My Hero Academia: The path of Resilience

"I'm so fucking bored." I mumble under my breath as I stare at the TV, another Sunday of doing absolutely nothing. The TV was currently showing an award ceremony for professional athletes. I couldn't help but scoff at this. These people were gifted the talents they had to make it up there on a golden platter. And what? They get an award? For Running around? Give me a break, these people have barely worked hard themselves a day in their entire lives. 

I grabbed the remote and turned the TV off as a feeling inside my chest started building up, one that I didn't want to admit to myself. Getting up from the couch, my steps echoed throughout my small messy apartment as I approached the fridge to grab a beer. Opening the door of my fridge was like opening the gates of hell, the only difference being that instead of seeing demons, all I see is barely anything to drink or eat. However, my fridge door this time represented the pearly white gates of the heavens because as I opened it, I saw a cold can of beer shining in the center of my bridge.

'Truly a divine oracle' I muttered in my head as I grabbed the beer and walked toward my balcony. The balcony door groaned as I slid it open, the crisp wind of the night rushing by me as goosebumps filled my body. Leaning on the metal rail, I took a long sip. Far in the distance, the view of the city far away filled my eyes. The city of the night as I liked to call it. Every Sunday it was my routine to look at it, a city filled with sons of bitches and spoiled brats who were handed down businesses. I truly hated looking at it, not because of its beauty, but because of its lies. If you worked hard, you could one day thrive enough to have the luxuries the city provided. 

I was raised by poor parents, so I never saw it in person, except for one time when I went on a field trip in elementary school. I don't even know why I stare at it; maybe inside my heart, I still wish to visit it. 

"Honey, if you work hard, I promise one day you'll accomplish whatever you want." My mother told me when I was young. I lived by that sentence for a short time until reality repeatedly stepped on me. 

"Are you truly this stupid?" A young man in my memories asked me with a mocking facial expression. Another sentence that had been stuck with me. Clenching the beer can, I couldn't help but be angry. Why was this world so fucking unfair? 

To be born into poverty.

To be born without talent.

To be born just… plain.

I hated it. I hated everything about it.

I deserved more. I worked harder than anyone else—pushed myself beyond my limits, sacrificed everything.

SO WHY?!

Why did nothing change? 

*WHACK*

The sound of the beer can hitting my balcony door resonated through the night as I took heavy breaths of desperation and anger. Closing my eyes, I took deep collective breaths. Getting angry was pointless. Taking one last glance at the city, I couldn't help but feel a heart-wrenching feeling. If only I was just born differently.

With that, I picked up the beer can and walked inside, yet another week full of envy. But, I would never tell that myself. Walking toward my bedroom, I glanced around my apartment. It was a mess, to say the least. I told myself I'd do it today but...let's just do it tomorrow. Taking off all my clothes except my boxers, I let my body hit the bed. 

As I lay on my cold bed, I stared at the ceiling, flashbacks of my entire life running through my mind. I hated all of it. Every single part. If only...

"If only I got a second chance..." I muttered to myself as I closed my eyes drifting off to sleep. Tomorrow, I have work, so I had better go to sleep.

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What the fuck.

The words slipped out in my head as I found myself in a predicament like no other.

I stood in what could only be described as… nothing. The world around me, if you could even call it that, was blindingly white, stretching infinitely in every direction. No walls, no floor, no ceiling. Just an endless expanse of pure white.

Wait… was it white? Or was it just the absence of everything else? I don't even know anymore.

I tried to take a step, but it didn't feel like stepping. More like… existing forward? I can't exactly describe the feeling. It was like I was floating. My sense of balance still worked, but I wasn't sure if I was actually moving.

And then I looked down.

Oh.

I had no body.

I was a transparent, ghostly humanoid in shape, but not quite real. I lifted my hands, but they weren't hands. They were outlines, like reflections on glass. I was like the outline of the human figure.

What the hell is this?

One moment I was dozing off in my room, and the next, I was… here. Did I die? Was this some kind of afterlife? A bug in reality? I may sound like I'm not panicking but I promise you every feeling of worry was running through my very being. I didn't even know what to think of the situation itself.

I was just hoping this was all a vivid dream.

"Come in."

'OH SHIT!'

