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Chapter Text

Izuku heaved a sigh of relief as he slipped into the public library. Even Bakugo wasn’t so arrogant as to try and start a fight in here. Izuku would simply have to wait until he and his lackeys got bored and left.

In the meantime, he chose to peruse the many books on offer.

It was about ten minutes later, as Izuku had decided to pick out a book on Pre-Quirk Wars that something caught his eye.

An old, faded book that certainly didn’t look like it belonged amongst the many others the library had to offer.

For some reason, Izuku found himself drawn to it.

Carefully, he pulled the book from its shelf and read the title.

“Four Cardinal Heroes?” He questioned. Some kind of fantasy novel?

Curiously, he opened the book. As a flash of light engulfed him, Izuku yelped, clutching the book to his chest as he vanished, just a few seconds before the curious librarian stuck her head into the room he was just in.

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Inko Midoriya sobbed within her living room. Izuku, her precious son, had been missing for weeks, as if he had vanished into thin air. Was he dead? Did society’s abuse of Quirkless finally push him over the edge? Did someone kill him!? The stress of not knowing had gotten to her, and the police weren’t helping matters.

Suddenly, a bright flash of green light erupted in the living room, fading to reveal a group of three.

One was none other than Izuku himself, dressed like he was going to a LARPing convention, with a strange shield on his arm.

The second was a young lady about Izuku’s age with brown hair, animal like ears, and a tail that invoked a Tanuki. She was holding a katana.

The third was a little girl with lovely blonde hair and a pair of fluffy wings, invoking the appearance of an Angel.

“Alright! It worked!” Izuku yelled triumphantly, turning to see his mother, who had obviously been crying, staring in disbelief. “Oh, uh… Hi mom! So, funny story. I found this weird book that transported me to another world, and uh… long story short… So this is Raphtalia!” He gestured to the Tanuki girl. “She’s uh… We’re engaged. Oh! And this is Filo!” He gestured to the Angel child. “Our daughter! Adopted of course!”

There was a moment of awkward silence.
Filo tugged Inko’s sleeve

“Can Filo call you grandma?”

Inko fainted.

“Rafu?” Raph-Chan poked her head out of Izuku’s bag.

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Inko groaned as she sat up on the couch.

“Mom, are you okay?” Izuku asked worriedly.

“Oh sweetie, I just had the weirdest dream.”

“Did it involve me going missing for a few weeks only to suddenly reappear with a Tanuki and a little girl?”

“Yes… How did you know?”

“It wasn’t a dream.” Izuku pointed over towards Raphtalia and Filo, who were looking over the TV in awe.

“Right… We’ll then. I’m going to pass out for another few hours, then I’ll get started on dinner. Sound good?”

“Sure thing mom.”

Inko promptly fainted.

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Inko promptly shot up.

“I’M A GRANDMA!!” She practically screamed as she dragged Filo into a bone crushing hug.

RETURN OF THE SHIELD DEKU:

{Raphtalia-San, we couldn’t find any hint of you or Filo-Chan in any of the registries. Furthermore, neither of your names sound Japanese.}

{Yes, Filo and I aren’t from this country, but Izuku has been teaching us Japanese. We still struggle from time to time though.}

{A few weeks is quite a short time to teach someone fluent Japanese.}

{…He’s a VERY good teacher.}

{…Alright, can you tell me how you and Izuku Midoriya first met?}

{He saved me from a lifetime of slavery. I will forever be grateful for that.}

{Slavery!? So your parents…}

{Died a long while ago. Please, It’s a subject I’d rather not broach.}

{I see… And Filo-Chan?}

{She practically latched onto Izuku and I as her parents the moment she first laid eyes on us-}

The recording paused.

“You can see why I brought this to you.” Tsukauchi sighed. Small paws clapped together.

“Indeed. You said that everything they told you was true, yet it’s clear from watching the video that Raphtalia-San was deliberately wording her story to be as vague as possible while still making it so your Quirk registered them as true. Was it the same for the other two?”

“Yeah, even that Filo girl did a pretty good job of wording her way around my Quirk.”

“Most likely Midoriya informed them of the rumors of there being a detective with a lie detector Quirk and planned accordingly.” Nedzu mused.

“No matter how I tried pressing, none of them would give me a straight answer. But the most worrying part is when Midoriya got fed up and told me flat out that ‘Telling me the full story would only succeed in putting Raphtalia and Filo in danger.’. A statement that my Quirk registered as completely true!”

“How fascinating. But also disturbing. I looked into Izuku Midoriya, and he was registered as Quirkless up until his reappearance. Now he has a power, one that requires a shield as a focus.”

“You don’t think… HE is involved, do you?” Tsukauchi asked.

“It would certainly explain why they don’t want to explain too much about the whole situation.”

“I thought All Might killed him.”

“While All Might himself seems to believe so, the unfortunate truth is that his body was never recovered. On top of that, we didn’t know for sure what Quirks he had on him. The chances are he’s either still alive, or he had a secret offspring with a similar Quirk. However, we must also consider the very real possibility that Midoriya is a late bloomer with an Aberrant Quirk.”

Ah, Aberrant Quirks. The extremely rare occurrence of a child manifesting a Quirk that didn’t resemble anything on either side of their family. Quirks in this category tended to be either really powerful, really dangerous, or, most terrifyingly, really powerful AND really dangerous.

Luckily, it would seem that Midoriya’s new Quirk, Cardinal Shield, fell into the first category.

“Either way, we should inform All Might, just in case. Now, onto the requests Midoriya made. He asked that both Raphtalia and Filo be granted full Japanese citizenship, as well as allowing him and Raphtalia to officially adopt Filo as their daughter.”

“Prime Minister Organa owes me a few favors, so getting them citizenship won’t be an issue.”

“I figured as much. It’s the adoption that’s the issue. Legally at least on of them has to be 25 to adopt a child. However, I talked it over with Inko and Hisashi Midoriya, and they agreed to be Filo’s legal guardians until either Midoriya or Raphtalia are of age to officially adopt her, it’s simply a matter of drafting up the paperwork.”

“I will aid in that as well. For now, we should keep an eye on young Midoriya. That boy… he’s very interesting.”

X

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Inko honestly didn’t know what to think. Izuku’s stories about another world were all so much to take in. According to Izuku himself, while only a few weeks had passed in this world, it was a lot longer in the other world.

It showed.

Her once meek, if overly kind son had taken on a more cynical edge to his personality. Yes, he was still the same kind hearted boy deep down, but now…

One of the first things he did after returning was ask to pull out of Aldera so that he and Raphtalia could do online schooling.

Deep down, Inko was relieved. She knew Izuku had been bullied at that school, but he would never say anything about it, apparently not wanting to worry her, and not realizing that it just worried her MORE when he came home with injuries he wouldn’t explain.

She wasn’t stupid. She recognized that the burn marks looked way too similar to Katsuki’s Quirk to be a coincidence, but she never had any proof beyond that, especially since Aldera would go out of their way to stonewall her when she demanded answers.

She assured Izuku that he wouldn’t have to be afraid of the kids at Aldera anymore.

“Oh, no. That’s not why I’m pulling out. Frankly, I don’t really care about those guys anymore. I just don’t want Raphtalia and Filo going to prison for murdering Bakugo.”

…

The scariest part? Raphtalia and Filo were practically saints, and Inko could still see them actually going through with that.

There was one thing she could take comfort in. Despite Izuku’s newfound cynicism, she could tell that Raphtalia and Filo were very dear to him. Inko saw the way Izuku’s expression softened when it came to those two, saw how Izuku and Raphtalia snuggled together in front of Izuku’s computer as they did their online schooling, how Izuku sat down with Filo to watch movies over a cup of hot cocoa or bring her new toys to play with or even tucking her in as she snuggled in bed with Raph-Chan…

She could tell that those three had become a family during Izuku’s time in that other world, and Inko couldn’t wait for them to graduate High School so she could put together Izuku and Raphtalia’s wedding.

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“It’s so big.” Raphtalia mused as she looked at the towering form of U.A. High. “Are you sure it’s not a castle?”

“Trust me, it’s a school.” Izuku laughed. The two of them certainly got odd looks from the other students coming for the Entrance Exam, though that was most likely because they, unlike most other kids, weren’t in uniforms.

“…He’s here, isn’t he? That Bakugo boy you talked about?”

“Yeah, I saw him go in ahead of us.” Izuku sighed. “Don’t worry. I’m not concerned. Frankly, Bakugo really isn’t nearly as bad as the stuff we faced.” He took her hand and gave her a warm smile that she reciprocated.

It was as they were about to enter the building that something happened.

They saw a girl with long, messy, chartreuse hair smack face first into the ground as another girl with short, brown hair and a permanent blush walked away from her with an amused snort.

“What the fu…” Izuku and Raphtalia made their way over to the girl, helping her to her feet. “Are you okay?”

“I think ith broken…” The girl mumbled as she tenderly touched her nose, which was gushing blood and was quickly starting to bruise.

“What happened? Did she trip you?” Raphtalia asked as Izuku began digging through his bag.

“I don’t know… It happened tho fatht…”

“Here, take a sip of this.” Izuku said as he offered up a healing potion. The girl gingerly took a sip, then yelped as her nose stopped bleeding and promptly fixed itself.

“Oh wow, what IS that!?” The girl exclaimed as she wiped blood from her face.

“Just uh… Just something I made. Don’t worry, it’s completely safe.” Izuku assured.

“Thanks so much! My name’s Toru, by the way! Toru Hagakure!”

“I’m Izuku Midoriya, and this is my fiancé, Raphtalia Iwatani.” Izuku replied, using the legal name Raphtalia had been given with her citizenship, though she insisted she would be taking Izuku’s family name when they finally married.

“Wow! A little young to be engaged, huh?” Hagakure asked, her team and yellow eyes, flicking between them.

“I mean… I love her, and it’s not like we won’t be waiting until after High School to get married.”

“Eh, fair.” Hagakure shrugged. “Anyway, thanks for the help! See you guys inside!” With that, she turned and ran in, leaving Izuku and Raphtalia alone.

Izuku cleared his throat.

“So then…” He held up his shield. “Shall we?”

“We shall.” Raphtalia confirmed, holding up her Vassal Katana.

And with that, the two made their way inside.

Chapter Text

“If it isn’t too much trouble, I would be more then happy to join the Shield Hero’s party.”

Izuku blinked at the red haired woman. He had only been in this world for about a day, and already problems were starting to crop up.

Somehow, the King had procured party members for all of the Cardinal Heroes except for him, chalking it up as a mistake.

That would have been fine, but something just felt… Off about the whole situation.

He would have liked nothing more then to except the girl’s offer.

The problem was that his lack of self esteem promptly overwrote any confirmation that would have escaped his lips.

“I… Thank you for your generous offer, but… If I’m going to be honest, I really don’t think I deserve this shield, and with my abysmal attack stat and low level, I honestly think I’d be more of a hindrance to you, especially since I’m sure you’re higher level then me. If it’s okay with you, it might be best for me to try and figure things out first, maybe try and find a party member closer to my level first, and if you still want to join my party then, I’d be happy to have you!” Izuku said with a glowing smile.

“…Are you quite sure Shield Hero? I’m quite sure it would be no trouble at all.” There was the briefest flash of annoyance on the king’s face.

“It’s fine. No trouble at all. I really would feel better if I had the chance to earn this power anyway. After all, it’s like the others said, this whole thing kinda came out of nowhere soit’snotlikeihaveanyexperiancewithactuallcombatthoughbeingaprimarilydefensivetypeicsnimaginethatactuallybeatingenemieseouldbequitealotofworkand-“

“All right! You made your point!” The king interrupted. “Just… Just take the coin and go.”

X

Izuku sat near a fountain, pondering as he looked at the coin in his hand.

As it turned out, he could gain new shields and abilities by absorbing items into his shield. He had already absorbed some of the items he had on hand, such as his cellphone and the book that brought him to this world.

He looked at the coin curiously.

“I wonder…” He mused.

He promptly absorbed the coin into his Shield.

BANK SHIELD UNLOCKED:

ALLOWS USER TO SAFELY STORE MONEY WITHIN THEIR SHIELD. USEFUL IN PROTECTING AGAINST THEFT.

“All right!” Izuku cheered, depositing his coins into the Bank Shield. Afterwards, he stood up, contemplating his next move. He made his way towards the nearest gate. He needed to earn experience after all! He just needed to grind on the weakest enemy he could find. Even with just one point to his attack stat, it shouldn’t be TOO bad!

X

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“This isn’t going to work.” Izuku mumbled as he dragged his feet back into the city.

In the hour he had been gone, he had only managed to take out two balloon monsters. The first by punch it repeatedly, the second by dropping a large rock on it.

Both actions left him completely exhausted.

Even worse when he caught glimpses of his fellow Heroes cutting the things down like they were made of wet tissue paper.

He needed to find a way to earn experience that didn’t risk him dying of exhaustion.

He caught sight of a blacksmith’s shop nearby, and his eyes lit up as an idea came to mind.

The Legendary Shield prevented him from wielding any non shield weapon such as swords and bows, but…

They never said anything about ABSORBING other weapons!

…

No, wait, that still wouldn’t do anything about his abysmal attack stat.

Izuku sighed.

Still, he could do with some gear and maybe he could even copy some shields.

Izuku had given the book that brought him to this world a good read before absorbing it into his shield, so he had a pretty good idea how things worked in this world.

He walked into the blacksmith’s shop.

“Uh… Excuse me?” The blacksmith, a large man with a shaved head and plenty of scars across his face and arms stood. His eyes briefly traveled to Izuku’s shield.

“So, one of the Legendary Heroes in my humble shop. To what do I owe the pleasure?”

“Ah, please sir, you’re giving me too much credit.” Izuku replied in embarrassment. “I haven’t exactly done anything yet. Anyway, I was hoping to get some gear and maybe copy some of the shield in your stock?”

“Copy?”

“Oh! Yeah! I can get stat boosts by copying different types of shields. I’ll pay of course! I know you worked really hard to make this stuff so I’m not about to go ripping you off-“

“Okay, okay.” The man stated. “Let me see what I’ve got on hand.”

“Thank you sir.”

“Call me Erhard kid. ‘Sir’ Makes me feel old.”

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Izuku left the shop after about half an hour. Erhard turned out to be a pretty friendly man and Izuku ended up chatting with him. He walked out with some new chestplate and several copied shields when he saw a plump, older woman with graying red hair that vaguely reminded Izuku of his mother struggling to move a cart of supplies.

Naturally, Izuku’s decent human being-ness kicked in.

“Ma’am? Do you need any help?”

“Oh? That’s very kind of you young man, but I’m afraid it’s quite a walk. I need to take these to the other side of the city.”

“It’s alright, I don’t mind helping. I don’t have a lot on my plate at the moment anyway.”

“How sweet. Thank you so much.” The woman stated as Izuku helped push the heavy cart. “Used to be my husband would do this, but he can’t anymore after he lost his leg, and the girl we’ve got in the kitchen was too swamp with orders to come help me, I really need to hire some extra hands.”

“Oh, do you own a restaurant?”

“An inn. One near the eastern gate. A bit smaller than the one closer to our current position, but it’s been in my family for generations.”

“So, why come all the way to the other side of town for supplies?”

“I know some of the shopkeepers around here, so I can usually get better deals that are worth the walk.”

Izuku continued his polite conversation with the woman, who he learned was named Amalie, until they finally reached the inn.

Izuku knew she had glanced at his shield a few times, but, to his gratitude, she said nothing. She did shoo him away when he offered to help store all the supplies she bought, saying she could handle it from here. Though she insisted he take a discount on room rental for helping her, to which Izuku obliged by renting a room for the next few days.

He also got to meet her husband Abaddon, a retired knight who had settled down with his wife to run the inn after a training incident cost him his leg. Now, he wobbled around the inn on a crutch regaling patrons of his life stories.

Eventually, Izuku had decided to order some food before he set out to find some party members.

“Anything’s fine.” Izuku said as he looked over the menu. “Unless you know how to make Katsudon, that is.”

“Katsudon?” Amalie repeated. “I’m afraid I’ve never heard of that dish sonny.”

“Yeah, I kind of figured.” Izuku chuckled. “Surprise me.”

As he waited for his food, Izuku sat going over the current gear he had. Finally, Amalie brought out a bowl of food.

“Thank you so mu- wait, Katsudon!?” Izuku stared in disbelief at what was indeed a fried pork cutlet over a bed of rice and vegetables.

“Wouldn’t you know it, our cook actually knows of the dish and how to make it! And it does look like a fairly hearty dish. I’m considering adding it to the menu.” Izuku looked around to where the kitchen was, spotting a blue haired girl around his age prepping food.

“Your cook… She doesn’t look like she’s from here.” Izuku mused. Amalie sighed.

“The hunter who supplies the local butcher found the poor lass unconscious outside of town in rather odd clothing. We can’t have children. My husband got into an incident with a wild Filolial in his youth and is barren because he underestimated how hard they can kick. But we’ve always wanted children, so we took her in. She’s terribly shy, but she’s also a fantastic cook, so it works out putting her in the kitchen. I can’t help but feel sorry for the dear though. She can’t remember anything about her personal life other than that her name is Aoi.”

‘Aoi…? That’s a Japanese name.’ Izuku thought. ‘Is it possible she’s from mine or one of the other Heroe’s worlds? If so, how did she end up here?’

The four Heroes had quickly discovered they were from different versions of earth after Izuku broached the topic of Quirks, to everyone’s confusion.

Motoyasu and Ren quickly lost interest after Izuku told them he was one of the small population from his world who didn’t have a power to call his own, though Itsuki did seem pretty interested in hearing about Izuku’s world for some reason, even if the Bow Hero declined to speak of his own world.

He decided he would get nowhere sitting here pondering, so after finishing his food (Which was a close second to his mom’s Katsudon, to his joy.), he made his way back to the streets with the intent of finding a party member.

If he could find a Guild somewhere, he could-

“My my, that shield…” Izuku jumped, startled by the short man that had appeared from nowhere. “That is… One of the four Legendary Weapons, correct? Whatever is one of the Cardinal Heroes doing wandering the city without a party to his name? Especially the one Hero who can’t even deal damage?”

“I’m… Trying to rectify that.” Izuku said. “Do you need something sir?”

“Ah! It’s not I who’s in need of something. Luckily for you Shield Hero, I can help solve your current problem!”

“Can you now?”

“If you would follow me into my tent?”

Izuku stood there wearily.

“I assure you young man! I’m a legitimate businessman who simply has your best interests at heart! Here, perhaps this will ease your concerns!” He held out an embroidered paper that Izuku looked at.

“It says here you’re a monster trader. What does that have to do me getting a party?”

“Well, monster trading is ONE of my business ventures. If you’ll kindly follow me inside, we can discuss it further.”

Against his better judgement, Izuku chose to follow the man inside.

He quickly understood why the man was being so secretive.

Cages containing what the book that brought him here described as Demi-Humans and Beastmen. Each bearing a mark upon their chest.

It didn’t take Izuku long to put two and two together.

“These are slaves, aren’t they?”

“Now what’s with that look? I assure you, slavery of Demi-Humans and Beastmen is both legal and accepted here in Melromarc.”

“That doesn’t make it RIGHT!” Izuku seethed, close to blowing up on the man.

“I take it that means you won’t be purchasing one?”

“I am morally and ethically opposed to-“

A series of violent coughing cut Izuku off. His head whipped around.

There, in a cage, was sickly Demi-Human child. A girl with the ears and tail of a Tanuki going through a violent coughing fit.

Izuku didn’t realize he had even walked over to her.

“Ah, that one? I must admit, I don’t have hopes that one will survive long, especially when fighting the Waves. Or is it simply that you have a bleeding heart for children? Go on, ask her anything. Her Slave Crest will ensure she answers.”

“Uh… Hey there… Can you tell me your name?”

“R-Raphtalia…” The girl managed to get out through coughs.

Izuku felt his heart break as he took in just how scrawny and sickly the child was.

How could these people be so sick in the head!?

“So what do you say to forty silver?”

Izuku knew he had no choice. Raphtalia would die if left in this cage. But he also couldn’t afford to spend his money recklessly.

Luckily, he learned a few things about haggling from watching his dad.

“Forty silver? For a kid that you yourself said didn’t have very good chances? In my world, we call charging more than something’s worth highway robbery, so how about 15 silver?”

“30 is as low as I’ll go.”

“It would be a shame if the guards found out you were selling overpriced defective wares. 15 silver.”

He expected the man to get angry at the not so subtle threat.

Instead, he burst out into jovial laughter.

“Oh! I like you! Very well Shield Hero, 15 silver.”

Izuku mentally sighed.

“If you’ll just come with me, I need to mix some of your blood with the Slave Crest ink to mark you as the girl’s master.”

“I would prefer to just remove the brand outright.”

“Ah, I would not recommend that. A free Demi-Human walking around in this country is likely to be either lynched or forcibly enslaved by someone else, both of which would be perfectly legal. With the Slave Crest however, she would be under legal protection as your property.”

Izuku sighed.

“Fine.” He submitted some of his blood, which the man mixed with some ink, then proceeded to tattoo said ink onto Raphtalia’s chest.

Finally, after the man, Beloukas, expressed interest in doing business with him again, Izuku found himself walking out of the tent with the child in his arms.

He knew he got a few stares as he stopped by the apothecary and bought some medicine.

He was also able to calm Amalie down after he explained himself, after which he ordered Raphtalia some hot food. Something light. He didn’t want her puking from gorging herself. After making sure she was fed and bathed, he brought her back to his room and coaxed her into taking some medicine (She made a face of disgust as she downed the bitter liquid, though she tried to hide it.).

The entire time, the girl had not said a word.

The medicine ended up making her really tired, and before he knew it, Izuku found her on the bed, dead asleep.

He quietly tucked her in, ruffling her hair with a smile as he did so, before sitting in a nearby chair to read a book he had bought earlier, hoping to learn more about this new world.

Izuku ended up falling asleep in his chair, book splayed in his lap.

This was the position the guards found him in the next morning when they kicked open the door and dragged him out by force, the sleeping Raphtalia completely unnoticed due to the blanket covering her.

Chapter Text

The first thing Izuku and Raphtalia did upon entering the building was check in, something led by Ectoplasm. They took a little longer than most since he had to look over their files to ensure their weapons were actually the Quirks they registered and that they weren’t trying to sneak in unauthorized gear. Once they were cleared, they were guided to classrooms where they took the written portions of the Entrance Exam.

Izuku had finished early, and while Raphtalia struggled in some places, she was sure she passed.

Soon, they found themselves sitting together in an auditorium, surrounded by other students, waiting for someone to explain the practical portion of the exam.

“It looks like we’re in different zones.” Izuku noted as he looked at his and Raphtalia’s placement card.

“Do you think it was done on purpose?” Raphtalia asked.

“We shouldn’t underestimate Nedzu. Knowing him, he put us in separate zones to see if we could get by without relying on each other all the time.”

“WHAT’S UP LISTENERS!” A man with ridiculous looking hair shouted as he stepped onto the stage. “WELCOME TO THE HERO COURSE ENTRANCE EXAM! CAN I GET A YEAAAH!?”

…

“Wow, tough crowd.” He said sheepishly.

“The Voice Hero: Present Mic.” Izuku mused as he looked through one of his notebooks. “On top of teaching and Heroics he’s also a radio personality.”

Present Mic went on to talk about how they would be fighting robots how the point system worked.

“Destroying robots, huh? This exam seems pretty biased in favor of flashy, destructive Quirks.” Izuku noted. “Though U.A. has shelled out more than a few Heroes with Quirks that would be useless against robots, those people mostly got in through the Sports Festival. I might have to use the Hero’s Will Shield-“

“Izuku, we talked about this.” Raphtalia scolded. “Only use that Shield as a last resort. You have other methods that might prove useful.”

“Excuse me!” A blue haired boy with glasses shot up, interrupting the presentation. “You have only explained three types of robots, yet the the pamphlet states there are four! If this is a mistake on U.A.’s part, it’s shameful! In addition…” He whirled around to look at Izuku and Raphtalia. “You two! You have been muttering this whole time! If you cannot take this seriously, then leave!” Izuku proceeded to give the boy his patented ‘I am completely done with today’ glare, before he…

Turned back to talking to Raphtalia.

“So what kind of strategy are you going for?”

“E-excuse me!!” The bespectacled boy had a look that said he couldn’t possibly fathom that he was being ignored.

“Alright! Settle down listeners!” Mic spoke up. “I was just about to get to the fourth robot actually! That guy is meant to be an obstacle, and is worth ZERO POINTS! Destroy it or avoid it! It’s up to you!” Soon, they were dismissed, each student climbing into a bus to take them to their designated testing zone. Izuku and Raphtalia were forced to separate as they went to their zones.

As Izuku stood outside his designated zone stretching, he heard someone call out to him.

“Hey, Midoriya!” Izuku looked up at the girl approaching him.

“Ah, Hagakure-San. So we’re in the same zone.”

“Yep! Looks like it! We’re gonna start any minute, right? Give me a sec.” She took on a look of concentration for a second, before her body began to sparkle with light akin to a prism. After a second, Hagakure faded until Izuku couldn’t see her any more.

“Wow, that’s impressive.” Izuku said genuinely. “A cloaking Quirk? Even your clothes turned invisible.”

“Not necessarily cloaking per se.” Hagakure answered. “My Quirk is Light Manipulation. I refracted light to make myself pretty much invisible, and I can do other stuff too! Though I’m still trying to figure out how to compress light to makes lasers.”

“Cool. Can you-“

A hand clapped onto Izuku’s shoulder.

“Are you trying to sabotage your fellow examinees? Your behavior is shameful!” The bespectacled boy from earlier scolded.

“…Take your hand off of me before I break it.” Izuku replied. This boy was the kind of person Izuku hated. People who acted like they were above others.

“You’d threaten a fellow examinee!? Is there no end to your rudeness!?”

“You wanna know what’s rude!?” Hagakure asked as her face manifested, startling the boy. “Butting into people’s conversations and acting like a high and mighty asshole. Back off jerk!” The bespectacled boy tried to stutter out an argument.”

“AND START!” Izuku bolted towards the gate the second Present Mic’s voice sounded, to the befuddlement and amusement of other examinees. “WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR!? THERE’S NO COUNTDOWNS IN REAL LIFE! GO GO GO!!”

X

Raphtalia cleaved through the robots like a hot knife through butter. The stuff she had learned in Q’ten Lo was definitely coming in handy, even though it seemed a bit excessive against slow, bulky robots.

Still, the existence of autonomous soldiers was very fascinating to her.

But why would they have these things operating in a high school entrance exam instead of in the army-

No. Scratch that. People like Tanya did NOT need things like this under their command.

Unfortunately, she was struggling to concentrate due to some small purple haired gremlin that was following her around. The little creep took one look at Raphtalia and decided she was very attractive.

Now, Raphtalia was used to people fawning over her looks back in the other world. Hell, even some avid Demi-Human haters would sheepishly admit that Raphtalia was quite the looker.

The problem was that this little creep was almost as bad, if not WORSE, then Motoyasu.

At least Motoyasu got his shit together… Eventually.

“Do you mind!? We’re in the middle of an exam here!” Raphtalia snapped at the pervert, about ready to punt him across the cityscape, even if she knew full well it would get her disqualified.

The gremlin looked at her for a moment, then shrugged.

“Good point. I’ll have plenty of time with you and the other babes when I’m in the Hero Course.” He said as he scurried off somewhere.

Raphtalia shuddered in disgust. She DEFINITELY needed a shower after the last comment.

X

Hitoshi Shinso was NOT having a good time.

It was bad enough that he had the misfortune of getting stuck with such a Villainous Quirk. Now he was stuck with a Villainous Quirk in the middle of an exam where it was absolutely useless!

It wasn’t fair! It was as if the entire world was working against him!

He did at one point brainwash another examinee. That annoying stiff with engines in his legs, and had him destroy a robot for him, but Shinso didn’t know if he or the stiff got points for it.

How the hell was he supposed to get into the Hero Course when its Entrance Exam was biased in favor of flashy, destructive-

AIR STRIKE SHIELD.

CRUNCH.

Shinso blinked, turning around to the source of the noise.

A Three-Pointer had attempted to attack him while he was lost in his thoughts, only to smash its hand against some kind of floating, energy based shield.

Before he could even react, a large ball that looked to be made of interconnected shields and held together by chains dropped onto the Three-Pointer, crushing it in an instant. The ball dissipated to reveal a green haired boy with a shield on his arm.

“You should pay more attention to your surroundings.” The boy said, darting off as Shinso glared at him.

X

“Human, I see you.” A two pointer spoke up.

“No you don’t.” Hagakure replied.

“Yes I do. We are equipped with thermal imaging cameras.”

There was a moment of silence before the robot’s head jerked back as his eye was smashed.

“Can you see me now?” Hagakure asked.

“I cannot.”

“Good.” Hagakure replied, before a second hit caved the robot’s head in and shut it down. “Okay, invisibility isn’t going to work.” Hagakure mused as she became visible. “Maybe… Make myself TOO visible?”

WARP REFRACTION.

She refracted the light around her, causing her to glow with such intensity that the robot’s cameras whited out.

“Saaaay cheese~!”

X

Katsuki Bakugo doubled over, coughing painfully as he leaned against a nearby building.

Damn that Sludge Bastard! It was bad enough he ended up in the humiliating position of being that walking pile of shit’s hostage, almost suffocating until that giant bitch finally reached over and plucked him out, but then the hospital told him his lungs had been damaged! He’d had breathing problems ever since!

Whatever. Overcoming this annoyance would look great in his biography when he surpassed All Might and became the greatest Hero.

Bakugo smirked as a Two-Pointer came into view. Perfect, now he could-

The Two-Pointer was suddenly melted by some pink skinned extra throwing slime everywhere.

What the fuck!?

X

“This year’s batch seems to be a promising one, aside from a few outliers that is.” Nedzu mused as he stared at the screen.

In a dark corner in the room, a man dressed in black with a strange scarf around his neck did not look amused.

“It’s almost time.” The small, furry principal cackled, turning to a blond, skeletal looking man. “Yagi-San, since you’re new here, how would you like to do the honors.” The blond man shrugged, reaching over to press a large red button.

X

Raphtalia paused as the ground began to shake and the students began to flee. She turned around to see a skyscraper sized robot beginning to ravage through the city.

“Huh… You’re big.” She held up her sword. “Fought bigger.”

X

Izuku raised an eyebrow at the Zero Pointer.

Yes, it was pretty big, but its movements were slow and predictable, and unlike the Spirit Tortoise, the Zero Pointer couldn’t regenerate or obliterate half a country in an instant.

He knew Raphtalia could handle her own Zero Pointer if need be. He turned to move away from the behemoth when the Zero Pointer hit a building, debris raining down and a chunk about the size of Raphtalia’s toy ball hitting a a white haired girl in the head. The girl crumpled, motionless in the Zero Pointer’s path as more debris from the wrecked building rained down and entrapped her.

‘Shit!’ Izuku thought. He reached out and grabbed one of the fleeing students.

“Wha!?? Midoriya!?” Hagakure asked in surprise. “What are you-“

“Someone’s trapped.” Hagakure’s head snapped to where Izuku was looking, and she too saw the unconscious girl trapped beneath debris.

“Um…”

“I don’t think I can move that debris on my own!” Izuku said, trying to drag Hagakure toward the sight. “Please, we can’t just leave her!”

There was a few tense seconds of silence, then Hagakure nodded.

“Right, hold on!” She wrapped her arm around his waist.

“Wait, wha-“ Hagakure’s form began to shimmer like a prism before she leapt into the air, carrying the startled Shield Hero to the unconscious girl in record time.

“Right, I’ll get the debris, you keep us from getting crushed!” Hagakure said as she lifted up a chunk of concrete that was at least twice her size and hurled it away with ease. Izuku blinked in surprise before he got to the task at hand.

AIR STRIKE SHIELD.

SECOND SHIELD.

A pair of magical shields appeared in the air, deflecting more falling debris.

“Hey, make sure to keep her head still and level when you move her!” Izuku called.

“Got it!” Hagakure responded, hurling another piece of debris away.

The Zero Pointer was right above them.

Izuku looked between the two girls and the Zero Pointer. At this rate, they would be flattened.

As Izuku looked at the white haired girl again, for a few brief seconds, he saw someone else in her place.

‘Dammit!’ Izuku thought as he switched shields.

HERO’S WILL.

SPECIAL ABILITY: SELF SACRIFICE: USER SACRIFICES 99% OF THEIR HP TO FIRE A MAGICAL ARROW THAT IGNORES DEFENSE. DAMAGE DEALT IS RELATIVE TO USER’S CURRENT HIGHEST STAT.

“Back. OFF!” Izuku yelled, a flash of light blasted from his shield, and before anyone knew it, there was a smoldering hole where the Zero Pointer’s head was as Izuku collapsed, his body racked with intense pain.

“Oh crap! Are you okay!?” Hagakure asked in worry.

“It’s fine…” Izuku managed to get out. “I’ll live…”

‘At least until Raphtalia decideds to finish the job…’ Izuku thought. ‘She’s definitely gonna kill me for this…’

X

Raphtalia watched as a Zero Pointer in another site had its head obliterated by a magical arrow.

“I’m gonna kill him.” She huffed, the smoldering wreckage of her own Zero Pointer behind her.

X

Izuku groaned as an alarm blared, signaling the end of the Exam.

‘I only got 23 Villain Points.’ He internally sighed. He hated his nonexistent attack stat, but luckily, he planned for something like this and also applied for General Education, with the intent of getting into the Hero Course through the Sports Festival.

“Uh, Midoriya?” Hagakure asked worriedly. “Are you sure you’re okay? Do you have any more of those funny healing drinks?”

“They’re in my bag. School wouldn’t approve them for the exam.” For some ungodly reason, U.A. seemed averse to letting him bring in a strange liquid that they could neither identify nor trace the origins of.

What was wrong with people!?

“Alright cuties!” Hagakure looked up to see a girl girl with messy blonde hair a little older than them carrying a first aid bag and wearing a nurse’s outfit. “Everyone with minor injuries line on up! If your injuries are more severe and require things like stitching and casts, let me know, and I’ll make sure granny gets to you! If you require a blood transfusion, I do that too!”

After treating a few of the more minor injuries, the girl walked over to them.

“So, what do we got here?” Izuku sighed.

“I’ll be fine. I have stuff in my bag for this. I just need a few minutes. That girl has a head injury though.” He waved his hand toward the white haired girl. The blonde girl blinked.

“Oh, are you sure you don’t need help?”

“It’s fine. My fiancé’s gonna kick my ass again anyway for that stunt, so there’s no point in you wasting your supplies on me.”

“Ok… If you’re sure…” After a few minutes, Izuku managed to push himself up and make his way to the locker room. The blue stiff from earlier tried to say something to him, but Izuku, not wanting to have to deal with more crap, just locked him in a Shield Prison.

He eventually got into the locker room and managed to take a swig of healing potion. Immediately the pain in his body subsided as he watched his HP go back up. He sighed and stuffed the bottle back into his bag. They needed to preserve their health potions as much as possible. While he could use the Spatial Shield to go back to Melromarc and get more ingredients, the fact that using that shield fully depleted his MP and SP, alongside its 100 hour recharge time, made it a hassle, so he’d prefer not to use it just for something as simple as gathering ingredients.

After changing back into some casual clothes, he stepped out of the locker room.

He was immediately met with the sight of a familiar Tanuki girl, arms crossed as she gave him The Look.

Oh no.

“Uh… I love you?” Izuku tried.

Raphtalia continued glaring.

“L-look, it’s not like it was my intention to use that shield. There was a girl trapped under some rubble and the Zero Pointer was bearing down on us.”

Raphtalia continued glaring.

It was amazing how easily Izuku’s cynicism could falter when met with his pissed off fiancé.

“Uh… How about dinner tonight at the new restaurant you’ve been interested in?”

“Throw in cuddles and ear scratches before bed.”

“Y-yes! Of course!”

Raphtalia sighed as she let her posture relax.

“What am I going to do with you and your need to help people?” She asked as she laced her fingers with his and dragged him out of the school.

“It was more then that… When I saw that girl playing there, not moving, it reminded me of…

Raphtalia gave his hand a gentle squeeze.

“What happened during Balmus’ coup wasn’t your fault.”

“If I had just been faster…”

“What happened happened. And the only one to blame is that red haired bitch.” She leaned into him, tickling his cheek with one of her ears. “Come on. There’s a convenience store. Let’s get some lunch.”

They went in and got a bag full of steamed buns, a few for themselves and the rest for Filo and Raph-Chan.

Izuku sighed as he thought about the blue eyed Shikigami. At first, his main concern with Raph-Chan had been finding Raphtalia after they were separated in Glass’ world. He was surprised though, when Filo not only latched onto the blue eyed Shikigami, but started acting more and more like her old self since then. Izuku found it comparable to giving a depressed teenager a puppy.

To put it simply, Raph-Chan had become a valued member of their odd little family.

Family.

Yes, that’s what Raphtalia, Filo, and Raph-Chan were to him.

He gave a reaffirming squeeze to Raphtalia’s hand.

Her hands were rough and calloused, but also warm and inviting.

“Holy shit! Is that Deku!?”

And just like that, the moment was ruined.

With a heavy sigh, he turned to face Tsubasa and the boy everyone only knew as Fingers.

Seriously, even the teachers at Aldera had forgotten the boy’s name and just called him Fingers.

Wasn’t that shit supposed to be written down.

“Well well, look who finally crawled out of whatever useless hole he’s been hiding in the past year.” Tsubasa sneered. “What’s with the damn shield huh? You really reached the point where you’re going around faking a Quirk now?”

Izuku just sighed.

“Let’s go, they’re not worth it.” He said to Raphtalia, only for Fingers to saunter up to them.

“And who’s this cutie, huh? What gives babe? You really gonna risk your reputation hanging around this Quirkless loser?” He held out his hand with a smug grin. “Come on babe. Ditch the loser and let us show you a good time.”

Raphtalia gave him a warm smile.

Then she broke his fingers.

“AH!! FUCK!! YOU FUCKING BITCH!!” Fingers wailed as he stumbled back, clutching his mangled hand.

“Hm… You’re right. That wasn’t really worth my time.” Raphtalia said, taking Izuku’s hand again. “Let’s go home.”

God he loved this girl.

Chapter Text

“So where’s your proof?”

The entire throne room went silent when Itsuki spoke up.

Today had been absolute hell for Izuku. First he was dragged out of the inn by force, the guards not even bothering to explain what the hell was going on. Then, when they finally brought him to the king, he was accused of trying to rape Myne, who turned out to actually be the Princess Malty Melromarc.

On top of that, the king wouldn’t even let Izuku explain his side of the story.

Even worse, the other Heroes, especially Motoyasu, were siding with the King despite how blatantly unjust the ‘trial’ was. Apparently they seemed to think this world was no different from a video game!

And then, out of nowhere, Itsuki spoke up.

Everyone was stunned by the bold question.

“I… Beg your pardon, Bow Hero?” The King asked still trying to comprehend the interruption.

“All the Princess has done is throw out a bunch of accusations with nothing to back them up.” Itsuki pointed out. “Furthermore, her story has a bunch of holes in it. I’m pretty sure Midoriya wasn’t even in the same inn as the rest of us last night.”

“H-how dare you!” Malty was shamelessly enough to actually look offended. Though whether it was to keep up the act or because someone was calling her out was unknown.

“What is the meaning of this, Bow Hero!?” The King demanded. “Are you calling my daughter a liar!? The nerve!”

“And there’s another thing. As her father, you’re very clearly biased in the Princess’s favor. You called this a trial, yet it’s pretty clear that you’re just sentencing Midoriya without giving him a chance to defend himself.”

“What are you doing Itsuki?” Motoyasu asked “Why are you defending a rapist?” Itsuki blinked a few times before turning to Motoyasu.

“Wow, okay. I figured you were thick headed, but I honestly didn’t think you were this stupid.” Motoyasu blanched. “You honestly expect me to believe a scrawny, level 2 teenager with an almost nonexistent Attack Stat tried to force himself on a grown woman with at least twenty levels and fire magic over him without getting flambéd? This whole trial is a sham. They clearly want to criminalize Midoriya even though they have nothing to prove he’s guilty.”

“There’s nothing to prove he’s INNOCENT!” The King yelled, slamming his fist on the throne. “You would do well to remember that this is not your world Bow Hero! The word of the Princess is more than enough evidence.” He turned to Izuku. “Consider yourself lucky boy. The crime of rape is punishable by death here in Melromarc! The only thing saving you from the guillotine is your status as a Hero! I’ll make sure your crimes are known by everyone in this country. Now get the hell out of my sight!”

X

It was barely an hour later that Izuku found himself curled up in an alley. The royal knights had ‘confiscated’ the gear he had bought yesterday as ‘punishment’, leaving him only in a light shirt and pants. Thankfully, they didn’t find his money thanks to the Bank Shield, and assumed he had just spent it all already.

There he sat, mind reeling from what had occurred.

The King had kept his word about spreading Izuku’s ‘crimes’ to the public, as several people had glared at him in disgust as he wandered the town in a daze.

He didn’t notice footsteps walking up to him.

“Midoriya.” Izuku looked up to see Itsuki staring at him. “Are you okay?”

“Why did you stick up for me back there?” Izuku asked. “Not that I’m not grateful, but you barely know me.”

Itsuki sighed as he slid down to sit beside Izuku.

“I know enough.”

“What do you mean?”

“…Can you keep a secret?”

“I mean, not many people I can talk to.” Itsuki chuckled at Izuku’s remark.

“…You’re not the only one from a world of superpowers.” Izuku’s head snapped up as he looked at Itsuki in surprise. “We call the ESPer Abilities. They’re not as big in variety as your Quirks, just a bunch of mental based powers. Mine gives me better accuracy than most people, which is a lower end ability. ESPer Abilities started manifesting about 25 years ago in my world, and not everyone has them, so you can imagine that people like me have faced their share of discrimination.”

Itsuki sighed.

“So yeah, the reason I stood up for you is because the two of us are more similar then you realize. Besides, anyone with any lick of common sense could see that was a blatant kangaroo court.”

“Not Motoyasu and Ren apparently. They think this is all a game.” Izuku responded.

“Yeah, I thought it was a game too at first, then that trial happened and it just hit way too close to home to be scripted. I knew a kid with ESPer Abilities that got accused of a crime he didn’t commit. The government has been trying to put forward laws to protect us, but a lot of times things still slip through the cracks. Because he was so abnormal, everyone believed the one framing him. Didn’t help that his accuser was from an influential family.”

“Well, if it helps, this is definitely the first time I’ve been accused of rape.” Izuku mused. “Starting fights, bullying, distracting others? Even if the teachers saw it happen before their eyes I was automatically the one at fault just for existing. But no one could ever believe that weak little Deku was capable of forcing himself on others.”

“Well, nothing we can do about it now. King’s an asshole, his daughter’s a lying bitch, Motoyasu’s an idiot who’ll reject reality just because a pretty girl told him to, and I honestly don’t know about Ren.” The bow wielded stood up with a sigh. “By the way, have you registered at the Dragon Hourglass yet?”

“The what?” Izuku asked in confusion. Itsuki rolled his eyes.

“Yeah, figures they haven’t told you that. We all need to register at this big hourglass in the church. It’s supposed to let us know how long until the next Wave begins. Apparently it’ll also automatically teleport us to the location of the Wave. We should probably get you registered there before the King decides to ban you from using it.” He lead Izuku toward the church.

As Izuku registered himself to the Dragon Hourglass, he immediately knew something was up.

The nuns who tended to the church seemed dismissive of him. While he could chalk that up to the negative reputation he had, what worried him the most was the Pope.

Izuku was more than familiar with false kindness, and he could immediately tell the Pope was not trustworthy.

“That guy rubs me the wrong way.” Izuku sighed as they finally left the church.

“You noticed it too, huh?” Itsuki asked. “Yeah, something about that Pope just seems off.” Izuku sighed as he opened up his menu. He looked over what he had for now. He definitely needed to get new armor from the blacksmith. Maybe-

Izuku paled as he looked at his party page.

“Oh crap! Raphtalia!” In all the chaos that today had brought, the little Tanuki slipped his mind.

“Wha- Midoriya, who’s Raphtalia?” Itsuki asked.

“She uh… She’s the slave I bought yesterday…”

“Midoriya…” Itsuki gave him a look that screamed ‘I’m not mad, I’m just disappointed’.

“I-it’s not what you think! Honest!” Izuku responded quickly. “She’s just a sick child. She would have died in that cage! I couldn’t just LEAVE her!” Itsuki stared at Izuku for a few seconds before sighing.

“Okay. I believe you. So where is Raphtalia.”

“She was in my room sleeping when the guards grabbed me. I don’t think they noticed her. I just hope she’s okay.” Izuku quickly led Itsuki back to the inn he was staying at.

“Well, this confirms you weren’t staying at the same inn as the rest of us though.” Itsuki mused. “Why this one though? It’s all the way on the other side of the city.”

“I helped the lady who owns the place bring back supplies. Besides, it’s better than you think. The girl who works the kitchen here knows Japanese cuisine. She served me some Katsudon yesterday that was almost as good as my mom’s. I think she might be from one of our worlds, but she can’t remember anything besides her name.”

“Wow, really? I’ll have to see if she can do Udon.”

“There you are!” Amalie called as she marched up to Izuku. “We were worried sick! Don’t you worry boy. We don’t believe you forced yourself on that girl. In fact, since the Bow Hero stood up for you, there are more than a few decent folk who believe you’re innocent. Not nearly as many as the fools who believe you’re guilty, but there are still quite a few.”

“Er… Thanks Amalie.”

“Why, If I had known what was happening before hand, I would have marched right up to that castle and given the king a piece of my mind!”

“He probably would have had you executed for that.” Itsuki pointed out.

“Bah! Even if he did, it would just get him in even more trouble. Melromarc is an absolute matriarchy. The Queen’s the one with all the power. The King is just a consort who was given emergency power while the Queen’s away meeting with the other country’s leaders. He doesn’t have nearly as much power as he wants you to think he does. I don’t even think he had the power to hold that sham trial. I imagine that he and all the knights enabling him will be in serious trouble when the Queen gets back.”

“Uh… Okay… Amalie, do you know if Raphtalia’s okay? She was still in our room when the knights took me.”

“The girl? I don’t think she left the room, but it sounded like furniture was being moved in there earlier.”

