Shadow Monarch Hero: Viridian (SMH: Deku rewrite)

Hunt

First episode of SL aired a couple of days ago, when I posted the last chapter, and I gotta say it's looking good! Hope you enjoy the chapter!

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Waking up on Catalina island that morning was surprisingly peaceful. The distant sound of waves hitting the rocks, birds chirping, the rustling of leaves. You'd never guess that it was the battleground for shapeshifting monsters.

"Mmmm... Baruka?" Izuku groaned as he pulled himself out of bed.

The Elf Baron couldn't speak yet, but he was able to transmit images and memories to Izuku, giving him a sense of the Elf's scouting mission.

Before going to bed the previous night, he had stationed the thirty Ice Bears outside Esil's Barrier to ensure everyone could sleep safely. Meanwhile, Baruka was scouting much further north on the island.

Izuku got a brief flash of information streamed directly into his head. Entire hordes of fleshy monsters, amidst normal looking humans, congregating materials into some sort of nest.

"They didn't notice you... well I guess that means they don't have any form of Stealth detection." Izuku assumed that his Shadow Magic, which was his current Stealth measure, wouldn't really be adaptable for the Mosaics, as he wasn't actively attacking them with it.

[Quest: Cleanse Catalina Island]

Mosaics Remaining: 1,431

The number had gone up since Raia assigned the Quest. And even though Baruka killed a few during the night, it was still a net loss. They just reproduced too quickly.

"A few hours and they can create several hundred of their kind... I can see how this would destroy the planet..." If every last Mosaic had the capacity to become a Queen, then their spread across the world would likely become exponential, like a pandemic. National-Ranks, and maybe some S-Ranks, would survive, but the people in power would no doubt be Mosaics. They'd be surrounded on all sides and humanity would essentially come to an end. "Raia might not be wrong after all..." Of course, the Mosaics were now immune to Gravity Magic, Izuku's strongest weapon. He couldn't exactly crush them now.

As he thought about the Synthetic Lord and his words, Izuku peeked in on Setsuna. Only one copy needed to sleep in order for them all to get rest, so he had no intention of waking her, he just wanted to make sure she was okay.

Laying on her side, hair splayed out across the bed, Izuku couldn't help but think she looked peaceful. The fierce look in her eyes, the constant tension on her face. Without it, she almost seemed smaller. Knowing her, that was exactly why she kept up that look in the first place.

Throughout his time knowing her, Izuku thought of her as a brash fearless woman. She talked trash to Tusk, she stood up to the sight of Shadows tearing through everything with a smile on her face. She even managed to stay calm when teleported to Europa.

But during their time on Catalina, and through their brief Soul connection, he finally saw through the facade. She was terrified, at all times. Of losing more and more of what mattered to her. Her parents, her adoptive father, her friends, and of course, her own life. Her greatest desire was to crawl into a bunker with those she cared about, and simply hide. Yet here she was, fighting on this island, having enrolled in Hero school in the first place.

Of course, there was no courage without fear, but even still, the fear ate away at her mind. Izuku held enormous respect for her, but he also had the desire to shelter her, to protect her from those fears. He wanted to help her, he just didn't know how yet.

Taking one last look at her peaceful snoozing, he quietly shut the door and moved onto Yui.

And while he was delicate with Setsuna, Izuku practically had to shake Yui out of bed.