Before the heroes even finished counting the bodies in the Gunga hills, Adam went back for Kurogiri.
He found him exactly where he had left him: in the ruined underground room, drifting like fading smoke under dim lights. The heavy hit to his throat had broken whatever kept the Nomu together, leaving him trapped between waking and completely disappearing. Up close, Adam used Decryption to see the soul trapped underneath the monstrous shell.
[ There is a person in here, Host. Or there was. This Nomu was a man once, before the doctor turned him into a doorway. Most of his mind is gone now. What is left is just the power and the habit of following orders. ]
Adam knelt by the thinning mist, feeling no joy. The creature was just a tragedy built by a man who made monsters for a living. Adam had thrown away his copy of this teleportation power weeks ago because he wanted something else. Now, the real opportunity was waiting right in front of him.
He reached into the cold fog, found the core of the power, and pulled. He lifted Warp Gate completely out of the hollow shell and seated it safely inside his own body. As the power left, the remaining fog grew even thinner, losing its shape.
[ Seated, Host. You have your teleportation back, and it is a much better version. ]
And what about him?
[ Whatever is left will dissolve, or the heroes will find it. There isn't enough of a person left to save, and there isn't enough of a monster left to fear. ]
Adam stood up and watched the mist fade for another moment. Then he left the remains for the authorities and went after the final name on his list.
Doctor Garaki tried to run. Men like him always keep a car running and a fake identity ready, but the hidden network that had protected him for sixty years was the same one Adam had spent weeks destroying. There was nowhere left for him to hide.
It took Sage less than a day to locate him. He was posing as an innocent old doctor boarding a private boat under a fake name. When the doctor walked into his cabin and flipped on the light, Adam was already sitting there waiting for him.
Adam didn't bother making a speech. The man who had engineered the Nomu, turned a dead boy into a weapon, and kept a tyrant alive on machines for half a century froze completely.
"The boss is dead," Adam told him plainly. "Your boy is in a cell, and your monsters are gone. You're the last machine left running, and I'm here to turn it off."
The doctor's face went pale. "You don't understand what we were trying to build. What he was. What that boy could have become—"
"I know it stops now," Adam said, cutting him off.
He left the doctor tied up and drugged in the cabin for the heroes to find, along with a file of evidence detailing every crime the man had ever committed. As Adam walked off the boat into the morning light, he knew the Nomu would never be built again. The data was gone, and he intended to keep it that way.
The board was finally clear.
Three evenings later, Adam went to see All Might in a small UA office.
Toshinori Yagi was in his frail, human form. He looked exhausted, his thin frame swallowed by his oversized clothes. He had already heard the real story from Nezu. He knew exactly what Adam had done and how the old tyrant had met his end. With hands that used to hold up the world—and now shook slightly—he poured Adam a cup of tea.
"I wanted to thank you myself," All Might said softly. "For taking that impossible weight off our shoulders. And for letting an old man keep his last few hours instead of dying in some parking lot somewhere." He offered a genuine, tired smile. "I always figured that was how I would go. It was almost peaceful having it decided."
"You would have won," Adam countered. "But it would have cost your life. I just made the victory cheaper."
"You made it something I could survive," Toshinori corrected. "There is a massive difference." He set the teapot down. "Nezu mentioned you had an offer for me. What is it?"
Adam looked at the old man's damaged body and hard breathing. He thought about using Rewind, which was waiting quietly in his hat.
"I can heal you," Adam said. "Your lungs, your old wounds, everything. I can take your body back to before the damage ever happened. I can even give you your full power back and make you the strongest man alive again. If you want it."
Toshinori stayed quiet for a long moment. An old sadness and hunger flashed behind his eyes. Then he shook his head slowly with a tired, certain smile.
"No," All Might said. "Thank you, but no."
"Are you sure?"
"That power belongs to Midoriya shonen. He will be better with it than I ever was. The time for a single symbol is over. A world that relies on one person to save it is bound to be destroyed. The best thing I can do is let people learn to protect each other. I don't want to be the strongest anymore. My time has passed."
Adam respected his choice.
"Then I'll only take away the pain," Adam said. "Just the damage, so you can grow old."