“Right, thanks.” He made his was up to the room and pushed on the door. It met with some kind of resistance before giving way, revealing the chair he had slept in had been placed in front of it.

‘Was she trying to block the door?’ Izuku mused as he looked around.

“Raphtalia?” He called. He heard a muffled gasp from the bathroom. He carefully moved up to the door, noting that there was no light at the bottom. He realized she wasn’t using the bathroom but actually hiding. Gently, he pushed open the door, revealing a trembling Tanuki curled up in the bathtub.

“Hey, Raphtalia?” He reached out, gently laying his hand on her head. She jolted, but made no attempts at resistance.

“Hey, please don’t be scared of me. I promise I’m not going to hurt you. I’m not going to make you do anything you don’t want to do, okay? Slave Crest or no, you’re a person just like me.” She stared up at him in shock, as if unable to comprehend that a human was treating her so humanely.

Then she saw his Shield, and Raphtalia’s eyes lit up for the briefest of moments before going dull again.

“Hey, are you feeling any better? Did the medicine help at all?”

“I-I feel better…” Raphtalia responded.

“That’s good. We’ll give you some more tonight before bed.”

“B-but I feel better!” Raphtalia responded, before covering her mouth with a gasp when she realized she had argued with him.

She hadn’t meant to! Honest! She just didn’t want to drink any more of that yucky medicine!

“Just because you feel better now doesn’t mean you actually ARE better.” Izuku explained softly. “If we stop giving you the medicine, and you’re still sick, then your sickness will not only come back even worse then before, it might grow more resistant to the medicine, so you have to keep taking it until we’re absolutely sure you’re not sick anymore, okay?” Raphtalia hesitantly nodded, relieved that he didn’t hit her for her mistake.

“Good, now come on, we have a lot to do today, okay?” He led her downstairs, where Itsuki was sitting at a nearby table.

“Hey, you were right about this place!” The Bow Hero said with a grin. “That kitchen girl’s making me some Udon right now!” He then spotted the Demi-Human. “Oh, hey, you’re Raphtalia, right?”

Raphtalia instinctively moved behind Izuku.

“…I’m just going to assume she was like that when you got her.” Itsuki said with a shrug.

“Hey, Itsuki, by the way, where’s your party?” Izuku asked.

“Them? I booted them right after the trial. I don’t know what it was, but they just rubbed me the wrong way. Especially that Mald guy. He was just a stuck up asshole. But don’t worry about me. I’ll find others.”

“Okay… If you say so.” With that, Izuku stepped out of the inn, holding Raphtalia’s hand.

X

“YOU!!”

Izuku most certainly didn’t expect to walk into Erhard’s shop only to be met with the enraged blacksmith.

He probably should have thought, considering his current reputation.

As the burly man began to make his way over to Izuku, Raphtalia grabbed his pants.

“Please don’t hurt master!” That actually got the older man to stop, looking down at Raphtalia in surprise. After a few seconds, Erhard looked Izuku in the eye.

“Did you do it?”

“No!” Izuku responded immediately. The man looked him in the eye for a few more seconds before sighing.

“Okay, I believe you. You’ve got that look in your eye that says you’re telling the truth. Sorry kid, almost lost myself there.” He looked down at Raphtalia. “So, a slave, huh? That would make a good party member.”

“She’s sick. I bought her so I could give her some medicine, I’m not going to force a child to fight for me.” Izuku sighed. “Though I should probably get her something to defend herself with in a pinch. Also… I need to buy some new gear. The guards took mine.” The older man looked at him thoughtfully.

“Hold on, I got something I can give you.” He pulled out a green cloak. “It’s old, but it’ll get the job done.”

“How much?”

“Take it. Think of it as a thank you.” Izuku blinked.

“For what?” Erhard chuckled.

“Caught the Sword and Spear Heroes trying to copy my wares without paying yesterday. Wouldn’t have even known about that if you hadn’t told me. Princess tried to give me some crap about ‘donating to the Spear Hero’s cause’, but I wasn’t having it. So, yeah, least I can do.”

Izuku went on to buy a chest plate for himself as well as a dagger for Raphtalia. Afterwards, he went to buy some materials for his shield. The witch who ran the magic shop seemed friendly. He bought and absorbed some items that gave him bonuses in potion and medicine making, though for some reason, absorbing a small cauldron and a ladle gave him bonuses in cooking instead. Afterwards the witch used a crystal ball to determine that Izuku had an affinity for healing and support magic, while Raphtalia had an affinity for light and dark magic as well as illusion magic.

Well, Izuku knew the healing and support affinity would definitely come in handy with the potion and medicine bonuses.

He and Raphtalia, he had been clinging to his leg all day, were on their way back to the inn when a guard wearing Beloukas’ crest approached.

“Shield Hero, Beloukas has an off he wishes for you to hear.”

“I’m not interested in buying new slaves.” Izuku gripped.

“It is not that. He will speak to you in his tent.” With a sigh, Izuku followed the guard back to the tent. Raphtalia seemed very uncomfortable, and Izuku reassured her he wasn’t giving her back.

“Ah! There you are Shield Hero!” The sleezy man grinned.

“What do you want?” Izuku huffed.

“As a business man and a merchant, it is within my best interest to foster a good relationship with my customers. After all, it ensures better business!”

“And?”

“And I am well aware that you left my abode with a less then pleasurable opinion of me yesterday. It is in my best interest to amend that.” He pulled out a small bottle.

“Is that… Slave Crest ink?” Izuku asked.

“More specifically, it is the ink used to brand the girl yesterday. I was about to dispose of it when I recalled something about how the Legendary Weapons can absorb items to gain new power. So what do you say? Only a mere five copper!”

Izuku sighed. Might as well. With the king doing everything in his power to turn the kingdom against him, Izuku needed ever advantage he could get.

“Fine.” He handed over the payment.

“My dear boy, it would seem you’ve overpaid me. This is ten copper.”

“Call it interest. I might come back to look into those monster eggs some day.” Beloukas grinned as he handed Izuku the ink.

“Now, you understand that for legal reasons, I have to see you absorb that ink.”

Fair. Izuku promptly absorbed the small bottle of ink.

“Anything?”

“Yeah, a series of shields that grant growth bonuses to people bound to me by a Slave Crest.”

“See! Let us hope this is the beginning of a long partnership!” Izuku sighed. After that little detour, he finally made his way back to the inn. He also made sure Raphtalia took some more medicine before bed, even though she hated it.

X

X

X

It was a few days later that Raphtalia’s sickness had fully cleared up. And so, with that said, the two of them finally left the city. To be honest, it felt liberating not being glared at all the time.

It was hard though. Izuku had to get creative to get EXP, and it was definitely exhausting. Izuku wasn’t going to force Raphtalia to fight for him though. He didn’t feel right about it. She was just a child. A clearly traumatized child.

It would be tough, but he’d make it work.

X

X

X

Guilt.

That was what had been burdening Raphtalia to no end these past couple of weeks.

Her master. The Shield Hero, had been nothing but kind to her. He went out of his way to get her things even if it wasn’t to his convenience. He cut her hair when it was too long and messy. He bought her medicine to help with her sickness. He even made her a ball to play with using monster scraps.

And in return, all she did was sit back as he exhausted himself trying to gain EXP for the both of them.

She hated it. She hated that she was a burden to him after everything he did for her.

And yet, she found herself too scared to act on this guilt. She had watched her parents die with her own eyes when the First Wave struck. Then she watched as even more of her people were senselessly massacred by the soldiers that were supposed to protect Lurolona, and Raphtalia and all the other kids were dragged off and forced into slavery.

Her village had been established as part of a peace treaty between Melromarc and Siltvelt. The fact that Siltvelt hadn’t invaded for this blatant violation of the peace treaty could only mean the royal family had covered it up.

Even worse, Raphtalia had gotten stuck with one of the most horrid men to ever defile this world. It was only due to Beloukas buying her up that she ended up surviving her sickness, as it led to her meeting the boy who would go out of his way to save her.

Yet, despite this. She was too scared. She wanted nothing more than to help her hero fight, but at the end of the day, she was little more than a traumatized child.

Then, one day, she and Izuku wandered into a cave to look for materials.

They were ambushed by a large, black, two headed dog.

Izuku had thrown her out of the way as the dog sank its teeth into his arm, drawing blood.

Even with his high defense, he was still only at level four.

“Raphtalia, RUN!” Izuku yelled as he struggled with the dog. It was fruitless due to his low attack. “Get out of here!”

“B-but…”

“Don’t worry about me! Just save yourself! That’s an order!”

“But you’ll die!” Raphtalia cried. She could see the dog chipping away at his health.

“At least you’ll be safe! Just go!”

And yet, Raphtalia only stood there, numb to her Slave Crest zapping her for not immediately following her master’s orders.

She was terrified, and yet…

Even as the memories of her parent’s bloody corpses filled her mind, Raphtalia’s body moved on its own.

“DON’T TAKE MASTER AWAY FROM ME!!” She screamed, plunging her dagger into one of the dog’s necks.

She was rewarded with blood spraying in her face.

The dog yowled in agony as it released Izuku. The green haired boy took the opportunity to grab the young girl and move her behind him, shield at the ready.

Then Izuku noticed something. While Raphtalia had pulled her dagger out of the dog’s neck, the wound was bleeding profusely, and the two headed dog’s health was steadily draining.

‘She must have severed an artery.’ Izuku thought. ‘So we only need to wait for it to bleed out!’

SHIELD PRISON.

A large ball encased the two as the dog lunged, clawing futilely at the construct as its movements became more and more sluggish.

Just as the Shield Prison vanished, the dog collapsed, and Izuku and Raphtalia were rewarded with quite a bit of EXP.

“Are you okay?” Izuku asked worriedly. “Here.” He pulled out a cloth, wet it it, and got to work cleaning the blood off her face. “Looks like none of it got in your eyes, that’s good.”

“M-master?”

“Hm?”

“I…” Raphtalia clenched her fists to try and stop them from shaking so much. “I wish… To fight alongside you!”

“Huh?” Izuku stopped cleaning her face for a second.

“Y-you do all these things for me, yet you never ask for anything in return. I… please let me repay you by fighting with you!”

“Raphtalia, aren’t you scared?”

“Of course I am! But I’m even more scared of losing you master!” Raphtalia began to cry. “I was there! During the First Wave! The monsters destroyed my village and killed my parents! I don’t want to lose anyone again! You can’t fight on your own, so please let me be your sword!”

“Raphtalia…” Izuku smiled softly. “If that’s really what you want, I won’t stop you. We’ll work with what we can for now, then see about getting you some better gear before the Wave starts. Now, let’s see what materials we can get off this dog.”

Over the next month, with Raphtalia by his side, Izuku found the two of them suddenly making much better progress, managing to get their levels all the way into the late twenties.

To Izuku’s surprise, Raphtalia began to grow quite rapidly. Apparently, Demi-Humans grew both physically and mentally as they leveled up. Izuku felt terrible about ripping her childhood away from her, but Raphtalia assured him that this was what she wanted. Eventually, her growing capped out as she now looked to be about Izuku’s age, though Raphtalia was s bit confused as she thought she would grow some more.

Izuku decided to check his Shield to see if it knew why Raphtalia’s growth capped out so early.

SPECIAL ABILITY UNLOCKED: WINGMAN:

MODIFIES PHYSICAL AGING OF PARTY MEMBER [RAPHTALIA] TO COINCIDE WITH THAT OF PARTY LEADER [IZUKU MIDORIYA].

YOU’RE WELCOME.

Izuku honestly had no idea what that was supposed to mean.

During this time, Izuku also worked on his potion and medicine bonuses. He had raised them to the point that even his low tier potions worked like mid tier ones, and so on.

And for some reason, he also kept getting a bunch of cooking bonuses. Which was strange, as he didn’t have much cooking experience back home, yet now he could make high quality meals from even simple monster scraps.

Well, Raphtalia was definitely happy about it.

Eventually, with the Wave just a few days away, Izuku and Raphtalia made their way back to the capital, Izuku hoping he could get Erhard to make him some better clothing with the two headed black dog materials he had, as well as get Raphtalia some new armor.

He was sure that by the end of the day, the Shield and his loyal Sword would be ready for the hell they were about to dive into.

Chapter Text

“Maybe… Hamburger steak tonight? What do you think?” Izuku asked as he threw some ground beef into the shopping cart.

“I think that sounds delicious.” Raphtalia agreed.

After returning home, Izuku decided to put his many cooking bonuses to use and convinced his mom to let the two of them alternate between cooking duties every other week, both to put less work on Inko, and because Filo would throw a tantrum if she went too long without Izuku’s cooking.

What? No, he wasn’t spoiling her, regardless of what Raphtalia said!

Eventually they finished their shopping and made their way home. When they walked in, they spotted Filo trying to copy the dance routine from the new video by the up and coming Idol Hoshi Hikari.

Made sense. Filo wanted to be an Idol, so she needed to learn more about the industry here in Japan.

Raph-Chan was sleeping on the couch by her.

“There you two are!” Inko yelped as she bolted out of the kitchen. She held a bulky looking envelope. “This just arrived. It’s addressed to both of you!” Izuku and Raphtalia looked at each other, before Izuku took the envelope and saw that it was from U.A.

“Strange how they addressed one letter to the both of us.” Izuku mused as he tore open the envelope, pulling out a strange, metallic disc. “Filo, turn that off for a second.” The little Filolial pouted but did as he said before running up to them as Izuku turned on the device. Immediately, a large, holographic screen popped out of the disc.

{Hello! Am I a dog, a bear, a mouse? Who cares! I’m the Principal of U.A.!} A small, white furred mammal of indeterminate origin called.

“Daddy! Is he a Beastman?” Filo asked.

“No Sweetie.” Izuku replied gently. “Nedzu is an animal with a Quirk that gives him very high intelligence.”

“Oh… Can Filo eat him?”

“I would prefer that you didn’t.”

{Now that you have persuaded your adopted daughter from trying to feast on my flesh…} Nedzu began.

“What, how did he…!?” Raphtalia began.

“Let’s not question it.” Izuku sighed.

{Hm? What’s that?} Nedzu looked at something off screen. {…Do not tell me to ‘hurry up’. In case you’ve forgotten, I’m the one writing your paycheck. Now then! Izuku Midoriya! You aced the written portion of the exam with a 98%! Most examinees usually don’t get anything above a 92, so congratulations!}

The Mammal of Indeterminate Origin grinned.

{Now, onto the Practical Exam! You managed to score 23 villain points, which unfortunately is not enough to pass the Hero Course Entrance Exam.}

“Yeah, I figured.” Izuku sighed. It looked like he would have to get in through the Sports Festival after all.

{However!} Nedzu continued. {There is a second point system in place! One kept hidden from examinees so as to ascertain their true nature! Rescue Points! Something as small as warning your fellow examinees of an incoming attack or a possible ambush will net you Rescue Points! By using your powers to protect other examinees, you’ve garnered 28 Rescue Points! But there’s more!} The footage cut to him and Hagakure digging the white haired girl out of rubble to Izuku using his Hero’s Will shield (Something Raphtalia glared at him for).

{Because of your valiant effort in rescuing a fellow examinee from the Zero Pointer, causing harm to yourself in the process, you’ve been awarded an extra 60 Rescue Points, for a grand total of 111 points! Congratulations young man! Not only have you passed the Entrance Exam, but you got first place in doing so! Now, Raphtalia Iwatani! 87% on the written portion of the exam! Enough to pass! As for the Practical? 61 Villain Points, and 24 Rescue Points for a total of 85 points, placing you in third!} A scoreboard popped up, showing the top ten scores for the exam. In second place was Hagakure while in fourth place was none other than Bakugo. Izuku took note that Bakugo and someone named Ochako Uraraka were the only people on the board to not have any rescue points whatsoever. {I look forward to seeing what you two can bring to the table! Your class schedules and supply lists should be included with this holo projected! See you soon, future Heroes!} The projector shut off. Filo raised her arms triumphantly.

“Yay! Congratulations mommy and daddy! We can have a feast!”

Izuku chuckled as he rubbed her head affectionately. Always food with this girl.

X

“You want me to take them?” The young, raven haired woman asked as she looked over the files for Izuku Midoriya and Raphtalia Iwatani. “Not that I’m complaining but… Why? Didn’t Aizawa ask for these two?”

“Aizawa is exactly reason WHY I want you to take them.” Nedzu mused as he poured them some tea. “His disapproval in Midoriya was very clear during the Entrance Exam. That, combined with his concerning shift in personality lately, pretty much tells me he has ulterior motives. And while I may have removed his ability to expel students on a whim, I’m concerned he’ll find other methods to try and screw over Midoriya. As for Iwatani, she is Midoriya’s fiancé, and you know how Aizawa is about relationships.” The woman rolled her eyes. Aizawa was a piece of work, and she made her distaste for his methods very apparent when she started working here. Even more so when he started getting worse around a year and a half ago.

“Fine. I have no problem taking them on. Anything else?”

“Not at all Shimura-Chan, not at all. Now please, have some tea.”

X

X

X

Spring arrived soon after, and with it, the first term of the new school year.

Izuku and Raphtalia stood in their new uniforms, though Raphtalia fidgeted a bit, finding the blazer a bit restrictive.

“Be a good girl while we’re gone, okay?” Izuku said, giving Filo a kiss on the forehead. “Your Grandma said she might you to the park later if you finish your schooling early.”

“Okay daddy!” Filo said, hugging her parents. Raphtalia smiled and stroked the little Filolial’s hair.

With that, the two were off, taking the train to U.A.. Even now Raphtalia was still uncomfortable with how tightly packed the trains could be in Japan.

Eventually they found themselves on campus once again, this time as students.

“It says we’re both in 1-B, but the map is kinda confusing.” Raphtalia murmured. “Any suggestions?” Izuku merely pointed to an older looking student who began to go down one hallway, only to backtrack and go down a different one. “Uh…”

“His epaulets have one button on him, suggesting he’s in the Hero Course. Since it’s the start of a new school year, he was most likely acting on muscle memory and almost went to his old classroom, so our best bet is to go that way.” Raphtalia followed him, and eventually, the came across a door labeled as 1-B.

“Why is it so big?” Raphtalia questioned.

“Most likely to accommodate people with gigantism Quirks.” Izuku noted as he pushed the door open. He saw that they were the first ones there, most likely due to the new students having trouble finding their way in the unfamiliar building. The chalkboard told them to take any free seat, so Izuku and Raphtalia took a pair of seats next to each other near the back.

Over time, more and more students began to trickle in.

Eventually, to Izuku’s surprise, the white haired girl he had saved during the Entrance Exam walked in. When she spotted Izuku, her eyes widened briefly before she made her way over.

“Pardon me. Am I correct in assuming you are one of the examinees who rescued me from a grim fate under the Zero Pointer’s boot?”

“Oh, yeah… That was me. I’m Izuku Midoriya. This is my fiancé, Raphtalia.”

“I am Reiko Yanagi. I thank you for your assistance.”

“Are you okay?” Izuku asked. “You did take a pretty nasty blow to the head.”

“I have suffered no more than a mere concussion, and have been assured there will be no long term ailments to come from my misfortune.”

“That’s good. Glad you’re okay.”

Eventually, all twenty students had arrived, the last being a short, brown haired girl. After a few minutes of the class chatting amongst themselves, the door finally opened, and in walked a young woman in a sky blue suit with a white cape. Her jet black hair had been done up in a pair of pigtails.

“Quiet down everyone. My name Hana Shimura. You can call me Shimura Sensei or Nimbus Sensei, whichever you feel more comfortable with. I’ll be your homeroom teacher for the next year.”

She gave the class a kind smile.

“Now, let’s all introduce ourselves, then we can go on down to orientation. You don’t have to explain your Quirks if you don’t want to. Your names will suffice.”

X

X

X

X

Filo loved the feeling of the playground sand between her toes. She had managed to finish her schoolwork early, so she got to enjoy the day at the playground.

Raph-Chan lay atop the Filolial’s head as she ran around the playground.

It wasn’t like pulling a cart, but for Filo it was still fun.

At least until she saw a small commotion near the back of the playground.

“Back off you jerks!”

“What? You gonna keep defending this leech? Come on Shiramine! We know you’re better than that!”

Filo wandered closer out of curiosity. Two 11 year old girls, one with short, black hair and carrying a black and red shield almost as tall as her, the second with medium length light brown hair, stood confronting a group of kids.

As Filo wandered closer, one of the kids took notice of her.

“Hey, who are you? I haven’t seen you around here before.”

“Filo is Filo Midoriya!” Filo introduced excitedly, hoping one of the kids would play with her.

Raph-Chan was fun to play with, but there were just some things she couldn’t do thanks to her small body and paws.

“Huh? Why are you talking like that? What are you, five?” A boy, who was evidently leading the group, asked.

“Technically, Filo is two.” Filo answers.

The kids looked at her like she had said something stupid.

“Oh great, another weirdo, just like the leech over there.”

“You’re just jealous of Kaede’s awesome Quirk!” Shiramine retorted.

“Awesome my butt! She’s got a Quirk suitable for a villain! She steals our individuality! I don’t know why you hang out with her!”

“Oh, wow! Individuality! Such a big word for you Sotoru! Congratulations!” Shiramine clapped sarcastically.

“Guys, can’t we all just be friends?” Kaede asked.

Fed up with this boring argument, Filo transformed into her Filolial form, startling everyone present.

“Filo wants to play!” She squawked.

“So you can turn into a Fat Chocobo, huh? That’s a stupid Quirk!” Sotoru sneered.

…Fat?

He called Filo FAT!?

A small noise of discontent was all the warning Sotoru got before Filo ended his bloodline with one swift kick.

“…Ah…” Was all Sotoru could let out as he stood there, stiff as a board and eyes wide as dinner plates.

“Sotoru! Are you okay!?” A red haired girl asked.

“…Ah…”

“Holy crap! What do we do!?”

“Did you see how hard she kicked him!?”

“Sotoru sounds like Gawr Gura now.”

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!” Sotoru screamed as his brain finally registered the pain, collapsing to the ground.

“Run away!” A kid yelled, and the group dispersed, a couple of kids dragging Sotoru off with them.

Filo huffed, turning back into her little girl form.

“Wow! That was so cool!” Kaede’s eyes sparkled as she ran up to Filo. “Hi! I’m Kaede Honjō! This is my best friend, Risa Shiramine!”

“Filo is Filo Midoriya!” Filo repeated as Risa walked up to them.

“Sorry about them.” Risa stated. “They’re just a bunch of Quirkist jerks because they can’t handle Kaede’s awesome power.” Filo tilted her head in curiosity.

“My Quirk is called Devour.” Kaede explained excitedly, gesturing to her shield. “Basically, when I touch someone with my shield, I can kinda pseudo-permanently copy their Quirk. Unfortunately, I can only store ten Quirks at a time. Any more than that and I’ll need to delete another copy to make room. Oh! And every time I copy a Quirk, I gain a permanent increase to my defensive power!”

“You have a shield! Just like Filo’s daddy!” Filo exclaimed.

“Rafu!” Raph-Chan agreed.

“Uh… What is that?” Risa asked, pointing to the Shikigami.

“It’s Raph-Chan!”

“Rafu!”

“Okay… But what IS Raph-Chan?”

“Raph-Chan is Raph-Chan.”

“Rafu!”

“O….Kay? Well, any way.” Risa began. “My Quirk is called Momentum. Basically, I get faster and faster the longer I run, and I can hit things harder too. But if I stop or get hit, my momentum resets.”

“You can run fast!? Filo can run fast too!”

“Can you now?” Risa smirked. “How about a little race then?”

X

X

X

After the orientation ceremony, during which they learned that Principal Nedzu apparently has six cults in his name, Shimura-Sensei took them on a tour around campus, showing them things like the cafeteria, the infirmary headed by Recovery Girl, and Hound Dog’s office.

They were just heading back to their classroom when there was a loud bang on one side of the campus.

“Whoa! What was that!?” A silver haired boy, Tetsutetsu, asked. Shimura-Sensei sighed, looking like she had a headache coming on.

“The homeroom teacher for 1-A makes his class skip orientation every year in favor of doing a Quirk Assessment Test.”

“Is THAT why 1-A wasn’t at orientation!?” And orange haired girl, Kendo, asked.

“Sounds like fun!” A girl with dark green hair and sharp teeth, Tokage, smirked.

“Not really. Up until last year he would expel whoever placed last on the test on the spot because they ‘have no potential’. Shimura-Sensei admitted.

There was silence, before the class erupted.

“What!? On the first day!?.”

“After all we did to pass the Entrance Exam!? What the hell!?”

“What gives HIM the right to decide who does and doesn’t have potential!?”

“Calm down.” Shimura-Sensei instructed. “Principal Nedzu stripped him of his privilege to expel students on a whim after he expelled his entire class last year.” And boy, wasn’t THAT a headache. U.A. had just narrowly avoided a massive lawsuit because of that mess Aizawa created. It was a miracle Aizawa was even able to keep his teaching license after that. Though that guy from the Ministry of Education told him he was on very thin ice.

Raphtalia gently took Izuku’s clenched fist. She knew that people in positions of power who abused that power to bully people under them was a VERY sore topic for him.

The class made their way back to the classroom.

“Alright kids, we have some time before lunch. Remember that today is just a half day to get you aquatinted with the school, so you’ll be heading home right after. In the meantime, you’re free to talk amongst each other.” Shimura-Sensei told them.

X

X

X

Risa was on all fours, panting and soaked in sweat as she tried desperately to catch her breath.

“Hmm? Are you okay?” Filo asked.

“How are you not exhausted!?” Risa yelped.

“Filo can run all day without getting tired!” The Filolial explained proudly, to Ross’s utter disbelief. Kaede walked over to them.

“Risa-Chan! You really need to start working on your stamina more! How can you expect to be a Hero if you get tired so easily?” The girl scolded.

Risa just grumbled.

“Filo sweetie.” Inko walked up to them. “Your parents should be home soon, so let’s go get some lunch, okay?”

“Okay grandma!”

“Oh! Are two friends of Filo?” Inko asked as she caught sight of Kaede and Risa.

The two girls looked at each other.

“I guess we are!” Kaede said brightly.

“Well, we have to go now, but if you want I can give you our address and phone number so you can play with Filo again.” Inko smiled kindly.

‘Yay! A new friend!’ Kaede thought happily.

‘She looks too young to be a grandma.’ Risa thought.

X

X

X

“I’ve noticed you seem to be into a lot of horror stuff.” Raphtalia said as she and Izuku walked to the cafeteria with Reiko. Izuku was quiet, simply not feeling very talkative.

“Indeed. It has been a fascination of mine since I was very young. Though unfortunately my mannerisms have caused me to be labeled as a weirdo growing up.”

“Nah, you’re just being you, that’s all.” Raphtalia responded. “So what kind of works are you into?”

“I am particularly fond of the works of American Writer Sam Williams. Despite having only visited Japan a few times in his life, he writes about Yōkai as if he lives in the same house as them. It is very impressive.”

“Oh! Hey! Midoriya! Iwatani! Over here!” Hagakure called from a nearby table. Next to here was a girl with pink skin and curly pink hair.

“Hey guys! This is Mina! We’re in 1-A together!” Hagakure explained as Izuku, Raphtalia, and Reiko sat down. “Oh! Hey! You’re that girl from the Zero Pointer! Nice to see you! I helped Midoriya pull you out. My name’s Toru Hagakure.” Reiko nodded.

“Indeed. I thank you for your assistance. My name is Reiko Yanagi.”

“So, we heard you did some kind of Assessment Test.” Raphtalia spoke up. “How’d that go?”

Both girls groaned.

“It was the absolute worst!” Mina spoke up. “Our classmates are just horrible! First there’s that insufferable douche Monoma ranting and raving about ‘1-A’s superiority’ and stuff like that. Then there’s Todoroki, who is apparently Endeavor’s son. He just gives off this vibe like he’s above everyone without actually saying it! And then we got Uraraka and Bakugo! Those two are just bullies! Bakugo an aggressive asshole an ego that would put Mirko to shame, and Uraraka’s just a complete sadist! But the worst is our teacher, Aizawa-Sensei. First, he said that BAKUGO scored higher then Hagakure in the Entrance Exam because ‘Rescue Points don’t count’, he didn’t do anything to try and curb our classmate’s behavior, and the worst is that he threatened to expel whoever got last on the Assessment Test because they ‘have no potential’. He didn’t go through with it, but still. First day and our class is already toxic as hell!”

“It’s not that he chose not to go through with the expulsion threat.” Izuku spoke up. “It’s that he COULDN’T.”

“Huh? What do you mean Midoriya?” Hagakure asked.

“Shimura-Sensei told us that Aizawa had his expulsion privileges revoked last year.” Izuku explained. “So he was just making empty threats to try and scare you into submission.”

“That DICK!!” Mina seethed.

“Cheer up Mina!” Hagakure tried. “It’s not all bad! We start Foundational Heroics tomorrow! We get to learn from All Might!”

“Wait, All Might’s teaching here!?” Raphtalia asked, voicing everyone’s surprise at the revelation. “How do you even know that?” Hagakure went pale.

“O-oh! You know! Just some rumors from the grapevine. I don’t know if it’s actually true or not! Haha!”

“Still, if you think about it, it would explain All Might’s newfound presence in Musutafu.” Izuku mused.

The group continued chatting, and after finishing their food, they were dismissed to go home.

X

X

X

“Mommy! Daddy!” Filo cried excitedly as Izuku and Raphtalia walked through the door, running up to her parents excitedly.

“Hey! Were you a good girl today?” Raphtalia asked, rubbing Filo’s head affectionately.

“Mmhm!” Filo nodded excitedly. “Filo was very good! Filo got to kick a mean kid who called Filo fat-“

“Wait, what?” Izuku asked.

“-And Filo made two new friends!” She said, bouncing back into the living room to play with Raph-Chan.

Izuku and Raphtalia sighed.

“I mean… It’s good, isn’t it? It’s good that she’s opening up again after what happened with Melty.” Raphtalia mused.

“Yeah, it really is.” Izuku said with a soft smile.

Now he just need to find out who the hell Filo kicked today, and whether he needed to pay medical bills.

Chapter Text

The entire ballroom winced as Raphtalia’s fist shattered Motoyasu’s nose. Nearby, Izuku stood, still in shock at how Malty’s blatant cheating had cost him both the duel and Raphtalia.

“Who the HELL do you think you are!?” The Tanuki snarled.

“W-wah- I just…”

“What do you think you’re doing!?” Malty yelped. “Motoyasu-Sama just freed you!”

“I never ASKED to be free you cheating cow!” Malty looked offended at the insult as Raphtalia rounded on Motoyasu again. “I didn’t NEED saving you pompous asshole!”

“B-but, he enslaved you! He forced you to fight for him! Nobody should be forced to fight-“ He was cut off by Raphtalia slapping him hard enough to knock him to the ground, the teenaged girl uncaring that her newly removed Slave Crest meant he could end her life then and there.

“Aren’t YOU the one that forced him to fight in a rigged duel he wanted no part of, you fucking hypocrite!? And just so you know, he didn’t FORCE me to do anything! I may have been his slave, but he never once treated me as one! I fought for him of my own free will! In fact, I had to CONVINCE him to let me fight for him! Do you know why!? Because he saw me, a sick, frail Demi-Human girl wasting away in a cage, and his first instinct was to HELP ME! He threw away his own money to buy me even though I would have been no use to him! He bought me medicine to help my sickness, he bought me clothes, he gave me food, he never once did anything to hurt me! He has treated me with nothing but kindness since the day he bought me! What about you!? Can you extend your hand to a slave in need!?”

“I-of course I can!”

“So where are they?”

“H-huh?”

“The slaves you rescued!? Or were those just empty words right now!?”

“I… I just… He’s a rapist! He tried to-“

“Changing the subject now? Fine! Tell me something, if Izuku-Sama really tried to rape her, then why isn’t she scared of him? She claims to be a rape victim, yet she doesn’t ACT like one! She acts like a smug bitch! And if Izuku-Sama really IS a rapist, why hasn’t he tried anything with me? As his slave, he would be well within his legal rights to do anything he wanted to me, yet hasn’t so much as tried to glimpse me naked! Can you explain THAT!? You claim he tried to rape her, but as tonight proved, you’re the one who listens to his dick rather than his brain and won’t take no for an answer!”

“I-I’m not-“

“That’s enough!” The King shouted. “First you accuse my daughter of cheating, then you assault the Spear Hero, and NOW you make fun of my daughter for a traumatic event!? Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t have you beheaded you filthy Demi-Human!?”

“Maybe because it’s the truth?” All eyes were now on Itsuki and, surprisingly, Ren.

Even though it was clear that Ren still believed Izuku was guilty of Malty’s rape accusation, the boy was at least cordial to Izuku and even gave him the benefit of doubt during the Wave.

“We all saw the Princess interfere in that duel.” Itsuki pointed out. “A duel that, mind you, Motoyasu would have had no chance in otherwise.”

It was pretty damn impressive, actually. Despite the large level gap between them, Izuku had taken control of the duel almost immediately, analyzing Motoyasu’s attacks and using his abilities to counter the in the time it would take Itsuki to wonder what bow he should use.

It was pretty clear that Izuku had a gift for analysis, and not just when it came to attacking.

At some point during the duel, he realized that Malty had moved somewhere out of his line of sight, and almost instinctually threw himself to the floor, causing her blast of magic to sail over his head and strike Motoyasu in the face.

It was clear Izuku would have won that duel, were it not for Malty suddenly accusing him and Raphtalia of cheating.

Unsurprisingly, the King sided with his daughter despite not having proof and called the duel in Motoyasu’s favor, forcibly having Raphtalia’s crest removed.

“Let me guess, you threatened to audience to ignore Myne’s blatant cheating?” Itsuki asked, the disgust on his face towards the blatant injustice clear. “To think that the royal family would stoop so low as to not only rob someone of their own legal property, but cheat in a sacred duel. You and your daughter clearly have no sense of shame. And that’s not even getting into the blatant disregard for civilian lives your guard captain showed during the waves!”

“Dude, Motoyasu, you lost that duel. Everyone here could see that.” Ren spoke up. “Tell me, how could Raphtalia have even assisted in that duel when she was being restrained the whole time.”

“I… Midoriya must have ordered her to-“

“If this is how the royal family of Melromarc treats the heroes they practically forced into fighting for them, then maybe we should just leave. I heard Shieldfreeden is pretty nice.” Itsuki interrupted.

“What!? No! I forbid you from leaving this country!” The king snarled.

“On what authority? You’re just a consort. The Queen’s the one in charge, and as far as I’m aware, she’s currently trying to mitigate the mess you created by summoning all four heroes instead of just one.” Itsuki pointed out, causing the king to freeze and wonder how the hell he knew that. “The other nations are pretty pissed I’d imagine. In fact, if word got out how poorly you were treating the Shield Hero that Siltvelt and Shielfreeden worshiped, I’m pretty sure war would be all but inevitable. Face it buddy, your selfishness has ended up putting your entire kingdom at risk of a war it wouldn’t be able to win.” There was a tense silence as the king grit his teeth so hard it looked like they might crack.

Suddenly, he grabbed a small bag of coins and threw it over to where Izuku was.

“Shield Hero! Take your damn reward and get the hell out of my castle!” He huffed. Raphtalia grabbed the bag of coins and pulled Izuku to his feet.

“Thank you. Now we won’t have to force ourselves to be in your presence longer than we need to.” The Tanuki replied.

“I-You-GAAAAAH!” The king shouted as they left.

X

“Raphtalia, why haven’t you run away? You’re free now. You don’t have to stay with me.” Izuku asked as he pulled some food out of his inventory. It turned out that anything stored in his inventory was essentially locked in time at the moment it was put in, meaning he could store food and ingredients in there without risk of spoiling.

Naturally, then they got to the banquet, Izuku had stored quite a lot of food in his shield, after asking the chefs if they were fine with it. They were not only okay with it, but also very happy that the food they worked hard on wouldn’t be going to waste for once. Izuku estimated he had enough food in his inventory to last a couple of months.

“Why would I do that? I told you! I’m your sword!” Raphtalia exclaimed as she took a sandwich.

“Still, you could cross the border and live a happier life in another country-“

“I’m happy with YOU!” She interrupted. “I lo- I care about you a lot Izuku-Sama! Just as you cared for me! These people who call you devil are wrong! Don’t ever listen to what they say about you not being a Hero! You’re MY Hero! And nothing would make me happier than to fight by your side until my last breath!”

“Raphtalia…” Izuku gave her a sad smile. “If there’s anything I can ever do for you, don’t hesitate to ask. I’ll do it if it’s within my power.”

“…There is… Something… Before the Slave Trader bought me, I was owned by a noble called Idol Rabier. He’s… He’s the absolute scum of the earth. He buys slaves and tortures them to death for his own amusement, even children. I… I made up my mind about this a long time ago. I want to kill him and burn his estate to the ground!”

“Raphtalia-“

“Please don’t try to dissuade me, Izuku-Sama! You haven’t seen what horrors that man is capable of! I know what I’m asking, and I don’t care! As long as he lives, I don’t think I’ll ever truly know peace. He’ll just go on to hurt more people! The man truly has no limits to his sadism! He’s an irredeemable monster! And besides, I want to free the slaves he’s holding prisoner. At least two of them are dear friends of mine.”

There were a few moments of silence, before Izuku sighed.

“I don’t like it, but… If it’ll truly bring you peace of mind, I’ll help you. Once we’re strong enough, we’ll go pay Idol Rabier a visit.”

“Thank you Izuku-Sama.” Raphtalia smiled warmly.

The two sat there for a little while longer, Raphtalia’s tail wagging happily.

X

After eating their fill, the two of them made their way back to Amalie’s inn for the night. The next morning, after a nice breakfast prepared by Aoi, they made their way back to Beloukas’ tent. While Izuku was reluctant to have her branded again, Raphtalia insisted on it, reminding him that she would have more rights in Melromarc as a branded slave then a free Demi-Human, and that the bonuses she got from his Slave Owner Shields were helping her immensely.

As they entered the tent, they were met with a surprise.

“Itsuki?”

“Oh, hey Izuku. I take it you’re here to have Raphtalia branded again?”

“Yeah, unfortunately. For her own protection. And also because the Shield Series I got from absorbing Slave Ink gives any slaves bound to me massive growth bonuses.”

“That so? I’ll have to see about getting some of that ink too then.”

“You’re getting a slave!?” Izuku asked in shock.

“Don’t get me wrong, I abhor slavery, but after seeing you and Raphtalia, I realized that until we can come up with a better solution, I can buy my own slaves to save them from a horrible owner. Besides, I still need a party. I got through this first Wave just fine, but they’re only going to get stronger.” He took a look at one of the slaves and furrowed his brow. “Hey, slave trader, what’s the deal with this one? He’s with the high end slaves, but he’s only one gold.”

“Ah! What you see here is a Gator Beastman!” Beloukas explained excitedly. “They are very strong and durable. As for why he’s so cheap, well, Gator Beastmen are known for their ferocious and violent tempers, and their high durability allows them to resist low level Slave Crests, so most tend to avoid buying them. They’re usually seen in coliseums. As a matter of fact, this one was supposed to go to my uncle in Zeltolble, but ended up here through a documentation error. If no one buys him soon I’ll have to ship him there myself.”

Itsuki pondered for a moment, then stepped up to the cage.

“Would you be willing to fight alongside me?”

“I got a choice?” The Gator Beastman hissed sarcastically.

“Yes actually.” Itsuki responded, surprising the Beastman. “I’m not going to force you to do anything you want to do, but if you want to fight alongside me in my party, then I’d be glad to have you. You’d still have a Slave Crest, but it would be a low level one, so it shouldn’t bother you if what the Trader says is true, and it would only be to gain bonuses from having it.”

The Beastman let out a snarl.

“Shield Hero.” Izuku jumped in surprise as he was addressed. “Do you vouch for this boy?”

“Uh, yeah? Itsuki’s a pretty good guy. I can promise he’ll treat you well.”

He let out a huff of air.

“Fine, I will give you a chance Bow Boy.”

“…I’ll take it.” Itsuki sighed.

After getting a crest applied to the Beastman, whose name was Valden, as well as allowing Itsuki to absorb the leftover ink, Izuku and Raphtalia were up.

“By the way Shield Hero.” Beloukas began after reapplying Raphtalia’s crest. Izuku was relieved by the distraction since Raphtalia had asked him what he thought of her crest… Which was on her chest. The red faced boy turned to the Slave Trader. “What would you say to giving the egg roulette a try?”

“Fine, how does it work?” Izuku said as he paid the man.

“Simple! Just grab any egg you want! The joy is in not knowing what will come out! Though I will say, there’s a single dragon egg mixed into this lot worth twenty gold if you can raise it properly.” Izuku looked over the set of eggs. They all looked pretty much the same save for some differences in coloration.

He reached over towards an egg, but for some reason, as if on instinct, before he could touch it, his hand just moved and grabbed one on the other side of the case.

He didn’t know what it was, but something about this specific egg just felt… right.

“Wonderful! Wonderful!” Beloukas turned to Itsuki. “Bow Hero?”

Itsuki rolled his eyes.

“Fine, I’ll give it a shot.” He sighed as he pulled out some coins.

X

“So where are you heading to?” Izuku asked as the two Heroes and their parties stepped out into the sunlight.

“I heard rumors of a Lord bullying a lesser noble family. I’m going to go check it out and see if I can do anything. You?”

“I’ve been thinking about going around as a merchant. The bonuses I get from my shield let me make some pretty powerful potions and medicines, plus it’ll be a good way to earn income.”

“That sounds like a good idea. Take care Izuku.”

X

X

X

“My Queen.” A person dressed from head to toe in black garbs kneeled before the woman as her servant helped to dress her.

“Report. How did the wave go?”

“While the village of Lute has suffered massive damage and will require extensive efforts to rebuild, casualties are in the single digits thanks to the efforts of the Shield Hero and a slave he has taken in, as well as the Bow Hero. While the Sword and Spear Heroes ignored the village and went straight for the boss, the Shield Hero and his slave protected the villagers, while the Bow Hero helped evacuate them to the nearby mines, before going to aid the other two Heroes with the boss at the Shield Hero’s request, while the Shield Hero and his slave stayed back to draw the attention of the of the boss’ underlings and give the other three Heroes breathing room.”

“I see. I was afraid that Malty’s false accusation would limit the allies the Shield Hero would have. It is good to know that the Bow Hero at least has his head on straight.” She sighed deeply. She was surprised to hear that both the Shield and Bow Heroes came from worlds where humans had special powers, but it ended up being a blessing, as it gave the two Heroes a commonality that allowed them to befriend each other. “All right then, what about the bad news?”

“During the Wave, a group of Knights fired a massive fire attack at the Shield Hero under Captain Orthrus’ order. The attack caused even more unnecessary damage to the village and would have killed at least five villagers had the Shield Hero not blocked it.”

The woman clenched her fan angrily. Captain Orthrus was scum, a coward and a disgrace to Melromarc’s military. She only kept him on at her husband’s suggestion. This… this was a new low for him! Endangering the lives of her citizens out of petty spite!? She could not fault the soldiers under his command for following orders, but when she returned home, she would deal with Orthrus personally.

“Afterwards, Vice-Captain Lucas defied Captain Orthrus’ order to aid in fighting the boss, and went to aid the Shield Hero with all but two knights who still listened to Captain Orthrus.

She would need to give the Vice-Captain a promotion when she got back. After all, there was going to be an opening for Captain soon.

“Please tell me that is the end of these recent troubles.”

“…”

The woman groaned.

“Continue.”

“At the feast held in celebration of successfully repelling the wave, the Spear Hero challenged the Shield Hero to a duel. Though I would personally say it was closer to mugging. If the Spear Hero won, the Shield Hero would lose his slave, while the Shield Hero would get nothing if he won. The Shield Hero refused to take part in the duel, but was forced into it by the King. The Shield Hero completely dominated the duel despite being unable to attack by using very impressive analysis skills. However, during the duel, the First Princess attempted to cheat by attacking the Shield Hero from behind. The Shield Hero dodged, though it seemed to be mostly on instinct, and the First Princess’ attack became friendly fire. The duel was called in the Spear Hero’s favor after The First Princess accused the Shield Hero of cheating by way of his slave, despite her being restrained at the time. As it seems, the King has shown blatant favoritism towards the Spear Hero, even in regards to the Sword and Bow Heroes, most likely due to the First Princess being in the Spear Hero’s party.”

“So he was robbed of one of his valuable allies out of sheer pettiness.”

When she got through with her husband, he would be lucky to still have his balls.

“Not exactly. After having her Crest removed, the Demi-Human called out the Spear Hero for his hypocrisies and proclaimed her loyalty to the Shield Hero. He has treated her very kindly my Queen, and she even had her Crest willingly reapplied the next day, both for her own protection and for growth bonuses she gets from being the Shield Hero’s slave. The Bow Hero also purchased a slave of his own, rationalizing that he can save them from abusive masters this way. Both the Shield and Bow Hero also purchased monster eggs from the Slave Trader.”

“I see. The Shield Hero’s kindness has rewarded him with undying loyalty. That is exactly the kind of Hero this world needs. Perhaps as a show of good faith, I will grant the Shield Hero Lordship of Lute.”

“There is… One other thing my Queen.”

“Oh?”

“In the aftermath of the rigged duel, the Bow Hero loudly revealed to all in attendance how the King’s summoning of all four Heroes, as well as his mistreatment of the Shield Hero, has put Melromarc at risk of the other nation’s wrath. The declaration has spread throughout the capital, and the citizens are now uneasy.”

…Oh dear. That wasn’t good.

“See about deflecting the rumors elsewhere. The last thing we need is civil unrest.”

“At once my Queen.”

“If that is all?”

“It is, for the moment.”

“Dismissed.”

X

X

X

“Raphtalia! Raphtalia, wake up!”

“Mngh.” Raphtalia sat up in bed, wondering what the hell Izuku-Sama wanted this early. By her side was a spell book she had fallen asleep reading. One of several gifts they had received by shop owners who wanted to thank them for protecting their relatives in Lute. Though Izuku was still learning the written language and could only read parts of it. “What is it?”

Izuku was crouched over the egg, eyes bright as he watched it crack open. Raphtalia moved up to his side as the egg finally burst, revealing a small pink chick.

“Piyo! Piyo pi!” The chick cried.

“It’s a Filolial.” Raphtalia mused as the chick jumped up into the air and landed on Izuku’s head. “How cute! It thinks you’re its daddy!”

