Chapter 340 340: The Radiant of Hope - A Journey into the Past!
Luke looked at the Vestiges, stunned.
Truth? The truth of Singularity and Conformity?
Yoichi nodded at the others, and all of them nodded back before blurring out of existence.
The remaining Vestige walked forward, as Nyx flew to Luke and landed on his shoulder.
"I can sense that you cannot last in this realm more than a few minutes," Yoichi said. "But… It's enough to cover what matters the most."
"What are you talking about?" Luke asked.
Yoichi smiled. "It's better to… experience it than hear it from me," he said, stepping around Luke and putting his left hand on the boy's unoccupied right shoulder. "Let's go on a journey — into the past."
Luke's brows rose.
Before he could say anything, though, the surroundings melted.
Colors blurred, replaced by a darkness that prevailed for some time.
Then, out of nowhere, Luke heard a voice. It was the sound of people talking… in fear, apprehension, and uncontrolled rage.
Soon, the darkness receded, revealing the scene.
It was a group of armed men standing around a fire.
"I heard a few of those Metas are hiding in the industrial zone," one man said. "They could be the ones who showed up at the protest and used their powers to sow discord."
"Let's get them before they come after us again," another said sharply.
Suddenly, from the darkness, the sound of bare feet dragging on the concrete floor reached the men, making them all look in that direction.
"Who's there?!" the leader of the group of men snapped.
It was a small boy with an unusually large, black cloak on him. His hair was white and short, and his white eyes looked hollow, just like his expressionless face.
"It's one of those Meta orphans…" someone pointed out in disgust.
"Away with you, freak!" another cursed.
All the men shook their heads and began leaving, trying not to accidentally touch the boy in fear of contracting the Meta disease.
The boy kept looking at them with hollow eyes.
Then, just as the last man looked away, following the others, the boy's entire body mutated.
In the blink of an eye, dozens of dark, bony spikes sprouted from his body and shot toward the men like spears with the speed of bullets.
"What's that sound…?"
Those were the last words that the entire group heard before the bone spikes pierced through their heads, killing all of them.
The scene paused.
Yoichi stepped into the scene, Luke silently following him.
Both came to a rest near the boy, his eyes still looking hollow, but… with a small, sadistic smile hanging on his lips.
"It's the power he stole from our mother," Yoichi said, caressing the bone spikes protruding from the boy.
Luke had guessed it already. But those words finally confirmed his guess, revealing to him who this boy was. "All For One," he said, narrowing his eyes.
"Zen Shigaraki," Yoichi corrected. "A self-given name, but so was All For One… so, that's that, I guess. It's a misconception that people aren't born with emotions and personalities. I used to think the same — for years. But, over time, Zen made me realize that I had been wrong.
"He was arrogant, my brother. From the start. And greedy. I don't dwell on psychological issues because it's impossible to tell what led to Zen's… unique state of mind. However, he truly believed that everything in the world belonged to him."
Suddenly, the boy's pupils shifted.
Luke's heart jumped into his mouth.
Not only because this scene was supposed to be in a paused state, but also because of the distinct… red glint in the boy's previous, hollow white eyes.
Yoichi's hand landed on Luke's shoulder, and the scene melted again.
"What… was that?" Luke asked, his heart booming in his chest.
Yoichi frowned. "It's strengthening," he muttered to himself. "The happenings of the present are making it strong enough to reach into the past as well…"
Luke shrugged away the Vestige's hand. "What's…"
A scream attracted his attention.
They had come into an empty alley, with streams of blood draining into pools of water.
Luke saw the same boy, but a year or so older, killing a woman. Then, the boy approached another man and put his hand on the man's face. Luke wanted to use Spirit Vision, but his body outside was already using it, draining his Spirit Points. He didn't even know if Spirit Vision would work here. Still, there was no point in putting it to the test and risking an instant return to his body.
However, even without Spirit Vision, Luke saw something leaving the man.
Streams of a reddish hue were coming out of the man and entering the boy's body.
"Is he…" Luke asked, realizing what was happening.
Yoichi nodded. "He's stealing his Quirk."
When the deed was done, an empty can came hurling across the space and hit All For One.
"Stop it!" another boy with white hair, but with an extremely feeble physique, cried a few feet behind All For One. "Don't kill him!"
A mass of bony spikes punctured through the man's head anyway.
All For One walked back to a young Yoichi with bloody hands and… kicked him, making the boy gasp.
Then, grabbing the young Yoichi's wrist, All For One dragged him away. Like a toy.
The scene paused again.
"Stop." Luke faced the Vestige, his eyes gaining a hard look. "Tell me where we are and what's going on."
Because, for once, Luke was damn sure that these weren't mere memories.
Yoichi held his hands up and stared at them before his gaze lifted, scanning the world.
"This is… my ability — as the Radiant of Hope," the Vestige said. "It's an extension of my original Quirk."
"Your original Quirk?" Luke asked, surprised.
This was not something that he had read about in his previous life.
Yoichi nodded. "To learn the truth about Conformity and Singularity," he said, the scene around them melting again, "you must learn how I became a Radiant, first. You must…
"… learn how One For All came to be."
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