[Sorry. Didn't realize that I posted a chapter less last week. There would be one more this week!]

“Hey there, everyone!! Thank you so much for coming out today! Hosted by Marukane Department Store. Narufest is a free, local, live concert, extravaganza, and we’re already having a great time, aren’t we?!”

Ai looked toward the stage, licking an apple candy, watching Pop announce with a smile. She watched the three little girls nervously walk on the stage.

“The Final Performance of the Morning will be “Can’t help loving you,” Performed by The Little Sisters of Saint Lila’s Academy for Girls! Enjoy!”

She went to the railing, looking out in wonder. Ever since she had come to this world, she had made what could be called friends, but it wasn’t until today that she realized that none she could come to a party with.

They were all busy, and unlike her, their adventures were beginning, and hers was over, ‘Am I lonely, System?’

[Yes.]

Ai closed her one eye, looking at the distant horizon, ‘Gee, loneliness is a sign of old age.’

[…]

‘Does Dad get lonely? He is far, far older than I am. I wonder what he does for that.’

[He makes Harems. Or Systems.]

‘Ah, that makes sense. Wait, did you say Systems? I thought you were the only one?’

[Probably not.]

‘Huh, who else has one?’

[Can’t say.]

‘Interesting. I kinda want to meet them now,’ Ai grinned, ‘Knowing that there is someone out there who fell for my father’s schemes and I can meet… makes me happy.’

[You should make friends. Maybe be in a healthy relationship.]

‘Oh, please. Like I’d find love,’ Ai helplessly looked towards the horizon, blinking. She felt something was coming towards her from a distance, reaching closer and closer, until she saw the Bat Villain flying towards them.

“Come on, man,” Ai muttered, “Everyone’s enjoying a party. Can you not spoil it?”

It was nearly at her head when she muttered, “Mask.”

A field spread with her at the center, and in the blink of an eye, it retreated, forming a mask that fell on top of a table where Detective Naomasa was sitting.

He blankly looked at the crystal mask that fell on his table, “What…just happened?”

They felt a gush of air and saw Captain Celebrity flying above their head, “I was chasing a Bat Villain! Where did it go?”

“You mean this?”

A woman, probably a pro hero, wearing a one-piece underneath and a military coat, picked up the Mask, showing it to Captain Celebrity, “Is this from that Vigilante we keep hearing about? What was her name?”

“Phantom Fox!” Captain Celebrity clenched his fist, “My greatest rival!”

“Phantom Fox?” Eraser Head leaned back on the chair, asking.

“Right! That girl with the fox mask!”

“I get the Fox part, but why Phantom?”

“I don’t know. Makoto said that mostly because no one sees her coming or going! We don’t even know what her Quirk is exactly! Just that she can trap people in Masks! Because of her efficiency, I can’t rack up achievements!”

“Right, I’d say it’s a good thing that such a strong Hero is around,” Midnight shrugged.

“That’s the problem,” Shoto Aizawa, a.k.a. narrowed his eyes, “She’s not a Hero. She’s a Vigilante and one with unfathomable power.”

“Right,” Detective Naomasa rubbed his head, “I swear that one is bigger trouble than any other Vigilante. I hear Heroes complaining that they only find Masks in place of Villains.”

“Yes!” Captain Celebrity sat down too, “That’s the problem! I run around, and there is a villain! And I reached it only to find it had turned into a Mask! What can I do about that?! I am not a courier! I am a Hero!”

Midnight sighed, “Hah, I wish the days we can complain that we don’t get a villain to fight continue forever.”

Ai turned on the railing; she had been using the Transparent World for hearing them. She narrowed her eyes, ‘Say. System. If I join this Pro Hero business. How likely I am to make some friends?’

[99.99%]

‘I see,’ She took out her cell, calling a saved number, wondering if he could pick up or not. But as usual, he was too busy to pick up a call, so she called another.

“Ai? What is it? Did something happen at Narufest?”

“No. Makoto…I want to go legit.”

“Go Legit?”

“Yeah. I am Phantom Fox.”

“Excuse me….wait. Where are you?”

“Narufest.”

“I’ll be there.”

Ai was wondering if it would take Makoto time to arrive when she saw Captain Celebrity fly off and soon return with Makoto in his arms. She waved her hands at Makoto since she was searching for her.

Makoto whispered to Captain Celebrity, who looked over and swooped down, landing in front of her with a grin, “Miss Ai! You are also here!”

“Yeah,” Ai grinned, “Can I borrow Makoto for a minute?’

“Yes, and I’ll parade around the fest!” He slipped away, worried that Makoto would give him to work.

Makoto kept smiling, watching him leave before she turned back to Ai and her smile disappeared, “You are Phantom Fox?”

Ai glanced towards the lemonade stand in the distance and whispered, “Mask.”

A field spread out like a ripple and came back as soon as it went, and there was a mask on the palm of her hand. She broke it effortlessly, taking the lemonade, “You want something?”

