" FUEGOLEON!" Leopold screamed out in terror.

He couldn't believe what he was seeing. His unbeatable brother... his big brother...

Leopold let out a war cry before running toward Fuegoleon.

Deku looked at the scene in disbelief.

" He... was defeated...? Fuegoleon was incredibly strong and they just..."

Noelle's face paled.

" His arm...!"

Noelle then noticed his Grimoire was still whole.

" If the Grimoire's still whole, then... he' still alive!" Noelle knelled next to Fuegoleon. " We have to stop the bleeding."

" If only Mimosa was here...!" Noelle then noticed the corner of Fuegoleon's Grimoire beginning to disappear.

" ...! The Grimoire's starting to disappear! Leopold, help me!" Noelle called out to Leopold, but Leopold made no response.

He only stared at the almost lifeless body of Fuegoleon in disbelief.

Suddenly Rades appeared right in Leopold's face.

" Remember when you mouthed off to me a minute ago!?" Rades then launched Leopold flying into a wall with a magic blast.

" Leopold!" Noelle yelled out in worry.

" You were able to overcome adversity. What you lacked... was a just heart!"

" A just heart huh!?" Rades said in a mocking tone.

" I always do just what my heart tells me to! Go yap your head off in the afterlife, Fuegoleon Vermillion!"

The spatial magic user raised his hand slightly.

" We've done what we came to do. Let's go, Rades. Before any other magic knights appear."

Deku staggered.

He slowly began to walk towards Rades.

" Your name was Deku, right!?"

" Well, I'll kill you and make you into one of my toys real soon, look forward to it!"

Deku dashed towards Rades.

" I can't let him go... not a villain like him!" Deku thought to himself. " It's too far... I'm not gonna make it."

" Calm down... and think." Deku said to himself. " Remember what Fuegoleon taught you..."

" What can I do... to stop that guy?" Black whips surrounded one of Deku's fingers. " I'll take what I know... and expand it!"

" Air Force: Black Shot." Deku flicked his finger at 20%, the black whip launching from his finger wrapping around Rades's right arm.

Deku then pulled Rades towards him before delivering an immense punch right to his face.

The punch launched Rades back with a satisfying crunch.

Rades sat on the ground questioning what had just happened. He felt something drip down his face.

Blood.

" OWWWWW! WHADDAYA THINK YOU'RE DOING, TRASH!?"

" Not good..." The spatial magic user said as he raised his hand once again.

" What do you think you're doing!?" Deku yelled out in response. " This... is pain!"

" You laughed and inflicted it on innocent people! People who had done no wrong."

" As a hero... as a magic knight, I'm gonna take you down, Rades!"

" STOP!" Rades yelled out. " Getting hurt and bleeding is proof you're weak!"

" People with weak magic should just let strong magic kick 'em around!"

Those words... just those words alone told Deku what kind of mindset Rades was in. A dangerous mindset, that Deku had seen often in his world.

" Especially trash like you!" Rades dashed at Deku and fired a magic blast straight at his chest.

Deku instead of dodging it, took the hit directly and headbutted Rades in response.

" I'm here to make sure that doesn't happen!" Deku yelled out.

" I'm gonna be the guy, who's gonna show everyone a bright future!"

" Whether that means becoming the Wizard King or the number one hero... it doesn't matter to me. Because I'm gonna save everyone!"

Rades for once looked at Deku in fear.

" VALTOS! Do something!" Rades yelled out.

" If I could, I'd be doing it." The spatial magic user said with a slight scoff. " Those whips of his... are deadlier than one would imagine..."

A spatial magic hole appeared in above of Valtos.

" It seems we'll have to take care of the boy first."

Noelle noticing he was storing up magic.

She then noticed a spatial magic hole appeared behind Deku.

" Is planning to attack through his spatial magic?" Noelle realized a little too late. " Deku, look out!"

A spiral of fire suddenly launched at Valtos, making Valtos dodge.

" What good does it do... if I lose my cool!?"

" Stay calm at all times... right Fuegoleon!" Leopold said as he nervously scowled.

Valtos gave a small sigh.

" What should I do... we can't afford to lose Rades yet..."

