Super in the Shadows

The best trainings take more than one chapter, are amazing, and disturb the entire school. This one is no exception. ENJOY!

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CRACKLE!

As light rose, Jack gasped.

The gym was a scene of destruction.

Gaping holes all over the place, wooden shards, and even burnt marks. Yet, the more Jack looked at them, the crazier it got…

— CRACKLE! CRACKLE! CRACKLE! —

The floor was mending?! As if a living organism, it was quickly regrowing, with tiny blue firefly-like lights seen floating around the holes?! But before he could inspect it further...

“Morning, morning, morning!”

The training instructor crashed through the gym door, his hands utterly full of Gripfruits. There were so many that they almost looked like a living eldritch creature.

Jack paled, already having flashbacks of the nightmare before.

“Hehe, kid, you ready for a champion’s breakfast?”

“Definitely not! But does it matter?”

“Nope! ENJOY!” ^_^v

One would think his previous experience would make it easier? It didn’t. Feeling the fruits’ tendrils massage his throat and stomach still felt as gut-wrenching, yet he ate everything.

At the very least, the liquid inside was truly delicious. A rush of refreshing sweetness, a wave of pleasure assaulting him, his belly crying in joy. It almost made up for the rest— almost.

“Good! Now, shall we continue training?”

“Better early than late…”

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As they resumed, the flaming counter taunted him.

Every second it ticked down, it promised great suffering. But it wasn’t the only thing to taunt him either. As the instructor made the “Rainbow Road” appear, it too taunted him.

It had barely hoisted him in the air that a few glowing “steps” spawned, playfully flying around him as if saying, “Try to catch me if you can.” It wanted to play? He would play!

As the challenge started, he went all out!

Step! Step! Step! Step! Step! Step! Step! Step! Step! Step! Step! Step! Step! Step! Step! Step! Step! Step! Step! Step!Step! Step! Step! Step! Step! Step! Step! Step! Step! Step! Step! Step! Step! Step!

Not only did he know what to expect this time around, but he had taken a medipod shower not too long ago, his body still brimming with energy! He went all out and— FALL!

It was still useless.

He did beat his previous day’s record, but after 2 minutes of running, he found himself on his ass again, the damn thing still circling him.

“AGAIN! As if I’ll go down that easily.”

“AGAIN! I'll get it this time!”

“AGAIN! Damn road!”

Thus started his day, and spoiler, it didn’t get better.

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

During the Reflex Training, he was zapped so much that he wouldn’t be surprised if his skin, flesh, and even bones had turned to pure electricity. And all this time, a mad demon cackled.

“Nice! Better than yesterday, at least! But let’s keep going!”

The more the man threw the red balls, the more Jack abhorred the color. He felt like a bull in a matador circus. Red, scarlet, ruby, crimson, vermilion, he hated them all!

Just seeing the damn tint was enough to send shocks down his spine.

And as it finally ended, he was rewarded with more Gripfruits and a half-naked dance.

During the study session, he watched a grown man flex, this time trying to match the movements from inside the pod. It was a mess, the viscous liquid making it hard to move.

“Watch carefully, Jack. See how I’m moving my muscles? Your turn, now!”

Step like that? His little toe hit the metallic floor of the medipod.

Rotate the body? The pressure alone made it nearly impossible.

Punch powerfully? He had to stop as he hit the thick glass.

'This is so hard, but there's a logic behind it...'

‘I see. The entire body's the weapon.’

There was something magical to the man's movements. As he copied them, power gathered inside him. Well, a bit of power. It felt like he was a madman trying to catch wind in a bottle.

It gathered, but then just went away? He was still missing something. But before he could dwell on it, lunch break was already over. And thus, gruesome training began anew!

During the physical training, the man pushed him to his very limits. Jack's body screamed in protest, yet it was forced to collapse from effort. But even that wasn't enough?!

