Hearing a knock, Izuku yelled over his shoulder. "Coming!"

Temporarily setting down the plates he was washing, he took off the wet, soap-kissed rubber gloves and headed for the door. Peering through the peephole, he then opened it with a cheerful smile.

"Frieren-sensei!" His brow quirked up. "Though, why are you here? You usually pick me up down at the parking lot."

She nodded. "Yes, but your mom will be joining the ride." Her eyes, a shade lighter than Izuku's, scanned the room beyond her student. "Where is she, anyway...?"

"She's in the bathroom– Wait, I'll go talk to her." The doorway closed shut as muted footsteps echoed. Patiently standing there while muffled words were shot back and forth somewhere within, Izuku soon returned, this time letting the door swing to its fullest extent.

Being ushered in, Frieren took another glance at the room. To her left, close to a dozen framed portraits were arranged neatly along the upper wall, while the lowest quarter was occupied by a wooden cabinet. These pictures showed off Inko, a much younger Izuku, and... one extra man.

A second passed before she realized that the face, more than likely, belonged to her student's father.

Her gaze was stuck on a particular picture, where the smiles that adorned the family's faces seemed particularly brighter than the rest. The three were huddled around a fire, the orange light lapping at their feet. Tall silhouettes—trees—occupied the background. The dirt a distance away was bathed in an ethereal white, though the moon itself hung beyond the camera's glare.

Abruptly, the portrait beside it lacked the face of the dark-haired father. Not just that, it was like the genuine smiles had been wiped clean off of their faces, replaced only by a fascimile of what once was.

"Sensei?" His young voice called out, jostling her out of her muse.

"Yes?"

"What... What did you tell my mom? Yesterday?"

"Ah. That." She smacked her lips together. "Basically, just your... 'Quirk'. No magic."

He nodded with a ponderous expression. Eventually, though with trepidation, he voiced out the question that's been lingering on his mind since yesterday. "Were you not comfortable, sensei? Are you afraid someone might come after you? If so, I assure you she's more trustworthy than myse–"

She interrupted him. "No, no, it's... it's none of that."

"So why...?"

Frieren went into a bout of silence. Momentarily stunned, Izuku was pulled into her wordless state. Did he do something to offend her, he thought?

When she finally spoke again, Izuku was glad; even if she had changed to a completely different topic.

"That masked Villain from yesterday, the one with mana... what do you know about him?"

"Oh." He nodded. "A little bit. I know that he's called the Messiah, and he had come to the mall looking for some sort of traitor. Though, I have no idea who that... is..." His voice slowly came to a halt, his mind flashing to an oddity on that fateful day.

Yotaro, for all intents and purposes, had been strange throughout. The suddenness in both his appearance and disappearance; the putrid smell that wafted from him—certainly, if he had to choose here and now, the rocky boy would have been his choice.

But he did not have to. And he'd much rather not.

"Izuku?" Frieren said with a tilt to her head.

"...Yeah. I-I don't know who it is. Not a clue."

"Hm. I see."

"Though," He added. "I did get some extra knows from the news this morning."

She perked up, her lips taking on a smile. "Do tell."

"Apparently, this Messiah belongs to a group who call themselves 'Freiheit'. They're an obscure group. Actually, this was their first ever attack near the centre of the city; raids in the outskirts were usually their shtick. They've been doing this for well over nearly a dozen years."

Her face stilled for a moment. That was... long, right? "They were never caught?"

He shook his head, letting out a sigh. "Unfortunately, no. They're a very elusive group. Enough to remain free after so long."

Frieren suddenly snorted. Gaining a questioning look from the boy, she tilted her head with an amused smirk. "No, it's just funny. Their group's name means 'freedom' in German, is all."

"You know German?" Wide eyes accompanied his question.

"Oh." Realizing her slip of tongue, she shrugged. "Yeah... I was born there."

"Well, you do look foreign." A lively voice entered the scene. Izuku turned his head to look, while Frieren merely had to shift her eyes to see the new arrival.

It was a much familiar green-haired woman. Her locks were tied in a bun, while her clothes consisted of a buttoned up shirt and black trousers.

"Pleased to meet you, Inko." The white-haired woman greeted, obvlivious to how a veiny bulge formed on her forehead.

"Yeah..." She shook off her slight annoyance. "Pleased to meet you too, Frieren-san." She said as she led the both of them outside of her apartment. Promptly locking it, she dropped the key in her purse and headed for the elevator.

"We're heading for the Quirk Registry first, right?" Izuku asked.

After a nod from his mother, they made their way to the basement. Two entered the car while the third remained still. Frieren, her feet still on the gravel, gestured for them to go along without her.

"We'll meet up here again in 3 p.m.?"

"1 p.m." Inko corrected from the rolled-down window. "It shouldn't take that long."

Their agreement made, the car was about to leave when Izuku suddenly opened the door slightly. Muttering a quick apology to his irritated mother, Izuku then turned to face his teacher from the slit of the gaping door.

"Frieren-sensei! I... I want to ask. You say you were born in German, right?" Barely waiting for her nod, he continued. "What does it translate to?"

"Cold. Freezing. Something along those lines." She stared at him incredulously. "Why?"

Izuku gave a weird, wide smile, as if something in his mind had clicked. "Nothing." He said as he closed the door, the car soon driving up the slope as it was bathed in the warm sunlight. The sound of grinding pebbles began to fade into the far distance...

Leaving behind a thoroughly confused elf.

The dark asphalt groaned as a heavy object streaked past, though not as quick as it usually was. With the low-hanging mist that filled the roads, she had to drive slow. The radio echoed with conversation.

"Experts predict that the coming months will be accompanied by heavy clouds. Residents of Musutafu can expect rains that may last for hours, even days."