Rades scowled at Leopold.

" You little..."

" How pitiful." Came a monotone voice.

Deku turned and found himself surrounded by several cloaked wizards.

Their magic aura giving them a chilling presence.

Leopold looked at them in shock.

" Reinforcements...? Five of them!?"

" We received a report from our master and came, but..." One of the cloaked wizards began. " Against people like these..? Pitiful."

Deku groaned in pain. The curses were still affecting his body, his body was bleeding like crazy.

He wouldn't be conscious much longer...

A smirk suddenly appeared on Rades's face.

" Looks like the tables just turned!"

Black whips suddenly erupted from Deku's body.

" I may be barely able to move..." The black whips covered the spots in which he was bleeding. The spots in which the curses were affecting him the most.

" This should be able to stop the bleeding." Deku said with a slight smile.

.

.

.

On top of a building, Nero watched the scene with the same expression the bird always made.

Deku found himself completely surrounded. He also found himself channeling his inner Bakugo...

" I'll take you all down!" Deku yelled out.

" Did the sight of our numbers drive him insane?" One of the cloaked wizards asked.

" It doesn't matter. He's about to die anyway."

They all launched a magic blast, directly at Deku.

Deku's fingers glowed black before black whips erupted from all of them. He flung the whips with immense force. It destroyed all of the incoming projectiles.

The cloaked wizards were not impressed.

" Your struggles are pointless..."

" Oh... its him. The one master was talking about."

Black whips erupted around Deku wildly.

" I need to stay calm... and calmly kick their butts." Deku's arms hurt all over and his eyes were starting to get blurry. He didn't know much longer he could keep this up.

Several fireballs suddenly erupted and attacked the cloaked wizards.

" Flame Magic: Exploding Flames." Leopold glared at the cloaked wizards.

" You think I'm going to let you people throw your weight around... after what you did to my brother!?"

" Let me join, my rival!"

" Yeah, thanks."

Deku and Leopold went wild in attacking the enemy attacks. No attack could stop them.

" They say beasts are more formidable when wounded... these boys are..."

" Dangerous!" The cloaked wizards increased the power of their magic spells.

" You weren't our targets, but we'll kill you here and now!" They fired off their magic blasts before a giant water barrier protected Deku and Leopold from the attacks.

" Water Creation Magic: Sea Dragon's Lair!" Noelle had protected them.

" Don't think you can kill my friends so easily!" Noelle yelled out at them.

" Well, well... that's quite a nice barrier spell!" One of the cloaked wizards yelled out.

" From your appearance, you're a member of the royal Silva family?"

" In that case, I'll oppose you with Grimoire magic. I wouldn't want to be rude."

Tree roots suddenly erupted from the ground and swallowed the water barrier.

" The Creation Tree: Magic Draining Roots."

Noelle looked in shock as the tree roots had completely swallowed her magic.

Deku and Leopold launched themselves at the enemy wizard.

" Your instincts are admirable."

" Wind Creation Magic: Tornado Needles." Piercing wind needles shot out in a instant and stabbed Deku and Leopold. It was so quick, they were only able to react after they felt the pain of their body being punctured.

Deku and Leopold both fell to the ground with a thud.

" Now then... let's finish them off, shall we?"

More wind needles formed before launching at Deku and Leopold.

" STOP!" Noelle yelled out.

BOOM!

Something had blocked the wind needles.

It was a just ball of mercury.

Noelle instantly recognized this magic.

Nozel and the magic knights that been moved several kilometres away... had gotten back.

" You guys...!" Noelle said in relief.

" How dare you send us all the way out there!" Alecdora yelled out.

Valtos looked at them in shock.

" Impossible...! You covered that distance this quickly!?"

" We really didn't want to... but we worked together to get back... call it compound magic if you will." Alecdora said with a slight sigh.

Sol gave a slight sigh.

" Well, I guess men aren't totally useless." Sol stated.

" I acknowledge their abilities, no more." Charlotte said with her eyes still closed.

" I'm never cooperating again!" Solid said in disgust.

" We really don't play with others well, you know." Nebra said with a slight chuckle.

Nozel stared at them with a cold stare.

