I Want To Kill You Even More

Ethan sat on a bench, watching cars pass by. He had expected to feel different after killing three people, but there was nothing—no guilt, no remorse. Perhaps he hadn't fully accepted this place as his new reality. Despite knowing he had taken lives, he couldn't make himself feel bad.

He stared at his open palm and sighed. 'Have I grown cold so quickly?' He decided to let it go; there was no point in dwelling on it now.

He needed to evaluate the experience of using his quirk on people. It had felt harder to exert his will than when creating objects out of thin air. When he commanded them to disappear, it felt like a hammer had hit his head, but he managed to keep the image in his mind long enough for his quirk to work.

Ethan knew he couldn't keep experimenting by randomly killing people, as it would attract unwanted attention from powerful eyes. He needed to be careful.

Suddenly, his phone beeped, and the same sound echoed from the devices of passersby. Within seconds, panic ensued as people began running in the same direction, while cars made U-turns.

Noticing the unusual behavior, Ethan checked his phone and saw a large banner displaying an evacuation notice. A villain was causing havoc nearby, and the police couldn't contain them. Heroes were on their way, but civilians were asked to evacuate as the area could become a battleground.

Ethan smiled, put his phone away, and walked towards the danger. "There is no better test subject than a villain," he grinned mischievously.

After a few minutes of walking through what had become a ghost town, he turned a corner and saw a bald, naked man sitting cross-legged in the middle of the road, surrounded by multiple people in costume—heroes!

'They're not as different as I thought they'd be,' Ethan mused. The heroes' costumes were just as lame as their Japanese counterparts. 'Why aren't they attacking?'

"Surrender now, and we'll go easy on you!" one of the heroes shouted.

The man turned slowly, and when their gazes met, the hero shuddered. "You all are mere cannon fodder. Bring me a true hero. Bring me Supreme Leader," the man said calmly.

One of the heroes growled, but another stopped him. "Our job is just to watch him," she said. "Don't do anything stupid."

"I won't let him insult me like that!" the hero snapped.

"Don't be impatient!" a older hero with long black hair shouted. "He's a direct disciple of Victor. He must be incredibly powerful! We must wait for backup."

The frustrated hero knew his colleague was right. This man was an unknown piece in a large puzzle and could very well be beyond his skill level. 'Victor? Who's that?' Ethan squinted, trying to get a better view of the naked man.

"I'm bored," the naked man declared, and everyone went on guard. He stood up and stretched. "I may as well warm up before the real party starts."

"Everyone pr—" the older hero couldn't finish his sentence before a fist went through his head!

White smoke emerged from the hero's body and entered the naked man's nostrils. "Ah," the man sighed, "refreshing as always."

The heroes quickly recovered from their shock, but before they could react, they suddenly exploded, their blood and guts raining down on the naked man, who now wore a frown. "I told you not to interfere," he said to seemingly no one.

"Well, Soul, I got bored just like you," a voice responded, and a man wearing a tuxedo walked out from one of the buildings.

Soul growled, "Don't interrupt my killing sessions ever again, or I'll have your head!"

"I hear you," the man smiled. "There's one more there. You can have him." He pointed at Ethan.

"Shit!"

Ethan quickly turned to run, but Soul appeared in front of him. "Now where are you running off to?" Soul said with a menacing smile.

Everything was happening too quickly! Ethan had nearly no time to react.

'Stay calm.'

Releasing a breath, Ethan quickly assessed the situation. From what he saw, this person in front of him was incredibly strong and stupidly fast. The other person had called him Soul; an odd name.

From their earlier interaction, it seemed the other person was behind the heroes suddenly exploding. That must be his quirk—a fucking dangerous quirk. They didn't seem to be in much rapport, so that other guy should stay on his own unless necessary. That meant Ethan only had to worry about Soul.

Could he fight him? With his quirk, it was definitely possible. But he had no idea what Soul's quirk was, so he had to be careful.

With reinforcements on their way, he might not need to fight. The safest course of action was to buy time.

Soul watched as Ethan stood quietly, gathering his thoughts. "Scared shitless, I see," Soul said smugly.

"Not exactly. But from your reaction, it seems that would have pleased you," Ethan responded calmly.

"Ohhhh," Soul crouched to meet Ethan's eye level. "A smart mouth even in the face of death. I like you. I want to kill you even more now."

"I'm not a hero," Ethan said. "There is no need to attack me."

"Don't worry, kid, I don't discriminate," Soul stretched his hand to grab Ethan's face.

'I guess I have to fight then.'

"I imagine… disappear."

Soul suddenly felt like his head had been hit with a sledgehammer. He stumbled and fell unconscious. Ethan, on the other hand, was on his knees, feeling like his brain was about to explode. He quickly reached into his pocket, pulled out the bottle of medicine, and took a pill, but it wasn't enough. Only after taking five more did he feel some relief. His head was still pounding, but it wasn't as bad.

'What the hell was that?'

Since he started using his quirk, this was the worst headache he had ever felt. He looked down and saw Soul sprawled on the ground. He was sure he had tried to make him disappear, so how was he still here?

"Well, this is a first."

Ethan turned to see the man in the tuxedo standing behind him with a slight smile. Ethan quickly backed away.

The man walked over to Soul and tapped his head with his index finger, causing him to groan.

"Knocked out," the man announced before turning to Ethan. "I didn't hear any impact. How did you do this?"

Ethan remained silent, wary of the man's quirk.

Seeing that Ethan wasn't answering, the man sighed and began to walk towards him.

Alarm bells rang in Ethan's head. He had to escape.

'I imagine… teleport!'

The man stopped in his tracks as he saw Ethan fade away. He clicked his tongue in annoyance before turning to Soul. With him out of commission, their mission was a failure. He would have to return empty-handed and carry this moron too since leaving him here would lead to his capture.

"You just had to go lose to a kid. The big man won't be happy about that."