Harsh Tidings

The entire clean-up didn't take longer than thirty minutes. By the tail end of things, Izuku was working up a light sweat underneath his armor, while Katsuki was sweating heavily as he looked down on the corpses he had left on his wake.

The ash blond nearly vomited his guts out as the smell of guts, blood, and burnt flesh permeated through the area, Izuku already long used to the disgusting environment whenever a fight was all said and done. Dropping to his knees, Katsuki stared at his trembling hands, fully digesting the fact that he had just killed not one, not two, but multiple people in just a single sitting.

Now wasn't that a shock for Izuku. Here his tormentor was, horrified at the fact that he had just killed people, when in fact, just months ago baited him to commit suicide by jumping off a roof. Quite a change of scenery, if he must say so himself.

Approaching the ash blond, Izuku sheathed his greatsword – after cleaning it from the blood stains, he didn't want the inside of his sheathe to be dirty – and laid a hand on Katsuki's shoulder.

"First time for everything, huh?" Izuku said but didn't get a response from the ash blond. Sighing to himself, Izuku hoisted him up, Katsuki's knees buckling for a moment before he balanced himself. "Don't let it get to you too much. They'll be back in maybe a few days, probably about a week at minimum."

"... What?" Katsuki slowly twisted his neck to face Izuku, mouth hanging slightly ajar.

"Oh, right. I forgot to mention this." Izuku shrugged his shoulders. "Sometime in the distant past, Queen Marika the Eternal separated the Rune of Destined Death and hid it away… somewhere. Because of that, dying became… less of a permanent issue."

"... What the fuck?" Katsuki looked down at the unseeing eyes of one of the Raya Lucaria soldiers, his helmet blown away to who knows where while his brain matter oozed out of the cracked skull. "You mean to tell me that they aren't fucking dead?"

"Yep." Izuku popped the p. "Now come on, we still need to loot the place. Can't let the stuff they pile up go to waste, now can we?"

"Wh- You're gonna fuckin' loot the damn place too!?" Katsuki's voice was raised a few octaves higher. Izuku raised an eyebrow at the outburst, amusement clear on his face.

"Well, yes. They're gonna go to waste, otherwise." Izuku shrugged and grabbed the closest footman, checking his gear to see if they were worth taking or not. Izuku also managed to find some food that the soldiers had for the road. After all, more food is better than not having food. "They may be mentally degraded people, but they still need to eat. They hunt game regularly and restock their supplies by having one of them go back to Stormveil Castle to resupply. Dunno how that will last, but I doubt it'll end anytime soon."

"Plus, I don't care how much you've trained, you only have clothes, and I doubt a flimsy piece of cloth would fare better against the pointy edge of a steel blade."

"And you're just fine with wearing… a fucking dead man's clothing!?" Katsuki gaped, his red eyes trembling within its sockets. Snorting, Izuku pointed towards his current set of armor.

"I'm wearing one right now. It's been with me for months, and I take good care of it." Snuggling into it for good measure, he managed to hear Katsuki gag at the sight. Snickering to himself, Izuku stripped one of the more intact corpses, just leaving the bare essentials so as to not see a dead man in the buff, and tossed it towards Katsuki. "Here, wear this over your clothes. Barely got any blood on it, and is still in fine condition."

"Hell no! I ain't wearing something from a dead man!" Katsuki roared, disgust welling up within him as he stared at the breastplate that landed on the ground, dirt and grime staining its metal surface.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Katsuki." Izuku clicked his tongue in succession, approaching the ash blond with a disappointed frown. "This is just how it works here, and if you don't want to die a miserable death because an archer managed to hit you in the chest, I suggest you wear it, personal feelings be damned."

Katsuki took a step back, a bit perturbed at Izuku's feeling, and frankly, Izuku could see why. He managed to strike quite a figure, and not to mention his current build. Bear in mind his Zweihander as well, and you have a quite intimidating sight, something that Katsuki would've not seen in person – apart from Yoroi Musha back in Japan, but he was getting on in age, a hero only in title in the current time.

"I… Fuck…!" Katsuki grit his teeth as he grabbed the breastplate, then ran headfirst into a giant problem both the ash blond and Izuku forgot about. "How the fuck do I even put this on?"

"... Ah, I knew I was forgetting something." Izuku snapped his fingers, a sheepish smile overcoming his lips as he approached the ash blond once more. "Turn around, I'll help put it on."

Katsuki obliged and straightened his back. With armor in hand, Izuku got to armoring his unwilling tag-along, no matter his disgust at the act.