" However... our nine magic knight squads exist to protect the peace of the one Clover kingdom!" Nozel stated.

Valtos jumped off the building.

" It'll cost us if we keep fighting. Let's retreat."

A Grimoire appeared in front of Nozel.

" What's the rush?" Nozel asked with a cold tone.

Several mercury rain-like balls formed in the air.

" Mercury Magic: Rain of Silver."

A Grimoire appeared in front of one of the cloaked wizards.

" Gel Magic: Sticky Salamander"

A giant salamander made of goo erupted from the Grimoire.

" Dark Magic Item: Special Properties Alpha... Absorbed." The cloaked wizard injected the salamander with a giant needle.

The mercury attack was absorbed into the salamander.

Nozel looked at it in confusion before noticing the needle.

" Is that... a magic item!?"

The salamander then stepped on Deku, absorbing him into its body.

" DEKU!" The magic knights yelled out in worry.

" Miiiiiine!" The cloaked wizard said in glee.

" Remember this... magic knights." One of the other cloaked wizards began. " We are the Eye Of The Midnight Sun.

" The ones who will destroy the Clover Kingdom."

Spatial magic appeared beneath them before they all disappeared. In an instant they were gone... alone with Deku.

" Deku... they took Deku! We have to save him!" Noelle yelled out.

" Noelle...! I'm sorry we can't." Klaus interrupted. " There's no way we can locate their destination..."

" Yes, but...!"

" No." Nozel suddenly spoke up.

" Right now, our top priority is the capital's defenses. There's no guarantee that those were the only enemies. We don't have the time or magic to spend on someone like him."

Noelle could only stare in response. She suddenly turned around and called for Mimosa.

" Mimosa! Help Captain Fuegoleon!"

Mimosa immediately began healing Fuegoleon.

Mimosa looked at Fuegoleon in shock. She couldn't believe Fuegoleon had lost.

" Someone like Fuegoleon... ended up like this!?" She then noticed Leopold. " Even Leopold..."

" Deku is gone... please, please be all right!" She prayed to herself.

" With my magic, first aid is the best I can do! He needs to be taken to the medical ward for more advance healing magic, or... or else...!"

" What could of done this to a magic knight captain!?" Sol questioned.

" Pft!" Solid suddenly called out.

" Some captain. That's just pathetic! The Vermillion clan sure ain't what it used to be. Makes me embarrassed to be a royal...!" Noelle looked at Solid in shock.

" How could you say that, Solid?"

" We are magic knights." Nozel suddenly called out. " Unless we win, our existence is pointless."

Noelle wanted to refute Nozel's statement.

" Nozel..." Noelle said, disappointment evident in her tone.

" He's right!" Solid yelled out." This is gonna trash the reputation of the Crimson Lion Kings too!"

Before Solid could continue however, Nozel turned and glared at him.

" However, Solid... as we were not even present at the fight, we are less than he is." Nozel said with a cold gaze. " Strengthen the defenses so that the damage spreads no farther!" He ordered.

Solid looked at Nozel in confusion.

" ... uh right." Was his dignified response.

" He's right!" Alecdora suddenly yelled out. " They spread around magic that blocks transmission spells, and the chain of command is in chaos! Thanks to that, reinforcements from outside the noble realm failed to arrive. We can't let our guard down yet!"

Noelle face was full of worry.

" Deku..."

.

.

.

The cloaked wizards walked towards a hidden castle, hidden by a forest.

" Rades! We ended up with a huge headache because you stepped out of line! Don't get carried away just because the master has taken a liking to you."

" "I want to fight a captain alone!" You said. " I want to lay waste to the capital!" Conceited fool." The cloaked wizard scolded Rades. " Simply achieving the objective wouldn't have taken half this much work."

" SHADDUP!" Was Rades comeback. " My toys are what took damage! That's no skin off your noses!"

" Buuuut... it sounds like Catherine was defeated and is still out cold in the capital~" The salamander wizard said.

" Like I care about that hag!" Rades yelled out. " We got what we went in for, so it's all good!"

" By the way, Sally." One of the cloaked wizards said to the salamander wizard. " We can't take that boy with us. Kill him."