"Ugh." Inko rolled her eyes as the car came to a slow halt in front of a red light. "I need to buy a new umbrella one of these days..."

"Mhm..." He said off-handedly, his attention stuck on the plastic water bottle in his hand. Perhaps after spending hours unattended to in the hot car, the surface felt warm to the touch.

Soon, the pair arrived at the Quirk Registry. It was perhaps a four-story building with drab, white walls. The perimeter had partitions, with the occasional outposts adorned with black-tinted glasses. Parts of the concrete floor had slight protrusions, hiding the turrets that rested underneath.

Banners billowed on the high walls, serving as the only splash of colour to an otherwise purely white building. Written in bold yellow were various sentences, each persuasive, though the bottom line was that they were advertizing internships—paid ones, at that.

It was all covered in a veil, but Izuku knew that a place dealing with Quirk registration needed firm security. Though children may be the ones who frequent here, the nature of Quirks could flip the serene sight into one of chaos.

People tend to learn from the past.

Going outside of their car, Izuku walked first to the trunk and opened it. Slinging his wooden staff—cloaked in a rough cloth—over his shoulder, he followed his mother to cross the street.

A yellow bus honked just outside of the building's gates. Teachers and parents watched in quiet amusement as, not even a second later, an entourage of children excitedly ran inside. Or at least, tried to. Being young did not exempt them from the collared officers in front.

"Next."

At a woman's prompt, Izuku turned away from the scuttling kids and stared at the guard. She flicked her cigarette into a nearby trash can, the dark smoke dissipating as she waved her hand about.

"What's your business?" She asked.

Before Inko could speak up for him, the boy opened his lips first. "I-I want to register my Quirk." He said as he took the folders in his mother's hand and slid them over to the guard, who already had another cig hanging loosely between her lips.

"Hm. 15." She murmured while opening the files. Her eyes stilled for a moment, staring at a single word under the boy's name: 'Quirkless'. Letting out a small sigh, she handed them back their folders alongside a pair of wristbands. "Make sure to wear those."

Nodding, they did as they were told and were about to head past the steel gates.

Before Izuku could follow his mother, however, he felt a tap on his shoulder. It was that same female guard, her eyes barely regarding him.

"Good luck."

"Oh, uh... thanks." He murmured awkwardly. With the woman turning back and yelling 'Next!', Izuku turned on his heels and went inside the building.

Within the waiting room, cheerful laughter ran abound, having spilt from the indoor playground right next to it. Underneath the nigh-unceasing clamor, there were faint whispers that Inko could make out tidbits of.

"–a strong Quirk–"

"I want–"

"–hopefully U.A.–yeah."

The air was almost suffocating, so suffused it was by the collective body heat of everyone here.

She had a hard time staying still, as well. Her knee bobbed up and down, up and down, while her fingers fiddled with the hem of her shirt. Letting her sigh escape, she glanced over at her son.

He appeared calm, even in a place like this.

The boy, just like when he was in the car, seemed to be staring intently at the exact same water bottle in his grip. Any other time, she would have chided him for acting so oddly in a public space, but... staring at his face, so focused and determined, made her hesitate.

She was not oblivious to how much significance this place held for her son, either. And so, her hesitance soon morphed into the decision to simply let him be. At least... until the receptionist called for a number that Inko knew was distinctly Izuku's.

She nudged her son, knocking him out of his meditation. "Izuku! You're up." She whispered.

Hurriedly, he set down the cold bottle of water, hefted up his cloaked staff and made his way—he had to be tugged back by Inko for a moment, as he forgot to take his ticket with him—to the receptionist. Sitting down with pursed lips, he sat down and glanced up at–

"Iida-san?"

The blue-haired student smiled, nodding as he did. "Yeah. I didn't expect to see you here, Midoriya-san!" The boy wore a neat buttoned shirt. Worn on his wrist was a band much like his own, though it was purple and the words 'Intern' wrapped around its surface.

"I... I could say the same to you! Why are you here, anyway?"

"I understand how it could seem a bit odd, but actually, my brother recommended this so I can familiarize myself with the various Quirks in this world. I don't get to do the tests, but during breaks I'm able to watch them. You should do this sort of thing, too."

"Ah... thanks for the offer, but..." His gaze flickered past Iida to the crowd of other young men and women loitering around. "I prefer other places."

"Understandable." Iida nodded, pushing back his glasses a tad.

"On that topic, why didn't you just get a job here?" He asked obliviously.

Hearing this, Iida smirked. "It's basically impossible at my age. The actual jobs here—to be the ones who test the Quirks, jot down their names and users—require you to have work experience for at least 10 years, and I most certainly didn't start working since I was 5."

As his words were met by an amused chuckle from Izuku, he turned back to face his computer screen. The bespectacled boy hummed as he browsed through Izuku's folders, eyes widening. "Oh? You're a late bloomer?"

He stared blankly at him for a moment, but upon the realization that Iida had seen him fight in the mall, Izuku quickly nodded. The interning receptionist whistled. "That's a very rare occurrence." Izuku found himself smiling at the kind remark. "Alright, I'll just process this for a moment..."

While he did that, Izuku tried to initiate some small talk. "So, what kind of tasks can you do as an intern?"

Continuing to punch in a series of words into the computer, Iida chuckled. "Mainly the menial jobs, like cleaning or delivery. I like to shift between tasks. Actually..." He stopped typing for a moment, looking over his shoulder to the crowd. "Seems like she's not here right now, but one of the other interns seeks to go to U.A. as well."

"Oh." He blinked, surprise dashing his face. "What's their na—"

DING.

After that sound from the computer, Iida eyes scanned the data on the screen. "Let's see... you're in Room E-09. Here's the key fob." He said, sliding over a small, circular, bright blue object.

