2

Blessed with a Hero's HeartMagnus9284Chapter 2: First Steps

Notes:

Magnus: At the moment of starting this chapter, the Druid had won by just a slight margin, so, we are having Druid Izuku!

Disclaimer: Oddly enough, Druid was one of the concepts I had toyed with while planning this fic, so I guess it was a good thing that class won when it did.

Edit: This chapter was Beta'ed by Vandenbz

)

Chapter Text

The first steps

When Izuku regained his ability to see, the first thing that filled his vision was the sight of a rural town; carts with different items were being pulled by horses in the streets, people with rather simple clothing walked at the side of the road, and the houses didn't strike him as being made with modern techniques. Izuku took a deep breath to try to taste the pure air that such a place was supposed to be blessed with, but instead his nostrils caught the smell of horse excrement and dirt, with a little bit of grass mixed in… he guessed he would have to be outside the town to get the so-called pure air.

"This looks peaceful; I guess we need to…" Izuku started to talk to the goddess that had come with him, expecting some guidance for this new world, and his task to bring peace to the people… then he was violently taken by the shoulders, courtesy of a hysterical blue-haired girl.

"WWWWAAAAAAAHAHAAAAAAHH!" Aqua loudly cried in despair, shaking Izuku for all she was worth; her face and voice were full of fear, and by now, Izuku could tell that people were staring at the scene they were making.

"STOP IT!" Izuku shouted as he lightly gave a karate chop to her head. The blow wasn't strong enough to actually hurt, but Aqua stopped and held her head in surprise, looking at the boy with big watering eyes.

"Now, keep calm and breathe; I know you didn't intend to leave your place in heaven, but it was by your wording that you had to accompany me. Now, we are in this together, and together we'll find a way to complete this task. I'll become a hero, and you'll return to heaven, ok?" Izuku summarized their situation, giving a bright smile that the goddess found almost sickening, yet she couldn't fault him.

"Ok." Aqua finally replied with a downcast glance, knowing very well that she had sent countless people onto this path, and none had been able to get far from the starting point.

"Good! Now, tell me where to go first. There has to be a place where we can find clues on where to start, or somewhere to get recruited into the army or group intending to fight the Devil King, right?" Izuku elaborated, asking the goddess for directions and guidance; Aqua was beyond annoyed by the bright eyes of this boy, but she wished to be able to tell him what he wanted.

"Why should I know that?" Aqua answered, trying to not sound as upset as she truly was. Her despair was mired with anger, as she never expected setting foot on this backwater world.

"Aren't you a goddess? Gods are supposed to hold infinite knowledge, or at the very least, know how the world works… I mean, you made it look like you knew everything about this world when you were telling me to jump in." Izuku explained his reasoning, and Aqua had to admit that she may have twisted the impression she was giving… not that she would ever say that out loud.

"I am a goddess! You can't expect me to know every little detail of every place in this world; this tiny city has nothing of interest at all." Aqua replied, earning a dumbfounded stare from the potential hero.

"What you are telling me is… that you send people here without really knowing any details yourself?" Izuku asked, wanting with all his heart that the goddess before him would answer in a way befitting her station, but he was met with disappointment when she gave a simple nod with honest eyes.

"I… need to ask for directions." Izuku said while dropping his head in defeat. It didn't take long for him to find an elderly woman who looked tired while carrying a load of firewood. Putting a cute smile on his face, he approached her to offer his help, leaving a confused goddess to follow him out of fear of getting lost.

A couple of hours later…

"See? We are now on the correct path; we'll surely find answers in the adventurer's guild." Izuku said as he and Aqua entered the large building. The interior was quite well decorated with skulls and finely crafted woodworks. The tables off to one side confirmed the information about the establishment doubling as a tavern, and booths filled the remaining space, meaning that the busty lady behind the counter would surely hold answers to their many questions.

"Did you really have to help all those people? We could have been here ages ago if you had asked just a quarter of them." Aqua was quick to complain. Sure he got the proper directions, a few pieces of bread, and even a couple of coins in return, but the goddess wasn't keen on doing that many chores for so little in return… the fact that she had done nothing but follow Izuku around without helping never registered to her though.

"Well, they needed help." Izuku's simple answer left the goddess seething, unable to cope with the gallant disposition from such a simpleton. Izuku had felt at home in this world, everyone he had met was quirkless just like him. Everyone looked at him like he was just an average villager, and not a waste of space, it was so refreshing that he was left with an odd feeling of confidence.