" Huh!? No way. Can you feel any magic from him? No, so why can he use those whips of his? This is a type of magic on a whole different level! I'm gonna use him in my research."

Deku slowly groaned as he opened his eyes. He slowly took in his surroundings.

" Where am I...?" He questioned to himself. He was in some sort of gel bubble, he was levitating in the air inside it.

" Only those acknowledged by our master can go there. Don't cause unneeded trouble. Kill him before the meeting time."

Deku then got a clue of where he was. He had been captured, and he was surrounded. He had to think of a way to get out of this mess!

" Yeah! Let me kill him! I'm gonna make him into a toy!"

" Rades, you be quiet!"

The cloaked wizard closest to Deku, looked up and noticed he was awake.

" Ah!"

Deku prepared himself for a attack.

The cloaked wizard took off his hood revealing a... she?

A young woman with black hair and glasses. She had a curvy figure but what got Deku's attention were her eyes.

He had seen those eyes... her eyes were same as a certain blood-loving villain...

" You're awake!" She called out. " You ask them too!"

" You want me to investigate every last inch of you and your Grimoire and run all sorts of experiments on you, right? You want to be useful to my research, right? Right, right, right!?"

Deku could only back up as far as he could from this girl. She was bad news! He was in super bad situation and she was not making this any easier!

" C'mon please? I'll ask too so c'mon! Pleeeeeeeeeeease!?"

The group had walked into the hidden castle and were walking down several stairs.

" Give 'im to me!" She begged.

Suddenly the group stopped.

" Hi there. I've been waiting for you." Julius Novachrona... in other words the Wizard King stood directly in front of the group.

" Wha..!?" Everyone looked in shock.

" How was the capital?" Julius asked with a not so sincere smile.

The cloaked wizards were nervous and sweating like crazy.

" Why here? Why is this man here!?" The cloaked wizards grabbed out their Grimoires and prepared to attack.

" Die...!"

Suddenly Julius appeared in between two of the cloaked wizards.

" He's fast!"

Two magic orbs formed in Julius's hands and before the cloaked wizards could react, fired them.

The cloaked wizards disappeared without a trace.

" W-what? Impossible! Where did they go?"

" I killed them." Julius stated rather calmly. " It would have been a bit too hard with numbers like these..."

" Restraining you, I mean." Julius said as he stared at them with a blank expression.

Tree roots erupted towards Julius. Julius shot a magic beam through the roots and killed another cloaked wizard.

Sally and Rades looked at the scene in shock.

" W-What just happened?" Rades asked in shock.

" You just came from attacking the capital, didn't you?" Julius gave them a cold stare. " You can't possible have gone to kill... without preparing to be killed. Right?"

Valtos was feeling nervous.

" What power... so this is the Wizard King. This is bad... my magic is already drained!"

" That said..." Julius suddenly spoke up. " You seem pretty skilled. I'll probably have trouble here."

He then gave them an innocent smile.

" What do you say? I'll just let one of you live. Do you want to surrender? It's first come, first serve. What do you think?"

" DON"T SELL US SHORT!" Sally and the last remaining cloaked wizard yelled out as their Grimoire appeared before them.

Sally began firing several gel projectiles, while the cloaked wizard fired off his super fast wind needles...

However, Julius dodged it all with ease. In fact he was moving so fast, it looked as though there were multiple Julius's.

" How is he moving like that... my eyes can't keep up."

" I guess there's no helping it..." Julius spoke up. " I might be able handle numbers like these..."

Suddenly white magic enveloped the wizards as a ball of magic trapped them.

" Time Binding Magic: Chronostasis."

" W-What the heck is this...!? I can't move..."

" Nice, I got all of you. Were you more worn out than I thought?" Julius said with a slight smile.

" See how it feels to live... in one unending moment."

Deku watched this entire scene unfold in bewilderment. Julius has beaten all those opponents, that Deku had lost to quite easily.

The gel bubble suddenly popped, letting Deku fall onto the ground.

" Oh! Hello, Deku. We seem to be linked by fate somehow."

Deku feel uneasy around this man. But he knew this man... Julius was someone on his side.

" This is only a small fraction of what you'll have to surpass." Julius said with a slight smirk.

