Izuku opened his eyes, his dull, green eyes staring into a dusty old ceiling. Pushing energy into his arms, he slowly propped himself up, a light groan escaping his lips. Stretching his limbs, he rolled his neck and looked around, noting that this was the same room where he found the last Site of Grace. One thing he immediately took note of was how lived in the room was. There was a makeshift bed in the corner, with some clean empty bowls sitting right next to it.

He hummed, crawling forward to inspect the objects that garnered his curiosity. Grabbing one of them, he held it up to his eyes, his brows furrowing at the sight of a Japanese character engraved at the bottom.

"This is mine alright. Now where the hell are they…" Izuku murmured to himself as he set it down, eyes roaming around the room in search of clues as to where his companions had gone, only to hear some footsteps coming from the outside.

Gripping his zweihander close, he readied himself for a sudden engagement, only to spy some ash blond locks peeking out from the corner. Lowering his arms, he waited for the two to come into view, and a smile graced his lips as he saw them talking to each other animatedly, only for them to stop when they saw him sitting on the ground.

"Fucking finally! You're back!" Katsuki barked as he stepped close, Melina not too far on his trail.

"Yep, I'm back." Izuku stood up, his hands going up to his helmet to take them off. "How long has it been?"

"Three days." Melina was the one who answered.

"Well, it's not that bad, all things considered." Izuku shrugged and he looked at Katsuki. "So, what were you up to while I wasn't here?"

"This." It was then Izuku noticed what was in Katsuki's right hand. How had he not seen that? The ash blond raised the staff and the glintstone gem on the top glowed. He then swung it down, a blue glowing projectile launching from the gem and straight into the wall. The projectile shattered into crystals, vanishing amidst the air as they floated slowly to the ground.

"... What the fuck? You actually learned how to use spells?" Izuku raised an eyebrow at the spectacle.

"No shit." Katsuki huffed, arms crossed as the staff laid in his grip. "Took a while to learn how to do this shit, and even then, I can only do them, I think… Four times before I start to feel a bit dizzy."

"Well, color me surprised then." Izuku let out a low whistle. "I mean, I know that I have the possibility to do what you do, and even more because of my… special circumstances, but props to you for learning the most basic spell in three days."

"... I don't know whether you're being sarcastic or sincere." The ash blond narrowed his eyes at him but shrugged right afterwards. "Not like it matters. I've got fucking magic!" A smile graced his lips as he stared excitedly at his staff.

"By the way, where did you get that?" Izuku asked Melina, who just pointed towards his bottomless box that was sitting right beside the bedroll. "Oh, right. Forgot we actually took some of those lying around the academy."

"Please don't tell me you forgot some things during the time you were dead." Katsuki stared at him, a natural deadpan forming over his face.

"I do forget some things, but mostly inconsequential matters that don't really need my attention." Izuku pointed at the staff Katsuki was holding. "Like that staff. You think I'm going to use it when I'm using another form of power?"

"... Point." Katsuki acquiesced at the words. "But why get them at all if you're not going to use them?"

"I have a bottomless box. That doesn't get filled no matter how many things I store inside." Izuku curled an eyebrow at the ash blond. "If that isn't grounds to hoard as many things as I can, I don't know what is."

"... Point again." Katsuki grumbled, clearly agreeing with the sentiment. "Anyway, now that you're back, what do you plan on doing?"

"Same thing I died trying to do, kill that damned wolf blocking the way to the top." At the memory of that giant, red wolf, his eyes screamed bloody vengeance. Sure, he didn't hold a grudge whenever he died, but now that he was trying to take responsibility for Katsuki's life, dying so often wasn't on the table.

"Wait… There's a giant, fuck off red wolf blocking the way?" Katsuki raised his eyebrows at the sudden revelation. "How big?"

"The size of a small car, maybe a bit larger." He could remember the being clearly, as well as the moment he died. He wouldn't get caught off guard a second time.

"Motherfucke- are you shitting me?" When Izuku's face remained serious, Katsuki gulped. "Fuck… You're not shitting me…"

"Yep, so it would be best for you to wait here again. I won't be long this time." Izuku turned to the passageway that would lead deeper into the academy and into the room he had just died in. "Don't worry, I won't be dying this time."

"But if you did?" Katsuki leaned on his staff with a dull look on his face.

"Then you'll just have to wait… Again…" Izuku knew he was risking Katsuki's safety with his decisions, but there wasn't any other way up. He sighed for a bit, then hefted his zweihander to his shoulder. "Okay, I am not going to lie, there is a chance I'll die again, and if that happens, just continue whatever you two were doing when I was still mingling in the non-afterlife."

"Quite." Melina spoke up as she rubbed her fingers across the surface of a tome she had in her hands. "I had never frequented Raya Lucaria much in the past, but after studying the various scattered books in this place, I admit, it has gained my curiosity. Especially this form of sorcery they have."

"They draw their power from the moon, right?" Izuku asked and surprisingly, Katsuki was the one who answered.

"Eh, mostly. Some texts say they draw it from celestial bodies, so maybe they can also do it from the other stars, but the moon is the main source because it is closer?" Katsuki ended his sentence in question, unsure of the claims he was making.

"How'd you read the books?"

"I didn't. Melina read them to me." The ash blond pointed towards the brunette. "Anyway, thing is I don't know how and why it works, but it's working so fuck yes."

"Fair enough." Izuku shrugged then turned to move. "Anyway, I have something to do before I go. Don't want to fight the wolf with holes in my armor, now would I?"

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Making some rudimentary repairs on his armor wasn't that much of a hassle. The crafting kit, which also doubled as a maintenance-cum-smithing kit for his weapons and armor when he didn't need Master Hewg's services to patch up his banged-up armors, was a godsend for the repairs.