Giving a thankful nod, he stood up and headed over to the designated room. Shifting through throes of people, made difficult by the children running around, he eventually found himself in front of a steel door. Tapping the fob on a square panel beside it, he was greeted by a blast of cool air and a thin smile from who, he presumed, would be testing his Quirk. She had porcelain-like skin and smooth, raven hair, the strands glistening in the light; almost like... a doll, rather eerily enough. Even the way she sat befitted that appearance, what with her straightened back and primly folded arms.

"Welcome, Midoriya-san." The way she delivered that was almost a sigh, even as she gestured for him to sit across from her, which he did. "My name is Momo Yaoyorozu. I'll be the one to test out your Quirk today."

Before Izuku could say anything, she had continued. Her eyes darted elsewhere as she spoke, while her nails were unconsciously scratching the steel desk, bringing the smartwatch on her wrist to his attention. Propped up beside her was a tablet, though the screen was dark.

"You can proceed inside there." She said, pointing to a door barring the one he had just gone through. Beside it was a large glass panel, revealing a purely white room with seemingly no furniture.

Izuku nodded. Standing up, he walked with thinly veiled nervousness. Once inside, he looked back over his shoulder, though the window he saw from before now only reflected his own figure.

Yaoyorozu's voice echoed throughout the room, as if coming from every corner all at once. "Based on what the receptionist sent, it says your Quirk is a water type, no?"

"Oh– yes, yes it is."

"Very well." A moment later, the sound of gear shifting reverberated into his ears. A section on one of the walls opened as a tank of water was laid by a mechanical clamp. On another wall, several wooden targets revealed themselves. "I'm sure you know what to do."

And of course, he did.

Disrobing his staff, revealing the simple wooden rod with a few metal rings looping around the top, he pointed it to the tank. He strung together various strands of water and, as the lines moved like whips—gaining momentum—they all eventually straightened to shoot against the three targets.

As the resulting wisps of mist began to dissipate, Izuku let out a small click of his tongue. He had been aiming for bullseye; instead, they merely struck the edges of the boards. Precisely aiming for those spots would be easy, but it currently required a moderate amount of time and for him to dedicate all his focus. Not exactly practical in a battle.

Yaoyorozu's voice rang within the room once more, breaking him out of his thoughts. "I'll proceed with further tests. Gain a basic understanding of what you can and can't do."

Of course, magic allowed him to do whatever he wished. His imagination and belief would be the only limit.

But that wasn't his 'Quirk', and so, he had to come up with a few things on the fly.

Mainly, he made sure to distinctly show that he can only control water and not every type of liquid. After that was ensured, he demonstrated his inability to pull water from obscure sources such as the very air themselves, plants, etc. That one, in particular, was the truth.

Gotta appreciate the small things.

"I'll be ending the tests soon, if there's nothing else."

Spurred by her words, Izuku spoke, "I have something more I wanted to show." Now, this wasn't part of the script he had talked over with his teacher. But it was something he had practiced on for the better part of the day, along the few hours after the car left their apartment. Although his progress with it has been slow, owing to the little time he's spent on it...

It was enough.

"Oh? Pray tell." This time, a flicker of interest filled the woman's voice.

"I'll show it." Pointing his staff at the tank of water, he willed it to rise and churn in the air around him.

Here it is.

Taking a deep breath, he imagined as the snaking form of the water fell in temperature. The undulating streams came to a slow yet inevitable halt... until they froze completely in the air, a monument of swirling ice.

His smile widened. Sure, it took him longer than he wanted—nearly two minutes—but he was confident in improving in the future. "That's all."

With that said and done, he was told to leave the testing room. Feeling that he did quite well, Izuku walked out of the pure white space with a noticeable pep to his step. As he sat down, he was greeted by a slight nod from the raven-haired woman.

"Unique Quirk." She said simply, her eyes still barely staring at him.

It sort of took the exhilarated wind out of him. Still, he smiled, muttering a genuine thanks.

Her next words cut straight to the point. "I've already changed your status from 'Quirkless', all that's left is to register the name of your Quirk." She then went into an expectant silence.

Izuku sat there, his form still like a calm pond, his eyes fluttered close. He had already thought of a name, of course, but the gravity of his choice — one that, like your own name, could not be changed — basically forced him to at least spare a few seconds to ponder. In the end, he ran with what was already on his mind.

In fact, after his conversation with Frieren this morning, it was already decided. He breathed out, his smile warm as he thought of his teacher.

The elf who brought him hope.

The mage who gave him the key to achieving all he's ever wanted.

"Frozen Sea."

"Very well." Yaoyorozu nodded, typing down the name into the database. "It was a pleasure." She said, standing up and offering him a hand.

Taken aback by the gesture, he nevertheless stood up as well and took her hand. As he did so, he was surprised to feel his skin brush against callous palms.

Just as quickly as she offered it, Yaoyorozu's hand retreated, as if just realizing what she did. Her porcelain face reddened slightly as she sat back down—the only show of emotion he had seen from her so far. "You may leave."

After the affair, Izuku bid his goodbyes to Iida along the way and got back in his mother's car. Sitting beside her as the car thrummed to life, Izuku glanced at the small screen jutting out of the dashboard.

'Half past twelve. Thirty minutes is cutting it close, but we should be able to return in time.' Izuku reasoned in his mind. 'Still, though...' He stared at the buildings in the distance, barely blurring past despite the emptiness of the road.

"Uh... Sorry, can you drive a bit quicker today, mom? I just... don't want Frieren-sensei to wait for too long." He also felt—ever so slightly—irritated that they were going so... well, it wasn't slow, but it certainly wasn't fast enough.

Glancing at her son, Inko felt her brows furrow. "No. Too dangerous." She replied firmly.

"O-Oh, okay." He nodded to her words, hiding the sigh that escaped his lips.