" Need a hand?" Julius extended his hand to Deku.

For whatever reason, Deku felt like he had to stand up by himself. This was the Wizard King, the strongest magic knight... a man who was looked up to by many. He felt like he shouldn't show any weakness around him...

Deku slowly pushed himself up, it took all of his strength to just stand. Deku's body wobbled back and forth but he was able to stand up.

Julius gave a small smirk at Deku.

" I guess... you didn't need help?" Julius then turned to the capture wizards.

" You four had some pretty interesting magic, I was surprised. Now then... there are some things I want to ask you..."

Julius then pointed his hand at a giant stone that was behind him. The stone had several unknown runes marked on it, along with four jewels inside the runes.

" What are these jewels on this stone slab? I've never seen the characters or the pattern before."

" What were you trying to do with it?" Julius asked with his cold smile.

" Well, even if I ask you now. You can't do a thing inside that spell. We'll have this talk later. At leisure, in the Clover Kingdom."

Julius suddenly turned around. He felt a sudden intrusion of mana.

" Somethings... coming?"

Bright light shined in the room. Bright enough that it blinded everyone.

Julius was barely to make a figure out. The figure raised his hand before magic erupted from him.

Deku had to shield his eyes from the light.

And with the speed the light appeared, the light suddenly disappeared.

They were gone. The enemy wizards.

" He got us. He's taken his companions away. Light magic faster than mine... must've been the enemy boss. He seems interesting... I mean tough."

" But..." The last cloaked wizard hadn't been taken.

" We managed to keep one."

Deku looked on in almost a daze. Why didn't the boss take all of them? Did he deem this specific cloaked wizard unnecessary?

Suddenly an image of a young wizard appeared in front of Julius.

" I finally got through! Where are you, Wizard King!?"

" Hmm... hello there, Marx. Sorry about that, things got a bit busy and I blocked the communication spell." Julius answered.

" But you're always doing that! Something really awful happened here!"

" The capital was attacked, correct?"

" Huh...?"

" And you repelled them safely, correct?"

" Huh!?"

" Yes, but... never mind that, just come to the medical ward!" Marx yelled out in worry.

Julius had a worried expression on his face.

.

.

.

In The Capital

Several medical wizards surrounded Fuegoleon as they healed him.

" We've strengthened the magic barrier, we should be all right now..."

" Fuegoleon... Leo..." Mimosa prayed out in worry.

Alecdora felted a powerful and familiar magic approaching.

" This magic... its...!?"

Suddenly Julius landed right behind everyone. The captured wizard still captured, and Deku was being carried like a toddler.

" Yo! Good work, everyone." Julius said with a smile.

" Th-The Wizard King!?" They then noticed the captured cloaked wizard. " And... an enemy?"

Then everyone noticed Deku being carried like a toddler in Julius's hands.

" And... Deku!?"

" H-hey guys, how's it going?" Was Deku's dignified introduction.

" You're okay!?" They questioned.

" The Wizard King saved me... man I thought I was a goner for sure." Deku said as he sheepishly rubbed the back of his head.

" You're always reckless! That's why it happened!" Noelle scolded Deku. " Did that teach you anything, broccoli head?"

Noelle silently sighed in relief.

" DEEEEEKU!" Klaus yelled out.

" I'm so... so glad you came back alive." Klaus said as he wiped a tear out of his eye. " I was sure you were dead... I'm so glad!"

Deku smiled at Klaus. Klaus in a lot of ways reminded Deku of Iida... a strict person but a very kind and good person.

" Yeah, sorry... for making you worry." Deku gave his biggest smile at Klaus.

" DEEEEEKU!" Came the worried cry of Mimosa as she trampled Klaus out of the way, before giving the closest hug Deku had ever gotten in the Clover Kingdom... his mom was still champion of the closest and tightest hugs.

" I was really... really worried!" Mimosa said with tears in her eyes.

" T-too close..." Deku thought as he couldn't move.

Nero suddenly swooped in and began pecking his head repeatedly.

.

.

.

" I see..." Julius said with a sigh. " One strong as Fuegoleon... and they don't even know when he'll wake up. I'm afraid I miscalculated there."

