The Future of Bullying

The next day, Inko went to school to address the bullying situation concerning her son due to his quirklessness. At first, she met with the principal, hoping he could organize discussions or ask the teachers to talk to the students about this issue. Inko was convinced there might be other children at the school, like her son, who were quirkless and faced difficulties because of it. She wanted not only to help her son but also to support other kids in this situation who likely hadn't mentioned it to their parents.

At Inko's words, the principal smiled slightly, as if assuring her that everything would be alright. He promised to take the necessary steps to rectify the situation. 

"Thank you for reaching out to us directly. We always strive to create a comfortable environment for all students. If such situations are indeed occurring in the classroom, we will definitely have a discussion with the teachers and talk to the students about it." He said, looking intently into Inko's eyes.

He took a brief pause, acknowledging the seriousness of the situation, and continued with a serious expression: 

"You know, sometimes kids, while playing, might not realize where the line is drawn. Perhaps your son just misunderstood the game, and it wasn't meant with serious intent. However, we take any instances of bullying very seriously, especially concerning children without quirks. It's important to understand that this could just be part of children's play. But don't worry, we'll sort it out!"

Inko felt a sense of relief that the principal understood her concerns. However, she also noticed that he was directly indicating his doubts about her words, trying to justify possible instances of bullying as mere children's games. Despite this, she was grateful that, despite his caution, he promised to take action. Internally, she still felt that his words were merely a formality, but at least a promise was better than nothing.

Inko also spoke with the homeroom teacher, Sae Fujiwara, who, as she knew, had already been supportive of her son. She was confident that the teacher would do everything possible to resolve the situation, even if the principal didn't respond. During their conversation, Inko detailed all the circumstances, just as she had with the principal. In response, Sae mentioned that she had already tried to talk to the children and put a stop to the bullying. At one point, she even thought the problem had been resolved, so she didn't feel it was necessary to report it further. However, now that Inko had told her that the bullying was still ongoing, the teacher expressed regret for not checking on the situation, even bowing to show her sympathy.

Inko couldn't help but feel joy seeing that the homeroom teacher, as she believed, was sincerely trying and continued to help her son. She was incredibly grateful that this teacher was in charge of the class instead of someone else who might have been indifferent to such issues. Therefore, Inko sincerely thanked her for her efforts and expressed hope that she would continue to support her son.

After the conversation, Inko happily headed home, feeling that everything had gone much better and that the bullying would likely come to an end. Although she didn't mention Bakugo, as she planned to talk to his parents herself, Inko thought that while her opinion was that children reflect their parents, it might be worth a try rather than doing nothing.

At the same time, the principal called Sae Fujiwara to come to his office for a discussion about a matter that could jeopardize their careers. As soon as Sae entered the principal's office, her gaze immediately fell on him. He stood by the window, taking drags from a cigarette, his shoulders tense and his expression unfriendly. The smoke rose slowly, just like his irritation; she knew very well that smoking helped him calm down.

Seeing Sae enter, the principal said nothing, continuing to stare out the window, inhaling deeply from the expensive cigarette that seemed to be his only companion at that moment.

Gathering her courage, the woman stepped forward and broke the silence: 

"Good afternoon," she finally said, feeling her voice tremble slightly.

The principal took another drag from his cigarette and exhaled the smoke, looking at her with clear irritation. 

"You can't call it good," he said, his voice filled with coldness. "Tell me..." He paused briefly, making it clear just how serious the situation was. In that moment, Sae felt chills run down her spine. She knew that one careless word could get her fired from the school, likely making it hard for her to find another job.

"A woman named... Inko, I believe, also came to see you?" he asked, gazing out the window where the evening light scattered golden reflections.

"Y-yes!" she stammered, trying to gather her thoughts.

"And she talked about her son, right? About bullying and all that..." he continued, an ironic smile appearing on his face.

Sae merely nodded, knowing that the principal already had all the answers to his questions, and her attempts to justify herself would be pointless.