They continued to make their way back to the apartment, almost feeling like a crawl as Izuku continued to watch the minutes tick by.

Eventually, the car rolled down into the isolated space of the basement. Lamps flickered along the middle of the room, leaving the edges enshrouded in complete darkness. Reading the time—a few minutes prior to 1 p.m.—Izuku smiled with satisfaction.

Ushering his mother to join, they made their way up the slow and into the scorching heat of the sun. Cringing, they immediately took shade from the blocky protrusions of the apartment sides.

Soon, they saw Frieren's figure, floating down from the cloudless blue. She landed on the soft grass with nary a noise as she carefully observed them.

"How did it go?"

"It went well." Izuku quickly replied, smiling. "Also, sensei!"

"Yes?"

Barely waiting for that response, Izuku added, "I added something to my mag—" He glanced at his mother, who sat closely. "Uh– I-I mean– I discovered something about my Quirk! I'll show you later."

Curiously quirking her brow, Frieren shrugged. She then turned to face Inko, who was walking closer with a questioning look.

"Where's it located, anyway?"

"A few kilometres away from here."

Inko's form stilled. Did she hear that right? But weren't they in the outskirts of the city already?

"...West?"

"No, east." She said while shaking her head.

Inko gave a dangerous smile, her eyes closed tight. "...Surely, you don't mean it's in the mountains? In the middle of nowhere?"

"It is." Frieren nodded again, blunt.

The mother sucked in a deep breath. "You mean you've been bringing my Izuku out in the wild for the past couple of months?"

"Yeah."

"You absolute—"

"U-Um—!" Izuku stepped up and stood between 3. A soft ding broke through the tense air, repeating at every floor. "It's fine, mom. I don't mind. B-Besides! I want to be a Hero. Can't really do that if I'm afraid of going into the woods, right?"

Inko's eyes, a shade darker than Izuku's, flickered to and fro the both of them. A cragged sigh escaped her chest. "...Fine." She smacked her lips with folded arms. "Let's go then. Just know that I can't possibly bring the car out there; it's not built for off-road terrain." She added.

"It's fine. I usually fly us over there."

For one moment, Inko once again felt her protectiveness bubble up at the mention of that. A single mistake could have led to a plummeting doom, after all. But in the next moment, she recalled seeing Frieren soar about when she saved them.

Saved her son.

Inko closed her eyes, thoughtful. Opening them, she glanced at Frieren with a soft gaze. "Okay. Can you make sure the whole ride's smoothless, however?" Dark-green orbs flickered over at Izuku before returning. "I don't want any accidents."

"I can promise you that."

Hearing her answer, Inko smiled.

With that, motes of light swirled in the empty space in front of Frieren. Her red staff formed, she willed for the wind around them to pick up rapidly. Not a moment later, they rose into the boundless sky.

The fly had been uneventful... well, other than the fearful expression Inko had the entire time.

But uneventful in the way that no fuss was raised after they settled down. The mother, while shaky and her face burning with a lighter shade of her hair, appeared relatively fine after a few minutes. In fact, she even thanked Frieren, something the elf awkwardly accepted.

Inko's gaze wandered around her surroundings, growing wide at the grassy expanse. "This place is... beautiful. Much more so than the city."

"Eh. Cities are more unique." Frieren shrugged at her pointed look.

At that moment, a soft breeze went past them. Inko closed her eyes and soaked it in. The familiar scent of nature wafted into her nose, a scent that no amount of artificial products could replace. It felt fresh. It felt soothing. It felt reminiscent.

"I haven't been in the woods since..." She let out a shaky breath, slowly opening her lids. She said nothing more.

After, they quickly went on to proceed with Izuku's training. While Inko sat on the porch of the quaint cabin, the teacher and student stood amidst the plentiful green blades. Just a few meters away from them was a lake, one that soon churned and shifted into the beauty that is a rising whirlpool.

One that—after a sizable period of time—was immortalized as the whole structure froze. It was now akin to a tangle of serrated blades, a many sharp ice jutting out from every part of the body.

Frieren clapped her hands. "Impressive. How long have you been working on this?"

"Just this morning, actually." Izuku said, beaming. A whistle escaped her lips.

"Very impressive."

"Admittedly, I haven't been able to vividly imagine the change in a short time, but I should be able to progress quickly. Water and ice are not that far apart; that's mainly my reasoning."

"I see." Frieren nodded before tilting her head. She enquired, "Why so suddenly, though?"

Izuku's cheeks flushed hotly. He chuckled, scratching his nape. "N-Nothing... It's just something... personal. Yeah." He said, his eyes flickering up at his teacher.

While her curiosity was not sated, Frieren accepted his words easily enough. If he did not want to divulge his reasoning, then she'll let him be. For now, more important matters await. "Let's start your training, then." She said, her words met with a firm nod from her student.

"As you know, water could be used to quickly evade enemies or shoot high-speed spurts as attacks. It can't form the usual defensive measures, like stone can... but that doesn't mean you've run out of options." She explained as Izuku took out a notebook, his pencil already dancing through the pages.

"Firstly, you can raise a wall of spikes, which is what that Villain you fought used. She was only able to use that because her opponent at the time was that quick-footed Hero. As I said earlier, high speeds need to be a factor in most of your water attacks; it can come from yourself or your enemy."

"Secondly, another way for water to affect its surroundings is by having a large mass. As an attack, quick bursts are more useful against a single enemy, while waves are more useful against groups. As a form of defence, you can use large tides to push away large or particularly thick-skinned enemies who won't just ram themselves into your spikes."

"Of course, you can just use ice now, which is a more effective defense. Now, besides the obvious fact that it will still take you a while to master ice—certainly not in a few weeks—can you tell why I recommend you to still focus on water?"

