“So many people talked to me on my way here!”

“Yeah, me too!”

“U.A. really is amazing, huh?” Izuku joined in the chatter as his classmates chirped excitedly about how they had pretty much turned into celebrities overnight. After all, everyone was thrust right into the spotlight after the sports festival, especially since it was also broadcasted on live television.

“Hey Felix, welcome back.” Izuku smiled at his friend, who had managed to step into the classroom just as the first bell rang. “How was your commute here? Did everyone recognise you as well?”

“Hmm? Oh yeah, they sure did,” Felix mumbled, clearly disinterested in the topic.

“You’re late, Pagonis.” Tenya marched up to the boy’s seat with a stern look on his face. “U.A. students should always arrive ten minutes early!”

Felix shrugged indifferently, putting his head on his desk.

“Iida, uhm…” Izuku hesitated to call out to his friend. He really wanted to show him some support, but he wasn’t sure if this was the right time to put a bandaid on Tenya’s very open wound.

“If it’s about my brother, there is no cause for concern.” Tenya smiled warmly at him, as though he had read his mind. “Everything is alright. I apologise for worrying you needlessly.”

I guess he’s still in denial, huh?

Izuku pursed his lips, restraining himself from probing further. It was obvious that Tenya was still in a lot of pain. After all, who would be fine after hearing that his brother was going to be paralysed for life?

He had heard over the news about the incident involving Ingenium in Hosu City, Tokyo. The escaped culprit had already killed seventeen heroes in the past and maimed twenty-three more beyond recovery. The elusive hero killer, whose villain name was Stain, was that same criminal who had shattered Ingenium’s spine permanently.

Izuku glanced at the class rep busying himself with maintaining order in the class.

I really do hope you’re okay, Iida.

“Morning, class.” Mister Aizawa strode into the classroom, and everyone fell silent immediately. Usually, that would be because of how strict he is. But this time, it was because of his physical appearance.

“Ribbit. Mister Aizawa, your bandages are gone.” Tsu was the first to speak up. “I’m glad you made a full recovery.”

“The old lady went overboard with her treatment.” Aizawa sounded as though he was repressing a loud sigh. “More importantly, we’re having a special hero informatics class today.”

Apprehension swept through the class.

“Code names. You’ll be coming up with hero names.”

The class cheered in excitement, and the teacher calmed them down with a menacing glare.

“This is related to the pro hero draft picks I mentioned the other day. The drafts begin in earnest in the second and third years, after students have gained experience and can become immediate assets to the pros.”

Aizawa flashed a bar graph on the class board. “In other words, for them to extend offers to first years like you shows that they are interested in your future potential. However, these offers are often cancelled if that interest dies down by graduation.”

“Huh?” Izuku scratched his head at the graph. “Felix, how come you didn’t get any? You came in second in the sports festival!”

“He’s an exchange student, so he doesn’t qualify for internships in Japan,” Aizawa answered the question for him. “Perhaps Carpe Omnia High has different plans for you, Pagonis. After all, they have not contacted me regarding this issue.”

Izuku creased his eyebrows. There was a certain unusual sharpness to Mister Aizawa’s tone, almost as if he was interrogating a criminal.

“Hmm?” Felix mumbled, fidgeting slightly. “Oh, uhm… yeah. I’ll just be going home for that week, I suppose…”

“As for the rest of you, you will all be participating in internships with pros, regardless of whether or not anyone asked for you,” Aizawa continued. “At USJ, you already got to experience combat with real villains, but it will still be meaningful training for you to see pros at work firsthand.”

“Those hero names are still temporary,” the teacher droned on, but he picked up his sleeping bag from the floor again for some reason. “But if you’re not serious about it…”

“You’ll have hell to pay later!”

The class perked up at the familiar sultry voice.

“Because a lot of hero names used by students become recognized by society, they end up becoming professional hero names!”

Midnight sauntered into the classroom, and Izuku’s eyebrows merged with his hairline.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

“Miss Midnight!” Mineta wailed from behind him as though the gods had answered all his prayers at once.

So that’s how it is…

“Midnight will be making sure your names are okay,” Aizawa concluded, retreating into his sleeping bag once more. “I’m not good at stuff like that.”

Izuku nodded slightly in agreement. Being an ‘angler type hero’, Mister Aizawa had chosen not to deal with the press too often. Hence, ‘Eraserhead’ was an apt enough codename to describe his quirk erasure powers.

On the other hand, Midnight is famously known to the public as the ‘R-Rated hero’ due to her provocative outfit and Somnambulist quirk. She is also fine with handling interviews, and thus the enigmatic yet catchy codename, ‘Midnight’, could get the public to recognise her more easily.

“When you give yourself a name, you get a more concrete image of what you want to be like in the future.” Midnight waited patiently as the class distributed the placards. “As they say, names and natures do often agree. So come up here and tell me what you see in your future!”

