Chapter 9: Breaking Pedestals

Endeavor's office was brightly lit that night. It was the only room in the Agency that was still lit. In the office were two men. One was Endeavor. Rather than sitting at his desk like he usually did, the muscular hero was sitting cross-legged on the floor. Across from him was an older man with frazzled white hair. In Endeavor's opinion, it almost looked like the sort of hair one would get from licking a power outlet. His attire was a soft red bathrobe over a casual shirt and jogging pants. Judging from his appearance alone, one would not expect this man to be a retired hero, let alone one of the scariest in all Japan.

This man was Bango Renji. In the past, he was the Numerical Hero Arithmancer. A man whose quirk let him keep track of 'lines of probability' that gave him both nigh-prophetic powers and a passion for numbers. He had been the bane of embezzlers and corporate fraudsters for close to three decades before his retirement.

Arithmancer was sitting next to a large pile of folders, but on the floor in front of him were various trinkets and objects. It really did almost look like some sort of mystic fortune reading, with how Bango would toss stuff around and noting how they landed or how many pieces they broke into. While it would have looked ridiculous to a regular person, Endeavor knew better. He sat in silence while Arithmancer did his work. Suddenly, the retired hero grabbed a handful of dice and threw them at Endeavor. The hero blocked the dice from hitting his face, but otherwise did nothing. He knew this was part of how the other man's quirk worked.

"Which die landed in your lap?" Bango asked with a voice that was more energetic than his appearance would indicate.

"A red 20-sided die," Enji replied after looking down.

"Which number is on the bottom?"

"Hold on…17."

"Perfect," Bango smiled before sliding the pile of folders over to Enji. "Here are the results of my investigations. Do what you wish. I have followed the paths, the men who will incur your wrath will be too cowardly to try any reprisal against that man." Endeavor took the top folder and flipped it open. After even a few seconds of reading, Endeavor's face twisted in anger.

"I thank you for doing this. Your payment will be wired to your account by morning."

"And my other price?" Arithmancer smiled.

"...Ah, yes, sorry." Endeavor got up, walked around his desk and opened one of the larger drawers. He shuffled around a bit before pulling out three boxes of cookies. He walked over to the older hero and helped him up before handing over the additional payment. "Would you care to stay at my house for the night? Your home is a bit far."

"...I think that would be best for both of us," Arithmancer smiled, feeling Endeavor could get attacked by a certain burned man if he were alone.

—

Izuku was enjoying his morning in the Agency. He managed to finish his work fairly quickly, which gave him some free time before the afternoon reports came in. It had been a calm week and a half since the whole Ratigan incident, and things had been calm ever since. No more heroics for him, just focusing on his analyses and paperwork. He had also spent the past week helping out the new hire, whom he happened to be having coffee with.

"I still think you have a quirk," Todoroki Rei told her younger superior as she sipped from her own mug. "There's no other reason why Enji likes your coffee."

"Multiple tests, ma'am," Izuku laughed. "I guess I'm just weird." That statement got a laugh out of the Todoroki matriarch.

After spending some time recovering at home, Rei had begun feeling restless. Being confined in a mental hospital for as long as she was left her wanting to get out and do something. It took some work, but she managed to "convince" Enji into letting her come work as a secretary. Nothing heavy nor engaging, but the sort of work to keep her occupied. And in Izuku's opinion, there had been quite an improvement to Rei's mood. Her children also helped that mood boost, though Izuku could only guess what they all did away from the office.

"Well, you're a good weird," Rei smiled. "I really can't help but wonder how much of Enji's good mood comes from your weirdness."

"If you can quantify that, lemme know." Both adults shared another laugh before Izuku's phone beeped. "Oh, Burnin' says I'm needed in Endeavor's office. Looks like Onima's gonna be helping you with your next task."

"Assuming he can say a sentence without turning it into a stuttered mess," Rei giggled.

Izuku shrugged and rushed up to his boss' office. The last few times he'd been called up were for important things, and he had no reason to believe this time would be otherwise. Izuku just hoped he wouldn't be wrangled into some big conspiracy again. One per lifetime was good enough for him. Izuku was sure to knock before stepping into Endeavor's office. The man in question was sitting at his desk, with Burnin' standing beside him like the second-in-command she was. Endeavor's desk was unusually clear, save for one tall stack of folders on his right and a lone folder on his left.

"Take a seat, Midoriya," the Flame Hero gestured to the chair in front of him. Once Izuku was seated, the hero continued, "Midoriya, you've been of incredible service to this Agency. Even excluding the…incredible cases you've helped with, your work in this Agency has been top notch. Your analytical skills are the best I've seen in a while. I took the opportunity to show some of your work to Principal Nedzu of UA, and even he has remarked at your brilliance. He even stated he regretted not realizing it sooner."

"Sir, isn't that a little much?" Izuku nervously chuckled. "I mean, most of my pre-graduation analysis was just a hobby, and-"

"That doesn't matter. You've demonstrated exceptional mental prowess, and such skills deserve to be utilized to their best. As such…" Endeavor slid the lone folder to Izuku. The quirkless man opened it, his eyes widening at what was there. "...it is only right you receive the position you deserve. Sign the bottom of the sheet and you'll be promoted to Senior Analyst, with the pay raise and privileges that come with it."