He cupped his chin, his expression one of thought. After a moment that felt neither too long nor too short, he nodded with the barest of hesitance. "Because I can't find myself imagining that ice could be created out of nothing. I can't just... bring up a glacier out of basically nothing."

Izuku let out a sigh. "I suppose that's one advantage Quirks hold over magic. You don't have to understand it, like how you don't need to know about muscles or bones or joints to be able to move your hand."

Hearing his words, Frieren found herself unable to suppress a chuckle. She was reminded of a woman who used to say things like that...

After it was decided that he would still primarily focus on his water magic—with some ice in the side—they went on to discuss his near-death fight against the water-wielding Villainess. Mainly, it was to take a page out of her book. While Frieren herself had far more to offer in terms of honing Izuku's battle instincts, she was lacking when it came to her student's chosen element. Before they could begin, she had something to say.

"If you're ever in a life-threatening situation, don't hesitate to use Zoltraak. It's very effective against enemies without basic defensive spells; which, in this day and age, would mean everyone else."

"...Well, almost everyone else." Frieren murmured, her eyes narrowing. She was still frustrated that she lost all leads on the Messiah.

The green-haired boy stared at her with a hint of guilt. "If only I had been stronger..."

"Don't." She shook her head, firmly shutting down any hint of an apology. "Never blame yourself for something out of your control."

He nodded listlessly, his eyes still downcast. She stared at Izuku, wondering what she could do to lighten his mood. Seconds went by as the blanket of silence between them stretched longer.

In the end, she could not think of anything.

"Let's continue." She breathed heavily as she looked away.

She raised her staff, allowing thin stripes of water to hover in the air. Since to slice open things they merely needed a constant stream and a high speed, they did not need much width.

Indeed, the teal-haired Villainess's way of attacking proved to be the best.

Hours have gone by since they began their training. The sky, once a radiant blue, had shifted into a warm hue. The dancing grass glowed like golden dust in the face of the light, further adding to the scenery.

Thus, it was a shame that Izuku was all too tuckered out to truly appreciate it.

The boy lay on the floor of the porch, his back resting against the firm wood as he held a bag of self-generated ice against his head. He was in the intermundium of lucidity and drowsiness. She had been particularly harsh in their training today, which was the cause of his current state.

He would inevitably grow used to it. She was sure of that.

When she glanced at Inko, however, she did so with wide eyes. Her face appeared neutral when confronted by the sight of her son's current state.

"You're not going to say anything?"

The mother merely shook her head. "No." Her eyes flickered back to her son, turning soft in spite of herself. "I didn't expect training to be a Hero would be easy. Hisashi... he always came home covered in bruises, back when we were young."

"...Thank you for your trust. His safety... it's my priority."

Inko nodded, accepting her words with a grateful smile. Once again, she looked back at her son, at the sight of the fatigue that began to slowly seep out of his expression.

"Back when you two were training... I saw how he smiled. It was wider than anything I've seen these past few years." She chuckled morosely. "Have I—all this time—been taking away all of his joys?"

"...Likely yes."

Inko's chuckle grew into a laugh, one that was morose and mirthful. "It's always been Izuku's and Hisashi's dream to be a Hero."

Frieren turned to Inko, suddenly curious. "When..." Her words became slow. "your husband... you know... how did Izuku react? Did he take it well?"

That question got her to raise an accusing eyebrow. "Where did that come from?"

"I..." She shook her head, quickly apologizing. "...I'm sorry. I was reminded of someone else I knew."

Inko looked away, huffing as she did. 'Had I been too open with her?' A voice in her head reminded her that she was the one who saved her son's life.

'Still... I'm not obligated to answer her question.' She thought, folding her arms together. 'Especially not that.' Just thinking of it panged her heart.

Clicking her tongue, Inkoabruptly stood up. "Can I use the bathroom?" She asked, looking down on the white-haired girl.

"Sure." Frieren off-handedly said. Just as the greenette moved closer to the door, however, her eyes widened. "W-Wait!"

The elf rushed forward, blocking the door. Inko's eyes regarded her with surprise. Before she could say anything, Frieren beat her to it. "I... I have to clean up some things inside."

"I don't really m–"

"It won't take a while." She firmly stated as she opened the door to step inside. Unintentionally staring through the crack, Inko saw an open door on the other side of the room. Beyond it was a large room, filled to the brim with stacks of aged papers, lines of stone tablets, and–

Then the door closed shut.

Inko could hear the sound of something rushing through the inside of the cabin, followed by the rustles and clatters of objects. When a period of silence came, the door opened to reveal a smiling Frieren.

"You can enter now."

"Oh... okay." She nodded, her expression still confused. "Nothing left to do in there?"

Her pale skin flushed red. "No..." She whispered as she moved to the side, letting Inko enter. The woman continued to follow the greenette through the house, leading her to the bathroom. She only stopped as Inko went in the lavatory.

The room rang abundantly with frightful screams and the sound of something splashing—hopefully, it wasn't what Frieren was thinking of. When Inko stepped out, her face appeared frazzled.

"What the hell is that toilet? It looks like something you'd find centuries ago, works like something you'd find in the modern age, yet it runs on something you'd find in a fantasy!"

Frieren, to her credit, at least had the decency to look sheepish. "I was inspired by a manga I read..."

She sighed, finding the response to be lacklus– "Wait." She blinked. "You built that thing?" When Frieren nodded her head, she let out an amazed breath. "That's... impressive, actually. Good for you."

"Thanks."

With that said, they made their way back unto the porch. Izuku greeted them as they stepped out the door. "Hey– Urk–" He grunted, further pressing the ice bag against his head.

"You still feel dizzy?" Inko asked worriedly.

"Y-Yeah. Kind of."