The class took a moment to scribble down their codenames, before the first student went up.

“Shining Hero: I cannot stop twinkling!” Yuga Aoyama proclaimed proudly. “Which means, you cannot stop my sparkles!”

A name fitting for his navel laser quirk, but… that’s a whole sentence.

Aoyama’s name was promptly changed to ‘Can’t Stop Twinkling’ by Midnight, and Mina Ashido went up next.

More names came and went. Some classmates got theirs on the first try, and others were sent back to their desks to come up with a better one. Todoroki and Tenya had chosen to use their first name, which made Izuku wonder if he should simply do the same, especially since he could not use anything too similar to All Might to avoid suspicion.

“Pagonis, are you still with us?” Midnight called out. “Come on up, it’s your turn.”

The exchange student walked up to the front and presented his placard to the class without a single word.

H-how do you pronounce that…?

“P-phy…lax? Phylax?” Kaminari blurted out. “Hang on, isn’t that just an alternate spelling of your first name?”

“Oh, oh! I get it!” Momo put up her hand like an excited middle school kid. “Phylax means ‘Guardian’ in Greek, doesn’t it? Are you intending for your name to mean ‘Protector’?”

A wave of murmuring spread through the class. Some were in awe at Momo’s extensive world knowledge, while the others seemed to have been struck by a bout of inspiration.

“Yes. It’s a huge part of an ancient incanta- Sorry, I mean ancient language.” Felix nodded. “The world is filled with so much injustice and grievances. I wish to be a Guardian of the world. To watch over all that is right or wrong, regardless of hero or villain.”

That got heavy quickly…

“What an admirable goal!” Midnight squeaked energetically. “But that name may be a little hard to pronounce. May I suggest for you to use something more recognizable?”

Felix shrugged and changed the placard on the spot.

Sentinel.

“That’s much better, my dear.” Midnight smiled warmly, before gesturing for him to return to his seat.

“You really do have a heavy chip on your shoulders, huh?” Izuku watched his friend return to his seat. It might have just been him, but Felix had seemed moodier ever since the sports festival. He wondered if it had something to do with how he lost his final match.

He turned his attention back to the simple hero name on his placard as a warm feeling stirred in his chest. He had been blessed to have met so many good friends in U.A. High, even though he felt like such a useless doll to them. There was so much he wanted to do for them, to repay them for their unmerited kindness.

“Midoriya, are you ready?”

Izuku walked up to the front of the classroom, clutching his placard firmly. In the past, this name was an insult; a mockery of how he resembled a helpless puppet.

But a close friend changed the meaning of it, and it made him really happy. It was she who told him that it doesn’t have to mean ‘useless’. It was she who told him that it can also mean ‘You can do it!’.

“I’ve decided. This is my hero name!” His eyes flitted to Ochaco for a moment, before displaying the placard to the class. There was a single name on the piece of white board.

Deku.

~ ~ ~

The rest of the day passed by like a stray breeze on a cold morning. Tenya opened up his locker to pack up for the day with a dazed expression on his face. There was a certain numbness that came with grief, an anaesthesia of some sort. Except this drug focused his mind instead of clouding it up and lulling him to sleep.

Tenya closed the small door quietly, despite the fact that there were not many students around. After all, everyone was still busy contemplating their internship offers. He, however, had already dropped off his slip in the teacher’s office. Mister Aizawa was understandably surprised at his decision, but he chose not to waste time elaborating further. The boy had but one place he needed to go now.

Hosu City.

“Tenya.”

He turned around with surprise, before realisation dawned on him. Of course he would leave early as well, given that he did not have any internship offers.

“Hey Pagonis,” Tenya said, keeping up a warm front. “Going home early too?”

Felix ignored his question, standing uncomfortably close to him with a strange dark expression in his face. A chill ran down Tenya’s spine.

“You chose your internship in Hosu City. You’re going to avenge your brother, aren’t you?”

Tenya’s expression darkened as well. “What’s that to you, Pagonis?”

“Nothing. So I won’t stop you, nor will I tell anyone else.” Felix’s voice dropped to a barely audible whisper. “Seeking revenge for a loved one is something I understand very well, so I’m just here to give you some advice.”

Tenya’s jaw tightened silently.

“Your quarry operates in dark alleys, no matter the time of the day,” Felix said. “Beware The Hero Killer’s knife. A single drop of blood is enough to spell your doom.”

“Why are you telling me this?”

“Don’t let your emotions cloud your better judgement, my friend. It would be a tragedy to lose you as well.” Felix turned around, preparing to take his leave. “The hero killer is not yet done in Hosu City, but make haste if you still want to pursue him. He’s not one to take his time with his job.”

The foreign student left as abruptly as he came, leaving Tenya to contemplate his next move.