“Kid, I see you gave it your all. Now, give me five more!” Devil! This man was an absolute devil! That one session was so intense that his hands shattered, and even his skin cracked.

And as he was thrown into the medipod, he could feel it all seep deep inside him. The liquid was finding all the torn muscles, healing them, and strengthening him!

“At this rate, I’ll go from Jack to Jacked!”

“Pfft— There’s a limit, kid.”

Jack jested, but he knew. Something about the genetic makeup of humans. Something about limiters. A lot of somethings really. As for breaking free of them? The best way was Mana!

IF he ever became a Super, his body would naturally grow stronger.

IF he ever became a Super, he’d get access to more techniques

IF he ever became a Super, he’d get a Quirk to boot!

Becoming a Super was THAT big a deal!

Of course, there were alternatives. Shady medicines, forbidding techniques, corrupted power— just like those scribblings in the bus, and probably countless more methods.

The issue was that anything BUT awakening as a Super would be throwing one’s future away. Whether it was lifespan, sanity, or straight-up humanity, the cost would be high.

It was also a cost he couldn’t afford.

Lilly needed him, and SHE needed him. His mother would be in agony if she knew he had sacrificed himself to save her from that cryo pod. He simply couldn’t—

“Enough daydreaming. Your new best friend's here.”

During the fighting session, Jack was utterly doomed! What was he supposed to do here?! Yet, that didn't stop him from hungering for revenge! Seeing this, the teacher encouraged him.

“Gear up, and feel free to go as berserk as you want! I’ll be watching. Make me proud!” As the man exclaimed, Jack felt like punching him.

Berserk? With those no-damage gloves?! Punches from a baby would have been scarier! And yet he swallowed his discontentment and soon began the fight of the century.

Zoom! Woosh! Curve!

Curve! Zoom! Zoom! Zoom!

Whoosh! Whoosh! Curve! Zoom?!

Rocks flew so fast, all aiming at different spots of the “ZAP armor”, their trajectories so unpredictable that Jack didn’t even know where to start. Oh, and it was worse than before.

The eyebrow frowning tell he had been exploiting? GONE!

“Hehe, how is it, Jack, having trouble?”

“Tch— as if you didn’t know!”

There was no meaning nor warning to the attacks, and all he could do was try his best to dodge. Yet, even that wasn’t enough. His ZAP armor got overwhelmed by small projectiles!

ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP! ZAP!

Jack was left on the ground, twitching….

“Jack?! Teacher, I’ll get him to the medipod so—”

A certain orange student rushed next to him, ready to save him, but that’s when everything changed! Dying?! Jack had merely been playing dead! He struck as swiftly as decisively!

“Does it feel good throwing rocks? Take this, you bastard!”

Jack started beating the living shit out of his enemy, straddling his body as he sent punch after punch, so many of them that it seemed like he was trying to murder him! Yet—

“Pfft— Hahahaha, stop, that tickles!” Clear laughter came from Kai on the ground, the punches so ineffective and useless, all thanks to those shitty gloves.

As for what followed? More gruesome training and more beatings.

Only once night came did Jack have a respite, but even then, he knew it would not last. Sighing, he turned to the instructor.

“Let me guess. Tonight, too, I’m gonna get attacked in my sleep?”

“Hehe, no need to worry. Yesterday was a one-off.”

It wasn’t. It bloody wasn’t!

At around 3 am, Jack had been peacefully “slumbering” when— SLAM!

A powerful kick barely missed his head, one that seemed intent on utterly destroying the gym! And soon resumed a game of cat and mouse that Jack was clearly losing.

This time, the Instructor didn’t just run after him. He beat him black and blue. It was so violent that child protective would have definitely gotten involved had Jack not recently had a birthday.

And just like that, the nightmarish training resumed, the same day about to repeat over and over. Except, it would get worse...

“Great news, Jack! Your body’s getting stronger. And who says stronger body says more nutrients needed! Here you go, twice the amount of Gripfruits today! Ta-da!”

