The temptation from 'that person'

Granny Gray's words made Uraraka Shige, who was already somewhat irritable, even more unhappy.

"Threatening me?"

Uraraka Shige a seemingly casual tone, but thoughts kept popping into her mind.

... I've just figured out a few new moves, why don't I use this to practice them?

Unfortunately, Granny Gray didn't give him that chance.

"No, it's about helping you. I can help you pass messages to your family... Also, your family owns a construction company, right? It seems your company isn't doing too well right now. I can also help you find out information about those who are ganging up on your company... I can help you, and I need your help too. It should be considered mutual assistance."

"Oh..."

Uraraka Shige silent on the matter, even laughing out loud. He asked sarcastically:

"Help me? Help each other? Win-win? Do you even believe such a lie?"

Granny Gray nodded without hesitation and admitted:

I believe you!

Uraraka Shige didn't hesitate for a moment, and immediately continued after Granny Gray finished speaking:

"So it really was a lie."

Granny Gray responded instantly as well.

"Because we are human."

Human words can deceive ghosts, and ghost words can deceive humans... This is the underlying meaning of the phrase "Granny Gray".

However, Uraraka Shige did not grasp this meaning; he had a different thought...

Because we are human... born as human beings...

He recalled his life in his previous life, and then he thought of this sentence. Although he had lived two lives, his combined age was less than fifty years old. However, he had lived a very difficult life in his previous life. Even though his family background was actually quite good in this life, he still knew how difficult it was to be a weak person. Therefore, even though he was only twelve or thirteen years old in this life, he knew how difficult it was to be born as a human being.

Then his heart suddenly calmed down, and he realized that Granny Gray was right; he did need this guy's help... and not just this guy's help.

"... Okay... Let's go."

So, Uraraka Shige finally decided not to waste any more time and breath on this guy over these useless things, and agreed.

The previously quick-witted Granny Gray was stunned by Uraraka Shige's sudden change of expression, before she realized what was happening and left the apartment with Uraraka Shige.

The important person Granny Gray mentioned was waiting for him in a small private room at a barbecue restaurant in the city... However, to be precise, there was actually no other living person in this small private room besides Granny Gray and Uraraka Shige.

The reason why this is still considered that important person is waiting for him is because there is a laptop on the table in this private room that is currently engaged in a video and voice call with a black virtual humanoid figure.

After Granny Gray brought Uraraka Shige to this private room, she ordered two portions of roast meat, placed them on the grill, and waited for them to sizzle.

Suddenly, a slightly weak voice, somewhat unusual in tone, came from the laptop, yet it still carried a calm and confident air.

"You're Uraraka Shige? That brat who ruined my plans..."

The owner of the voice said this, and then suddenly a rustling sound like pages being turned came from the other side.

"So that's how it is (doing all sorts of jobs), you're someone 'born with exceptional talent'? But despite having such an outstanding 'Quirk,' you've always fought using hand-to-hand combat... Is it because you haven't developed it properly?"

The owner of the voice questioned it, only to contradict himself a moment later.

"No... I see. Activating it consumes stamina... and using the 'Quirk' also affects oneself, thus causing the same burden and damage to both oneself and the enemy? And the way to compensate for this is the resistance to this 'Quirk' ability, which is brought about by the 'Quirk,' and this resistance will continue to increase over time..."

The sound of paper being scribbled again confirmed to Uraraka Shige that the 'important person' on the other end of the video call was probably flipping through her 'personal file' or something similar while talking to her.

"In other words..."

The voice rang out again, its tone seemingly containing a mixture of disappointment and relief.

"This is a 'Quirk' that definitely needs time to grow... It's quite good, but still not suitable for 'hanging'..."

The words spoken by the owner of the voice sent a chill down Uraraka Shige's spine.

These words were quite clear, completely exposing the identity of the person on the other end of the video, which made Uraraka Shige feel a sense of relief from the bottom of his heart.

If my Quirk weren't lacking in excellence, if my past life's experiences had prevented me from habitually hiding my true abilities, if...

Fortunately, there weren't many "what ifs," and in the end, 'AFO' didn't like Uraraka Shige's 'Quirk'... But unfortunately, it was only that she didn't like his 'Quirk'.

"During the previous siege of All Might, those 'heroes' who appeared, and that force called 'United,' all had your participation; you contributed to that..."

"If that extra 'hero' hadn't appeared, if the 'hero' who was supposed to come had arrived a little later as planned, if that force called 'United' hadn't entangled my men... that victory should have been mine..."

Although saying such lines, 'AFO' on the other end of the computer didn't sound annoyed at all; instead, he remained as calm as he had at the beginning.

After saying that, 'AFO' fell into a calm silence, giving Uraraka Shige that a storm was brewing, as if it was 'brewing something'.

Two full minutes passed before 'AFO' on the other end of the computer spoke again, confirming that Uraraka Shige's feeling was not unfounded, nor was it just an illusion.

"Come to me! You possess abundant talent. It would be such a waste to squander your youth on such trivial matters... So come to me! I need you, my disciple needs you! I can help you deal with those who are harassing your family, and I can personally mentor you. As long as you diligently assist my disciple, you can obtain everything you desire! I can even give you a chance to challenge me!"

On the other end of the video, 'AFO' spoke with the same composure, but as Uraraka Shige listened to his round after round of words, his mind was in complete turmoil.

Although 'AFO' doesn't actually say much, the allure is just too strong, even stronger than the allure of that green mushroom-headed guy with the 'Quirk' that can see the essence of people!

Everything in 'that person's' words was exactly what Uraraka Shige desperately wanted at that moment...

"Ha... Hoo-ha... Heh... I..."

Uraraka Shige began to breathe heavily without realizing it. He spoke with great difficulty, his tone filled with struggle. He longed to agree, to receive, but at the same time, due to fear and timidity, he wanted to stay away and refuse.

He was never a strong person to begin with; he was just a selfish guy... and now he's become an even more selfish 'little' guy.

Fortunately, 'AFO' wasn't in a hurry for him to give his own answer.

"There's no need to rush. You are truly excellent and talented, so my disciple and I can wait for you to give the most appropriate answer at the most opportune moment. For now, enjoy the food before you."

"Beep~"

With the final, and most crucial sentence uttered, the laptop on the desktop beeped and went black, having been remotely shut down.