"Now let's go to the counter, we need to be registered as adventurers if we want to gather a party to defeat the Devil King." Izuku added as he began to walk toward the beautiful lady at the counter.

Aqua looked at the boy like he was completely different from the meek and useless kid she tricked into coming to this world.

"Hey, Izuku, remember to call me Aqua, and not refer to me as a goddess; I can't let my worshipers know I'm here walking among mortals. Also, why are you acting so dependable? Weren't you just a quirkless coward?" Aqua finally said the things that were bothering her, not missing the chance to taunt the boy, really wanting him to show flaws on his behavior.

"I was a quirkless teenager in a world full of people with great powers, it's not so much about being a coward than being cautious. As for being dependable… my mother had some old video games still installed in the PC I used as a child… RPGs I believe they were called; this whole situation reminded me of them." Izuku answered as they approached the desk, where a blonde woman with a beautiful figure greeted them.

"Hello, I don't believe I've seen you before. Are you here to register?" The young woman addressed the young boy and his friend, already feeling pity for the plain looking teenager with the pretty girl at his side, knowing that it wouldn't be long before a more handsome and experienced adventurer caught the eye of the blue-haired girl.

"We just arrived in town, so, we'd like to get information on the guild and the jobs available." Izuku asked in a rather fluid way, surprising the goddess, who expected him to stutter incomprehensibly while turning red at the sight of the dangling breasts before him.

"Of course! At this hall we offer jobs to the registered adventurers, ranging from simple gathering tasks to monster exterminations, all of these are properly ranked in difficulty, danger and reward. Some of the jobs, or quests, have requisites, which can range from level and class, to party composition or gender… we don't take the last type of restriction unless the client has come forward with EVERY detail and explanation, so you don't have to worry … too much. Registering is quite simple, as you only need to cover an entry fee and this magical artifact will do the registration." The guild lady explained with a smile, glad to see the boy before her keeping his eyes on her face for once, and wondering how long he'd hold out.

"Aqua, did you bring any money?" Izuku asked to the blue-haired girl, making the guild lady wonder what kind of relationship they had; Izuku couldn't even feel surprised when she shook her head no, he even wondered if he was meant to be sent with any kind of wealth, but then he guessed that comparing this world to a video game was foolish to begin with. The fact that a guild existed was fortunate enough.

"I see. Excuse me miss… Luna, but can you direct me to a pawnshop or a place where I can sell some minor artifacts and trinkets?" Izuku asked after letting out a heavy sigh. He really didn't want to say it, but the goddess was proving to be less useful with each passing minute. On the other side of the counter, the beautiful lady looked thoroughly surprised.

"I know such places, but how did you know my name?" The now-identified Luna asked, as she was sure she had yet to tell her name to the newcomers.

"It's on the plate…" Izuku answered while pointing to the name plate on the counter.

"I know, but most people look… I mean… What kind of artifacts do you have? I may be able to point you in the right direction if I know you have something that will interest the owners." Luna changed the conversation as fast as she could, guessing that she was dealing with a scholar in training, or a failed one, as the clothes looked plain but of high quality. He was also carrying a fancy backpack, definitely a sign of a sheltered education.

"Well, for starters… I have this; it's called a calculator, and it is useful for fast mathematical problem solving. It will work as long as there is natural light, and will probably work for another year… it is brittle though, and water will ruin its internal workings." Izuku said as he took from his backpack a solar calculator. It was a simple model, but he guessed it would be considered magical in a medieval world… He didn't keep his hopes high though, guessing that at best he would get a few more coins, just enough to cover the fee.

"Fast mathematics? For real? Do you know how it works?" Luna seemed very interested in the artifact, and Izuku was quick to explain its operation, thanking god for the numbers sharing the same universal symbols in this new world.

Aqua watched from the sidelines how the busty lady seemed overly attentive to Izuku's explanation. Considering that her eyes let out how greedy she was at seeing the effectiveness of the school trinket, it wasn't long before she and the boy began to set a price for the calculator, nor much longer for both parties to agree on the final transaction. Aqua was unsure about the events unfolding before her, for it was as if the boy had transformed from the shivering wimpy coward of his previous life into a functional human being; it was as if the fact that he was among quirkless people had given him the courage to face all the challenges that this world was throwing at him.

