This chapter was longer than my personal goal of 5K words. Sorry if it is too long for you all.

And a thank you to the guys who have peeked at the chapters so far. It means a lot to me.


"This is… really U.A.?!" Masaru had stars in his eyes as much as Arachno, who was hiding in the gym bag. Hakkei was in awe as well, but nerves were setting in under the aura of the building. "It's just where the exams are taking place as far as I'm aware, bro."

They stood under the first arch that was the path towards four towering buildings with constant connections between them, making the illusion of a singular building. All of the glass panels reflected light off of the place like a chest of jewels, bringing a mental boost to people's spirits. At the last arch before the building, Hakkei spotted a green-haired boy almost taking a fall if not for some sweet girl preventing that by making him float. At least he wasn't the only one nervous about the exam.

Masaru had his tail wrapped around Hakkei's left wrist so he didn't separate so easily by distraction as Hakkei started to lead him to the building. Once in, Hakkei walked over to what he could make to be an entry application desk. He approached the woman at the table that was set up and handed a bundle of papers. "I am here to take the entrance exam. Here is my application form and official letter."

The woman took the papers as her hand became a blur on her keyboard. "One moment please while I check to make sure that everything is in order." As her hand got still, her eyes stared at the screen and then at the papers in her other hand. "You are enrolling for the heroics exam. Is this correct?"

"Yes, ma'am. You can double-check the official letter if you want."

After a more thorough check, her hands became barely visible and then she smiled, although there was a hint of worry. "The data has been entered into the system. Please wait in the lobby for your exam ticket in the meantime."

"Umm…Where do I go to cheer on my brother?" Masaru asked. He was disheartened with the upcoming point of separation, but he was aware that those are the rules to follow.

"One of the staff is assigned to lead those who are here to cheer for others to a special room where you can watch the physical test in action when it is time," the woman smiled.

"Thank you," Hakkei said, catching on that Masaru was freezing up a little. As the brothers started to walk away, Hakkei overheard the woman muttering to herself.

"That's the second one this year…"

Second one?! Did she mean that I wasn't the only quirkless to be tested this year? Hakkei was overcome with shock, only to be brought back to reality as someone roughly brushed his shoulder.

"Watch it!" Hakkei recognized Raisei's voice instantly. Upon looking at his classmate, he watched as Reisei's expression changed from belligerent to incredulous. With the change in posture now visible, it wasn't surprising to Hakkei that Reisei was doing a double-take. Reisei then smirked arrogantly. "So this was the school you were talking about accepting you? You're sure it's not out of pity or funsies?"

Masaru sensed the hostilities as Hakkei replied without emotion. "Funny. I was wondering similarly about you."

Reisei was not amused and countered. "Keep making witty remarks. That plus your new physique is never going to be enough to pass this test. You are just a stepping stone to everyone in here, Quirkless Hero."

The last sentence was said loud enough for several people in the lobby to overhear and now all eyes were on Hakkei. Masaru only grew more fearful as he was now hugging Hakkei's hand. He saw various faces that reminded him of the nightmares he endured frequently, but none of pity. There were sleazy smirks, confusion, pure anger, and blatant annoyance. Arachno was almost wanting to come out to protect his humans upon hearing unfriendly tones in the stomper noises. Hakkei took a defensive stand to reassure his brother while staring Reisei down and ignoring the murmurs that surrounded him.

"Is this a prank? There's no way that's true."

"Quirkless can't get into this exam…What's going on?"

"Quirkless taking this test might as well have their death certificate ready."

"A quirkless using this place as a playground is insulting U.A."

Seeing that everyone was now aware of Hakkei, Reisei took his leave with a triumphant smirk. Hakkei was furious underneath, realizing that Masaru is about to have an episode thanks to that guy. His brother is going to cry at any minute. What kind of hero does this? If anyone is insulting U.A., it's Reisei!

Then, a howl erupted in the air, getting many people's attention as two adults were at one of the pathways into the lobby. Both were muscular men, though one had a greater physique to show for it. The red bodysuit, the pale, spiky gray hair, and the underbite that resulted in two fangs sticking out was enough for the boys and other hero geeks out there to realize that he was Vlad King. The other man had the head structure of a dog with a muzzle and a feral look in his eyes. The shaggy yellow mane for hair could only mean that he was Hound Dog.

