Live A Hero Chapter 1 Episode 3: First Meeting with a Childhood Friend

Things pick up a little bit after from last time as we tune in to a point after Mokdai and Ryekie have Huckle on HoloSkype to inform him of what happened. Huckle says he understands the situation and thanks the two for their work. He also asks them to pass on to you his thanks for acting in his place for the battle with the thugs. Ryekie loudly promises to do so and starts talking about wanting Huckle's opinion on something, but Mokdai cuts him off to ask him to quiet down since it's work related stuff. He takes over explaining what he and Ryekie have been talking about in whispers, and you walk back in after having talked with the police and see them getting together. You wonder what they could be talking about, say you're interested but hang back since it must be confidential work stuff, or wish you were part of the conversation.

While Team Parallel Flight is talking, Akashi walks over and tries to talk to you, calling you by name. Narration notes that you saw him in that dream. Akashi starts asking what happened to you and when you became an Observer. You either refer to Akashi as that hero from that one time, be confused and refer to him as Tamamura-san since you heard his name being spoken, or say you wanted to see him. In A, Akashi is baffled and doesn't know what you mean by hero. He denies being one and says that as his childhood friend you should know that already. In B, Akashi is taken aback and wonders why you're treating him as a stranger, saying you can just call him by his first name. In C, Akashi is shocked when you suddenly hug him, telling you to not to do that in front of so many people even if you are childhood friends. He also questions if you ever were the quick to hug type and feels something is off.

Anyways, you ask Akashi what he means about you two being old friends. Akashi goes pale and anxious at this question, and he asks if you lost your memory Again. He reminds you that he's been friends with you since you were little kids and that he's playing baseball in college as he gives his name. He wonders what happened to you again and brings up the possibility you were eaten by a Kaibutsu Again. The old manager asks Akashi to come talk to him at this point, but Akashi brushes him off to plead for you to tell him. The manager yells for him to come, causing him to flinch and go over in dismay. He promises to call you later and asks you to tell him everything when he does. You wonder what just happened, call Akashi annoyingly familiar, or wonder if this is also part of what the Broker did.

Mokdai comes up to you and asks for a bit of your time, acting slightly more formal and polite than he was earlier. This is about the papers he was telling the police about, but he also says they want to hear what you think about something. He asks you to join their conversation. Ryekie looks to be in a good mood about something, and as soon as you sit down, Huckle starts to talk to you.

Huckle greets you and notes he hasn't seen you since that incident the other day, saying he's glad you aren't hurt. He apologetically talks about how you stood in for him again and thanks you for doing so. He'd like to repay you after he gets out of the hospital, but there's something he'd like to talk to you about in regards to something tangential. Ryekie takes his cue to stand up from his seat and presents to you a business card. He then asks if you have any interest in being a Hero Operator, saying they'd like to recruit you. You react in surprise at the idea.

Time skips to later that night, with you sitting in your room and mulling over the idea about whether or not to be a Hero Operator. You stare at the business card as you think some more, seguing into a flashback that continues the conversation from where it had left off. Huckle mentions that Mokdai has the papers describing the salary and work conditions to give to you. They won't press you into taking the job if you don't want it, just if you're interested in doing so. He admits it'll be dangerous work having to be where villains and Kaibutsu show up, and they can't guarantee your safety. If you want to try even for a little bit, then he invites you to call him and you guys can discuss some things. They'll welcome you gladly.

Back to the present, you take another look at the documents Mokdai sent you. Full time employee benefits include two days off a week, paid holidays, enrollment in social insurance, rental aid, and overtime pay being available. Much more substantial than other employee benefits. Huckle had mentioned that they're a small company so they couldn't pay that much, except you were paid quite a bit in addition to overtime. You comment that it's at least double your old job's pay, that you're surprised at how nice the conditions are, and/or wonder if the job is that dangerous.

A bell rings over the intercom as you continue reading the papers, leading you to wonder who it could be. When you check, you find Akashi is outside the front door. He apologizes saying he was planning on calling you, but then he got so worked up that he ended up coming over without thinking about it. He asks if he can talk to you, visibly distressed. You can choose to either open the door for him or choose to keep talking to him over the intercom.

For simplicity's sake I'll just describe A and summarize the differences that happen in B since the main parts run the same. So, when you open the door Akashi comes in, still looking anxious and giving you a brief greeting, thanking you for letting him in and apologizing for how sudden this is. You're a little taken aback and say it's fine and ask what brings him over. You can also ask how he knows where you live. C gets an extra line where Akashi is surprised and says he came by from time to time before figuring you must have forgotten that too.

Anyways, Akashi brings up that he said he wanted to ask you about things like he said earlier, so now he's here. You seem different from usual, and you seem to have forgotten him, so that's been bugging him. His brows furrow, and Akashi starts by asking if something happened to your body. What changed? How is it that you can use the power of an Observer? He's sure you're different from who he remembers, so he asks if you'll tell him. He seems frantic and about ready to cry, which stirs up a memory in you. It's of a time from when you were a child, one evening at the beach. What looks to be Akashi as a child is there, also looking ready to cry. But after you say something to him, he wipes his eyes and smiles. Back to the present, you say that you do remember him, though it's only hazy.

In B, the start of the branch has you asking if he's okay with talking over the intercom. He's disappointed you don't trust him but accepts that you've forgotten him. He agrees to continuing over the intercom, asking you to tell him whatever you can. Then it's after you have the flashback that you let Akashi in, and he says what he said then at this point instead. Either way, things converge with Akashi about to grab your hand before rethinking on that, asking if you want to talk outside and offering to buy you a drink as the episode ends.