonous drug, but I was willing to drink it dry every single day.
…
Only when I had enough strength did I finally manage to use my Quirk smoothly.
A layer of pale gray mud covered me, then settled, leaving behind a completely different form.
Black hair fell down.
A taller frame.
Broader shoulders.
The sharp hero costume and hands that were slightly calloused.
I walked up to the cracked mirror in the bathroom and smiled at my reflection.
Onodera Ryuga.
This was the second time I had transformed into him since we met.
The first time was to rent this rundown inn under his name, and this was the second.
The amount of blood Ryuu-kun had given me was enough to maintain this form for a long time, as long as I did not overuse it.
An hour ago had truly been a disaster.
My Quirk had malfunctioned so badly it became twisted, and I could not even transform into him properly.
I only became some kind of grotesque, disgusting “thing.”
It was currently midday.
I needed to buy food.
After all, I was still heavily wanted.
Wandering around outside with my real face was basically suicide.
Stepping out of the inn, the air of Hosu hit my nose.
This city was noisy and full of the smell of garbage, but it gave a strange sense of freedom.
Right now I looked no different from a high school student skipping class to buy snacks.
No one bothered to glance at me twice.
I stopped by a nearby convenience store and gathered a pile of bentos, rice balls, soft drinks, and a few boxes of strawberry cake.
The feeling of walking around in the body of the person I loved was truly wonderful.
I could feel his height, his stride.
Even though my current muscles were recreating the aching sensations from last night, I still felt happy.
After paying, I carried two large plastic bags back to our little rat hole.
The door locked tightly.
I tossed the food onto the table and canceled the transformation.
The muddy layer flowed down again, returning me to my familiar small body.
The rest of the afternoon passed in pure boredom.
I ate the bento, rolled around on the bed, sniffed the remaining scent of Ryuu-kun on the pillow, then drifted off without realizing it.
The empty state of my mind still had not disappeared.
I did not even bother thinking about what Ryuu-kun was doing today.
He was probably bored out of his mind.
…
Click.
The sound of the door opening woke me.
The sky outside had already turned pitch black.
I rubbed my eyes and clumsily crawled out of bed.
“Ryuu-kun, welcome home~”
Ryuga stepped in, slammed the door shut, and slid down to lean against the iron door as if the last bit of his life force had just been drained.
His face was pale and exhausted, the dark circles under his eyes even deeper than in the morning.
He was now wearing ordinary clothes, his neck wrapped tightly in medical gauze to hide my “artwork,” along with a bag that somehow held his crumpled hero costume stuffed inside a plastic bag.
“I’m back,” he muttered, tossing his tactical backpack onto the floor with a heavy thud.
He looked no different from a lifeless corpse.
I ran over, wrapped my arms around his waist, and pressed my cheek against that heavily rising and falling chest.
“You worked hard.
Patrolling with those hypocritical heroes must have been so boring, right?”
Ryuga only gave a soft “yeah” in his throat and patted my head a few times in a tired manner.
His exhaustion was not just physical.
It was continuous mental pressure.
We sat down at the table.
I reheated the remaining bento in the microwave (of course, by stealing electricity from the empty room next door) for him.
The two of us ate in silence.
The only sounds in the room were the clatter of chopsticks against plastic containers.
I rested my chin on my hand, chewing a piece of rolled egg while watching him.
Ryuga ate like a machine, eyes fixed on the moldy wall in front of him.
His mind was starting to calculate again.
That blank face and those eyes that looked like they were frying rice in a pan were enough for me to know he was preparing something crazy.
I knew that clearly.
The atmosphere around him suddenly grew thick.
Heavy and cold.
Setting down his chopsticks, Ryuga finished the bottle of water.
He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, then opened them and looked straight at me.
His gaze was dark and bottomless.
“Himiko.
I have something I need to talk about.”
His voice dropped, carrying the tone of an order mixed with a rare caution.
I swallowed the piece of egg, obediently pulled my legs in, and sat up straight on the chair.
It was rare for Ryuu-kun to use this tone, which meant this matter truly could not be joked about.