"Enough…" Before he get any more words out, Hound Dog was already growling, snarling, and making angry barks. Vlad King translated for his friend. "He says that that is enough with those faces and remarks. You're all scaring that innocent child senseless."

As everyone turned away from the brothers, Hound Dog approached them, calmer now that everyone took his warning. "Does he have a condition for us to take into consideration?"

Hakkei nodded. "Yes. Public ire is a huge problem, as you just saw. Thanks to that, trust is an ongoing issue and family is just about the only safety zone he can count on."

Vlad King nodded. "We will make sure that he can have his own personal space when the test begins."

Masaru was relieved that the situation was resolved. Two heroes saved him, just like his brother. He really saw no reason to be afraid of them. "Personal space? Like hanging out with you guys?"

Chuckling, Vlad King ruffled Masaru. "I wish! I can tell that you really like heroes. But Hound Dog and I have a big task we need to do during the exam."

"Take care," Hound Dog said as the two heroes left the lobby.

Masaru wasn't even disappointed in the answer. He was beaming with delight. He got to meet heroes directly and that was enough for him at the moment. Hakkei clenched his fist, still enraged at Reisei. But he needed to make sure that Masaru calmed down some more so the only worry Hakkei will have is just the exam. "Go ahead and play on your phone, bro. I'll handle any more scary matters. Okay?"

"Okay, bro." Masaru pulled out his phone and started to play with it, curling his tail around Hakkei's wrist. "There was a boss I wanted to beat anyway."

The green-haired boy was in awe a distance away, staring at Hakkei and Masaru. Izuku Midoriya couldn't believe that someone was called out as being quirkless. Was it true? He shook his head sideways hard, as if to dislodge some cobwebs in his head. There were too many things on his mind as much as nerves to go find out. Besides…The older kid looked like he had some temper on him. He decided to leave the two of them alone and walked away as another person went right by him and made their way towards Hakkei.

"What a jerk, huh? Is that guy always messing with you?" Hakkei looked to see what looked to be someone who could be mistaken as family to him. He was a couple of inches taller than him with a lanky, less muscular frame and a blue jumpsuit tightly hugging his body. Trim, tidy dark hair, emerald eyes, and his own glasses to match, this guy is an easy definition of a local nerdy heartthrob. Then he lowered his voice so only Hakkei and Masaru, who was glued to his phone, could hear him. "So was that true?"

"And what of it?" Hakkei replied, on guard.

There was a surge of relief and excitement on the guy as a smile cracked across one side of his face. He kept his voice low. "That's amazing. I didn't think that another quirkless person was going to be as motivated as me to take the test."

"So that's what she meant." Hakkei recalled what that secretary muttered earlier.

The guy then observed Hakkei's form, confusing the latter. "What's wrong? Is it my tracksuit?"

"No, man! You build your body on your own?"

"Yeah. I only packed in the muscles these last ten months."

"That's almost half of the time I bulked my body up from a mere bean sprout with my father's guidance. I spent most of my time being a nerd and wanted to change myself before I got into high school."

"Change, huh?" Hakkei didn't know why, but something about that spoke to him in a manner he didn't think about before.

"That's what you are doing as well, right? Defying all odds and achieving a dream?" Then the guy realized something and got apologetic. "Silly me. I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Koji Kobayashi. You don't need honorifics."

"Hakkei Daijou. I don't care about honorifics, either." Both boys shook hands.

Hakkei watched as Koji retrieved his phone from his own bag. "Let's exchange numbers. My father does research on natural body enhancements and medicines. As much as I want to be friends, I think my father would like data on your exercise journey to compile with his own data."

Hakkei got his phone out of his gym bag in response to the idea. "I don't mind a training buddy. It sounds like it'll help me out in the long run as much as you. "

As they exchanged numbers, Masaru tugged on Hakkei's arm with his tail, not taking his eyes off of his own phone. "That lady was calling you guys. I think your turn is up."

"Thanks, Masaru," Hakkei said. "Almost done with your game?"

Masaru looked very smug. "Yeah. That boss was easier than I had thought."