“You!!” Makoto excitedly grinned, “Why didn’t I think of it before! Wait, you want to go legit…but….”

She paced around, muttering to herself, and then twirled, looking all around until her eyes fell on Detective Naomasa.

“Ok. I know what we could do. I have a way to make you go legit much faster,” Makoto watched Ai, “But there is something you would have to do for it.”

“Like what?”

“Surrender.”

“Sorry?”

“Surrender the first chance you get.”

“Huh,” Ai thought for a moment, “If you say so. I must prepare a few things, and then I will surrender.”

“The faster, the better, and make sure that you don’t make any move between this or that, and I can’t save you from jail time.”

“No jail? Then I can do this now,” Ai blinked, looking towards the Pro Heroes and the Detective, and before Makoto even realized what she was doing, she went up to the table and sat down, “I wish to surrender.”

“Ai?” Detective Naomasa felt question marks appear on his head, “Did I hear that you want to surrender?”

“Uwa! Not now!” Makoto hastily put her palm around Ai’s mouth, trying to stop her from talking.

“Makoto? What is going on?”

Aizawa looked at her with slight worry, “What do you mean you surrender?”

Ai removed Makoto’s palm from her mouth, tilting her head, “I am Phantom Mask, and I am surrendering. Also, on the record. I don’t like that name, either.”

[So picky.]

‘Shut up.’

Detective Naomasa looked up at his sister, Makoto, who nodded, scratching her cheek. That led to the transfer of the venue for this talk, from the Narufest to the police station’s interrogation room.

Eizo Tanuma, a police detective and a good friend of Ai, put the glass of water in front of her, “So you are Phantom Mask?”

Ai drank water, nodding, “Yeah. I am.”

“And what exactly do you expect to happen here?”

Ai looked towards Aizawa, sitting in front of her, and Naomasa stood near the door with Midnight, saying, “I want to go legit. Become a Pro Hero.”

“That all?”

“Yeah.”

“Why?” Naomasa narrowed his eyes, “No one would have doubted you even if you didn’t come forward. So what made you?”

Ai glanced towards Makoto, who was sitting beside her, nodding to her, and thought for a moment, “I have a few friends, Koichi, Kazuho…and then there is Tamao, who is currently under my case, and Soga, who comes to visit her, and then there are Next Level Villains whom I saved, Terou, Kirihito and then Hotta Brothers. Mikoto, of course.”

She darted her eyes between Aizawa, Naomasa, and Tanuma, smiling, “Then there are you guys, with all my other regular customers, and yet. When it came to going to Narufest today…I felt a bit lonely.”

“I managed to surround myself with wonderful people, yet I somehow managed to feel alone, making me wonder why. I think…it’s all the secrets I am keeping and that I must be careful around people. I don’t like it…and maybe that was why I was lonely?”

She patted her cheeks, “I don’t know…but I do wish to know. If I go pro…can I make friends?”

Tanuma rested his hand on the table, slumping his hand down, and then loud laughter escaped his mouth.

Ai blankly blinked, seeing Aizawa cover his eyes, while Makoto let out a helpless sigh.

“?”

“Awwww!! Yes!! I will be your friend!!”

Ai got her face shoved in soft boobs, making her look up at Midnight, who grinningly hugged her.

“Surrendering because you want to make friends…I don’t think I ever heard such a stupid reason,” Detective Naomasa Tsukauchi shook his head, sighing.

“Girl, if you want someone who would go with you to festivals, then you don’t need friends. You need a boyfriend,” Tanuma sat down as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulder, “And here I thought I might not be able to eat my breakfast at my favorite place.”

“Oh, I already made arrangements for that,” Ai made a victory sign, “You would have gotten your food either way.”

“Nah, it wouldn’t be as good without seeing you there smiling brightly,” Tanuma grinned, “It’s good because you are there.”

“Hah, never ate there before, but many I should try it,” Midnight said, “Are you open tomorrow?”

“We are open now?”

“Alright! Let’s go!”

“Really?” Ai got pulled up when they felt a loud thump, making them look over their shoulder.

Aizawa stood up, watching her, “Pro Hero is serious work! It’s not to make friends or a popularity contest.”

“Oh, I know. But you see, my Quirk is great for Pro Hero work. I’d say it’s one of the most versatile Quirk ever. You can give me a condition, and I can tell you how to use my Quirk to save people from that disaster.”

This particular comment made everyone raise their eyebrows, seeing her confident face.

Makoto looked back, “I am curious as to what your Quirk is. Ok. So…what if a disaster occurs, a building has fallen, and debris crushes people.”

“Oh, that’s the simplest,” Ai shrugged, “Mask.”

A silver flash appeared between her fingers, and a mask appeared in everyone’s sight. They were unsure what happened when they noticed one after the other, “The table…isn’t gone.”

“Yeah, see. I’ll remove the debris, however large or how many they are, removed in an instant,” Ai grinned, celebratory.

“Color me impressed,” Makoto raised her eyebrows, “I bet you’d make a great rescue Hero.”

