And the system's voice echoed in his mind.
[Congratulations! You have obtained an ability: "Half-Cold, Half-Burning."]
[This ability originates from "My Hero Academia."] "Wait... Half-Cold, Half... What?"
Souta froze for a moment.
"...HOLY SHIT! I GOT THAT?!"
The ability "Half-Cold, Half-Hot" belonged to Shoto Todoroki from My Hero Academia.
A Superpower from "My Hero Academia"
In My Hero Academia, superpowers were called "Quirks"—natural abilities people were born with.
Shoto Todoroki's Quirk allowed him to:
Freeze anything with his right side. Burn anything with his left side.
He could freeze an entire building in an instant.
He could wipe out enemies in one move.
Of course, Souta just got the ability.
At best, he could probably chill a soda can.
Also, the Quirk had a major weakness—
Using one side too much would cause frostbite or burns.
For Souta, this was no problem at all.
He had drunk the Elixir of Immortality.
His body would heal instantly.
Frostbite? Burns? He'd recover in seconds.
Pain? Well... he'd just have to endure it.
"This is actually pretty great..."
Souta muttered to himself, deep in thought.
Was this good luck or bad luck?
From a normal person's perspective, getting a superpower was incredible.
Way better than winning a soda.
Souta had watched a LOT of anime.
He knew how overpowered some abilities could be.
Compared to things like "The Mystic Eyes of Death Perception," "Vector Manipulation," "Dimensional Control," or "Ultimate Lies"...
"Half-Cold, Half-Hot" was strong, but... not insanely broken.
"No, no, no. Don't be greedy."
Souta shook his head and slapped his face.
He had gone from a regular person to an immortal, time-controlling, ice-and-fire-wielding superhuman.
And he was STILL complaining?
What was wrong with him?!
[System Notification: You have received an @mention from Tokisaki Kurumi.]
He exited the shop menu and checked his Friend Group chat.
Kurumi: "@Souta, we have a new member. Come and introduce yourself."
She didn't sound awkward at all.
Not even after she sneak-attacked him with a kiss before leaving.
Truly a woman with a mature heart.
"Right! I completely forgot about the new member!"
Checking the Chat History
Souta quickly scrolled up.
The new member's username was—
["The Beautiful and Noble Vampire."]
"The Beautiful and Noble... What?"
Unlike Kurumi, who used her real name, this new person chose a fancy nickname.
Their true identity was a mystery.
"Vampires... Which one?"
Souta immediately started thinking of vampire characters from anime.
Shalltear Bloodfallen (Overlord)
Remilia Scarlet (Touhou Project)
Flandre Scarlet (Touhou Project)
Krul Tepes (Seraph of the End)
Leticia Draculea (Problem Children Are Coming From Another World, Aren't They?)
Arcueid Brunestud (Tsukihime)
Even Alucard (Hellsing) had a loli form.
And "Beautiful" didn't mean "female."
If someone like DIO joined and called himself "The Beautiful and Noble Vampire", that would be hilarious.
Souta felt a chill down his spine.
Please don't be DIO. Please don't be DIO.
And the system never actually said that invitations were limited to just anime worlds.
It was called the "Multiversal(Myriad Worlds) Friendship System," not the "Anime Worlds Friendship System."
The range just got even wider! Checking the Chat History
Souta scrolled up to see Kurumi and the vampire's conversation.
At first, it was just typical small talk between two strangers.
Kurumi started explaining the system and its supernatural nature.
To prove her words, she suggested the vampire try throwing the phone away—as far as possible.
She even encouraged her to try breaking it, adding a confident challenge:
"If you can smash this phone, I'll admit defeat."
At first, the vampire didn't care.
She wasn't convinced.
A few moments later, her attitude did a complete 180°.
Her messages were now full of shock.
She definitely tried both throwing and smashing the phone.
"Looks like every new member is gonna go through this same verification ritual."
Time to Join the Chat
Souta finally typed in the group chat:
Souta: "@The Beautiful and Noble Vampire."
Souta: "Welcome, newbie. I guess you can say I'm the leader of this friend group. If you have any questions, feel free to ask. Also, if you don't mind, could you tell me your real name?"
Kurumi Immediately Noticed Him
Kurumi: "Souta, where have you been?"
Souta: "I was checking out the new system features—the Shop and the Mission System. I found some pretty interesting stuff. By the way, have you already returned?"
Kurumi: "Yes, I'm back in my world. I skimmed through the new features too, but unfortunately, the mission system is empty. No way to earn points yet."
Souta: "Yeah, looks like missions only trigger under specific conditions. We just have to wait. But did you see the 'Upload Item' feature in the Shop?"
Kurumi: "Upload Item? What's that?"
Souta explained how the "Upload Item" function allowed members to sell items, abilities, knowledge, and even lifespan for points.
To prove it, he pointed her to his first uploaded product—
A pack of instant noodles for 1 point.
Kurumi went silent for a few minutes—probably asking the system for more details.
She finally responded:
Kurumi: "This is an extremely convenient feature! Too bad we can only buy things with points and not trade items directly. Right now, it's useless."
Souta: "Yeah, without points, it's just an empty feature."
"When is the first mission gonna drop?!"
[Kurumi has uploaded an item: "One Bullet of the Fourth Bullet."]
Item Description: A time-interference bullet that can rewind the target's state by five seconds. (Note: Effectiveness may vary depending on the object.)
She actually uploaded one of her bullets?!
Could her abilities really be sold ?!
Kurumi's creativity was even wilder than his!
He felt a little ashamed—
"My first thought was to upload snacks. Maybe I really am just a dumbass."
Kurumi: "This is amazing! Even my bullets can be uploaded!"
Souta: "You just gave me an idea. If your bullets work... then maybe I can sell my lifespan too?"
He immediately tested it.
[Souta has uploaded an item: "100 Years of Lifespan."]
Item Description: A longevity-enhancing item that grants an additional 100 years of life.
"Holy crap, it works!"
Turns out, brainstorming with others was the best way to unlock hidden features.