A surprise ringtone of Darth Vader's theme played, getting many people, including Hakkei, Masaru, and Koji, confused and looking around. Reisei, who got his application ticket, quickly grabbed his blaring phone to silence it. That was his ring tone for potential spam calls or texts. He paused as an unknown number had messaged him a link to a video. "What the hell? I thought the era of tag messages had ended…" checking the video, Reisei's face contorted in horror as he saw the footage of himself getting sprayed by grape soda from one of the middle school cameras. Another message popped up, which got Reisei's blood to drain momentarily;

Mon here. Try getting that off of the internet, you naughty boy. This is only an example of what will happen if you keep your game up. Ee Ee Ee!

"Umm…Sir?" The woman was holding out a card for Reisei to take, which made him flinch and resume his priorly intended actions. Hakkei ignored Reisei and retrieved his card as well as Koji did. Koji looked at Hakkei. "I got section A. What about you?"

"I got section A, too. I guess there are multiple groups to make testing easier for everyone somehow."

"Shame. I got section D," Reisei piped in, getting the now friends to look at him. "I really wanted to have a showdown with you in the test, Hakkei. Especially if it's some kind of combat arena type. Then you would get to see how much of a difference things are."

Koji gave a puzzled expression. "I don't think we will be pitted against one another like that. It's a hero exam."

"Don't get cold feet and wet yourself, Reisei," Hakkei shrugged off the taunt. "You and I both know that liquids other than your sweat shorts out your quirk and renders you powerless until you dry off."

Masaru gave a mischievous grin as Reisei's anger boiled. Reisei stormed off, crackling bits of electricity from his hair as he stomped about.

Not long afterwards, everyone taking the hero examination exam were called into a room that had three screens, each covering massive walls and a podium in the center point of the screens at ground level. The chairs and long desks on the other side of the room where everyone had entered were all in line with the stairs and felt like Hakkei had entered a high-tech college room instead of a high school exam. He went ahead and sat down in the front row of the left column, with Koji joining him in a seat right next to him. Once everyone had seated themselves, the main lights dimmed, only for some side lights in the ceiling to lighten the room back up a bit, centering everyone's attention to the podium.

Hakkei was a bit bummed to see the man at the podium, hoping that it was one of the other heroes that he is a bigger fan of. Black leather jacket and pants, blue headphones, orange-tinted glasses with a white rim made most of the attire. With a contraption at the neck that looks like some sound amplifier tech, a short mustache that was almost invisible even from the front seats, and blonde hair stiffened in a curve upwards, Hakkei kept it to himself that Present Mic didn't really amaze him, although he is an efficient hero.

He looked at the participants in all of the other seats to gauge them. He can't really tell who would be the top contenders to watch out for. But seeing the same guy who had tripped at the entrance before, hands over his smile and obviously being a major fan made him grinned too. Other than the briefing and some uptight nitpicking about one's bad habit and bringing up the zero-pointer, Hakkei ignored most of the conversation as the paper in front of him had it all laid out to him.

"Are there any more questions?" Present Mic asked, seeing as one sharp eye already caught a hidden gimmick. No one realized that the test was even starting in this hero's eyes. The smarter ones would be able to figure out other hidden info and use it to do better in this exam.

Reisei, still not amused that Hakkei wasn't chased out of the exam, raised his hand. "Excuse me for my intrusion, but are quirkless people even allowed to take the exam? Ain't this too dangerous for them, much less an insult for this prestigious school?"

Koji, not liking where this is going, was clenching his fist in order to bite his tongue. He knew that it was aimed at Hakkei. Present Mic did not change his cheery, loud demeanor. "U.A. does not exempt quirkless people from trying their hand at our exams. Given the increased difficulty without a quirk to use, we check any quirkless examinees TWICE in advance before we let them take on our exams. Once almost a year before the exams, and the second one was two weeks before today. They are tested in combat, physicality, if they have the mentality, and technology both rounds and if there is an improvement between the two tests plus they had met the requirements the first time, then they're in! Of course, we do not make it known. If such quirkless people want to take the test so badly, they will seek it themselves and ask us."

