After that, school life returned to a more normal rhythm. After three months of stability, Midoriya Izuku finally faced the moment he'd been waiting for.
Or rather, the moment that all students had been waiting for—the final exams!
"Ahhh! What should I do?!"
"I'm doomed! I'm doomed!!"
In Class 1-A of the Hero Course, two idiots were loudly panicking. Kaminari Denki and Ashido Mina had recently ranked at the bottom of the class in their test results.
The upcoming final exams were tough, and that wasn't even counting the practical exam. Just the written exam alone could make the underachievers break down in tears. Failing the exam had serious consequences.
"You two didn't put in any effort before, and now you're in trouble," Takeyama Urei said, criticizing the two underperformers. Her academic standing was in the top-middle of the class, so the written exam wouldn't be much of a challenge for her.
"What could I do? The invasion happened right after we started, then there was the sports festival, and the hero internship right after that! I just didn't have the time to study!" Kaminari Denki groaned, clearly not taking any responsibility for his situation.
"Exactly, exactly! The school's schedule is just too tight!" Ashido Mina quickly chimed in, pointing the finger at the school instead of taking any blame for herself.
"Even if you say that, the final exams are still going to happen," Midoriya Izuku kindly reminded them. His words felt like arrows straight to their hearts, a harsh reminder of the cruel reality.
"Damn it, Midoriya, you don't even have to worry about the final exams!"
"Not really? I'm still studying and preparing for the exams."
Midoriya's response made Kaminari pat his chest with his right hand, pretending to feel sorry. He pointed at Midoriya with his left hand and said:
"Midoriya, please be more mindful of your words."
"Uh…"
Midoriya Izuku ranked second in academics in Class A of the Hero Course. He was the type who could pass exams with his eyes closed, and his words unintentionally hurt Kaminari, who wasn't doing so well academically.
At this moment, the top student in the class spoke up. She smiled gently and addressed the two struggling students:
"If you two are willing, I can help tutor you."
"Really? Yaoyorozu, you're so kind!!"
Ashido Mina happily rushed over to hug Yaoyorozu Momo. She really needed this kind of help.
Thanks to Yaoyorozu Momo's offer, other students with poor grades or struggling academically also started to ask her for tutoring. Most of them went to Yaoyorozu for help.
As for Midoriya Izuku, he was also approached by someone—Uraraka Ochako, who shyly blushed and said:
"Midoriya, could you help tutor me? My grades are a little lacking…"
Ochako, who ranked in the middle to lower range of the class, was really worried about the upcoming final exams and had no choice but to ask Midoriya for help.
"Sure, no problem. I'm also reviewing my studies."
Midoriya responded, and at the same time, Takeyama Urei hurried over and said:
"Midoriya, my grades aren't great either. Can I join the tutoring session too?"
"Mm… sure…"
It wasn't a big deal, so Midoriya easily agreed to help the two girls. While Takeyama Urei and Uraraka Ochako were very happy, there was one other student who was looking at them with bloodshot eyes.
That was Mineta Minoru, the class's pervert. His grades weren't bad either, so why hadn't any cute girls asked him for tutoring? He also wanted to be in the same room as a girl!!
Anyway, let's not focus too much on Mineta, who was driven by his desires. Most of the students with poor grades asked Yaoyorozu for tutoring, while Kirishima approached Bakugo, and Ochako and Takeyama asked Midoriya for help.
Thus, the hellish tutoring before the final exams began...
---
After school in the afternoon, as is common in Japan, school usually finishes around 3 PM, so students have free time to do other activities.
Midoriya Izuku and the two girls did their tutoring at a café near the subway station, since they were planning to head home soon. It was also the same place where Midoriya had met Takeyama Urei last time.
While the girls had imagined the tutoring would be filled with a romantic atmosphere, the reality was that the boys were serious about teaching them, and with the upcoming final exams, the two girls settled down and studied.
"Midoriya, will these topics be on the written exams?"
"Definitely. I collected this information from the internet and from some seniors. Every year, the exams have similar questions."
Ochako asked this, and Midoriya confidently replied. Then, Takeyama Urei curiously asked:
"Since the school knows the students will know the answers, do they still give the same exam?"
"They do, because this is knowledge every hero must understand."
The knowledge Midoriya mentioned was the same every year for the final exams at U.A. High—specific rules about professional heroes. Since the school trains heroes, it's important for students to be familiar with these laws.
"A professional hero cannot kill criminals or enemies."
Midoriya repeated the knowledge he had just mentioned. These were the rules clearly stated in current hero laws, and anyone aiming to become a hero must know them.
"It seems a bit extreme, though. While I know heroes always focus on capturing enemies first, still…"
Takeyama Urei recalled what she had heard from her older sister, "Mountain Ranger," and spoke while mimicking with her hands:
"Don't the police carry guns? Why do they have the right to kill criminals, while heroes are only allowed to arrest them?"
"This seems to be related to past laws, but I'm not really sure about the details," Midoriya replied.
Unable to answer the question, Midoriya tilted his head. He knew quite a bit about the history of hero society, but he only understood that the law preventing professional heroes from killing enemies was something introduced long ago, and no detailed records existed.
"So that's really unfair. My sister has complained more than once that every time she fights an enemy, she has to hold back to avoid accidentally killing them."
"But the enemies don't care about that. All their attacks are aimed at killing—they show no mercy."
Takeyama Urei shared her sister "Mountain Ranger's" complaints. Being a professional hero was clearly very stressful.
"What's worse is that even when criminals who've killed many people are caught, the police just lock them in prison. Even if the court sentences them to death, the death sentence is never carried out before they die of old age."
"I've seen on the news how death row inmates have escaped several times. I really don't know what the police are doing."
Uraraka Ochako also complained angrily. The annual death rate of professional heroes in Japan wasn't low. Most died during battles with enemies, having worked so hard to capture them, only to end up locked in prison with nothing changed.
"Well~~ let's not talk about these things now~~"
Midoriya tried to steer the conversation away from sensitive topics. But deep down, he already had many questions of his own.
Midoriya Izuku was a passionate hero fan, so he knew far more about these matters than the two girls. However, for now, he chose to keep these thoughts to himself.
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