A voice. Deep and ancient. Resonated through me, shaking me to my nonexistent core. I staggered around or at least, I think I did, whipping my head around in search of the source.

That's when I saw it. A single, wooden door stood a few feet ahead of me. A door. In the middle of absolute nothingness. That is not scary at all. Especially with the voice that just spoke to me.

I do not want to go in that door. Like at all. This seems like the beginning of a horror movie that I don't want to be a part of.

"You'll be fine child. I promise I won't hurt you."

Yet again the voice resonated inside me. He was speaking directly to my head. So it's safe to say that this being has power to do things that I clearly cannot handle. I started weighing down the options, which I would normally slap myself for even thinking, however, now since I'm literally in the middle of nothing, I was slowly starting to lose my mind.

I swallowed.

Okay… so, do I go in?

Logically, no. But honestly? At this point, nothing makes sense. I might as well see where this goes.

I took a breath which again was weird, because I wasn't sure if I even had lungs anymore.

Then, cautiously, I reached for the handle.

And I turned it.

Swinging the door open, I was instantly pulled into what could only be described as the sky itself. There was no ground beneath me, no walls to contain me—just an endless expanse of blue, stretching in every direction.

And yet, in the middle of this surreal scene, a small wooden table floated in midair. Seated behind it was an elderly Japanese man, his face lined with age but carrying a warm, almost knowing smile. His yukata fluttered slightly, despite the absence of any wind. As I stared at him I was almost brought to tears, it wasn't his appearance but his presence. Something about him was otherworldly.

As we made eye contact, his lips curled into a smile, "Come sit down child." He told me, I didn't have any words to say as I 'Walked' toward him, sitting in front of him. We stared at each other in an awkward silence, which was for some reason somewhat comforting. I think the scenery was the reason for that.

"I'm sure you have many questions. However, your time here is limited, so allow me to answer them for you."

His voice was gentle, yet it carried a weight that made it impossible to ignore. I found myself nodding instinctively, hanging on to every word.

"First, this is not a dream. You have, unfortunately, passed away."

I felt my nonexistent stomach drop. 

"Second, this is not the afterlife. This place, if you must call it something, is a realm between life and death. Something beyond human comprehension. So don't overthink it."

That was easy for him to say. I'm literally sitting in the sky floating.

"And lastly," he continued, his warm smile never faltering, "I am indeed a being of a higher existence. Whatever you think I am, a god, an overseer, a divine entity—I assure you, I am much more than that."

With that, his brief lecture came to an end, leaving me to sit there, trying to process it all.

Well damn. So I'm dead huh, always thought I'd go out some way, but not this way. 

'Now that I think about it, I'm taking these news a lot better than I would think I would.' I told myself in my head, well then again. Before I died, I wasn't living 'life' I was just kind of alive.

"So what happens now?" I ask the being before me with a monotone voice, what awaits me after death, I wonder. There was a certain thrill building up inside me. 

"Well..." He paused and glanced to the side, as if something caught his eyes, "normally you'd repeat the cycle of reincarnation or go to heaven, but for you, you have a different option." He answered, his voice having a hint of playfulness. And his eyes...they had a scheme in them.

That's why I couldn't help but ask, "Why do I get a different choice?"

The being's smile didn't waver, but something in his eyes, unfathomable to say, seemed to gleam with amusement.

"I have met an infinite number of souls, and I will continue to meet countless more. Every interaction, every moment, I remember them all, as clearly as if they happened just a second ago." His voice carried an eerie certainty, as if time itself bent to his will.

"But you… you are simply a moment among moments. A ripple in an ocean of inevitabilities." He tilted his head slightly. "And sometimes, when the tide is still, I choose to stir the waters. To see where the current may lead."

He chuckled. A sound that was both lighthearted and impossibly deep, as if layered with voices from countless lifetimes.

"Call it fate."

His words should have given me clarity, but instead, they only left me more unsettled. Was this truly luck? Or was there something else at play? Some hidden design I wasn't seeing?

Regardless, none of that mattered if I didn't even know what this so-called choice was.

I took a deep breath, the unease creeping up my spine and steadied my voice.

"Then… what exactly is this option?"