“The Royal Road’s really taking a liking to you. Before, it was just generating the steps in a straight line, but from now on, they’ll be all over the place!”

“Earlier throws were too easy. Today, I’ll add some feints. Can’t make it too easy, now can we? Oh, this is gonna be FUN!”

Whenever the instructor opened his mouth, Jack despaired a little more. The little progress he had made was instantly counterbalanced by even crazier training!

At some point, the man even grabbed a translucent-piranha-like creature.

“See this? It’s a Vexoryn. They’re cute, lively, and harmless— well, except for their bite being VERY painful. Ah, also, they feed on pain and are quite the hungry little critter.”

“I-Instructor, Can we not?!”

“Denied! They’ll be super helpful!”

As for what he meant by being helpful? From that point on, quizzes would be added to the studying. The movements he showed? Jack would have to remember them perfectly!

“Wrong answer? A Vexoryn added to the pod!”

“NOOOOOOO!”

That was the moment his last remnant of peace was breached. The pod used to be the only place he was safe. Not anymore. Anytime he was in it, the teacher would come.

“Hey, watch this, and watch well. There’s gonna be a quiz afterward!”

He flashed before him, showing him a routine at the speed light— or close. Even then, Jack relayed every movement he had seen or tried. He got one wrong, and a Vexoryn was thrown in.

"Skreeee-iiik!"

The creature swam to him and— BITE!

As its fangs touched his skin… the latter was perfectly fine. But the pain that followed was inhumane! It was as if all his nerves had been doused in acid and BBQed afterward!

He lost track of time. He lost track of where he was. There was only PAIN! That, and a Medipod's liquid trying its best to soothe him, only for more PAIN to flare!

Pain! Soothe! Pain! Soothe! Pain!— BURST!

What the fuck?! At some point, the Vexoryn simply exploded?! Its body ruptured like a mosquito having drank too much blood, its last look one of pure ecstasy.

Pain, enough pain to make it explode. What the actual fuck?!

Jack found himself gasping, shellshocked.

As his mouth opened, the Medipod liquid happily came in, filling him entirely. As for the Gripfruits in his stomach, they pranced in joy as they felt its healing touch.

FUCK THIS SHIT! FUCK THIS SHIT! FUCK THIS SHIT! FUCK THIS SHIT! FUCK THIS SHIT! FUCK THIS SHIT! FUCK THIS SHIT! FUCK THIS SHIT! FUCK THIS SHIT!

The world went dark…

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Two days. It had been two days.

Somehow that didn't feel right, but who was he to argue with time?

As he was thrown out of the Medipod, he glanced at the flaming counter resentfully. Bastard, couldn’t it go down faster?! ‘Tick faster, you crazy flaming piece of shit!’

He felt… defeated. Training, no training. No matter what he tried, it would be useless. He felt so tired, so damn tired. He just wanted to lie on the floor and die. He just—

A grinning face magnified before his eyes…

“Is that it? Giving up already? To be honest, I’m impressed you lasted that long. Any other kid would have run out the first day, you know? We can call it quit. It’s fine.”

The basics were there. Endurance training. Evasive training. Weight training. And all the theory behind it. From now on, he probably could train on his own.

It would take him a year to get the same results, but he’d get there…

This was simply too inhuman. This training was insanity! In the man’s eyes, there wasn’t any trace of blame or disappointment. He’d be proud of him regardless.

He had survived the hellish training for TWO FULL DAYS!

Yes, the sane thing was to stop—

“Can I make a call?”

Jack asked. Calling quits would have been so easy, but that wasn’t the type of call he wanted to make right now. The man acquiesced, even bringing him his cell phone.

Ring! Ring! Ring! Ring!

It connected, a young voice echoing.

“J-Jack?! I’m grounded right now. I’m not—”

“Just need to ask one thing quickly. What will you eat next?”