Toshinori's eyes watered, and he didn't try to hide it. "That, I will accept," he said.
Sage controlled Rewind perfectly, fixing only the ruined lungs and old scars without touching the power. When it finished, Toshinori sat up straight and took a deep, painless breath. He put his face in his hands.
"I forgot what it felt like to just breathe," he whispered.
"Grow old, sensei," Adam said, and left the room.
The next morning, Adam told Nezu his plan over tea.
"There's a power I need from across the ocean," Adam said. "It's the strongest one out there, held by a good person. I can copy it without stealing it, but she has to let me try, and she doesn't know me."
Nezu smiled slightly over his cup. "And you want me to help you convince her?"
"I need All Might's help," Adam said.
The door opened, and Toshinori walked in looking much healthier.
"I'll do it," All Might said. "Cathleen Bate trusts me completely. If I tell her you need help to save the future, she'll come. I want to use my name for something good before I retire. Let me make the call."
"Thank you," Adam said.
"No, thank you," Toshinori replied. "You gave me the strength to do this."
Afterward, Adam went to see Eri.
She was staying in a bright room under Aizawa's care. She wasn't completely better yet, but she was in a safe place. She was sitting on the floor with her toys. Adam sat across from her, staying at her eye level without reaching out.
"I have a way to fix this, and a question for you," he said. "I can take your power away for good so it can never hurt anyone again, or I can leave it alone. It's your choice, and there's no wrong answer. Do you want to keep it, or do you want me to take it?"
Eri looked at him, trying to guess what he wanted her to say. When she realized he was being honest, she answered softly, "Take it away. I don't want it."
"Okay," Adam said.
He gently removed Rewind from her and placed it into himself. It didn't hurt. For the first time, Eri didn't have to carry that dangerous weight.
[ Seated and permanent, Host. You hold the original now; the recording can be released. ]
"It's mine now, and I'll only use it for good," Adam told her. "But I don't want you to be completely unprotected. So I brought you a different power. This one only heals you when you get hurt. It can't hurt anyone else, and no one can use it as a weapon. It's just for you, and it's safe."
Eri looked closely at him. "Will it make a horn grow?" she asked quietly.
"No horn," Adam said. "The old power is gone, so your horn will fade. You'll just heal fast, like a lot of other people do."
Eri nodded and let him give her the new gift. She watched a small scratch on her finger disappear. She looked relieved, realizing a change could happen without costing her anything.
"Thank you," she said.
"Take care of Aizawa," Adam said, standing up. "He's tired but won't admit it. Keep an eye on him."
She smiled slightly. Adam left before things got awkward.
Sage, will I get a horn too?
[ Powers look different on everyone, Host. For you, it just turned your eyes silver. ]
Adam looked in the mirror and saw bright silver eyes.
That's fine, it adds character.
Cathleen Bate arrived four days later.
She walked into Nezu's office with massive energy, instantly shaking All Might's hand with pure excitement. Then she turned her attention to Adam.
"All Might says you're from the future, and that you need my power to save it," she said.
"I need a copy of it," Adam clarified. "I'm not going to steal it from you. You'll keep exactly what you have, but I need your permission. This power has killed people who tried to take it by force, and I'm not risking that, nor will I lie to you."
Cathleen looked at him closely. "Tell me the truth. Are you a good man?"
The answer is no, but I'm not purely evil either.
"I'm a careful man," Adam said. "I try to be good. I've never taken anything from someone who didn't deserve to lose it, and I won't start with you."
She laughed out loud. "That's a better answer than yes." She stood tall, activating her power. "All Might trusts you, so I trust you. Do your thing, future man. New Order: Adam Varen is allowed to take my quirk."
Adam touched her shoulder and copied New Order cleanly. The moment it took hold, Sage used Rewind to reset her quirk status by half a second.
Cathleen blinked, and her quirk was still completely there. She looked at her hands, amazed. Adam now had a perfect duplicate, leaving her original untouched. All Might grinned.
"It's still here," she said. "I felt it leave, but I still have it."
"Now there are two copies, separated by time," Adam said. "No one lost anything. That's the only kind of taking I care about now."
"Wow," Cathleen said, laughing. "The future is weird." Everyone in the room smiled, happy with how it turned out.
