A Tarnished Hero

Chapter 1: Thunderous Applause

Disclaimer: I do not own My Hero Academia, nor Elden Ring. Both pieces of media belong to their respective owners.

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Izuku gasped for breath, his helmet concealing his nervous expression. Perched atop his loyal mount, Torrent, Izuku cursed under his breath as a colossal figure soared above him, its enormous jaws unleashing torrents of glintstone breath.

Swiftly maneuvering to the side, Izuku and Torrent narrowly evaded the dragon's breath attack. Unlike the dragon he had slain in Limgrave. This particular dragon breathed out a torrent of blue energy in the shape of crystals. Glintstone, as most sane people here said it was, a sorcery Izuku sometimes found himself relying on.

Gripping the reins of Torrent tightly, Izuku swiftly commanded his steed to charge, and Torrent eagerly complied. In his free hand, Izuku wielded a weapon he had purchased from a merchant on the Weeping Peninsula's coast. He had developed a fondness for his Zweihander, which he affectionately named All Strike, despite his initial struggles to wield it effectively.

The dragon descended, waves of water splashing about like a tidal wave as it landed. It roared, its eyes challenging Izuku to come closer.

Accepting the challenge, Izuku let out a cry as the dragon once again prepared its breath attack. Skillfully dodging the compressed glintstone breath, Izuku narrowly avoided certain death in this mystical and cursed land.

Drawing closer than before, Izuku leaped off Torrent, his steed transforming into sparkling blue motes as he embraced the cool wind. In mid-air, the dragon's gaze fixed upon him, glintstone breath still emanating from its gargantuan maw. Seizing the opportunity, Izuku raised his Zweihander high before he brought it down, crashing the heavy blade upon the monster's skull.

The dragon attempted to turn its head, but its movement proved sluggish, allowing the blade to pierce its eye. A resounding roar filled the air as the dragon's head arched back, dragging Izuku along as he clung to the hilt of his weapon for dear life.

Gritting his teeth, Izuku seized the dragon's scaly face, hauling himself up and driving the blade deeper into the creature's skull. With a mighty yell, he plunged the blade further, mercilessly impaling the monster's brain.

As the dragon convulsed in its death throes, it made one final attempt to strike its nimble adversary, only to collapse lifelessly into the shallow lake below.

Breathing heavily, Izuku let out a sigh of relief and accomplishment, swiftly extracting the massive blade from the dragon's eye socket. Lowering himself to the ground, he landed in the cold water which seeped into his armor. A chuckle escaped him, quickly transforming into uproarious laughter.

"I... I did it... Again..." Izuku gazed at the enormous corpse with mixed feelings. He despised taking the life of any living being, but in this land, everything sought to kill him without hesitation, save for a few others who were kind of friendly.

Raising his gaze to the sky, where the towering figure of the Erdtree loomed over the Lands Between, Izuku let out a melancholic whimper.

"How long has it been since I arrived here...?" Izuku reminisced about the time when he was still a naive child clinging to false hope back in Japan.

His eyes focused intently on the colossal Erdtree, its golden glow an awe-inspiring sight. Initially, when Izuku had arrived in the abandoned chapel on the secluded island, he believed it was all a dream. But when he opened the door and caught sight of the massive Erdtree, his perspective shifted.