“Imprinting, huh?” Izuku said, reaching up to scratch at the Filolial’s head, a gesture it really seemed to love.

“Pi Piyo!”

Eventually, they managed to determine that the Filolial was female, and Izuku, who admitted to not being good with names, named her Filo, to Raphtalia’s exasperation.

After that, it turned to to be pretty good idea in hindsight for Izuku to grab all that food from the banquet, because as it turned out, Filolials could eat.

A lot.

Not only that, but Filo seemed to grow quite rapidly over the next two weeks. And her growing meant she could eat even MORE.

Eventually, she had grown into a large bird that Izuku said reminded him of a Chocobo, to Raphtalia’s confusion.

And Filo continued to surprise them.

The morning after her full growth, Izuku hopped on Filo’s back to test her as a mount.

And Filo ran.

And ran.

And ran.

And ran.

And ran.

By the time they finally stopped, the sun was going down. Even then, Filo didn’t look the least bit tired, and only stopped because Izuku made her.

They finally got to put Filo’s capabilities to the test a few days later.

They had been staying in Lute to help with rebuilding when a group of knights showed up, led by Motoyasu and Malty with a royal decree naming Motoyasu the new lord.

On top of that, he was putting forth a hefty tax of fifty silvers just to enter or leave the village.

Naturally, the villagers began to revolt almost immediately, especially when Izuku loudly pointed out how just staying at the inn was a measly one silver, meaning that the ridiculous tax would ruin the village. The villagers especially didn’t hesitate to point out how Motoyasu did nothing to protect their village during the wave, as opposed to the Shield and Bow Heroes.

Before Malty could order the guards to suppress the villagers, a mysterious group of people showed up and handed something to Malty from the Queen. Whatever it said, it caused Malty to challenge Izuku for Lordship of the village.

And that was how Izuku ended up racing Filo against Motoyasu’s dragon. The race was a breeze, Filo’s speed and stamina being far superior to the dragon’s. Though he did notice that for some reason, Malty seemed to get more and more frustrated as he completed laps.

Also for some reason, a few mages that had come with them were missing.

It was after Izuku won the race that everything was made clear when the mysterious people deposited the missing mages at Malty’s feet, having prevented them from sabotaging the race In Motoyasu’s favor under the orders of the Queen, who apparently figured Malty might try something like this.

When Malty unsurprisingly threw a fit, the people revealed that, unlike the knights, they served ONLY the Queen and the Second Princess when the Queen wills it so, so Malty had no authority over them.

As if to make things even stranger, Filo suddenly transformed from something resembling a Chocobo to what looked like a giant owl. Malty tried to accuse him of cheating, but this was shot down.

It was with that that Malty and Motoyasu were sent packing. Though, not before Motoyasu called Filo fat and got kicked in the nuts for it. Izuku, who had no experience leading a town, simply gave the Lordship back to the previous Lord. In gratitude, he rewarded Izuku with what he could offer: a lightly damaged cart that Filo had taken a liking to, and a Merchant’s Pass that would allow him to bypass tolls.

After a day on the road, during which he discovered that Raphtalia was prone to motion sickness (He would have to make something for that), they came across a small town and decided to bunk for the night. When he began to leave Filo at the stables however, to his surprise, the Filolial began to freak out.

Izuku knew that Filo had been overly affectionate towards him, but to see her acting like this?

Hoping that she would calm down after a few minutes, Izuku left with Raphtalia.

It was when the two of them were eating dinner at the tavern a couple of hours later when a stable hand tracked them down, telling them that not only had Filo not calmed down, but she was getting even MORE distressed, telling Izuku that he would have to find another place to put her if he didn’t do something about it.

With a sigh of defeat, Izuku and Raphtalia finished their food and made their way to the stables.

X

Though she looked youthful, the truth was that she was well over a thousand years old. She had stopped counting a while back, and so didn’t have an exact number.

She could feel it in her body that she needed to find a successor to her position soon, preferably within the next couple hundred years.

Unfortunately, not just any King or Queen Filolial would do.

The myth of a King or Queen leading every single flock made her scoff. There weren’t NEARLY as many Kings or Queens for that.

In fact, it was extremely rare for a King Or Queen to be born naturally, about 1 in 1000. And even then, those ones couldn’t hold a candle to those raised by one with the title of Hero. They couldn’t even take on a human transformation like a Hero raised King or Queen could.

So when she sensed the birth of a new Queen under a Hero, she left Zeltoble immediately.

(It was a mercenary country. They could fend for themselves for a little while.)

She found the young Queen in the stables of a small town, panicking and crying.

She rationalized that this young Queen must not have unlocked her human transformation yet, as her voice still came out in distressed squawks.

Well, that was what the HUMANS heard. She on the other hand, could understand the young Queen perfectly.

[Mommy! Daddy! Come back! Come back! Please don’t abandon Filo! Filo is sorry for whatever made you mad! Filo will be good girl! I’ll be good girl!]

So she seemed to view the Hero who raised her as her parent. Interesting. She also seemed to believe that being left at the stable equated to being abandoned. That told her that this Queen was indeed very young and naive.

Still, at the moment, she was the best candidate she had as her successor.

As she watched a boy she quickly realized was the Shield Hero approached the stables, she decided she would keep an eye on this young Queen.

X

Izuku’s annoyance melted away as soon as he and Raphtalia saw Filo and realized the Filolial was crying.

“Hey, what’s wrong?” Izuku asked gently, petting her feathers. He knew that a lot of animals hated being separated from their owners, but he didn’t think Filo would get THIS distressed. “It’s alright Filo. I’m right here. Don’t worry, I won’t leave you.”

“Kweh…” Filo trilled.

“You thought you were being abandoned, didn’t you? We’re not abandoning you Filo. It’s just, you’re a giant bird. Neither the inn nor the tavern were going to let you in. We were going to come back for you tomorrow.”

Filo pulled him close to her.

Realizing that he wouldn’t be able to leave her here tonight, Izuku sighed and told Raphtalia they would have to forgo the inn tonight. Raphtalia seemed a bit annoyed, but understood.

And so the Shield Hero, his Demi-Human Slave, and a giant Filolial fell asleep together in the stables, Izuku praying they were done with the surprises for at least a little while.

X

THE NEXT MORNING:

“Daddy! Wake up! Filo wants food!”

Chapter Text

“We are NOT doing Battle Trials on the second day of school. Why would you think that’s a good idea?”

All Might’s smile faltered under Hana’s glare.

“I- well, I just wanted to get right into the swing of things, you know?”

“Dad.” All Might flinched at her tone. “With the exception of a few of them, these kids have no training and no experience using their Quirks on other people. Throwing untrained kids against each other and hoping they don’t accidentally kill each other is a disaster waiting to happen. That’s why Battle Trials are usually saved for later in the year.”

“I… Well… Aizawa already approved it for his class so I thought-“

Hana buried her face in her hands.

“Did he approve of it, or did he just tell you to do whatever you want and to leave him alone so he could sleep?”

“Er… The second one.”

“Doubt he’s gonna let you change it at this point if it’s already locked in. That would mean having to do paperwork. Just… Stop the match if things go too far, okay? These are kids, yes, but they’re old enough to be held liable for their actions. You can’t just go easy on them just because of their age. And keep an eye on Bakugo and Uraraka especially.”

“Hm? Those two? I understand they need some work in regards to their attitudes, but-“

“They’re the only kids on the board not to get any Rescue Points during the Entrance Exam. The way it’s set up means they both would have had to go out of their ways to NOT help anyone. That’s a major red flag.”

“I see, I understand. So what should I do for Class-B then?”

“Well, since you’ll be with 1-A tomorrow, I’m gonna do costume checks on the kids, make sure the kids are comfortable with what they’re wearing and maybe have them run an obstacle course to make sure there aren’t any problems that could hinder them in the field. It’s especially important you do that with 1-A when you get the chance. We’ve had to drop several support companies in the last few years because they’ve been getting really complacent with making costumes that focus more on looks and sex appeal than practicality. When you get 1-B, I would suggest Quirk training. Go to Power Loader and ask him for the specially designed Quirk training bots to help get the kids used to fighting other people without killing or maiming them.”

“Would the robots used during the Entrance Exam not suffice?”

“With the exception of the Zero Pointer, those robots are designed to be broken, so they’re a lot more fragile than they look. The ones you’ll be using have adjustable settings to take into account how some villains are more resistant to damage than others.”

“I see. Thank you Hana-Chan. I apologize for bothering you about this.”

“You’re new to teaching. It’s understandable to make a few mistakes here and there, and it’s a lot more complicated than it looks.”

X

In a shady bar in Kamino Ward, a figure sat, glaring at the newspaper in his hands, careful to use only for fingers on each hand as he held it.

“So the precious Symbol of Peace is teaching at U.A. now, is that right?” The male in his early twenties spoke with a raspy voice. “Tch.” He touched the remaining fingers to the paper, which crumbled to dust, before pulling out his phone and dialing a number within. “Sensei, I have an idea…”

X

“Nooooo! Don’t leave Filo behind! Daddy said he wouldn’t abandon Filo!!”

Izuku sighed, his high defense being the only thing keeping Filo’s relentless grip from breaking his bones.

To say Filo had abandonment issues was putting it lightly.

And unfortunately, today she had decided to be extra clingy.

“Filo, we’re not abandoning you. We’re just going to school. We’ll be back later, I promise.”

“Noooooooooooo!!”

Izuku sighed, before bending down and petting her hair.

“Tell you what. You let us go to school, and I promise I’ll make you pancakes for dinner. How does that sound?”

“Okay daddy!” Filo responded, suddenly bright and cheerful as she ran over to the TV. Izuku stood up, and noticed the look Raphtalia was giving him.

“I am not spoiling her!” He defended almost instinctively.

Raphtalia just rolled her eyes.

X

At U.A., the curriculum was handled quite differently compared to other schools. For starters, while half of the day was dedicated to regular school stuff like math and science, the other half was dedicated to whatever specialty your course was, with the General Education course being an outlier.

Today, 1-B would simply have Shimura-Sensei running their Heroics class today. Apparently U.A. had hired a dedicated Heroics teacher, but both 1-A and 1-B’s schedules meant they would have to alternate between the classes every other day.

“Alright everyone, we’re going to be in Gym Gamma today.” Shimura-Sensei announced, pulling out a remote and clicking the button. “Go ahead and change into these.

To everyone’s surprise, several shelves popped out of the wall to reveal numbered cases.

“Costumes!” Rin shouted excitedly as the class swarmed the cases.

Izuku just sighed at the U.A.’s apparent need to show off its ridiculous budget.

He and Raphtalia grabbed the cases with their seat numbers and moved to follow their classmates to the locker rooms.

X

Bakugo growled through his costume’s respirator mask. Apparently it was supposed to help him with his breathing problems. He didn’t fucking need this crutch! It only made him look weak.

Unfortunately, the hag threatened to sell all of his All Might merch if he didn’t use it.

Some of that stuff was near impossible to find these days!!

“Hey, four eyes, what’s your opinion of sparkles.” Bakugo grunted.

Iida looked up from the fake bomb they were supposed to protect.

“My name is Tenya Iida! And are you talking about Hagakure? Why do you wish to know about her?”

Because she had potential to be a rival. After all, if he was going to surpass All Might, he would need someone to be his Endeavor.

“Just answer the fucking question.” Bakugo snapped.

“Well, she has incredible potential, regardless of what Aizawa-Sensei says. She went out of her way to help that green haired boy rescue another examinee during the entrance exam, so she most certainly has heroic spirit.”

Bakugo stiffened.

“What green haired boy?” He snarled.

“Well, I did not get the boy’s name. All I know was that he and a female companion of his were muttering a lot during the practical exam briefing, and that he and Hagakure appear to be good friends.”

“This boy…” Bakugo growled. “Did he have fluffy green hair and freckles!?”

“Why yes he did! Do you know him?”

Bakugo felt his blood begin to boil as his hands crackled with small explosions.

So that shitty Deku disappears for a year only to cheat his way into U.A.!? There was no way a Quirkless loser like him could have passed the Hero Course Exam, but if he were to apply to Gen Ed as well…

He would have to find Deku and put him in his place once and for all. But first, he needed to beat the answers out of Sparkles first.

Screw rivalries. If she was friends with Deku, then the only place she belonged was under his heel!

And this Battle Trial gave him the perfect opportunity to do just that as All Might called for the match to begin.

X

“Welcome! Welcome!” Hanako greeted as the class made their way into Gym Gamma. She already had Cementoss on standby to create an obstacle course.

As homeroom teacher, it was her duty to do a basic check over of the designs the students submitted and makes sure they were within standards. Unfortunately, the design companies were also allowed some liberties with the costumes they made, so they didn’t always come out exactly as the design wanted. Minor modifications were fine, but major ones had to be reported and explained to the student in question. If a student was dissatisfied with a major design tweak, they could file a complaint to the company to have them fix it.

In short, this was really the first time she was seeing her students costumes. The outliers were Midoriya and Iwatani, who didn’t submit designs and instead brought in costumes of their own.

Midoriya wore a heavy looking green cloak around his person, along with a black outfit lined with scales of some kind, complete with a breastplate and a feathery collar..

Iwatani wore a set of red and white robes that looked like they belonged on a shrine maiden. Hana wasn’t sure about their defensive capabilities.

“So we’re going to be starting out slow today. Costume checks. The point is to make sure your costumes are up to snuff. First, each of you are going to be paired up with one of your classmates. You’re each going to ask each other about your costumes to determine if they’re practical enough to be used in the field or if they rely too much on appearance. An outside opinion always helps. After that, you’ll be running an obstacle course to make sure there are no surprises problems that could hinder you in the field.”

“Aw come on! That sounds boring!”

Hana just sighed. This was far from the first time she got a kid like this. It most certainly wouldn’t be the last.

“Is there something you’d like to say Kamakiri?”

“Aren’t we training to be Heroes!? When the hell do we get to fight shit!?”

“Being a Hero isn’t just about fighting Villains.” Midoriya spoke up. “It’s our job, first and foremost, to SAVE people. To make sure they’re safe. If you can’t wrap your head around that, then get the fuck out of here.”

“The hell’d you say to me greenie!?”

“Settle down!” Hana called, getting their attention. “While Midoriya could have worded that a bit more nicely, he is still correct. For all that the media likes to focus on villain fights, we have to prioritize the safety of the civilians above all else. There’s a very good reason that the more bloodthirsty Heroes very rarely make it into the top 200. Even Endeavor, for all the attitude he has, always ensures the safety of civilians before apprehending villains. I can’t even begin to tell you how many civilians have been injured or even outright killed because some glory hound went charging in firing off his Quirk Willy nilly.”

“I’ve had my Quirk all my life! I know what I’m doing!” Kamakiri snapped.

Hana merely rolled her eyes, before grabbing her left sleeve and rolled it up.

The majority of the class winced at the sight of, not flesh and bone, but synthetic, robotic material.

“I was a child when this happened.” Hanako said bluntly. “It wasn’t because of some villain attack, but because of my little brother manifesting an extremely dangerous Quirk, one that turned everything he touched into dust. In his panic he grabbed my arm. I don’t remember much after that, but I do know my family managed to amputate my arm before it spread to the rest of my body. When I woke up a few hours later in the hospital, I learned that I was the only surviving member of my family left. The rest of them, our house, all dust. That is why we’re going to ease our way into Quirk combat, because I know first hand how dangerous uncontrolled and untrained Quirks can be. If you don’t like that, you’re free to transfer classes.”

There was silence, before Kamakiri scoffed and pouted.

“Excellent. Let’s begin.”

X

“Considering Bakugo’s aggressive attitude, I wouldn’t put it past him to come gunning right for us.” Momo Yaoyarozu mused as she and an Hagakure stepped into the building.

“Right, and Iida’s a total know it all stiff, so he’s probably going to stay behind to guard the bomb.”

“I do not understand why you seem to dislike Iida-Kun so much.” Yaoyarozu sighed in exasperation. “I think he’s just overly passionate.”

“You got in on Recommendations, right? So you weren’t at the regular Entrance Exam. Iida made a total ass of himself, acting like some high and mighty douche. Loudly calling out U.A. on information on the pamphlets that Present Mic hadn’t even had a chance to cover, calling out a pair of students for whispering to themselves in front of everyone, and then continuing to harass one of those students as we were prepping for the Exam.”

“I… Guess I can see how that might give you a rather poor opinion on him. And I will agree that he does act a bit… High and mighty as you put it… Still, I do not think he’s intentionally trying to be rude.”

Before Hagakure could respond, the sound of explosions began creeping closer.

“Welp, here we go. Remember the plan?”

“Yes. Good luck.” Momo stated as she turned and bolted around nearby corner.

After a few seconds, Bakugo rocketed out in front of her.

“You! Where the fuck’s Deku!?”

“…Who?” Toru asked in confusion.

X

Momo crept through the building, a handheld thermal camera allowing her to see the residual heat from Bakugo’s explosions, leaving her a trail to follow all the way to the fifth floor, where she could hear Iida’s voice. Creeping closer to the door, she realized he had gotten a little more into character than one would expect, and was monologuing to himself.

She had to restrain herself from laughing at how ridiculous he was being.

Taking a look around, she noticed that Iida had removed anything that wasn’t nailed down, most likely to reduce her options for cover, as well as give him room to run.

A muffled bang shook the building as Iida stopped to stare at the floor.

“What on earth is he doing down there!?”

X

“You’re not going to get out of this Sparkles! Tell me what class Deku’s in right now!” Bakugo snarled, letting loose another explosion that Toru dodged.

“I don’t know anyone named Deku you fucking psycho!” Toru snapped.

“Don’t give me that shit! Four Eyes said you were all buddy buddy with Deku at the Entrance Exam!”

‘Of course Iida’s causing me trouble now.’ Toru thought.

“That Quirkless loser has done nothing but look down on me since we were kids and I had to be the one to put him in his place!”

“Really. ‘Look down on you?’ Sounds to me like you’re just a bully with a fragile ego. And even if this Deku person really was looking down on you, I wouldn’t exactly blame him. You act like you’re hot shit just because you’ve got firecrackers for hands, but the reality is that you’re just a spoiled brat throwing a tantrum cause the real world isn’t bending over backwards to suck your dick!”

“…You’re fucking dead.”

Toru punched him in the face, using the distraction to her advantage as she began to glimmer with light.

“Bring it you Yappy Pom-Pom Douche.”

X

Another explosion rocked the building, causing Momo to lose her balance and hit the floor, getting Iida’s attention.

“So you thought you could sneak up on me Hero!” The armor wearing teen proclaimed in the absolutely worst attempt at an evil voice. “If you think you’ll be stoping us today, then think again! As you can see, I’ve cleared out this to ensure that- Why are you laughing?” Iida broke character as Momo could barely contain her laughter.

“I’m sorry. You just sound so ridiculous right now.” Momo snickered.

“I am merely trying to live up to my role to the best of my abilities!” Iida proclaimed while chopping his arm.

Decided that now was her chance, Momo chucked a flash grenade into the room, covering her eyes at the explosion of light, she quickly rushed into the room…

And took a kick to the gut for her efforts.

“Foolish Hero!” Iida proclaimed in his villainous voice. “With how fast my Quirk lets me run, did you not consider that my helmet has built in eye protection?”

She… Had not considered that.

For as smart as she was, foresight was not one of her specialties.

Before she could attempt to rectify this mistake, she found her hands bound by capture tape.

X

{Yoayorozu has been captured! Eight minutes remain!} All Might’s voice sounded over the radio.

Toru grit her teeth. Their plan had failed, so now it was up to her to secure the win.

Problem was, Bakugo’s overly aggressive fighting style combined with the limited space this building offered made it difficult to find an opening to slip past him.

‘I need to outmaneuver him. If I get too close I risk getting blasted.’ She leapt back, before activating her invisibility.

“Oh hell no! You’re not getting out of this Sparkles!” The massive explosion Bakugo released caught her arm. Toru stumbled back, invisibility faltering as held the burn on her arm.

‘I need to outmaneuver him!’ She repeated mentally as she charged at him. ‘I need to move faster than he can react! I will NOT lose to the bastard!’

Something changed

Suddenly, she was flipping over Bakugo, grabbing his wrists as she used the momentum to hurl him into a wall.

Toru blinked, wondering what the hell just happened.

X

“Just so you know, I’ve had some very negative experiences with religious people, so I already don’t trust you.”

Ibara Shiozaki choked at Izuku’s bluntness.

“I… That’s just…”

“So let’s talk about your costume. What material is that dress made out of.”

“It’s silk, but-“

“There’s a problem already. That’s not going to offer any kind of protection. Unless you have armor hidden underneath or something.”

“The lord will protect m-“

“Right, so you’re either suicidal or just plain delusional.” Izuku stated as he wrote on the form he was given.

Was he being rude? Yes. But after dealing with the Three Heroes Cult, could you honestly blame him for having an aversion to overly religious people?

X

“Stop. Fucking. JUMPING!!”

“I’m not just going to stand there and let you hit me dumbass!!” Toru shouted. She needed to hurry, both because All Might called five minutes left, and because whatever was going on that was making her go faster than normal was also making it harder and harder to breathe.

Luckily, she noticed she didn’t seem to be the only one with that problem. She could hear Bakugo wheezing through his mask, and his movements were starting to get sluggish.

She saw her chance and took it.

Acting mostly on instinct, she grabbed Bakugo’s arm as he tried to launch an explosion in her face. Planting her heel into the floor, she pulled a 180 degree turn and hurled Bakugo out of a nearby window. Taking advantage of the situation, she bolted towards the higher floor as fast as possible, ignoring the enraged shout and multiple explosions coming from the outside as she moved.

Eventually, with three minutes remaining, she came upon the bomb room.

“Ah! It looks as though your little partner has- Are you okay? You look like you’re struggling to breathe.”

“Out of my way, now.” Toru panted. Before either could make a move, the floor exploded, sending debris everywhere as Bakugo quite literally exploded into the room with a roar.

“Bakugo! Are you out of your mind!? You could have damaged the bomb!” Iida criticized.

Bakugo paid him no heed.

“You wanna know something Sparkles? These gauntlets aren’t heist for show.” Bakugo snarled as he pointed a gauntlet at Toru., looping his finger around a grenade pin. “They’re designed to store up a bunch of my sweat so I can launch massive explosions.”

{Young Bakugo, do not pull that pin! You might kill her!} All Might’s voice sounded over the radio.

“She’ll be fine if she dodges!” Bakugo snarled as he pulled the pin.

“Bakugo-“ Iida tried.

Toru moved as something shifted in her Quirk.

The next few seconds were complete chaos, no one was able to make out what was happening until the smoke cleared, revealing a gaping hole in the roof of the room, Bakugo’s gauntlet forced to point upwards by a massive hand.

All Might wasn’t smiling as he removed Bakugo’s gauntlets faster than the boy could react.

“I should disqualify you for disobeying a direct order.” All Might began. “But you already lost the match.”

Immediately, Bakugo’s head snapped towards the bomb.

Toru was leaning against it, panting as she struggled for breath.

“You really ARE a fucking psycho.” She managed to get out, before the lack of oxygen finally got to her and she collapsed.

X

X

X

“Midoriya…Your criticisms of Shiozaki’s costumes were pretty valid… But couldn’t you have been a bit nicer to her?”

“As I told her, I have had very negative experiences with overly religious people and I tend to be pretty averse to them.”

“When you say negative experiences-“

“Trying to ruin my reputation just because I’m wielding a shield, trying to murder me, trying to murder other people for associating with me-“

“O-okay, I get it. Look, I can’t force you to like Shiozaki, but understand that you will have to work alongside her as a Pro Hero.”

“I understand. If you don’t mind me asking though, what’s your connection to All Might exactly?”

“…Hah?”

Izuku promptly pointed to her prosthetic arm.

“That’s I-Island Tech. Synthetic Material linked directly to your nervous system while also able to stimulate parts of your brain to simulate the feeling of touch. That kind of equipment would bankrupt anyone who isn’t insanely rich or in the Top 5. On top of that, both your costume and your Hero Name pay homage to a Pro Hero by the name of Nana Shimura who died a little over four decades ago. All Might named her as his mentor in early interviews, and you bear a striking resemblance to Nana Shimura on top of sharing her family name, so I assume she’s a grandparent based on ages. You also admitted to being an orphan at the beginning of class, so maybe All Might helped you out after your family died, especially since his first sidekick, David Shield, is I-Island’s Head Scientist.”

Izuku shrugged.

“I mean, it’s just a theory. I could be wrong.”

“…Where did you get all of that information?”

“Internet. I mean, a lot of it was difficult to find, but it’s there. I just got really bored.”

In the corner of her eye, Hana saw one of the security cameras focus on Midoriya.

Oh no. Nedzu was interested in him. They were all going to die.

X

X

X

“Well now… Barring a few… Mishaps, you all did pretty well today.” All Might congratulated. He had sent Bakugo to Nedzu earlier for his blatant insubordination, hoping the mammal would set him straight. As out of line as the boy’s actions today were, he was hoping some proper discipline would do something about his attitude.

Hagakure on the other hand was sent to the infirmary after she fell unconscious, with the young lady Recovery Girl had recently taken on as an apprentice determining that Hagakure had passed out from oxygen deprivation. He would need to go check up on her when class let out.

Now young Yaoyarozu, the poor girl looked completely dejected. All Might couldn’t exactly blame her. To lose so one sidedly would most like hurt anyone’s confidence. Hopefully she could bounce back.

“Now, I want you all to reflect on where you went wrong during your matches and how you can improve. Dismissed.”

As the class left, chatting excitedly, or in Monoma’s case, boasting, All Might side wearily, ready to release his muscle form when he noticed there was still one student remaining.

“Ah, young Uraraka, do you need something?”

“You’ve gotten slower.”

All Might choked, just barely managing to maintain his muscle form as the brown haired girl smirked and left the room.

X

X

X

“What did I say about traumatizing our teachers?” Raphtalia sighed.

“Leave it to Filo because it’s funnier?”

“I-When did I say THAT!?”

“Remember when we went to Cal Mira and you got really drunk?”

“No?”

“Exactly.”

Raphtalia just stared at him before noticing Toru stumble out of the school building.

“Ah! Hagakure! There you are!” Raphtalia chimed as she dragged Izuku over. “…Are you okay?”

“Yeah, something weird happened with my Quirk and I had to go to the nurse.” She sighed. “Aside from some injuries that Recovery Girl was able to fix, I’m otherwise fine, just really tired. I got pitted against Bakugo and he was just a psycho during our fight. Kept demanding I tell him about someone named Deku.”

Izuku sighed.

“Deku is what Bakugo calls me. It’s a misreading of my name that he came up with when my Quirk didn’t manifest at age four. This Shield only showed up last year.”

“So he really is just a bully, huh? Still, made more sense than this weird dream I had after passing out. I was in this black void and there was this ginger haired guy I had never seen before who kind of looked like Bakugo. He seemed angry with me for some reason, but I couldn’t make out what he was saying.”

“Huh, that IS weird.” Raphtalia replied, while Izuku did a double take. “Anyway, I’m glad you’re okay. We were actually looking for you. Izuku’s mom is so happy that he’s made friends-“

“Do you HAVE to word it like that?” Izuku grunted.

“-And she wants to invite you all over for dinner this Saturday. What do you think? Yanagi already said yes.”

“I’d love too.” Toru replied with a smile. “Do you mind if I bring Mina?”

“Of course! The more the merrier!”

As Raphtalia gave Toru the address to their apartment, Izuku silently switched to his Spatial Shield and stared at it, contemplating.

‘Ginger haired man, huh?’ He thought.

Chapter Text

‘How exactly did I go from being a Quirkless nobody to an entire country’s figure of worship?’ Izuku questioned mentally as he sat across from the pair of Siltvelt envoys. They had been waiting for the overly eccentric tailor to get Filo’s measurements when the two came up to him, explaining how they wished to take the Shield Hero to their country, explaining how they were barely holding on with their Vassal Claw Hero having mysteriously vanished.

“Look, it’s not that I don’t want to help you guys, it’s that I’m afraid the King will use me leaving the country as an excuse to declare war or something.”

“Ah yes. King Aultcray. That man is an utter disgrace of a Vassal Hero.”

“Huh? What do you mean? The King’s a Hero?”

“Were you not aware Lord Shield? The King of Melromarc is the current wielder of the Seven Star Staff.”

That peaked Izuku’s interest as well as his frustration. If the King truly was one of the Seven Star Heroes, then he was neglecting his duty by sitting on the throne barking orders instead of helping them fight in the Waves.

Heroes couldn’t pick and choose when to do their jobs. They had to be ready to protect people at all times.

“I… Was not aware of that. But either way, I think it would be best for me to stay here until the Queen can return and do something about her husband.”

“This is… Not the outcome we were hoping for. Still, your reasoning holds merit… Still, if there is anything we can do to aid you Lord Shield…”

“I could use some assistance during the Waves if you can offer it.”

“Yes! Of course! We will do what we can, Lord Shield!”

Izuku sighed as he finally managed to get away from the envoys as he walked back to the tailor’s shop. It had already been a stressful week with his Filolial turning into a naked child. Luckily, he had some dresses stored away that he had bought for Raphtalia before realizing she would quickly outgrow them. The problem was convincing Filo to stay in her child form so as to not destroy the dresses. After traveling with the witch who runs the magic shop to gather materials so they could make some thread out of Filo’s mana (During which Izuku managed to get some new shields.), they met up with the… Over enthusiastic tailor.

Well, Raphtalia thought she was enthusiastic. Izuku on the other hand determined her to be batshit insane, having no sense of personal space and referring to the clothes she made as her ‘cute little babies’. Still, you couldn’t deny her passion for her craft.

“Daddy! Filo knows how long she is!” Filo cheered as she and Raphtalia walked out of the shop. Izuku twitched. The thought of Filo thinking him her parent was cute and endearing when she was just a Filolial, but now that she could turn into a little girl, it just made him uncomfortable.

“The tailor said her dress would be ready by tomorrow. She’s going to work on it over night.”

“That doesn’t sound healthy.”

“I tried to talk her out of it, but she said that ‘Sleep is an unnecessary distraction when it comes to making babies!’ Her exact words.”

“O…Kay? Let’s go get lunch then.” After lunch at a nearby tavern, during which Filo complained about it not being Izuku’s cooking, the three took a walk through town, Filo happily holding onto Izuku and Raphtalia’s hands as the did so. Raphtalia seemed into it, but Izuku was again just uncomfortable. Deciding he might as well sell some of the misters scraps they had and stock up on supplies, ignoring the glares he got from some civilians and shop keepers as he did so.

While Filo was pestering Raphtalia to buy her a toy, Izuku just so happened to look up and notice a blue haired girl standing nearby, staring off into the distance as if in a trance.

“Oh! Hey, you’re Aoi aren’t you? The girl who works for Amalie?”

The blue haired girl actually let out something akin to a squeak as she almost dropped her things.

“Oh, sorry. Didn’t meant to startle you.” Izuku assured.

Aoi said nothing, eyes on the floor and trembling.

‘Amalie did say she was really shy, but I didn’t think it was this bad.’ Izuku thought.

“So uh… I’ve been kind of curious. Amalie said you can’t really remember anything about your life but… Does the word Quirk mean anything to you?”

Aoi actually stopped.

“…Quirks?” She asked, more to herself than to Izuku. She looked at her hands for a moment, then went rigid. With a loud yelp, Aoi fled, leaving Izuku startled.

“Did the Shield Devil hurt that girl?”

“I don’t know why the king just lets him walk around freely, especially after what he did to the Princess.”

Rolling his eyes at the not so subtle whispers, Izuku wandered back to Raphtalia and Filo, where Raphtalia had caved and bought Filo a small, cheap toy.

X

THE NEXT DAY:

FWISH

FWISH

SHING

“Does Filo look cute mommy?” Filo asked as she posed in her new dress. A white dress with blue accents and a blue ribbon.

“Yes! You look very cute!” Raphtalia cheered.

FWISH

FWISH

SHING

“So Filo is cute?” Filo asked again as she struck another pose.

“Unbelievably cute!” Raphtalia cheered.

“Yes!” The tailor cackled like a mad scientist. “This super cute little baby has to be my greatest creation yet!”

Suddenly, she was VERY close to Izuku’s face.

“Let me know if you need me to make any more babies for you!” She gave a grin fit for a nutcase.

“Yeah… Sure… How much do I owe you?”

X

Having not gotten away from the tailor as fast as he would have liked, Izuku had one more stop to make before they left town.

“This place?” Raphtalia asked, staring at the Slave Trader’s Tent warily.

“I want to ask Beloukas what’s going on with Filo. Because as far as I’m concerned, Filolials shouldn’t be able to turn into little girls.” Izuku sighed as they walked into the tent.

X

“She’s a Filolial Queen.” Beloukas said with that same sleazy grin he always had. Upon realizing the little girl Izuku had brought into his tent was actually the monster he had sold him, the slave trader became very excited, asking Filo to transform and inspecting her feathers carefully.

“A Queen? You mean like the rumors that there’s a king or queen Filolial in every flock?” Raphtalia asked.

“Exaggerations.” Beloukas waved off. “Kings and Queens are far too rare for that.” He continued to look over Filo more carefully. “So then Shield Hero… How about a crest for the Queen?”

“I’d prefer not.” Izuku huffed. “But I also can’t deny that the Slave bonuses Raphtalia’s been getting have been immensely beneficial.” He sighed wearily. “I guess I’ll just leave it up to Filo.”

X

In the end, Filo accepted getting a Slave Crest to ‘Be more useful for daddy.’ Something that made Izuku twitch uncomfortably. Soon, they left the capital and Izuku decided to take some advice he had gotten from Erhard while buying some new weapons, that being selling his improved medicines and potions as a merchant. Izuku admitted it was a much better idea than relying on what measly payments they could badger the King into actually giving them, and was much more reliable than just selling monster scraps all the time.

Naturally though, he needed to hide his identity. People wouldn’t be as likely to buy wares sold by the ‘Rapist Shield Devil.’ Luckily, his shield had several forms that he could use to blend in better, his Book Shield being one of the better ones.

Overall, this whole merchant thing was working out pretty well. Izuku’s party was able to remain on the down low while getting a good source of income.

Though he wished people would stop calling him ‘The Savior of the Heavenly Fowl’.

Yes, he sold high quality medicine for much cheaper than other merchants would, and he had a giant bird, but calling him a Savior was a bit much.

One day, while preparing to leave for the next town, Izuku found himself greeted by an unfamiliar man.

“Pardon me my good fellow, I was wondering if I could trouble you for some assistance? I’m in need of getting me and my supplies and was wondering if you would be willing to give me a ride? I’m willing to pay of course!”

Izuku was wary of the man. He didn’t SEEM like trouble, but he knew from his experiences with Malty that looks can be deceiving.

In the end, Izuku chose to give the merchant, Hickwall, a ride in exchange for thirty silver up front.

What was the worst that could happen?

X

Izuku felt a headache coming on as he looked down at the bound group of bandits that had tried to mug his group, apparently searching for Hickwall after he was sold out by another merchant.

The bandit leader, upon realizing Izuku was the Shield Hero, got cocky, saying there was no way they would be prosecuted once the Devil brought them in.

Izuku gave him an unimpressed look.

“Filo, dinner.” Izuku gestured toward the bandits.

“W-wait, is he serious!?”

“T-there’s no way that bird could eat all of us!”

“You kidding!? I’ve seen a Filolial eat! If anything, we’ll just be a light snack for her!”

After much begging, Izuku let the bandits go… After taking everything they owned of course.

“It’s not like I enjoyed that.” Izuku sighed under Raphtalia’s disappointed look. “But it’s like that said. The guards would have just let them go if it was me that brought them in. Probably would have charged me with assault too. At least this way they’re definitely not getting off without punishment.”

Raphtalia just sighed.

“I don’t exactly appreciate you getting us wrapped up in your mess like that.” Izuku called back to Hickwall. “If you needed help, you could have just said so.”

Hickwall merely smiled. "You have a heroic spirit Shield Hero, and quite a bit of potential as a merchant as well. Allow me to reward you as recompense for this little… incident.

In the end, Hickwall had taught Izuku the art of making accessories, even giving him a letter of recommendation to use one of his mines for materials. He also gave Izuku a Merchant’s pass and got him in touch with some connections of his.

Overall, not as bad as it could have been.

X

Hickwall had told him of business opportunities in the town of Lerno, so Izuku set off that way.

What he found there though, was not what he expected.

The entire village was overgrown and overrun with plant monsters.

“What happened?” Izuku asked a guard just outside of town.

“It was that seed the Spear Hero gave us.” He answered. “Our town was plagued by famine, so the Spear Hero brought us a Miracle Seed. When he left though…” He gestured toward the town.

“Right.” Izuku sighed, not really surprised that Motoyasu was the cause of this. He assumed Malty also played a pivotal role. “Give me a few minutes and I can whip up some potions for any injured townsfolk. I’ve also got plenty of herbicide to use.”

“That bird… Are the Savior of the Heavenly Foel by chance.”

“I’m not a big fan of that name.” Izuku sighed as he got to work. “I’m just a humble merchant trying to help people… By the way, do you happen to know where exactly the Spear Hero got that seed? I want to see if I can find anything about it that might help us.”

After giving the potions and herbicide to the villagers to pass out, Izuku made his way to a cave the guard pointed out. Inside he found an old lab with an open chest containing an explicit warning not to use the seed inside. Izuku facepalmed. Did Motoyasu even bother learning this world’s language?

Heading back to the village, Izuku demanded to speak to the Lord in charge.

“You guys knew about the seed didn’t you? Yet you trusted it simply because a Hero told you to.” The Lord looked sheepish. Izuku just sighed. “Tell me where the Miracle Seed was planted. That has to be the Bioplant’s core.”

“It’s that way.” The Lord pointed out. “We sent several adventurers to try and destroy it, but they never came back.”

“We’ll keep an eye out.” Izuku said.

The trio made their way through the overgrown village, managing to free the trapped adventurers before they finally came upon the Bioplant core.

It was then Izuku realized a problem.

He and Raphtalia had gotten pretty good at fighting together. The problem was that now Filo had been added to the mix, throwing everything into disarray.

“Sorry mommy!” Filo yelped as she accidentally tripped over Raphtalia.

Izuku blocked an errant vine. This wasn’t working. The three of them had no experience fighting as a trio, and Izuku couldn’t just send Filo back…

“Filo! Throw me at the core!” Izuku called.

“Okay daddy!” Filo called back as she transformed into her bird form. “YEET!”

‘I didn’t teach her that.’ Izuku internally mused as he was hurtled at the core, slamming into it.

“…Uh… Hi?”

The core made an enraged noise, and Izuku quickly dumped a bottle of herbicide on it, the herbicide boosted by his Shield’s abilities.

The Bioplant let out an unearthly shriek as it withered away.

“Right… That’s done.” Izuku panted as he watched the giant plant crumble.

“Yes but… The village will starve, won’t it?” Raphtalia mused. Izuku looked at the plant before an idea came to him.

“Filo, Raphtalia, start gathering up dead plants and any seeds you can find. I have an idea.”

To Izuku’s delight, absorbing the dead plant plants and seeds gave him abilities that would allow him to modify Bioplants.

With that, he sequestered himself in the old cave lab for the rest of the night.

When he came out the next morning, it was with a multitude of seeds.

“I modified them to increase their speed of growth while also making sure they don’t mutate again.” Izuku explained as he planted the seeds, which grew to into luscious, fruit ridden plants within seconds. “The only downside is that it eats up a lot of nutrients in the soil, so you’ll have to keep in well fertilized. But the plants will constantly produce highly nutritious fruits. I even made them cold resistant, so they should continue blooming even in the winter, though at a slower pace. Still, you could sell any excess fruit to buy livestock.” He plucked a large, juicy looking fruit and held it out. “Go ahead. Try it.”

The townsfolk looked wary, most likely because of the negative experiences they already had with the plant.

Finally, a brave man stepped forward and took a bite out of the fruit. Soon, the whole village was happily eating their hunger with the fruit.

When the village Lord insisted on rewarding Izuku, he merely took some of the excess seeds and fruit, as well as all of the leftover fruits from the unmodified plant Motoyasu had planted. Maybe he could sell some of the seeds to Hickwall…

X

Hickwall bought quite a few of the seeds for a hefty sum, then asked Izuku for help with a delivery. That was how Izuku and his party ended up at hot springs town.

After making the delivery, the party decided to stay the night and take advantage of the hot springs.

“Silver Boar… Spring of Love…” Raphtalia murmured to herself as she stared at a plaque in the hot spring. “…Bonded for life!?” Raphtalia’s face went cherry red as she covered it with her hands. “Ah! No! Izuku-Sama! You musn’t kiss me! I’ll get pregnant!”

SPLASH!!

Raphtalia whirled around, startled at the noise, only to relax when she saw Filo swimming in the hot springs.

“Filo, don’t splash around so much please…” Raphtalia sighed.

After a few minutes of swimming around, Filo stopped and looked at Raphtalia.

“Mommy, why doesn’t daddy like Filo?”

Raphtalia recoiled, caught off guard by the question.

“W-what do you mean Filo? Izuku-Sama loves you.”

“But he always seems uncomfortable around Filo, and he always gets really uncomfortable when Filo calls him daddy and tries to change the subject.”

Raphtalia sighed.

“Filo, it’s not that he doesn’t love you. Izuku-Sama really cares about you. I guess this whole thing kind of… Came out of nowhere, and he’s having trouble adjusting to it. I’m sure he’ll warm up to it eventually. Just give him some time.”

On the other side of the dividing wall, Izuku sat, overhearing their conversation.

It wasn’t his fault he was so uncomfortable around his D̶a̶u̶g̶h̶t̶e̶r̶ Filolial. Like Raphtalia said, this was all completely sudden to him, added onto the fact he was stuck in an unfamiliar world where people saw him as evil incarnate!

Yes he was uncomfortable with Filo’s daughter my affection, but he still cared a lot about his D̶a̶u̶g̶h̶t̶e̶r̶ Filolial.

He would try to spend more time with her.

X

They were currently making way toward a town that, according to Hickwall, had seen a sudden spike in medicine sales the past few days. It would take a couple of days to arrive, so they had just been biding their time. On one particular night, just after a storm, Izuku found himself slipping stones across a nearby river.

“What are you doing daddy?” Izuku jumped at the sound of Filo’s voice.

“O-oh! Just skipping some stones.”

“Can Filo try?”

“Huh? Oh, yeah, sure. Come here.” Filo immediately plopped by his side. “First off, you need a flat stone, otherwise it’ll just go straight to the bottom. Hold it like this… Now, it’s all in the wrist, flick it.”

Filo tossed the rock, and it plopped straight to the bottom.

Filo pouted.

“It’s okay. Just keep trying until you get it. Like this… Okay.”

The rock skipped once before sinking.

“You’re getting it! Just a little more force in your throw this time. Just a little bit…”

The rock skipped five times.

“Yay! Filo did it!”

“That’s good! Try again on your own this time.”

This time, the rock made it all the way to the other side of the river and clattered against the dirt.

“Yay!”

“Good job Filo!” Izuku said proudly as he ruffled her hair, only to realize what he was doing and turn away in embarrassment.

It was fine to be proud of one’s D̶a̶u̶g̶h̶t̶e̶r̶ Filolial, right?

X

The village was still a day away, so they made camp for tonight. Raphtalia had gone to catch some fish while Izuku worked on some accessories.

He was drawn from his work at the sound of singing, and turned to see Filo singing a little tune to herself as she brought up some firewood.

“Do you like singing Filo?”

“Mhm!” Filo nodded happily. “Filo loves singing!”

“Oh yeah? What song are you singing right now?”

“Filo doesn’t know. Filo is just singing.”

“Really now.” Izuku looked to be in thought. “There were a lot of singers back in my world. But people really loved the idols- OOF!” Izuku looked down to see his D̶a̶u̶g̶h̶t̶e̶r̶ Filolial in his lap, looking up at him expectantly.

“Teach Filo songs from your world daddy.”

Izuku twitched uncomfortably.

“Uh… Sure…”

X

When they finally arrived at the town, Izuku was shocked by the state it was in.

Apparently the sickness that had swept through it was actually nothing short of a plague.

Izuku was quick, making the highest quality medicines he could while Raphtalia gathered information.

Apparently Ren had slain a dragon that was supposedly terrorizing the town, but had neglected to dispose of the corpse.

“He still thinks this is all a game.” Izuku sighed as he passed out Medicine. “He probably thought the dragon would despawn after he killed it. Either way, it’s clear the dragon’s corpse is the source of the plague, so we’ll have to dispose of it ourselves.” Izuku said, though it looked like something was on his mind.

As they left town and made their way to where the dragon’s corpse was, Izuku voiced his concerns.

“They were lying about the dragon attacking the village.”

“Huh? What do you mean Izuku-Sama?” Raphtalia asked.

“In my world, it’s common for villain attacks to wreck part of a city or town. That village and the surrounding area showed no sign of having been damaged or even recently repaired. And there have been no reports of dragon attacks in this area or Hickwall would have said something. No, either the dragon was peaceful or just neutral. Either way, it definitely didn’t attack the village.”

“So they lied about the dragon to get the Sword Hero to kill it? Why?”

“That’s what we’re going to find out.”

They made their way to a cave the locals had said the dragon had been roosting in, and it didn’t take long to find answers. There were human footprints all over the place, as well as a few stray coins and gems lying about.

“So they had the dragon killed so they could make off with his treasure. Figures. Probably wanted to sell his body parts too. I guess the plague came before they could pick the place clean though.”

“Izuku-Sama… I don’t think the dragon was the only one living here.” Raphtalia spoke up. Izuku followed her into a side room of the cave.

Inside looked like a makeshift child’s room, complete with toys and drawings. Izuku picked a drawing up. It showed what appeared to be a dog Demi-Human with the dragon.

ME AND DAD.

“The dragon adopted a child, and if they were a Demi-Human like the picture shows, the townspeople most likely took them and sold them into slavery.” The paper crinkled as Izuku clenched his shaking fist. “Dammit! Do the people of this world honestly have no shame!?”

“Izuku-Sama…”

“Let’s dispose of the corpse. Then me and the lord are going to have a chat.”

X

It was as they approached the dragon’s corpse that all hell broke loose.

The supposedly inanimate, rotting lizard suddenly sprang to life.

Izuku could feel intense rage coming from the Zombie Dragon.

“Shit.”

The dragon promptly spewed out a blast of poisonous gas.