[ Confirmed, Host. The copy is secure and stable. You can now copy any power from any world without hurting the owner. The plan works perfectly. ]
Then we never have to steal the old way again, Adam thought.
[ One more thing, Host. Rewind changed your eyes, AFO made your hair darker, and New Order made your voice deeper and more masculine. Quirks change your traits permanently. ]
That's fine, as long as it's not a major change.
They threw him a small goodbye party on his last night.
It was held in a UA staff room with great food, loud music, and everyone relaxing. Aizawa and Eri stayed near the wall, and Eri looked comfortable despite the noise. All Might was genuinely laughing, enjoying life again.
Cathleen spent the night trying to get Adam to tell her secrets about the future. He just gave her fun, vague answers, which she enjoyed.
No one in the room knew his real story, or about the other worlds. They just knew him as a mysterious hero who came from nowhere, saved their country, and was now leaving. That was enough for them.
Adam watched them all, holding his drink. He had arrived as a stranger with a mission, but he was leaving after helping these kids and giving a little girl her life back. No one would remember him as more than a guy who did his job and left, which was exactly how it should be. Still, it felt bittersweet.
I'm going to miss this place, he thought.
He stayed until people started leaving. He told All Might to enjoy growing old, and the old man gave him a firm, strong handshake. He thanked Nezu, who was already planning for the future. He didn't say goodbye to Eri directly because he didn't want to upset her, but he made sure her new toy was right next to her.
Then he went up to the roof where everything started.
Alright, Sage. We're done. Let's go home.
[ Extraction initiated, Host. Everything we gathered is coming with us. The system, the powers, the gate. You're leaving with far more than you had when you arrived. ]
I know, Adam thought, looking down at the safe, quiet city lights one last time.
The system notification popped up first.
▓ MISSION ASSESSMENT — L4-2113 ▓
Deployment closed at Host's discretion.
Day 53 of 180.
Primary objectives:
D — Survive 30 days. ✓
C — Establish a standing identity in the hero system. ✓
B — Destroy the bio-weapon built to kill the Symbol of Peace. ✓
A — Dismantle the League of Villains. ✓
S — Eliminate All For One. ✓
Hidden objectives banked:
The Symbol preserved. The child recovered. The maker unmade.
▓ RATING: S ▓
Base completion + full objective ladder + three hidden objectives.
NP awarded: +49,000.
Balance: 30,000 → 79,000 personal.
Quiet Coat: fourth stamp earned (L4-2113).
▓ NOTE ▓
Your actions have consequences.
[ Host, it seems we overlooked something. That last note sounded ominous. ]
Adam just stood there concerned.
Let's go home, he thought. Nothing we can do about it now.
The roof and the city lights faded away, and the Bazaar took him back.
Quirks Acquired — L4-2113 - MHA
All For One — taken from All For One himself, then rewound to a clean, docile state. The quirk that permanently steals and seats every quirk below. (only recorded one with a timer)
Overhaul — Kai Chisaki. Disassembles and reassembles matter at a touch.
Rewind — Eri. Reverses the state of living things.
Warp Gate — Kurogiri. Long-range teleportation.
Double — Twice. Creates full, independent duplicates.
Decay (awakened) — Tomura Shigaraki. Wide-area disintegration.
Blue Fire — Dabi. High-output blue flame.
Compression — Mr. Compress. Compresses anything into a marble.
High Specs — Nezu. Superhuman intelligence, perception, reactions and comprehension ability. (off screen)
Super Regeneration — Nomu. Rapid cellular healing.
Shock Absorption — Nomu. Negates kinetic force.
Enhanced Endurance — Nomu. Rapidly regenerates stamina.
New Order — Star and Stripe (Cathleen Bate). Imposes conceptual rules on a target.
Face Change — Random villain. Alters face structure.
Turbo — Random villain. Doubles one's speed, cognition and reflexes but uses more stamina.
Air Step — Random villain. Creates air platforms.
Technopathy — American #7 Hero, Livewire. Can communicate with technology.
AN: If we get to 500 power stones, I will release an extra chapter on 700, another one. If you wish to support the story and read ahead, visit [email protected]/skeri123