Hakkei remembered the tests. The first one was to pass two out of four tests while passing three or more plus beating prior scores was the second. He knew for sure that he didn't pass the technology tests both times, but was certain that he did well in the other three at minimum. Now that he thought about it; how did Koji do in his?

Reisei sat back down with a huff of annoyance, making Hakkei and Koji grin. Not wanting this to slide any further, Hakkei stood up for himself. "I appreciate your concern, Reisei. But if I back down from this exam right now after training for six years, don't you think that would be an even bigger insult to U.A. than coming in and treating this school like a joke?"

Reisei caught the hidden message as Hakkei locked eyes with him. Reisei turned his head away as Hakkei sat back down, leaving Present Mic to wrap up the last of this briefing. "That's all from me! Finally, I'll give you listeners a present - our school motto! The hero, Napoleon Bonaparte once said: A true hero is someone who overcomes life's misfortunes. Go beyond. PLUS ULTRA!"

Masaru and Arachno were taken by the staff to a room that almost resembles a movie theater with multiple screens that can function as one and plenty of seats to pick from. There were some people already in some of the seats, ready to cheer on whoever they wanted. Masaru carried Hakkei's gym bag with him over to one of the seats in the back, well away from others. He was shivering at the thought of anyone else he didn't know interacting with him, the old trauma still lurking behind him. The staff member walked over to the other people and talked to them about something before they walked back to the doors to keep an eye on everyone.

After looking around to make sure that no one is eyeing him, he peek into the open hole of the gym bag. Arachno gave a silent signal that he was okay to Masaru. Relieved, he adjusted the bag in the seat next to him, being careful so the spider can have a good view without anyone noticing. A voice can be heard as someone from a few seats away called out to Masaru. "Who are you rooting for, kid? A sibling?"

Masaru glanced to see a man that appeared wealthy looking back at him, seated next to two gruff men in black suits and shades. Nothing really fancy other than a fine, tailored suit and the expensive looking watch on his right wrist. The man's dark hair was slicked back with gel or wax and his face resembles an older version of Koji, right down to the emerald eyes. Masaru decided to reply, not wanting to be rude. "My brother."

Satisfied with the answer, the man gave a nod and a smile. "I'm rooting for my son. I don't think he will succeed with passing the exam, but it will build him up into a better man. It's always the smallest success that builds someone up for a bigger one."

"Umm…Are you talking about Koji?"

That got the man's attention in an instant. "Already met him?" Masaru gave a nervous nod. With a relaxed smile, the man said; "if Koji made a new friend, then I'll cheer them on as well."

Hakkei and Koji were led over to the exam site, which is supposed to be a massive city battleground. But it's hard to see the false city with thick concrete walls that rose as high as some of the buildings, blocking the view. People were allowed to bring their own equipment to the test, especially if it helps a quirk perform, be it medically or an assistant in combat. Feeling that his tracksuit jacket was too tight, Hakkei took it off, having a sleeveless red shirt underneath and switching his glasses out for a set of prescribed protection goggles. A few women admired his build for a couple of seconds before giggling to each other, seeing the quirkless as nice eye candy but unimportant as a rival. It didn't bother Hakkei, though. His mind was set on the exam and that alone. Not his fears or even some guy with pale, blonde hair with looks that can kill was going to shake that resolve.

Hearing some metallic clanking against the solid ground, Hakkei looked in surprise at Koji, who now was equipped with jet boots, a utility belt, and a helmet with a visor to protect his eyes. There were twin wrist projectiles on the glove gauntlets as well as shoulder cannons that seem to use whatever is inside the energy pack in his back. Koji looked confused, seeing hardly any traces of equipment on Hakkei. "Are you even nervous? Going in without tech is riskier than without."

"I'm fine. I failed the tech part of the quirkless testing twice, even though I had studied."

Koji chuckled. "So that's why you trained your body more. Makes sense. You think you can take down the faux villains?"

"Don't know until I try. They never said anything about us working together."

"True," Koji agreed. "We still each need to shine, though. How about we take on one-pointers individually and work together on the other ones?"

Hakkei nodded in agreement. "If the zero-pointer shows up near us, we can take the smarter route and get people away from it. If it is bigger than the others, we can also lure the small fry villains over to it and let it beat on them."

