Chapter 56:

The two competitors, Momo and Tokoyami, approached the stage. The crowd was really hyped up for this match, mainly due to it having the person favored to win it participating.

It also didn't help that Present Mic was really promoting this matchup as "One for the ages". The light destined to win the event, Momo, versus the darkness shrouding the underdog, Tokoyami.

People who placed their bets were waiting for a safe return on their investment, and those that hoped that Tokoyami would pull through to win them big money due to the big odds were freaking out a little.

Tokoyami was literally shaking on his way to the stage.

Unlike the audience, he wasn't unaware of what Momo's quirk was. He knows, and has seen, just how powerful it is. Easily being better than whatever the current top heroes had in his eyes.

It was as if the 'abyss of creation' chose to favor his married opponent more than he, a fanatical worshiper of it. All Momo would need to do is create a powerful flashlight, and his quirk's weakness to light would be exposed to the public.

That would be devastating to him in the long run in terms of his future career as a hero. Wherever he decided to operate frequently, villains and criminals would most likely carry flashlights with them, crippling his effectiveness in the field.

That was something that he wasn't risking being known, it simply wasn't worth it. He already knew that without the possibility of Momo creating a light source, his chances of victory were already dismal anyway.

It didn't even look as if any mind games would work on his opponent. She looked as if she were on cloud nine, completely serene, not even worried about his presence.

If he was a prideful idiot, with a larger ego than his intelligence, *Cough * Bakugo *Cough*, he would have been upset at being taken so lightly as an opponent. Yet, he knew that her confidence was rightfully backed by her ability.

However, not even he was blind to see just how fast she ran towards the arena. She wanted to end this match quickly and get back to whatever else it was that she was doing beforehand, that much was clear to him.

So, to solve this future problem before it could start?

He was going to swallow his pride, and surrender before the match could start.

Sure, he also wanted to go further into the tournament, perhaps even win it entirely, but he knew when it was time to step back and pull out. His opponent was just too far out of his league currently, and they could abuse his weakness with ease.

Giving one last curse to the heavens for screwing him over with the randomized matchups, he finally stepped onto the stage.

The crowd were ready, his opponent was ready, Midnight and the commentators were ready, and he was ready… to give up.

"Are you both ready?" Midnight called out to the two.

"Yes~!" Came Momo's impatient and cheerful reply.

"Midnight-sensei..." Tokoyami called out in reply.

"Yes, Tokoyami? Is there a problem?"

"Yes, there is. I am not ready, and would like to surrender this match!" He declared with a deep bow.

As soon as he bowed, the audience began jeering.

"HUH?!"

"ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?!"

"WHY EVEN TURN UP IN THE FIRST PLACE?!"

"""BOO!"""

He ignored their words, they were nothing but bored sheep wanting to see some violence to escape their boring mundane lives. He also knew that if they were in his place, the majority of them would have left the second the matchups were announced.

So, he didn't get hung up on their harsh words.

"Are you sure about this, Tokoyami?" Midnight asked in a concerned tone one wouldn't normally associate with her.

"One hundred percent, Midnights-sensei."

She put her finger to her Bluetooth earpiece, hoping that her boss would be able to make a decision on this. This never happened before in the festival's history, as far as she knew anyway, so she needed to have her superior's opinion on this.

Thankfully, Tokoyami didn't need to wait long for her answer.

"It was very brave of you to do this, Tokoyami. Your request of surrendering has been accepted, you may return to the 1-A stands now."

He gave a bow once more, thanked Midnight, and retreated back to his seat. The jeering was still as loud as it was when it started, and it affected him, albeit a little.

He no longer wanted to be subjected to it any longer, and when he returned to his seats, none of his classmates could blame him.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

After Momo left the locker room, Sakuya decided to go somewhere more comfortable than the room that stunk of sex.

Sure, she could have removed the stench, but where's the fun in that?

She left it like that as a memoir, a wonderful way of marking her territory. Laziness was also a deciding factor in her decision, but that is something she would never admit to.

