When he had Toga Himiko in his grip earlier, Arthur Pendragon already knew that a bunch of cops, led by Naomasa Tsukauchi, were on their way.
Killing Toga wouldn't do him any good.
Letting her go with a good hit? That'd probably be more fun in the long run.
Also, he just didn't like cops.
Last time, if they hadn't shown up, that ten million yen should've been his.
Also, he didn't have a hero license, even if he did catch Toga, the Quirk management laws would make sure his name and identity got buried. Arthur had zero interest in doing the police's dirty work for free.
"Officer Tsukauchi?"
Yaoyorozu looked at him, surprised.
"Miss Yaoyorozu, sorry we're late." Naomasa Tsukauchi crouched down next to her. "Looks like you're hurt. We'll take you back in the patrol car."
Yaoyorozu just then remembered, when Toga grabbed her earlier, she immediately hit the emergency alarm on her phone, while the girl wasn't paying attention.
She'd totally forgotten after Arthur showed up.
Tsukauchi looked around. "By the way, where's the villain?"
When his eyes landed on Arthur, his brow furrowed instinctively.
"Arthur already scared her off. Thanks for coming, though."
Momo Yaoyorozu tried to stand up straight, but her body was still pretty sore.
Arthur turned to leave, but Tsukauchi suddenly spoke up. "Arthur Pendragon, as a witness, you'll need to come with us to the station and give a full statement."
"What if I say no?"
Arthur glanced back coldly, clearly annoyed.
Tsukauchi's frown deepened.
Just as things were about to get messy, Yaoyorozu stepped in, trying to smooth things over. "I already called my family's driver to pick me up, Inspector. I can give my statement at the station. Arthur's probably exhausted after fighting that villain."
Tsukauchi paused for a second. "Ah, don't worry about it, Miss Yaoyorozu. You should go home and rest. We'll follow up tomorrow."
He waved to his officers and they quickly took off.
But before leaving, he shot Arthur a couple more looks.
Something about Arthur's figure felt way too familiar, especially under the dim lighting.
"Arthur, do you want to come with me? My dad wanted to thank you last time, and now you saved me again."
Momo Yaoyorozu extended the invitation.
Arthur rubbed his chin and finally nodded.
The Yaoyorozu family worked fast.
Not even five minutes after she hung up, a Bentley pulled up to the curb.
"Young miss, are you alright?"
An old butler in uniform stepped out of the driver's seat, visibly alarmed at Momo's injured state.
"I'm fine. Let's head back."
Momo gave a small smile.
The butler quickly moved to open the door, sneaking a few surprised looks at Arthur as he got in.
Inside the Bentley, Arthur didn't hesitate to help himself to the premium red wine from the minibar.
Momo spoke up first. "That girl bumped into an injured person in an alley. I didn't suspect anything and went in to help, but she caught me off guard. If you hadn't shown up, Arthur…"
Gulp.
Arthur downed the wine, set the glass aside, and said bluntly, "Her Quirk isn't combat-focused. It's worse at fighting than yours. You messing up is on you."
This time, Momo didn't get defensive. She just lowered her head, looking down.
Arthur didn't bother offering comfort. He just kept trying different bottles from the minibar.
The Bentley slowly pulled into the Yaoyorozu family estate.
Calling it a villa felt like an understatement, it was more like a resort.
Arthur looked out the window and let out a chuckle. "How long would you have to work as a hero to afford a place like this?"
He didn't notice the look on Momo's face under her bangs. She seemed to have made up her mind about something.
Inside the massive villa.
The second Arthur and Momo stepped inside, a woman who looked a lot like Momo ran up, tears in her eyes, cupping Momo's face and asking a million questions.
A middle-aged man in a suit followed close behind, telling the butler to call for a doctor right away.
These were definitely Momo's parents.
"Thank you, young man. I just heard that the attacker was likely the one behind those serial homicides recently. If it weren't for you, I don't know what would've happened to Momo…"
Her dad wiped his eyes with his sleeve and quickly added, "Seriously, tell us what you need. Anything."
"Yes, please don't hold back. Whatever it is."
Her mom chimed in, still hugging Momo.
"Oh, is that right?"
Arthur thought for a second. "The place I'm staying at now is pretty rundown. I could use a better one."
Arthur was all about living comfortably. His current place wasn't a dump, but it definitely didn't cut it for him.
"um… that's… that's it?"
Her dad blinked, and her mom looked just as surprised.
"That's it?"
Arthur realized he probably aimed too low. He was about to unapologetically up his ask. "Then just give me this-"
"If you don't mind, Arthur, why not stay here with us? We've got plenty of guest rooms."
Momo cut him off before he could say "give me this villa."
"Hmm?"
This time, Arthur was the one frowning.
