Now Midoriya stood just a few inches away from All Might's bed. The thin, frail form of the man was in direct contrast with the buff, strong leader that the country knew and loved.

All Might doubled over himself as another coughing fit wracked through his body, he raised his fist to his mouth and coughed long and hard before the cough subsided to a rattling wheeze in the depths of his chest. He pulled his fist away from his mouth, flecks of blood covered his fingers.

Midoriya stared at All Might, the former image of the man he had looked up to since childhood burned in the forefront of his mind. All Might no longer possessed that bulky frame of his, but instead had been reduced to a mere skeleton. His cheeks were sunken in, his skin pale, and his limbs seemed too long for his body. All Might groaned aloud and winced as he gingerly pressed a hand against his side—against the spot where Midoriya knew that he had endured that fatal wound so many years ago.

"Do you want me to—" Midoriya began, but pressed his lips shut as All Might cut him off with a single shake of his head.

After the party, it had been found that the lead dancer of the troupe had carried a small knife within the folds of her clothes, it had been dipped in a poison that was untraceable and unidentifiable; none of Shuei's best scholars or doctors had been able to find a cure for All Might. The poison ate at him from the inside and out reducing him to the shell that Midoriya stood staring at. While they hadn't been able to find a cure, Midoriya's mother had been able to whip up a sort of medicine that drastically slowed the effects of it. She had told him that old age would kill him first before the poison ever did, but by the pale look on her face when she had told him that. The words she truly wanted to say had gone unsaid.

The poison would never kill him, but his life wouldn't be an easy one to live.

The lead dancer had been arrested afterwards and interrogated for any information that she could possibly have known. Who had sent her, who had ordered her to assassinate All Might. Rather than talk, she had bit her own tongue. The guards gave her mercy and executed her after.

Naturally without an actual mastermind behind everything, the country of Enten became the biggest suspect and rumors rose up that King Enji, who had always been jealous of All Might, was the one who had ordered the assassination. After all Enten was the one who had brought the troupe as entertainment in the first place.

All Might had soon thereafter sworn his inner court to secrecy about his actual condition. He kept indoors as much as he could with Midoriya acting as his page, the few rare moments however that he needed to be in the public eye, All Might's Quirk allowed him to regain his former appearance as it amplified his strength. Though to Midoriya, it seemed lately that such transformations were finally taking their strain on his body.

Midoriya swallowed, before shaking his head. "The-there are other people who are more suitable to serve as a spy. What about Tanaka, his quirk is invisibility, right? He could—"

"No," All Might whispered before doubling over once more as the rattling in his chest turned into a series of coughs. He motioned at Midoriya, who quickly flitted to the small table near All Might's bed and picked up the cup and pitcher of water that had been placed on it. He poured the water into the cup and quickly thrust it into All Might's hands. All Might lifted the cup to his lips and gulped the water down like a man who had been dying of thirst for days and had been finally granted the ability to drink. He pulled the now-drained cup away from his lips and placed it back into Midoriya's hands who replaced the cup back onto the table. "It has to be you. It can only be you."

"But why?" Midoriya spluttered out. "Why spy on them? Wouldn't that just damage our relationship?"

"That is a perfectly understandable question to ask." All Might cleared his throat. "I've had reports from the captain of guards that Enten forces were seen mobilizing near the border, a large number of men and weaponry. It's true that Enten and Shuei haven't had the best of relationships since my—" All Might trailed off, his eyes quickly flickering to his side, "—but if the reports are true and Eiji is truly stationing men at his borders then this can't mean anything good. In a week, I'm planning on sending a caravan of servants and Shuei's finest goods as a brokerage of peace to Enten's capital for the crown prince's birthday and coming of age celebration. I'm planning on sending one of my best servants to act as a royal servant for his royal highness."

Midoriya pressed his lips tightly shut as he understood the words All Might was trying to truly convey to him. He wanted Midoriya to serve as the crown prince's personal servant. It was the highest position he could take, to serve as a confidant for the crown prince would give him access and ease to snoop around the castle as much as he needed to without drawing suspicion to himself.

His thoughts turned to his mother as he swallowed thickly. If he was caught in Enten as a spy then Shuei would be forced to wash their hands clean of him and accuse him of acting on his own or worse accuse him of acting as a traitor against their own country and a spy for someone else's. Either option would lead with Midoriya having his head resting on the chopping block as the clean edge of a blade sliced through his neck.

All Might spoke again, clearly picking up on the young man's unease about the entire situation. "You don't have to accept. I know it's a lot to ask of you and you have your mother to worry about."

Midoriya breathed deeply as he bowed his head and pressed his eyes shut, lifting his right hand to cup his chin. If the reports were true about Enten moving forces to the border then this posed a devastating problem for Shuei. Enten was renowned for their military strength and weaponry in comparison to Shuei that was known for promoting diplomatic options first instead of warfare. It immediately put them at a disadvantage compared to the other kingdoms; they weren't prepped for a war nor would they be anytime soon if Enten was prepared to invade their borders soon, that put every citizen of their nation from the capital to the smallest of villages at risk.