"We've known each other long enough..." he began, turning back to the view outside the window, where the evening sky was beginning to darken. "I know all about your activities... And as I understand it, you've already chosen the kids you want to befriend, to build trust, and all that... To eventually become a teacher who taught a hero..." After these words, he smiled, his expression turning ironic, as if what he said was a joke worthy of laughter.

He paused, savoring the scene of the evening sunset outside, and then, turning back to her with a cold, knowing gaze, asked: 

"Well then... Explain to me, please, what the hell is bullying doing in your class? No, better tell me why, damn it, did the parents find out about it?" His voice sounded almost calm, but without even looking the woman in the eye, he repeated his words more aggressively. "What the hell, the parents found out about this damn bullying?! You've been successfully hiding and preventing such cases for years with your quirk of calmness. All your classes were exemplary, perfect... Your reputation grew along with the school's. And now... bam! Some whore comes in and says, 'My son is being bullied, deal with it, talk to the teachers and the kids!' What does she think, that I don't give a damn?!" He barked, slamming his hand on the desk with such force that Sae thought it might split in half.

Hearing these words, Sae instinctively lowered her gaze and felt a tremor start within her. She knew that the principal was indifferent to bullying and the well-being of the students. For him, the most important thing was to avoid rumors, scandals, and any unwanted attention on the school online, as this could trigger unplanned inspections that might expose his illegal dealings. Although she didn't know exactly what he was up to, his expensive cigarettes, luxury cars, and large house spoke for themselves.

'How can this old bastard yell at me like that?' — Sae thought. For a moment, she imagined revealing all his secrets to the police but quickly remembered that the principal likely had connections even within law enforcement. Moreover, she understood that without his "help," many of her own plans would never come to fruition. So, all she could do was remain silent, staying his obedient "dog on a leash" with no right to escape.

"I... I don't know!" she exclaimed, not taking her eyes off the floor. "I activate my quirk as always while in class. But this time, there's one student whose personality completely blocks its effect. You could say that because of him, it doesn't work at all! I've never had kids without quirks before!"

The principal, listening to her words, skeptically thought that it was just an excuse. However, he realized how useful Sae was to him, and he couldn't afford to get rid of her over such a minor oversight. 

"These quirkless... How can they not understand that this world no longer belongs to them!" He clicked his tongue in disgust. "Alright, you're lucky today. Have a talk with those little bastards. I don't care if you can stop this bullying — the main thing is that it doesn't cast a shadow on the school's reputation. I don't care how you do it: even tell them openly to bully him outside the school's walls."

After that, Sae thought she could leave and quickly started to exit the office, but the principal stopped her. 

"Ah, wait... I'm curious, who did you choose this time?" he said, calming down and starting to gaze out the window while lighting a cigarette.

"Out of the whole class, only two are worth noting: Kimika Tanaki and Katsuki Bakugo. The former has a time quirk, although it's still quite weak, and the latter has an explosion quirk. He's the one making my quirk ineffective."

"Hm... Tanaki... I've heard that name somewhere before," the principal pondered. He couldn't help but recall a certain detective who was quite well-known across the country—Takeshi Tanaki.

"Change your plans. I don't care how, but you need to ensure that this girl doesn't tell her father anything. I don't care how you manage it, but it must be done!"

The woman nodded, fully aware of the principal's concerns. That detective, if he wanted to, could easily ruin all his dealings, even with his connections. Feeling the weight of responsibility increase, Sae imagined the consequences if Kimika even hinted at the bullying to her father. He would likely initiate an investigation into the school immediately, and everyone would be scrutinized without exception. In the process, information about dark dealings could surface, potentially putting her at risk as well. Although she hadn't participated in any of them, her knowledge made her an accomplice. She understood that deceiving him would be impossible, as he had a quirk that acted as a lie detector. Ultimately, she left the office, leaving the principal alone with his thoughts.

Left alone, the principal began to realize that he might soon face serious problems because Sae would likely fail her task. He knew her true nature: she sought to appear friendly to the children, ingratiating herself with them to gain an advantage when they became heroes, which could backfire on her. Even now, thanks to her quirk, she enjoyed a certain popularity as a teacher. 