"I like that idea!" Both boys smiled and gave each other a fist bump. Hakkei felt like a winner already, gaining a proper human friend for what feels like the very first time.

"OKAY, START!"

Everyone was startled, if not caught off guard by Present Mic's sudden words. Hakkei and Koji almost felt like jumping out of their skins when an explosion occurred nearby and whipped their heads to see someone already entering through the open gates of the exam area. Everyone else started to pour beyond the gate after the blast, like the champagne from a bottle. Koji propelled himself into the air on his rocket boots to survey where the enemies and Hakkei were. To his surprise, Hakkei has already broken away from the pack of participants, using parkour skills to bypass obstacles that made the alleyways and structural paths longer to take normally by foot.

The first priority on Hakkei's mind was to get his hands on a weapon or two. His fists were not made for busting through metal, as the silhouettes of the faux villains seem to portray. Even then...Are they fighting armored humans or machines or both? Then, a wall crashed down near Hakkei, prompting him to jump backwards as the foe revealed itself.

In various shades of green, the blocky hourglass figure was in no doubt a machine to Hakkei. A wheel was its only source of directional movement as the long neck swiveled its head, locking on Hakkei. Before the arms were raised to show gatling guns behind the shielded forearms, Hakkei saw the number one in white print on the shields.

TARGET ACQUIRED. PERISH!

It had to be a jumpscare…darn it! Hakkei took off to the side, avoiding the ammo that littered the place he was standing in before.

One participant saw him fighting with the one-pointer and purposefully turned and left in a different direction. Koji saw that action as well and knew that the participant was underestimating Hakkei and treating him like scum. Koji noted another one-pointer that the guy missed sighting and landed near it. He will happily take this one if it means that Hakkei won't be dealing with two of them simultaneously.

The rain of bullets behind Hakkei wasn't touching him too many times with his zigzagging, but each one that had succeeded in grazing him was smarting. He finally saw a place he had wanted to find: a hardware store. Some of the bullets missed again and shattered the glass. Hakkei grabbed a garbage can and threw it at the bot to distract it long enough to hop into the store and get a head start to find what he wanted.

The robot wheeled in front of the store, not phased by the trash thrown at it. As it peered into the store, Hakkei was laying low trying to think. Okay. The wheel is the weak point, but I need to take out the optics so I can have a shot. He stared at some small buckets of paint as he pondered.

The robot busted the wall that had supported the broken window, making it easier to aim and shoot into the cramped space. Hearing the noise behind himself, Hakkei quickly acted. Something arched over the aisle towards the robot. Seeing a projectile at a decent velocity, it shot the item out of the air. White liquid splattered on the bot, but it didn't have time to care as two more objects flew at it. Once again, it defended itself as both metal projectiles were blasted from the air, more of the liquid splattering on its green exterior. Hakkei was forming a plan now as he hummed one more bucket of paint over the shelves that served as his shield. This latex paint should cover the optics if I can throw it well…I might need a bigger bucket. He also had noted pruning hooks that look like harpoons and sledgehammers in the aisle across from him. Perfect.

Grabbing a five gallon bucket of paint, he showed himself just to throw the new object before retreating into the desired aisle. The robot blasted the bucket with ease, not counting on the effects to come. The plastic bucket shattered, dowsing the larger amount of paint onto the optics as planned. Hakkei grabbed a large sledgehammer and the pruning hook with the longest reach before he came back out. Hearing noise, the robot fired wildly, one of the bullets leaving a decent gash on his left shoulder. Hakkei gritted his teeth as he reached the robot's wheel and thrust the pruning hook into the tire as deep as he could and backed up. He grabbed a piece of the rubble and chucked it at a car outside, making it blare its alarm. The robot tried to wheel towards the sound, but the pruning hook jammed the wheel as it collided with the concrete, breaking apart and leaving the metal hook to destroy the wheel further and unbalance it. Hakkei was satisfied as the robot fell over, leaving the head exposed for a short time. Wielding the sledgehammer, Hakkei raced over to the head and began to smash it. It took repeated tries, but the robot ceased to function at last.