The user of the Stand The World, asking for a rich family's property, then getting adopted into it…
Why did this plot feel so familiar?
Arthur suddenly felt the urge to pull Momo's collar down from behind and check for a star-shaped birthmark.
The first rays of morning sunlight slipped through the expensive curtains, lighting up a room that was even more over-the-top than a five-star hotel suite.
Arthur woke up immediately.
He wasn't the type to laze around in bed. He figured there wasn't really any fun in that anyway.
There were way more interesting things to do in the world.
Looking around the ridiculously fancy European-style room, Arthur still felt a little out of place.
Last night, after Momo insisted, he'd moved into the Yaoyorozu estate as a VIP guest.
So what now, was he supposed to pull a Dio and try to take over the Yaoyorozu family fortune?
Knock knock.
Right after Arthur got up, someone knocked at the door.
"Mr. Pendragon, the master, madam, and young lady are already awake. Would you like to join them in the dining room, or should I bring breakfast to your room?"
A maid's voice came from the other side.
"I'll come down."
Arthur opened the wardrobe.
Last night, Momo's dad had already sent servants to fill it with designer clothes that actually fit him.
Rich people really don't mess around.
In the dining room, Arthur sat to Momo's left, dressed in a clean black coat.
"Arthur, come on, see if any of this works for you."
Momo's dad gestured for him to dig in.
The table had Japanese, Western, and Chinese breakfast options all laid out in fancy dishes.
Arthur took a bite of bread and nodded. "It's good."
"Glad to hear it," her dad said with a smile. "I heard you'll be starting at U.A. with my daughter in half a year. Work hard."
Just as he finished speaking, a maid walked up and handed him an envelope. "Sir, the young lady's acceptance letter from U.A. High School just arrived."
"It's here already?"
Momo, sitting next to Arthur, suddenly looked a little nervous.
She glanced at him and added, "Arthur's should be here too, right?"
Arthur narrowed his eyes slightly. "I put down my old address. I'll go grab it later."
"No need to bother with something so small. I'll have a servant go. Arthur, seriously, don't be shy. You can ask the staff or the chefs for whatever you need."
Her dad waved over a security guard and said, "Go to Arthur's place. If there's an acceptance letter, bring it back."
"Yes, sir."
The guard left right away.
Arthur paused for a moment, then couldn't help but laugh a little to himself.
He still wasn't used to how rich people operated.
But honestly… it was pretty nice.
Momo had already torn open her acceptance letter.
The moment she read it, her hand trembled and she almost dropped it into her coffee.
"Come on, let me see my Momo's scores."
Her mom walked over with a smile, and when she saw what was in the letter, she looked surprised. "First place!?"
Even though they knew their daughter was talented, her parents were still shocked she managed to land first place in U.A.'s entrance exam. The competition was no joke.
"I… I thought Arthur would definitely get first."
Momo looked at him like she couldn't believe it.
Arthur glanced at the letter:
Name: Momo Yaoyorozu
Written Exam: 30 / 30
Physical Test: 45 / 60
Interview: 9 / 10
Total: 84
Special Entrant Ranking: 1
Class: Hero Course Class A
Written exam, physical test, and interview were worth 30, 60, and 10 points out of 100.
With that, Arthur had a pretty good idea of how he did.
Sure enough, not long after, the guard came back with Arthur's letter. "Mr. Pendragon, this was in your mailbox."
The guy must have some kind of speed Quirk to get back that fast.
Under the watchful eyes of the three Yaoyorozus, Arthur opened his envelope.
He spent about five seconds reading it, then handed it to Momo, who was clearly curious, and went back to enjoying the chef's bread.
Momo and her mom looked at the paper:
Name: Arthur Pendragon
Written Exam: 5 / 30
Physical Test: 60 / 60
Interview: 6 / 10
Total: 71
Special Entrant Ranking: 4
Class: Hero Course Class A
Momo let out a small laugh when she saw the "5" on the written exam.
Her face went red immediately, and she waved her hands apologetically. "Sorry! Sorry! Arthur, I didn't mean to!"
Arthur couldn't care less about something like that.
But getting into U.A. meant more chances to fight strong enemies, right?
Looked like things were about to get way more interesting.
"Momo, he got a perfect score on the physical test."
Her dad pointed it out.
Momo suddenly remembered why she'd asked Arthur to stay in the first place. She stood up and bowed to him. "Arthur, please train me."
She didn't even want to mention how badly she'd been beaten by Arthur, Inasa, and Todoroki in the physical part of the special entrance exam.
And last night, Toga had hit her even harder.
Arthur had said Toga's Quirk was less suited for combat than her own, and she still got wrecked.
Momo realized that without actual fighting experience, she'd never be a real hero.
"You won't be able to keep up."
Facing Momo Yaoyorozu's request, Arthur responded without hesitation.
...
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