Frieren nodded. They were already aware of the reasoning behind it, of course. However, knowing that the same could not be said for the worried mother, she elaborated. "To control his... Quirk, Izuku needs to visualize the things he will do. We've discovered that, the closer to reality and the more detailed his imaginations are, his Quirk will act more efficiently... to a degree that, ironically, surpasses reality. Having to constantly do that takes a toll on his mind, however."

"So all of those meditations I've seen you doing were for this?" Izuku gave a shaky smile, essentially confirming her thoughts.

"It's actually something I recommended him to do, Inko." Her words were met with a tense silence, added further by the blank stare Inko gave.

Despite his muddled state of mind, Izuku chuckled nervously at their interaction. "I think my mom prefers to be called with honorifics, Frieren-sensei..."

"Ah." Frieren said simply. She turned to regard Inko. "I'm sorry. Do you wish for me to refer to you formally... Inko-san?"

The aforementioned stared at her for one, long moment before shrugging. "You saved Izuku. You don't need to refer me that way."

"So I can just switch to calling you Inko?"

'What do you mean 'switch'? When have you ever referred to me with anything but?' Inko thought. Outwardly, her reaction came in the form of a strained smile. "Yeah, you can just call me that. It's fine."

With the problem supposedly resolved, Frieren spoke to Izuku. "We should use the rest of our time to simulate what the U.A. Entrance Test would be like. Do you have any guesses so as to what it would be like?"

Izuku pursed his lips, shaking his head. "Unfortunately not. They always shuffle around what's provided for their exams, both the written and the practical ones. It's basically impossible to know what they'll test you on. Last year for example, they came up with a point-based test using robots as the focal point. Who knows what they'll do today?"

"I see..." Frieren murmured, biting the skin on her thumb. "Then it would be best to train you on all fronts. I'll include training against crowds, enemies closer to you in strength, and enemies far stronger, as well. I'll mix up the elements I'll use too. As the final nail in the coffin, I'll either make sure you're away from large bodies of water or nearby them. Depends on my mood.

"Bottom line is that this will be very harsh, so it's best if we don't waste any time." She explained. "Let's go."

His eyes widened, a sense of primal fear quickly filling them. "A-Again? So soon?"

Hearing these words, a seed of suspicioun began to sprout inside of her. She nudged Izuku's sitting form with her foot, managing to feel just how tense his muscles were. "What's going on? Your body shouldn't be this tired." Her eyes narrowed. "Unless... you haven't been doing the homework I told you to?"

Izuku chuckled nervously. He tried to look anywhere else, though that didn't help him escape the sharp stab of her gaze. "Um... W-Which one do you mean...?"

"Your mana has grown much. It's not that. But your body," She snorted. "you haven't been following the book I gave you?" Izuku did not say anything but he did not need to. His silence alone was already enough of an answer for the strict elf.

"Why?"

After a few seconds of the silence prolonging itself, it soon drew its last breath as Izuku opened his lips. "D-Don't get me wrong, it's really effective. My body has grown stronger than what I thought possible but... I don't think it'll assist me much as a Hero. It won't give me superhuman strength out of nowhere."

Hearing those words, she was left without any room for retort. Inwardly, even if she knew he was right, her face couldn't help but crumple into a creasy expression. "Stark made a great book."

Izuku said nothing. While he noticed her darkened expression, he didn't know what could have possibly brought that to the surface. How could he possibly do?

It was at that moment did he truly realize just how little he was truly familiar with his teacher. He knew of her antics, of course, but what of her past? Her dreams? Frieren was aware of his; the same could not be said for Izuku.

Faced with that realization, he bit his lip in thinly veiled regret. Before he could extend his stay in that self-deprecating pit of his, Frieren sighed.

"...But it's true that the book I gave you was meant for the beginner stages."

"Only that?" Izuku blinked, surprised. "What happened to the later books?"

"They were gone. All of them." She said as her jaw tightened. "Not just his either."

"Whose else?" The boy instantly found himself saying. Frieren opened her mouth, as if about to answer, only to shut down at the next second.

With that, she gestured for Izuku to begin their training, and he did. The sky had turned jet-black when they finished.

Izuku stood in front of the pristine, thick gates of U.A., a sense of firmness attached to his spine. The morning sun burned especially bright, as if cheering him on.

This was the time. Finally, after months and months of gruelling effort, he found himself on the very first steps of his road to become a Hero. Sucking in a deep breath, he grinned, took a step forward...

And subsequently tripped.

As he was about to right himself, he felt two hands impacting his body. Glancing to the side, his eyes widened when they came in contact with bespectacled eyes. "Ii–"

Suddenly, before he could even utter the boy's name, a feeling of weightlessness fell over him. He could see a faint pink hue cover the edges of his skin, causing him to float up and hit the roof of the gate.

"S-Sorry! I'll get you down from there!" A girl's voice broke through the layer of laughter that had begun to echo from the surrounding test-takers. As he felt his weight return to the ground, he turned to face the hastily apologizing girl. "I'm really sorry! I didn't think you would've been caught by Tenya-kun!"

"A-Ah, it's fine." He said, feeling himself blush a little as he regarded the girl. She had brown hair cut in a shoulder-length bob, similar-coloured eyes, fair skin, and a vividly red blush to her cheeks.

"Anyway," The girl's gait brightened. "you're Tenya-kun's friend, aren't you?"

"Oh– Yeah, yeah, you're right. I'm Izuku Midoriya. How about you?" He asked.

"Name's Ochaco Uraraka!" The newly named student chirped. "I was Tenya-kun's co-worker in the Hero Registry. Did he tell you that?"

After a short few seconds, green eyes lit up with recognition. "Oh! True, I did hear him mention that one of his co-workers wanted to get into U.A. as well. Though, he hadn't had the chance to tell me their name. Or, well, her name."