It was stupid, retarded even, but he needed to hear it. His question sounded strange, but Sharky, on the other side, instantly understood. It referred to their first meeting.

Two young kids fooling around on the playgrounds…

“WHAA! Your teeth are so cool! Sharp! Shiny! Amazing!”

“Hehe, I can eat anything I want! Want to see?”

“Yes! Yes! Yes! Wait, even monkey bars?!”

“Of course! Just watch this!”

Sharky had proceeded to crunch them like a real shark, leaving teeth marks all over the metallic monkey bars, and Jack had been hella impressed!

That had been the beginning of an unlikely friendship…

“Wait, so you can eat anything you want?!”

“Yep! I can eat anything! Anything at all!”

“Even that yellow truck over there?!”

“Of course— NOT?!”

It wasn’t even a truck. It was half-truck, half excavator, but that didn’t matter to them. The thing was so big, so sturdy-looking, that Sharky had actually gasped in fear.

But a second later, he had changed his mind, turning heroic.

“I can’t eat it now, but one day I will!”

“You will? I believe in you!”

“Hehe, of course! I’m—”

That’s when a protective mother dragon had approached, inquiring about what they were doing, yet that one conversation had somehow marked both of them.

And now, on the phone…

“What will I eat next? I’ll eat that damn excavator! I’ll become so powerful that I’ll eat monsters and excavators alike like a badass! I’ll munch them all! HEHEHE!”

For a few moments, two dumbasses kept laughing.

“Thanks. Sharky, I needed this.”

That was it?! A confused instructor couldn’t make head-or-tail of the conversation he had just overheard. What did eating an excavator have to do with anything at all?!

And yet, he instantly felt the change. Jack, who had been lying on the ground lifeless, struggled up, the flame in his eyes renewed. He had to train HARD to follow his friend.

His friend would eat trucks, and he would become a Super.

“Now, where were we? Physical training, right?”

A small chuckle escaped him as he took his place on the bench. The shocked instructor by the side was lagging harder than an actual potato running Doom.

But Jack ignored it all, focusing…

“One two. One two. One two. Just pumping iron.” He got to work, but this time it was different. Instead of doing it normally, he tried something else.

‘My entire body IS a weapon!’

This time, he didn’t just do the movements alone.

As if snakes, his muscles quaked, trembled, and slithered as they erupted with power. He was using the technique the instructor had shown him out of combat?!

And that’s when it happened…

[Ding! Learned Strength of a Thousand Men!]

[Just a man, and yet something more?!]

[ERROR! ERROR! Host is not a Super!]

Jack saw something flash past his vision. Luckily, it disappeared quickly, the distraction gone. Thus, he could keep focusing on getting stronger and stronger, if only a little.

At this moment, he repeated as if a mantra…

‘My entire body IS a weapon!’

‘My entire body IS a weapon!’

‘My entire body IS a weapon!’

….

Only once he couldn’t keep going anymore did he stop, with an Instructor by the side looking at him like an utter alien. “Kid, what was that?! What did you do?!”

A smile blossomed on his face.

“My fucking best…”

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Jack turned toward the nearby counter. The thing was as flaming as decisively ticking, but as he glared at it, it seemed to lag for an instant?!

“I don’t need you anymore. Go play somewhere else.”

As Jack shooed it away, it actually left?!

He didn’t need nor want it anymore. Every second ticking down felt like an eternity and distracted him. How many times had he asked himself: ‘When will it end?’

No more. From now on, he’d give his all, every goddamn second. He wasn’t sure where he’d end up after that one week, but at least he wouldn’t have any regrets.

‘We’re going for the whole damn excavator!’

He found himself chuckling.

And just as he did, a certain orange-haired youngster just happened to arrive, his face a mask of confusion as he saw an instructor frozen like a statue.

“Eh? Jack, what happened to Teacher?”

“Beats me. But let’s fight, shall we? Glad you’re early…”

Thus resumed a hellish training, two youngsters clashing and the sound of laughter resounding across the gym. Were they battle addicts? No, but they were working hard.

