Mic's commentary boomed more "THE FIRST ROUND'S OBSTACLE COURSE IS UNDERWAY! AND THE GOAL IS TO RUN ONE LAP AROUND THIS SPECIAL MADE STADIUM'S OUTER RING! THE RULES ARE SIMPLE - AND SAVAGE! ASIDE FROM LEAVING THE COURSE, THIS IS A BONA FIDE RACE WHERE EVERYTHING GOES! THE CAMERA BOTS INSTALLED IN EACH AREA CAN BARELY CONTAIN THEIR EXCITEMENT!"

Our schoolmates and classmates were crowded around the toppled over robots, anxious to see that no one had been injured.

I had to keep moving. With a simple kick, I blasted through the robot barrier and hurried forward towards the second obstacle.

On the other side…

"WELL THEN, IF THE FIRST BARRIER WAS A CINCH, WHADDYA THINK OF THE SECOND? YOU FALL AND YOU'RE OUT! IF YOU DON'T LIKE THAT IDEA MAYBE YOU CAN CRAWL! IT'S THE FALLLL!"

A huge ditch with tight ropes stretching in between towering rocks!

At the other end, I could see Bakugou and Todoroki - headed towards the final obstacle, already so far ahead of me.

"It's very likely that my brother is watching," I murmured to myself. "I can't afford to show him an unsightly performance."

I placed my legs together and propelled myself across the tightrope, balancing rather awkwardly.

"Looks pretty unsightly to me!" came Mic's announcement, which was a little embarrassing. Still, nonetheless, I was able to get across. Got to catch up with them.

Mic's voice announced of Todoroki, "NOW OUR PLAYER IN THE LEAD HAS COME TO THE HIDDEN FINAL BARRIER! NONE OTHER THAN THE MINE FIELD! IT'S SET UP SO THAT IF YOU LOOK CAREFULLY, YOU CAN SEE WHERE THE LANDLINES ARE! STRAIN YOUR EYES AND FEET! IN ANY CASE THEY'RE LANDLINES, NOT OVERLY LETHAL BUT THEY BANG BIG AND BRIGHT!"

My only option, I realized, was to outrun the mines. I had to move quickly - quicker than the explosions that were starting to engulf me. There were explosions in front of me as well, as Bakugou continued to gain on Todoroki.

Then, from behind me, came a bigger explosion than anything we'd seen so far. "A GIANT EXPLOSION NEAR HTE ENTRANCE?! WHY WAS THAT BANG SO BIG?! WAS IT HIS PLAN OR SHEER COINCIDENCE? CLASS A'S MIDORIYA MOUNTS HIS CHARGE!?"

Riding atop the explosion on a piece of the robots Todoroki had knocked over, Midoriya had indeed passed us in an instant!

I ran all out - my breath sticking in my sides - running, panting, refusing tl et this be it - but ultimately -

"DAMMIT EARSERHEAD, YOUR CLASS IS INSANE?! WHAT'RE YOU TEACHING THEM? WHOEVER COULD'VE PREDICTED THIS OUTCOME WHEN THE TRIAL BEGAN? THE ONE WHO RETURNED TO HTE STADIUM IS NONE OTHER THAN - MIDORWYA IZUKU!"

My final placement as I arrived back in the stadium was -

"6th. To lose a race, of all things, with my quirk," I gasped. I could hardly believe it. Uraraka had approached Midoriya, looking exhausted, and cried, "Deku, that was amazing! I can't believe you got first place, I'm so jealous."

We'd all gathered up back in the stadium to hear Midnight's explanation.

"The 42 at the top have earned the right to advance. I'm sorry for the kids who failed, bu take heart. The festival's show-stopper is still being prepared. And now fro the post-preliminaries, the final selection! From here on out, even the press corps will teem in a white heat of excitement, so go all out. now then, onto today's heart-pounding second event! I already know what it will be but the suspense is killing me! And what will it be? Behold!" The sign displayed said "Human cavalry Battle"

"You can all form 2-4 person teams freely and form a horse-back configuration! Basically it's the same rules as a normal human cavalry battle: Swipe enemy riders' headbands and guard your own, except for one thing. Everyone will receive points based on their performance in the last trial!"

"Which means the point value of each team will change based on who's in it," said AShido.

"DON'T INTERRUPT!" Yelled Midnight. "But yes, that's right, and the number of points you're worth will be 5 points if you placed 42nd, 10 if you placed 41st, 15th for 40th and so on, with the exception of 1st place, whose head is worth TEN MILLION!"

All at once, we turned to look at Midoriya, who was standing there really sweating. For once, it really didn't pay to be in first.