So, after deciding where to go, namely anywhere but the VIP box as her clone would offload the negotiations with the police to her at the sight of her. She made her way to the 1-A stands, where she could escape her responsibilities.

After climbing the deceptively long staircase, she made it to the class stand. Only, it wasn't the 1-A stands, it was the 1-B stands. A thought crossed her mind about how this could have happened,

'How did I manage to get lost on a straight staircase? Is one of my clones fucking with me?'

"It seems that even the leader of class 1-A knows that siding with the superior class, 1-B, was for the best."

Yes, as you've probably guessed, it was Monoma who said that. The silver-haired time user could only stare at the blonde monkey in pity, clearly, he must suffer from brain damage.

"What's with that look? Why are you looking at me like that?!"

Ignoring his cries for attention, which caught the attention of most of his classmates, Sakuya looked around for someone she knew.

Spotting Yui, who was looking rather down. Well, she looked the same as she always does, but empathy quirks can overcome the hurdle that is her stoic face. Walking past the still angry howler monkey, she approached Yui.

"Classic 1-A scum, it's filled with nothing but delusional people who ignore their betters."

Deciding she has had enough of his attitude, which would have hampered her attempts at helping Yui with whatever problem she was facing, she started using Weighted Words.

"[[Shut your mouth permanently, and don't speak again, until all of the awards are given out at the end of the festival, Monoma.]]"

Her cold tone and quirk immediately got to work, shutting the blonde up. The only way his obnoxious voice could be heard before the timeframe was up, would be if he could beg Eraserhead enough to undo it.

As amusing watching him try and beg while unable to speak would be, Sakuya decided that he wasn't worth her time anymore, opting to comfort her friend instead. Taking the seat next to Yui, she caught the attention of the stoic girl.

"Hm?"

"Do you want to talk about it?"

Seeing her stiffen up, clearly remembering her unfortunate matchup, Sakuya wrapped an arm around her. Yui noticeably relaxed because of the embrace, clearly comfortable with the action her silver-haired friend took to comfort her.

"... No."

"Are you 100% sure?"

"Mhm."

Sakuya let out a sigh, she was disappointed that her already closed-off friend was closing up a little more. She chalked it up to being surrounded by her classmates, whom Yui might not be as comfortable around.

"Well, if you want to talk about it later, you can always call me, or text me, about it."

Yui leaned into Sakuya some more, clearly thankful that she understood her reasoning for not opening up about it now.

"Thanks... Can I have head pats, please?"

"Ufufufu~ It's been years, and you still want my head pats? What would your fan club think about the 'silent princess' wanting nothing more than to be pampered by me?"

"They would be happy."

Noticing that she hadn't gotten her head pats yet, Yui grabbed Sakuya's hand and placed the palm of it on her head to jump-start the process.

"Ara~ How impatient~!"

"Hn."

Deciding to acquiesce to Yui's request of head pats, Sakuya put her level 100 doting skill to work. Yui was in a state of perpetual bliss, blissfully unaware of all the questioning stares she was getting from classmates.

The 'match' between Momo and Tokoyami didn't even begin before he surrendered. I could understand why he did it, especially after reading his mind. Nobody wants their weakness to be public information, especially broadcasted live to millions.

Naturally, the fucking morons in the crowd didn't understand this. Neither could they in the first place due to not knowing about his quirk's inner workings as much. They labeled him as a coward, before eventually shutting up and waiting for the next match.

When the match was called, with Momo winning, I left Yui to her classmates in favor of jumping the separating barrier between the two classes and sitting with her actual class this time around.

A very excited Momo soon joined her and was cuddled up on her lap happily.

(A/N: Alright, might make a Patreon soon, idk, your boi is broke. Also, might start another fic soon-ish. It will be a pokemon fic that I can no-brain work on whenever I am bored. Will it be a harem? Probably. Will it be slow? Probably. Will it be yuri? 100%!

I'm also thinking of doing a JJK fanfic with either Boundary manipulation/Makima powers/Mystic eyes of death perception. Idk what that will entail fully, so there aren't many details to share because I'm indecisive as fuck.

In other news, this book has reached 150k words, which is shocking to me.)