The old man's smile deepened, as if he had been waiting for me to ask that very question from the moment I arrived. There was an air of amusement in his gaze, like a puppeteer watching his marionette take its first steps alone.

And then, with a wave of his hand, something massive materialized beside him.

A roulette wheel.

It towered over us, its golden rim gleaming against the endless sky. The sections on it were filled with names, some written in elegant calligraphy, others scrawled in chaotic, almost unreadable script. I couldn't make out all of them, but I had a sinking feeling that I wasn't going to like what I saw.

"You have been given the opportunity by yours truly, to be reborn," the being explained, tapping a wooden ruler against his palm like a patient teacher.

Since when did he have that?

"With your memories, your personality, yourself. The only difference is that this time, the world you enter will be… different."

He raised the ruler and pointed it at the wheel.

"This roulette holds a finite number of universes."

Then, with a chuckle that sent a shiver down my spine, he added,

"The catch? Every single one of these worlds is from an anime—the very genre you detested in your past life."

My breath hitched. He can't be fucking serious.

Anime. That shit show for geeks. That waste of time filled with ridiculous plots, overpowered protagonists, and unrealistic nonsense. I hated it to my very core.

And now, my entire future would be decided by where this cursed wheel landed?

This had to be a joke. A cosmic prank at my expense. Literally.

I narrowed my eyes. "This seems sketchy. But then again, it's my choice. What if I just picked the heavens?"

The being's expression didn't change, but there was something almost pitying in his tone when he answered,

"You could choose that path. However…" He leaned forward slightly, as if sharing a secret. "The heavens aren't as glorious as mortals believe. You live as a god, yes, but I assure you—after a few millennia, even divinity becomes a chore. Time loses meaning. Desires fade. Emotions? They dull into nothing.

He rested his chin on his hand, smiling knowingly.

"The heavens are full of idle souls who have long forgotten what it means to feel."

I swallowed hard.

A place where existence stretched endlessly, where emotions faded into nothingness? That sounded less like paradise and more like an eternal, empty void. But then again, it is the heavens so maybe it isn't exactly like he says. 

Was that really a better option than this though?

I glanced back at the roulette, the weight of my decision settling in. 

"And reincarnation?" I asked, still weighing my options.

The old man let out a small chuckle, tapping the ruler against the roulette.

"Ah, yes. That's always an option. But understand this—the 'you' standing before me now would cease to exist. Your memories, your thoughts, your very essence… all wiped away. You wouldn't be you anymore."

He leaned back, eyes twinkling with amusement.

"You could be reborn as a lawyer, a beggar, a warlord… or even a stray cat wandering the streets." He paused, letting the weight of his words sink in. "Who knows? Even I don't decide that outcome."

His smile sharpened.

"I call it a roll of the dice."

I see.

With this, there was nothing left to hesitate over. My choice was already made.

Before I died, however that happened, something I may never know, I had always wished for a second chance. A chance to do things differently. To live without regrets.

And now, that chance was right in front of me.

I wouldn't waste it.

I didn't care where that roulette landed. No matter what universe I was thrown into, no matter the odds stacked against me, I would carve out my own path. I would live to the fullest, on my terms.

I clenched my fists and met the being's gaze with a resolve even I was unaware of.

"Roll that damn roulette and let's see where I'm going next."

The old man's smile widened.

He seemed… proud.

Then, without another word, the roulette wheel began to spin.

Faster. Faster.

A blur of names and worlds flashed before my eyes, my fate hanging in the balance, left to the whims of fate and destiny. And yet, despite everything, I felt something unexpected stirring inside me.

Excitement.

For the first time in a long while…I was actually having a little bit of fun.

The wheel began to slow, each tick of the arrow expanding the anticipation in my chest. The weight of this moment pressed over my shoulder, whispering that this choice, this single instant, would define my next life.

The arrow crept past familiar names. Attack on Titan. Naruto. Baki.

I held my breath as it neared Darling in the Franxx, that universe had a nice tone to it, but I wasn't going to be fooled by that.

But just as I thought my fate had been sealed, the roulette gave one final click.

And the arrow landed.

My Hero Academia.

My heart pounded as I stared at the result. I don't know much of it, but I remember it being about a world of heroes and villains. 

