"Okay let's go through this bit-by-bit," Izuku said to himself, his lower half safely nestled under the blankets of his bed. "Claim Boss Villain Rewards."

[Rewards:]

1. C-Rank Elemental Enhancement Gem (Poison)

2. Concentrated Venom

3. C-Rank Boss Villain Core

4. Scale Smashers (Gauntlets)

Most of Rasaka's drops were pretty self-explanatory. The only thing that needed any inspection were the gauntlets.

*******

[Item: Scale Smashers]

Item Class: C

Item Type: Gauntlets

Attack: +50

Additional Description: These Gauntlets have two slots for Enhancement Gems, allowing for combined elemental abilities.

******

By default these were stronger, and thus Izuku equipped them, but he couldn't help feeling a little sad about putting away the Earthshakers. He tended to be sentimental like that, especially since they were the first real weapon/armor he'd owned, something that had, even if it was only for a short time, helped him tremendously.

Of course, he wasn't foolish enough to ignore a stronger weapon for the sake of personal attachment. The gauntlets weren't living things, so it was easier to change them out for the Scale Smashers.

Currently, Izuku only had the Poison Gem, but he'd get more later to make use of the dual slotting. Other than that, there was nothing more to examine from that set of Rewards.

"Claim Level-Based Rewards."

[Rewards:]

1. One Random Quirk

2. One Random Rune Stone

[Obtained Quirk: Amplify]

[Obtained Rune Stone: Analyze]

*******

[Quirk: Amplify]

Quirk Class: B-Rank

Cost: No physical or magical costs are required.

Description: Agility and Strength are connected. From now on, any point put into Strength will put an additional point into Agility, and vice versa. Effects can be increased by evolving this Quirk to its next Stage.

*******

[Skill: Analyze]

Passive Skill

Mana Cost: 0

Description: From now on, the Player will be able to see the information of a Villain just by looking at them. More details can be gained if this Skill is evolved.

*******

"Phew..." Izuku's brain felt like it was overloading as he scanned each and every word. After all, there was no telling what unique aspect of a Quirk or Skill would save his life. "Wow so they can be evolved? Does that mean my other Skills can be powered up as well? I suppose that'll happen on its own just by using them. The real ticket item here is this Quirk. Theoretically, if I Level-Up, that'll put one point into each, which means the Quirk will activate and put another point into Strength and Agility, meaning each Level-Up is like two Stat points for Strength and Agility."

Izuku had to assume that the Quirk didn't allow recursive effects. Meaning you couldn't put a point into Strength, then get one in Agility from the Quirk, then have that point activate the Quirk again and put one into Strength, and so on and so forth. If something like that was the case, he'd essentially have infinite strength and speed. It didn't seem like something the System would do. He'd find out soon enough regardless.

"Claim Performance Rewards."

[Rewards:]

1. One Random Quirk

2. +40 Stat points

3. Hero's Amulet (Artifact)

[Obtained Quirk: Soul Collection]

*******

[Quirk: Soul Collection]

Quirk Class: XS-Rank

Cost: No physical or magical costs are required.

Description: By creating a symbiotic relationship with the System, this Quirk will store all the souls of every living being the Player has killed, or will kill whilst under the System's influence.

*******

[Soul List:]

Rasaka

Anok

51 Shriekers

15 Clicker Tortoises

Non-Elemental Drake

25 Flame Salamanders

*******

Izuku wasn't sure if he should be in amazement, or disgusted. In terms of Rank, XS was just one level below the National-Level. But on the other hand, this list just served to disturb Izuku. These were souls. Souls he had taken from living beings. Whether they were pure evil or not was up for debate, but he was still storing them as if they were trophies. There seemed to be no point in keeping them.

And even after fiddling around with the System, it became clear that there was no way to release the souls. He had no choice but to let it be and hope that, somewhere down the line, there'd be a way to free them. It put a pit in his stomach, but, aside from shouting vulgarities at the System, something not in his nature, there was nothing to do, so he moved on. Izuku took the Stat points and decided to hold onto them until he was done looking over the rewards, with the last being...