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Torrent trotted along a brisk pace, the spectral steed happily munching on some rowa raisins Izuku had offered while on horseback. Katsuki was fidgeting behind him, the breastplate clunking after every hoof. Obviously, it didn't fit his build, what with being a growing teenager and all, so Izuku had to do some remodeling.

And by him, he meant Master Hewg… After coughing up enough runes, of course. Actually, now that he thought of it, how did the Roundtable Hold get their materials anyway? He doubted they just magically appeared from thin air, and with Master Hewg chained to the next to his workplace, it would be rather hard to get out and get some raw materials.

Then again, he wasn't the only Tarnished entering the hold. He did accept weapons for runes, so maybe he buys them from Tarnished that come by? Izuku should probably try and sell some of his gear that he has no use for, get some runes in return so he could strengthen himself more.

Crossing underneath a giant, natural arch, Izuku looked over to the decrepit church that entered their vision. His eyes widened when he remembered a soft-spoken soul sitting depressed in that very church.

Patting Torrent's side, the spectral steed looked up to regard Izuku while he pointed to the church. Acknowledging his master's command, Torrent changed course and headed directly towards the church.

Izuku could sense Katsuki's curiosity at the sudden action, but otherwise was staying silent. Probably still feeling very annoyed and disgusted by wearing a corpse's armor that didn't even fit him.

Izuku was lucky that the armor set he was wearing now fit his current build perfectly. When he first got them, he was a scrawny little teen and the armor was making it hard to move. Luckily, rune strengthening also changed his physical bulk.

As they entered through the open doorway, Izuku spotted a bald man just sitting right next to the church's wall. He looked miserable, dressed in the robes worn by Raya Lucaria scholars. Torrent's hoof clopped against the ground and the bald man turned to look at the sudden visitors.

"Oh, welcome back, friend." Thops gave a derisive smile, eyes downcast once more.

"Hello again, Thops." Izuku dismounted Torrent, Katsuki following suit as the spectral steed disappeared into motes of light. "Been a while since we've seen each other."

"... It has, hasn't it?" Thops still stayed the same, wallowing in his dejection.

"... I have an academy glintstone key." Izuku rummaged through his pack, his altruistic nature coming to light as he looked at the pitiful sight that was Thops. "Would you want it?"

"So you've found yourself a glintstone key…" Thops looked at Izuku with barely restrained hope, but shut it down and immediately became dejected again. "But I certainly can't take it from you. That key belongs to you. By rights, you should use it for yourself."

Izuku stayed silent, knowing that he too, needed the key to enter the academy and head to the tippy top and grab Rennala's Great Rune.

"It's true, I wish to return to my place of study." Thops looked at his hands, smooth and unblemished. "But that's no excuse to impose upon others."

After a brief amount of silence, Thops chuckled slightly to himself.

"Ah… is this why bluntstones always finish last?"

Clicking his tongue, Izuku turned away. He didn't know what to do to cheer up the man, other than finding another academy glintstone key. Sighing, Izuku turned away from Thops and summoned Torrent again, the spectral steed neighing for a bit as he munched on some rowa raising Izuku had offered again.

Katsuki stood by the sidelines, just watching the interaction go by. Even he was a bit perturbed at the bald man, drawing parallels from the Izuku he had bully in the past, if Izuku had to take a gander.

Mounting Torrent, Izuku helped Katsuki up, before facing Thops once more.

"I'll find another glintstone key and I'll send it your way. I don't like seeing you wallowing in despair." Izuku said with finality in his tone. All he got was a weak chuckle from the bald man, but nothing else. "Goodbye, Thops. I'll see you sometime in the future."

"Take care now." Thops said his goodbyes, but otherwise stayed in the same sitting position. Sighing again, Izuku patted Torrent's head and the spectral steed took off with a trot.

Once they were outside of the church, Katsuki saw fit to open his previously clammed mouth.

"Who was that?" Surprisingly, there was no animosity, nor disgust in his tone. Just guilt and a tiny hint of remorse.

"Thops, a student from the Academy of Raya Lucaria, our next destination after I finish my errands back in Limgrave." Izuku replied, eyes scanning the horizon — and the graveyard they passed through — for any hint of threats. "And just because you asked nicely, I'll explain a bit… as much as I can anyway with my limited knowledge on sorceries."

Katsuki remained silent, an occurrence that Izuku was already getting used to.

"They call it Glintstone Sorcery. Basically, what they study are the stars, or the energy coming from it, I think." Izuku pointed to the sky, the sky a warm orange just closing into night. "But instead of a ball of gas, think of eldritch creatures… Maybe not eldritch, but you get the gist of it. They channel the energy and create spells."