That alone was worth rejoicing. That alone was worth celebrating.

And just like that, time seemed to fly.

With the flaming counter gone, the only time measurement was the Medipod séances, but even that Jack lost track of. Between the Vexoryns and his hyperactive thoughts? Nope.

Every second was spent on ‘How can I improve!’ And as they say, repetition is the mother of learning, or in Jack’s case, obsession. Crazy and ridiculous obsession.

— He combined technique with running on the Rainbow Road and even started predicting where the new glowing steps would appear.

— He didn’t just dodge the red balls but swatted them away, caught them, and even threw some himself to intercept the new ones.

— He didn’t just study during the Medipod sessions, but all the damn time. Whenever he had a second to himself, he’d mumble about techniques.

— He pushed himself to the absolute limit during power training, so much that he found his body so destroyed afterward that he couldn’t even move an inch.

— He started implementing mind games and feints to his fights. One second, he was running at the opponent, and the next, he was just casually strolling with every attack missing him?!

— As for the night… what night?

“Jack. I’m supposed to be ambushing you!”

“Is that so? Who said I can’t attack first? I need the exercise!”

Madness, it was complete madness! A certain youngster was training so hard that it even worried the damn training instructor?! Even as he left the gym, Jack didn’t notice.

A traumatized instructor quickly made a call home…

“Hello, is this Jack’s mom?”

“Mom? I’m Lilly, his sister! Is he alright?”

“That. Yes. He’s fine. Eh, can I talk to an adult?”

“That— She’s not available right now. Mind if we call back?”

He had barely said “sure” that the line had cut, and only the next day did he manage to “speak to said adult.” He did not know the chaos he had just caused, as SHE soon showed up!

It was around 8 am on a Monday.

The weather was as refreshing as the mood, with lots of students excitingly gathering at the school. They had just returned from playing all weekend, and were still in high spirit.

After all, this early in the school years, there usually weren’t that many tests, and there were even lots of long-awaited introductory demonstrations.

“I heard Professor Wilder’s bringing a tiny basilisk!”

“No way! Those are so damn cute!”

“I know, right? They’re— Ah?!”

All around the campus, discussions suddenly died down, as an otherworldly vision appeared. Long flowing green hair, green glowing eyes, and a stunning face!

The newcomer was a woman of incredible beauty.

No, it wasn’t just her beauty, but her aura?! Wherever she walked, the grass looked greener and swayed. Then there was the floral scent around her, and the flowers in her hair?!

“A dryad?! What’s a dryad doing here?!”

“Wait, I think I know her from somewhere?”

“OMG! She’s from that Felaryn Café, I swear!”

Lilia, Lilia Bloom. Lilly had needed an adult, and she had found one.

It just happened that this adult was one that made heads turn even in her boring barista outfit, and now that she was wearing a long summer dress, it was way worse.

As she walked through Legendary-U, many forgot to breathe. As she walked through Legendary-U all sound died down. As she walked through Legendary-U, chaos reigned…

“This is insane. Don’t tell me she’s a guest speaker?!”

“Maybe it’s for a lesson on the Sylvaris plane!”

“We’re at peace with them, right?”

The Sylvaris plane, one that Dryads hailed from, and some elves, and another bunch of sylvest creatures, but the students were bound to be disappointed.

Lilia didn’t care about any of them.

She ignored them all, making her way toward the battle complex, and soon arrived at a gym with a red magical barrier and a huge sign blocking the way.

She’d recognize his smell anywhere. He was in there!

< TEMPORARY CLOSED! >

Stopping, she put her hand on it and…

“Let me in, little barrier.” Her Mana flared up and she easily passed through?! This left a bunch of students baffled and restless as they weren’t able to follow.

“What do you think’s behind that barrier?”

“I heard a teacher’s training in seclusion in there.”

“Yes, but why is she suddenly going in? Who is she?!”

