Ever since Monoma was a child, he became the target of bullies. He would always find himself cowering in front of them, unable to move a single part of his body, his heart beating at its fastest rate.
He embodied the stereotypical targets of bullies—small and wimpy kids. His quirk didn't help his case. As you might notice, not all kids develop quirks, so someone who does is highly praised. However, that only happens when your quirk involves some sort of physical strength. Unfortunately, not all quirks work that way. Not all quirks were created equally. Some manifest as a mental capability.
Monoma's quirk belongs to the latter. With his quirk, he can copy someone else's quirk and use it for five minutes—plain, simple, and not too complicated. In fact, that is what makes his quirk amazing to some people, those part of the small percentage of the population—the quirkless. To them, Monoma's quirk is unlike any other because it seems like he possesses a variety of quirks in his arsenal, which he could use at will at any time. However, to those who know how quirks work, nothing seems extraordinary about his quirk.
In fact, all of them think the same thing: his quirk is nothing but a trying hard copycat of theirs. There's nothing unique about it and that in and of itself is enough for them to discredit Monoma's hard work to improve his quirk. Because to them, no matter what he does, not even if he works his ass off, his quirk is not suitable for the heroes. He's better off as a sidekick, helping people in the background. While real heroes—the ones they call themselves—and future ones get to take the limelight with their grandiose quirks.
To say he felt discouraged would be an understatement of his true feelings. After all, people who he looked up to didn't deem him worthy of being one of them.
Has he ever felt like quitting?
Absolutely, but why didn't he do so?
To say that it was because of his dogged determination is narrating only half of the story. In fact, less than half of it because the true reason lies in his chance encounter with a certain pro-hero named Aizawa Shota, better known as Eraserhead.
On the day of his encounter with Aizawa, Monoma started his day just like any other day. First, by opening his eyes and then doing his morning routine of stretching, taking a bath, and let's not forget his daily dose of French cuisine. To him, it seemed like his day would go on just like any other school day, filled with boring class lectures and all-too-familiar encounters with his bullies, or so he thought.
Because, contrary to what he expected, his day would not go on as it used to be. In fact, his day will not even involve school because just as he was about to reach it, a group of bandits decided to step in front of his way, and not only him but also other people's as well. They were impartial towards the victims they chose. It didn't matter whether they were students, professionals, or just everyday people. All he knows is that when the bandits woke up that day, they decided to choose violence, and there was no stopping them.
Everyone was scared—their bodies trembling with fear. Some stood in their place, unable to move a single bit, clutching their possessions, not daring to make eye contact with the bandits. While others, those people with quirks, fought back.
Monoma did not belong to any of the two because, unlike them, he decided to run.
Perhaps, he didn't have the heart of a hero inside him. After all, he didn't decide to save other people first. Instead, he chose to save his life—his most prized possession—more than anything. Or maybe, just maybe, his subconscious had a different interpretation of All Might's famous quote regarding heroes: "Top heroes have stories about them from their school days but most of their stories have one thing in common: their bodies moved before they had a chance to think."
You see, his body did move before he had a chance to think because it was impossible for him to have any thoughts about anything aside from his fear. Unfortunately, the adrenaline in his body and the muscles in his foot decided to move for his own good, not for the benefit of others.
His feet kept on running until he was no longer in sight of the bandits. They did not dare follow him, for they thought he was just a kid and he could not do anything. To their dismay, they were wrong because there was one thing Monoma was good at—calling for help.
He grabbed his phone from his pocket and dialed the number that first came to mind: The Lurkers' Kamui Woods. He held the phone close to his ear, fidgeting while doing so and praying that the person on the receiving end would pick up his call sooner than later. To his luck, the person on the other end answered his call after a couple of rings. Unfortunately, it was not the person he expected it to be.
"Hello," Monoma said, "I have an emergency. There's a group of bandits attacking our neighborhood. I was able to escape the scene, but many people were still there, fighting for their lives. Please help them."
"Who is this?" the person on the receiving end said with a cold voice.
"Uhm, uhm, the Phantom Thief," Monoma said, trying hard to mask his voice.
On any given day, Monoma would've said his real name to the receiving end. After all, it was just Kamui Woods. However, today was not just any other day. Today was a testament to his cowardice. He cannot show that to his idol, so he'd rather go with the name Phantom Thief—a name he thought was fitting for him because of his quirk, a name no one can directly link to him.
"Hey kid, whoever you say you are, go back there and fight those bandits yourself. I'm a busy man, and I have a class to teach. I don't have time for that, okay? Do you get me?" the man said, irritated by the disruption during his ongoing class.
"B-but, I-I cannot. My quirk is not made for fighting. I'll just look stupid when I fight them," Monoma said, taken aback by the man's response to him, causing him to stutter.
"Jeez! You even dare call yourself the Phantom Thief, as your hero name. You know what? I'm sick and tired of aspiring heroes like you who just want to be one for the hell of it. At the end of the day, you just see being a hero as a title, not a duty. Haist! Kids these days are only after the prestige they can get. You're just like my students. Oh, how I wish I could expel them sooner," the man said, sighing with a hint of disappointment.
Monoma did not respond. How can he when the one on the receiving end seemed to be saying the truth?
"Hey kid, I'm going to hang up now. Take care of that yourself or call another hero's number. How did you even end up with my number? As far as I remember, any contact information about me is kept hidden. Perhaps, it was that loud mouth of Hizashi. Anyways, good luck, kid. Hope you find someone suited for the job and hopefully, it's you," the man said.
Monoma stared at his phone. He surely did not expect Kamui Woods to say that kind of stuff. Maybe it was not him, he thought, so being the curious him, he checked his phone log. Alas, it was not really his idol. How careless of him to get two digits wrong during a time of emergency!
Anyways, the conversation he had with that random person rang in his head for a good amount of time. For three minutes, he was frozen to the ground, his mind debating whether to call the right person this time or to follow the receiving end's advice.
Fortunately, for his development as an aspiring hero, he chose the latter.
However, for the sake of the people he is going to save, did he choose the right choice?