“Before I tell you this plan…” Ryuga interlaced his ten fingers and rested his chin on them.
“…I want you to listen carefully.
And I need you to think carefully, then answer me with genuine willingness.
Don’t agree just because you want to please me.
Understand?”
I blinked.
Wow.
Serious enough to need all this lead-up?
“Yes, Ryuu-kun.
I’m listening.”
Ryuga stayed silent for a few seconds, as if rearranging the final words of his deadly plan.
Then he spoke, each word as sharp as a razor:
“In the next few days, I will personally kill the Hero Killer, Stain.”
My heart skipped a beat.
The Hero Killer.
Stain.
Of course I knew him.
News about him flooded the reports.
A terrifying monster who hunted and killed dozens of professional heroes.
Even seasoned criminals had to be wary of his killing intent.
And Ryuu-kun, a U.A.
student, sitting here eating a discounted bento in this rundown inn with me, was declaring he would kill him?
“Kill… Stain?” I whispered, unable to hide my surprise.
I was not shocked that he had already killed people and would continue to do so.
After all, he had the strength for it.
What shocked me was how huge and dangerous the target was.
Even I was not sure I could pull it off.
My heart suddenly clenched.
A vague fear flashed through.
What if Ryuu-kun got cut down by him?
What if he never came back?
“Yep.” Ryuga nodded, his eyes unwavering.
“I know exactly where he will appear, when, and who he will target.
Taking him out will be my sole responsibility.
I know how to send him to hell without spending too much energy.”
“But… why do you have to do it yourself?” I frowned and leaned forward.
“Wouldn’t it be easier if I killed him together with you???”
“Hard,” Ryuga gave a faint smile, a sarcasm that went all the way to the bone.
“Forcing it with violence means both of us would definitely get seriously injured.
If we’re not careful, we die together.”
He raised a hand and lightly rubbed his temple.
“It sounds romantic, but I want both of us to live.
That’s why I have my own method to put him into an indefinite sleep party and clean everything up afterward.
No police or hero will be able to find the culprit.
No one will be able to accuse Onodera Ryuga.”
He spoke smoothly and vaguely about the method of killing and the way to erase traces, but looking into those confident eyes, it was clear he had already scripted Stain’s death hundreds of times inside that rock-filled head of his.
“So… what do you need me to do?” I asked softly.
If he was confident he could handle Stain alone and erase the traces, then bringing me into this plan must have an extremely important reason.
Ryuga looked deep into my eyes.
“That’s where I need you.
This plan cannot succeed without perfect alibi evidence.
And you, Himiko… you will be my alibi.”
I held my breath.
“At the moment I take action,” Ryuga began laying out each detail, “this city of Hosu will sink into a sea of fire.
A bunch of monsters called Nomu will be released here.
Chaos will break out everywhere.
That class representative Iida Tenya will definitely rush off to find Stain for revenge for his brother.
I will follow him, and that will be the moment I deal with Stain.”
He paused and tilted his head.
“And I need you to drink my blood and transform into the form of Onodera Ryuga.”
“Transform into you?”
“Correct.
Right after he successfully saves a hero named Native and brings him to safety, I need you, in my form, to stick close and then appear as if you just managed to escape.” Ryuga tapped his finger lightly on the table.
“Your mission is to create a diversion and buy time.
You will use my face, make contact with professional heroes, and help them evacuate civilians from the areas attacked by the Nomu.
You don’t need to fight the monsters.
You only need to appear in front of as many people as possible, shout instructions, and help ordinary people.
Make sure everyone, especially the street cameras, sees ‘Onodera Ryuga’ performing rescue work in a place completely different from the alley where Stain is killed.”
I froze.
A wanted criminal, a villain like me… had to transform into a hero, go save people, and evacuate civilians?
This was truly… ridiculous to the point of insanity.
“The amount of blood you have from before is enough to maintain that form for at least one hour,” Ryuga continued.
“In that one hour, I will finish cleaning everything up.
After that, we will switch places when the chance comes.
This plan is extremely dangerous.
If your disguise fails midway, if you run into a Nomu beyond your control… you could die, or get caught.”
The room fell into a suffocating silence.