"This is my final offer: the registration fee for the both of you, one thousand Eris and four meal tickets." Luna said as she crossed her arms below her breasts, trying to use her natural charms to win this battle, grinning as she finally got the boy to blush.

"I… a-ag… make it five tickets!" Izuku barely managed to look up again, regaining a fraction of his dignity in the process, making Luna pout a little bit.

"Fine, it's a deal, but you need to write down the meanings of the runes." Luna relented, knowing very well that she actually got quite the bargain, for this wasn't the first time she saw this artifact, and remembering quite well how successful the man with it became.

"Sure, just give me something to write on." Izuku accepted her terms, and was quickly given some parchment and a quill, leaving him to write the instructions while Luna finalized the contract, as she didn't want this to become illegal trafficking of magical artifacts.

Aqua was beginning to feel bored, wondering why this boy wasn't praising her already, or letting her shine a little bit; she was pretty sure that if she talked to some priest in the vicinity she could probably get a small fortune by simply asking for a few coins, after all, she was an important goddess!

"There we go. Now you only need to place your hand over the orb, and the artifact will do the rest." Luna instructed Izuku as the transaction finished.

"Just like this?" Izuku asked as he did as instructed, and then watched in awe as the artifact did its work, writing on the card with laser-like lights at great speed; once the light show finished, Luna took the card to read it aloud, gaining the attention of the boy, who didn't know what to expect. He wished to hear the occupation of Hero, but he guessed that was a hard-earned title, and not a job class.

"Izuku Midoriya, right? Let's see… average in most of your stats, above average luck which is unimportant to adventurers… this is odd, you have high intelligence and wisdom, a very rare combination… hmm…" Luna trailed off while looking at the profile of the boy, wondering why it said nothing of his scholar upbringing, but she chalked it up to him being schooled outside of a proper academy.

"Is something wrong?" Izuku asked after he noticed that the lady was spacing out, making her panic a little bit.

"It's nothing, just looking at your class options! You can choose from these: Cleric, Wizard, Rogue, Druid and of course, Adventurer, but that's the weakest class; unfortunately, your physical attributes do not allow you access to the martial classes, at least not right now." Luna concluded, and then turned to look at the young boy, waiting for his decision. Izuku felt a little bit like when he was told that he was quirkless, unable to choose something that could place him closer to his idol, but then again, he guessed it was his fault for not taking it upon himself to train his body.

"Druid? What does…" Izuku began to ask, wanting to hear descriptions and specifications of each class, starting with the first option that he knew nothing about. Unfortunately, Luna was distracted too…

"Druid it is… that is a rare class to choose." Luna said while selecting the class, oblivious to the fact that she had made a mistake.

"WAIT! I just wanted to hear an explanation!" Izuku shouted in distress, for he had wanted to analyze each and every class, weighing pros and cons against each other, not to be thrown into one by random chance.

"What?! Oh no! I'm so sorry! Please forgive me!" Luna apologized while repeatedly bowing, giving quite the show with her large breasts.

"I… well… p-p-please d-don't d-do t-th-that!" Izuku had turned red at the sight, and was actively trying to look anywhere but at her chest.

One hour later…

Izuku was sitting down alone at one of the empty tables in the guild; a commotion had started when Aqua had her card made because her attributes, with the exception of luck and intelligence, were maxed, giving her access to most of the advanced classes. She had promptly picked Arch Priest, he guessed that a goddess would choose something to praise herself, and now, she was making a lot of noise while selecting her skill set with her starting skill points. Izuku was told that should he choose to do so, he could always change classes instead of advancing into the natural upgrade of the Druid class. He had instead decided to study his card to see what he could do with what he had.

"Well, it couldn't be as bad as being Quirkless." Izuku muttered as he began to browse his adventurer card, taking notice of his data, and how neatly everything was organized. The skill section allowed him to see that some skills were passive, and others required activation, which in most cases required mana to use them. A few ones had a timer, meaning that he could use them free of cost, but only a limited number of times per day. He also noticed that druids had a lot of skills to choose from, meaning that he could take a lot of them, or, choose less than the full amount and improve them by adding more skill points.

"I guess I should try something simple, Good Berry sounds safe enough." Izuku muttered as he looked at the description of the skill, a passive that had him grow berries on any plant he was touching, producing one every few minutes. The moment he selected the skill, he felt something changing within him, it was as if some dormant power had awakened… almost like a Quirk.