“DODGE!” Izuku shouted as his two teammates acted. He pushed himself off the ground just in time to see Filo in her bird form kick the dragon in the face. “Filo! Get back here!”

Filo paid no mind as she let loose a blast of wind magic.

“Filolials and Dragons are natural enemies!” Raphtalia called. Izuku could only watch as the much larger dragon’s mouth enclosed around his D̶a̶u̶g̶h̶t̶e̶r̶ Filolial, the giant zombie swallowing her as a spray of red erupted from her mouth.

“FILO!!!” Izuku roared.

‘Why… Why does this world keep trying to take everything from me…?’ Izuku thought. ‘First they took my honor, then they tried to take Raphtalia… Now they took Filo… It’s not just this world… I lost a lot the moment I was diagnosed Quirkless… WHAT DID I DO TO DESERVE ALL THIS SUFFERING!?’

Izuku trembled as over a decade’s worth of pent up rage began to surface.

‘It’s not fair… IT’S NOT FAIR!!’

DOST THOU DESIRE POWER?

‘What…?’

SUCCUMB TO RAGE. UNLOCK POWER, MAKE ALL WHO HURT YOU SUFFER IN RETURN…

‘Is it… Really that simple…?’

“-Ama! Izuku-Sama!”

Izuku gasped as Raphtalia shook him in a panic.

“Izuku-Sama! The dragon!” Izuku looked up the approaching form of the dragon. He felt the rage emitting from the beast…

And he understood.

“Is this how you felt… When they took your child from you?” Izuku asked as he slowly approached the dragon. “This blinding rage… When they hurt someone dear to you?”

The dragon made no move, as if it was actually listening.

Ignoring his instincts screaming at him for his stupidity, Izuku calmly laid his hand on the dragon’s snout.

“I understand how you feel. I promise… I’ll find your child. I’ll save them.” Izuku steeled his gaze. “I’m not going to let anyone suffer. I’ll protect your child! I’ll be the Hero they need! I promise!”

Izuku blinked, looking around as he found himself in a foggy landscape. He saw a young girl, a dog Demi-Human, standing unresponsive.

A large figure appeared in the mist.

Izuku looked up to see the dragon. Only he wasn’t a rotting corpse, but alive and well.

“Wyndia…” The dragon sighed. “My daughter, Wyndia… Her mother stumbled into my cave one day, at death’s door. Ever since then, I raised her as my own, until the people of Mirso Village grew greedy. I repelled their attacks, but it was when they sent the Sword Hero after me that it became too much. My spirit watched helplessly as the people of Mirso dragged my daughter kicking and screaming out of our home, and I was consumed with unrelenting rage.”

“I understand.” Izuku murmured as he made sure to memorize Wyndia’s face. “I’ll find her.”

“Thank you Shield Hero. The Sword Hero was arrogant, but knowing that there at least one of the Cardinal Heroes will protect my child is enough to put my soul at ease.”

“What’s your name? In case I need to use it with Wyndia?”

“Gaelion. My name is Gaelion.”

The mist cleared, and Izuku stumbled back as the dragon collapsed lifelessly.

There was a scratching noise before its stomach burst open.

“Waaah! It smells in here!”

“Filo!” Izuku yelped as his F̶i̶l̶o̶l̶i̶a̶l̶ daughter climbed out the dragon’s stomach.

“Oh! Hi daddy- eep!” Filo yelped as Izuku tackled her in a hug.

“Are you hurt!? There was a lot of blood!”

“Hm? Filo is okay! Filo didn’t see any blood, but Filo did throw up all the berries Filo ate earlier. Oh! Filo found this too!” His F̶i̶l̶o̶l̶i̶a̶l̶ daughter held out an ominous crystal. “Filo ate half of it, but daddy can have the other half!” Izuku hesitantly took the crystal and absorbed it into his shield.

SHIELD OBTAINED.

ALERT: UNKNOWN SHIELD REQUIRES HIGHER LEVEL TO UNLOCK.

“Can’t even use it yet, huh.” Izuku sighed. “Let’s go back. I’m not going to let them make off with the hoard that belongs to Gaelion’s child.”

As they made their way back, Filo took Izuku’s hand.

“I love you daddy.”

“…I love you too Filo.” Izuku said as he tightened his grip on her hand.

Filo blinked, then a wide smile grew on her face.

“DADDY!!” Filo shouted as she tackled Izuku in a hug.

Maybe being a father wouldn’t be so bad…

??? SHIELD SERIES: UNLOCK CONDITION 1 OF 3 MET.

Chapter Text

“Seriously?” Izuku asked as he and Raphtalia watched a massive crowd of reporters swarm the U.A. gates. Listening closely, he could hear the m harassing the teachers about All Might. “Press always think they’re above the law or something.”

He noticed a shimmer beyond the gate as he saw Hagakure pop into view looking ragged.

“Hold on a second.” Izuku stated as he brought up his party screen while at the same time switching to his Cellphone Shield Series.

CELLPHONE SHIELD III.

ABILITY: CALL: TELEPORTS ALL ACTIVE PARTY MEMBERS TO A CURRENTLY SELECTED PARTY MEMBER.

CURRENT ACTIVE PARTY MEMBERS:

IZUKU MIDORIYA (LEADER)

RAPHTALIA IWATANI.

FILO MIDORIYA.

ATLA FAYON.

KEEL.

RIFANA.

WYNDIA.

SADEENA.

He quickly removed Filo, Atla, Keel, Rifana, Wyndia, and Sadeena from the party, as he knew Filo would definitely get teleported with them, and the other four… He honestly didn’t know what would happen. He knew they would understand though, and he could just go invite them back when he got the chance.

X

Hagakure sighed as she walked up to the gates. Getting through the mob of reporters had been a hassle. Luckily they didn’t notice her squeeze through when she cloaked herself.

She was pretty tired though. She had spent most of the night talking to All Might, trying to figure out what was up with her Quirk.

Before she would contemplate any further, what seemed to be a menu screen popped up in front of her.

IZUKU MIDORIYA HAS INVITED YOU TO JOIN HIS PARTY.

ACCEPT/DECLINE.

Blinking in confusion, Hagakure hesitantly accepted.

With a soft pop, Izuku and Raphtalia suddenly appeared beside her in a flash of blue light.

“Ah, thanks Hagakure.” Izuku spoke up.

“Uh… You’re welcome? What just-“

“Our Quirks have a lot of video game-like mechanics to it.” Izuku said quickly. “You two go on ahead. I need to add Filo back into the party before she throws a car.”

“Don’t you mean ‘throw a fit’?” Toru asked, wondering who Filo was.

“Oh, she’ll do that too.” Izuku responded.

X

“I’m sure you heard about the incident in Class 1-A yesterday…” Hana began as she walked into the classroom. “All you need to know is that 1-A was put in a training exercise that was beyond their current skill level. Mistakes like this happen, okay? So don’t expect your class with All Might today to follow the same schedule.” She set down her papers. “Now that that’s out of the way, you need to spend this homeroom deciding who among you will act as your Class Representative and Vice Representative. While I would prefer a simple vote, you’re all free to decide using whichever method you want with one exception: Absolutely no death matches in clown costumes.”

The class sweat dropped at her need to call out that specific thing.

A few minutes later, Izuku was standing at the front of the class as the new Class Rep, with Kendo standing beside him as Vice Rep.

“…Why?” Izuku asked.

“Okay, Midoriya is Class Rep and Kendo is Vice Rep.” Hana explained.

“May I please abstain?” Izuku asked.

“I ask that you at least spend one day in the role before making that decision.”

Izuku sighed wearily.

“Fine.”

X

“I know you voted for me. Don’t act like you didn’t.” Izuku sighed as he and Raphtalia were getting lunch.

“Oh don’t act like that. Of course people voted for you. After all, you’ve already got leadership experience. Both leading our party and as the Duke of Green Valley.”

“Maybe don’t shout that part out loud.” Izuku sighed as they made their way over to a table where Reiko was already sitting. “I don’t need people sucking up to me.”

“Izuku, you got five votes. That’s a fourth of the class. Clearly some of our classmates recognize you as a leader.”

“Indeed.” Reiko spoke up. “That is why I voted for you. You emanate an aura that makes me wish to follow you.” Izuku just sighed.

“Is Hagakure not coming?” Raphtalia asked.

“I believe I may have seen her heading towards the lounge on my way here.” Reiko responded.

They sat, eating and chatting for a few minutes before a loud noise blared through the cafeteria.

ATTENTION: LEVEL 3 SECURITY BREACH IN PROGRESS. PLEASE EVACUATE IN AN ORDERLY FASHION.

The whole cafeteria erupted in panic as students began running like the place was on fire.

“Hey, wait, what’s a Level 3 Security Breach?” Raphtalia asked a passing third year.”

“Oh! Oh! That just means that some intruders have gotten past the front gate and are on campus!” The third year said brightly. “Hey hey! Is that sword your Quirk? Does it always look like that or does it transform? Ooh! What about-“

“Raphtalia, come on!” Izuku called as he dragged Raphtalia with him. They found themselves in an overly crowded hallway of panicking students. “God dammit. This is ridiculous.” Izuku huffed.

Izuku bumped into someone tall.

“It’s you!” Izuku blinked, before groaning as he recognized the blue haired, glasses wearing teen from the Entrance Exam.

Surprisingly, the boy didn’t try to scold Izuku.

“The press have broken onto campus!” The blue haired boy yelled over the crowd. “The teachers are already dealing with them. We must let the students know, but I can’t get through to them.” Izuku blinked as he processed that information, before a flash of orange hair caught his attention.

“Kendo!” Izuku grabbed her shoulder. “Lift me above the crowd.

“Huh!? But-“

“Quickly please.” Izuku stated. Before he knew it, he was above the swarming crowd, where he could indeed see the press walking through the gate.

VOICE GENGAR SHIELD.

“EVERYBODY SHUT UP AND CALM THE FUCK DOWN!!” Izuku yelled through the shield, the students startled into silence by his amplified voice. “LOOK! IT’S JUST THE PRESS!” He gestured out the window. “FOR FUCK’S SAKE! SOME OF YOU HAVE PROVISIONAL LICENSES ALREADY. IF THIS IS HOW YOU’RE GONNA ACT IN THE FIELD, THEN JUST TRANSFER TO GEN ED ALREADY!”

Some of the upperclassmen looked embarrassed while others looked angry at being called out.

“NOW, CLASS REPS, CALMLY LEAD YOUR CLASSMATES BACK TO THEIR CLASSROOMS AND AWAIT FURTHER INSTRUCTIONS FROM YOUR HOMEROOM TEACHERS! OKAY!? YOU GIT THAT!?”

After a few tense moments, the Class Reps began doing as Midoriya said.

X

“My my, this is not good at all.” Nedzu mused as he inspected what remained of the U.A. Barrier after the police forced the press off of the school grounds, only a pile of rust remaining.

“You think one of the press did this?” Snipe asked as he strode up to Nedzu’s side.

“No. Even if they were willing to take advantage of the gate being destroyed even they know better than that. I believe the press were intended as a distraction.”

“A distraction for what?” Midnight asked.

“I don’t know. But for now, we can consider this a declaration of war.”

X

“Thank you all for your patience.” Hanako stated as she walked into the classroom. “Due to the break in, we will be cutting school short today and will be giving you the next couple of days off while we revise our security. Classes will resume normal schedule on Friday. I understand some of you were excited for your Heroics class today. I apologize, but you’ll have to put a pin on that.”

The class groaned as they gathered their things and began to leave.

“Ah, Midoriya, about your desire abstain from the Class Rep position…” The green haired boy looked at her expectantly. “I saw the camera footage with you stopping the panic and taking charge of the situation. I’m very pleased. So pleased in fact, I’m locking you in as Class Rep for your entire U.A. Career.”

Izuku stared at her for a minute.

SHIELD PRISON.

A muffled scream came from the orb of shields Izuku had locked himself in as Hana went back to her paperwork.

X

X

X

Izuku had decided to take these unexpected few days off of school to get some errands done.

Said errands being to jump on over to Melromarc to get some potion ingredients and make sure his village was still standing.

“Judging by my estimate, I should be back by Thursday night.” Izuku sighed. “You sure you don’t wanna come with?”

“Filo’s still got her schooling and someone needs to stay behind in case someone comes over looking for you.” Raphtalia sighed. “Then she leaned over and kissed him. “Don’t even think about humoring Sadeena’s advances.” She joked.

“Wouldn’t dream of it.” Izuku cracked a grin, a relatively rare sight these days.

SPATIAL SHIELD.

A round shield with a blue outer rim, a teal inner rim, a green gem in the very center, and black accents appeared on his arm. He activated its transport ability as Raphtalia stepped back.

The shield began to glow, humming loudly before Izuku vanished in a green flash.

X

Izuku blinked away the stars as he found himself in a small room.

He looked around at the sound of snoring, and found a young, black and white haired dog Demi-Human passed out on a couch, decked out in armor with a sword hanging loosely from her fingers.

Izuku rolled his eyes.

“Keel, wake up.” He tried nudging the girl.

She just rolled over in her sleep.

Annoyed, Izuku picked up a nearby cup, made sure in was filled with water, and dumped it on the sleeping Demi-Human.

“WAAAAAAHHH!”

CLANG.

Keel’s sword bounced harmlessly off of Izuku’s Shield.

“So the guard captain position I gave you is definitely working out. You’re doing a marvelous job guarding that couch.” Izuku snarked. “Come on Keel, it’s the middle of the day.” Izuku gestured out the window. “What if the village was under attack?”

“I know, I know. I had a long night last night.” Keel sighed, rubbing her eyes

Izuku sighed, pulling an energy drink out of his shield and cracked it open. “Here this should wake you up a bit, just don’t overdo it.” He looked out the window. “So how are things. The place didn’t burn down while I was gone did it?”

“Well, the southwestern orchard caught fire after getting struck by lighting.”

“Oh?” Surprisingly, Izuku sounded a bit hopeful, mostly because that part of the orchard held-

“Oh, but don’t worry! My crepe tree was miraculously unscathed.”

Izuku’s good mood faltered.

“Oh, and we got a bunch of new residents too!” Keeps explained. “We also added two new members to the Shield Guard. A pair of twin dog Demi-Humans. They were actually former Siltvelt Military, but got dishonorably discharged.”

“What for?” Izuku asked.

“Er… I didn’t ask. But they’ve both been really good people so I just kinda let it go. They’re really friendly and dedicated to protecting everyone, or as they say, ‘Protecting the Ruffians’. Uh…” She flipped through some files. “They’re guarding the prison today if you wanna go talk to them.”

“If you say they’re good people then I’ll trust your judgment.” Izuku nodded. “I’m just curious as to what they actually did that got them booted out of the military.” He sighed. “I’ve got some errands to run, but I’ll probably walk around the village first.”

“That’s good. Everyone will be happy to see you!” Keel grinned. “The moral always goes up when Shield Nii-San’s back!”

“Didn’t I tell you to stop calling me that?” Izuku sighed. “Oh, yeah, before I forget…”

He went on to invite his friends back into his party.

X

“The Shield Hero’s back! Did you hear?”

“Lord Shield is back!”

“Sir Motoyasu! The Shield Hero has returned!”

“Wha-“ The blond nearly banged his head against the Filolial he had been trying to reign in. “Oh! Midoriya! Hey!”

“Hey Motoyasu. These two new?” Izuku asked as he walked up to the Spear Hero turned farmer who also bred Filolials on the side.

“Oh, yeah! They’re mates actually! This one’s Sapphire!” He pointed to the blue feathered Filolial who sat by stoically. She’s got an affinity for ice magic and she always seems to know what’s going to happen before it actually does. The old witch thinks she might have some precognitive abilities.” He gestured to the red one he was currently struggling with. “And this one’s Ruby. She’s got fire magic and she’s a bit of a hot head.” He yelled as Ruby nipped his ear, drawing a bit of blood.

“Hm… I might have to introduce them to Filo some time.” Izuku mused.

“Oh? Yeah! That sounds great. By the way… Have you gone to see Ren yet?”

The mood seemed to drop a bit.

“Not yet.” Izuku sighed. “He hasn’t gotten better, has he?”

“No. If anything he may have gotten worse.” Motoyasu said grimly. “I’m just glad the waves have stopped. Otherwise Fitoria might have done something rash.”

“I think she’s mostly learned her lesson.” Izuku huffed. “Let’s… Talk about something else. You hear from Itsuki?”

“Yes actually! He visited a few weeks ago. Said that Rishia has gotten along with his parents really well and she’s even been mostly able to integrate with his world.”

“That’s good. Raphtalia and Filo are getting by really well too. Filo even made some new friends.”

“Oh yeah?” Simultaneously, as off by instinct, both happened to glance at a line Sakura tree off in the distance, surrounded by a few spider Lilies.

“…Take care Motoyasu.”

X

“Izuku.” Wyndia nodded as she pulled a heavily intoxicated Sadeena out of the tavern.

“Another dunking competition?” Izuku asked, a hint of amusement in his voice. “Need a hand?”

“Nah, I’m good. This is far from the first time I’ve been called in for this.”

“Midoriya!” Sadeena slurred. “Lesh fuck!” Both Izuku and Wyndia rolled their eyes.

“I’ll let you get back to it. We can talk more later.” Izuku said with a nod.

X

Two young ladies sat by the grave, leaning on each other’s shoulders, taking comfort in the other’s presence. One was slightly shorter than her partner with long black and white hair and a tail, while the other had short pink hair.

Izuku called out to them. They both jolted.

“Ah! Izuku-Sama. You’ve returned.” The black and white haired lady stood, blue eyes almost sparkling.

A far cry from the blind, almost dead child she once was.

“Atla, Rifana.” Izuku smiled sadly. “I can see you’re busy. I just wanted to say hi. We can talk later if you want.”

“Yes! We’d like that.” Atla said with a smile as she grasped his hands while Rifana smiled gently.

Cast a glance at the grave.

FOHL FAYON.

X

“Moco-Chan, he’s the Shield Hero, right?” The older, pink eyed twin spoke.

“The shield’s smaller than I expected.” The younger, blue eyed twin mused. “Bao bao.”

“Bao bao.” The older one affirmed.

“So I understand you two were dishonorably discharged from Siltvelt Military?” Izuku asked. “You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to. I’m just curious as to what happened.”

“Oh! It was during a Wave!” The older twin spoke softly. “Our commander ordered all of us to focus on the boss.”

“But there were ruffians being hurt by the monsters, so we went to protect them instead.” The younger twin spoke. “So we were let go for insubordination.”

“Were we bad guard dogs Shield Hero?” The older twin asked.

Izuku shook his head.

“Your commander was the one in the wrong, not you two. Taking out the Boss is a priority, but civilian lives should always take a higher precedence. I think your Commander just wanted the glory of defeating the Boss.” He sighed. “Fuwawa-San, Mococo-San, keep up the good work.”

“Of course! It’s our duty to protect the ruffians! Bao bao bao- Moco-Chan, why aren’t you bao bao-ing?”

“Rebellious phase.”

“Oh! Okay!”

Shaking his head in amusement, Izuku stepped into the prison.”

X

“Hey Ren…” The cell Izuku stood before was a special one, designed for one thing:

Containing someone wielding the title of Hero.

Izuku’s eyes briefly flickered to the container holding Sword Of Lust, bound by a magical seal to keep Ren from summoning it.

“Is Wyndia with you?” Was the first thing out of Ren’s mouth. Izuku sighed.

“No, let’s not talking about Wyndia, okay? How have you been?”

“Oh good except for the fact that I have to spend 24/7 in a fucking prison cell.” Ren spat.

“We don’t want to kill you Ren, but we can’t let you just wander around after what you did-“

“Wyndia belongs to me!” Ren shouted, a crazed look in his eyes. “She’s perfection! She deserves better than scum like you!”

“Wyndia and I aren’t even interested in each other like that.” Izuku sighed.

“You think that just because you have a fucking shield you can keep us apart!?” Ren shouted in delusion. “You’ll only get her killed, just like you got HER killed! You can’t protect anyone!!”

“…Goodbye Ren.” Izuku responded. Voice full of absolute venom.

He left the prison, and took the rest of the day to cool off so as to prevent himself from strangling the Sword Hero.

It was nice, spending time with his friends. Wyndia and Rifana even helped him with the ingredients hunting, and the villagers loved seeing him again.

He was almost reluctant when the day for him to return home came.

X

X

X

“Settle down now.” Shota Aizawa spoke as he entered the classroom, his mere presence casting a vail of unease. They had just come back from their unscheduled break from school the U.A. Security System having received several upgrades. “We’ll be doing something different for Heroics today. Get in your costumes and get outside by the buses… NOW.”

The majority of the class bolted to action, not wanting to incur their teacher’s wrath.

X

Aizawa shook his head as he sat at the front of the bus that was taking them to their destination. This whole thing was completely illogical. He kept trying to tell Nedzu that the USJ and Rescue Training as a whole were completely pointless, but the rat refused to listen to reason and insisted that it be mandatory.

His mind wandered to his current batch of students. There were the ones that had quite a lot of potential: Bakugo, Uraraka, Todoroki, and Monoma.

Bakugo and Uraraka especially seemed to understand the pointlessness of Rescue operations if their Entrance Exam scores were anything to go by. Of the students in his class, those two had the most potential.

Then there was the other end of the spectrum. Students he would have expelled on the spot if not for Nedzu taking away his right to do so.

Couldn’t he see that he NEEDED his ability to expel students at will? These brats were only going to get themselves killed!

First there was Mina Ashido. The girl seemed to treat Heroics like a game. If he had to bet on which students would probably kick the bucket the quickest, she would definitely be on that list.

Then there was Momo Yaoyarozu, the Class Rep. She was smart and had an extremely versatile Quirk, something which got her in through recommendations, but that was all she had going for her.

She was far too naive. She wouldn’t last a week in the real world.

Then they had Koji Koda. The fact that a near mute kid whose only power was speaking to and controlling animals somehow managed to pass the Entrance Exam could only mean he must have cheated somehow. The quiet ones were always the ones you had to keep an eye on.

Then finally, the worst of the bunch: Toru Hagakure. He could tell the girl was connected to All Might somehow. He saw how the blond off was keeping his eye on her during the Exam. That alone was a red flag for Aizawa.

On top of that, the girl herself was arrogant, seemed to think the world should revolve around her just because she had a powerful Quirk.

On top of that, if she pushed her Quirk too far (Anything above 45% as he heard her tell Ashido one day.), she would shatter her bones. The fact that she didn’t have near perfect control of a Quirk she’d had for over a decade told Aizawa that she was lazy too, and would require too much effort.

Her recklessness during the Battle Trials only hammered that home.

She also apparently had connections to another trouble maker Aizawa had failed to get his hands on: Izuku Midoriya.

Over all, she was a real problem child. Aizawa hoped she would slip up badly enough that he would be able to replace her with a student who had been wronged by the biased Entrance Exam: Hitoshi Shinso.

He only needed to wait.

X

Toru’s head hurt.

They had been brought to an on campus facility called the USJ for Rescue Training. Something which some of her classmates didn’t seem pleased about.

(She rolled her eyes as she heard Uraraka scoff and call Thirteen-Sensei a ‘Sorry excuse for a Hero’.)

She had been completely fine until she stepped through the door into the USJ, only to get a spike of pain through her head.

The dull throb distracted her from the lecture, until it turned into a sharp spike as a cloud of purple mist opened in the center of the facility, and a man covered in what appeared to be hands clawed his way out.

“Are we starting already?” Kirishima asked as more people began to pour out of the smoke. “I thought this was Rescue Training-“

“Stay back!” Aizawa said sharply as he pulled his goggles on. “This is REAL. Those are Villains!”

The class began to panic.

Then they realized something: The alarms weren’t going off.

They tried to have Kaminari contact the school, but he couldn’t get through.

They were trapped in an isolated facility with an army of villains.

“Thirteen, get them out of here now.” Aizawa shouted as he leapt down towards the hoard.

As Thirteen attempted to get the to the exit, a man made of purple mist appeared in front of them.

A warping Quirk?

“Greetings. Allow us to introduce ourselves. We are the League Of Villains.” The most man spoke up. “You may call me Kurogiri. I apologize for this intrusion, but we simply couldn’t help ourselves.” He looked around. “Hm… The schedule said that All Might would be here. This is Class 1-A, yes?”

“No! We’re class B!” Toru said. Kurogiri eyed her for a moment.

“A valiant trick, but one that will not work.” Kurogiri spoke.

“Everyone get back!” Thirteen shouted as the caps on her fingers popped open. It was all for naught as Bakugo and Kirishima suddenly charged the man.

“Like hell we’re letting you do what you want!” Bakugo grinned like a feral animal.

“That was a close one…” Kurogiri spoke, unharmed. “It appears we must do something about this.”

“Both of you! Get out of the way now!” Thirteen shouted.

“BEGONE!!” Kurogiri roared as the majority of the class was enveloped in mist.

Toru’s headache was unbearable at this point.

It was made worse as she found herself tumbling through the air. She hit the ground, winded, before sudden wave of cold enveloped her.

Instincts kicked in as she suddenly shattered the ice that had covered her.

“Are you crazy!?” She demanded as she saw Todoroki standing by in his utterly ridiculous costume. “Haven’t you ever heard of friendly fire!?”

Todoroki blinked, as if just realizing he wasn’t the only student sent to the part of the USJ.

“My apologies. I didn’t see you.” He said before turning to one of the frozen villains. “Now then-“

BOOM

Both students stumbled back as a large figure slammed into the center of the zone.

The… thing let out an unearthly shriek. It was tall, had black, chitinous armor, almost like an exoskeleton, and had spider-like mutations with multiple eyes and sets of arms. The most disturbing aspect was the creature’s exposed brain.

“There was another one of those brain creatures with the Hand Guy.” Todoroki mused. “This one looks a lot different. So there are more of these things. I don’t think they’re human.”

He sent out a wave of ice. And Toru headache spiked. Almost as if on instinct, she tackled Todoroki to the ground just as web like threads burst from the creature’s fingertips, slicing through the ice like a hot knife through butter and nearly taking their heads off.

Toru stumbled to her feet as she stared at the abomination.

“We have to fight, we have no choice.” Toru huffed. “Otherwise, we’re going to die here…”

Her skin began to sparkle, enveloping her as if light passing through a prism.

“Let’s give it everything we’ve got Todoroki.”

ONE FOR ALL: PRISM CLOAK: 45%

Chapter Text

Aizawa cursed. He looked away for a second and the warp guy was gone.

…

Whatever. If those kids couldn’t handle one measly villain, then they obviously had no place in the Hero Course.

The villains were thrown off their game. After all, people were so reliant on their damn Quirks that it actually became a detriment when they couldn’t access it.

The Heteromorphs were a bit more of a problem, since they weren’t affected by his Quirk, but he managed just fine. He did have a Quirk he could rely on after all.

He couldn’t help but wonder why their leader was just standing there counting though.

X

“Hmm… It would seem I did not manage to get all of you.” Kurogiri mused. “No matter.”

“Children, get behind me now!” Thirteen called out to the remaining students as she held up her hand threateningly.

“Vice Rep.” She whispered to Iida. “You’re one of the fastest students in this class. I’m going to deal with this guy. I need you to get out of the building and alert the main campus.”

“I… I cannot just abandon my peers-“

“You’re not abandoning us. Listen. He’s trying to keep us inside the building. I think the security may have only been disabled inside of the USJ.”

“But Sensei-“

“Listen to me. When a Hero comes across something they can’t take on themselves, they pull back and get backup. That’s what you’re doing right now. You’re getting us backup. Do you understand?”

“…Yes Sensei. I will not fail you.”

“You really should not discuss your plans in front of your enemies.” Kurogiri spoke up as his mist began to expand.

“Go. NOW!” Thirteen ordered as one of her finger caps popped open. “BLACK HOLE!”

“Mnf…!” Kurogiri recoiled from the powerful suction. “I think not.”

The students watched in horror as a warp gate opened behind Thirteen, the suction from her Quirk tearing her costume apart as she collapsed.

“THIRTEEN!” Mina cried.

X

“Dammit, it’s hot here.” One of the villains complained as they stalked through the Conflagration Zone. “Where does U.A. get the budget for this shit?”

“Doesn’t matter. They had to have sent some students here, so spread out.”

“Wait, look!” The villains turned to see a blond haired boy walking up to them with a psychotic smirk.

“That Warping Extra made a big mistake sending me here.” Bakugo sneered, hands popping with explosions. “All this heat’s making me sweat my ass off.”

X

“Get your hands off of me creep!” Uraraka slapped the Tokoyami’s hand away.

“You’re welcome.” Tokoyami scoffed. When they were caught in the Warp Guy’s Quirk, Tokoyami’s body moved on its own, and he dove to protect the classmate closest to him.

Unfortunately, said classmate was an ungrateful brat.

“Where the hell are we!? And why is it so wet?!” Uraraka complained.

“We appear to be in the rain zone I saw from the entrance.” Tokoyami sighed. “At least Dark Shadow can take advantage of the lack of light.”

“Ugh! This is so annoying! Hey bird boy, you can fan me on the way back to the plaza.”

Tokoyami was at a loss for words.

“Are you out of your mind!? We’re in the middle of a villain attack!”

“That doesn’t mean I have to be all wet and soggy!” Uraraka snapped.

There was a loud crash as a large green creature with long, spindly arms and legs and an exposed brain appeared. It appeared to stare at Tokoyami for a moment, then turned its gaze to Uraraka.

At which point it let out an inhuman shriek and charged at the gravity girl.

X

Toru narrowly dodged a razor sharp web that had come inches from her neck.

She couldn’t quite explain it, but whenever she was in danger, her headache suddenly spiked, allowing her to know the direction the danger was coming from.

Still didn’t help much when her opponent was a lot faster and stronger than her and Todoroki. Every time the by fired ice at the monster, it was almost immediately smashed or sliced to bits.

“Don’t you have fire too!? You melted the ice you made in the Quirk Assessment Test and Battle Trials!”

“I won’t use my left side in battle!” Todoroki snarked as another glacier was smashed to bits.

Strange, for a few brief seconds, it seemed like the monster was almost childishly gleeful as it smashed the ice.

“Well obviously your ice isn’t fucking working here! And don’t think I don’t see you shivering over there!”

Todoroki just grit his teeth and continued using his ice.

{-Going to get herself killed at this point. There’s no way she can beat that thing at 45%!}

{What else is she supposed to do, shatter her bones at the risk of that thing killing her anyway!? And that Todoroki kid sure as shit ain’t helping!}

{What about Fa Jin?}

{She’s still adjusting to Gearshift and Danger Sense. Adding another Quirk at this time could only make the problem worse!}

‘Who’s talking!?’ Toru thought.

{…}

{Uh… Hey Nine!} A sickly voice spoke up. {So uh… Wow, guess we’re already hitting Singularity, huh? Uh… Listen, we’ll explain everything later. Right now that abomination should be your main focus.}

{At this rate her best chance is to outmaneuver it and go for the exposed brain.} A female voice said. {Kudo, can you help her?}

{…}

{Boss, listen. I’m not a fan of All Might’s choice either, but if she dies now, One For All will die with her.}

There was a sigh.

Toru felt the same strange sensation that she did during the Battle Trial as her body began to speed up.

And it started getting harder to breathe.

{Calm down!} A new voice spoke up. {Listen to me! I am the second user of One For All, and you are currently manifesting my Quirk! We’ll explain everything later. I’ll take control of my Quirk for now, you just focus on fighting!}

Despite the fact that she was moving much faster, Toru was still able to react accordingly.

(Gran Torino’s training meant she had some pretty good reflexes.)

She suddenly froze in mid air, narrowly avoiding a web aimed for her neck as the monster swatted Todoroki into a nearby rock formation. She abruptly began moving again.

{Attack NOW}

ONE FOR ALL: 100%.

Toru slammed her foot into the creature’s exposed brain, wincing as she felt her leg shatter from the impact. The Nomu crashed to the floor, splattering blood and bits of gray matter about as Toru hit the floor, her leg red and swollen as she grit her teeth in pain.

{You gotta be fucking kidding me. That thing’s still alive!?} Toru’s head snapped toward the monster, watching in horror as its damaged brain regenerated. The beast stumbled to its feet as Toru began to panic.

The beast scrambled away from Toru.

In confusion, she caught the monster’s eye.

They were no longer the eyes of a mindless abomination.

They were the eyes of a terrified child.

With a loud screech that sounded disturbingly like a cry of agony, the beast fled as Todoroki began to recover.

X

“Can’t believe I have to fight this ugly thing.” Uraraka complained as she hurled a piece of debris at the monster. “You should be protecting me bird face!”

“Will you SHUT UP.” Tokoyami snarled, fed up with the girl’s incessant whining and skewed priorities as Dark Shadow knocked the monster back. For some reason it was mostly ignoring Tokoyami and focusing mainly on Uraraka. “Why are you even in the Hero Course in the first place if you don’t even want to do your job!?”

“I don’t have to answer to you! Now hurry up and get rid of this thing or I’m telling Sensei you tried to grope me!”

In a burst of anger, Dark Shadow slammed the monster into a nearby building, impaling it on rebar. Tokoyami assured himself that this thing was just a mindless inhuman abomination. That he didn’t gave much choice.

“You have got to be one of the least heroic people I’ve ever had the misfortune of meeting.” Tokoyami snarled.

“Whatever, just get me out of here.” Uraraka scoffed.

Resisting the urge to throttle the girl, Tokoyami took the lead.

Uraraka waited until Tokoyami’s back was to her before turning to the monster, rapidly bleeding out as it tried feebly to reach her.

She gave a smug grin and followed the bird boy.

X

“Those monsters, Shigaraki called them Nomu!” The goon said in a panic. “He said they’re bioengineered monsters, and that the big black one he came in with is designed to kill All Might! They were given to him by someone called Sensei, that’s all I know, I swear!”

Amazing how much information someone was willing to spill when faced with a slow, agonizing death by freezing.

Todoroki promptly froze his mouth shut.

“The Heroes will come get you. At the temperature I set that ice you should be good for about an hour.” He said as he began to walk away.

“H-hey! Where are you going!?” Toru yelled as she was trying to set her broken leg.

“I’m going to go get rid of that Anti-All Might Nomu.” Todoroki responded.

“You’re just going to leave me here!? I can’t move!”

“Exactly. In your current state you’ll only be a liability. You’ll be fine here for now.”

“What!? Hey! Get back here Todoroki! What the fuck!?” Toru shouted until she was left alone.

{Wow, what a dick.} A gruff voice spoke in her head.

Near the top of the Landslide Zone, a figure watched, before making her way down.

X

Iida could only watch as Thirteen lay on the ground in agony. His best hope of escaping the USJ to warn the school now lay on the ground

Was this where they were going to die?

…

An Image of a green haired boy selflessly harming himself to take down the Zero Pointer flashed in his mind.

“We still have a job to do!” Iida yelled. “I need you all to cover me!” His engines began to heat up.

“How pathetic! Your road ends HERE!” Kurogiri snarled as he shot toward Iida.

“Get away!” Mina called as she tried something Midoriya had mentioned to her. Forming a nozzle with her hands, she was surprised when acid sprayed out like a pressurized hose, and even more surprised when Kurogiri recoiled in pain. “He has a real body under there!”

A strand on tape shot out, latching onto a somewhat visible metal brace hidden within Kurogiri’s fog as the tape boy yanked.

“Go Iida!”

The blue haired boy immediately took off toward the door.

“I’ve had enough of this! BEGONE!!” Kurogiri yelled as he attempted to envelop Iida, only to recoil again as he was once again hit with acid.

“Hydrochloric Acid!” Mina shouted. “It’s pretty conductive you know! Right Kaminari?”

The blond smirked as he heard Mina’s words, sparking with electricity.

“Get BENT!” Kaminari shouted as he let loose all the electricity he could muster.

Kurogiri could only watch helplessly, every nerve and muscle spasming violently as Iida pried open the door and managed to slip out of the building.

‘This is not good.’ Was all he could think as he collapsed to the ground, spasming.

X

Aizawa panted heavily as he stood among the unconscious goons.

What worried him the most was that these guys were nothing more than low level street thugs. Mere canon fodder.

Even with the large numbers, there’s no way these guys would be able to kill All Might as the hand guy claimed.

He turned at the sound of running, and saw the hand guy rushing at him.

Aizawa blinked, and the hand guy grabbed his elbow.

Aizawa could only grunt in pain as his shirt, then his skin, began to disintegrate. He kicked the hand guy in the stomach and leapt back, arm dangling uselessly.

“First it was thirty seconds… Then it was twenty five… Then seventeen…” Hand guy muttered. “It was hard to tell at first from how you were jumping around, but your hair starts floating whenever you activate your Quirk, and the time between your blinking is getting shorter and shorter, Eraserhead.” Hand guy grinned underneath the hand on his face.

“Let me guess, final boss huh?” Aizawa sneered.

Hand guy laughed.

“Who? Me? No. The final boss… He’s right behind you.”

Aizawa whirled around just in time for a large black mass to strike him like a literal truck, blood splattering as his skull was slammed into the concrete.

X

Toru’s headache spiked.

{Shit! That’s Danger Sense!} A new voice spoke in her head. {Where-}

A raven haired girl, probably around Tori’s age, appeared in front of her suddenly, as if teleporting in from thin air. She stared at Toru with near emotionless purple eyes, but what really drew her attention was the item on her arm.

‘A Shield?’ Indeed, just like Midoriya, the girl had a shield attacked to her arm, hers being small and round with what seemed to be an hourglass in the center.

“Who are you? Are you with the villains?”

“Unfortunately.” The girl replied stoically.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means the villains are no friends of mine. I’m only here because Shigaraki’s Sensei threatened someone very dear to me.”

“Huh?” The girl sighed at Tori’s confusion.

“My Quirk is far more complex than how it looks at first glance. Too complex for Shigaraki’s Sensei to want to take for himself, but it’s still and Omega Level Quirk, so he merely saw fit to threaten someone dear to me to force me into working with them.”

“You don’t have to work with them.” Toru tried. “U.A. can protect you and that person you care about.”

The girl sighed wearily.

“You severely underestimate the Symbol of Evil.” The girl replied solemnly. She reached into her shield and pulled a gun from… Somewhere.

“Who exactly are you?” Toru asked, trying to stall as much as possible.

It didn’t really work as the girl pointed the gun at Toru.

“My name is Homura Akemi, and for what it’s worth, I really am sorry about this.”

Chapter Text

A FEW MINUTES EARLIER:

“I mean, yeah, growing mushrooms in someone’s throat would immobilize them pretty quickly, though it could also be pretty risky. You could accidentally kill someone if you’re not careful…” Izuku mused as he wrote in his notebook. Nearby, the class was taking turns running laps. “You’d probably want to go to the Support Department and get some kind of fungicide that works specifically for your Quirk… Unless you’re planning to go Underground, then you can get away with more.”

“I…” Kinoko Komori blinked in a combination of confusion and terror. “I only asked if I could borrow a pencil.”

Izuku just shrugged.

“Just something to think about.”

“Holy shit it’s All Might!” Kamakiri yelped.

Immediately, the class’s attention was on the hard to miss figure of the Number One Hero.

Izuku, on the other hand, merely switched to a new shield when no one was looking.

MAGNIFYING GLASS SHIELD:

SPECIAL ABILITY: ASSESS: ALLOWS THE USER TO SCAN A PERSON OR OBJECT TO GAIN DETAILED INFORMATION ON THEIR TARGET.

NOTE: WHILE THIS SHIELD CAN GIVE INFORMATION ON HOW A PERSON’S QUIRK CAN EFFECT THEIR OWN BODY AND VICE VERSA, IT CANNOT GIVE ANY ACTUAL INFORMATION ON THE QUIRK ITSELF.

Only Raphtalia noticed Izuku’s eyes go wide as he pointed the shield at All Might.

“Ah! Hello there children!” All Might said brightly. “This must be class 1-B, yes? Our first class together was postponed, so-“

“Aren’t you supposed to be with 1-A at the USJ?” Hana asked, arms crossed as she walked up to the man.

All Might winced.

“Er, well, just got a bit sidetracked on the way here this morning. I was actually on my way there now.”

“…”

“Don’t worry, I’ve already had a talk with Nedzu…”

“…”

“Oh come on Hana!” All Might whispered to the woman frantically. “Nedzu already gave me a lecture.”

“And I’ll be sure to give you another one later.” Hanako replied, hands on her hips as All Might began to sweat nervously. “…Hm?” Hanako looked over his shoulder as she noticed a figure barreling towards them at high speed. All Might turned to see.

“Wait, isn’t that young Iida? What is he-“

“VILLAINS!!” Iida yelled as he slid to a halt, panting from his intense run. “An army of Villains are invading the USJ with the intent to kill All Might! They’ve separated the class and have already taken down Thirteen!”

Immediately, a wave of tension and dread swept over everyone present.

“…Class Rep, escort the class back to the classroom. Remain there until further notice.” Hana spoke calmly. “All Might-“

He was already gone, moving towards the USJ at high speeds.

‘Dammit All Might.’ Hana thought. ‘Don’t think I didn’t see that steam coming off you. You’re just about at your limit today…’

As the class made their way back to the classroom, Hana dragged Iida with her as she phoned Nedzu.

X

Izuku watched through the window as the teachers and Iida were making their way towards one of the buses with the intention of reaching the USJ as fast as possible. His class were talking worriedly amongst themselves.

“Izuku?” Raphtalia whispered worriedly as she walked up to him. “What did you see when you scanned All Might?”

“Eri was right.” Raphtalia’s mind flashed to a girl with long, black hair staring up at her with dull, almost lifeless, depressed blue eyes. “All Might’s getting weaker. He’s missing a lung and most of his stomach. Worse, he barely has around seven minutes left in this form. If he pushes himself too far…”

“It should be fine though… Right?”

“You heard Iida. The villains have come to kill All Might. If they’re so ballsy as to attack the second most fortified places in Japan, then they likely have something to back up their claims. In fact, they may have even orchestrated the incidents that All Might resolved on the news just to tire him out.”

He switched to his Cellphone Shield.

“Are you sure we should get involved?” Raphtalia asked.

“Society has become far too dependent on All Might. If he dies here so suddenly, it may just collapse. Besides, meddling where you don’t need to is the essence of being a Hero. Luckily I kept Hagakure in the party. She’s already lost some health, so she’s probably fighting right now.”

“But how will the teleportation react to everyone back in Green Valley?”

“We’re about to find out.” Izuku said as he went to activate the teleportation.

ALERT: THE FOLLOWING PARTY MEMBERS CANNOT BE TRANSPORTED AT THIS TIME: WYNDIA, RIFANA, KEEL, ATLA FAYON, SADEENA.

DO YOU WISH TO PROCEED? Y/N.

“Huh… That was anticlimactic.” Izuku mused. “Kendo! I’m leaving you in charge!”

Before anyone could speak, Izuku and Raphtalia disappeared in a flash.

X

A COUPLE MINUTES EARLIER:

“We should start a club!” Kaede spoke up. She, Risa, and Filo were currently sitting by a tree in the park.

“Yay! A club!” Filo cheered.

“What kind of club?” Risa asked suspiciously.

“A club for people like us!” Kaede said brightly.

“Outcasts you mean?”

“That’s such a mean term! I mean people who are just not understood very well!”

“I mean… If you’re so insistent about it.” Risa sighed. “What would we even call the club?”

“Uh…?”

“I know, since you came up with it, why don’t we call it Maple Tree?”

“Eh!? N-no! That-“

“Maple?” Filo asked with a tilt of her head.

“Yeah, it’s a nickname I gave her after she named her pet turtle Syrup.” Risa snickered.

“Yay! Filo likes that name!”

“H-hold on a minute!”

“Two against one, it’s decided!” Risa teased while Kaede despaired.

Filo began to glow.

“Oh! Daddy needs Filo!” The Filolial spoke up. “Let grandma know for Filo!”

She disappeared with a flash.

X

Toru glared down the barrel of Homura’s pistol as the raven haired girl prepared to fire.

WARP REFRACTION.

“Gah!?” Homura tried to shield her eyes as Toru began glowing ridiculously bright.

Toru took the opportunity to launch herself at the girl, her arms straining under the use of One For All while her broken leg flailed uselessly behind her.

Homura instantly appeared behind Toru and smacked her to the ground with a golf club.

“I did not enjoy that.” Homura said bluntly.

“Don’t apologize for something if you’re just gonna do it anyway!” Toru snapped. Homura sighed.

“If you insist.”

She pulled the trigger…

And the bullet rebounded with a loud clang.

“What NOW!?” She huffed in frustration as a green haired boy, a small angel, and a Tanuki appeared before her.

“Filo, kick!”

“Okay!”

Filo punted Toru into a rock.

“I- You- THE OTHER GIRL! Kick the other girl!” Izuku yelled in exasperation.

“Well you should have been more specific!”

“That’s right, we haven’t introduced her to Hagakure yet, have we?” Raphtalia mused.

Homura vanished and reappeared behind Izuku when Filo tried to kick her.

“Aw…”

Izuku reacted quickly, bullets bouncing off his shield as Raphtalia moved to intercept, only for the raven haired girl to suddenly appear behind the Tanuki.

CELLPHONE SHIELD II.

Raphtalia appeared by Izuku’s side in a flash of light.

Izuku stared.

“It’s not a teleportation Quirk.”

Homura recoiled.

“Her reactions are almost inhumanly fast, on top of that hourglass on her shield shifting every time… I think your Quirk has something to do with time.”

‘He figured that out just from seeing me use it a few times!?’ Homura internally freaked, giving Izuku enough time to bring up a Shield Prison around her. ‘Dammit!’

Izuku walked up to the sphere, using his magic to keep it active.

“You’re about our age, aren’t you? Why are you doing this?”

“You would never understand.” Homura snapped through a small opening on the prison. “You’ll never understand what’s it’s like, protecting the people you care about. You-“

She recoiled at the glare Izuku leveled at her.

“You see them?” He gestured to where Raphtalia and Filo were standing, Raph-Chan poking her head out of Filo’s bag. “I’ve spilled blood for them. I’ve taken on entire countries for them, and I’ll do so again without hesitation.” He grimaced. “There used to be another one of us.”

Homura jerked.

Izuku leapt back as the Shield Prison exploded from the inside.

“I don’t need your pity!” Homura snapped as she leveled a rifle in Izuku’s direction.

The Shield Trio prepared to fight…

Only for Homura to drop the gun suddenly, clutching at her chest as she stumbled back, before collapsing to the floor, struggling for breath.