"Hakkei did it! He got a point!" Masaru was shouting in awe at his brother's effort that was viewed on screen. The others in the room were startled enough to look back at him, reminding him to not be so loud. "...Sorry."

"He did pretty good," the wealthy man said as another screen displayed Koji's tech weapons taking out his own one pointer robot. "And Koji got one as well."

Arachno was staring in awe at Hakkei from inside the bag. Once again, he was witnessing Hakkei holding his own as bigger hunters tried to make him their prey. He almost crawled out, but Masaru noticed and used his tail to bar the path a little, but not block the view of the screen. The spider was disgruntled, wondering why he had to hide so much.

Hakkei was breathing heavily, trying to catch his breath. He was thankful that he took jobs for construction, which made using the tools as weapons easy. But he was a little frustrated as he heard Present Mic's voice shouting.

"FIVE MINUTES LEFT!"

Once again, I was lucky, Hakkei thought to himself. If I had picked any other place, things would be completely different, just like before! I can't stay lucky forever. Heroes can only rely on luck so much before it vanishes…

"Help!"

Hakkei looked down the street to see Koji on the ground as another robot was closing in. This one had a main body with all of the limbs protruding from it. A serpent-like head and neck, a thick tail with a laser gun on the end of it, and four shields for legs means that it was not going to be as easy to take down. The yellow number two on each shield was all Hakkei needed to know as he raced to save his friend.

The joints attaching the shields to the body seemed like the weak point, so Hakkei gave a swing with the sledgehammer as soon as he was in range. He hit the spot, yet it wasn't enough as only a dent was left behind. It caught the robot's attention, though, as it turned to see its new opponent. Hakkei wondered if he did the right thing as he was backing up, still ready to use his heavy weapon.

Then Hakkei was sent backwards as the robot exploded in front of him. He looked to see the platinum blonde kid who was always carrying a scowl each time Hakkei could see him. A fiendish smile ran across the guy's face as the robot was smoldering. "Damn extras. Stay out of my way!" With another explosion, the blonde was up into the air, hunting his next target. Hearing Koji groan, Hakkei got up from the ground and raced over to his friend. "Are you alright?!"

"Beaten up a bit, but my tech is trashed," Koji answered. There was a hole through the side of his energy pack and the other tech suffered a bunch of dents. The rocket boots look like they may still work, though. "Don't let me slow you down, Hakkei. Finish the test."

"What about you? Can't you still fight?"

"Nah, man," Koji shook his head. "I was relying on this tech to get me through it. I gotta bow out for my safety."

Disheartened, Hakkei knew that Koji was right. "Take care, buddy." He ran off to continue the test.

The wealthy man stood up from his seat, appearing content. Masaru and Arachno were confused by this action, which Masaru couldn't help but question. "Where are you going, sir? The test isn't finished."

"While that may be true, my son's test has ended there. Maybe he'll do better with the other portion. I hope your brother continues to be my son's friend." The man left the room, waving to Masaru without looking back.

As Hakkei raced among the false city, he could only find wreckage after wreckage of robots. He encountered an aid kit and patched up a few of the contenders. It might be helping the competition get back up, but Hakkei didn't care as he moved on. Heroes are a team, so why not help others? Even at the two-minute mark and the zero-pointer making a big scene, he kept at it, trying to keep others safe while he hunted for more robots to get another point from.

"TIME'S UP!"

The sound of Present Mic's voice was like an ill omen to Hakkei. He only took out that one robot. But, he felt like he accomplished something at least. Some of the people had different thoughts now that he completed the test with them all, whispering among themselves.

"I can't believe it. He got through the test… Was he really quirkless?"

"I don't think he busted any faux villains, but he came and tended to me despite the chaos. He's not so bad."

"I kinda feel like a heel for my previous thoughts regarding quirkless people…"

None of those comments mattered to Hakkei as he was led with other injured participants to where they were going to get treatment. He knew that the test was going to be tough, but this was nowhere near what he thought it was going to be.

After receiving treatment and handling the written test, it was well into the afternoon before Hakkei could finally see Masaru and Arachno again. Masaru was acting hyper as he talked to Hakkei while Arachno poked out of the bag. "That was so cool to watch you get one of the robots! I know that we weren't allowed to record anything in the first place, but it was so amazing! Do you think they will share the footage?"