Izuku walked to an empty table where someone was eating grapes a minute ago, and took the now empty branch from the plate. Taking it to his own table, he stared at it quite intently. He didn't give any orders nor concentrated in any form as the skill had said that it was a passive effect, so it had to come naturally. After a minute had passed, Izuku blinked in surprise because a cute round and red berry had appeared where a grape used to be.

"I think I can make this work." Izuku said with a smile as he plucked the berry and ate it, finding it really sweet and oddly filling. The description had said that it would be nourishing, but Izuku was more interested in its healing capabilities. It may never come close to a healing spell from a priest, or a commercial healing potion from the guild, but it was free, and quite constant.

As Izuku began to read the rest of the skills, he began to toy with the idea of creating a skill set that would mirror a transformation type quirk, something that would be easier to control, and easier to explain in case he managed to return home. The Druid skill set included pretty much everything, buffs and debuffs, offensive skills, defensive skills, healing skills, and of course, the incredible capability of changing forms. Izuku tried to find a pattern that would set him in a quirk-like development, and upon watching more berries growing on the little branch, he decided to give it a try at being one with the plants; after all, he guessed that if that didn't help, he could change classes later on.

"Then… Bark Skin, Vine Whip and Plant Manipulation, passive defensive, active offensive and active support; this may just work." Izuku muttered once more as he spent the last of his starting skill points. After all, he was a lowly level one unlike Aqua, who even had a couple of levels as a bonus… it was obvious that not everyone was created equal, but this time, Izuku wasn't going to let that truth stop him.

Later that night…

Truth was a harsh mistress, that was what Izuku was just reminded of today.

Adventurers were glorified part-time workers, with chores for the fresh starting ones like him, to poorly-paid extermination requests for the rookie low level adventurers, and while he knew that getting started wasn't going to be a glorious leap into fame and wealth, he had expected to be able to afford a room to sleep in tonight, and not the stables…

"This is going to be harder than I thought…" Izuku muttered to himself as he shifted in the hay stack he was using as a bed, noticing that his class actually gave him an increased tolerance to harsh conditions, meaning greater comfort in less than amicable conditions like the wilderness; unfortunately for him, that attribute didn't extend to having horse excrement so close when trying to sleep.

"… much harder." Izuku finished his muttering as he turned away from the excrement just to see his companion, the so-called goddess that was now loudly snoring, hugging the object of his anger.

A little after finishing with his adventurer's card, Izuku took his first job: gathering medicinal herbs at the edge of the woods just outside the city. It had been a fairly easy job to do, with no more danger than facing a few mosquitoes and the occasional ant line, but the reward had been a meager five hundred Eris. Of course, Aqua had asked for the money to purchase something that was vital for the team, and Izuku was naïve enough to believe her… imagine his surprise when she appeared with a bottle of liquor and a sheepish smile.

"At least I won't starve." Izuku muttered as he looked at the braided branch adorning his left wrist, already showing more berries which he was quick to eat. He was beginning to appreciate the survival potential of his class, and the potential savings he would make in terms of supplies. He still needed shelter though, so he decided to have that as a short term goal. Defeating the Devil King would have to wait.

"Tomorrow I'll take an extermination quest, and this time, no more shared reward." Izuku muttered with a frown, he had been more than willing to share his money with the goddess, but after today, he was sure that she didn't really care about saving for the future.

The night continued its course as Izuku began to make plans, knowing that being level one meant that he wasn't assaulting the Devil King's castle anytime soon. He needed to secure shelter and food, followed by a need to train hard in order to level up fast and efficiently, as well as recruit comrades in arms and procure better equipment. Izuku barely remembered the video games that his mother had on the family's computer, but he still knew that in such a medieval setting there had to be strong warriors, wise mages and cunning rogues. To assault the Devil King's castle, he required several front line fighters, ranged units, and of course healing support, hence why he felt fortunate by having Aqua by his side as she was a supposedly powerful healer. She also had her godly gear with her, so there was no need to spend money or time in getting a better staff for her to help everyone… right?

The next day…

According to the guild's standards, Izuku and Aqua had the minimum required level to take this quest, the only quest available for their level: exterminating giant toads.

Giant toads were considered a local pest problem that was only relevant during mating season because the giant amphibians would swallow cattle and defenseless people whole in order to gather the strength to reproduce. That helped Izuku with the pity he would feel by slaying any animal that was just following its instincts without malice, the problem was that these giant toads were… giant.

