Today had arguably been one of Tatsumaki's worst and best days. Too much swirled in her head after saying her goodbyes to Caspian, leaving her unable to sort through it all as she flew high above the clouds.
She had wanted to spend the rest of the day with him, but prior responsibilities for the Hero Association demanded her attention. Maybe she should ask for more time off. After all, she had been working non-stop for years. With how much had changed recently, she deserved more time to do as she pleased.
Caspian hadn't done a good job explaining where they ended up or why they had to run. But he promised to explain it soon, so she would trust him and wait. Then there was his strength — he had rolled through a lake of lava and, with a few swipes of his finger, crumbled an entire mountain of rock. She'd never stopped to think about how powerful he really was...
No matter.
Tatsumaki wouldn't linger on it. She had to focus on sorting her feelings about the tangled relationship she'd fallen into. Jealousy toward the other women? Sure. But it was faint, so faint it surprised her.
Making one question she couldn't answer churn in the back of her mind: 'How did I change so much?'
As if to distract her from the question, a shudder shot through her.
Fubuki is hurt!
Overcome with fury and unease, she altered her direction and then pushed her speed to its pinnacle as she raced toward her sister's location.
There was so much she had to say to her little sister. If something happened to her… She clenched her fists, pushing the horrid thought away.
Tatsumaki shot forward, the air barely registering her departure before she was already miles ahead.
The landscape below blurred into a smear of color. Hills, roads, and buildings flickered past in an instant, each reduced to nothing more than a fleeting impression in her peripheral vision.
Thick forests appeared below, the treetops swaying violently, threatening to snap as she flew past them.
In the distance ahead, she spotted a blocky metal structure cutting through the sea of green.
She arrived posthaste and hovered above the reinforced facility that sank into shadow before the last light of evening faded.
Her sharp eyes scanned the area. And immediately caught sight of a lone, one-armed figure striding toward the facility's entrance, missing the lower half of their left arm.
Tatsumaki's lips pressed into a thin line as she abated a fraction of her riled up emotions. What is he doing here?
¤ ¤ ¤
Night approached by the time Caspian stepped out of his bathroom after a refreshing shower.
He now wore a well-fitted pair of shorts and a plain shirt. After slipping into a pair of comfortable crocs by the entrance, he made his way through the hallway and into the living room, where the thought of relaxing finally struck him.
But he couldn't bring himself to relax right now. There were too many things coming up!
Where to start?
Garou, the Super Fight tournament, the Monster Association…
Caspian pulled out his phone and searched '22nd Super Fight date.'
"There's even less time than I thought."
He grabbed the remote off the table and flicked on the TV. Garou's full-blown 'Hero Hunt' should kick off tomorrow night. Wasn't it supposed to happen in Z-City? Whatever. I don't know where exactly, and I can't waste tomorrow chasing guesses.
A female news anchor appeared on the screen. "Z-City suffered a devastating monster attack earlier today. Over one hundred people have been confirmed dead.
Thankfully, the S-Class Hero Genos and the C-Class Hero Mumen Rider were present and defeated the monster, identified as Gravitic Maiden. Unfortunately, Mumen Rider had to be rushed to the Hero Association Hospital because of his injuries.
Now, we'll return right after this commercial break.
Hi, hi everyone! It's me Wavygyaz—"
Caspian turned off the television.
With a few quick taps on his phone's screen, he called Genos — only to reach voicemail. Since no news had surfaced about Genos' condition, he figured the cyborg was either en route to, or already at, Doctor Kuseno's lab.
Taking a breath, he decided to take a walk.
As he stepped out of his apartment building, something caught his eye. In the middle of the street, a figure stood staring straight at him.
He really didn't know what was going on today. "Suppon…"
Suppon let out a feral screech, turned around, ran down the street, and then crashed through the window of a distant building.
Caspian shook his head and began his venture to the Hero Association Hospital. The bad news paired with the commercial of her, had placed him in a contemplative mood.
His feet carried him through the abandoned streets as sentiments swirled around in his brain.
It was clear that the changes sparked by his emotional surges hadn't improved him across the board. With Wavygyaza, he'd acted on impulse. And now he couldn't bring himself to go back on his word.
Why couldn't he just be like those protagonists he'd read about? Flawless in every way, the kind no one ever complained about? Shouldn't he have zero issues going forward after the resolution he made back on those ancient mountain stairs leading up to the Council of Swordmasters' headquarters?
This made him wonder if he had truly changed in any meaningful way since getting a second chance at life? He kept making flawed decisions. And now his deeper flaws were bubbling to the surface.
Maybe he should embrace worry and all his other perceived flaws, allowing them to coexist with his so-called positive traits. Instead of running in circles. Could this be the correct path? Acceptance as opposed to renunciation.
Even if he dismissed these thoughts, Caspian knew peace of mind would elude him until he addressed a major concern. A concern that'd been silently scratching at the back of his brain for some time.
Why had the women he cared deeply for returned his feelings so effortlessly? Why did they accept sharing him without hesitation?
Sure, it's what he truly wanted. Despite that, things progressed too smooth, too fast, like a trap disguised as a gift.
Although he didn't find Mosquito Girl's pace odd, because ultimately she wasn't a human woman. Neither did he expect her to behave like one, nor did he want her to. As she's perfect the way she is.
With Tatsumaki, Fubuki, Suiko, and Yuta, however, their speed of falling for him defied reason. The remaining two would likely follow in their footsteps at this rate.
Caspian pondered, but no surefire method to uncover the truth arrived and instead led him to a different discovery.
He discovered he could let this concern go without a shred of guilt. Why? Because aside from love and lust, every other emotion inside him grew duller by the day.
And the cause of it traced back to a singular factor: his ever-increasing strength.
Is my sense of growing dullness a sped up version of what you experienced… Saitama?
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