An Unexpected Advancement

Midoriya swung his arms, his strong biceps bulging, revealing his well-built physique honed through years of training.

After the broken bones inside his body were removed, the Recovery Girl gave him a passionate kiss. Perhaps because his arm had turned into tentacles, Midoriya did not have the kind of scars the Recovery Girl had mentioned before.

But for some reason, looking at his arm that had returned to normal, Midoriya had a feeling that if he met certain conditions, his arm could turn back into tentacles like before.

"Sigh, Midoriya, although your body didn't suffer the damage it deserved because of Rui En's recklessness," the Recovery Girl said meaningfully, "You should understand that if you can't control your Quirk, your body will eventually break down."

Perhaps because Jilan was present, the Recovery Girl did not say it explicitly.

Midoriya nodded emphatically. "I understand!"

Jilan glanced at her watch. Twenty minutes had passed since Uraraka and the others left, and it should be almost time for her and Iida's match.

"Since Midoriya is alright, I'll be going now." Jilan said goodbye and walked towards the door.

"Class President!" Midoriya suddenly spoke up, "Although it's rude to say this to Iida- kun, I know he's no match for you."

Jilan stopped in her tracks. "So?"

"I hope you'll give it your all in your duel with Todoroki!" Midoriya said, head bowed and fists clenched. "Todoroki used fire in our match, but I know he still hasn't resolved his inner conflict, I think."

Jilan interrupted him, "Midoriya, do you know what you're saying? I just want to win. What good will it do me to fight a stronger opponent?"

For the first time, Izuku Midoriya didn't lower his head when he met Jilan Jiyu's gaze. His eyes shone brightly, like a sky full of hopeful stars. "Because you want to become a hero, and the essence of a hero is meddling in other people's business!"

"Jilan, you're back! It's almost your turn to compete!" Denki Kaminari waved to Jilan Jiyu while stuffing his hands with popcorn and cola he had bought from the Management Course.

Jilan sat down next to Kaminari and casually picked up some popcorn. "Looks like I'm not too late."

Hearing that Uraraka had returned, Jilan, who wasn't really focused on the game Jilan, asked him, "Class representative, is Izuku- kun alright?"

Jilan paused for a moment. He acknowledged that Midoriya's arm had recovered. However, when he looked at Midoriya's arm, he always felt that there was something twisted in his forearm—not the arm itself, but the space around it.

Jilan Jiyu did not tell anyone about their observations.

"Ah, Midoriya's alright now, he'll probably be here soon."

"That's good." Uraraka breathed a long sigh of relief and encouraged Jilan Jiyu, "Class representative, you and Iida- kun have to do your best in the match later!"

Uraraka, Midoriya, and Iida are the closest group in the class, and Uraraka doesn't show favoritism towards anyone.

Jilan Jiyu nodded, then suddenly asked, "Where did Iida go?"

Lounge.

After replenishing his energy by drinking a bottle of engine oil, Iida let out a burp with a distinct flavor, and his mood turned heavy.

In Iida's view, Jilan Jiyu is a formidable opponent. Although he has never shown his true strength, he always gives people a sense of security, making them believe that his strength is not only what he seems to be. To be honest, Iida himself is not very confident that he can beat Jilan.

But

"For the honor of the family, and to not let my brother down, I must achieve good results!" Iida vowed, determined not to tarnish his brother Ingenium's name!

Suddenly, Iida started Vibrate intensely, like a Vibrate. He took his phone out of his pocket and answered the call.

"Yes, Mom, Jilan has something to do right now, so our match has been postponed."

"Isn't that what you wanted to say?"

What happened to my brother?

"Hero Killer."

At this moment, cheers erupted in the stadium, directed at the crow-headed boy, Fumikage Tokoyami, who was still on the field.

During his match with Ibara Shiozaki, he astutely seized the moment when she suddenly clutched her chest, using his Dark Shadow to entangle the unsuspecting Ibara Shiozaki and throwing her out of the ring.

"Let's congratulate the crow-headed boy, Tokiwa Fumikage, and his pet, Black Shadow, on their victory! Next match: Hero Kojiran versus Hero Koiida. Okay, I got it."

Mic received a message from the staff. He paused for a moment, then sighed and said, "There's been an unexpected situation. Due to unforeseen circumstances, contestant Tenya Iida has decided to withdraw from the competition, and his opponent, Jilan Jiyu, will advance directly to the next round."

The crowd erupted in shouts. Why did they choose to withdraw from the competition when they were so close to victory? What was the reason?

Outside the arena, some gamblers' expressions changed. How could such a large-scale competition U.A. High School Sports Festival not have off-the-ground betting? Many places had opened betting odds, betting on the final rankings of the players.

Every year, many bookmakers manage to obtain student information from within U.A. High School. Ultimately, the winners of the Sports Festival are always the same few individuals. They control the odds so that whoever wins will profit.

But no one expected someone to withdraw halfway through the match, especially one of the favorites to win the championship!

Some of the eager buyers who took over the betting operations had already started packing their bags and preparing to flee; they simply couldn't afford the enormous compensation.

Jilan Jiyu's expression changed slightly. If Iida used the move he had used in the mounted combat during the match, he wasn't confident he could dodge it. Given Iida's usually serious personality and his knightly pride, he wouldn't allow himself to withdraw from the match. But Iida actually did it, which gave Jilan Jiyu a bad feeling.

Could something have happened somewhere?

Bakugo was annoyed that Jilan had advanced for no reason, and his displeasure was evident on his face.

His opponent from the previous round Eijiro Kirishima, didn't seem to care at all, and cheerfully put his hand on Bakugo's shoulder. "What's wrong? Are you a little annoyed that Jilan advanced so easily, or are you tired because you've been playing against me for too long?"

In the match between Bakugo and Kirishima, although Kirishima lost, it was only because he was physically exhausted and could no longer maintain his Quirk after several minutes of intense offense and defense, which made everyone in the arena acknowledge the strength of both of them.

Kirishima is an optimist who doesn't care about losing and instead starts cheering for his opponent.

"Don't worry, Bakugo, I believe you can win whether you face Jilan or Todoroki. After all, you're the man who defeated me! Hahaha!"

Hearing Kirishima's hearty laughter, Bakugo turned his head away with a displeased expression and looked at Shoto Todoroki.

Although Bakugo doesn't admit it, he has always regarded Shoto Todoroki as the biggest rival in the class. After Todoroki unleashed his flames, he felt even more threatened and began to think about how to deal with Todoroki's dual-fire technique.

Shoto Todoroki didn't look at Bakugo, but instead turned his gaze to Jilan Jiyu, who had a similar expression to his own and looked completely calm. He slowly raised his index finger and held it up in front of him.

There can only be one winner among us.