The principal was also aware that she only displayed strength in front of the weak, while being cautious around the strong. Her confidence was merely a facade, as she was fundamentally weak herself. He sensed that even now, Sae was probably harboring hatred toward him in her thoughts, but he couldn't care less. Let her try to show any aggression — then her life would be ruined.

So, he decided to take matters into his own hands, pulling the strings himself. He could burden Kimika's father with work since he knew a lot about this detective. For instance, he considered work his second home and was a man of justice, the embodiment of a hero who was willing to devote all his time to catching criminals instead of spending it with his family. Thus, by piling more work on him, the principal hoped to distance him from his family. Although this busyness might weigh down the father, he would likely learn about the bullying sooner or later if Sae didn't stop or conceal it. However, he planned to hide his intentions well enough that they wouldn't be uncovered until someone started digging specifically for that. 

Additionally, the principal thought of ways to burden Kimika's mother as well. Perhaps he could push her to look for a new job or try to get her a promotion at her current workplace, which would also force her to work more. 

However, the principal realized that not everything might work out. He didn't know what the girl's relationship with her parents was like; perhaps, despite their busy schedules, they still found time for her. This uncertainty troubled him, but he believed the risk was worth the potential rewards. If the situation got out of hand, he could even consider orchestrating an attempt on Takeshi's life or making it look like he was killed by hired thugs. But such a step would undoubtedly raise suspicions, and he might end up being implicated in the investigation, or everyone could find out that he was behind the attack. 

Therefore, he decided to proceed cautiously at first, pulling the strings of the Tanaki family, hoping he wouldn't have to resort to murder.

At the same time, Sae Fujiwara was contemplating what to do. She didn't consider herself a good person and certainly didn't plan on constantly defending Izuku. Most likely, she would gradually start to show that as long as the bullying happened within the school's territory, she would deny it. But once Izuku's bullies saw that she didn't care outside of school, they might get used to carrying out their "fun" there, or in the process, they might start acting in a way that would prevent Izuku from telling his mother about it. 

However, she couldn't just ignore the situation, as it would lead to the loss of her relationship with Kimika, who was good friends with Izuku. Sae didn't fully understand how to proceed but decided to try everything she could. Perhaps she could gain the trust of both Kimika and Bakugo when he saw that she was ignoring the bullying outside of school. 

But she also began to wonder if she should focus on her relationship with Bakugo, as it might turn out to be much easier than maintaining a friendship with Kimika. Bakugo, while being a brute, was more straightforward and might be more receptive to her intentions.

////

Let's summarize briefly, as the translator probably altered half the meaning in this important chapter. So, as we already know, the homeroom teacher is quite a bad person who seeks to gain something from everything, and it turns out the principal is no better than her, even worse. Both of them, we could say, don't care about the bullying happening; what's important is that it doesn't interfere with them. Why didn't the principal want to completely eradicate bullying? Because he doesn't care — what matters is that his dark dealings don't come to an end. Although... perhaps this is simply the author's design, as the principal is even willing to use his connections to burden Kimika's parents with work and even kill her father if necessary. Why does he take the situation seriously and not at the same time? Because that's how it needs to be :3.

And why is he so afraid of Kimika? Because she is the daughter of a man of justice, and she probably won't be able to just watch bullying happen (he doesn't know that Kimika is Izuku's friend). Moreover, it seems the homeroom teacher will soon stop protecting Izuku and will start trying to suck up to Bakugo to gain benefits from him when he becomes a hero in 9+ years (that's quite a long time), instead of from Kimika, as it's a bit more complicated with her since she always needs to defend Izuku. So, will she also start getting bullied, or not? We'll see in the next chapter!

I also want to inform you that two chapters come out every day on my Patreon! Here, only one is released, but on my Patreon — there are two a day, hee-hee-hee. Come by so you don't miss new chapters and can read them faster than anyone else! patreon.com/Zoi4erom

///