Midoriya swallowed as his lips parted. "I'll do it."

All Might's bright blue eyes narrowed and he motioned for Midoriya to come closer to the bed. He complied and watched as All Might reached up and plucked a single, long strand of blond hair from his head. He held it up between them both, the single strand of hair illuminated by the flickering lights from the candles to the point that it resembled a thread of spun gold.

"Midoriya, my boy, tell me what it is that you know of my Quirk?"

Midoriya bowed his head, his brows pinched together in concentration as he cupped his chin and pressed his finger against his bottom lip. "Your Quirk can enhance your speed and strength and increase your agility." Midoriya began to mutter as he grew lost in his own thoughts, "Of course, there's not a lot of information surrounding your Quirk and even after being your page for several years I still don't understand the full extent of your Quirk. Though I can only—"

All Might laughed, the sound quickly drawing Midoriya out of his own thoughts. The laughter soon, however, had All Might in the throes of another coughing fit that seemed a little bit longer than the other ones previously. All Might reached out and patted Midoriya's head, his green curls flattening underneath All Might's hand. "You're as brilliant as your mother." The compliment brought a blush to Midoriya's cheeks.

All Might twirled the single strand of hair that he held between his fingers. His brows were scrunched together in intense concentration. He reached out with his free hand and grabbed Midoriya's own in his, he turned the boy's palm upwards and laid the single strand of hair down into the middle of his palm.

Midoriya stared down at the hair in confusion before his gaze flickered back to All Might's face.

"Do you know how the leader's of our country came to govern?"

Midoriya nodded his head. "With no other heirs, on her deathbed, the last queen appointed you as the rightful claimant to the throne."

All Might's eyes burned with an intensity that made Midoriya squirm in his skin. "Is that so? But why?"

Midoriya's gaze shifted to the ceiling as he rooted around his brain for an answer that he had studied during the lessons he had been given from the castle historian. "You were a trusted advisor to the queen...it was a natural choice for you—"

"What if I told you the story you knew to be true was anything but?" All Might interrupted him but didn't let him answer before continuing to trudge on. "It's true I was an advisor to the queen, but I had been placed in that position the very moment it was decided that I would become king."

"Th-the very moment you were to become king?" Confusion branded itself into Midoriya's skin; his eyes narrowed.

All Might nodded, his gaze flickering down to Midoriya's palm. "My Quirk: One for All, has an uncanny ability to it. It can be passed from one person to the next so long as the holder of that power has the desire to pass it on. When I was about your age and roughly in a position befitting your current circumstance I was given a choice, the same choice I am giving you now."

All Might's gazed into Midoriya's eyes, his blue eyes burning brightly as they searched for a flicker of emotion in Midroiya's own green. Midoriya was confused, his lips were slightly turned downwards into a frown as he prepared to open his mouth to say something when the realization of what All Might was now offering to him fell into his lap.

Midoriya's eyes widened and he shook his head, extending his palm outwards to All Might before lowering his eyes. His cheeks burning as he refused to meet All Might's gaze. "I-I can't." Midoriya refused, shaking his head vigorously. "It's too great of an honor. One that I can't except, one that I shouldn't even be given."

All Might reached out and gingerly curled Midoriya's fingers inwards towards his palm. "It is an honor that I wish to give you. Just as it was given to me before when I too thought the impossible was a great distance away from me."

Midoriya's eyes widened, he lifted his head to stare into All Might's eyes. "You were—"He whispered softly before letting his words trail off.

All Might's expression was soft as he nodded. "I was like you once. But now you can have the ability to walk down my path and the path of my predecessors and make it your own."

"Why?" Midoriya whispered.

"An answer that you will have to wait to hear another time. It is late and there will be suspicion if you stay here much longer."

"What will I say when others discover that I suddenly have a Quirk?"

"Say it is nothing more than a late bloom. While they are uncommon they are not unheard of."

Midoriya stared intently down on his closed palm, before uncurling his fingers and tilting his head backwards. He lifted his palm and pressed it against his open lips as he devoured the single strand of hair.

All Might reached out and squeezed Midoriya's shoulder. "Now leave, go home to your mother and return tomorrow as soon as the sun has risen. We have a lot to prepare for and very little time to do it with."

Midoriya nodded before stepping away from the bed and bowing deeply towards All Might. He turned as All Might stared out the open window. The sound of his chambers' door shutting quietly hissed in the room as a gentle breeze rustled the curtains, pushing them aside so that the moon was exposed to All Might's visage.

The moon hung lowly in the sky, slightly bigger and closer to the earth than it had been yesterday. All Might closed his eyes briefly as a gentle wind floated into the room, caressing his face and providing a cool chill that contrasted the feverish temperature of his skin.

He hoped he was making the right decision.