"AQUA! YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO HELP ME!" Izuku shouted to the laughing goddess, who was one step shy of falling to the ground due to her uncontrollable laughter.

The plan had been simple enough. Take one toad at a time, flank it from two sides, and then kill it with either the goddess' superior strength, or Izuku's vines, whoever didn't have its attention anyway. The problem was that Aqua didn't stick to the plan.

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! You look so stupid rolling away from every little attack! And you can't even scratch that thing with your wimpy twigs! HAHAHAHAHAHA!" Aqua continued chortling as she watched Izuku struggle against what the guild called a pest problem.

Izuku had to find out the hard way that his Vine Whip skill didn't do the entire attack as the name suggested. It produced a vine that served as a whip, and he was expected to use it with his own skill. Thankfully, producing the whip seemed to grant him proficiency on its use, but the lack of experience was showing with his badly aimed hits, and the lack of visible damage on the slimy skin of the toad.

"JUST HELP ME ALREADY!" Izuku shouted again, feeling angry at the disposition of this goddess, and feeling cheated for having his expectations of her potential being so thoroughly crushed.

"Fine, I'll help. But first, start adding -sama at the end of my name. This may not be Japan, but you know that you need to be respectful to me; then you must swear that you'll join the Axis religious order and pray three times a day to me, and during lunch, if I say gimme, you must give me your food…" Aqua began her list of demands while Izuku disengaged from the monster, not knowing that she had gained its attention. Izuku tried to regain the attention of the toad, or warn Aqua, but he was too late. By the time he was at an appropriate distance, the toad had chomped Aqua, and raised her up to begin swallowing her.

"LEAVE HER ALONE!" Izuku shouted as he leaped at the toad, generating a second whip on his off hand, and using Plant Manipulation stabbed them into the eyes of the creature. The toad did thrash around at the pain of losing its eyes, but it refused to let the girl go. Izuku continued to guide the vines deeper until they reached the brain of the toad, turning it into mush and killing the creature, freeing the now slime-covered Aqua in the process.

"Aqua, are you alright?" Izuku asked as he reached her, retracting the vines by coiling them on his forearms. He had to admit that once combined, the Druid skills were quite useful, if weak as of now.

"Thank you, Izuku-sama! Thank you!" Aqua began to say between sobs, trying her very best to hug Izuku like he was some kind of safety blanket. Izuku would admit that being hugged by such a pretty girl was like a dream come true, but the gross feeling of the slime that she was covered in, coupled with the penetrating smell it carried, made him wish she was a mile away.

"C-Calm down, Aqua! Remember your station!" Izuku said in hopes of her stopping her show of gratefulness, succeeding in doing so when she separated from him, still sobbing at her deplorable state.

"That didn't go as planned, so why don't we return to the city to get you cleaned? We need to rework our strategy, and see if we can find another party member. I was able to take down this one, but there is no telling if I can succeed if more show up at the same time." Izuku stated, trying to reason with her, and secretly hoping to find someone more trustworthy than this mediocre goddess.

"No." Aqua suddenly said, shaking like a leaf, balling her fists in a cute display of anger.

"What?" Izuku was taken by surprise with the sudden shift.

"I cannot go back like this! If my beloved worshipers were to see me like this, they will lose their faith, so I can't retreat in defeat!" Aqua suddenly shouted, and then turned around to look for another toad, which she found quite easily in the distance.

Izuku watched as the goddess ran toward her target with her fist at the ready, and as she began to describe her attack in lengthy detail, Izuku could tell that a massive amount of energy was gathering in her fist before she launched her attack.

"GOD BLOW!" Aqua shouted for all she was worth, hitting the frog right in the belly… doing nothing at all, much to Izuku's surprise, and her embarrassment.

"You know, now that I see you up close, I think toads are kind of cute…" Aqua said in a small voice, almost as if trying to appeal to the creature for mercy, just to be chomped upon like the last time.

As Izuku ran to save the goddess yet again, he began to wonder where her worth was, and when he would get to see her divine help in action; he had to admit that he liked feeling like a Quirk user, but he was still taking baby steps in what felt like the world's stage. He just hoped that some efficient and skilled party members could join soon so he could focus on leveling and training to be a hero.

Notes:

Magnus: While I don't have a clear intention on starting a romance, I may be inclined in the future, although I can only think in Megumin at the moment, as I don't see Izuku indulging Darkness' proclivities, and Aqua is off the table, because I don't like her (Not for Izuku).