And soon…

It would be my world. 

Holy fuck.

"Well, well, well… looks like you dodged a bullet." The old man chuckled, his voice laced with amusement. "My Hero Academia, huh? Quite the world. You'll have your work cut out for you."

With a snap of his fingers, the roulette vanished into thin air.

And then, another one appeared in its place.

This wheel was different. It was slightly smaller, but instead of a single arrow, there were two, one on each end. The air around it felt charged, as if whatever lay within it held more weight than the first.

Tapping his ruler against the rim, the old man's smile grew wider, his tone carrying a hint of excitement.

"Since you're new to this, I'll grant you a little advantage—something most never receive." He paused, waiting to make sure I was paying attention.

I was.

"This roulette decides your internal potential. Think of it as your foundation. There are hundreds of names on this wheel, each belonging to an anime character with a distinct quality or trait. Since you're entering a world with a certain power structure, I've handpicked every individual in this, ones that won't make you overpowered from the start, but will set you on a path toward greatness."

His words hung in the air for a moment.

I frowned. "But I don't know anything about anime characters," I admitted, slightly uneasy. "How am I supposed to make use of this if I don't even understand what I'm getting?"

The old man let out a small laugh.

"That won't be a problem." His eyes gleamed, I could tell he was prepared for this question. "Once you're transferred, it'll be inherent. You won't just know—you'll feel it, deep in your very core. You won't start with their full strength, but the potential? The ability to reach it? That will be yours."

I clenched my fists while I took a deep breath.

"Then let's get on with it."

And once again, the roulette began to spin.

Faster. Faster.

The twin arrows blurred into motion, each passing second accelerating the wheel to an almost dizzying speed. My eyes stayed locked onto them—because this time, I wasn't just getting thrown into a world.

I was inheriting something. Two things. Two names. Two sets of traits and qualities.

That was good. More than good. Two was always better than one.

The seconds stretched, dragging time into an unbearable crawl. It felt like an eternity—though, in reality, it was barely a minute before the wheel began to slow.

This time, however, I had a problem.

The names were Japanese. Not written in them but they were clearly names I knew fucking nothing about.

My stomach tightened as the arrows ticked closer and closer to their final landing. I had no idea whose potentials I was about to have, no clue what kind of strengths I was about to inherit.

Then.

*Click. Click.*

The wheel came to its final stop.

Two names burned themselves into my mind.

Yuujirou Hanma.

Taro Sakamoto.

I exhaled, my heartbeat hammering in my chest.

I didn't know who they were. But they are technically a part of me now. 

"I have to say, for someone who doesn't even know who these people are…"

The old man chuckled, shaking his head in disbelief.

"You hit the jackpot."

There was a glint of amusement in his eyes, almost as if even he couldn't believe where the roulette had landed. I wasn't sure what to think yet, but I supposed I'd take that as a good sign.

It was all decided now.

The world I would be reborn into.The gifts I would inherit to survive in it.

My second chance.

The roulette dissolved into nothingness, leaving only the two of us in the endless sky once more.

The old man let out a soft sigh, his warm smile never fading. But now, beneath that grandfatherly expression, I could sense something else.

Disappointment.

And maybe… just maybe… I felt it too.

Talking to him was like speaking to a being who held all the answers. A guide beyond human comprehension, yet strangely human in the way he carried himself.

His next words came gently, like the closing of a book.

"Do you have any questions?"

I knew this was it. My final moment here before I was sent to begin anew. I could ask him anything—the meaning of life, the mysteries of the cosmos, the truth behind existence itself.

But my mind went in only one direction.

"Will I ever see you again?"

For the first time, he didn't answer immediately.

He simply stared at me, his smile unwavering, his posture relaxed yet solid—as if he carried the weight of life and death on his shoulders but bore it with the grace of a man at peace.

Finally, he spoke.

"Who knows?" His voice was neither distant nor cryptic. Just honest.

"Even I cannot control fate."

A pause. Then, with a knowing look, he added.

"But I will say this… You, my child, have no need to meet me again. You have been given a new life, a new path to walk. So, from one fleeting speck of existence in this vast universe to another…"

His eyes locked onto mine.

"Live it to the fullest."

And with that, the world turned to black.