*******

[Item: Hero's Amulet]

Item Class: C

Item Type: Artifact

All Stats +5

Additional Description: Every person saved from a dangerous situation provides the Player with additional experience for Levels, Skills, and Quirks.

*******

And with that all said and done, new items equipped and new Skills gained, Izuku only needed to distribute the 40 Stat points. After cutting it close with his Mana stores, he decided to put 20 of the points into Intelligence and the other 20 into Agility, and subsequently an additional 20 went into Strength with the Amplify Quirk.

*******

A/N: The numbers in parentheses indicate Stats gained from equipment. But the actual number is still the total, for example, the Strength Stat without equipment is 71, but with equipment it is 76 so it is listed as 76. This is so it's easier for me to track Stat changes with equipment changes.

Izuku Midoriya:

Level: 30

Strength: 76 (+5)

Vitality: 49 (+5)

Agility: 88 (+8)

Intelligence: 66 (+5)

Sense: 46 (+5)

Available Points: 0

[Mana: 656/656]

[HP: 1344/1344]

*******

Izuku took a moment to lay back in bed, absorbing all the new information as he considered what to do next.

"I could always bug some sort of helmet to cover my face... No, you have to register with your Hero ID to join Gate Raids. They'd know who I was..."

"IZUKU!" Before Kei had even finished her shout, Izuku was out of bed and rushing into the living room, his heart in his throat from the suddenness of the call.

"What?!"

Kei was on the couch, staring at the TV screen. "Was this you?"

"Earlier today a Gate break occurred near Joren Falls. The Gate had not previously been detected by the Hero Safety Commission, and no individuals reported seeing it. Thankfully, an unknown Hero was on the scene and single-handedly cleared the Gate. Some minor injuries were reported, but no casualties have been discovered." The scene switched to a view of Rasaka's corpse.

"Those who were rescued by the Hero reported seeing a flash of bright green before seemingly being teleported out of harm's way. The Hero has yet to come forwards and reveal themself."

Izuku grinned. "Yeah, that was me." He was still conflicted about being the source of the Gate, but he also felt proud of his success. It was a very paradoxical sense of pride, since he wouldn't have the pride without first putting the people in danger.

"Wow, you were going that fast?"

Izuku shook his head. "Maybe C-Rank speed? Low B-Rank? The people I saved weren't Awakened so even if I went half speed they wouldn't have been able to see me. Their eyes just can't process that sorta speed."

"Cool," She murmured, clearly wishing for similar powers. "Oh, by the way, your phone has been going nuts ever since you got home."

"What?" Izuku's heart skipped a beat. Had someone seen him after all? Was he in trouble?

Kei reached down to the coffee table in front of the couch, snatching up the smartphone with the cracked screen and handing it to Izuku.

Rushing to unlock it, all of the stress drained out of Izuku. There were two unknown numbers that had contacted them, but the first message sent by both introduced themselves.

(Hey Izu! It's Nejire-Chan! I hope you don't mind, but I pulled some strings to get your number! The perks of being an S-Rank! I just wanted to say thanks for the whole Joren Falls thing! My mom and dad were there, so I guess I owe you another one!)

"What the..." Izuku wasn't sure what to make of the text. "How did she..." Izuku recalled their interactions. "She specializes in energy detection. If she went up to the Falls to check on her mom and dad... she'd have sensed the traces of my energy..." It was just a hypothesis, but he couldn't imagine anything else he'd done to give himself away.

Kei just rolled her eyes, familiar with her brother's constant mutterings. She turned her attention back to the TV as Izuku checked the other contact.

(Hello Midoriya, this is Yaoyorozu. I asked the hospital staff for your number as I was being discharged. I hope such a thing was not a gross invasion of your privacy, but I figured I should let you know that I spoke with detective Tsukauchi. Unless he was deceiving me, he's closing the investigation on that Gate and marking it as an unknown. Your secret is safe with me.)

Izuku thought back to the key he had for the B-Rank Gate. He had the "gamer urge" to go complete it and the Quest related to it, but he also had no desire to put Yaoyorozu in such a spot.

"Hey Kei?"

"Yeah?"