The entirety of Legendary-U started talking about the mysterious Dryad, a topic that wouldn’t die even as the classes started in the morning.

And as for a certain professor Wilder who had gone out of his way to bring a tiny basilisk from home, well, no one gave a bloody damn anymore. All they could think about was HER!

Not that she’d mind or care…

She was here for one reason only: JACK!

That teacher had warned that they were doing training so intense he’d need a week at home to recover. Not on her watch! And as she entered, she noticed him instantly.

He was running across a Rainbow Road.

His skin oozed blood, he was full of black blemishes from falling too often, and his eyes looked utterly mad. Yet, he was running at full speed, an instructor watching on.

But as the latter saw her, he froze…

“Hello, instructor. So that’s the training, eh?”

“Ah?! That voice! You’re Jack’s mo— Wait, a dryad?! Are you his guardian or something?! I know it looks VERY bad, but I can promise you he’s fine. It’s just that—”

FUCK! FUCK! FUCK! He couldn’t help but sweat buckets, not expecting her to show up. Seeing this, he finally realized how much he had fucked up. She’d definitely complain!

The school board would be pissed at him again.

They’d probably suspend him once more.

He’d be stuck at home and—

Just as worst-case scenarios flashed past his mind, the dryad suddenly started gathering her power, so much power. Wait, was she going to attack the Rainbow Road?! OH GOD!

But then a second later…

WHOOSH! Vines and flowers exploded all over!

Actually, they came out of the holes in the gym floor, remnants of the previous night’s training. Then, dozens of trees appeared as showy as Christmas trees?!

And there were glowing mana words on them…

< Go Jack! You Got This! >

< Lilly believes in you, too! Always! >

< Show them how it’s done! Also, Marry me! >

…

A shell-shocked Training Instructor felt like the world had turned insane. Never mind, she wasn’t his guardian at all, but a cheerleader?! Seriously, who the fuck was that kid?!

Dryads were known to be quite misandrist. To them, men served only as fuel for their growth, and here was one cheering him on with a huge smile!

Then it got even worse… Jack had just fallen from the road once again. But as he saw the crazed scene, he acted as if everything was normal, smiling a little.

‘Today’s Saturday.’

‘Lilly called her to cancel the “secret” birthday party.’

‘Hearing that I was training, she wanted to cheer me on. I'm sure that's what happened.’

He felt a warmth inside him, yet he didn’t let it distract him for too long. To the Rainbow Road, he even enthusiastically gave the middle finger.

“Royal Road, eh? Even Kings fall? I’ll fall even more than all of them combined, so bring it on!”

“….”

“….”

“….”

Dryad cheering intensified.

She solidly planted her ass in the spectator stands. As for what spectator stands? She made them, foliage erupting all over the place. Nothing could have made her miss this.

A weak mortal struggling with all his might. A weak mortal defying his fate. A weak mortal with an existence that was so glowing right now. She burgeoned in awe.

And just like that, training resumed.

TRAINING!

TRAINING!

TRAINING!

…

All until the last day…

“That, I don’t have anything left to teach you.”

The first to admit defeat wasn’t Jack but the training instructor. He knew plenty more, but nothing he could teach the Quirkless Jack in the time left. He had also reached a small plateau.

“I understand. The rest is up to me, right?”

As the instructor nodded, Jack felt profound relief. Even now, he wasn’t sure how he had survived, the previous days feeling like a dream, but he wouldn’t question it either.

“Come on out, old friend….”

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“Thank you.”

He grasped it and… SHATTER!

As the flaming counter exploded in glowing particles, Jack felt at peace. He had felt like giving up so many times, but he had still done it, the first step of his insane plan.

It was over. It was really over. It was finally— as he wanted to thank his mentor, the world around him turned dark. Tired. So tired. Tired enough to sleep an eternity.

And even as he lost consciousness a smile appeared on his face.

Step one was done. Now for step two…