"S-sir," Izuku nervously chuckled, "i-if you keep bumping my pay like this, I might start earning more than some of your sidekicks soon."

"Don't act like you've done nothing to deserve that." Endeavor was about to say more before there was a knock on the door. "...They're here early."

"Should I tell them to wait?" Burnin' asked.

"No, this involves Midoriya as well," Enji shook his head. "Just pull him aside and they can come in." Before Izuku could offer to relinquish his seat, Burnin' simply grabbed the back of his chair and pulled him away from the desk before setting his promotion forms on his lap. She barely called out to the door before it swung open.

AYE-YAI-YAI-YAIIIIIII!

Izuku froze as the triplets from accounting burst into the room. All three sauntered into the room with their musical quirk blaring. While they weren't strictly disrespectful, they walked like they were important men. The one in the back closed the door and-

"TURN THAT SHIT OFF!" Endeavor angrily roared. Stereo's musical quirk warped to a stop at Endeavor's shout. Gone was the calm, praising hero that was talking to Izuku mere moments ago. In his place was the fiery, wrath-filled hero so many heroes were acquainted with. The triplets' walk was a bit more nervous as they approached the desk.

"What did you need, boss?" Glowstick asked.

"I have some questions about your performance recently," Enji glowered as he grabbed one of the folders from the pile on his right. "According to this report, your accounting work has been flawless recently. Not a number out of place, and you've even found some spots where the agency was able to save money. A noticeable improvement from when you first started." The triplets preened at the words while Izuku curled up a bit. Those were his reports, his work the triplets were being praised for. But he couldn't say that now. Even with everything he'd done, the triplets were here longer than him. They did technically have seniority.

"At least," Endeavor fumed, "I'd be saying that if you actually did this work."

Everyone in the room (save Endeavor and Burnin') stiffened at the words. Even Izuku was in shock. He knew? How did Endeavor find out? As if to answer his unasked question, the Flame hero opened the folder and pulled out two papers. "These two forms were written not even a year apart. The older one has a few calculation errors and messier penmanship than the newer one. Not only that, the penmanship in the newer one matches the writing of our analyst, Midoriya." He gestured to the man in question, and the triplets jerked a bit. Did they not even notice he was there before now? "That leaves a single conclusion. Care to explain why you've been forcing Midoriya to do the work you were hired to do for the past few years?"

"Well," Waves tried to cover, "we've been busy with other work, and he volunteered to-"

"I did not!" Izuku yelled. "You guys would just dump your work onto my desk and walk away!"

"And don't forget I was witness to that a couple times," Kamiji glared.

"As was I," Endeavor glared, making the room heat up a bit. "Care to try again?" As Waves opened his mouth to try some other excuse, Stereo cut in.

"Sir, we're his seniors and he's quirkless. We-"

"Quirkless?" Endeavor interrupted. "Are you saying his quirk status was a factor in your abusing authority?" None of the triplets replied, but it was clear that was exactly it.

Suddenly the room got a lot hotter. Hotter than even his usual "Arizona Summer" heat.

"Gentlemen…are you aware my grandfather was quirkless?"

That was a revelation no one expected. Not many people these days would openly bring up quirkless relatives. Let alone a high-ranking hero like Endeavor. When no one spoke, he continued.

"He was a fireman. One who almost gave his life during the Kyushu Fires. While that was also how he met his future wife, the fact remains he was among the fire crews who stayed behind while many other heroes fled the inferno. Not only that, but his grandfather, my great-great-grandfather, was also quirkless. Would you like to know who he was?"

Silence. Everyone, even Izuku, were too nervous to dare try speaking. Especially with how angry Endeavor was getting with each word. The Flame Hero was a literal conflagration of wrath as he got to his feet.

"My great-great-grandfather was Hamato Yoshi! The Hamato Yoshi! The man who sacrificed himself to kill Ashikage Yobozu, aka the fucking Shogun of Bloodshed! Yes, it was a quirkless man who brought an end to the Quirk Wars within Japan's borders! And here you are, belittling and abusing a man who is just as brave and noble as he was just because he's not a fucking mutant like you are!?" At that point, Endeavor closed his mouth. He stood, smoldering and trying to compose himself. The triplets were shaking in their boots. Kamiji felt Izuku would have done the same had she not gripped his shoulders. Her little reminder that he was not to blame here at all. After a minute, Endeavor took a breath, sat back down, and pulled out three folders from his desk. No one dared speak while he flipped them open, one at a time, and signed the packet each held. When he was finished, Enji stood up (making the triplets jerk back a bit) and walked around his desk. Without a word, he slapped a folder into each triplet's chest, making the men take the folder themselves.

"Effective immediately," Endeavor growled, "all three of you are terminated from my employ with cause. You are not eligible for rehire, unemployment, nor will you receive any benefits ex-employees are usually entitled to. On top of that, all three of you are under arrest for tampering with Agency accounts by forcing Midoriya, who is not an accountant, do your work." He clapped his hands, and the door burst open. Several sidekicks came in, grabbed the stunned triplets, and haul them away. Endeavor took a breath and sat back at his desk.

"Sorry you had to see that. To make it up to you, Midoriya, would you and Kamiji care to join my wife and I for lunch?"

…

"...Midoriya?"

It took both heroes a moment to realize that the stress of the situation, combined with how sudden said stress skyrocketed, caused the quirkless man to pass out.