"If you and a friend were really into skydiving, and your friend had a bad experience with it one time, how would you convince them to get back into it?"

Kei looked up at her brother with a puzzled expression and a small laugh. "What kinda question is that?"

"Please?"

She sighed. "I guess it depends on how bad the experience was. If her parachute didn't open and she nearly died I wouldn't try to convince her at all. That's some scary shit." Izuku grimaced at her language, but said nothing. Their dad was always a little vulgar anyways and mom put up with it, so he let it slide. She was getting to that age after all.

"If it was something small, I'd take a video of me skydiving to remind her how fun it could be." She shrugged. "I mean, I wouldn't go skydiving myself in the first place."

Izuku nodded, still without an answer, but grateful for her help. "Thanks."

"Yep. So is this about Yaoyorozu?"

"How did you-"

She gave a bittersweet smile. "Izuku... you really only have one friend. I can't imagine this would be about anyone else."

"Fair point," Izuku responded, doing his best to not feel a little dejected hearing that from his sister.

"Don't push her. If what you told me about her was correct, then I don't think she should be a Hero."

"Kei..."

"I'm not trying to be mean, Izu. She's strong, she's smart, and she's scared." Kei looked into Izuku's eyes. "You wanna be a Hero, like dad was. And that makes you different from Yaoyorozu. Because you're always conquering your fear. I don't know if she can do the same thing."

Izuku stared, mouth slightly agape at his sister.

"What?"

"I..." Izuku smiled and shook his head. "You almost sounded like an adult for a second there. Forgot you were my little sister."

She scowled. "Hey I'm not the one who nearly failed high school!"

Izuku held his hands up in placation, smiling all the same. "I know I know. I'm just proud is all. Mom and dad would be too."

She looked away from him, averting her gaze. "Ya think?"

"I don't think, I know."

"Mmm..." She murmured to herself happily before saying, "If you wanna find out why Yaoyorozu is the way she is, you've gotta find out why she started Raiding in the first place. That's the first step."

"Thanks, Kei. I owe you one."

"Then you can order me a pizza!" She said with a grin.

"No problem."

*******

(Izuku: Hi Nejire-Chan! I haven't gotten any calls from the news networks so I assume that means you haven't told anyone that I was the one at Joren Falls. I appreciate it. We can call that even!)

(Nejire-Chan: No way Izu! You saved my parents' lives! Keeping quiet isn't even close to making up for that!)

(Izuku: Hey, it's our job to keep people safe isn't it?)

(Nejire-Chan: Hmph! Well then I'll just find another one of those key thingies for you!)

(Izuku: Lol, I'd try to talk you out of it, but I feel like that would be an exercise in futility.)

(Nejire-Chan: Exactly! See ya when I see ya!)

Izuku laughed to himself as he sat at the quiet cafe, night slowly descending upon the orange glow of the sky. He was dressed in a casual t-shirt with a long black trench coat over it and jeans. The coat was his father's, and with Winter approaching, he got another rare opportunity to wear it.

"Um... hi..."

Izuku turned around, trying not to gawk as he spotted Yaoyorozu. He had only ever seen her in practical clothing during Raids, and even then she was a beauty that boggled the mind, but now, dressed up for a night out, it was hard for Izuku to stay focused.

She was wearing a long-sleeved red sweater, a short, frilly white skirt with a stylish black belt, and matching thigh high white boots. In addition, her hair was tied up in twin tails, an adorable look that Izuku never would've imagined her being caught in. He thought it was a style that only worked in anime, but apparently not.

"Hi, thanks for meeting me!" He sputtered out, just barely managing to speak like a normal human being.

"Thank you for inviting me," She said, giving a small, yet elegant curtsy before taking the seat across from him and ordering a coffee.

Once they were settled, Izuku began to panic inwardly, unsure of how to start the conversation. He was here as a friend, and to learn more about her, but he suddenly realized he had no idea how to go about it. Thankfully, it was Yaoyorozu who began the conversation.

"I don't mean to be rude, but... was there a specific reason you asked me here tonight?" She asked, a slight blush on her face.

