The night didn't end.It paused.
Reality stabilized.UA's alarms fell silent.The courtyard repaired itself like nothing ever happened.
But the girl didn't sleep.
She stared at the mirror.
Not at her reflection—
At the shadow behind it.The possibility of what else might look back.
Midoriya lay unconscious in the infirmary.
All Might watched over him.
Silent.Shoulders heavy.
Aizawa said nothing as he passed by.
Only paused at the doorway.
"…He fought for her like she was family."
Nezu's voice buzzed through the comms.
"She's becoming something this world has no precedent for."
Aizawa looked at the screen.
Where her profile used to be.
Now—
[Subject Undefined]
"Then we build new definitions."
She walked alone through the campus ruins at sunrise.
Eri followed.
The sky was streaked gold.But it felt like it might split open any second.
"I saw another one of me," Eri said suddenly.
The girl stopped walking.
"…When?"
"Last night. While you were frozen."Eri looked down at her hands."She was older. And scared."
The girl nodded.
"They're coming faster now."
Lunch Rush found them huddled under a half-collapsed awning.
He handed them both warm rice bowls.
No words.
Just presence.
It helped.
A little.
That evening, Nezu gathered the faculty.
A full board meeting.
Snipe. Cementoss. Midnight's replacement. Vlad King. Power Loader.
Even Gran Torino tuned in by screen.
Nezu adjusted his tie.
"I believe we've misunderstood the Architect's strategy."
They all leaned in.
"He's not trying to eliminate her."
A pause.
"He's trying to force her to choose."
Somewhere off-grid—
Deep in a forest of time-warped trees—
A small hut pulsed with temporal energy.
Inside…
Two figures sat at a table.
One wore a UA jacket.
The other—
A scarf. Goggles.
Tired eyes behind the glass.
Mirrored scars on his arms.
"Tell me again why I'm doing this," the alternate Iida asked.
The Architect leaned forward.
"Because in your timeline, she let you die."
Back at UA.
She stood on the dorm rooftop.
Stars above.
Eri at her side.
Her fingers twitched against her ribs.Something buzzed beneath her skin.
Like a warning.Or a countdown.
A voice came from behind.
Warm. Familiar.
"I thought you'd be here."
She turned.
Eyes wide.
Tenya Iida.
Alive. Smiling.
Just like she remembered him.
Only…
She knew instantly.
This wasn't her Iida.
He walked closer.
Calm.
Measured.
But his footfalls didn't echo.
His shadow didn't match the moonlight.
And his smile was just a shade too still.
She didn't flinch.
Just said quietly:
"You're not him."
He paused.
Smile gone.
Then:
"No."
"But I remember everything he felt about you."
"Every choice. Every disappointment."
"Especially the day you didn't come back for him."
Eri backed up slowly.
The girl stepped forward.
Not afraid.
Not angry.
Just tired.
"…Are you here to kill me?"
Iida's copy tilted his head.
"No."
"I'm here to convince you."
"To step back."
"Let the original weave resume."
"You don't belong here."
She didn't answer.
Just walked past him.
Looked down at the courtyard.
Then back at him.
"Did you believe in me?"
The fake-Iida blinked.
"…Yes."
"And did that matter?"
He didn't speak.
Didn't need to.
She could see it in his silence.
Suddenly, she was behind him.
Faster than he could react.
Her hand touched his back.
Rewind energy crackled.
He spun.
Tried to strike.
Too late.
She stared into his eyes.
Not with power.
With clarity.
"You're not real."
"But you're made of someone I loved."
She leaned in.
Whispered:
"I forgive him."
"And I forgive you."
The illusion broke.
The fake-Iida cracked like glass.
Splintered into dust.
But not before he said:
"Then you've passed his test."
Behind her—
The sky split open like a wound.
Not red.Not black.
Just empty.
And within it—
Something stepped forward.
Another girl.
Eri gasped.
The girl froze.
Because this one…
This version…
Was smiling.
She landed gently on the rooftop.
Clothes torn.Hair loose.
A scar across her jaw.
But eyes bright.Laugh easy.
"Finally," the smiling version said."I was waiting for this moment."
The real girl whispered:
"…Who are you?"
The echo smiled wider.
"I'm the version that beat the Architect."
Silence.
The night pulsed.
The city breathed.
Eri whispered, "Is it over?"
The smiling version of her laughed once.
Soft. Sad.
"No."
Then:
"It's just beginning."
To be continued.