Confused, Izuku used his Magnifying Glass Shield, finding out that the girl had a pre existing heart condition and had over exerted herself breaking out of the Shield Prison.

With a sigh, Izuku pulled out a couple of potions as he called over to the girl, unwilling to just leave her, especially since she really didn’t seem like a bad person.

“Hey uh… Midoriya? I know this probably isn’t the best time but… I think the bird girl broke my ribs.” Toru wheezed.

Izuku paused, before handing a potion to Raphtalia to use on Toru while he tended to Homura.

X

Bakugo hacked violently as he blew another villain away.

Damn this fucking lung damage!!

One villain had managed to find an opening while Bakugo was juggling a breathing fit and another pair of villains.

“Say goodnight!” The villain cackled as he lunged, only to hit the ground spasming as he was engulfed in electricity, and was then knocked out by a rocky fist.

“My my, I guess it’s a good thing I decided to copy some of my classmate’s Quirks beforehand, wouldn’t you agree?” The smug ass voice that made Bakugo’s blood boil spoke up as he turned to see that loud mouthed blond idiot and that shitty haired weirdo.

“I didn’t need your fucking help Extras! You got that!?” Bakugo snapped.

“Hey, come on guys, let’s not fight.” Kirishima tried, getting between them. There were a few tense moments of silence before Bakugo turned away.

“Tch. Whatever. I’ve got better things to do than waste time with you extras.”

“Hey man, where are you going?”

“To take out that fucking mist guy you idiots!”

“Oh really? Is it not your attempt to take out that villain that got us into this mess in the first place you heathens?” Monoma mocked.

“Shut the hell up you damn leech. I just got thrown off because of the fucking mist! But the guy was wearing some kind of brace, and which means he definitely has a real body under there.” Bakugo snapped as he began to make his way towards the exit.

X

“Ok. She should be good now.” Izuku mused as he stood up from Homura’s unconscious form. He turned to see Raphtalia helping the freshly healed Hagakure to her feet.

“What are you guys doing here? How did you know we were in trouble? I thought the villains cut us off from the main campus.”

“That walking board with the glasses showed up during our training. I think he managed to escape.”

“Oh, Iida? So he managed to warn the campus?”

“All Might was on his way here while Sensei took Iida to get the other teachers, but I used one of my shields to scan All Might. It told me that he suffered a serious injury several years ago that limited his ability to use his Quirk, and that he’s just about hit his limit today.”

Toru suddenly looked uncomfortable.

“Um… The villains brought these bio engineered monsters called Nomu, and they said one of them was specifically designed to kill All Might.”

Izuku looked to be in thought.

“All Might’s fighting style mainly revolves around powerful punches to take his enemies out in an instant, and he’s usually holding back. On top of that, he’s taken blows that would kill a normal man without flinching. In order to kill All Might, this Nomu thing would need to not only be able to withstand All Might’s punches at full power, but also be strong enough to break through All Might’s heightened durability, as well as fast enough to keep up with All Might, who can move faster than the normal human eye can track.”

“Daddy, it sounds like the monsters would need to have multiple Quirks.” Filo piped up.

Izuku smiled, a genuine smile that caught Toru completely off guard.

“That’s right! Good girl.” Filo preened as Izuku pat her head.

“Rafu!” Raph-Chan chimed in.

“B-but, that’s ridiculous, a person can’t have multiple Quirks. I mean, Duel-Quirks like Todoroki’s do exist, but they’re just one Quirk with the power of two.” Toru looked really uncomfortable for some reason.

“I don’t know. If what you said about them being bio engineered is true, anything’s possible.” Izuku responded.

‘Especially if they have access to a Quirk like his.’ He thought to himself.

He turned to Raphtalia and Filo.

“Right. Let’s go over the plan. Both of you are pretty powerful and could easily go toe to toe with All Might if you went all out, if not beat him outright. Raphtalia, even if I were to use the Family Bond Shiield to give you Filo’s Speed and my Defense, I honestly believe that Filo’s fighting style is better suited to go up against an All Might killer.”

“Right.” Raphtalia said with a nod.

“That being said, I need you to cover the other Zones here in the building and aid the other students. We don’t know how many of these Nomu things there are.” Raphtalia gave a determined nod and turned on her heels, moving towards the exit as Izuku turned to Filo.

“Filo, I’ll need you to go all out on this thing, okay? Don’t hold back.”

“Okay daddy!” Filo stretched out her arms, and in a flash of light, a pair of claw-like weapons enveloped her hands.

Izuku turned to Toru, who was giving him a look. “What?”

“This isn’t your first rodeo, is it?” The way he took charge, planned, how those two listened without hesitation. There was no way they hadn’t done something like this before.

“You have your secrets, and I have mine.” Izuku responded as he turned.

“Midoriya.” The boy stopped. “You said… You can scan people. Does this ability tell you anything about the person’s Quirk?”

“The most Assess can get out of a person’s Quirk is how it affect their biology and vice versa. Information about the Quirk itself is a no go though. Honestly, I prefer it that way. My analytical skills are something I pride myself on. Wouldn’t do to have cheat codes. Why do you ask?”

“Oh, just curious is all.” She sighed with relief as she helped move Homura to a safe spot before following.

‘Hagakure…’ Izuku mused internally. ‘You have One For All, don’t you?’

X

Tomura Shigaraki scratched himself in annoyance as Nomu pummeled Eraserhead’s face into the concrete. Where the hell was Kurogiri!? It was only a matter of time before the main campus realized they were cut off from the USJ, in which case they would either send a teacher to investigate or assume the worst and send ALL the teachers. All Might, Eraserhead, and Thirteen they could deal with, but U.A.’s entire faculty would definitely complicate things. He needed Kurogiri for a quick retreat.

To make matters worse, All Might wasn’t even here! All this planning gone to waste because the Symbol of Trash couldn’t even bother to show! It made him so mad! He flexed his fingers as he was overcome with the urge to dust the first person to cross his path.

As if to answer his prayers, he caught sight of a pair of students in the corner of his eye swimming in from the Shipwreck Zone. One was a raven haired girl with disturbingly revealing clothes (Seriously, what the hell was wrong with people? The girl was like 15.). The other was some frog girl in a skintight wetsuit. Did they honestly think they were being sneaky?

Perfect. Even if All Might doesn’t show, he can at least take pleasure in breaking his spirit.

He moved.

The raven haired girl noticed. Her arm glowed briefly as a taser popped out of… Somewhere.

Sensing Shigaraki was in danger, Nomu dropped the mangled form of Eraserhead and moved fast, taking the taser that was meant for Shigaraki as the young adult who apparently had no idea what lotion was managed to grab the frog girl’s face.

“ASUI!” The raven haired girl shrieked. The frog girl felt indescribable pain as her face began to crack and crumble.

In that moment, the entrance to the USJ exploded open, and a towering form of muscle stepped through, not a single hint of a grin visible on his enraged face.

Chapter Text

Rikido Sato panted as he clocked another villain in the jaw. The effects of his Quirk were catching up to him, his mind getting more and more sluggish.

“Hey, big guy, stay focused!” Kyoka Jiro shouted as she incapacitated another villain with a point blank burst of sound.

“Wait, do you hear something?” Mezo Shoji asked.

Massive, bat like wings flared up as a lanky, winged Nomu came out of nowhere. Jiro barely had time to yell before she was caught up in the Nomu’s talons.

There was a flash as the Nomu crashed to the ground, one of its wings separated cleanly from its body as the startled Sato caught Jiro.

“Stay behind me.” Was all Raphtalia said to the startled students. The Winged Nomu pushed itself up with an inhuman snarl.

“De… U…”

Raphtalia moved faster than anyone could perceive, appearing behind the Nomu in the blink of an eye and sheathing her katana.

The Nomu snarled as it turned around, swiping at her with its claws that she easily dodged.

The rest of the students could only watch in shock as a thin, red line appeared vertically down the still attacking Nomu’s body. After a few moments, the Nomu shuddered as its two halves separated from each other.

“You killed it…” Sato exclaimed in shock as Jiro vomited from the gruesome sight.

“It was a bioengineered monster.” Raphtalia explained. “Maybe it was a person once. If so, I’d say I just put it out of its misery.”

“Who are you? You’re not in our class.” Shoji asked.

“I’m a student at U.A., just like you.”

“Bullshit.” Jiro exclaimed, wiping her mouth. “Only Class 1-A is supposed to be using this building. For all we know you could be one of the villains trying to trick us.”

“If that’s what you want to believe. I’m no stranger to distrust.” Raphtalia said, pointing. “The exit is that way.”

And then she was gone.

“Jiro-San, that was kind of rude.” Shoji spoke up.

“We don’t know her though.” Jiro defended.

“She still saved our lives.” Shoji sighed.

X

“Huh. It’s strange seeing my class work together like this.” Toru mused as she glanced over at the entrance from their position. “Everything just kinda broke down during the Battle Trials.”

“It’s a life or death situation.” Izuku pointed out. “Only an egotistical idiot would refuse to work together in this kind of situation.”

MEANWHILE:

“AH-CHOO!”

“Dude, you alright?”

“Shut up you shitty haired idiot! And stop following me!”

BACK TO OUR REGULARLY SCHEDULED STORY:

“Honestly, don’t be surprised if things break down again after this is over.” Izuku huffed bluntly.

There was a scream, and Izuku, Toru, and Filo’s eyes snapped down to where the main plaza met the Shipwreck zone, just in time to see a man covered in hands, evidently the leader, grab the face of a girl with frog mutations.

Toru gasped in horror as the frog girl’s face began to disintegrate.

The main entrance exploded open, and time seemed to slow as all the villains in the plaza, save for the leader and the Nomu, were instantly knocked unconscious, with the leader landing on his ass and the frog girl and the other girl with her were dragged away.

X

“Young Asui…” All Might could only despair at the girl’s partially disintegrated face. “I’m sorry. If only I had just been a little bit faster…”

He glanced down towards Aizawa, who he had also managed to grab. The man was unconscious and appeared to face his face partially caved in.

“All Might?” Yaoyarozu asked in worry.

“These are children and you didn’t even hold back!?” All Might snarled at the leader, no hint of his signature smile prevalent anywhere in his features.

“Don’t act like they’re saints All Might.” Shigaraki mocked. “That one with the inappropriate costume tried to tase me.” He pointed at Yaoyarozu, who suddenly felt a bit self conscious about her costume.

“What, you barge in here, with the intent to murder these kids and act surprised when they defend themselves!?” All Might refuted.

“All in the name of a better society.” Shigaraki cackled. “You heroes always resort to violence no matter the crime. Whether it be a car jacking or a hungry man just stealing some bread to feed his family. Why shouldn’t I try to take out your little child soldiers if it erases you hero scum from society.”

“Don’t give me that! Your mouth says one thing, but your eyes say another! You’re not doing this to ‘better society’. You’re doing this because you enjoy it!”

All Might felt his anger rise as he saw Shigaraki’s eyes squint in amusement.

“All Might!” Tokoyami called as he entered the plaza, Dark Shadow carrying an unconscious Uraraka who had been surprised from behind by a villain and most certainly not knocked out by Dark Shadow who had gotten sick of her whining.

…

You can’t prove anything. And neither can Uraraka. She was too busy bitching at Tokoyami to notice anything.

“Both of you, take Eraserhead and Asui and get out of here! They need medical attention!” All Might commanded as he stood, ready to fight as he launched himself at Shigaraki.

“Nomu.”

It was as if punching a stack of pillows as All Might’s fist collided with the monstrosity’s stomach, the Nomu not reacting in the slightest.

The monster reared back, striking hard, with All Might just barely blocking.

‘Dammit! I actually felt that!’ All Might coughed as the Nomu lunged at him, intending to strike once more.

CLANG

All Might reared back in shock at the green haired boy that had popped up from nowhere, tanking the Nomu’s punch with his shield.

“Yeesh! This thing packs a punch!” Izuku grit his teeth as he struggled against the monster’s strength.

“Young Midoriya!? What do you think you’re-“

“This creature is a bioengineered monster designed for the purpose of killing you!” Izuku grunted. “He has multiple Quirks!”

All Might felt his heart stop at those words.

“Dammit! Did you hack the game files or something!? Cheater! Who the hell are you!?” Shigaraki snarled.

“Who? Me? I’m the secret boss bitch.” Izuku said with a small smirk.

“…Nomu, step back! I’m killing this one myself!”

And Shigaraki lunged.

“Young Midoriya!” All Might yelled as Shigaraki’s hand made contact with the boy’s shield and…

Nothing happened.

Shigaraki blinked, everyone standing there awkwardly. He pulled his hand back, then put it back on the magical shield again.

Nothing happened.

“This usually works.”

“Nothing to be ashamed of. Performance issues are common in men over 40.” Izuku said, the corners of his mouth twitching.

“I’m 21!”

“Oof. Early onset then. My condolences.”

“NOMU!! KILL THIS LITTLE SMARTASS!!”

“FILO!”

The shockwave created sent Izuku skidding back. And everyone was treated to the shocking sight of a little girl holding back the behemoth.

What the hell was going on!?

Shigaraki lunged at Filo, and All Might grabbed the girl and yanked her back, blocking a punch from Nomu that sent him skidding back. The Nomu then moved to protect Shigaraki from a kick aimed at him from a familiar girl.

“Young Hagakure!” All Might yelled.

Before the Nomu could respond, it was encased in ice up to its neck.

“DIE!!” Shigaraki was blasted to the side by a ln explosion, and was promptly pinned to the ground by several large needles through his clothes.

“You see now? And you called me a parasite!” Monoma cackled smugly.

“Shut up you damn parasite!” Bakugo snapped. “And you! Where’s that damn mist guy!? When I’m through with him, they’ll be scraping what’s left off of the damn floor!”

“YOU!” Toru snapped as she stormed up to Todoroki. “I almost died because you left me behind you jackass!!”

Todoroki blinked stoically.

“If it wasn’t for Midoriya over there, I’d have a fucking bullet in my head, all because you had to run off and play hero while leaving me stranded out in the open!”

“You’re in the Hero Course. If you have to rely on others to protect you, you shouldn’t be here.”

“You son of a-“

“DEKU!!” Bakugo snarled, taking his attention off of Shigaraki. “What the fuck are you doing here!?”

“We need to destroy that Nomu’s brain quickly before it can break out.” Izuku stated quickly.

“Don’t ignore me you bastard!”

Izuku promptly ignored him.

“Young Midoriya, heroes musn’t kill-“ All Might tried.

“It’s a bio engineered monster.” Izuku cut in. “I doubt it’s even capable of thinking for itself. Besides, if it has multiple Quirks, there’s a chance it’s related to a Villain called All For One.”

All Might’s blood ran cold. Meanwhile, Bakugo stomped up to Izuku, hands crackling threateningly.

“Deku! I’m talking to you, you son of a-“

WHAM.

“…Ah…” Was all Bakugo could utter as he collapsed to the ground.

“Filo doesn’t like you!” The little girl pouted.

“H-hey! Come on, there was no need for that!” Kirishima complained as he tried to help Bakugo stand.

“Filo doesn’t like you either!”

All Might grabbed Izuku’s shoulders.

“How do you know that name? Did you meet him?” All Might demanded.

“No, I didn’t. All I know about him is his name, the fact that he can take and give Quirks, and that he has a son.”

All Might nearly felt his world end.

“What do you mean he has a-“

Shigaraki screamed.

“All these fucking cheaters!! I hate it! I HATE IT!! NOMU!! KILL THEM ALL!!”

The Nomu promptly broke out of its icy prison, everyone watching in horror as its damaged flesh regenerated.

“Super Regeneration and Shock Absorption…” Shigaraki snarled. “This Nomu was designed specifically to kill you All Might.” Shigaraki cackled as he decayed the needles holding him in place.

“Good.” Izuku spoke up.

“…What?” Shigaraki asked.

“If it’s designed specifically to kill All Might, then blunt force won’t be as effective. But that also means the their forms of attacks will also be more effective against it.” Izuku explained.

Filo raised her Vassal Claws.

“Now hold on a minute-“ All Might tried.

“Filo, go.”

And the little Filolial was off, clashing with the Nomu in the center of the USJ and creating a shockwave that pushed everyone back.

Izuku promptly switched shields, revealing a large, ornate, golden shield with five large gems set into its face, three of which were glowing.

In the very top was a dark green gem marked with a picture of a shield. At the middle right was a red gem marked with a sword, and the middle left was a bright green gem marked with a feather.

The two gems at the very bottom were dull and gray, with the one on the bottom left covered in cracks. If one looked closely, they could make out what appeared to be a water droplet marked on its face. The gem on the bottom right was intact though, and had a clock marked onto its face.

FAMILY BOND SHIELD:

WHEN ACTIVATED, ALL FIGHTERS BOUND BY THIS SHIELD WILL SHARE THEIR HIGHEST STATS AMONG EACH OTHER FOR THIRTY MINUTES.

REQUIRES A TWENTY FOUR HOUR RECHARGE TIME AFTER EACH USE.

All at once, Filo’s already high attack, as well as her defense, skyrocketed as she parried each of the Nomu’s blows with the Vassal Claws.

Shigaraki ran up, intent on catching the girl off guard, only to be blasted back by a stray blade of wind that sliced a deep wound into his shoulder.

All Might, despite his reluctance to let this little girl fight, quickly realized that she was faring far better than he expected.

‘She swings those weapons with such strength that it generates a blade of air from the sheer force, on top of that, the speed with which she’s attacking… She’s hitting that thing multiple times with each attack.’ All Might noted.

And it was showing.

The others, save for Young Midoriya judging by the look in his eye, couldn’t see it, but the Nomu’s Super Regeneration was slowing down, being overwhelmed by the ferocity of the girl’s attacks.

‘Still, I can’t just stand here, I have to-‘

Toru grabbed his arm.

“I can see you smoking.” She hissed just loudly enough for only him to hear. “Don’t push yourself more than you already have, you’ll only lower your time limit more!”

All Might hated that she had a point.

Suddenly, Filo transformed into her Filolial form and, with a sickening crack, slammed her foot into the Nomu’s groin and sent it flying high into the air.

“Good job Filo!” Izuku called as he switched to his Hero’s Will Shield and, with a few seconds of aiming, fired off a magical arrow that soared straight through the sky and skewered the Nomu, the bolt letting out a massive explosion that forced everyone to cover their eyes as the already weakened Nomu was disintegrated by the attack.

Izuku stumbled as the explosion died down, using everything in his power to remain standing despite the incredible pain he was in.

Bakugo, still recovering from having his bloodline put into question, could only stare from his position on the ground.

‘Deku… How the hell did you… What the fuck!?’

Filo quickly moved towards Izuku as everyone stared in shock, (except for Monoma, who ground his teeth at this peon trying to steal glory from 1-A.) allowing herself to be used to steady the green haired boy.

All this while Shigaraki clawed at his neck to the point of drawing blood.

“No! It was supposed to kill All Might! ALL MIGHT!! You weren’t supposed to interfere, you cheating DLC character!”

“I told you.” Izuku lowered his eyes at the man. “I’m the secret boss.”

“RAAAAAAGH!!” The man roared in rage as he stormed towards Izuku.

BANG

Shigaraki recoiled as a bullet ripped his shoulder apart, eyes snapping towards the entrance.

The Heroes had arrived.

“KIROG-“ Shigaraki dropped to the floor as another bullet pierced his leg.

“Midoriya? What are you doing here?” Hana asked as she floated down to the group.

“Hm, just chilling.” Izuku responded.

“It’s not fair! It’s not fair! It’s NOT FAIR!!” Shigaraki screamed as he slammed his fists into the ground. “Every thing was supposed to go smoothly! We were supposed to kill All Might and a bunch of brats! I hate you!! I HATE ALL OF YOU!!”

“Is he seriously throwing a tantrum?” Hana asked as she walked up to him…

Just as a purple mist began to quickly wrap around him.

“No!” Hana lunged, only to hesitate as Shigaraki’s tantrum caused the hand on his face to fly off.

“…Tenko…?” Was all Hana could utter as Shigaraki’s hand shot toward her face, coming mere centimeters from her skin-

And then Raphtalia was there.

Shigaraki screamed in agony as his severed arm was sent flying, just as the mist fully engulfed Shigaraki and disappeared.

Behind Raphtalia, the several students that had followed her from the Mountain Zone stared in shock, while Hana sat on her knees, near catatonic.

As the rest of the teachers went about rounding up the rest of the villains, Nedzu walked up to Izuku, Raphtalia, and Filo.

“My my, it would seem a talk is in order now, wouldn’t you say?”

“That depends wholly on whose side you’re on.” Izuku replied with a blunt glare.

Nedzu grinned.

“Oh, we are going to have fun.”

X

All For One expected the USJ attack to go a lot of ways.

What he most certainly didn’t expect was for Kurogiri and Tomura to warp directly into All For One’s recovery room, Kurogiri on the floor, twitching occasionally, and Tomura with bullet holes in his shoulder and leg, a missing left arm, screaming bloody murder.

“What happened?” All For One asked calmly.

“CHEATERS!! ALL OF THEM ARE FUCKING CHEATERS!! ALL MIGHT DIDN’T EVEN GET TO FIGHT THAT FUCKING NOMU!!”

“And where exactly ARE the Anti-All Might and the Prototype High End we lent you?” Garaki asked. The rest of the Nomu were mere cannon fodder. He wouldn’t have been surprised if they were taken out. No, he was only concerned about his two prized creations.

“THAT ANTI-ALL MIGHT WAS A PIECE OF SHIT! IT GOT REDUCED TO ASH BY A FUCKING BIRD AND A SHIELDER OF ALL THINGS!!”

“What!?”

“YOU HEARD ME OLD MAN! A FUCKING SUPPORT DLC CHARACTER KILLED YOUR OH-SO-GREAT CREATION!”

“What about the Prototype High End: Phoneutria!?”

“HOW THE FUCK SHOULD I KNOW!? IT STOPPED RESPONDING TO MY ORDERS HALFWAY THROUGH!!”

“Oh!” Garaki grabbed his head in despair. “I spent six years on that Prototype High End! I told you it wasn’t ready my Lord! All that work, wasted!”

“It will be fine Garaki.” All For One spoke calmly.

“Why yes, yes it will.”

Everyone stiffened at the unfamiliar voice as All For One raised his hand toward the shadows they came from.

“Come out, now.”

And out stepped a woman, one who couldn’t be described in detail but boasted unparalleled beauty.

“And who might you be? Answer carefully and I may let you live.”

The woman smirked.

“Me? Why, I am the master of this game now.”

All For One attacked, but the woman was faster.

The ancient villain screamed in agony as the woman beset him with lighting, the superheated electricity burning his flesh, overwhelming his healing Quirks. Tomura and Garaki could only watch in horror as the man writhed and screamed in sheer agony until, finally, the room was quiet, the only thing remaining of the Quirk Boogyman being a pile of ash on the floor.

“Sensei…” Shigaraki tried, attempting to crawl over. “S-Sensei…”

“Your ‘Sensei’ was merely an old relic who refused to understand that he was no longer relevant.” The woman spoke up. “He was holding you back. Stay with me, and I can give you everything you want and more.”

“You-“

“I too want to destroy everything I hate.” The woman continued. And I hate nothing more than the bastard who ruined everything for me. Take a good look at me boy. What you see before you is the only thing that remains of me in all of existence. I had to sacrifice so much of my power just to save this one avatar of myself, and it’s all that bastard Naofumi’s fault. When I regain my former strength, I will make him regret it across all universes.”

“Who… Are you?”

The woman smirked, casting a quick glance at Garaki as he cowered in the corner.

“You may call me Medea, and like I said earlier, this is MY game now.

X

Kurogiri’s mind had been a mess ever since that boy had electrocuted him.

The blond man… The one who tried to restrain him when the Heroes arrived.

He didn’t know why… But the Nomu felt he knew him from somewhere.

‘Hiz… Shi…’

Chapter Text

“Savior… Can’t we talk about this?” The Lord replied nervously as he dangled upside down from Filo’s beak, Raphtalia had her sword pointed at the man. As much as she hated it, she had to concede that the only way they would get the information they needed was by force.

“You will tell me what you did with Galeon’s child, and you will hand the riches you stole from his den over to me so I can pass them along to their rightful owner.”

“B-but-“

“I COULD just let Filo eat you-“

“I sold her!” The Lord yelped. “I sold her to a slave trader!”

“Beloukas?”

“N-no! A traveling trader! Some no name. He gave me three silver for the brat.”

He realized his mistake as Izuku seemed to get angrier.

“I swear that’s all I know!”

“Where’s the treasure you stole.”

“In the basement! All of it! We haven’t had the chance to use it yet!”

Izuku motioned for Filo to drop the man, before leaning close.

“This conversation-“

“It never happened!” The Lord said quickly. “The Savior cured our village and took care of the dragon, then a group of bandits broke in and stole the money!”

With that, Izuku and his party made his way to the basement, where they were faced with a new conundrum.

Where the hell were they gonna put all this treasure?

He didn’t want to put it in his Bank Shield for risk of getting the treasure mixed up with their own savings.

Maybe-

BANK SHIELD II UNLOCKED:

CREATES AN ADDITIONAL, SEPARATE BANK FOR WHEN USER DOESN’T WANT TO MIX TWO FORTUNES UP.

…

Sometimes Izuku wondered if the Shield was sentient and liked to fuck with him.

X

It was after a few days of traveling that Izuku’s group came upon a small town with several mines. Wondering if he could pay to mine some materials, Izuku became curious about one mine that was sealed off, so he asked about it.

“There were rumors dating back hundreds of years of a cursed gem sealed with that mine.” The mayor told him.

“Cursed gem?”

“They call it the Jewel of Emotions. A gem of unmatched brilliance. Mere proximity to this gem brought out the worst kind of greed in people, and its past is stained in blood. Thus, it was sealed away in that mine.”

This worried Izuku. He didn’t want to risk someone like Motoyasu messing with such a gem.

“If I can go in there and dispose of the gem, would you allow me to mine for some materials?”

“Hmm… I suppose so. And opening that mine back up would certainly help with this village’s financial troubles considering the other mines are nearly picked clean. Just… Please be careful savior, and try not to succumb to temptation.”

Thus, the mine was opened back up, and the trio made his way inside.

Izuku was stunned. The mine was filled to the brim with materials.

“We can mine for materials while we search.” Izuku stated, handing Filo and Raphtalia their own pickaxes.

“Yay!” Filo shouted, slamming the pickax into a wall.

Said wall crumbled under the force, revealing a rather short woman with silvery purple hair, deep purple eyes, a crown made of purple jewels, and a pair of pink, metallic wings.

“Hello!” The woman said brightly.

“Uh… Hi?” Izuku replied in confusion. “Uh… There’s something dangerous in this mine we’re trying to take care of. It might be best for you to leave ma’am.”

“Oh! Okay… Where’s the exit?” Izuku pointed it out to her, and the woman left, leaving the three very confused.

It was hours later when they finally exited the mine.

“We honestly didn’t see anything that would fit the description of a cursed gem.” Izuku told the Mayor. “We combed the whole mine. Is it possible the whole story was made up by someone trying to keep the mine’s contents to themselves?”

“Hmm… I suppose that would make sense. Some nobles did live out this way years ago. Still, I thank you for dispelling those rumors savior. Maybe we can finally get this town back on its feet.”

“No problem. Oh, we did find a young woman trapped in the mine.”

“Is that right? Everyone in the village is accounted for. Probably some treasure hunter who snuck in. Poor dear.”

“I just hope she’s okay.”

MEANWHILE:

“~Stickin’ out your gyatt for Nerizzler! You’re so Bao Bao! You’re so Biboo Tax! I just wanna be your Shiori!”

BACK TO THE DEKU SQUAD:

The trio went on traveling for another few days, beginning to edge their way back to the capital as they got closer to the next Wave. One day, still about a few days out from the city, they stopped for lunch.

It was then Filo, who was in her bird form at the moment, spotted something in the distance.

“Filo where are you- Filo!” Izuku pulled the food off of the campfire as he and Raphtalia took off after the wayward Filolial.

“Filo, what-“ Izuku panted as he caught up, only to stop when he saw a small herd of giant birds seemingly huddled around something.

“Wild Filolials!” Raphtalia gasped.

“Do you think they’re tasty?” Filo asked.

“What- Filo! You can’t eat your own kind! That’s cannibalism!”

Filo didn’t appear to be paying attention.

“Filo smells meat!” She exclaimed, before running up to her the heard, which scattered and bolted, revealing a young girl with blue hair dolled up in a rather expensive looking dress.

“…So big…” The girl whispered, wide eyed with wonder. “Are you a Filolial?”

“Hm? Are you talking to Filo?”

“You can talk too! A talking Filolial!” She reached into her bag and pulled out something. “Here, some smoked meat!”

Filo immediately bent down and gobbled up the meat. Izuku would have scolded her since they would be eating lunch soon, but this girl had almost gotten them kicked out of a buffet because she ate most of the food. He doubted she wouldn’t still be hungry.

“So soft…” The girl said brightly as she rubbed Filo’s feathers.

Looking at her, Izuku assumed she must be a Noble’s child… But why was she all alone?

“Um… Excuse me? Miss…”

“Ah! My name is Melty! And if this talking Filolial is anything to go by, you’re the Savior of the Heavenly Fowl, yes?”

Izuku was so glad he had his Shield disguised at the moment.

“Please just call me Izuku. I’ve never really been fond of that title.”

“Very well Sir Izuku!”

Close enough.

“Well, I was wondering why you seem to be out here on your own. Do you not have anyone with you?”

“Ah! I do have a guard escort actually! I just snuck away when they weren’t looking to play with the Filolials!”

“And how long ago was that?”

“…About four hours ago.” Melty said, seeming to realize the situation she had gotten herself into.

Izuku sighed, feeling bad for the poor guards who were probably going to get ripped a new one by whoever this girl’s parents were.

“Where were you heading?”

“Back home to the Capital…”

“Right. We’re actually heading there ourselves. You can join us if you want.”

“Are you sure Sir Izuku? I wouldn’t mean to impose.”

“It’s no bother. I can’t in good conscience just leave you out here.”

“Then I will gladly take up your offer, and I will ensure you’re properly rewarded afterwards!”

“That’s not necessary…”

“I insist.” Melty said with a bright smile.

Izuku sighed.

“Daddy, can Filo play with Mel-Chan?” Filo asked with a tilt of her head.

“It’ll have to wait. Lunch is almost ready. Will you join us Melty?”

“I will gladly take you up on your offer!”

With a puff of smoke, Filo had transformed back into a little girl.

“Yippee! Come on Mel-Chan!” Filo grabbed Melty and dragged her back to camp as the blue haired girl expressed amazement at Filo being able to transform.

Izuku just shook his head in amusement.

X

After lunch, during which Melty gushed over Izuku’s cooking, saying that it was better then her family’s personal chefs (Much to Izuku’s embarrassment), Filo and Melty went out to play, with the blue haired girl riding on Filo’s back for hours. They decided to just camp there for the night when the two didn’t finish playing until the sun had started going down.

Soon after everyone had gone to bed, Izuku sat by the campfire working on an accessory.

“Izuku-Sama?” Raphtalia asked.

“Oh hey, can’t sleep?” Izuku asked.

“Just one of those nights.” Raphtalia laughed nervously. She sat down beside him, her tail wagging slightly.

“Um… Izuku-Sama, may I ask you something?”

“Of course, you don’t need my permission for that.” Izuku said, taking his eyes off of the accessory he was working on and giving her a warm smile.

Raphtalia felt her chest flutter.

“When this is all over… When the waves have stopped… Do you intend to return to your own world?”

“Of course! My mom’s gotta be worried sick. I feel terrible about it after everything she’s done for me. Besides, there’s not really a place for me in a country that only sees me as a devil.”

“…Oh.” Raphtalia said quietly.

“And I know she’d love to meet you and Filo!”

“H-huh!?” Raphtalia yelped. Izuku’s face dropped.

“O-oh… Do you not want to…? I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have…”

“You want us… To come back with you?” Raphtalia asked.

“Well, yeah. I can’t exactly leave Filo behind, and you’re my friend Raphtalia.”

Raphtalia felt a sharp little stab.

“R-right. Friend.” She said, masking her disappointment. She steadied her breathing. “I would love nothing more than to return to your world with you, Izuku-Sama. A shield needs his loyal sword after all.” She gave him a smile, and Izuku had to suppress the urge to go into a stuttering mess as he took in her beautiful features-

Where did THAT come from!?

Hoping to take his mind off of that strange thought, (and hoping Raphtalia didn’t see him blushing) he looked around camp.

Then he noticed something.

Or rather, the LACK of something.

“Where’s Melty?”

Raphtalia looked around, also noticing the blue haired girl’s absence.

It was then they noticed Melty’s clothes strewn over the ground next to Filo, who was sleeping in her bird form.

“She didn’t… Did she?” Raphtalia squeaked. Yes, Izuku threatened to let Filo eat people who were being difficult, but she knew that was just a scare tactic.

“I mean… She expressed interest in eating her own kind earlier.” Izuku replied nervously.

Filo burped in her sleep.

“…Right, okay, we’ll burn the clothes. We never saw any noble kids, we just pretend this never happened.”

Raphtalia made a noise that would have been pretty funny if not for the situation.

“D-don’t give me that look! I’m freaking out too you know!”

“Mnnn.” Filo opened her eyes groggily. “Hm? Why are you looking at Filo?”

“Uh… Filo… Where’s Melty?” Izuku asked nervously.

“Oh! Mel-Chan is right here!” Filo lifted up a wing, allowing Melty to poke her head out of Filo’s feathers.

“Hm? What is it?” Melty asked sleepily.

“Uh… Why are you in there?” Izuku asked awkward.

“It was cold tonight. Filo’s feathers are so soft and warm.”

“So you thought it appropriate to strip down to your underwear?” Izuku asked.

“It was stuffy…” Melty responded before dozing back off. While Izuku went on a mumble storm about Filo’s feathers likely making her look bigger than she really was possibly a defense mechanism to scare off possible predators, Raphtalia stuck her arm into filo’s feathers.

Amazed at how soft and warm they were, she fell asleep in that position, then woke up the next morning with a crick in her neck.

X

“My Queen.”

“Report. Has Melty made it back to the capital okay?”

“There was… An issue…” The Shadow responded. “Princess Melty had wandered away from her guard upon seeing a Filolial herd. The guards had searched for her for a couple of hours before being forced to return to the capital empty handed. The king had them executed on the spot.”

“My husband… Does not have the authority to order executions.” Her fan nearly broke from how hard she gripped it. “I want the names of everyone involved.”

“As you wish my Queen.”

“And Melty?”

“As luck would have it, she was found by the Shield Hero’s party, and has accepted the Shield Hero’s offer to accompany them back to the capital. However, the Second Princess only seems to know the Shield Hero by his moniker of The Savior of the Heavenly Fowl, a merchant known for his cheap, high quality medicine and accessories. While the Shield Hero only seems to think the Second Princess is simply the daughter of a noble.”

“That’s probably for the best at the moment, given how the rest of our family have only worked to earn his ire.” Mirellia sighed, relieved that Melty was okay. “Anything else?”

“There are reports of the Bow Hero aiding in repelling a coup in a neighboring country. Apparently the king had raised taxes to afford food and supplies due to a terrible harvest this year, and an insurgent faction has been twisting that narrative to paint him as corrupt and greedy. Our last report states that he and his party been seen around the Northern Territory.

“Is that right? What of the Sword and Spear Heroes?”

“The town of Lerno was recently overrun by a mutant plant that had apparently originated from a cursed seed locked away in a nearby cave. The seed was given to the town by the Spear Hero under the direction of the First Princess, though I’m sure the Spear Hero neglecting to learn our written language also helped considering the seed had very clear warnings around it.”

She wondered if she could charge Malty for domestic terrorism…

“Luckily, the Shield Hero was able to fix the situation, modifying the plant to make it safe. The town of Lerno has seen an uptick in its economy since.”

“So the Shield Hero has taken it upon himself to fix the Sword and Spear Hero’s mistakes then? Very well, what about the Sword Hero, what did he get up to?”

“…Gaelion is dead by the Sword Hero’s hands.”

“What!?” Mirellia whipped around in shock.

“The Lord of the nearby town sent a request through the Guild, spouting lies about Gaelion being a violent dragon who attacked their city in order to trick the Sword Hero into killing him, so that they may take the dragon’s riches and possibly sell his body parts.”

Her fan outright snapped as she struggled to keep her rage from bursting forth. Gaelion was a valuable potential ally against the Waves. She had intended to speak with him after she had returned from this summit, now all that was for naught, all because of a corrupt noble’s incessant, callous greed.

“The name of the Lord?” She would ensure the man suffered when he returned.

“Lord Hapshire my Queen.” The Shadow spoke.

“All right, continue.”

“The dragon Gaelion had a child it seems, a Demi-Human girl he had adopted. The child was abducted by the town and sold into slavery after Gaelion’s death. The Sword Hero’s neglect in disposing of the corpse, as well as Gaelion’s rage toward the treatment of his child, had caused him to reanimate as a zombie and spread a plague to the town, killing around half of its residents before the Shield Hero arrived.”

“So the Shield Hero cured the plague and defeated the Zombie Dragon?”

“I would not exactly call it ‘defeated’, my Queen, it is more… The Shield Hero had quelled his rage and allowed him to pass on peacefully. He has announced his intent to find Gaelion’s child, and has forcefully recovered the dragon’s stolen riches with the intent of passing it on to her.”

“Is that right? And Lord Hapshire?”

“The Shield Hero has threatened him into silence over the ordeal.”

“Have a Shadow posted to keep an eye of Hapshire and ensure he doesn’t go back on his word.”

“At once.”

Mirellia sat down, rubbing her temples.

“Please, tell me something that won’t make me want to rip someone’s head off. How is Melty doing with the Shield Hero’s party?”

“Quite well I must say. She especially seems to get along well with the Shield Hero’s Filolial Queen-“

All at once, Mirellia’s rage was forgotten as she grabbed the Shadow’s shoulders, a crazed and happy gleam in her eye.

“He has a Filolial Queen!? Tell me more!”

“Erm…”

X

“I’ve never been fishing before!” Melty said brightly, clutching the pole in her hands. She had decided to try it when Izuku announced he was going to fish in the nearby creek. She asked Filo if she wanted to come, but apparently, Filo wasn’t allowed on fishing duty because she kept eating everything she caught.

“It’s actually really simple.” Izuku explained, keeping an eye on his own pole. “Just… Try to speak a bit more softly. Too loud and it might scare the fish away.”

“Right! Sorry!” Melty said, a bit more quietly.

They simply sat there for a few minutes, before Melty yelped.

“Something’s tugging on my line! What do I do!?”

“Calm down.” Izuku assured. “Just wait a moment. The fish is trying to make sure it’s safe. Once the tugs become a consistent pull, then you reel it in.”

“Right! Okay!” Melty promptly did just that, and in about a minute, had managed to pull a decently sized fish out of the river. “Look! I did it!”

“Nice job Melty!” Izuku said brightly, laying his hand on her head. He quickly realized what he was doing and pulled his hand back with an embarrassed cough.

Melty, on the other hand, seemed to have a newfound gleam in her eyes.

X

“It’s a little tricky at first, but once you get the hang of it at first, it becomes surprisingly simple.” Izuku stated. He was trying to teach Melty and Filo about making accessories, though Filo kept getting distracted.

“Um…” Melty just stared as her attempt fell apart in her hands.

“Well… I guess it’s not for everyone.” Izuku chuckled as he finished. “Raphtalia, come here.”

The Tanuki girl blinked in confusion as she walked over to them, only for Izuku to slide a jade bracelet onto her wrist

“W-wha!?”

“It should grant you a medium boost in magic!” Izuku said brightly. Raphtalia sputtered, her face going red.

Melty held back a snicker.

Those two were definitely crushing on each other. She wondered if they themselves would ever realize that.

“Filo wants one too!” Filo complained.

“Don’t worry. I didn’t leave you out.” Izuku said kindly as he attached an amber hairpin to Filo’s hair. “Here, it should boost your agility.”

Melty thought the hairpin looked really nice.

“And for you Melty.” Izuku said brightly as he held out an aquamarine necklace.

“W-what? I get one?”

“Of course!” Izuku said as he handed over the necklace. “You may be with us temporarily, but I wouldn’t feel right leaving you out. You said you had an affinity for water magic? This should boost the strength of water based spells. It may even let you use magic of a tier higher than your current level.”

“Wait, when did we get aquamarine?” Raphtalia asked.

“I found some in that sealed mine where we found the trapped girl.” Izuku explained.

Melty looked at the necklace fondly.

“I… Thank you Izuku. I shall cherish this gift.”

“What, no ‘Sir’?” Izuku teased.

“I-what!? Did I-“ Izuku just laughed.

“It’s fine Melty. I honestly prefer dropping the honorific anyway.”

“Oh… Very well.” Melty smiled.

X

It was with several collective sighs that the group made their way through the capital gate.

“Ah! Izuku! I must thank you again for escorting me, but I really must get home now and assure my father that I am okay.” Melty spoke tiredly. “I promise to meet you at the Inn you spoke of later to give you your reward.”

“By Mel-Chan!” Filo said brightly as Izuku sighed. Despite trying to convince her otherwise, Melty was absolutely insistent on rewarding his kindness.

“Right, let’s go check in.” Izuku said as he took the carriage to Amalie’s Inn.

“Ah! There you are!” The older woman spoke as the carriage pulled up. “I already reserved a room for you three. Just pay me when most convenient.” she laughed heartily, handing Izuku the room key.

“I can pay now actually.” Izuku said, giving her the necessary coin. After that, they went and took their stuff up to their room. As they passed through the lobby, Izuku noted a curious sight.

At first, he thought it was a Filolial Queen, then he realized it was just someone in a costume, standing stiffly near a corner.

“Fueeee…” The costumed person whined. Izuku just shrugged and continued on.

“Okay, we’ll get some lunch, and then we have some errands to run.” Izuku sighed as they made their way back downstairs. Said errands being upgrading their gear at Erhard’s, then speaking to Beloukas, as well as have Raphtalia and Filo Class-Up at the Dragon Hourglass, the two having capped out at level 40 a couple of weeks prior.

“Ah, Midoriya. Pleasant seeing you here.” Itsuki spoke up as he walked up.

Then he saw Filo.

“You too, huh?”

“What?”

Then the front door slammed open.

“Hey dad!” A young boy who looked about ten or eleven walked in. He was dressed in black and red robes, and had spiky black hair and red, reptilian eyes. His teeth were all sharp and pointy, and he had black, leathery wings sprouting from his back. “Uncle Valden just choke-slammed that Mald guy you were talking about! It was awesome!”

Said Gator Beastman promptly walked in behind him, looking oddly smug.

“Aldwin, please.” Itsuki sighed.

“Oh! Hey mom! Why are you still wearing that costume?” Aldwin asked.

The person in the Filolial Queen costume let out a loud ‘FUEE!?’ At being called out.

“He’s a Royal Dragon. Came from the egg I got from the slave trader.” Itsuki explained. “No idea why he started calling Rishia ‘mom’ though.” He shook his head.

“Uh… Izuku-Sama?”

“Yes Raphtalia?”

“Filolials and Dragons are natural enemies!”

They had just barely managed to stop Filo and Aldwin from wrecking the place.

X

“Hmph! Filo doesn’t want to be nice to the stupid Dragon!” Filo pouted as they made their way to Erhard’s.

“Filo, please.” Izuku groaned. They had been at this for half an hour.

Finally, Raphtalia spoke up.

“Filo, think about it like this. If you’re nice to Aldwin, but he continues to be mean to you, that makes YOU the better person by default.”

“Hmmm…” Filo was still unsure.

“Also, being nice to Aldwin will really get on his nerves!”

“Okay! Filo will be nice to the stupid, ugly Dragon!” The Filolial said brightly.

“Is this the right thing to teach her?” Izuku questioned.

“Do you want to spend the next half hour arguing with her?”

Izuku conceded her point.

With that, they made their way to Erhard’s, where Izuku had commissioned new armor and weapons for Filo and Raphtalia, with the blacksmith promising them ready before the Wave.

After that, against his better judgment, Izuku made his way to Beloukas’ tent.

“Shield Hero!” The short man called jovially. “What a surprise! What can I do for you?”

“I’m looking for Demi-Human.”

“Excellent! I just-“ Izuku held up his hand.

“I’m looking for a very SPECIFIC Demi-Human. A child Dog Demi-Human by the name of Wyndia.”

“Hmm… I don’t have anyone in my stock matching that description. Why the interest?”

“She’s the adopted daughter of the Dragon Gaelion, who was killed by the Sword Hero while Wyndia was sold to a passing slave trader.”

For once, to Izuku’s surprise, the man’s smile faltered.

“Oh dear, Gaelion’s dead? The Queen will not be pleased. I uh… I will send out some feelers and get back to you.”

“Thanks for your help.” Izuku stated, giving him a few gold as a down payment, before turning and leaving to use the Dragon Hourglass.

Alas, what was meant to be a peaceful day was not meant to last as Izuku and his party walked through a crowded market.

“MIDORIYA!!” Izuku barely brought up his shield in time to block Motoyasu’s attack. A few stray blast from his spear destroyed a few stalls and sent the citizens running in a panic.

“ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND!? THERE ARE PEOPLE HERE YOU IDIOT!!” Izuku yelled.

“RELEASE RAPHTALIA NOW!!”

“ARE WE SERIOUSLY DOING THIS AGAIN!?!?”

Izuku leapt back, taking a defensive stance.

“It’s bad enough that you’ve enslaved that poor girl, but now you’re enslaving children too!?” Motoyasu barked, pointing toward Filo, who looked ready to start kicking.

“Fight me! Now!”

“Nope. To hell with this. Stay away from me you psycho.” Izuku said as he turned away, only to come face to face with a smug looking Malty carrying a scroll.

“By order of the King, the Spear and Shield Heroes are to undergo a sacred duel-“

“That’s enough!” Malty stiffened as Melty appeared, the soldiers fallowing the red haired Princess bowing at the sight of the blue haired girl.

“Sister.” Malty spoke, barely keeping the venom from her voice. “What are you doing here?”

‘SISTER!?’ Izuku thought.

“You cannot force people into duels against their will for your own amusement!” Melty snapped. She herself was surprised to realize the Savior of the Heavenly Fowl and the Shield Hero were the same person, but that wasn’t important right now.

