At the League of Villains' hideout, a portal opened as Kurogiri activated his Quirk. Stain and the others stepped through, while Toga Himiko, upon spotting Midoriya, excitedly lunged at him—only to be effortlessly blocked and pushed aside, as if it was second nature to him.
"Welcome back. Mission accomplished?"
"Perfectly executed! Boss, here's the person you wanted."
The Magician casually tossed a small cylindrical object to Midoriya. Catching it with ease, Midoriya inspected it for a moment. Inside was none other than the president of the Hero Public Safety Commission, someone who had frequently appeared on television.
"Good job. Shinso, it's your turn now."
Midoriya tossed the small cylinder to Shinso Hitoshi, who caught it and immediately headed to a private room, understanding his role in the next phase. Meanwhile, Amajiki was in charge of extracting intelligence from their captive.
"The preparations are nearly complete. We can move on to the next step."
Midoriya Izuku fell into deep thought. Ever since he was a child, he had admired heroes. But in modern society, "hero" had become nothing more than a job title. While there were people like All Might who truly fought to help others, the same couldn't be said for most.
Why did someone like Stain, the Hero Killer, exist?
It wasn't just because hero work had become professionalized. Within the ranks of pro heroes, many had fallen into corruption, aligning themselves with villains for their own personal gain.
You couldn't judge a person's morality based on their label alone. Not all "villains" were evil, and not all "heroes" were good. Both sides had people who were simply acting in their own self-interest, their goals and motives tangled together.
Yes, there were heroes like All Might who fought purely to protect others. But there were also those who would do anything for fame and fortune—even cooperating with villains.
From his connections with the "Broker," Midoriya had obtained far more than just proof of government officials hiring villains. He had uncovered something even more disgusting: pro heroes working together with villains to stage fights, boosting their popularity through fake battles.
Midoriya understood the competitive nature of pro heroes fighting for public attention. It was something even U.A. had taught as a normal part of the profession. That, in itself, wasn't illegal.
But… competing for fame against fellow heroes wasn't always enough. Staging fights with villains had a much greater effect. Plenty of people had figured that out. At this point, it was hardly even a secret—pro heroes and villains working together had become just another part of society.
Of course, the public never saw any of this. These dirty secrets never made it to the news. But the Broker, an expert in the criminal underworld, had access to piles of evidence—documents proving countless shady deals. He wasn't thriving just by working with villains. He had plenty of connections among the pro heroes as well.
No one should be surprised. There was no need to doubt it. This kind of corruption had existed in the world since the beginning of time.
Before heroes, there were crooked cops. When pro heroes took over some of law enforcement's responsibilities, corrupt heroes simply took their place.
The flaws of human nature would always exist. Not even the gods could change that.
Even so, Midoriya Izuku found it absolutely disgusting. Seeing people hide behind the label of "hero" while working with villains made his blood boil.
This mission… this was the perfect chance to get rid of the unworthy heroes polluting society.
Midoriya mentally reviewed the steps he had completed so far:
"Shie Hassaikai's old man has helped set up the network, with the promise of restoring the Yakuza's influence."
"The 'Messenger of Hell' is in position."
"Now, all that's left is to bait the targets and draw them all in!"
The League of Villains was on the move again—or rather, Stain was. He had returned to his original mission, killing corrupt pro heroes. But this time, he wasn't acting alone.
Evidence had been leaked online, exposing the crimes of the heroes he had targeted. The proof was undeniable:
"A villain responsible for robbing banks and killing innocent people was supposedly stopped too late by a pro hero on patrol. In reality, they were working together to split the profits."
"A civilian was brutally murdered by villains. His only crime? He had posted online that he disliked a certain pro hero. That same hero had secretly hired villains to silence him."
The evidence of wrongdoing by several pro heroes, exposed and eliminated by the "Hero Killer" Stain, quickly spread across the internet, sparking a massive public outcry. People usually just complained about the government, but now they were shocked to discover such a dark side within the ranks of pro heroes.
To understand this, we have to ask: Why do negative stories about the Japanese government spread so easily, while scandals involving pro heroes are almost never seen online?
The answer is simple. While politicians prioritize their own interests, they're not foolish. Japan's current stability relies entirely on the existence of pro heroes. The government allows people to vent their frustration by calling them incompetent, but they absolutely cannot allow anyone to question the legitimacy of the hero system.
Even when they tried to suppress All Might, it was because he had become the "Symbol of Peace" in the eyes of the people. However, his overwhelming influence was starting to disrupt the stability of the hero society.
If All Might ever decided that he was unhappy with the status quo and wanted to change things, all it would take was a single word from him, and millions would rise up in response. That was what the Japanese government feared most.
At first, their plan was to slowly change hero laws and then carefully manipulate public opinion to chip away at All Might's reputation. This was a slow and controlled approach that wouldn't cause immediate chaos, something they could handle.
Their ultimate goal was to maintain a delicate balance: letting pro heroes and villains oppose each other to give the public a sense of security while secretly benefiting from the existence of villains.
You might think that if they simply eliminated crime, people would stop complaining. But that's naïve… People are never satisfied. Once they get used to a peaceful and comfortable life, they'll always find new things to be unhappy about and demand even better conditions.
The government had no interest in dealing with such an exhausting problem. Instead, they chose to secretly control a portion of the villains to create just enough chaos in society, allowing pro heroes to maintain order. This way, heroes would always seem necessary—because they had villains to fight.
By doing this, the government made people dependent on heroes. Whenever the public was dissatisfied, the government allowed them to vent by calling politicians useless. This approach kept things stable—at least on the surface.
But in the end… this was nothing more than a lazy, short-sighted plan from incompetent politicians. They weren't working toward a better future. They were just maintaining a fragile, fake peace. Eventually, someone was bound to rise up and shatter this illusion.
Midoriya Izuku was that person. He would lead the "League of Villains" to completely destroy this false peace. A society that refuses to move forward will eventually collapse under the weight of its own past.
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