As the two continued to chat, Iida's cough broke their self-imposed clamor. It was a much needed one, considering that... "We're blocking the way. We should continue our talk while we make our way inside."

Nearly at the same time, Izuku and Uraraka twisted their necks to the side. A rather large crowd had started to build up, their faces riled up with annoyance. Hurriedly, they scurried away towards the tall, gleaming figure of U.A.'s main building.

However, it wasn't their fate yet to enter the kernel of the institute. A series of signs led them to another structure in the distance. It was comparatively small but it still stood at a height of around 3 floors, each 4 meters tall. A large hallway led them to a mahogany door, worth more than half of the building's height.

It was then that Izuku froze in place, his jaw hitting the floor. His two companions stared at him with odd expressions as they followed his gaze.

"T-That's..." He blinked, his heart beating quickly.

"What's gotten into you?" Iida asked. To his side, Uraraka nodded, having the same question.

"Him!" He gestured subtly—certainly not pointing—to a figure drenched in a trench coat, standing right beside the door. His legs were thin, like the spindly limbs of a stool. His skin was of an odd black, glinting in the dim light of the passage, while yellow lines ran up his neck and bundled in the form of a jawguard alongside thick mufflers on his ears. His eyes were thin and held no pupils.

All-in-all, the man's appearance was not exactly that of a human. But they knew better than to judge someone based on that.

The pair, despite Izuku's gesture, still did not seem impressed. They spoke up at the same time.

"Sorry, but I don't think I've ever seen him. Is he a Hero?"

"Oh, him. Yes, Ectoplasm-san has visited my house a few times."

That got Izuku and Ochaco both to look at him, their eyes wide as if staring at an alien. A one-on-one meeting with a Pro would have been impressive enough, but to have them personally go to your abode? That was on another level.

'Though...' Not that Izuku thought about it, it was likely a daily occurrence for the Iida youngest. 'His brother is Ingenium.'

After the frenzy of Tenya's words died down, the trio walked past the door. The enclosed space widened into an expansive room with natural light spilling from the windowed roof. On several high points along the walls were open windows, letting fresh air blow into the students noses.

However, his gaze was immediately drawn to the dozens upon dozens of desks littered in an orderly manner throughout the space. A few students had already seated themselves while others stood near the outskirts, crowding with those who wore similar uniforms.

His observations had to take a hold as the tall, mahogany doors closed. Ectoplasm entered, splitting into a litany of clones, and his voice, now a choir, bounced along the walls. "Everyone, please sit down. The test will soon begin."

When the students shuffled—their steps meshing like a stampede—all the seats were occupied without a single one being vacant. Their forms were rigid, stiff—an unintentional byproduct of the nervousness brought upon by their own minds after realizing that this was the single biggest test they've ever taken.

"The test will cover various mandatory subjects. It will start at 7 a.m. and end at 1 p.m. In between subjects, there will be no breaks, so be ready.

"Also..."

When the papers were handed out and a collective groan left the students, as if a resignation of their souls, Ectoplasm smiled sadistically.

"All of the questions are essays."

Izuku plopped down onto the nearby bench, his face pale. To his sides, Ochaco and Iida were left in much of the same state, though the latter seemed to still be holding a look of decorum... barely.

At this time of day, the sun scorched the earth hotly. Izuku sighed, not looking forward to the Practical Test being done at such a searing hot time. Or did U.A. intend for it to be this way?

"When's the Practical?" Uraraka asked—more like wheezed—to no particular person.

In the end, it was Iida who first answered. "It will be done an hour after the Written Test, so some time around 2 p.m. Likely, the bus will pick us up at least 30 minutes before so..." Glancing at his wristwatch, Iida tilted his head. "They should be here in 4, give or take."

Ochaco let out a long groan.

Izuku chuckled at her antics. He then looked back towards the crowds of students that were splayed across the space. They were on a plate of concrete, spanning dozens of meters to every side, while a fountain sat comfortably in the middle. A lush garden surrounded almost every part of the circle, the only exception being a slight downward slope that led to an asphalt road within U.A.'s grounds.

While waiting for the remainder of his time to tick, Izuku pondered the nature of the Practical Test.

Earlier, right after the intense Written Test, Present Mic had almost immediately entered the hall to describe the specifics.

Mainly, was that the test would be in the form of a rescue.

When Izuku heard that, he inwardly—and, honestly, outwardly as well—panicked. He had never trained for a rescue situation with Frieren!

The moment he walked out a few minutes later, he had instantly dumped his face into the cold fountain. He ruminated over what he had heard.

The test would put him, alongside a collection of other test-takers, in a situation with multiple hostages spread out and a veritable army of robotic Villains. His task was self-explanatory. There was a checkpoint on every corner of the rectangular site, where you can give the rescued hostages to be administered your points. The scores would be decided on whether or not you can save the hostage and the subsequent success of that endeavor. Bonus points would be given if you defeated the group of Villains after.

That was that. No more information was given, whether they liked it or not.

Even now, he could still hear the whispers wafting from the others.

"I still don't like it."

"I mean, it doesn't matter whether or not you do."

"Not my damn point! I never had the chance to properly train my Quirk. How the hell am I meant to do this?"

"Well... true. I've heard that some gyms allow you to train your Quirk in advance, though?"

"You mean Hero Gyms? Dude. Those are insanely expensive!"

At that point, Izuku had turned away from the crowd. He glanced at his two companions, a sharper gaze giving him more insight into their minds. While Iida did appear exhausted, it was more due to the Written Test than anything else, while Uraraka... she seemed to be staring off into the endless blue sky, as if a mist floated within her brown eyes. He felt his heart tugged by her expression.