“Hey, who the hell are you kid? This doesn’t concern you!” Motoyasu cut in, waving his spear toward the blue haired girl.

Immediately he found several weapons pointed at him.

“Spear Hero! Lower your weapon now!” A guard ordered.

“W-wha-!?”

“Oh Motoyasu-Sama, it’s merely my naive little sister trying to act like an adult, just try to ignore her.” Malty crooned.

“Need I remind you that this ‘naive little sister’ is also heir to the throne?” Melty interjected. Malty suddenly looked close to throttling someone. “Therefore, my authority far outweighs both you AND father?” As Malty sat sputtering, Melty turned back to Motoyasu. “And you, Spear Hero. The next Wave is in four days, yes? You will spend three of those days in the dungeon.”

“H-huh!? What for!?” Motoyasu cried in disbelief.

“For assault, endangering civilians, and reckless destruction of property!” She waved her hand towards the half destroyed market, where all of the civilians were glaring at Motoyasu.

“You can’t do that! He is one of the Cardinal Heroes!” Malty snapped.

“And that’s is the ONLY thing keeping him from spending MORE time in the dungeon.” Melty countered.

“How are we supposed to prepare for the Wave in time!?”

“Are you not in his party? Do the preparations yourself. Though I suggest you don’t overspend, because the damages and any medical treatment for this incident will be coming out of the Spear Hero’s next payment from the crown.”

“When father hears about this-“

“He will do nothing, because, again, my authority as Crown Princess far outweighs yours or father!”

Malty glared at her sister with murderous intent before stomping off as a dumbfounded Motoyasu was dragged away by guards.

“Izuku, I- Where did…?” She looked around to find Izuku and his party gone. “Did you see which way the Shield Hero went?” She asked a guard.

“I believe he snuck off towards the church before we could stop him.”

X

“Can’t I step foot in this city for one day without being harassed by the crown?” Izuku sighed as he and his party trudged towards the church.

“Daddy, is something wrong?”

“No Filo. Nothing’s wrong.”

“You’re lying. Filo can tell when people lie.”

“Can you now? That’s a wonderful ability.”

“Are you man at Mel-Chan for being related to the red haired hag?”

“No Filo. I’m not mad at Melty. I just… Need to process some things.”

“Okay…”

They walked through the doors of the church, where they were immediately greeted by the Pope.

“Why hello Shield Hero. What can me and my children do for you today?” Belmus asked, the false kindness making Izuku twitch.

“My party needs access to the Dragon Hourglass they can Class Up.”

“Ah…” The old man’s face twisted into false sorrow. “As much as it pains me to admit, the king has issued a decree forbidding you and your party further access to the Dragon Hourglass. My deepest apologies.”

Izuku felt his anger surge, but before he could say anything, Melty had appeared, panting as if she had run a marathon.

“Ah! Princess!”

“It seems that my father has been acting far beyond his authority recently. That ends today. The Shield Hero and his party are to be allowed unrestricted access to the Dragon Hourglass and any other services the church offers.”

The older man’s face twitched briefly.

“Yes, as you wish your majesty.”

“And for future reference your Eminence. My father is a Consort and was never officially declared Regent. Neither he nor my sister have the authority to issue royal decrees.”

“Of course Princess. My mistake.” They were led to the Dragon Hourglass as Izuku worked to ignore the glares sent his way. As Filo and Raphtalia performed the ceremony, he found himself talking to Melty.

“I just don’t understand why father is acting like this. It isn’t like him to be so bullheaded.”

Izuku sighed.

“Melty, I understand. They’re your family. You have every right to care for them. But you should understand, Malty and your father are the farthest from good.”

“What did they do to you to make you hate them this much?”

Izuku sighed, and told her the story, of the false rape accusations, to which Melty scoffed and said that Malty had bedded more men then they could count, to the rigged duel, to the attempt to make Motoyasu the Lord of Lute as well as the heavy tax that would have killed the town, to the King’s incessant attempts at hindering Izuku and his party.

“…I’m sorry…” Melty said quietly.

“Melty…”

“I’m so sorry for the way my family has treated you-“

“Don’t. Don’t apologize on behalf of someone else, especially when that person isn’t even sorry.”

“I assure you my mother is nothing like this. When she returns home-“

Izuku laid his hand on her head.

“I know you’re a good kid Melty.” He rubbed her hair. “I guess I was just worried you would be blinded by your admiration for your family.” Izuku said, though as those words left his mouth he paused, as if realizing something, before shaking it off.

“My mother gave me the authority to step in and take over as acting Queen if my father stepped out of line. It seems I’ll have to do just that.” Melty sighed, pulling out a small bag, as well as a small handful of coins. “Here. Your payment for escorting me back to the capital… And a little extra as recompense for how my family has treated you.”

“Melty-“

“I insist!” Melty snapped, shoving the coin into his hands. Izuku reluctantly took it. “Even after all they did to you, you’re still willing to fight for us…”

“Back in my world…” Izuku began. “There are many with the title of Heroes. But out of all of them, All Might is the greatest. The Symbol of Peace. I’ve always admired him, and I’ve always wanted to be like him. I want to be a Hero who saves everyone.” He smiled. Melty smiled back.

“…I… Would really like to keep playing with Filo and being her friend… And I’d also like to go fishing again, I really enjoyed it.” Melty said shyly.

Izuku smiled, patting her head.

“I’d like that too.” Melty leaned into the headpat, and Izuku chuckled.

‘Is this what it’s like…’ Izuku thought. ‘…Having a younger sibling to look up to you?’

??? SHIELD SERIES: UNLOCK CONDITION 2 OF 3 MET.

X

“I just wanna sleep.” Izuku yawned as they made their way back to the inn…

Only to find a small squadron of soldiers waiting.

“Shield Hero!”

Izuku raised his shield.

“Wait! We do not wish to fight!” A young knight, about Izuku’s age, stepped forward. “My name is Ake. I was at Lute. I helped rally most of the knight to your side, remember?”

“Oh yeah, I do. What do you want?” Izuku asked.

“I… We wish to fight alongside you in the next Wave.”

“Oh yeah?”

“We do not approve of the Commander’s actions during the Lute Wave. We all became soldiers to help and protect people. What happened in Lute was beyond disgraceful. Please let us make it right.”

“…I need to know you’re serious about this.”

“What would you have us do?”

“Buy yourselves some new gear. The Waves are only going to get stronger and stronger, so what you have now isn’t going to cut it. I estimate it’ll cost about 500 to 600 silver for all of you, but I won’t be paying for any of it. You’ll have to get all the money yourselves.” Izuku said with a nod as he headed in, intent on dinner, a bath, and sleep.

X

LATER THAT NIGHT:

Raphtalia was getting some late night reading done, Izuku and Filo both asleep, dead to the world. She smiled at them.

Then Izuku bolted up, gasping in shock.

“What’s wrong?” Raphtalia asked in worry, setting her book down.

“Nothing just…. A weird dream.”

“About?”

Izuku sighed.

“I was… In some kind of black void, and there were other people. I was fighting this little girl in a blue dress. Actually, there was two of that little girl, but one was unconscious. The little girl… It was almost like she had multiple Quirks and… It seemed like I had a Quirk too. Some kind of super strength Quirk with multiple facets. The girl… Seemed angry with me, but also… Hurt. Like I had betrayed her somehow. She got the upper hand, but stopped before she could kill me. I… I called her Eri, and said that I loved her, like how I love Filo, and she just… Froze. And then, another ME came out of nowhere and restrained her. She got scared and started freaking out, but the other Izuku just comforted her. And this man, with a bird mask, he used his Quirk to fuse Eri and her twin together, and that’s where it ended.”

“What could that mean?” Raphtalia asked.

“Well… There’s a theory in my world that when we dream, we’re actually looking through a window into other universes, seeing through the eyes of our other selves.”

“You think you saw through the eyes of another Izuku?”

“Maybe.. I don’t know for sure but… I feel bad for her. I just wish… I could help her somehow.” Raphtalia laid her hand on his shoulder.

“It’ll be okay. I promise.”

X

MEANWHILE, BACK IN IZUKU’S WORLD:

Hawks rolled his eyes as he looked over the file in his hands.

It figures. It would be stupid for the Commission to put so much time and resources forward just to train him. There were others. The Sentinel Project, the Commission called it. Children squired by the Commission through many means, most of them not very legal, and trained up to be a Hero loyal only to the Commission.

Hawks wasn’t the first. He most certainly isn’t the last.

And now, the Commission had ordered him to take on one of their Sentinels in training. A girl of about 15. He was to give her field expert and keep her on as an apprentice.

To be honest, he wasn’t much of a teacher. Unfortunately, the Commission didn’t care. If he refused or half assed this, who knows what they would do. They could take away his fried chicken budget!

With a sigh, he lowered the folder and looked to the short, green haired girl that was glaring at him.

“All right, I admit I’m not used to the whole teaching gig. Let’s go down to the training room and see what you can do.”

Hawks smirked.

“Show me why the Commission calls you the Tornado of Terror.”

Chapter Text

“Has young Midoriya said anything?” All Might asked as he, Tsukauchi, and Nedzu walked the halls of the school.

“He refuses to say anything unless everyone signs NDAs. Whatever secrets he has, he REALLY doesn’t want the Commission or the Government getting ahold of them.” Tsukauchi sighed.

“I cannot say I blame him.” Nedzu chuckled.

“So what exactly is the aftermath of the USJ looking like?” Tsukauchi asked.

“Aizawa and Thirteen have been stabilized and are undergoing surgery. Thirteen has lacerations on her back but the doctors say she will pull through. They haven’t come to a conclusion on Aizawa, but it doesn’t look good. That Akemi girl was taken into custody and is currently recovering at the hospital under police supervision, but they told us they’re having trouble getting her to talk.”

“What about the student who was mutilated?”

“Tsuyu Asui has lost a good portion of her face muscles. It is highly unlikely she’ll be unable to speak or use her tongue anymore without the aid of a support item. She is currently stable but comatose. Her parents are threatening U.A. with a lawsuit and we are currently negotiating with them.” Nedzu sighed.

“And Midoriya and his group? Technically they committed Vigilantism.”

“That is a bit more of a gray area. Anti-Personnel Quirk usage is allowed on school grounds as long as the students don’t maim or kill, and from what we’ve gathered from the students, the Nomu creatures that Midoriya and his group killed seemed to be more like mindless abominations than actual people. That being said, they did actively charge into the fray. However, I think we should let it slide this time. After all, their interference not only saved the life of Young Hagakure, and by extension saved One For All, but it also saved All Might from having to push himself too far in fighting the so called Anti-Symbol of peace, thus keeping him from having to lower his already scarce time even further.”

“Alright, I suppose if we work together we can cover up the involvement of Midoriya’s group. I seriously don’t want to send that Filo girl to jail. Though that still leaves some very vocal members of Class 1-A.”

“I will ensure none of them speak of Midoriya’s involvement.” Nedzu waved off. “Now, onto other matters. What of the one surviving Nomu we managed to capture, the one that was found in the Squall Zone acting like a scared child.”

“The Spider Nomu? I think we should discuss that with our two guests.”

“Very well. And what about the hand Young Shimura managed to take from the villain?”
Nedzu asked.

“It seems to be real, preserved from some kind of method we’re unfamiliar with. We’re running tests on it now. Am I to believe Hana Shimura also suffered some kind of breakdown?”

“She believes the Leader, Shigaraki, is her deceased younger brother.” All Might sighed. “We’re going to have her see Hound Dog when she calms down. Currently her friend, Young Ona is looking after her.”

“Very well.”

The three came up to Nedzu’s office, where Present Mic and Midnight were waiting.

“So what’s this about?” Midnight asked. “You said you needed to speak with us urgently.”

“It concerns the Spider Nomu that was captured at the USJ.” Tsukauchi explained with a sigh, pulling out some files. “It turns out this Nomu’s existence solves a six year old missing person’s case.”

“Hanako Yumara?” All Might asked as he looked over the files. “That name sounds familiar.”

“You’ve probably heard of her father Kaito Yumara, who was the subject of the whole Gallant Blade controversy.”

The air in the room seemed to chill.

Around six years prior, a Hero known as Gallant Blade was accused by multiple witnesses of murdering an innocent man in cold blood during the chaos of a villain attack. It was highly alleged to have been done due to the victim’s extensive mutations, which made sense considering Gallant Blade had a history of vocal Quirkism.

It seemed like an open and shut case. There was plenty of evidence and plenty of witnesses to send Gallant Blade away for a long time.

However, on the day of his trial, no evidence seemed to turn up, and all of the witnesses suddenly retracted their statements.

It reeked of a cover up, especially given how smug the sick bastard was about the whole ordeal.

It made all the Heroes in Nedzu’s office sick to their stomachs.

A few years later, Gallant Blade became one of the first victims of the Hero Killer.

“Hanako Yumara disappeared on her way home from school a few weeks after Gallant Blade’s Trial.” Tsukauchi explained. “The damage to the scene was equivalent to at least six people with different Quirks. However, the sole witness of the event, Cthylla Ryuu, claimed that Hanako Yumara was abducted by only two assailants. The first was a man with a Warping Quirk who seemed to be made of mist.”

“Kurogiri.” Nedzu mused, the students having heard the leader of the League call the Warp Villsin by name.

“Correct. Ryuu-San said that Yumara-San put up one hell of a fight, that’s when Kurogiri brought in the second assailant, who Ryuu-San described as ‘A very tall man with white hair and red eyes dressed in a suit.’”

All Might slammed his fists on the table.

“Why are we just now hearing about this!?” He demanded.

“Because Ryuu-Sam’s statement was written off as the ramblings of a traumatized child who didn’t fully understand what she saw. The files suggest there were multiple men in suits and that Ryuu-San merely deluded herself into believing there was one.” He passed a file to Nedzu. “This is the transcript for Ryuu-San’s interview. Tell me what you think.”

“Wait, who’s this listener in the suit? He sounds important.” Mic asked.

“The most dangerous villain alive. All For One. Though you may know him as the Boogeyman Who Takes Quirks.”

“All For One? I’ve heard that name and a few rumors from time to time while doing underground work, but never anything concrete.” Midnight spoke up. “Are you seriously saying the Boogeyman is real!? Some of these rumors date back to the Dawn of Quirks!”

“He’s real. Been around since the beginning. Most likely found a Quirk to extend his lifespan.” All Might rubbed the spot where his injury was. He had already revealed the injury to his fellow teachers, but didn’t give much detail on how he got it besides it being a powerful villain. “He did this to me. I thought I had killed him. I quite literally smashed his head into paste. But now, with the existence of these Nomu…”

“Hold up! This is all really big, but what does it have to do with Nemuri and I?” Mic asked.

“During the struggle, Yumara-San managed to wound Kurogiri. The police got a sample of his blood, ran some tests on it, multiple times. The results were the same every time. According the tests, the Mist Villain who kidnapped Hanako Yumara, who we now know as Kurogiri, is in fact Oboro Shirakumo.”

The chill in the air seemed to intensify as Mic and Midnight went pale.

“T-that’s impossible.” Mic managed to get out. “Oboro… It’s been over fifteen years… Their Quirks aren’t even the same…”

“It’s quite possible that He’s a special kind of Nomu.” Tsukauchi explained. “From what we’ve gathered so far, they all seem to be made using human bodies as the base, though Hanako Yumara also seems to be special in some regards.”

“If that is the case, then it is likely the Warping Quirk is also a mosh-mash of multiple Quirks merged together, with Oboro Shirakumo’s Cloud Quirk as the base.” Nedzu said as he closed the transcript. “I don’t like what I am seeing in this transcript. On top of the police interviewing Ryuu-San displaying some rather blatant Quirkism, at one point calling her a ‘tentacled freak’, their tactics are aggressive to the point that it is more in line with gaslighting. The Asahi Police Station in Mei Prefecture seems to be very much compromised.”

“Asahi!?” Midnight asked. “Isn’t that…”

“Yeah, it’s where Shouta took that mission a year and a half ago, and it was when he came back that his personality got worse.” Mic rubbed the back of his head.

“About that…” Nedzu spoke up. “I spoke with Ochako Uraraka’s parents regarding her behavior, and they claim that, like Eraserhead, her behavior is a recent development that occurred a year and a half ago. I don’t think it’s any coincidence that the Uraraka’s also live in Asahi.”

“What the hell!? Are the two connected somehow?” Mic asked.

“Do we know of any other strange events to come out of Asahi a year and a half ago?” Midnight asked.

“Well, I don’t know if they’re connected, but there was a pair of suicides around that time to come from residents of Asahi.” Tsukauchi spoke up. “The first is… Hanako Yumara’s mother. The loss of both her husband and daughter in such a short time span pretty much destroyed her, and she turned to heavy drinking. About a year and a half ago, she threw herself into the path of an oncoming train.”

“Shit…” Mic wheezed.

“And the other one?” Midnight asked, afraid of the answer.

“The second suicide didn’t occur in Asahi itself, but the victim was a resident her entire life. A year and a half ago, a thirteen, almost fourteen year old girl named Aoi Haji threw herself off of the top floor of Detnerat Tower in Deika City, where her father, an editor for Detnerat’s Publishing and PR division, brought her while he was on a work trip.”

“Holy Shit.” All Might murmured. “Why?”

“Evidently Haji-San had been ruthlessly bullied for her quote unquote ’Villainous Quirk’. Her Quirk, which was a fusion of both her father’s and her deceased mother’s, allowed her to exude a gas from her skin similar to Midnight. However, Haji-San’s Quirk placed anyone who inhaled it into a state of mind control, with the duration of the effects depending on how much gas they inhaled.”

“That sounds like something you’d want out of a Quirk Marriage.” Midnight spoke up with a frown.

“There were a lot suspicious things surrounding Haji-San’s supposed suicide, but any attempts to look further are met with either dead ends or a lot of red tape.” Tsukauchi sighed. “It’s a sad thing though. A lot of Haji-San’s peers described her as a very sweet and timid girl.”

All Might hated it. He hated how society could be so unbelievably cruel as to push a kindhearted child to suicide just because of the Quirk she was born with.

He needed to get with his PR manager.

“Looks like we’ve got our hands full.” Tsukauchi sighed. “I put forward the papers needed to raid the Asahi Police Department, and I know Nedzu’s gonna wanna look into the town to see what the hell’s going on. On top of that, we need to track down Cthylla Ryuu to get the full story on Hanako Yumara’s kidnapping,”

“That last one won’t be necessary.” Nedzu spoke up. “As luck would have it, Cthylla Ryuu is a student in the Management Track of U.A.’s Business Course.”

“Well, that’s one problem solved.” Midnight sighed. “Though I am curious as to why the Yumara Nomu acts so differently from the others.”

“Young Toru Hagakure mentioned that it began acting that way after she delivered a strong kick to the head, so it is possible that Young Hagakure quite literally knocked some of Hanako Yumara’s memories loose.” Nedzu chuckled. “All right, dismissed.

With that, Mic and Midnight made their way to the hospital to inform Aizawa of their findings, while Nedzu, Tsukauchi, and All Might contemplated two new problem.

First, they needed to inform Cthylla Ryuu that her best friend was turned into a bioengineered monstrosity.

Second, they needed to get answers from Izuku Midoriya.

X

Tomura continued to glare at the woman as Garaki attacked the robotic hand to him, more agitated than usual due to not having Father’s hand.

“Now don’t give me that look.” Medea smirked. “I want us to get along young man.”

“You killed Sensei.”

“I will be even better than your Sensei ever was.”

“You have no idea what Sensei has done for me.”

“He held you back from your true potential, all under the guise of ‘helping you grow.’”

“He saved my life!”

“Oh please. At the end of the day you were merely his most valuable pawn.”

Garaki jolted for a second.

“You-“

“Izuku Midoriya.”

“…What?”

“That’s the name of that useless Shielder. That fat bird that beat up your Nomu? His pet. That Demi-Human freak who cut off your arm? His lover.” She gave him a smirk. “And trust me when I say he has no shortage of enemies. You’ll need to gather more fighters. Though as much as I enjoy the cannon fodder being blown to bits, they can only do so much. You’ll need higher tier fighters.”

“Which is gonna be hard to gather, just so you know Giren spoke up as he stepped into the room. “No offense lady, you may have seized all of All For One’s assets, but you’re not All For One. The underground doesn’t know you. Some people are even suggesting your killing of the Boogeyman was nothing more than luck. On top of the disaster that was the USJ… You need to build a reputation, otherwise the most I can get you is a bunch of D-List Criminals.”

Medea rolled her eyes.

“I despise work. Ugh. Very well Tomura, I can get you your first two recruits free of charge, but you’ll need to build the League’s reputation yourself.”

“And where exactly are you gonna get more players lady!?” Tomura demanded.

“As I said before, Izuku Midoriya has many enemies. It’s just that most of them are not in this world at the moment. You’ll have to give me a little bit. After what that piece of shit Naofumi did to me, just jumping to other worlds or even resurrecting the dead, things that once came so naturally to me, require so much more effort now. I can’t even use my Concept or Temporal magic anymore, else I would have just erased Midoriya’s pathetic existence myself. I’ve been forced to lay low ever since I came to this pathetic world a year and a half ago.”

She held up a finger as she began to gather magic.

“Let’s see… Ah.”

In a bright flash, a form appeared on the floor. Tomura blinked as he took in the sight of a rotting child’s corpse decked out in military fatigues.

“That’s a dead body dumbass.”

“Yes yes! Give me a minute! I had to drag her from an unmarked grave in another world!” Medea snapped. After a few minutes of recovery, she began to gather more magic.

At once, the child’s corpse reverted to a pristine condition. She looked as though she could be sleeping.

She may as well have been, with how she suddenly sat up in shock.

“Where am I!?” The girl jabbered.

“Mary Sue.” The girl’s head snapped toward Medea. “In your world, you enlisted as a child soldier to track down and slay the enemy combatant who had killed your father. However, despite coming to blows with her multiple times, you were unsuccessful. When the war ended, your former comrades executed you for your constant insubordination, suicidal recklessness, and unhinged mindset.”

“Who are you!?” Mary demanded. “Are you one of the Devil of the Rhine’s squad!?”

Medea merely held out her hand, and a picture manifested in it.

That green haired Shielder…

Mary stopped, cautiously reaching over to take the picture.

“This boy…” She mused as her mind went back to when she had seen him…

ISEKAI QUARTET UNIVERSE: UNKNOWN TIME:

…The green haired boy had completely tanked the magical blast that would have outright obliterated Degurechaff, flames surrounding the two but leaving them unscathed save for Tanya’s dislocated leg and beaten form.

Mary stepped back, startled by the development.

“Who… Who are you? You’re not one of her squad! This doesn’t concern you! It’s between me and her!”

“She’s my friend.” Izuku spoke coldly, raising his Shield higher. “And even if she wasn’t, I’m not just gonna stand there and let you kill her!”

“Midoriya…?” Even Tanya was startled by the development. She knew her squad would lay down their lives for her, but…

“She’s a Devil!” Mary snapped. “Do you even realize how many people she’s killed!? All the atrocities she committed!? SHE KILLED MY DAD!!”

“Yeah, I heard from her squad. Filo verified everything they said. I’m sorry about your dad, I really am… But…” His face steeled. “Stop acting like you’re the only victim in war YOUR COUNTRY started! People lose their loved ones in war all the time! What makes YOU so special!?” He took a step forward. “I’m not defending the Empire or calling them the Heroes of this story… But you…” He pointed at the girl. “You are DEFINITELY the Villain!”

“You… I’ll kill you-“ Mary was cut off in an instant when Filo’s leg slammed into her crotch.

PRESENT DAY:

Mary crushed the picture in her hand.

“That boy… I’ll kill him!!”

“I have a deal for you. Join our team. Help us destroy this society and kill that boy, and I’ll help you reach Tanya Degurechaff.” Medea smirked.

Hook. Line. And sinker.

The ones ruled by their emotions were always the funnest to manipulate.

“Is that all lady!? Just one!?” Tomura demanded she tested the prosthetic.

A vain popped out on Medea’s forehead.

“Do you even realize how much energy I just used up brat!? Give me a little while to rest!”

Yeesh, so spoiled.

X

Shoto was annoyed.

The Principal as well as All Might had chewed him out for rightfully leaving Hagakure in a the Landslide Zone. They had told him that if he endangers someone like that again, there would be serious consequences.

It wasn’t his fault she was injured and therefore a liability! And besides, the fact that she had to get help from that Midoriya kid only proved she was too weak to be a Hero! He didn’t do anything wrong!

Shoto’s bedroom door opened, and the flaming piece of shit, his bastard sperm donor who had the audacity to call himself a Hero, stepped in.

“I just got off the phone with Nedzu. He said old me of your actions at the USJ.” Endeavor leveled his gaze as Shoto scowled at him.

“…I’m very disappointed in you Shoto.”

“I don’t give a damn what you think.” Shoto retorted.

Endeavor took a deep breath.

“You will apologize to that girl when you next see her.”

“Tch.” Shoto looked away.

“You WILL apologize, or I will pull you out of U.A.”

The two were locked in a tense standoff.

“He also told me how you still refuse to use your fire.”

“I’m not going to be your little puppet so you can fulfill your one sided rivalry!”

“I don’t are about surpassing All Might any more. Shoto, if you keep holding yourself back like this, you’re only going to get yourself or someone else killed!” Endeavor snapped.

“…Get out.” Shoto turned away. After a few tense moments, Endeavor left. The large man sighed wearily as his made his way towards a specific room of the house. Inside were a pair of shrines; One depicting a white haired woman, the other a white haired boy.

“Rei… Why did you have to run into those flames. They were too hot even for me to withstand.” He sighed as he knelt down in front of the shrine. “I fucked up our family, and nothing I try seems to come close to fixing it. I need you now more than ever, because I’m afraid our son is on the path to becoming worse than I ever was…”

He shook his head.

“Fuyumi’s the only one who doesn’t treat me like the piece of shit I am. The only time I’m able to see Natsuo, let alone talk to him, is when Fuyumi forces him to come home for dinner once a month, and even then he treats me like a plague. Shoto… He’s getting worse and worse, and he refuses to use his fire, even knowing the risks…”

He sighed.

“What can I do… For our family…”

X

Toru blinked, looking around at the black void that surrounded her.

She tried to speak, tried to call out, only to find that she couldn’t.

She began to panic as she realized the majority of her body up to her mouth was covered in a black fog.

“Calm down little one.” A hand lay on her shoulder, and her eyes snapped up to the woman.

‘Hana-Nee?’ She thought, only to realize that this woman, despite baring an uncanny resemblance to Hana, looked far more mature, her features a lot more filled out as opposed to Hana, who could easily pass as a tall teenager if she wanted.

The woman smiled kindly.

“My name is Nana Shimura. I’m the seventh User of One For All. I believe you’re acquainted with my granddaughter?” She shook her head. “Sorry, I guess it’ll take time for you to fully manifest here within the Vestige Realm. We’re all here you know, us past users…” She gestured toward what looked like a chunk of a building with several chair, where more people stood as a sickly looking man walked over.

“Hello Ninth. I’m Yoichi Shigaraki. The First User.”

Toru recoiled at the man’s name.

“Yes… The same last name as the man who attacked the USJ… We have a lot to talk about…”

X

MEANWHILE: IN ANOTHER WORLD:

The rather short girl dressed in red huffed angrily as she sat by the lake.

She had gotten into yet another argument with Kazuma.

They had a lot of those since coming back from that damn school world.

Why!? Why didn’t they understand how wrong this was!? Kazuma kept saying she was out of her mind. Darkness was… Well, it was Darkness. And Aqua just straight up ignored her worries.

It wasn’t right!

“You seem to have a lot on your mind.” Megumin whirled around, pointing her staff at the woman, ready to let loose an explosion.

“Who are you!?” Megumin demanded.

“You may call me Medea. And I have an offer you can’t refuse.” Megumin stepped back. Something about this woman just felt WRONG.

“Are you a villain? I want nothing to do with your kind!”

Medea just shrugged.

“Suit yourself.” She turned away. “I’ll just take care of Izuku Midoriya myself.”

“…Wait. What do you know about Midoriya?” Megumin demanded.

“I can take you to his world if you’re so eager for revenge.”

“I…” Megumin was conflicted. On one hand, she might never get a chance like this again. One the other…

“…I will not involve myself with any villainous activities you get involved in, you hear? As far as I’m concerned, you’re just a means to an end!” Megumin yelled, fully planning to blow the woman to ash when this was over.

Medea smiled.

“Of course.”

“Good. I’m only doing this because Midoriya needs to be stopped. That bastard needs to pay for what he did to Yunyun!”

X

MEANWHILE: IN THE EXACT SAME WORLD:

“You’ve really changed a lot you know.” Yunyun blinked, looking up at the girl who had spoken to her.

“Hm? What do you mean?”

“It’s like… You’re a lot more confident than you used to be. A lot more self assured. You even carry yourself a lot better. Nobody expected you to ever stand up to Megumin like that after you used to just let her walk all over you.”

Yunyun gave a sincere smile.

“I… Traveled to a far away place and made some really good friends there. It was them that helped me to grow so much.” She seemed sad. “Unfortunately, the place they come from isn’t exactly easy to get to. I… I wish to see them again someday though.”

‘Thank you Izuku… For everything…’

X

BACK IN IZUKU’S WORLD:

He could feel it. The suffocating aura of pure evil stood behind this door. His hands trembled as he realized that this was something that would make even All Might stumble.

He didn’t want to open the door, but he had no other choice.

If kept waiting, this… demon would just force their way in.

He took a deep to calm his nerves, reached towards the handle…

And Lunch Rush threw open the door.

“Can Filo have a snack?”

X

“And… Where is young Filo?” All Might asked. He was in his skeletal form after Hagakure explained that Midoriya and Iwatani knew about his injuries. Izuku was surprised by the transformation, but then said that it made sense given how surprisingly good at evading the Media All Might was.

“She got hungry so I told her where the cafeteria is.” Izuku said. Raphtalia sighed. Inko sat beside the two.

“Uh… Okay?” Tsukauchi spoke up. “About these NDA’s you want us to sign-“

FWISH.

“You… Already have them ready…”

“Nedzu left his computer open.”

Nedzu cackled.

“Oh, I like him.”

“Mom got our family lawyer to look over it. He’s a friend of my dad’s.” Izuku explained as Tsukauchi looked over the papers. They were completely air tight. Whoever their lawyer was (The papers only had the initials P.W.), he was damn good at his job.

With a sigh, the three of them signed the NDAs, before passing them back to Izuku, who looked over them for a moment.

“…I got Isekai’d.”

“Mother fucker!!” Tsukauchi swore as he stood up to pace.

“What? Did he lie?” All Might asked.

“No, he told the truth!” Tsukauchi responded.

Izuku found their reactions amusing.

“Fascinating!” Nedzu cackled. “To be given proof that other worlds do in fact exist! I take it this means Young Iwatani and Young Filo…?”

“From another world.”

“Ahahahaha! It certainly explains why you’re so secretive about it. It would truly be a disaster if this reached the Commission or the Government.”

“Crap.” All Might sighed. “He’s taken an interest.” He looked at the boy. “Young Midoriya, before we go any further, you mentioned All For One having a son.”

“Huh? That guy? I took care of him already. You don’t need to worry.”

“Young Midoriya, there is ample evidence that All For One himself is still alive. I literally smashed his skull into paste and there’s a very good chance he survived. If he has a son-“

“All Might.” The skeletal man paused as Izuku spoke. “I literally fed him to a Soul Eater. Trust me. There’s no chance of him coming back. Besides, from what I gathered, All For One deemed him a failure and killed him himself, that’s why he was in the other world with me.”

“I… I see.”

“You understand I’m only telling you guys this because it’s pretty clear you’re not gonna let me go without answers.” Izuku pointed out.

“Indeed.” Nedzu confirmed. “If you don’t mind, we would like to hear your story Midoriya.”

Izuku sighed as he began to recount his adventures in Melromarc, from how he was falsely accused of rape by a sadistic whore, to nearly being immolated by the Spirit Tortoise, (Inko gasped in shock at that one), everything.

“The reason I knew about All For One and All Might’s injury in the first place was because of a little girl named Eri. She had her own copy of All For One as well as the power to freely travel between universes. She gave me the way to come back home.”

“And this Eri… Where is she now?”

“I don’t know. She… She was in a really bad state when I first met her. She was having a serious emotional breakdown bordering on a panic attack and… I think she may have been suicidal. She said that she did a lot of terrible things, and that she regretted all of it… I honestly hope she’s okay.”

Raphtalia took his hand gently.

“Young Midoriya… Someone hurt you really badly, didn’t they?” All Might asked.

“Malty… It all comes back to her.” Izuku spat.

“It’s because of her that Izuku has become so cynical.” Raphtalia supplied, her thumb stroking his hand.

“What did she do?” All Might asked, afraid of the answer.

“She taught me the hardest reality about being a Hero.” Izuku spoke coldly. “You can’t save everyone.”

Chapter Text

“Melty my dear, don’t you feel your actions toward the Spear Hero a re a bit harsh?”

“I would say he got off quite easy for his actions in the market.”

“I’m sure he had a very good reason. You can never be sure what that Shield Devil is up to-“

“You understand that mother is beyond furious with you, yes? I’ve honestly never seen her so angry before.”

“Ngh!?”

“I honestly don’t know what excuse you’ve come up with to try and justify your hatred for the Shield Hero, but it doesn’t excuse the fact that you’ve been deliberately attempting to hinder his growth knowing full well we need the Heroes at full power. I love you father, but for all that is holy, just sit down, be quiet, and stop deepening this hole you’ve dug yourself into.”

X

Izuku and his party were sitting at a table, enjoying their breakfast before the wave in a few hours when Ren of all people walked into the Inn.

“Midoriya, I was told I would find you here.” Ren spoke up. “I took a quest slaying a dragon a while back but the Guild has refused payment. I could you happen to know anything about out that?”

“Dragon… Dragon… Only dragon I know of is a neutral one near a town that got slain by some idiot who left his corpse to rot causing a plague to nearly destroy the town and allowing his adopted daughter to be sold into slavery… No, I don’t know anything of your predicament. Sorry.” Izuku spoke passive aggressively.

“I see. Sorry for bothering you then. If there’s really a Zombie Dragon roaming around, I’ll have to look into it.” Ren said as he walked away, leaving Izuku’s table dumbfounded as to whether or not he was being serious.

“There you are Midoriya!”

Izuku would have slammed his head into the table in frustration were it not for the plate of food in his way.

“I spent three days in the dungeon because of you!” Motoyasu yelled as he stormed into the inn.

“You spent three days in the dungeon because of your own actions. Don’t go around blaming other Motoyasu. Take responsibility for once.”

“We’re going to settle this here and now!” Motoyasu yelled, apparently not hearing a thing Izuku had just said. “And then I’ll make you free those poor girls you enslaved! I bet you force that poor little girl to do manual labor, huh!?”

“Filo likes pulling the cart.” Filo said brightly.

Motoyasu sputtered.

“You- You force her to pull a cart!?”

“Filo likes to help daddy!”

Now Motoyasu seemed even angrier.

“You make her call you ‘daddy’ too!? What kind of sick things are you doing to this poor child!?”

“Would you stop jumping to conclusions!?”

“Filo calls daddy daddy because daddy is Filo’s daddy!” Filo complained.

“You poor thing. He has to be running you ragged like his did that fat bird.”

The air seemed to chill.

“You called me fat…”

“Huh?”

POMF

“I HATE YOU SPEAR GUY!!”

“Wait, you were that fat bi-“

WHAM

“…Ah…”

“Would anyone else like to bother us?” Izuku called out to the inn.

After a few seconds, Ake showed up.

“Shield Hero, we’ve upgraded our gear just as you requested.” He spoke. “We’re ready when-“

“That’s it! Fight me now!” Motoyasu demanded.

“Spear Hero! You were ordered by Princess Melty to cease your harassment of the Shield Hero!” Ake yelled, pointing his weapon at the oaf. “Stand down now!”

“Hey, this is between me and him! Don’t-“ BONG “ACK!!”

“I’ve had enough of you causing a disturbance!” Amalie snapped as she waved the cast iron frying pan threateningly.

“Y-you, I’m a Hero-“

Motoyasu was rewarded with another wack to the head.

“I don’t care if you’re the Queen of Melromarc herself! You. Will. Not. Cause. Trouble. In. My. Inn!” She punctuated each word with another hit from the frying pan as she chased the Spear Hero out of the building.

Izuku just sighed.

X

“You know, I’m honestly surprised you didn’t try hitting on Filo.” Itsuki said with a role of his eyes at Motoyasu’s stupidity.

“Huh? What are you talking about?” Motoyasu demanded as he rubbed his throbbing head.

“Our first night in this world you mentioned having a thing for angels.”

“Dude! The fuck!?” Motoyasu looked appalled. “Yeah I like angels! But she’s a little kid! What kind of sick fuck do you take me for!?”

MEANWHILE, IN ANOTHER UNIVERSE:

A variant of Motoyasu, quite different from the one we know, sneezed, shook it off, then went back to obsessively putting together the shrine dedicated to Filo.

BACK IN THE SHIELD DEKU WORLD:

“Commander, do you think we’ll reach the Shield Hero in time for the next Wave?” A Demi-Human soldier asked. The Commander, a half wolf half human Demi-Human by the name of Myuri (Not that that little fact was known in Siltvelt. There would be trouble if the higher ups discovered her father was a human merchant, so as far as anyone was aware, she was a full Demi-Human.) sighed.

“I’m not sure. It took us longer than expected to sneak across the boarder.” And wasn’t that a pain. First, she was only able to secure a small squad of about five soldiers, her superiors already concerned that getting caught would result in the idiot King assuming they were an invasion party. Unlike the nobility, the military leaders would prefer to avoid an unnecessary war unless the Shield Hero wanted otherwise. Frankly, the Shield Hero requesting assistance with the Waves was the only reason they approved this operation in the first place.

As they came up over the hill, they spotted an isolated town in the distance.

“We’ll need to go around. We can’t risk being spotted even at a distance.” Myuri spoke, her frustration mounting.

“C-Commander!” A soldier spoke up. She was a young dolphin Demi-Human, a fresh face in Siltvelt’s military. “It wouldn’t do to get angry in this situation! We must remain focused.” The girl, named Unya, had only joined a couple of months ago, but she had one trait that certainly made her stand out.

She had been born with empathetic abilities, allowing her to sense the emotions of others, and even residual emotions and memories left behind in areas and on objects. It had been such a fascinating topic for Siltvelt’s researchers.

Myuri took a deep breath to compose herself.

“You’re right Lieutenant. Thank you.”

“Commander!” A rabbit Demi-Human called as he pointed toward the village. Myuri turned just in time to see a large rift beginning to open above the village.

“Looks like we won’t need to worry about finding the Shield Hero after all.” Myuri mused.

X

Izuku grunted as he and his party appeared near the village, looking around, he noticed a massive floating ship appear out of the Wave Rift.

“Protect the Villagers, get them to safety! Their lives are the priority!” Izuku ordered. The soldiers did as told as they immediately moved towards the village to gather the panicking civilians. Izuku turned his attention toward the Ghost Ship, where he saw Motoyasu and Ren’s parties already rushing to board with a second thought for the village.

“I’ll make sure they don’t fuck this up.” Itsuki assured.

“Right, be careful. The Waves are supposed to get stronger and stronger.” Izuku mused as he turned to aid the village. “Come on.” Raphtalia and Filo rushed alongside him as they made their way into the chaos. To his surprise, he noted a group of Demi-Human soldiers making their way toward town.

“Those are Siltvelt soldiers.” Raphtalia spoke up.

“Shield Hero! We’re here to support you!”

“Womp womp!” A half orca, half cat Demi-Human cheered from the back.

“Right, thanks. The other three Heroes are dealing with the Boss, so we need to prioritize the civilians.”

“Right. You heard him!” Myuri commanded.

Izuku sighed. With this much manpower, they would definitely be able to protect that villagers while the other three took care of the Boss.

It was going to be okay.

2 HOURS LATER:

It was most certainly NOT okay.”

Two hours.

The wave had been going on for two. Fucking. Hours.

During that time, despite their best efforts, the Shield Hero and his allies grew more and more exhausted, allowing some monsters were able to slip through, resulting in deaths of at least ten villagers.

To say Izuku was pissed would be an understatement.

“WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU IDIOTS DOING!!??” Izuku practically roared as he, Filo, and Raphtalia launched themselves onto the ghost ship.

“Begone you useless Shield!” Malty snapped. “We don’t need the likes of you-“

“Shut your fucking mouth you syphilis riddled, donkey deep throating whore!”

Malty actually had the audacity to look offended.

Now I know what you readers are probably thinking: ‘But Mr. Author! Izuku would never say something like that! It’s wildly out of character!’

And you’re correct. It IS out of character. But consider this: Melromarc fucking sucks. I mean, the place is riddled with fanatics, worships a horrifically corrupt church, and has people like Malty in a position of power.

Even the most kind and patient person has their limits, and spending several months in this hellhole has worn Izuku’s patience very, very thin.

Now, back to the story:

Izuku looked around as Ren and Motoyasu bickered about which boss they needed to kill. He spotted Rishia tending to an unconscious Itsuki.

That explained why Izuku hadn’t heard from him.

“What happened?”

“She happened.” Aldwin jabbed a finger in Malty’s direction.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about! It was an accident!”

Izuku could let Filo kick her later. They needed to focus on the Wave. He scanned the area. According to Valden, the supposed Bosses kept respawning every time they were killed. That told Izuku that they were merely Sub Bosses. Distractions.

The real Boss had to be nearby.

Lo and behold, a small shift in the air caught Izuku’s attention.

“There!”

With his Shield’s aid, the Boss appeared.

INTER-DIMENSIONAL SOUL EATER.

Well… Definitely a name to dread.

Motoyasu and Ren launched their attacks at the giant ghostly fish creature, only to realize that it wasn’t taking damage.

At least until Filo struck it with wind magic, that’s when Izuku put two and two together.

‘It’s immune to physical attacks. We have to use magic- They’re not listening.” Izuku groused as Ren and Motoyasu continued their pointless assault.

And he didn’t trust Malty so…

ROPE SHIELD.

The enchanted ropes tightened around the monster as Izuku struggled against it.

“Go! Now!”

“Ying Yang Blade!”

“Zweite Tornado!”

The Soul Eater reeled back in pain as the two attacks connected.

“Right.” Izuku mused as he began to prep a support spell. “Decipher the laws of-“

It was a mere gut instinct, but Izuku managed to turn his shield just in time to block the fireball aimed at his head.

He peered over the Shield, glaring at the smug looking Malty who was trying to look innocent.

THWACK

The red head’s eyes rolled back as she collapsed, revealing a frustrated looking Itsuki.

“Whoops. Sorry. It was an accident.” The Bow Hero drawled sarcastically. Thankfully, Motoyasu was STILL busy bickering with Ren to notice. Itsuki gave a nod to Izuku, who went ahead with his spell. Raphtalia and Filo took their places as their magic was boosted, Raphtalia charging a light spell and a dark spell while Filo prepped a Drifa Tornado.

The Soul Eater shook off the earlier beating when-

“TWILIGHT STORM!!” Filo and Raphtalia shouted in unison as the otherworldly abomination was engulfed in a powerful tornado that had been infused with light and dark magic.

“Shield Prison!” Izuku cried as the Soul Eater and the tornado it was caught in were engulfed in a giant sphere, the monster’s agonizing shrieks echoing through the air as it was ripped apart, until it finally came to and end, the Shield Prison dissipating as the monster’s unmoving form dropped to the ship below.

There was silence as the monsters finally stopped pouring in.

“All right!” Motoyasu said brightly as he made his way up to the corpse…

Only to stumble back in shock when Raphtalia held her sword to his throat.

“Back off. You two barely contributed anything to this fight other than dragging the wave on for several hours!” Raphtalia snapped bitterly.

While Ren and Motoyasu tried to argue, Izuku was already carving pieces off of the Soul Eater, having realized that the Cardinal Weapons’ restrictions on other weapons boiled down to intent when he realized that technically pretty much anything could be used as a weapon.

Basically, he was free to use a knife to cut up monster carcasses as long as he had no intention of actually using the knife as a weapon.

He was quite pleased to have found that loophole.

SOUL EATER SHIELD UNLOCKED.

He stored some other parts into his Shield for later when Filo tugged at his sleeve.

“Daddy?”

“Yes Filo?”

“The big portal isn’t closing.”

Izuku’s head snapped up toward the Rift, where not only was it still open, something appeared to be coming out of it.

An eerily pale, red eyed woman in a black kimono appeared, a pair of fan clutched in her hands as she stared at the people aboard the ghost ship, floating down in an almost ghostly fashion as she locked eyes on Izuku and Itsuki.

“Are you two Legendary Heroes of this world? I suppose everyone else must be your entourage.”

“H-hey! Hold on a minute!” Motoyasu cried.

“We’re Heroes too lady.” Ren said in his normal tone, though Izuku could detect a hint of anger.

The woman raised her eyebrow, the look on her face conveying that she sincerely doubted REN’s words.

“No, you two can’t be Heroes. I can sense that you’re far weaker than these two, and you’re far too childish. Ah! You.”

Raphtalia looked around before pointing to herself.

“Yes, you. You are another Hero of this world, yes?”

“Quit underestimating us!” Motoyasu shouted

“Who are you and what do you want?” Izuku called, not lowering his guard for a second.

The woman turned her gaze to him.

“My name is Glass. And I’m here to kill you Heroes.”

And then the ship exploded.

X

“Their numbers are dropping!” Myuri exclaimed. Indeed, the numbers of monsters were suddenly decreasing to the point there was only a couple of stragglers. “Lt. Lily! Go heal the injured!”

With a loud ‘Womp Womp!’ The half orca, half cat Demi-Human took off.

What did ‘Womp Womp’ even mean?

“You guys alright?” Ake asked as hevmoved towards them. “I wanted to thank you for the help.”

“We merely acted in service to the Shield Hero.” Myuri sighed. Ake nodded.

“Still, it would be nice if our countries could work together like this more. In the middle of the Waves and still at each other’s throats. Though I guess I can’t blame you guys for the King’s idiocy. The older folk speak of him as a wise and benevolent General but… I honestly don’t see it.”

“Commander!” Unya called. “The rift! It’s not closing!”

All heads snapped towards the ghost ship in time to see it explode.

X

“Hmm…” Glass mused as she stood amongst the burning wreckage. “Your reflexes and defenses are impressive.”