Ryuga reached across the small table and took my hand.
His hand was ice-cold, but the grip was strong and firm.
“Now I will ask again.” His voice became gentler, but the seriousness did not decrease at all.
“I am dragging you into an extremely dangerous swamp.
You will have to face professional heroes and act like someone you hate.
You can refuse.
If you refuse, I will find another way, or take the risk myself.
So, Himiko… do you agree to help me?”
I looked down at our intertwined hands.
Was I afraid?
Of course.
More than a little scared, actually.
I hated with all my heart having to face those heroes who constantly spouted morality.
If the transformation wore off in the middle of a crowd, I would be torn apart or thrown in prison for life.
But…
I looked up at Ryuga.
Those deep black eyes of his, the exhaustion carved deep into his face, and the extreme loneliness he was carrying in order to break this damn world.
He said he would kill Stain with his own hands.
He was taking the bloodiest, most dangerous part onto himself just to protect the stupid future of his classmates, or because of some twisted ideal that only he understood.
I had no place to call home except this tattered rented room with Ryuga in it.
If he failed, if he got caught, my world would also collapse.
I would not let him fight alone.
Every sin of his, I would share.
I tightened my grip on his hand, the corners of my mouth slowly curving into a bright smile that revealed my two sharp fangs.
“I will do it,” I declared firmly.
“I will become a perfect Onodera Ryuga.
I will evacuate those stupid ordinary people and shout those nauseating moral lines just like those heroes.
I will buy time for you to clean up that Stain guy.”
I saw relief flash through the depths of Ryuga’s eyes.
His shoulders slumped slightly, as if a thousand-ton rock had been lifted.
“Thank you, Himiko.”
“But wait…”
I suddenly pulled my hand back, crossed my arms over my chest, and pouted in a sulky way.
My eyes narrowed with calculation.
“There’s no way I’m working for free.
This is dangerously deadly.
There has to be a reward!”
Ryuga blinked, seemingly surprised by this childish “reversal” of mine.
He exhaled and the corner of his mouth curled into a resigned half-smile.
“Alright, little princess.
What do you want?
Don’t say you want another few rounds like last night.
I can’t keep up.”
“Tch, do you think I’m the type who only thinks about those dirty things?” I puffed out my cheeks.
“This time I want something else!”
I leaned across the table, bringing my face close to his, my golden eyes sparkling with unhidden excitement.
“I want… a date.”
“A date?” Ryuga raised an eyebrow.
“That’s right!” I nodded rapidly.
“Right after this mess in Hosu is over, you have to set aside one full day to take me out.
Just me and you.
Of course I’ll disguise myself, and you have to disguise yourself too.
We’ll go to an amusement park, eat crepes, and walk around holding hands like those normal couples on TV!”
Ryuga’s eyes widened as he looked at me.
Perhaps he never expected that the request of a teenage female killer would be so… “normal” and “plain.”
For a moment, I saw his gaze soften.
A strange sense of pity passed over that usually cold face.
Perhaps he realized that behind the madness and bloodlust, I was still just a sixteen-year-old girl who longed to be loved in a normal way, something this society had stolen from me long ago.
“Alright,” Ryuga cleared his throat and raised a hand to ruffle his black hair, trying to hide his embarrassment.
“I promise.
As long as we survive the fateful night coming up, I’ll take you wherever you want.”
“Yahoo!!”
I cheered happily, jumped out of the chair, and threw my arms around his neck, rubbing my cheek against that solid shoulder.
The full-body ache from earlier completely vanished.
“You promised, okay, Ryuu-kun!
If you break your word, I’ll really drain all your blood!”
Ryuga lightly patted my back as a low laugh rumbled in his chest.
“I know, I know.”
I closed my eyes and tightened my arms around his neck.
That’s right.
That chaos was coming.
Hosu would sink into blood and fire.
Villains, heroes, Nomu, Stain… all of them would throw themselves into a bloody slaughter.
But I did not care.
As long as I could stay by Ryuu-kun’s side, I was ready to play any role he wanted, whether it was a hero saving people or a demon from hell.
Because he was the only light in my dark world…