Hakkei ruffled his brother's hair, chuckling. "I don't think they will, but another thing that would finish off this amazing day before we head home would be some ice cream."

"Yeah!"

Afterwards, Hakkei spent the long week, waiting for the results of his hard work. It was an afternoon when Masaru raced into Hakkei's room, a sealed letter in hand. "Hakkei! It's here!"

Arachno poked up from within Hakkei's hair, looking like he had just woken up. Hakkei stopped his homework as he turned at his excited brother. "Wow! You're more hyped up about the results than I am! Let's read it from the bed, where we all can look at the letter."

The three of them gathered on top of Hakkei's bed, where he opened the envelope and became confused. There was a letter along with a small circular device that he emptied out onto the bed. It activated almost instantly, creating a holographic screen. On the screen was a humanoid, white mouse with a scar over his right eye. He was dressed with a white, collared shirt, a deep red tie that was tucked behind his black waistcoat and pants. His orange, laced sneakers appeared to be mismatched to his stout size with those thick soles as he waved at the screen. "Greetings, young Daijou."

"Woah! That's Mr. Principal!" Masaru rejoiced. Hakkei grinned, seeing his brother enjoying getting to see one of his favorite heroes, even if it was a recorded message.

"You did pretty well in the written portion of the exam," the mouse spoke up on the screen. "Yet, you only got one villain point. However, that wasn't the only thing we were judging you on."

"I was kinda expecting that," Hakkei chuckled. "I just didn't know what other tricks there were in the test."

"The judge panel witnessing each participant's actions gave points based on what other actions you performed that can save others without taking on villains: rescue points. You have earned seven rescue points throughout the test. Sadly, I'm afraid that it won't be enough to pass our exam nor recommend you to another hero school."

Hakkei already knew that he failed the exam. His efforts were not enough to get into another hero school? That was numbing to Hakkei.

"Do not lose hope." Hakkei snapped back into attention at the mouse's words. "Out of any quirkless individual who had ever participated in our exam, you were the best yet. If you keep working towards your goal and complete college, then you can apply for a hero license exam and achieve your dreams by that route. There are other ways to be a hero that don't require a cape as well if you feel the need to change direction."

Then the screen focus changed towards a cctv screen behind Mr. Principal. It was the scene on security footage of Reisei calling Hakkei out as quirkless. "As for this incident; I cannot abide by such tomfoolery in my building. I will assure you that this person is not going to be welcomed in my school. You did well with standing up for yourself. I hope to see you in the future."

The holographic message ended as Masaru and Arachno noticed the gloomy smile on Hakkei. Arachno hopped off of Hakkei's head and onto his shoulder, trying to figure out what was wrong. Masaru already guessed why. "Not what you wanted to hear?"

"Aside from you, the coach, and perhaps Arachno, no one else really saw the possibility of me becoming a hero," Hakkei replied. "For an actual hero, much less the principal of the top hero school, to see it…I have to work harder so I don't disappoint him. But I need to apply for a regular high school."

Hakkei's phone started to ring, convincing him to check the caller identification and answer. "Hey, Koji."

Arachno crept closer to the phone just to hear the sound of the new friend from the other end. "Hakkei! Did you pass? I failed big time."

"I failed, too. It wasn't enough to get into a different hero school either. But I got some heroes' attention."

"That's better than me, then. Any backup plans for which school you are going to next?"

"My mother and father suggested that I should apply for Taishirou High School. The things in the pamphlet are catching my eye."

Koji's voice raised up merrily as hearing the school name. "What do you know? I thought similarly about it! There is all kinds of sports equipment over there and I thought that having a training buddy pushing me would be the best thing! I've already applied, by the way. Get it done before you miss out!"

"Ha, ha, ha…You win, Koji. Taishirou High it is." Hakkei felt a bit better at Koji's positive attitude. "It's quite a trek from my house, though."

"No worries! We have plenty of time to plan a travel route to school," Koji reassured.

"I can help, too! I'll bring up a map," Masaru confidently exclaimed. "We can make part of the route into a training course if you guys want."

The boys all spent almost the remainder of their afternoon together, planning ahead for their future.