“There is more to being a hero. Just having a good Quirk means nothing if you don’t have a brain and can’t investigate. There are many villain organizations, and you need to be calm and collect information before even thinking about attacking them,” Aizawa sat down, “We also have to cooperate with the police.”

“Ah, perfect,” Ai thought for a moment, “Tsukauchi, don’t mind this.”

She held his shoulder and put her hand on the interrogation room glass, and it rippled as the two of them submerged into the glass.

“Stop!” Aizawa wanted to use his Quirk and stop her, but he wasn’t sure what would happen. He ran out of the interrogation room, looking at the other side, but nothing was there.

He returned, looking around the room at the mirror, “She’s still somewhere here.”

Abruptly, Ai and Tsukauchi appeared on the table, where the glass was, and she jumped down, “See. I can go into reflections, teleport between them, and hear everything from the other side. You won’t find a better spy than me. I can even take people to the other side. There was a whole room where we could sit and watch you all day.”

“You ok? Brother?” Makoto grinned, trying not to show her worry.

“Yeah…yeah…that was amazing. Can you imagine if we can teleport in the reflections and sit at leisure and watch criminals decide their plan, knowing they could never reach you? I mean…we could use it in so many situations.”

Tanuma laughed, “I see. That’s a point. If we have a Quirk like that, then we wouldn’t have to risk the lives of our undercover agents.”

“You can trap them, but can you fight a crowd?” Midnight started to become curious too.

Ai nodded, snapping her fingers, “Mask.”

A field spread out, the walls, ground, and roof turned crystalized, and sharp mirrors came down, forming cells around every single one of them, trapping them in their private cells before they realized what had happened.

Aizawa used his Quirk, erasing this one, freeing them, and they were sure about one thing, Tanumauttered, “One of the, if not the most versatile Quirk indeed.”

“What else can it do?”

“Dunno. Never needed to develop it more than this, ever.”

“Ah,” Makoto let out a sigh of relief, “You almost had me worried that there would be more.”

“Well…there is one more thing…but maybe it’s in a gray area. So I am not sure, but I’d need a volunteer to show it. Someone with a flashy Quirk?”

“Flashy?” They looked at each other, “The best you could do is Midnight right now.”

“No, I don’t want to Midnight through that,” Ai pressed her lips, “Makoto. Can you call Captain Creep?”

Makoto giggled, “Yeah, but please do not make that name popular. It’s going to be a nightmare for PR.”

She called him, and they waited awkwardly for him until he came bursting through the door.

Ai honestly gazed into his eyes, “Can you trust me and not resist?”

“Yeah, but what is going on here? Miss Ai? Do you need any help?”

“Just, don’t resist,” Ai narrowed her eyes, “Mask.”

The field blinked, and she held the Mask holding Captain Celebrity captive. She raised it, smiling, and it changed to the visor he wore, and she raised her body in the air, floating in the interrogation room, basking in their shocked gazes and gasps.

She tilted, “I can borrow the powers of those I trap in the Mask. Since they are frozen, they feel nothing, but I still feel this is more of a power for a villain than a hero. You know.”

She broke it, and Captain Celebrity came out, scratching his head, “So, when are you going to start.”

“See. They don’t even realize what had happened.”

Tanuma rubbed his cheeks, narrowing his eyes, “It’s one of those Quirks. Girl, you want to be a Hero?”

“Can I not?”

Tanuma grinned, “Don’t worry. I’ll do everything to ensure that you become a Hero as fast as possible! But you’d have to study.”

“I am a Doctor,” Ai smiled, “I think I have the study part covered.”

Midnight put her hand on Ai’s shoulder, giving her a thumbs up, “I am going to teach you everything I know! You are going to be in so much demand. That reminds me, there is this mixer soon. Undercover work, but maybe we can do something about your lonely feeling.”

“No!”

Midnight and Makoto raised their eyebrows simultaneously, looking towards Tsukauchi, who shouted.

He hastily said, “I mean, she can’t do any unofficial Hero work until she gets her license. And I must say, her Quirk must remain a secret.”

“Uh-huh,” Makoto grinned at her brother, “Is that all?”

Tsukauchi cleared his throat, nodding, looking away, “Yes.”

“From what I hear…Ai is going to become a Pro?! That’s great. What is your Quirk?”

“Oh, I am pretty sure you are familiar with me,” Ai stuck out her tongue, “But I’ll leave it to you to figure out.”

In the warm atmosphere, Aizawa stood up and walked to the door, “Becoming a Pro Hero to make friends? You should become one.”

“Come on, Shota.”

Ai looked at his back, watching him leave, “I don’t get it…what does it matter if I make friends? Isn’t that better? I wouldn’t want my friends getting hurt, so that is more motivation for me to protect them, right?”

Aizawa shot a look back, “You can’t save everyone.”

Ai slumped her shoulder forward, feeling down when Midnight patted her head.

“Don’t mind him…he’s just worried that you’d get hurt with that attitude. Not physically…but…emotionally.”

“I know…” Ai muttered.