Three months of toiling work finally pay off today.

I get my hero license.

And God, does it feel awesome!

I can't wait to tell Selene!

Especially after exactly thirty minutes, Bakugou and I encounter a gang of villains.

It's like the perfect inauguration.

And I'm with Bakugou on this one. We're heroes now!

A gang of thieves has flooded and stolen the purses and wallets of tens of civilians. Bakugou and I use our explosions and ice to launch a barricade of fire and water at the thieves. Our surprise attack is successful. All Might-sensei dashes out of the car, urging us to wait for the professionals. But when we give him no heed, he huffs and guides the spectators to safety.

The clearer the battlefield, the better for us.

I raise my right arm again. "Those wallets and bags … you can't just steal people's things like that." With a downward swoosh, another enormous ice barrier forms, separating the robbers from the public and a potential exit.

Their leader lets out a howl. He sprays arcs of liquid at the ice, scratching it little by little. "Cocky little punk," he insults. "You think a little ice would be enough to make me surrender?! Me, of all people!" No. But it should be enough to detain you. The robber continues to monologue. "We thoroughly investigated the patrol patterns for this area, all for today's big operation! All so we could strike during the holiday season at the end of the year. We spent an entire month preparing! We waited for that one moment where we'd have the most sitting ducks, and the heroes weren't around. And that's right here, right now!"

We don't care. Bakugou scoffs at him, and I mutter that it sucks to be him.

That is when the mugger's gets caught up in his own arrogance and reveals something interesting: his quirk involves carbonated water. An idea starts to form in my head.

The gang breaks through the ice wall and charges for us. Bakugou, being the fearless, headstrong guy he is, runs toward them and blasts a series of explosions at their faces. All of them are knocked out instantly. His ego starts to flare. He jeers as he lands, "Oh? What's wrong? Your buddies passed out! I was only trying to stop them, so I was even holding myself back, too! Where's that resolve of yours now, eh?" Bakugou sprints at the last-standing villain - the leader - flames propelling forth like a rocket. "I hope you've still got some, BECAUSE YOU'RE IN A WORLD OF HURT!"

His snarky, sadistic smirk is unforgettable.

The leader accepts the challenge and directs the projectile gauntlets strapped to his forearms at Bakugou. Ribbons of carbonated water shoot out of the projectiles, rendering Bakugou unable to generate more fire. I rush in to help when I notice a pole about to crush an innocent woman and Sensei running to push her out of the way.

Instinct courses through my body. Before the pole can land, I dive and bring the woman out of its path.

While I'm relieved that she isn't hurt, Bakugou doesn't feel the same.

"IF YOU WANT TO DIE, DO IT SOMEWHERE ELSE!"

I don't get a chance to reprimand him, because the remaining mugger directs those streams of water at me. I have to do something before those hit me. Guess I've got no choice but to get a little rough with him.

As I lift the cuffs of my left sleeve, a firework of blinding orange flames erupts. Swelling Icy Heat Wave. A move I only dared to use once until now. The thief staggers on his feet, woozy from the impact. When his water streams fall to puddles, I affirm what I speculated. "Carbonated water goes flat when it heats up, right?"

Battle over. Final villain knocked out.

Bakugou drags two limp bodies of civilians and curses at me, "You son of a- That's the move you used on Deku during the Sports Festival!"

"Yeah, although I held back compared to then. Are you injured?" I ask as I cool down my arm.

"Hell no, I'm not injured! You making fun of me?"

Just then All Might-sensei arrives with a Pro-Hero in tow. They are pleased with how we dually managed to defeat the villains and recover the purses and wallets despite our lack of experience. The praises are fine, the uncalled hug is not. When he lets us go, we hear a cracking sound. The leader's gauntlets shatter int pieces. The Pro-Hero mentions that is the result of using inferior black market goods.

Huh.

But I do not get the chance to analyze beyond that.

All of a sudden, Sensei pats both our heads. "You two were amazing."

Shyness overcomes me.

How much I wished that Dad would have been the one to say those words to me.

And how exhilarating it is to hear those words from the man I admired.

I can be a good hero.

A soft thank-you escapes my lips.

Note: I have copied some dialogue from one of the English-translated versions of the manga. The link to the chapter is here: .online/manga/boku-no-hero-academia-chapter-219/