"... So… Wizards?" Katsuki concluded and Izuku nodded. It was close enough.

"If you want to learn more, you'll have to ask someone else." Izuku looked at the horizon, the sun nearly setting. Clicking his tongue, he searched for the path that he had known, but not taken, that connected Liurnia and Limgrave, save for the destroyed bridge.

It didn't take long before he found it, and urged Torrent onward. His spectral steed snorted, undaunted by the windy cliffs. And because his spectral steed had such a sense of humor, instead of going slow, like they normally would when traversing untrodden ground, Torrent decided to go fast.

It caused Izuku to yelp, hands furiously grabbing onto the reins, and Katsuki to grip onto his waist for dear life.

"Torrent!!! I swear I'll get you back for this!" Izuku shrieked as Torrent pranked his master, jumping off of the cliff making Katsuki of all people scream like a little girl as they beheld the very long drop, before kicking in the air and landing back onto solid ground. "I SWEAR IT TORRENT!"

All he got was a teasing neigh from Torrent. He nearly popped a vein from the cheeky attitude his spectral steed had, but he didn't want him to toss him overboard, so he had to weather the storm for now.

Torrent's hooves left indentations on the ground, kicking up dust as he rushed through the windy cliffs, his mane swishing through the air. Izuku's furred mantle billowed against the wind as he held on for dear life.

They spotted wolves chilling in their spots, before they saw the running steed. They all growled, ready to pounce and show the intruder what it meant trespassing in their territory.

All they got were thick hooves to the snout and ribs as Torrent trampled them underhoof. He was always a strong mount, managing to tank dragon fire in the worst of times, so seeing him just trample regular animals – actually, maybe strengthened animals since they also have runes, however little – into the ground, it was a sight to see.

Torrent's hooves were caked in blood and viscera, the spectral steed didn't pay it any mind, rushing forward without a care.

The wolves were left behind, some of their pack dying a dog's (ha!) death. The next animals they spotted were eagles just chilling at the edge. When Torrent came close, however, they noticed the disturbance and immediately took flight. Following that were more wolves chasing a deer running for its life. They noticed Torrent, but ultimately ignored the speeding spectral horse for the more defenseless prey, the deer bleating once a wolf managed to pounce on it.

A few more minutes of rushing wind and Izuku calmed down somewhat. Katsuki too, although he still clung onto dear life. Izuku was fine with dying, seeing as he would be revived in maybe a few days, but he wasn't so sure about Katsuki, so protecting him was paramount… At least, protecting him from a stupid death like falling off a cliff because Torrent was feeling mischievous.

And speaking of falling off a cliff, another deer bleated as it lost its footing, the ground underneath it crumbling from its weight because it strayed too close to the edge. Its cries as gravity took hold was a stark reminder that this might've been their fate had Torrent not have the ability to create a platform in mid-air to jump off of.

It took an hour before they were finally past the windy cliffs, a giant collapsed bridge connected to a giant landmass taking up their view. It was just as windy, if not, more so than their previous location, but it was better than possibly falling to their doom.

Scaling the bridge, Izuku dismounted Torrent and glared at the spectral horse. For the equine's part, he did look a bit sheepish, but rather unapologetic. Katsuki too, glared at the horse, but was shown the backside instead.

"You and I will have a long talk about this in the near future." Izuku grumbled, a yawn forcing its way out of his lips. "I'm too tired to do this now, and since you've been running full tilt for nearly an hour now, I think you should get some rest."

Bumping his snout against Izuku's face, Torrent neighed before vanishing into motes of light. Turning to Katsuki, Izuku gestured for him to follow, his face betraying the exhaustion from the adrenaline overload he was forced to endure because of his mischievous mount.

They followed the path and finally found solid ground… or grass since they were walking on stone after a few minutes. To the side, there was also a Finger Reader Crone, but Izuku ignored her. Katsuki looked like he wanted to ask a question, but Izuku shaking his head was enough to dissuade him.

Looking for a good spot to camp, Izuku found one that was surrounded by giant trees, dampening the rushing wind somewhat. Nodding to himself, he rummaged through his bottomless box and grabbed all of his camping supplies, laying them to the ground once he had them on hand.

"Katsuki, help me set these up."

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A/N: Blackouts are fun. Then again, a nearby electric post kept on lighting up like some kind of demented Christmas light and I thought it was gonna go boom and light the entire neighborhood. Good thing the electric company managed to fix it.

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