Izuku pondered the question for a moment. He could try to naturally guide the conversation to her fear and reasons for Hero work, but he doubted he could do it all that well. In this case, the best policy would have to be honesty.

"Yes. I..." Izuku took a deep breath, gathering his courage. "I want to know more about you. Why you chose Hero work as your career. Why you only took on lower Ranks. And why you're still interested in going forwards with it." He looked down, ashamed of such selfish questions. The silence was foreboding, as Yaoyorozu went quiet. "I'm sorry... that was a terrible thing to say. You don't have to-" His heart skipped a beat as he looked up, seeing Yaoyorozu stifling tears. He had hurt her more than he had imagined... or not?

"You'd really... listen?"

Izuku blinked. "If... If you're willing to tell, I'd really like to listen."

Yaoyorozu pursed her soft pink lips, wiping at her eyes. "No one... I've not been able to tell anyone in so long..." She took a long shaking breath, one hand over her chest as she calmed herself. "Well... it's a long story."

"I've got all the time in the world."

Yaoyorozu nodded gratefully. "I was born into a very wealthy family, whose business exploded when Villain materials made their way into the market. Now they're the primary market for Hero equipment."

Izuku knew this much at least. Most people had heard of the Yaoyorozu family.

"But my family... they're not what they appear to be. On the outside, they're a family run company aiming to help humanity fight Villains. But in reality... they're a cult."

"A cult?" Izuku asked in disbelief. "As in a religious group filled with crazy people?"

Yaoyorozu nodded sorrowfully. "They call themselves the Chaos World Worshippers."

"They worship... Villains?" Izuku guessed.

"Yes. And they routinely sacrificed animals... and humans, to Villains inside Gates." Yaoyorozu folded her hands together to keep them from shaking. "I was inducted to the cult at a young age, and I was forced to watch these sacrifices. Because they believed I was some... 'Empress of the Chaos World.' They treated me like I was some special part of the Villains' plan for humanity. I tried to tell the police what they were doing one day, but the police just laughed and escorted me home."

"They paid them off..." Izuku grumbled, horrified by the corruption.

"Yes. I couldn't go to the police, the government. Anyone. And one day, during a sacrifice, a Villain got past the Awakened guards and charged at us." Yaoyorozu just barely lifted the hem of her sweater, revealing the beginning of a scar that stretched farther than Izuku could even see. He didn't doubt it went most of the way up her body. "I nearly died because they wanted me to heal naturally, not from magic. When I finally did heal up, I ran away from home and took up Hero work. Not just to make a living, but to make up for all those lives my parents..." She trailed off, once more clenching her jaw shut to stop the tears. "I'm scared... but I also want to help people. I want to fight against what my parents believe in."

"I'm... I'm so sorry, Yaoyorozu." Izuku reached over the table, resting his hand atop hers. "You're doing something amazing, but... You have to know. Those people who died, who your parents sacrificed. They don't rest on your shoulders. You were a child, who tried to tell the authorities. You did more than most could. It's not your fault."

She nodded, tears now pouring down. "Those words... I... I'm not sure I believe them, but... I needed to hear them. Thank you..." She hiccuped out a sob, grateful that the cafe was mostly empty.

"What if we go to Tsukauchi? He seems reasonable, and has connections to All M-"

"No!" Yaoyorozu instinctively responded. "N-No... I'm sorry. But... I've avoided them for this long. I can't risk exposing myself to them again. The Hero Safety Commission has a fake address for me, as well as a fake name and age. If we try to go to them... there's no telling what would happen."

Izuku gently nodded. "I understand. You've kept my secret, and if I need to, I'll take yours to the grave."

"Midoriya?"

"Yes?

"I need your help."

"Whatever you need," He responded without hesitation.

"I want you... to help me clear that Gate," She said, referring to the System's B-Rank Dungeon.

Izuku smiled. "It would be my pleasure."

Yaoyorozu looked up into the sky. "Ah... the stars are out."

*******

Happy New Year's Eve! I hope you all have a good night and enjoyed the chapter! I apologize for the Stats and rewards and all that being such a long section, but I was just having too much fun with it and decided to make some new formatting choices! See you next year lol.