Once he was done, which took about half an hour, with Katsuki and Melina busy studying one of the tomes on the side while he did his work, he donned them without an ounce of trouble. Checking to see if his gear needed any more repairs, he nodded to himself, happy at the outcome.

"Alright, I'll see you in a bit. If I don't return in… let's say three hours, then assume I'm dead again." His feet started guiding him to the passageway, before he stopped and turned back to face the two others in the room. "By the way, how'd the reception treat you here while I was away?"

"Eh, same old. I just knocked them out and ran back here. Melina helped, of course." Katsuki glared at Izuku. "By the way, you didn't tell me that they couldn't come into this room… Why?"

Izuku glanced at the floating Site of Grace, the thing that only he and Melina could see because Katsuki wasn't Tarnished.

"I have no idea." And when Izuku said that he meant it. For some reason, none of the hostile creatures that roamed these lands approached a Site of Grace, unless they were actively chasing something that was running towards said site. It confused Izuku a great number of times, but he just got used to it.

Seeing no point in talking more, he stepped out, already thinking about the wolf and how to deal with its bullshit magical attacks, only for a blade to whistle past his head. Instinct took over, and he jerked back just in time to avoid getting his helmet split open.

"You!" The swordsman-sorcerer yelled as he got into a stance. "I will not let you, nor your friend – wherever he is now – humiliate me again! Prepare to die!"

"Ah, right. I forgot you're all awake." Izuku sighed at that. Oh well, at least he'll be able to get a warm-up before the big fight.

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The fights leading up to the giant wolf was indeed enough of a warm-up to get his blood pumping. Now that Katsuki wasn't here, he wasn't that much held back in his attacks because he had to protect the ash blond at the same time. Of course, since they weren't the same insane and probably emotionally dead beings that roamed this land, he made sure to just knock them out instead of killing them.

He really didn't like killing sentient people unless they deserved it.

Now in front of the fog wall, this time, he made sure that his Flask of Wondrous Physick was full and fit for the scenario at hand. He gulped the liquid down and felt his strength surge. Packing it back in his pack, he placed a hand in front of the fog and pushed his whole body through.

Now on the other side, a grin formed on his lips, his eyes glaring at the giant, red wolf that looked like it was still licking its wounds from the battle he had three days prior. Although, looking closer, they were just scars and it had already healed everything he had dealt to it.

That wasn't a surprise to Izuku. In fact, he expected this. The scars looked cool, though, especially the scorch marks that gave its fur a more intimidating feel.

Not that he felt any fear.

"Round two! You giant fleabag!" Izuku howled and quickly let the power of the dragons course through his left arm, a spectral dragon arm forming over the limb. The wolf growled in response and summoned homing blue swords that soared through the air, all of which Izuku had no trouble dodging.

His boots skidded across the ground and kicked up dust, all the while the wolf growled and conjured a fiery sword as it leaped high into the air. Izuku, sensing the incoming attack, backpedalled at the last second, avoiding the slam as it tore chunks of the ground out like a geyser. The bits of concrete and bricks slammed against Izuku's armor, but it didn't bother him.

Instead, he raised his dragon arm and let the claws rend the wolf's face in the opening it presented. The wolf howled as sharp claws raked against its snout, its giant body recoiling at the flare of pain.

Izuku's dragonclaw vanished, but he wasn't done yet. Summoning the power of dragons into his head this time, he let out a mighty dragon roar, shaking the venue to its core. Heat travelled up his throat as he pointed his snout directly towards the wolf still recoiling in pain. Opening his maw, he let loose a barrage of flame the wolf had tasted once already.

The smell of scorched flesh entered his nose and Izuku could tell that the wolf was enraged. It bounced all over the room, making it a bit hard for Izuku to try and get a hit on, which was made even harder when as it bounced around, it conjured dozens upon dozens of glintstone swords that were sent flying his way.

He raised his sword and yelled in defense, the spectral dragon head all but vanishing as the first of many glintstone swords approached. He smashed the first one with his zweihander, dodged the second, and parried the third. From there, it was a deadly dance between beings far beyond mortal strengths. Glintstone swords sent at subsonic speeds, zweihander swung with the force of a thousand warriors, all the while the room held strong even with the various amounts of cracks it endured.

In the end, Izuku got the last laugh, his blade cutting through the neck of the red wolf as it overstretched its boundaries, the large canine whimpering one last time before its body collapsed to the ground, blood pooling near the fatal wound.

Heaving a sigh, Izuku fell on his ass, a bit winded from the fight. He shouldn't have died in the first fight. Hell, he knew for a fact that this thing wouldn't be able to beat Godrick. He was just caught off guard from the sorceries and his overly cautious nature during his first encounters with beings like these.

Approaching the corpse, he noticed something within the dismembered head's maw. Crouching down, he inspected its teeth and found something stuck between its canines.

A memory stone. That is… quite confusing, but otherwise, a welcome addition to his growing power.

Tucking it inside his pack, he felt the runes that converged within the wolf go straight to him, eyes widening at the sudden influx.

"That's… a lot of runes…" Izuku hummed to himself as a smile nearly split his face in half. To be fair, since the wolf had killed him prior, his runes had been absorbed by the wolf, so he also got the runes he lost back after exacting revenge.

Turning away from the corpse, he looked at the lost Site of Grace that had appeared once he had finished his fight with the wolf. Hovering a hand over it, he felt the warmth spread through his entire body as the battered room lit up with its glowing light. Kneeling before it, he decided to just take a rest before going back to meet up with Katsuki and Melina.

They could stand to wait for half an hour. They could afford him that much after a fight this intense ever since that last dragon he fought.

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A/N: Good news on the MRC front, went 9-1 and we went past closed qualifiers into double eliminations. But now, my team are doing daily (mostly) scrims so, yeah, still very busy.

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