'No, it's not time to worry for them.' He shook his head. 'I just have to trust in their ability. I still need to worry for myself.' He thought, green orbs now scanning the groups.

He took a deeper look into the congregation. He spotted a purple-haired boy, nestling his lonesome figure into a dark corner. A small distance away was a floating set of girl's uniform, seemingly shifting along the outskirts of a small group. There were also various intimidating students, their bodies morphed drastically by mighty Quirks.

These were his competitions.

His musing was broken as the loud honks blared in the distance. As his—and everyone else's—gazes were drawn to the black road, they saw a line of buses rolling towards them. Already he could see many students shuffling forward, eager to be among the first to enter.

His steps were slow as he walked over to Iida and Uraraka. Izuku gestured for them to follow; they were on the same bus, after all. Iida nodded and stood up, followed by a rather lethargic Uraraka. They made their way onto the bus in silence.

"So," Iida breathed. "should we work together?"

Ochaco blinked, as if surprised by the proposition. On the green-haired boy's part, he nodded curtly. As the other two stared at her, she eventually bobbed her head as well.

Given the green light, Tenya smiled. "I've been trained in the local Hero Gym, and occasionally, I've practiced with my brother, as well. Though rescue operations aren't my strong suit, I think I still have a lot to offer."

"Way more than me." Izuku chuckled, followed by a thinly smiling Uraraka.

"Yeah. I'm... interested in rescues, but uh..." Her face flushed. "my limited knowledge about it came from the internet." The Midoriya nodded. He was much in the same boat.

"So we'll be doing a Hero team-up?" The other two joined him in smiles. "I see. Thank you."

His voice lowered into a whisper. "As the first step, let's get to know each of our Quirks..."

They stood in front of a steel gate, connecting a loop of similarly tall walls. Right beside the entrance was a large, bronze attachment numbered 'A'—their testing site. Towering even above the ring were concrete buildings scorched under the sun; the sun's kiss had an effect of colouring the otherwise monotonous titans.

Staring silently at the grey-skinned titans peeking from above the wall, as if a representation of the sheer cliff he would have to scale to enter U.A., Izuku let out a nervous breath. To his sides, his friends watched the looming city with much of the same nervousness.

In what felt like a snap of a finger, the speakers boomed out a familiar voice.

"Evening, ladies and gents! I'm sure you're all very excited, but let me run you through some precautions." Present Mic spoke before listing off a few things. Mainly regarding the rules on attacking or sabotaging other contestants in any way.

After that was soon over with, the steel gates slowly cranked open. A tense silence filled the crowd of teens.

Izuku gulped. When should he go? When will Present Mic announce the start? When—

Suddenly, a small distance away from him, a purple-haired boy rushed forward. He did so alone; an outlier amidst the other's still forms. And then, like a cold bucket of water, Present Mic's voice finally blared.

"What are you all doing? Get off your asses and go, go, go!"

The world around him exploded into a loud pandemonium. Biting back a curse, he then suddenly felt something push against his back right before the world became a kaleidoscope of colours.

When he finally slowed down—he was now surrounded by the concrete jungle on almost all sides—he turned to find Iida, breathing heavily. To his side he saw Ochaco, her brown hair frazzled and her eyes wide.

"T-Thanks." Izuku said, already able to guess what he did for them.

"You're welcome. Now, we must... Hm?" Still breathless, Iida turned as he noticed Uraraka walking away. The other boy's eyes followed her as well.

Holding her palm against a wall, Uraraka buckled to her knees. She gagged then puked, liquid and solids alike splattered onto the concrete alley. The boys looked away.

Soon enough, Ochaco returned to them. She gave Iida a fierce glare. "Never. Do that. Again."

Iida's face reddened as his hand came up to scratch the back of his neck. "S-Sorry..." He whispered. Izuku let out a chuckle at their interaction; perhaps it was due to the frequent flights he's taken with Frieren, but he did not feel as dizzy as Uraraka.

He clapped his hands, drawing their attention. "We need to be quick. There's no telling when the other contestants will join in." He said, to which his impromptu teammates nodded.

"But where are the robots?" Uraraka said, looking around the city.

"This place seems far too desolate." Izuku added.

Taking a moment to survey the area, Iida was the first to shed a few ideas. "In the gym I go to, the coach said that Villains often hide beneath the radar. Especially if they have hostages. Perhaps the same situation is applicable here?"

"Oh! True." Uraraka nodded, though her face quickly gained a worried look. "But that seems oddly advanced for beginners..."

Iida nodded, understanding her point, but he quickly waved his hand in a placating manner. "I've learnt a few procedures to help flush out Villains during this time. We'll be fine."

'But what of the other contestants? The ones who don't have someone like you?' Izuku thought for a moment, his brows furrowing. 'It hardly seems fair.'

Still, it was best not to linger on those stultifying thoughts... least of all in the middle of a test.

As Iida led them to spots he suspects could be used by the robotic Villains, the freckled boy made sure to flare up his mana, attempting to locate the machines that way. But of course, his effort bore no fruit.

While natural mana permeated every being, every thing, it was a shared wealth. Only living beings had the privilege to make mana something that belongs to them and only them.

So, even if his small search was useless, he didn't mind much. Besides, he could still flare it occasionally to make sure if any other test-taker was nearby. On this end, he was their scout...

And yet, even he was unaware of the small machine scuttling nearby, following the boy with its red gaze...

A gaze that was undoubtedly permeated with mana, thin as it is.

I realize that, perhaps, this was the longest time I've taken to update the story. I am not satisfied, of course.

But the fact of the matter is that I still have issues with procrastination. My progress in wiping it out has been slow, but hopefully, inevitable.

Even if this story takes a long time to update from time to time, I promise I'm trying to be better with my time management, and I promise I won't ever willingly abandon this until it's finished.