Izuku merely glared at the woman as his Shield Prison dissipated. He had managed to shield Raphtalia, Filo, and Itsuki just in time. However, the same couldn’t be said for everyone else, who were lying around the area, alive but injured.

“Perhaps… You might even give me a challenge.” Glass mused as she waved her fans. “No matter though. I came here with a purpose, and Inwill see it fulfilled.”

“METEOR SPEAR!!”

Motoyasu’s attack caught Glass head on, engulfing her in a massive explosion as the injured Spear Hero tried to catch his breath.

“Disappointing.”

Motoyasu tensed as the cloud of smoke dissipated, showing Glass completely unharmed.

“You have the audacity to falsely claim the title of Hero when this is the extent of your power?”

She swatted him across the face with her fan, sending Moyoyasu flying into a nearby cliff face as she turned to Izuku’s party. “Now then. Circle Dance Rupture Formation, Tortoise Shell Cracker.” An arrow of light erupted from her fan and struck Izuku’s shield, the boy grunting in pain as he was pushed back.

‘That… Hurt…’ He thought. ‘The attack ignored my defense completely.’

Now was as good a time as any to try out his new shield.

SOUL EATER SHIELD.

He changed shields just as another arrow struck. A ghostly fanged mouth similar to that of the Soul Eater erupted from the shield and snapped its jaws around Glass’ outstretched arm.

“Ngh!!” Glass recoiled in shock as she felt her SP bring drained. Then she was promptly caught off guard by a Filo Kick TM to the face.

“Enough!” Glass shouted as she regained her footing. “Circle Dance Attack Formation, Flower Wind!” She swiped her fan, sending out a flower of light that seemed to home in on Filo.

“Air Strike Shield!” A shield appeared in front of Filo, only for Glass’ attack to change trajectory at the last second and send Raphtalia flying.

“Filo, throw me!” Izuku commanded. The little Filolial complied, and Izuku found himself hurtling at the startled Glass. He raised his Soul Eater Shield above his head, bringing it down on Glass’s face. She stumbled back, startled, as Izuku swatted her in the face again, repeating the process multiple times, each hit only doing one point of damage, but also draining her SP, which seemed to be tiring her out for some reason.

“ENOUGH!!” Glass shrieked as she slammed her foot into Izuku’s sternum, knocking him to the ground. “Circle Dance of Nothingness, Moon Break!”

An innumerable number of blades erupted from seemingly thin air, ready to eviscerate the group.

“Bomb Arrow!” A massive explosion scattered the blades as Izuku stumbled to his feet.

“Tell me you absorbed some of that Soul Eater before she blew up its corpse.” Izuku panted.

“No, why?” Itsuki asked.

“She seems susceptible to moves that drain the target’s SP.” Izuku noted.

“You really noticed that?” Itsuki asked, impressed. Izuku grinned.

“My analytical skills are something I take pride in.”

“Hey dad!” They both snapped their heads to see Aldwin waving a piece of the Soul Eater’s body.

“Great job kid!” Itsuki praised, then looked mildly embarrassed upon doing so.

“No!” Glass shouted as she pointed her fan at the young Dragon.

“Filo! Kick!”

WHAM.

“…Ah…” Was all glass could say as she struggled not to drop her fans while Aldwin tossed the piece to Itsuki.

“Haha! Stupid Dragon owes Filo!” Filo taunted.

“What!? No I don’t you filthy bird!”

“Yeah you do cause Filo saved you! Stupid Dragon owes-“

“YOU WANNA GO FATTY!?”

Filo responded by spitting a weak glob of poison into the Dragon boy’s face. Aldwin recoiled, the poison not really hurting him since he had a high resistance to it but good god it tasted awful.

As Filo began to laugh, Glass took avoid her distraction.

“Circle Dance Cutting Formation, Instant!”

Filo cried out in pain as Glass suddenly appeared behind her and slashed her back.

“FILO!” Izuku cried, his rope Shield lashing out and tightening around Glass’ wrist, leaving her open to a Soul Eating Arrow by Itsuki as Izuku laced himself between the woman and the Filolial.

“I seem to have underestimated you…” Glass mused. “I figured you would be a challenge, but not to this extent… It’s frustrating, but I won’t lose here. Not when I have too much at stake!”

“What are you talking about? Why are you doing this? You at least owe use that!” Izuku demanded. Glass seemed to ponder for a moment.

“Very well, I’ll tell you. It will not make much difference. You see, I come from another world. Like this world, my home world is also besieged by Waves of Catastrophe. My world also has its own Legendary and Vassal Weapons. I am the wielder of the Vassal Fan weapon. However, unlike your world, where the Legendary Heroes are at least making an effort, the Legendary Heroes of my world are ignorant idiots who do little more than bicker and squabble, with the exception of the Hunting Hero, but she has gone missing.”

For a brief moment, there was a flash of sorrow on Glass’ face before it was replaced by her usual stoic demeanor.

“Because of this, my world has been pushed to the brink of destruction. In desperation I researched ancient text in the Kingdom of the Vassal Scyth Hero. I discovered the shocking truth of the Waves. They are in fact a phenomena that signals the merging of multiple worlds. It also showed me a way to extend the life of my own world. By making my way to the world on the other side of the waves and killing the Legendary Heroes there to ensure its destruction. For the sake of my world, you all must die.”

There was silence, only pierced by the crackling fires as everyone processed this information.

“That’s… That’s not…” Izuku tried to say.

“What the hell…” Was all Itsuki could say.

“There’s gotta be another way!” Izuku shouted. “There’s gotta be another way that doesn’t involve killing off an entire world! Is that something you really want on your conscience!?”

“It is a necessary evil I’m afraid. I don’t expect you to understand.”

“What about the people!? Yes there are lots of bad people, but there are just as many good ones too! Are you really okay with murdering them like that!?”

Glass sighed.

“I will do what I have to to protect my world. That is my duty as a Hero.”

Izuku felt a spike of anger as he heard the woman’s words, locking eyes with her with an unbreakable determination.

“Anyone… Who’d sacrifice innocent lives for their own ends… HAS NO RIGHT TO CALL THEMSELVES A HERO!!”

And for a brief second, Glass faltered.

HERO’S WILL SHIELD UNLOCKED.

As if on autopilot, Izuku’s Shield transformed, and before Glass could react, an arrow made of magical energy had ripped through her abdomen as she and Izuku both collapsed.

“IZUKU-SAMA!” Raphtalia cried as she ran up to help him while Rishia was tending to Filo.

“Damn…” Izuku grunted. “That Shield… It dealt damage based on my highest stat… But it drained 99% of my health.”

“Ngh!!” Glass stumbled to her feet, clutching her abdomen in agony.

“She survived that!?” Itsuki questioned.

“You… Y-you!” For the briefest of seconds, Glass’ fans were covered in dark red flames…

Said flames suddenly died as everyone’s heads snapped toward the rift.

Green sparks of electricity covered the rift, before the whole thing suddenly turned green as a small, humanoid form fell to the ground.

That was all the warning the got before a massive swarm of dark energy tendrils erupted violently from the form.

“What now!?” Glass demanded, before a stray tendril swatted her into a nearby building with incredible force.

“Shit! Get to cover!” Itsuki shouted as he dodged a stray tendril. Raphtalia managed to help Izuku behind a rock with the rest of them.

“What kind of magic is this!?” Itsuki grit his teeth.

“No… This isn’t magic…” Izuku managed to get out. “I… I think it’s a Quirk…”

“A Quirk… One of those powers from your world…!?” Itsuki asked in shock.

“I don’t think… They’re malicious…” Izuku muttered. “These tendrils… These black whips… They’re behaving too erratically. It’s said that some Quirks can go out of control if their user experiences extreme emotions. But I don’t know if they’re angry or…” He was cut off as one of the tendrils cleaved the rock into pieces. Izuku was flung back, landing painfully on his back. He looked up just in time to see a stray tendril heading his way…

A shape moved in front of him, followed by a yelp as Izuku’s face was sprayed with blood. He managed to push himself up in shock. Laying near him was the Dolphin Demi-Human he had seen with the group of Siltvelt Soldiers.

There was a massive gash across her torso, one that was bleeding really badly and would likely be fatal if she didn’t receive medical attention soon.

“Here, drink this!” Izuku panicked as he poured a healing potion into her mouth. (Though he did take a quick swig for himself to get his health back to a manageable level and keep him from dropping here.)

“S-Shield Hero…” Unya coughed. “I can sense… Her emotions… I can feel despair, regret, distress… She wants to die…” Izuku stood, gritting his teeth as he looked at the mass of energy tendrils.

He spotted movement out of the corner of his eyes.

“Filo!” Izuku ran over, tipping the rest of the potion into her mouth to help with her wounds. “Can you run?”

“Filo is good to go!” The Filolial chirped brightly, though Izuku noticed her wince every time she moved.

They would have to deal with it later.

“I need you to get me closer. Can you do that?”

In response, Filo transformed into her bird form. Izuku climbed onto her back, careful to avoid her wounds as the Filolial bolted towards the center of the energy tendrils. The two of them were nicked more than a few times, and one tendril would have impaled Filo’s shoulder if Izuku hadn’t acted.

Eventually, they managed to get close enough to see the source of the tendrils.

“Wait… That’s…” Izuku mused.

A little girl with long, black hair, wearing a blue dress and curled up into a ball. The tendrils of energy were spewing from her arms while a single, small horn on her forehead spewed a different, green energy.

‘That’s the girl I saw in my dream the other night. That’s Eri…’ Izuku thought. ‘If the theory is true that dreams are windows to other realities… Does this mean… She came here from another universe!?’

“Throw me!” Izuku commanded, and Filo obliged, hurling him through the air. ‘I need to calm her down!’

A tendril pierced his leg, but he managed to grab onto the girl and hold tight…

She was crying, shaking, and muttering to herself under her breath…

“I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry…”

“Hey! Can you hear me?” Izuku asked as he held the girl tightly. “It’s okay. Everything’s going to be okay! You just need to calm down.”

“NO!” Izuku grunted as even more tendrils burst from her body, one tearing through his shoulder.

“I… I did horrible things… I hurt too many people… I…”

“I forgive you.” Izuku said. He wasn’t sure WHAT exactly he was forgiving her for. He wasn’t sure he WANTED to know. But he felt like she needed to hear it. “No matter how bad the things you’ve done, I forgive you Eri.” He held her close even as the tendrils nicked him. After a few painfully long moments, the tendrils froze, before retreating back into the girl’s body. At the same time, the energy flaring from her horn began to recede, and Izuku felt a previously unnoticed pressure recede from his body.

The trembling girl moved as if in a daze, looking to Izuku as if she had just woken up from a deep dream.

Then she snapped back to clarity, her eyes taking on a look of terror as she suddenly scrambled away from Izuku.

“DON’T LOOK AT ME!!” She sobbed.

“Wait-“ She had disappeared in a flash of green light, leaving Izuku alone as the rift above them closed.

Izuku just sighed as he wearily stood up, stumbling a bit from sheer exhaustion before a small figure steadied him.

“Thanks Filo.” He sighed as the little Filolial helped him back to the others.

X

She could tell her potential successor was quite strong even without the boosts the Queen would have given her.

The problem was the Cardinal Heroes.

The Shield and Bow Heroes were definitely the stronger and more competent of the four, she would admit. Yet once again the Heroes were pretty much at each other’s throats, actively antagonizing one another.

On top of that, her successor was being held back by the Shield Hero himself. His tendency to treat her as his own child stunting her mental growth and causing her to behave in an immature, childish manner.

She would observe for a bit longer, but if there were no signs of change, she would have to intervene.

If necessary, she would have to take the Successor back with her. Whether or not the Shield Hero agreed was irrelevant. She was already considering killing this batch off anyway if they didn’t cease their petty squabbles.

X

“How is she?” Izuku asked as they walked up to the group. Myuri was tending to Unya.

“You managed to buy her time Shield Hero. She still needs immediate attention.” The Demi-Human Commander spoke gravely.

It was then that Ake ran up.

“A battalion of soldiers are coming in from the north.” He panted.

“Took them long enough. The fights’s been going on for two hours.” Itsuki scoffed.

“That’s not the problem.” Ake shook his head. “If they see Siltvelt Soldiers here… Shield Hero, there are quite a few soldier who are displeased that the First Princess has taken charge.”

“Because she’s cracking down on stuff that Aultcray let them get away with.” Izuku concluded bitterly.

“She’s in no condition to be moved!” Myuri spoke up.

Izuku thought for a second.

“Ake, do you know if any of the civilians who were killed were Slave owners?”

“Er, yes? One or two I think.”

Izuku promptly began pulling off Unya’s armor.

“Shield Hero!?”

“We can pass her off as a slave whose master was killed. The rest of you need to move.”

“I’m not abandoning my own troops!”

“You’re not. There’s a mining town south of here. Meet us there a week from now and we can return her.”

“But-“

“Go, now. That’s an order from your god.” Izuku said in frustration that her stubbornness made him say that.

“Ooh! He’s got you there.” Lieutenant Lily spoke up.

Against her better judgement, Myuri took the rest of her soldiers and left as Izuku tended to Unya.

X

“Unbelievable! Who does that useless Shielder think he is!?”

“…”

“Motoyasu-Sama, are you listening?”

“Let’s go Myne.” Motayasu spoke quietly, his voice just drained of energy and sounding defeated as he walked away.

“What!? Motoyasu-Sama!”

X

Glass was panicking. Absolutely nothing had gone right. First, the Heroes put up a much bigger fight than she expected. That wasn’t much of a problem. She could adapt despite how stubborn they were.

But now, thanks to that energy tendril thing, she was trapped in this foreign world.

She had managed to limp away in the confusion, unable to reach the rift before it closed and stranded her here.

She managed to take shelter in a nearby cave where she attempted to tend to her wounds, all while her mind kept wandering to the Shield Hero.

The boy was naive. As far as she knew there was no other way to save her world. Kizuna was missing and the other Legendary Heroes were too incompetent.

She sat, stewing in her anger as she tended her wounds, a small burst of crimson flames coming from her fans.

One thing did catch her curiosity though.

She could have sworn she heard the Shield Hero yell something about Quirks.

‘If he knows about Quirks… Does that mean he and Kizuna come from the same world?’

X

MEANWHILE: IN IZUKU’S WORLD:

“H-hey! Aren’t you on a diet?”

“This IS my diet!” Nazuna Hiwatashi grinned mischievously as she popped the Macaron she had snatched into her mouth.

“You’re impossible.” Michiru Kagemori rolled her eyes as the two nine year old girls laughed.

You’re probably wondering what was so special about these two. The truth is, these two nine year olds were among the 20% to not have a power to call their own.

Not that it bothered them much. They were the best of friends after all. Maybe they didn’t have Quirks, but they still had good lives.

Unfortunately, all good things must come to and end and I need to set up a future plot point so…

As the two nine year olds walked through the park giggling and bantering, their peace lives were shattered when Nazuna was grabbed from behind.

“Nazuna-!” Michiru managed to yell out before she two was grabbed. The two struggling children were dragged into a nearby van where their struggles ceased as chloroform soaked rags were pressed to their faces.

And thus, the two children, who were loved dearly by their families were dragged off into a metaphorical hell.

Chapter Text

“Yeah, I can’t fix that.” Izuku said as he stared at the massive scar that made up All Might’s left side:

“There’s nothing you can do? Not even with magic?” All Might asked. Though he didn’t sound disappointed or surprised, just resigned.

“The most I would be able to do is heal the scar and MAYBE extend your time limit a bit. The problem is your stomach and lung. I can’t fix what isn’t there.”

“Understandable.” All Might sighed.

“Have you considered prosthetic organs or transplants?”

“I’ve tried it actually… My body just… rejected them.” More like they didn’t mesh well with One For All.

“Either way All Might, I might as well get this out there. It’s really your own fault your body has deteriorated so fast.” Izuku replied bluntly as he scanned All Might.

“…Huh?” The Symbol of Peace was taken aback.

“You said it was a villain that caused your injury in the first place, but you were the one who exacerbated the problem. You didn’t give your body any time to rest and recover afterwards and just jumped straight back into the Hero Work. Even I end up taking some R&R after I overdo it… Mostly cause Raphtalia’s scary when she’s angry.”

Raphtalia pat his head.

“I understand where you’re coming from, but as the Symbol Of Peace I can’t just stand by and do nothing.” All Might rebuked.

“All Might, you are the SOLE pillar holding society together. What do you think’s gonna happen if you suddenly die? Panic, chaos, villain uprisings. I understand that you wanna help people. The problem is that you did TOO good of a job with it. I can buy you maybe another couple of hours with your power, but at the rate you’re going, you’re still not gonna last more than a couple of years at most, and you haven’t even ATTEMPTED to prepare society for your inevitable retirement.”

Izuku stood.

“As far as they’re concerned, you’re the invincible Symbol Of Peace. Do you know how much damage it’s going to cause if your body suddenly gives out in the middle of a fight and you’re left vulnerable to whatever cruelties the villains wanna inflict? Did you stop to think about ANY of that at all?”

Izuku quietly pulled out a slip of paper and put it on the table.

“You’re training Hagakure, right? If you wanna tell her about our powers, have her sign that and return it to me. If I know about One For All then it’s only fair.” He turned to Raphtalia. “Come on, let’s go find Filo. She’s probably traumatized Lunch Rush enough.”

As they walked out of the room, All Might was left in silence.

“He’s right you know.” Nedzu sighed as he walked around the table. “Blunt, but he’s right. We’ve been trying to drill it into your head for years but you are honestly one of the most stubborn men I’ve ever met, right behind Nighteye and Aizawa. You’re willingness to always help those in need is one of your most admirable traits Yagi, but you never stop to consider the long term. Even if Midoriya manages to restore some of your time limit, you’ve been burning through those embers like Aizawa does those jelly packets. And even if you hadn’t already given the Quirk to young Hagakure, Chio has kept me informed of your check ups. There will come a time when your body simply won’t be able to handle the strain you put on it anymore, Quirk or no Quirk. You must face reality All Might. The Symbol of Peace’s time is rapidly approaching its end, and you have done nothing to prepare the world for that day.”

Nedzu’s phone rang.

“Ah! Tsukauchi! What can I do for you? … Yes… Of course but… Oh dear…”

The mammal of indeterminate origin hung up as he turned to All Might.

“It would seem that Ms. Shimura may have been right about Shigaraki being her younger brother. The DNA testing on that hand has finished, and it was found to have belonged to Kotaro Shimura, Nana Shimura’s son.”

X

Filo munched happily on the quesadilla she had gotten from a throughly traumatized Lunch Rush as the group moved towards the exit. Everything seemed peaceful when-

“There you are Deku.” Bakugo snarled as he stood in the trio’s way. “First you pull out of that sucky ass school only to show up here with some bullshit power up!? You owe me some answers you little-“

Izuku and company promptly walked past Bakugo, completely ignoring his existence as the continued to chat.

Bakugo blinked as he registered what had just happened.

“Deku!!” He snarled, hands crackling with explosions. “Don’t fucking ignore me!”

Izuku fucking ignored him.

“Hey! I’m talking to you!” Bakugo threw out an explosion-

CLANG

The explosion bounced off of Izuku’s Shield, the green haired boy not even bothering to look at Bakugo as the Shield transformed and fired a multitude of needles into Bakugo’s skin.

“Ngh.” The Yappy Pom Pom Douche could do nothing as his entire body suddenly went numb, collapsing to the floor as he found himself unable to move.

Before he could walk out of the door, Izuku stopped and finally turned his attention to Bakugo.

“If I see you at my apartment, I’m calling the police.” And with that, they left, as Bakugo was left to stew in his anger and wonder what the fuck had just happened.

X

School had been let out for the next few days while the U.A. staff updated the school’s security (Again).

It wasn’t all bad, it gave Izuku time to play with Filo.

Soon, the weekend had come and Inko was preparing dinner for the friends Raphtalia had invited over.

She had insisted she be the one doing the cooking tonight since she wanted to make a good impression.

“You don’t know how exciting it is for my baby to make friends!” Inko gushed as she prepared pork curry.

“Mom, I have friends. Itsuki and Yunyun are pretty much my best friends. It’s just they all live in different worlds.” Izuku groaned.

“Friends that I can actually MEET Izuku.”

So far they were expecting Yanagi, Tetsutetsu, who apparently latched onto Izuku because he thought he was ‘Manly’, and Hagakure, who was bringing Ashido and someone else she wanted Izuku to meet. On top of that, Filo was having her new friends Kaede and Risa over, do they were expecting at least seven guests.

After helping Raphtalia set the table (Filo was no longer allowed to do so after the cheesecake incident.), they sat and waited for their guests.

After about another ten minutes, the doorbell rang, and Izuku opened it to find Hagakure, Ashido, and a nervous looking boy with blond hair with a black streak.

“Hey, sorry, were you waiting long?” Hagakure asked.

“You’re actually the first ones here.” Izuku said with a shrug, turning to look at the blond boy.

“Oh, yeah, this is Denki Kaminari. He could really use your help.”

“That so?” Izuku asked, letting them in as Ashido bolted towards Filo.

“Well aren’t you a cutie? What’s your name sweetie?”

“Filo is Filo Midoriya!” Filo cheered.

“Oh my gosh she’s so adorable and- What is that?” Ashido pointed to Raph-Chan in confusion.

“It’s Raph-Chan.” Izuku stated.

“Rafu!”

“Okay… But what exactly IS Raph-Chan?”

“Raph-Chan is Raph-Chan.” Izuku answered.

“Rafu!”

“O…Kay?”

Izuku turned to Kaminari.

“Now, what was it you needed?”

“I… Well… Hagakure said you were really good at analysis… So…

“Yes…?”

“Look man, my Quirk is pretty strong, but it’s got some pretty big drawbacks and… I know Hagakure said he can’t expel us, but I know Aizawa’s been giving me the stink eye lately, and most of the class is pretty much every man for himself and those that did wanna help don’t know how to do so and…”

“…Alright, sure. We can discuss your Quirk while we wait.”

“H-huh!? Seriously!?”

“Let me just grab my notebook.”

X

“Frankly I really didn’t want to call you in like this, but she absolutely refuses to tell us anything.” Tsukauchi sighed as he and All Might walked toward a certain hospital room meant for detaining villains. The room had a specialized lock that would release an electric shock to anyone who tried to open it without the key. It was honestly the best way to contain someone with a time stopping Quirk who also happened to have heart problems.

“It’s fine. What do we know about the girl?”

“Homura Akemi. Age 13. Second year student at Mitakihara Junior High. Her mother died in childbirth and her father took his own life a few years after. Legally she’s under the care of St. Julianna’s Home for Girls, however, they’ve recently allowed her to live independently in an apartment closer to her school. She also has a massive inheritance from her parents.”

“Have you spoken to her home yet?”

“Yes. They’re very concerned about her, but they’ve also told me some interesting things.”

“Such as?”

“Apparently she used to be a really quiet and withdrawn girl, but she suddenly underwent a massive personality shift after waking up from a recent heart surgery that was meant to stabilize her enough to attend school. She apparently also woke up from the surgery in a state of delirium, going on about having lost something called a ‘Soul Gem’ and talking about ‘Incubators’, and someone named Kyubey, whatever all that’s supposed to mean. To anyone else it would sound like nonsense from a girl coming down from anesthetics. But after hearing Midoriya’s story…”

“You think she may be like him?”

“I don’t know for sure. Her circumstances are different.”

With a quiet nod, All Might entered the room.

“Hello there young lady! I am here!”

“Don’t care.” All Might coughed at the girl’s bluntness.

“Yes, well…”

“I already told you I’m not going to say anything. That man threatened someone very dear to me. Normally I would deal with him myself but my powers aren’t behaving entirely as they should. I’m still trying to get used to it.”

“That man… You mean All For One, don’t you?”

“…”

“He murdered my mentor, someone who was like a mother to me. Believe me, I know just how dangerous he is.” All Might explained, subconsciously clutching his side. “I put every ounce of power into making sure he was dead. I burst his head like a water balloon, and he still returned. I also know that he can be inhumanly petty when he wants to be. On top of that, that Shigaraki character was nothing short of an immature manchild. Do you honestly think that keeping quiet is going to stop them from targeting that person out of spite? I can promise you, they will be safe at U.A.. Even if All For One is still alive, he’ll still likely be weakened by the damage I wrought to his body. We need you to trust us.”

“…”

X

“Wait, it fries your brain!?” Izuku asked in concern.

“Well, yeah, it puts me out of commission for a good ten or so minutes, but-“

“That isn’t the issue! Constantly frying your brain like that is likely to cause serious damage!”

“What do you mean by that?” Kaminari asked in worry.

“Okay, look, I got the information I need. I can draw up some plan for you to take to the Support Department for proper gear to minimize the backlash and allow you to aim your Quirk properly, but when we get back to school, you need to go to Recovery Girl and ask for an MRI of your brain.”

“A what?”

“It’s kind of like an X-Ray of sorts, but a lot more detailed and can even scan organs.”

“Okay… I’ll do that I guess…”

By that point, the rest had arrived and dinner was almost ready. Filo was playing with her friends while Hagakure, Ashido, and Tetsutetsu were chatting.

Overall, it was a nice night, and everyone even managed to get a glimpse of a rare smile from Izuku at one point, and Kaede and Izuku ended showing off some of their powers to each other.

Kaede and Risa were also pleased to know that Filo was almost caught up with her online schooling and would soon be able to attend regular school if she wished.

Everyone had fun that night, not expecting what the future would plan for them.

X

The little girl sat curled up outside the hospital. She was cold, and there was a bruise on her cheek where her mother had slapped her.

(She told the concerned doctors she had tripped and fell.)

She still remembered mother’s harsh words that every bad thing that had happened to her, from the girl’s father leaving to mother getting really sick, was because the little girl was born.

Maybe mother was right?

The little girl paused as a pleasant scent hit her nose.

Cheesecake?

“Here, you look like you could use something sweet.” The kindly look of the pink haired girl caught the girl off guard.

Still, CHEESECAKE!

“Why don’t you tell me what’s bothering you? It might help to get it off your chest.” The pink haired girl spoke softly.

The white haired girl was silent for a second.

“Why does mother hate me? Is it because my Meta Ability is so weak?”

The pink haired girl hummed thoughtfully.

“That’s a difficult question to answer. It’s hard to understand what others are truly thinking. Maybe it really is for the reason you said, maybe your mother had something bad happen to her and she’s taking it out on you. We can never know for sure.”

“… My Meta Ability allows me blow bubbles, but they are just regular bubbles.”

“I think that’s a wonderful Quirk!” The pink haired girl said brightly. “You should be proud of that power, regardless of what others say.”

“…What is your power?”

“Hm? My power? I’m still getting used to it I’m afraid.” The pink haired girl mused. The white haired girl nodded.

After a few minutes, a police car pulled up.

“Ah! They’re here for me I think!” The pink haired girl mused as she stood.

“Will I see you again?” The white haired girl asked.

“Of course! There’s an important question I want to ask you, but now’s not the time for it. Until next time Nagisa-Chan!” With that, the pink haired girl walked off as Nagisa Momoe blinked in confusion.

“Did I tell her my name?” She asked herself as she finally bit into the cheesecake.

It was the best cheesecake ever!

X

“Madoka Kaname-San?” The cat headed officer spoke up. “I’m Officer Sansa. I need you to come with me. We have reason to believe you and your family are in danger of being targeted by a dangerous Villain.”

‘Ah, the Heroes must have gotten through to Homura-Chan then.’ Madoka thought, a serene smile on her face.

It honestly unnerved Sansa a little.

“Erm, well, we’ve already retrieved your parents and younger brother. The Villain in question is known to be very childish and petty, so if you can think of anyone he might attack by proxy, please let us know.”

Sayaka would definitely be upset, Hitomi would be worried, but they would come around.

X

It was a couple of days later that the students were able to return to school. Izuku was at his desk writing in his notebook when he heard footsteps. He sighed.

“Do you need something Shiozaki?” He asked, not looking up.

“I… I have not done anything personal to you, I will stand by that, but I also understand that you have had a very poor experience with religion. If you would give me the chance to prove myself-“

“Then do it.” Ibara choked on her words.

“Eh!?”

“As far as I’m concerned, your words are meaningless and empty. Actions speak louder, so I want you to prove you’re someone I can trust.”

“I…”

Izuku glanced at the clock.

“To your seats! Bell rings in one minute!” Everyone jolted and clamored to their seats. While Raphtalia gave Izuku a look.

About half a minute after the bell, the door opened, and Hana Shimura walked in, looking as if she hadn’t slept.

“Sensei-?” Shishida spoke up.

“I’m fine.” Hanako interrupted as she made her way to the podium. She composed herself with a sigh. “As you may already be aware, last week there was a an attack on a U.A. Facility. One student and two teachers were severely injured. Thankfully, no lives were taken. I ask that you please show your sister class some basic decency for their traumatic incident.” She sighed. “Onto other news. The Sports Festival will be happening soon.”

There was an uproar.

“Sensei, is it a good idea to hold the Sports Festival so soon after our security was breached?” Kendo asked.

“The Sports Festival is how our students are able to form connections and gain mentors outside of school. It was decided it wouldn’t be fair to deprive you of this opportunity. If you’re worried about the Villains attacking, security will be beefed up significantly compared to the previous years.” She sighed. “Frankly, even I feel this is too lax, but the Commission was throwing a fit…” She rubbed her temples, muttering about ‘Idiots in the Government.’

“That’s all for now. You have the rest of homeroom to yourselves.” Hanako mused as she sat at her desk.

And so, the school day continued on as normal up until lunch.

“Jeez! Can you believe this!?” Tetsutetsu spoke up, holding out his phone.

Apparently, some of the students from 1-A had let the fact that they had survived a Villain attack in their first week of school go to their heads and were bragging about the ordeal online.

“Just ignore them man.” Awase spoke up. “Let them dig their own grave.”

“I can’t just ignore them! I’m going over there and I’m gonna declare war, they wanna- AH!”

Izuku had grabbed his collar.

“Don’t bother. If anything it’ll just make you a target.”

“But-“

“Actions speak louder than words Tetsutetsu. Instead of focusing on wordplay, you should focus on training so you can beat them in the Sports Festival.”

“Yeah… Yeah you’re right! Thanks Midobro!”

“Besides.” Izuku sighed. “Some of them might actually enjoy being called out like that.”

X

“Well well! What have we here?” Neito Monoma cackled as he took in the crowd that had formed outside 1-A’s door. “Have you all come to bask in our glorious aura? Yes! We’re the ones who surged the villain attack on the USJ!”

“Are all of 1-A arrogant douchbags?” A purple haired boy sneered as he pushed himself to the front of the crowd. “I don’t know if you heard, but a lot of us Gen Ed students tried out for the Hero Course but didn’t make the cut. But guess what, we may get the chance to transfer if we do well enough in the Sports Festival. Naturally, this means that one or more of you will have to transfer out. So you might as well consider this a declaration of war-“

“Oh shut the fuck up will you eyebags!” Bakugo sneered as he shoved the boy away. “If you’re too weak to get in through the Entrance Exam then you’re too fucking weak to be in here period. Take a good look fuckers. THIS is what a future Pro looks like. I’m gonna win the Sports Festival and I’ll enjoy beating you all so bad you’ll need several sessions with the old hag! You got that!? It’s not a promise! It’s fact!”

“Dude! Bakugo! You can’t go saying stuff like that!” Mina called out.

“It was pretty manly if you ask me-“ Kirishima spoke up.

“It was NOT ‘manly’!” Mina snapped. “Now everyone’s gonna hate us!”

Indeed, all the students were staring at 1-A with a mixture of hatred and disgust.

There was a bit of shuffling as a girl with white hair and purple eyes, as well as fox ears and a tail, pushed herself to the front.

“Now let’s all calm down.” She supplied gently. “It’s no use all of us being at each other’s throats. Let’s all take a moment to-“

“Zip it discount idol bitch.” Uraraka spoke up as she rudely shoved past.

And just like that, the fox girl’s whole mood did a 180.

“HAH!? DA FUCK DID YOU CALL ME YOU ROUND CHEEKED BITCH!? GET BACK HERE! I’LL RIP YOUR FUCKING HEAD OFF AND SHOVE IT DOWN YOUR *BLEEP*!!!”

“Tenma! Calm down!” A blonde girl with small bunny ears called out as she tried to restrain her friend.

“LET GO PIPPA!! I’MA *BLEEP* *BLEEP* *BLEEP* HER *BLEEP* SO BAD THAT *BLEEP* *BLEEP* AND *BLEEP* *BLEEP* *BLEEP* THAT HER GRANDKIDS WILL FEEL IT!! I’M A PERFECT IDOL!!! YOU HEAR ME YOU *BLEEP* I’LL FUCKING KILL YOU!!”

X

“Excuse me, Shiozaki-San?”

Ibara turned around in surprise. It was at the end of the school day and everyone was heading home, so it was a surprise to see Raphtalia by herself.

“Yes, Iwatani-San? Do you need something?”

Raphtalia looked apologetic.

“Izuku doesn’t hate you. He just has trust issues due to past experiences. Despite how coldly he acts towards you, he knows deep down you’re not a bad person and I think he really does want to be friends with you.”

“So… He wasn’t always like this?” Ibara asked cautiously.

Raphtalia gave a sad smile.

“There was… A girl we knew. Izuku saw her like the little sister he never had but… She’s not with us anymore, and he took it very badly.”

“I… I see. What do you suppose I should do then?”

“About the only thing you can do. Prove yourself.”

“I see. Thank you Iwatani-San.”

“Oh! Before I forget!” Raphtalia spoke up. “Izuku is putting together a training regime for the Sports Festival. Everyone in class is free to join. If you’re interested, just come to Gym Gamma after school tomorrow.”

“Very well, I’ll consider your offer.”

X

“Nedzu, this is rediculous.” Aizawa huffed from his bed. The man was covered in casts and bandages and was outright strapped to the hospital bed.

“Now Aizawa, this is for your own good.”

“I’m perfectly fine to teach.”

“You have 47 broken bones, some of which are centered around your skull.”

“I need to get back so I can file the damn paperwork to have Hagakure and Asui expelled.”

The room grew cold.

“I’m afraid I do not understand your logic Aizawa. After all, those two girls were just in a traumatic situation. Young Hagakure was nearly killed after Todoroki left her injured and alone out in the open while Young Asui is comatose after losing half her face.”

“That’s the point! Those two have proven themselves severe liabilities in a stressful situation.”

“They are STUDENTS Aizawa. First year students with barely a week of training under their belts. You cannot toss them into a situation and expect them to immediately know what to do. Something you seem to do quite a lot now that I think about it.” The Mammal of Indeterminate Origin’s fur bristled.

“Nedzu-“

“Shush.”

That one word shut Aizawa up instantly.

“If you recall, I have revoked your ability to expel students on a whim after you’ve shown yourself to increasingly abuse it, culminating in the expulsion on your ENTIRE CLASS last year.”

“They weren’t-“

“Quiet. Do not interrupt me again. From now on, every single one of your expulsions must be reviewed and approved by me. Do not even bother trying to file for the expulsion of those two students. It will only be a waste of paper and will end up in my shredder.”

“And what about Midoriya and Iwatani, huh!? Those two committed Vigilantism! They need to be expelled and thrown in Tartarus!”

“Midoriya and Iwatani are in Class 1-B. Therefore, whether or not they are deserving of expulsion is to be determined by Ms. Hana Shimura. You have no say in it, and we have all decided to the let them off with a warning, since their interference allowed the USJ to end on a better note than it would have otherwise.”

Aizawa grit his teeth.

“Now, if you are done complaining like a slighted toddler, you WILL remain in this hospital until cleared to leave by the medical staff. And I suggest you take this time to rethink your attitude and behavior, because right now I am calling your position at my school into question.”

With that, Nedzu left Aizawa to seeth.

X

“Tomura…” The agitated man slowly turned towards his misty companion.

They had been waiting in this house for hours for the family to come home, and with the loss of father’s hand, Shigaraki definitely had a shorter fuse than usual l.

“Garaki just called.” Kurogiri explained hesitantly. “The family and two other acquaintance families were taken into protective custody a couple of days ago.”

Enraged at having his time wasted like this, Tomura slammed his hand into the floor with an angry shout.

Neighbors watched in shock and horror as the house the Kaname family lived in for years violently collapsed.

Chapter Text

To say that Unya was confused when she woke up later that night would be an understatement. The dolphin Demi-Human was even more confused to see that she was wearing old, worn out clothes.

Then the Shield Hero explained the situation. She had been too injured to move, so they had swapped her clothing out to pass her off as a Slave whose master had been killed in the Wave, so as to fool a group of knights coming in.

The Shield Hero had promptly gotten into a short argument with the Knight Captain, who kicked up a fuss over the so called ‘Devil’ commanding his troops. The Captain was promptly shut down by the Shield Hero asking if he wanted to take up the matter with the acting Queen. After that, while the rest of the Heroes made to return to the Capital, with the Bow Hero promising to inform the acting Queen that the Shield Hero’s return would be delayed, the Shield Hero set his party up in an abandoned house as he worked on healing the young Demi-Human.

And so, here they were. Izuku had promised to bring her back to her squadron in a week. For now, he wanted to help with some of the restoration efforts. He told Unya to take it easy, as while her wounds were mostly healed she would still be out of commission for a few days.

They had no idea of what awaited them in the future.

X

“My Queen.”

“Report.” Mirellia sighed, exhausted from the negotiations she had just come from and hoping to soak in the bath for a bit.

“There was an incident shortly after the Shield Hero returned the Second Princess to the Capital. The Spear Hero assaulted the Shield Hero in the middle of a crowded market, causing hundreds of gold worth of damage and injuring several civilians in the process.”

She gripped her fan tighter.

“Do you know the Spear Hero’s reasoning?”

“His reasoning was the same as at the celebratory feast for the Second Wave. The Spear Hero intended to force the Shield Hero to release his slaves. The Shield Hero only acted in defense and made no attempt to fight back, likely to avoid collateral damage. The first Princess then arrived with a Royal Decree intended to force the two Heroes into a duel.”

AGAIN!? She was definitely going to tear her husband a new one.

Perhaps literally at this point.

“The Second Princess then revealed herself and voided the Royal Decree, before sending the Spear Hero to the dungeon for the next few days for his careless actions. The Shield Hero and his party took the opportunity to slip away.”

“Not good. That she had to reveal her connections to the Royal Family under such circumstances…”

“It doesn’t not appear to have affected the Shield Hero’s stance on the Second Princess at all, I daresey.” The Shadow mused. “The Shield Hero seems to acknowledge that the Second Princess is nothing like her father and sister. Indeed the two seem to have a strong bond.”

“Oh? Is it possible I could wed him to Melty down the line?” Mirellia asked, hopeful.

“Extremely unlikely and not recommended. Their bond seems closer to that of a brother and sister than potential future partners.”

Damn.

“Though his Filolial Queen on the other hand might be a different story if you’re looking to court the Second Princess to someone.”

Mirellia couldn’t tell if she was joking.

“Continue.”

“The Shield Hero’s party made their way to the Church, where they were denied access to the Dragon Hourglass by way of a Royal Decree.”

And now her idiot husband and Belmus were trying to keep the Shield Hero weak!? Knowing full well what would happen if even One Cardinal Hero died!?

When she got her hands on them-

“Fortunately, the Second Princess stepped in, reminded the Pope where the King stands in terms of authority, and forced the Church to comply. Afterwards she stepped in and took over as acting Queen to prevent any more of the King’s actions.”

“Good. That definitely helps with my blood pressure.” Mirellia snarked.

“Unfortunately it is not all good. The Second Princess has been cracking down on Knights who were allowed to committed heinous actions under the King’s authority, and these Knight are not appreciative of it.”

“Make sure they don’t try anything. Now, tell me about the Wave.”

“The Wave had started out good enough. A group of Melromarc soldiers led by a young man named Ake had allied themselves with the Shield Hero, as well as a small party of Siltvelt soldiers who had snuck across the border to aid the Shield Hero.”

“Will we have to worry about the Siltvelt soldiers?”

“I daresay they seemed more concerned with the Wave and helping the Shield Hero than causing trouble.”

“I see.”

“One of their own was badly injured in the final portion of the Wave. She is currently with the Shield Hero’s party recovering under the guise of a slave. The rest of the Siltvelt soldiers were forced to retreat to avoid an incoming group of Melromarc soldiers, and are currently hiding out at a nearby village to meet with the Shield Hero and reclaim their comrade.”

“Alright, continue.”

“The Wave ended with 15 villagers dead despite the efforts of the Shield Hero and his allies, after two and a half hours.”

“Two and a- What!?”

“While the Shield Hero and his allies fought to protect the civilians to the point of exhaustion, the Sword and Spear Heroes took the time to argue over what the Wave Boss actually was, while the Bow Hero was rendered unconscious by a sneak attack from the first Princess, who claimed it an accident. Though if you ask me it looked quite deliberate. Thankfully the Bow Hero will have no lasting injuries.”

“How did the Wave end!?”

“The Shield Hero flew into a rage, confronted the other parties, had some rather interesting choice words for the first Princess, then proceeded to draw out the Boss and finish it off. I must say his analytical skills are quite impressive, but…”

“What now?”

“Despite the Wave Boss being defeated, the portal did not close. And after a few minutes, a woman bearing a weapon similar in nature to the Seven Star Weapons appeared from the portal, announcing her intention to slay the Cardinal Heroes so as to allow our world to parish. From what I understand, this interloper, who has referred to herself as Glass, comes from another world that is also being plagued by the Waves, and intended to destroy ours so as to buy hers more time.”

“And I trust she was dealt with!?”

“The Shield Hero managed to defeat her in battle, but she escaped in the chaos that followed. We are still searching for her.”

“Chaos?”

“A second interloper had come through the rift. One bearing unusual powers that I would likely guess are the ‘Quirks’ of the Shield Hero’s world. She seemed distressed and her powers were going out of control. The Shield Hero was able to calm her, but she fled. It would seem he has recognized her from a dream.”

“A dream?”

“He spoke of dreams like windows to other worlds.”

“I see” Mirellia sighed. Everything had been so chaotic of late. “Well, as long as everything is in going well-“

“Your majesty.” A second Shadow had appeared. “The church has made their move. There was an attempt on the acting Queen Melty’s life.”

X

“How do you feel?” Izuku asked. They were in the cart on their way to meet Unya’s squad. The dolphin Demi-Human nodded.

“My wounds have healed and will leave only a scar as proof of their existence. I thank you for this blessing Shield Hero. Ah, are you alright? You’re embarrassed.”

“Please, none of that. I’d much prefer to be treated as a friend than someone of reverence.” Izuku sighed. He had been amazed when Unya had explained her empathetic powers to him, but it still caught him off guard just how accurate they were.

“If that is what you wish.” Unya nodded with a small smile.

“Izuku-Sama!” Raphtalia’s voice called from the front of the wagon. “In the sky!”

“Dragon!” Filo cried in anger. Izuku poked his head out of the carriage. Indeed, there was a large dragon rapidly descending towards them. Filo got ready for a fight, but…

“Wait, I think it’s the Bow Hero’s party! And… Melty?” Raphtalia spoke up

All at once, Filo’s anger turned to joy. “Mel-Chan!” She rushed over, forcing the carriage’s inhabitants to grab something for support as Aldwin landed, panting roughly. “Why are you riding that big smelly dragon!?”

Before Aldwin could retort, Itsuki spoke up. “No time for arguing. Someone tried to kill the Princess!”

A chill washed over the group. Izuku grew serious. “What happened?”

“Sir Bow Hero and I were discussing the recent Wave when several members of my own guard attacked.” Melty explained.

“It was inside the castle where she should have been safest. We didn’t know who to trust, so we grabbed Melty and fled. I remember you saying you’d be around this area.”

“If Melty was forced to flee, that means the King’s back on the throne, isn’t he? And no doubt Malty will probably manipulate this in her favor. I don’t think it will be long before they take advantage of this to frame you and name me a conspirator.”

“A couple of weeks ago I would have rebuked that kind of thing, but now…” Melty lamented. Izuku gently laid a comforting hand on her head.

“None of this is your fault Melty.” He sighed, turning to Itsuki. “We were supposed to meet someone at the village nearby. How did it look from the sky?”

“It seemed to be on high alert.” Itsuki mused. “They found some guards dead. Security’s pretty high.”

“If I had to guess…” Unya spoke up. “Most likely the Commander was forced to retreat when security started increasing. She would have only given the order to kill if they were spotted, to leave no witnesses of Siltvelt soldiers.”

“We just have to hope they got out okay.” Izuku mused. “We just need to find a place to lay low while we come up with a plan. It’s probably not good to be out in the open right now.”

“I…” All eyes turned to Raphtalia, who looked as though she was trying to make herself smaller. “I might know a place…”

X

Motoyasu didn’t know what was what anymore. First that Glass woman made a complete fool out of him during the Wave, as well as denouncing him as a Hero, and now the King and Myne were saying that Itsuki and Izuku have kidnapped the Second Princess.

He wanted to believe Myne. His instincts were screaming at him to believe her. But Princess Melty looked so close to Izuku’s party. It just didn’t make sense!

He began to round the corner towards the inn Izuku and Itsuki frequented. Myne had gone there to question the owners.

“It’s all going according to plan…” motoyasu stopped. That was Myne’s voice! What was she-

“Soon I’ll have my little brat sister’s head on a pike while I sit on the throne, and that idiot Spear Hero as my enforcer!”

…What?

“It’s too bad the assassination at the castle failed though. But I guess it gave me a chance to frame those useless Shield and Bow Heroes. I couldn’t get that damn Shield thrown prison with the false rape accusation, but there’s no way papa will be letting this one go. After all, he’s just another little puppet to toy with…”

Had Motoyasu actually gone around the corner and looked at Malty, he would have seen a suspicious blue haze in her eyes, one that disappeared as she blinked, looking around in confusion. What was going on? The last thing she remembered as interrogating that blue haired chef girl, before she was overcome by a sweet, mango scent, and now here she was.

…Ah well! It was surely nothing.

Motoyasu came around the corner. She didn’t notice the strained smile on his face as she beckoned him to help search.

X

Izuku looked at the ruined village somberly, dead save for the seagulls picking around the place. Raphtalia seemed to be another place entirely as she took in the scent of the sea.

“This was your home, wasn’t it?” Izuku asked.

“…Yes. Lurolona Village. It was destroyed in the first Wave… My parents were among the casualties.” She had tears brimming in her eyes. “And then, just as we were trying to rebuild, a group of Melromarc soldiers came. They slaughtered the remaining adults and took us children to be enslaved, even though the Demi-Humans here were supposed to be protected by a treaty with Siltvelt.”

“You didn’t deserve this. None of you did.” Itsuki spoke up, a hint of disgust in his voice at the atrocities committed here.

“Mommy…” Filo spoke quietly.

“Let’s rest here for now, then try to figure out what our next move is.” Izuku sighed. “By the looks of things, this was a fishing village?”

“Yes.” Raphtalia confirmed. “Though I’m afraid the boats aren’t going to be seaworthy after all this time.”

“You leave the fish to me.” Valden spoke up. “Used to catch fish myself just through swimming.”

“Filo will help too!”

‘Filo can swim?’ Everyone thought at once.

And so the next few hours were spent fishing, cooking, and trying to figure out their plan now that they were essentially fugitives. Soon, the sun had set, and they had gotten nowhere in terms of planning.

Izuku found himself sitting on the beach, a lantern being his only source of light, the rest of the group sound asleep in Raphtalia’s former house.

“Can’t sleep?” Raphtalia asked as she sat beside him.

“Just thinking.”

“About… Eri?”

“I’m worried about her. She’s clearly distressed and I don’t know what she’ll do.”

Raphtalia sighed, looking out to the sea.

“You know, sometimes I miss those days before the first Wave, when I was just an innocent child trying to understand my friend Rifana’s interest in boys, and I could just play without a care in the world. And yet, if I could go back and stop the Wave from destroying my home, I think I’d refuse.”

“Huh?” Izuku asked, confused. She gave him a soft smile.

“My parents once said that tragedy, as terrible as it is, can also help us grow as people. It was the tragedy of my village being destroyed that made me what I am today… And it helped me meet you, Izuku-Sama.”

Her smile triggered something in Izuku, his cheeks growing warm.

“I-“

“Shield Hero.” Both Izuku and Raphtalia jolted, weapons at the ready as they stared down the unfamiliar person, a cloaked woman in a mask.

“I am one of the Shadows in service to the Queen of Melromarc. Listen carefully. You must cross the boarder to meet up with her. I daresay the Three Heroes Church is working with the First Princess to usurp the throne, so the heiress must be brought to safety so a counterattack can be organized.” She held out a marked map.

“And why should we trust you?” Raphtalia asked.

“If need be, the Second Princess can confirm my loyalty, I daresay.” The Shadow responded. “There is one more thing. I bring a message from the Slave Trader Beloukas regarding a Demi-Human you have asked after.” She held out a scroll that Izuku hesitantly took. He rolled it open to read the contents.

“It says that he was able to track down Wyndia but that her owner wasn’t in a mood to sell.” His eyes widened. “It also says that her owner is a Lord by the name of… Idol Rabier.”

Chapter Text

“Izuku Midoriya.” Izuku sighed, having been on his way back to the waiting room with some drinks.

Today was the day of the Sports Festival, and already trouble was brewing as he turned to face Shoto Todoroki.

“May I help you?”

“To be honest, I’m not entirely sure which one of us is stronger.” Todoroki said, a grim look on his face. “You and that bird girl were able to kill that Nomu creature that even All Might was struggling with. But rest assured, I won’t be losing today. Consider this a declaration of war.”

“…Don’t care.” Izuku said apathetically as he turned away.

“What!? What do you mean you don’t care’!? I’m declaring you my rival!”

“Todoroki, I’m trying to become a Hero to HELP people. The only reason I’m even participating today is because it’s mandatory. Having a healthy rivalry is perfectly fine. It gives people a reason to push themselves. But that’s not what you want, is it? You just wanna prove your superiority out of spite? If you wanna act like a child and try to turn this into a competition to sate whatever complex you have, be my guest, but leave me out of it.” With that, he left, leaving Todoroki alone.

X

“Well well, I almost didn’t recognize you Endeavor.” All Might guffawed as he clapped the man on the back. Endeavor was wearing a large coat and hat that obscured most of his features. “What’s with the getup? You’re not really one to go incognito.”

Endeavor grunted. “I wanted to see Shoto’s first Sports Festival in person.”

“I’m sensing a ‘but’.”

“…He hates me. I honestly don’t know how he would react if he knew I was here.” Endeavor sighed. “Tell me, how’s he doing in class? Every time I ask his homeroom teacher…”

“He comes off as incredibly biased?”

“Yes.”

It was All Might’s turn to sigh.

“He is… Difficult. He refuses to use the fire half of his Quirk, doesn’t seem to want to work with the others even during partner exercises, and seems content to brute force everything with his ice. He’s failed every single stealth exercise I’ve put him through because he sees fit to just encase the entire area in a block of ice. Eraserhead’s enabling really isn’t helping either.”

Endeavor groaned.

“Figures. I’ve been trying to get through to him. I… I was a shit father when Shoto was little. After my son Toya and my wife died I’ve been trying to be better, but it seems Shoto is very good at holding a grudge.”

“I won’t pretend to understand what’s going on with your family. However, if young Shoto does not get his act together, his grudge will severely hinder his future as a hero.”

“Perhaps… But I honestly think I’m more scared of what will happen should Shoto decide to completely give in to his hatred…”

X

The atmosphere in the 1-A waiting room was tense. Wet little words were exchanged. As far as the students were concerned, everyone was there enemy today, including their own classmates. There were a couple of exceptions in front of course. Kaminari, Ashido, and Hagakure were quietly whispering amongst themselves, but that was pretty much it.

Momo Yaoyarozu, the class Rep, was simply nervous. Waiting quietly for them to get the alert to go out onto the field.

X

“Everyone.” Izuku spoke up, Kendo by his side as the two reps of 1-B addressed their classmates. “Listen up, I know you’re all nervous, especially with the rumors of how students from other courses can claim our seats if they do well enough, but this is what we’ve spent the past few weeks training for. This is our chance to prove that the Entrance Exam wasn’t a fluke, that we earned these seats for a reason. All eyes are going to be on 1-A because of what happened at the USJ, but there’s a distinct difference between our two classes. 1-A is mostly in it for themselves, and their teacher couldn’t give two shits about any students that don’t peak his interest. We are not like that. We are a united front, so let’s show the world what we can do. Show 1-A the hard way that there are limits to how much you can achieve by yourself. I have faith in all of you.” After a moment of silence, a hand tentatively raised. “Yes, that includes you Shiozaki.”

And with that, the morale of 1-B seemed to shoot up.

X

“Welcome one and all to the first year division of the U.A. Sports Festival! Can I get a YEEEAAAAH!?”

The crowd exploded with excitement at Present Mic’s energetic commentary.

“That’s what I like to hear! I’m your colorful commentator Present Mic! And joining me today as co commentator, she’s been skyrocketing through the Idol industry as of late, set to join the likes of Hoshi Hikari, Hatsune Miku, and Gawr Gura in the rankings, it’s Ai of B-Komachi!”

“Hello everyone!”

“Now Ai, I think we should address the elephant in the room. This is your first public appearance since a deranged fan tried to murder you in your own home, so I gotta ask the question everyone’s thinking: Are you okay?”

“I’m a-ok actually. I’m just thankful nobody got hurt!”

“Ah! Right! You weren’t the only one home at the time were you? Reports say there was a pair of children with you?”

“They’re the children of Strawberry Productions President Saitou.” Ai responded, though nobody seemed to notice she was a little too quick in saying that. “They’re like little siblings to me, so I babysit them. Although I guess the man who attacked me thought they were MY children. I just hope he gets the help he needs. I’d hate for him to throw his life away like this.”

“Wow. Guy tried to kill you and you’re showing sympathy?”

“I want to give love to all my fans!”

X

“She’s lying.” Filo spoke up.

“About the fan thing?” Rifana asked, having pinned down Atla to stop her from sneaking into Izuku’s room.

“No. That was sincere. She was lying about the kids not being hers.”

“Probably for the best.” Motoyasu muttered. “Idol fans can get pretty… Intense. I mean, just the suspicion of her having kids put her life in danger. Not that I think you’ll have that problem Filo. Anyone who tried to attack you would get punted across the city.”

“Wow! It works just like recording crystals!” Keel muttered in awe as she watched the TV, oblivious to the conversation.

“Not exactly dear.” Inko chuckled. Izuku had brought some of his friends from Melromarc over to watch the Sports Festival. Unfortunately he couldn’t bring all of them. His friend Itsuki and his party were dealing with something back in his home world, and the friends he had made at some other world school were in worlds he couldn’t even reach.

Sadly, his friend Unya couldn’t come, due to being really busy with her new position as a Royal Bodyguard, but apparently Izuku had gotten Nedzu to place several of the Recording Crystal things to capture the Sports Festival for them to watch later.

“You don’t have to force yourself to help you know, Kitamura-San.” Inko said gently to the blond man as he helped her prepare food.

“I know, it’s just… I caused a lot of trouble for your son during our first few months in Melromarc, and I know he said he’s forgiven me, but…”

“You feel as if you haven’t done enough?”

“…Pretty much.”

Inko pat his back comfortingly.

“Now, I don’t mean to sound like a worrywart, but are you sure Izuku’s Town isn’t going to burn down while you’re all here?”

“Not to worry ma’am. We have the best looking after Green Valley.”

MEANWHILE: IN GREEN VALLEY:

“KYAAAAAH!!” Shiori Novella, Green Valley’s newest Lorekeeper, wailed as she clung to the back of the cart being pulled by several Filolials. “You guys! It’s just a broken arm! I can WALK!!” She cried desperately.

“You don’t have to worry about that Shiori-San! Mococo bau’d as she gripped the reins.

“We got this!” Fuwawa cheered.

And then Shiori screamed as a particularly sharp turn sent her flying out of the cart.

“You okay back there?” Fuwawa asked after a moment. “…Are you okay back there?” She asked a little louder when she got no answer. Then she turned and saw the cart was empty. “…We did it again Moco-Chan.”

“Bau Bau…”

X

“AAAAANNND NOW! Here comes the moment you’ve all been waiting for! Our first class! They’ve survived a massive villain attack on U.A. grounds before they’ve even finished their first Trimester! It’s Class 1-A!”

The majority of 1-A looked smug as they walked out onto the field.

“Next up: They haven’t gotten into the spotlight like their sister class! But don’t you go underestimating them! They’re also a force to be reckoned with! It’s Class 1-B!”

1-B collectively had looks of confidence, but we’re nowhere near as arrogant as their sister class.

“After that: They may not be as flashy as the other courses, but don’t let that fool you! These kids are still in one of the most elite schools in the country! It’s General Education Classes C, D, and E! Next: These mad scientists are vital to keeping our Heroes working smoothly out in the field! It’s Support Classes F, G, and H! And finally: these guys focus not just on our own Heroes, but also any general of management! It’s Business Classes I, J, and K! Now that we’ve got everything settled! I will turn things over to our Referee, Midnight!”

With a crack of her whip, the R-Rated Hero had all attention on her.

“Before we begin, we have the Student Pledge! Izuku Midoriya!”

Izuku sighed as he made his way up to the microphone. Shimura-Sensei had informed him he would be doing the Student Pledge as the kid who got first place in the Hero Course Entrance Exam, but it was still a bother.

“I’m not gonna say much.” He spoke into the microphone. “Just this: There’s been talk about how students from other courses can transfer into the Hero Course if they perform well enough. Know this though: We earned these seats. We fought hard for them, and we’ll continue to do so. If you want these seats so badly…” He smirked. “Then go Plus Ultra and prove that you deserve them more.” He turned and walked back to his class.

“Well! That’s one way to get the kids fired up!” Ai spoke up. Indeed, a lot of students looked to be getting serious. Except for one purple haired troll doll that no one cared about, who looked at Izuku like he was an arrogant, undeserving brat.

“Listen up kiddos! The first event is as follows!” Midnight called, the giant screen behind her lit up. “An obstacle race! It’s pretty self explanatory! One lap around the track! The first 42 students to finish will move on to the next round! So you better have light feet kiddos! A few rules though: Leaving the track through any means during the race will result in disqualification! Also, and I cannot stress this enough: Do. Not. Go. Overboard! The last thing we need is Recovery Girl getting overworked. Now, start lining up! We start in five minutes!” As the students began to get ready, Izuku walked up to her. “Ah, Midoriya, do you need something?”

“There’s something I’d like to clarify regarding the rules.”

Soon, the students were all lined up, poised and ready to start running like their lives depended on it.

“Ready? GO!” And just like that, they were all off.

“And the first round begins in earnest! Ai, what do you think the competitors should be looking out for this early on?”

“Um… Well, that hallway looks pretty narrow.” Indeed, the hallway at the start of the track was clogged up with the massive number of students trying to force their way through all at once.

Suddenly, in a flash of cold, the majority of the students had their feet frozen to the ground.

“And Shoto Todoroki takes an early lead that leaves his opponents frozen stiff!” Mic spoke up. “I- WAIT A MINUTE!! MIDNIGHT!! IS MIDORIYA ALLOWED TO DO THAT!?”

“Midoriya used his Quirk to make this happen. He is not breaking any rules. We discussed this just before the race.”

That left Shoto wondering just what the hell he had pulled out of his ass.

No matter. He had no intention of losing regardless.

He glanced behind him to see that a good few students, mostly Hero Course students, had dodged his ice and were getting close. A Gen Ed student was using his Quirk, some kind of purple balls on his head, to bounce on.

“You Hero Course students think you’re so great! I’m gonna win this whole thing and claim the seat I was wrongfully denied! Then all the ladies are mine! Grap-“

Something large and feathery slammed into the diminutive boy, sending him flying out of the track and earning him an instant disqualification.

“Sorry not sorry!” Filo cackled as she blitzed past the startled Todoroki, Izuku and Raphtalia clinging to her back.

Shoto actually stopped in shock, wondering how that was even allowed.

“What the f-“

“DEKU!!” Bakugo exploded past Shoto, snapping the boy out of his stupor as he continued to run.

“And it looks like Izuku Midoriya and Raphtalia Iwatani have taken the lead! But can they keep it in the face of the first obstacle: The Robot Infer-“

SCREEEEE-CRUNCH

“…Wow, that is one powerful bird.” Shoto finally came upon the sight of a group of massive robots, one of which had a large hole in its torso and was in the process of shutting down. Most likely these were the Zero Pointers students fought in the regular entrance exam. Bakugo completely ignored the robots, dead set on catching Midoriya.

“Tch.” Shoto waited until the Zero pointers tried to lunge at him, then he unleashed as much ice as he could, moving forward once the robots were frozen.

It wasn’t until the other students came to the frozen Zero Pointers that Shoto’s plan came to fruition.

With a loud crack and screech, the Zero Pointers broke out of the ice and began to fall, the loss of momentum and being frozen off balance sending them crashing to the ground just as Shoto planned, to slow down the other competitors.

He was oblivious to all the screaming as he focused on winning.

X

“Shit! Fuck!” Tetsutetsu cried. The students could only watch in horror as the off balance Zero Pointers crashed into the ground, several unfortunate students caught in the crossfire.

“My leg!” One girl wailed, her leg crushed beneath mountains of scrap. One boy was unconscious and had blood dripping from his forehead. And that was to say nothing of the students caught under the Zero Pointers’ bodies.

Why weren’t the teachers stopping the race!?

X

Contrary to everyone’s beliefs, the teachers actually were arguing about this.

“He could have killed someone!” Ectoplasm gaped. “What the hell was Todoroki thinking!?”

“Nedzu, what do you want to do?” Toshinori asked. The mammal looked deep in thought. Thankfully, Aizawa was still hospitalized and thus wasn’t here to argue that Todoroki hadn’t done anything wrong and that it was the students’ fault for not getting out of the way in time.

If that were the case, most of the teaching staff would have been compelled to finish what that Anti-All Might had started.

“We don’t know for sure that Todoroki intentionally set those Zero Pointers to fall.” Nedzu mused. “But either way, he will not escape punishment for this reckless stunt. All Might, Ectoplasm, Power Loader, get down there and help. How seriously Todoroki is punished depends on whether or not anyone is dead or has life changing injuries.”

With that, he radioed Mic to continue commentating as normal.

X

“Er… O-okay then…” Mic stumbled a bit. “It looks like the leading students are now reaching the next obstacle! The Fall! What do you think Ai?”

“Well, it looks like the students are going to have to take it slow and steady with this one… Except Midoriya and Iwatani apparently.”

“Wait, what are you- OH COME ON MIDORIYA! AT LEAST TRY TO MAKE IT A CHALLENGE!!” Mic wailed at the sight of Filo leaping across the large pits on the Air Strike Shields Izuku was summoning.

“Also, it seems that despite the hype for 1-A, the most of the students in the lead seem to be from Class 1-B.”

“Huh- Ah! You’re right! Wow! Look at that teamwork!” Mic mused as he was treated to the sight of things like Shishida tossing some of his fellow 1-B students across the large gaps, and Komori creating large, bouncy mushrooms to soften their landings. Reiko Yanagi and Yuki Kodai were helping by having Kodai enlarge pieces of robot scrap that Reiko levitated to use as makeshift bridges.

“And it seems like our lead racers are coming up to the final obstacle!” Ai spoke up.

“Yes indeed! It’s the Minefield! These mines emit a concussive force that will send anyone flying! Don’t worry! We’ve tested them, they might cause a bit of bruising but won’t hurt too bad! I’d like to see Midoriya cheese his way through this!”

“If you insist Sensei.” Izuku spoke up, his Voice Gengar Shield amplifying his voice throughout the stadium.

“Wait, what? No-“

X

“Fast Guard!” Izuku chanted the incantation, cloaking Filo in protective energy. “Go Filo!”

“Kaaaay! High Quick!” And, to the childish wailing of Present Mic, Filo began to blitz through the minefield, unfazed by the explosions.

Speaking of explosions…

“DEKU!!!” Bakugo practically screeched as he let loose his strongest possible explosions to try and pass Izuku.

Izuku just sighed and rolled his eyes.

“I am not going to lose to you, and your FATASS BIRD!!”

“Mmm!”

WHAM

“…Ah…” Was all Bakugo managed to get out as a kick to the groin set him into the nearby wall.

And Filo didn’t even break stride.

And with that, they crossed through the tunnel and passed the finish line.

“AND IN FIRST PLACE WE HAVE IZUKU MIDORIYA, RAPHTALIA IWATANI IN SECOND PLACE, AND IBARA SHIOZAKI IN THIR- Wait what?” Mic looked at the screen in confusion. Indeed, Ibara Shiozaki was listed in third place.

Where-?

The question was answered as Izuku and Raphtalia pulled the green haired girl out of Filo’s feathers.

The girl had suffered broken ribs and a twisted ankle in the chaos that was the whole mob of students trying to squeeze through that small hallway at the beginning.

Izuku had unthinkingly had Filo scoop her up on the way.

Raphtalia was proud of him.

“Here.” He pushed a potion to the vine haired girl’s mouth, allowing it to heal her injuries without using up her stamina like Recovery Girl’s Quirk would have done.

Todoroki was seething with rage as he made his way through the gate at fourth place. He was disgusted by the fact that nobody had done anything about Midoriya’s blatant cheating by using whatever the hell that bird was. Said bird had transformed into a little girl and was receiving head pats.

Raiko Yanagi and Toru Hagakure came in at fifth and sixth place, then Tenya Iida at seventh before an enraged Bakugo stumbled his way in at eighth place, looking close to outright assaulting Midoriya, live broadcast be damned.

Aside from that, the only other students from 1-A to make it to the second round were Yaoyarozu, Uraraka, Kaminari, Kirishima, Monoma, and Ashido. All of the students were from 1-B were moving on, as well as some Gen-Ed students and some crazy girl from Support.

Once the race was finally over, the students who would be moving on to the second round were gathered in front of a large screen, where Midnight described the next round.

A cavalry battle. Teams of up to four people with one serving as the rider. Their own objective was to secure headbands from the opposing teams to get the most points. If a rider hit the ground, the teams would be automatically disqualified, but they weren’t allowed to deliberately knock riders down to avoid making this too easy. Each student’s points would be determined by their placing in the race. Midoriya would be the outlier at ten million points due to placing first. All eyes snapped to him like predators scoping out prey.

Midoriya wasn’t fazed.

Then, to the shock of everyone, Shoto Todoroki’s points were suddenly decreased, dropping him from fourth place straight to last with only five points.

“Todoroki, I don’t know if you intended to drop those Zero Pointers on other students, but it was beyond reckless and could have killed someone! Be lucky that none of them had permanent injuries either, else being disqualified would be the least of your worries.” Midnight said with a snap of her whip.

And Todoroki…

Todoroki seethed.

Chapter Text

Aizawa glared at the TV. As much as he could anyway with his face fractured and wrapped in bandages. From what he was seeing in the Sports Festival, U.A. was already falling apart without him.

First they had the audacity to let that Midoriya brat do the Student Pledge. Why? Because of Rescue Points? Those were completely meaningless! As far as Aizawa was concerned, it was Bakugo who had gotten the highest score in the Entrance Exam. And then Midoriya went and challenged those Gen Ed brats to try and get into the Hero Course, as if their pathetic showing in the Entrance Exams were irrelevant. There was no way in hell he’d let any of those potential lacking brats into his classroom. They belonged in Hizashi’s class just like all the other rejects.

Then they did nothing about Midoriya’s blatant cheating in the Obstacle Race, summoning that stupid bird thing to carry him, Iwatani, and Shiozaki towards an undeserved win. If he had his way, he would have had them disqualified on the spot, and he sure as shit would have expelled them for attacking someone with as much potential as Bakugo. Even that Hagakure brat had managed to cheat her way into the top ten. On top of that, they went and completely humiliated his class in the process!

And then there was the blatantly unfair treatment of Todoroki. The boy’s tactic with the Zero Pointers was utter genius. Both block the path for other racers and even incapacitating some in the process. Who cares if someone ended up with a broken leg!? It was their own damn fault for not getting out of the way in time! If he could, he would expel those Gen Ed idiots for being so damn useless! Those brats needed to learn that life wasn’t fair. The only problem was that Mic was too soft on them.

There were some bright spots though. Shinso, that poor kid who was a victim of an incredibly biased and Quirkiest Entrance Exam, had managed to win by using his Quirk to brainwash several students into carrying him to the finish line.

It was brilliant! It allowed him to move onto the next round while conserving his energy!

Now all he had to do was put that Midoriya brat in his place during the second round.

He would be willing to forgive that blatant bullshit Mic and Nemuri tried feeding him about ‘Oboro being a Nomu’, if only because Mic had such a golden egg in his class.

Maybe when he got back, he could finally convince Nedzu and Shimura to just expel Midoriya and Iwatani and be done with it.

As far as he was concerned, Shimura was a naive idiot, and he was the best teacher U.A. has had in years! It was because of him the school had such impressive standards after all! This would be easy!

Hell, maybe he could get Shiozaki booted out too. That she was injured and had to be carried to the finish line only proved she wasn’t worthy of being a Hero.

With a sigh, he leaned back to rest his injured body. Such a thing was unavoidable for a Hero like him after all.

X

Keel, Rifana, Wyndia, and Atla were laughing their collective asses off at the sight of Bakugo being treated to one of Filo’s famous kicks. Motoyasu just felt sympathy, having been on the receiving end of at least a few of those kicks. Inko just rolled her eyes.

Over all, it was a pretty fun time.

X

Tomura scratched his neck in agitation as he watched the Sports Festival. He needed a respite from that uppity bitch who had killed Sensei.

He was keeping an eye on the Shield Brat and the Raccoon bitch that had ruined his plans, but he was mostly interested in Endeavor’s son, the boy had a hatred in his eyes.

This would be interesting.

X

“Hey! You! Team up with me person in first place! I need someone with all eyes on them so I can show off my super cute little babies!”

“…There’s two of them… Oh god…” Izuku had a traumatized look on his face.

“I’m so sorry…” Raphtalia tried. “My fiancée is having a traumatic reaction because a tailor we met previously acts disturbingly like you.”

Hatsume laughed.

“If I had a Yen for every time I heard that one, I’d have two Yen! Hey, you! Team up with me!” She went to go harass someone else. Raphtalia shook her head and dragged Izuku to go find some teammates.

“Midoriya.” At once, Izuku’s traumatized rambling ceased as he turned to face Iida.

“What?” Izuku responded blankly, narrowing his eyes at the boy.

“…I wish to join your team.”

“…Why?” Iida bowed suddenly.

“I understand that the two of us got off to a tough start. I originally thought you a delinquent who wasn’t taking Heroics seriously, but you have proven me wrong several times already. I suppose I just wish to understand you better. So please, allow me this chance by joining your team.”

After a few seconds, Izuku glanced up towards one of the student boxes where Filo was currently sitting.

She nodded.

“…Fine.”

X

Shoto Todoroki was pissed. None of the other students wanted to team up with him because of his lack of points. He seethed as he saw that cheater Midoriya and that Iwatani girl team up with some weirdo ghost girl and that engine kid whose name Todoroki couldn’t bother to remember.

In truth, Todoroki’s point value had little to do with his lack of teammates. None of the other students wanted anything to do with the psycho who dropped a Zero Pointer on them.

Of course, as far as Todoroki was concerned, he had done nothing wrong. He was positive his bastard father had paid off the school or something as punishment for refusing to use his fire.

So that bastard had stopped to sabotaging Shoto now? He was gonna-

“Hey, you’re Endeavor’s kid, right?” Shoto blinked, before whirling around.

“Don’t you dare-“ Was all Shoto managed to get out before his body went slack and his eyes turned blank.

“Good. I needed a powerhouse like you on my team.”

X

Raphtalia sat atop Izuku, Reiko, and Iida’s shoulders, having switched her Katana to a form more suitable for this event.

Her Taser Katana was obtained by absorbing a Taser obviously. Its edges were completely blunt, so this form had no cutting power. However, it made up for this by discharging enough electricity to drop Death Arms in an instant.

Perfect for subduing enemies non lethally.

And with a crack of Midnight’s whip, the second event had begun, and everyone descended on Team Iwatani like a pack of piranhas.

Just as planned.

“Sorry Midoriya!” Kaminari cried as his team homed in on them. “You’re a good guy, but right now, you’re my enemy!” With that, he sent a blast of electricity their way-

RUBBER SHIELD.

-That was completely nullified by Izuku.

“ARE YIU KIDDING ME!?”

‘Sorry Kaminari.’ Izuku thought to himself. ‘But I learned my lesson after getting hit by Fran’s Thunder Magic.’

BOOM

“DEKU!!” Ah, right, Bakugo was a thing apparently. “You may have cheated your way to victory in the first round, but your luck ends here, you hear me you piece of shit!?” With that, the explosive boy launched himself into the air, nearly hitting his teammates in the process. “Fucking DIE!! HOWITZER-“

He was cut off, all air leaving his lungs as Raphtalia’s fist collided with his groin.

The first thought in Raphtalia’s mind?

‘Why is it so… Small?’

The second thought?

‘Like, seriously, Izuku’s is way bigger.’ She blushed, thinking back to the incident at the Cal Mira hot springs.

The third thought?

‘Meh, who cares. As Fran would say: Zappy time!’

And then she pulled her fist back and jabbed her Taser Katana into Bakugo’s groin in its place.

Bakugo’s highly feminine shriek echoed throughout the stadium as its male population winced in sympathy through their laughter.

“Yeesh! Bakugo’s a little prick but even I feel bad for him.” Present Mic’s wording caused Raphtalia to double over in hysterics as Bakugo landed in the arms of his team, foaming at the mouth and twitching.

“Er… Present Mic sir, you know the mic’s on, right?” Ai spoke up.

Mic yelped, realizing he had just said that on live TV.

“Buku-Bro!” Kirishima yelled, trying and failing to bring Bakugo out of his stupor. “That was so unmanly Iwatani!” He snarled at the girl.

“I don’t think you realize what ‘manly’ means.” Raphtalia snarked as Bakugo’s team was forced to go on the defensive thanks to their rider being out of commission.

“Airstrike Shield!” The green energy Shield blocked the gout of fire that a blank eyed Todoroki fired from his position as one of Shinso’s horses. The other teams took this opportunity try and rush Team Iwatani. “Shield Prison!”

All at once, Team Iwatani was encased in a sphere of shields as the other teams launched their assault.

X

“Shoto’s using his fire!?” Endeavor asked in disbelief. “No, he wouldn’t just… No, something’s wrong. Who is that boy? The one Shoto’s acting as a horse for?”

“Hitoshi Shinso.” All Might responded. “A Gen Ed student. I just texted Present Mic, his homeroom teacher. Apparently Shinso’s Quirk allows him to control anyone who gives him a verbal response. He also has a major chip on his shoulder since he seems to believe most people find his Quirk villainous.”

Endeavor worried. Shoto was likely to be pissed when he came to. He worried this would only drive the boy deeper into whatever dark path he was toeing the line into.

X

“We need a plan. The longer I keep Shield Prison active, the more it drains my energy.” Izuku spoke up.

“I… I may have something that can get us out of danger. I haven’t used it outside of home training though.” Iida spoke up. “I can only use it for ten seconds before my engines stall.”

“May as well give it a try now.” Izuku responded.

“Right! Hold on tight!” Iida responded. “Yanagi, see if you can use your Quirk to gather headbands while you’re at it.”

“Right.”

Izuku dropped the Shield Prison.

“RECIPRO BURST!!”

In one moment, Team Iwatani blitzed forward, and Team Monoma and Team Ashido were too stunned to stop their headbands from being telekinetically ripped away and into Reiko’s hands.

“30 SECONDS LEFT Y’ALL!!” Mic yelled, snapping the other students out of their stupor as they went all in trying to grab as many points as possible.

“AND TIME!! WOULD YOU LOOK AT THAT! TEAM IWATANI NOT ONLY HELD ONTO THEIR HEADBAMD AGAINST IMPOSSIBLE ODDS! THEY CAME OUT WITH EVEN MORE POINTS THEN WHEN THEY STARTED!”

“And in a surprising upset…” Ai chimed in. “Team Maemi managed to rob Team Uraraka of all their points at the very last second!”

“What?” Uraraka blinked, hands going to her head to find that her headband was indeed missing.

“I forgive, but I do not forget.” Tenma said lowly as she palmed the stolen headband. “Remember these words, beach.”

“Don’t you mean ‘bitch’?” Pippa spoke up.

“That’s what I said.”

Hagakure just rolled her eyes, now knowing why the fox girl was insistent on being Rider.

1ST: TEAM IWATANI.

2ND: TEAM MAEMI.

3RD: TEAM BAKUGO.

4TH: TEAM SHINSO.

In a shocking upset, Class 1-A, the class that most had been so excited to see, only had a few of their students make it to round 3: Iida, Todoroki, Bakugo, Kirishima, Yaoyarozu, and Hagakure, making up only a third of the 16 students that would be making it to the final round.

In light of this stunning turn of events, Midnight dismissed the students for lunch so they could compile the third round matchups. Todoroki glared at Midoriya as he and Raphtalia met up with Filo as the three went to go eat lunch. He was already beyond pissed that that idiot from Gen Ed had used his Quirk to make Shoto use his fire, hands trembling as he barely restrained himself outright attacking the smug little prick as soon as Shoto was released from his control.

First he had his points for the second round unjustly reduced, now this!?

Finally, it all clicked together.

This was Endeavor’s doing! It had to be!

That scumbag had bribed the U.A. faculty into sabotaging him for the second round, then he paid off that Shinso guy to use his Quirk on Shoto. All this to force him to use his fire!

On the other side of the spectrum, Izuku had decided to give Iida a chance. Though he would have to talk to the boy about loosening up a little.

X

Lunch Rush loved cooking. It was simple as that. Even his Quirk was perfect for it, as it allowed him to make high quality meals in the time it would take to make a bowl of instant ramen.

However, even he had his limits. Now, cooking for an entire school of hungry, growing kids wasn’t what he was talking about.

No, it was one of the great rules of being a chef: If your customer is still hungry, then you’ve failed.

It wasn’t a bother mostly. He usually managed to get these kids properly fed.

However…

“Some-“ Lunch Rush’s pupils dilated.

No…

Oh god no…

“-BODY ONCE TOLD ME!!” That blonde haired, blue eyed demon disguised as an angel yelled at the top of her lungs as she kicked open the door to the cafeteria.

Lunch Rush’s scream of horror was something to behold.

X

It was now after lunch that Izuku, Raphtalia, and all the other students who were moving on were gathered to hear the third round match ups. The rest of Class-B was up in the box with Filo as the randomized results finally appeared on screen.

Izuku let out a tired sigh as fate seemed to enjoy annoying the hell out of him.

For the first round, he was facing Bakugo.

And Raphtalia was facing Todoroki.

Chapter Text

Eijiro Kirishima grimaced as he sat with his class at the start of the third round. When he had first met Katsuki Bakugo, Kirishima quickly found the boy to be the epitome of Manliness. Sure, he was rough around the edges, but he was driven by a determination that Kirishima couldn’t help but latch onto.

The problem came with Midoriya and Iwatani from Class-B.

It was clear those two were bullies. They were probably tormenting Baku-Bro even before High School.

If there was one thing Kirishima hated more than anything, it was bullies. Always picking on those that can’t fight back. It disgusted him. It was so unmanly.

Even worse, Midoriya and Iwatani had gaslit Mina into believing BAKUGO was the bad guy.

He needed to get through to her and make her start seeing reason again, before it was too late.

X

The crowd roared. The first fight of the final round was about to begin.

Momo Yaoyarozu stepped toward the ring tentatively. Her opponent was a pink haired rabbit girl staring ahead with wide, unblinking eyes and a smile.

It left Momo a bit unerved.

“Hey.” Pippa greeted.

“Hello.” Momo nodded.

“So… Hagakure.”

“Yes?” Momo questioned.

“Is she like, All Might’s secret love child or something?”

“…What?”

“I mean, it makes sense you know. He’s gotta be around fifty at this point, so it would makes sense that they would do some sort of super breeding program to create the perfect successor for him. Probably got rid of all the failures.”

“I… Why are you asking ME this!?”

“Well it’s obvious your family funded the whole thing.”

“…Are you on something!?”

“I’m on a roll if that helps.” With that, Pippa turned and walked out the ring to go work on her theory that Izuku Midoriya was secretly an Isekai Protagonist, leaving Momo wondering what the fuck had just happened.

The match hadn’t even started.

X

Mei Hatsume didn’t even know what had happened. One moment, she was badgering that purple haired boy into letting her join his team. The next, the second round was over.

Ah well! At least she could use this match to show off her super cute little babies!

As she walked into the ring, she noticed her opponent looked familiar.

…Ah! That’s right!

“Oh! Hey! You’re that chihuahua girl from Class-D, right?”

And for once in her life, Mei knew she fucked up when Tenma’s face twitched.

“I’M NOT A FUCKING CHIHUAHUA-“

X

WINNER: TENMA MAEMI.

X

Izuku sighed as he began making his way out to the ring, ready to just get this annoyance over with.

Bakugo was already there, sneering at Izuku as if he were a disgusting piece of trash.

Izuku didn’t care.

“Let’s just get this over with.” Izuku sighed as he took his position.

“What’s the matter Deku? Too eager for me to blow your ass to bits!? They’re going to be scraping you off the damn ring when I’m done!” Bakugo snarled.

“Hey!” Midnight spoke up. “If you take it too far, you’ll be disqualified. Got that!?”

“Tch.”

Izuku merely waited patiently until Midnight finally started the match.

“DEKUUUU!!!” Bakugo launched himself forward, explosions propelling him as he got ready to- Yep, there it was. There was the right hook. Predictable as ever.

Izuku didn’t even bother to move, allowing Bakugo to slam his fist into the boy’s face before the annoying blond pulled his hand back, shaking away the pain. “Fuck!” It had been like punching a brick wall.

Bakugo recovered and started letting loose with explosions. Blast after blast striking the green haired teen, who stood there unflinching even as his shirt was burned and scorched.

Finally, after a few minutes, Bakugo let loose one last blast before stumbling back, his hands cramping painfully as he tried to catch his breath.

“…Are you done?” And then the smoke cleared to reveal Izuku, completely unharmed.

“Shut up… Shut UP!! Just fucking DIE ALREADY!!” Bakugo roared as he launched himself at Izuku, letting loose more explosions as he stubbornly ignored the agonizing cramps in his hands. “You were always looking down on me you piece of shit! Always trying to act like you’re worth something! You’re nothing! You hear me!! You’re just a useless freak!! I’m the future Number 1! You hear me!? I’m going to make you regret trying to step out of place Deku!”

A hand reached out of the smoke and grabbed Bakugo’s wrist tightly.

“The only thing I regret.” Izuku started, completely unharmed. “Is that it took me so long to realize just how pathetic you really are.” Bakugo was knocked onto his back by an Airstrike Shield. “Ten years Bakugo. Ten. Fucking. Years of my life, wasted giving you admiration and praise you didn’t deserve. Ten years of suffering under your bullying and abuse because you’re so fucking delusional that you see a simple act of human decency as an attack on your fucking pride.”

Izuku’s apathetic look was gone as he summoned more Airstrike Shields to pin him down.

“That’s what it was, wasn’t it? That day all those years ago? When you fell in the creek and I offered you a hand? How fucking egotistical do you have to be that you see that as deserving the abuse you heaped on me? I have scars you know, from all the times decided to make me your punching bag. And every single time, those incompetent fucks at Aldera either looked the other way or blamed me, because god forbid their golden child get a well deserved stain on his record! You make me sick Bakugo.”

Midnight frowned as she heard these words. As far as she was concerned, only she was able to hear them because she was so close. What she didn’t realize was that a few students with enhanced hearing like Jiro, or Tokage, who had floated one of her ears down to the arena, could hear everything just fine.

And they were horrified.

“SHUT UUUUPPP!” Bakugo roared as he exploded the Airstrike Shields and launched himself at Izuku. “IT’D YOUR FAULT!! ALL OF IT’S YOUR FAULT DEKU-“

Izuku suddenly grabbed Bakugo by the shirt and reared his leg back.

Toshinori Yagi, Hana Shimura, and Toru Hagakure all watched in shock as green lighting arced across Izuku’s body.

“My name. Is not. DEKU!!” Izuku snarled as he landed a kick, infused with the leftover embers of One For All from when he had borrowed Eri’s version of the Quirk to fight Takt, straight into Bakugo’s groin.

The stadium went silent.

Then Izuku’s face morphed into surprise.

“Holy shit! Raphtalia was right! I barely felt anything down there!”

Normally, Izuku’s words would have gone unheard, but in the dead silent arena, he may as well have been shouting into a megaphone.

The stadium exploded in laughter.

“Shut… Up…” Bakugo, foaming at the mouth and twitching as he held his groin, barely managed to get out. “Is this… Just a game to you, you bastard!? Ruining my story!? Stepping where you don’t belong in my path to the Number 1 spot!?”

“You’re not a Hero Bakugo.” Izuku sneered as he walked over to the writhing Bakugo, changing his shield in the process. “You were NEVER a Hero. You’re a violent, egotistical, sociopathic narcissist who takes pleasure in hurting others just because he’s deluded himself into thinking the universe revolves around him. You disgust me. But you know what? I’m done. I’m done with you acting like you hold any power over my life, and I’m done dealing with you. My life, and what I choose to do with it, are none of your damn business. I’m going to be a Hero whether you like it or not, so stay the fuck out of my life, and grow the fuck up you spoiled brat.”

With that, Izuku hit Bakugo with the shield, causing needles to spray out and paralyze Bakugo.

“Sensei, call the match.”

Midnight walked over as Bakugo tried and failed to move.

“No! This isn’t over! I can still fight!”

After a few seconds of inspection, Midnight determined that no, Bakugo could not still fight.

“Katsuki Bakugo is immobilized! Izuku Midoriya is the winner!”

“NO!! I DON’T ACCEPT THIS!!! THIS MATCH ISN’T OVER!!” Bakugo roared from the ground.

“Midoriya…” Midnight started as she turned off her microphone. “I heard the things you said-“

“I don’t care what you do with him.” Izuku dismissed. “I’m done. I’m done with him, and I just want to get on with my life.” Midnight nodded as Izuku turned to leave.

“DEKU!! GET BACK HERE AND FIGHT ME!!! YOU OWE ME ANSWERS!!! WHERE THE FUCK DID YOU GET THAT QUIRK!!?? DEKUUUUUUUUU!!!” Bakugo roared from the ground.

Izuku didn’t even look back.

He made his way through the stadium. As he walked through the halls, they were there. Raphtalia, Filo, and Raph-Chan.

Izuku smiled warmly as he embraced his family, a massive weight that had been upon him for so long finally gone as he closed a chapter on his life.

X

X

X

Raphtalia took a breath as she walked to the ring. It was the second to last match of the first round. Her and Todoroki.

Todoroki gave her a cold look as they stood facing each other.

Midnight started the match.

A massive wave of ice exploded towards her.

“Instant Blade: Mist.”

In an instant, the ice exploded, cut into tiny pieces as Raphtalia appeared behind Todoroki.

“You have fire don’t you? You’ll have to use that if you want to stand a chance.” Raphtalia said calmly.

Shoto snarled, whirling around to continue his frigid assault.

Each and every time, Raphtalia effortlessly countered his attack.

“Powder Snow.”

“Ghk!!” Shoto doubled over as sharp pain enveloped him.

Powder Snow was a technique that would drain an opponent of their MP.

But Todoroki didn’t have MP, so instead, the technique sped up the drawbacks of his Quirk.

“What I don’t get…” Raphtalia began as she flicked snow off of her Katana. “Is why you insult everyone like this. The Heroes. The Students training to be Heroes. Why do you go so far to limit yourself like this? You’ll never make it far using half of your Quirk.”

“I will never…” Shoto grunted. “I’ll never use my bastard father’s fire! I won’t!!”

And now Raphtalia looked confused.

“What are you talking about!? It’s YOUR Quirk! Not his!” Raphtalia spoke as she rushed forward.

Something in Shoto’s mind snapped.

Raphtalia had made one fatal mistake.

They were fighting in a controlled environment. The teachers would step in to stop anyone from going too far.

She let her guard down.

As she came close to Todoroki, everything became a blur as she found herself held up by ice.

Why… why were people screaming?

Why did her stomach hurt?

Shaking hands tried to hold her stomach, but were stopped by ice.

She pulled her hands back. They were red and slick.

Midnight was shouting.

Todoroki was using his fire.

“You want my damn fire so bad!?”

“I SAID STAND DOWN!!!” Midnight shouted as she tore her sleeve.

“HERE’S MY DAMN FIRE!!” Raphtalia could only watch helplessly as the intense burst of flames rocketed towards her.

The screaming got louder.

In a flash, Izuku was there, Shield of Wrath in hand, eyes a glowing red as the cursed flames overwhelmed Todoroki’s fire.

Shoto howled in pain as the cursed flames cut through his heat resistance like it wasn’t even there, leaving a nasty burn scar on his left hand.

Filo was there. Filo was saying something. Filo was trying to pull Raphtalia off the ice and press an Elixer of Yggdrasil to Raphtalia’s lips.

Filo looked so scared…

Raphtalia gently touched her face to reassure her.

…

Raphtalia passed out.

…

…

…

Todoroki stumbled back, clutching his burned hand in agony.

Izuku stumbled back as the gem on his shield glowed.

He took a deep, shaky breath as the cursed aura surrounding him disappeared and he changed his Shield.

“Thank you, you two.” He spoke the shield as he glared at Todoroki.

Todoroki was about to attack again.

“SHOTOOO!!” Endeavor roared as he jumped in from the panicking crowd to try and restrain his out of control son.

All it did was cement Shoto’s thoughts.

Perhaps Endeavor knew this, but he wasn’t just going to stand there and let Shoto hurt people.

‘I knew it…’ Shoto thought. ‘You’ve been sabotaging me all day you scumbag… I hate you… I HATE YOU!!’

Before Endeavor could grab him, Shoto fell through a dark mist that appeared under his feet.

The Warp Gate snapped shut.

Then a second Warp Gate opened.

A woman stepped through.

Medea smiled at Izuku.

He froze.

That smirk… It was just like…

Medea launched something into the air. A spell she had been charging all day.

Then she slipped back through the Warp Gate.

The sky turned red and split open.

Japan began to experience its first Wave Of Catastrophe.

Chapter Text

There was silence in the auditorium, save for the quiet slapping of Filo’s bare feet as she walked onto the stage, all eyes on her as she walked over to the microphone, frowning at its height as she adjusted it so it was more at her level. She tapped the microphone a couple of times to ensure it was working, before nodding in satisfaction as she cleared her throat.

After a few seconds, music started up.

Filo began to sing.

“We're no strangers to love

You know the rules and so do I

A full commitment's what I'm thinkin' of

You wouldn't get this from any other guy

I just wanna tell you how I'm feeling

Gotta make you understand

Never gonna give you up

Never gonna let you down

Never gonna run around and desert you

Never gonna make you cry

Never gonna say goodbye

Never gonna tell a lie and hurt you

We've known each other for so long

Your heart's been aching, but you're too shy to say it

Inside, we both know what's been going on

We know the game and we're gonna play it

And if you ask me how I'm feeling

Don't tell me you're too blind to see

Never gonna give you up

Never gonna let you down

Never gonna run around and desert you

Never gonna make you cry

Never gonna say goodbye

Never gonna tell a lie and hurt you

Never gonna give you up

Never gonna let you down

Never gonna run around and desert you

Never gonna make you cry

Never gonna say goodbye

Never gonna tell a lie and hurt you

We've known each other for so long

Your heart's been aching, but you're too shy to say it

Inside, we both know what's been going on

We know the game and we're gonna play it

I just wanna tell you how I'm feeling

Gotta make you understand

Never gonna give you up

Never gonna let you down

Never gonna run around and desert you

Never gonna make you cry

Never gonna say goodbye

Never gonna tell a lie and hurt you

Never gonna give you up

Never gonna let you down

Never gonna run around and desert you

Never gonna make you cry

Never gonna say goodbye

Never gonna tell a lie and hurt you

Never gonna give you up

Never gonna let you down

Never gonna run around and desert you

Never gonna make you cry

Never gonna say goodbye

Never gonna tell a lie and hurt you~”

The music stopped as everyone just stared at Filo in disbelief.

“Who the hell ordered 32 Extra Large stuffed crust meat lovers pizzas with garlic dipping sauce, breadsticks with cheese, wings, a large brownie, and four 2 liters!?” Someone yelled from backstage.

“MINE!” Filo yelled, and there was crashing ash she dove backstage to claim the light snack she had ordered.