" No... it was due to our inexperience." Charlotte spoke up. " Wizard King... we confirmed that the pendant Fuegoleon wore seems to be gone..."

" Who on earth are they?"

Julius frowned.

" Hmm... from what they say. they seem to be a terrorist group with a grudge against the kingdom, but things look a bit more complicated than that..."

Julius began to think to himself.

" The jewels embedded in that slab... was Fuegoleon's pendant on one of those? There were still several open spaces. What will happen when all the jewels are in one place?"

" They might have gone after Fuegoleon because he had that jewel but... the greater possibility is that his strength and ideology would have kept them from their goals... I've been investigating several dissidents in secret. This time, for the first time, I picked up their tracks and was searching for them, but... if they're planning something extraordinary..."

" Maybe, I shouldn't have left the capital..."

Julius then suddenly spoke up.

" We'll get the details from the captive later. In any case... people look to the magic knights for one thing- the peace of the kingdom. In order to preserve that, we must keep fighting with everything we have."

Nozel started to walk away.

" If you'll excuse me..."

" Nozel!" Solid called out.

Deku looked at Nozel with a mixed expression.

Julius let out a small smile.

The three Silva siblings walked away from the scene.

Nozel was scowling. Not at anyone specifically but he was scowling at... himself.

" Pitiful... what an appalling spectacle!" Nozel thought to himself. " Never let this happen again, Nozel!"

" And..." Several images of Nozel and Fuegoleon growing up together played in Nozel's head.

" I will find the scum who did this to you... and bury them myself."

Julius let out a small smirk.

" Has the enemy awakened not a sleeping lion, but a hawk...?"

" Either way, I'd rather not end up feeling this useless again." The chubby magic knight knows as Hamon spoke up.

" You said it!" Sol spoke up.

" We will get stronger as well!" The magic knights yelled out.

" I'm the one... who's going to get the strongest!" A familiar voice yelled out.

Mimosa turned to the medical building and saw Leopold leaning on the door.

" Leopold! You need to rest!" Mimosa called out.

Leopold ignored her and stared at Deku.

" Deku! I'm glad we both pulled through! You're my rival. We've face death together and survived, and so... I expect you to get stronger too!"

" And..."

" Big brother what's that mark on your forehead?" A younger Leopold called out to a younger Fuegoleon.

" Hmm? Ah, this? It's a mark handed down in the Vermillion family, the sign of a personal oath."

" It's only worn by those prepared to conquer themselves and become king!"

" Woah, that's really cool!"

" Master Fuegoleon has become a truly splendid individual! He might just be the one to obtain both thrones of the king and the Wizard King, and become the true king!"

Younger Leopold looked at his older brother in awe.

" My brother is truly amazing! I'll work hard too, so I'll be fit to be his younger brother!"

It's not like I want to be like him.

A small fire formed on Leopold's thumb.

" This... is the mark of my oath!" Leopold then presses the fire on his forehead, burning himself.

I'll become a man... who surpasses even Fuegoleon! Leopold had resolved himself.

" I'll be the one to become the Wizard King!" Leopold yelled out. The burn mark on his forehead, now resembled the one his older brother had.

Deku gave a competitive smile in return.

" Yeah! Let's see who can become the Wizard King first, Leo!" Deku said with a big smile as he outstretched his arm.

Leopold then smirked.

" Yeah!"

Leo then fist-bumped Deku.

.

.

.

Chapter End

This arc is pretty much over. Took me a awhile but I'm satisfied with it.

For those wondering if Deku will get explosion... because of the movie, my is answer is... no. I loved that movie but I feel giving Deku explosion wouldn't really make sense as technically Deku is the 9th while Bakugo would be the 10th. Which would mean Deku would get future quirks... so yeah I won't give him explosion but I do have so other ideas so... look forward to that!
And also, I am completely caught up on the manga as I read it weekly so I'm completely caught up on any updates.

Review Time!

AkaDeca: Glad to you enjoying it! I will try my best to update this story as fast as I can!

Shia Rephic: Thank you! You're way too kind!

D3lph0L0v3r: Yep, I have plans for that many other future quirks!

Nico2000: Yes, thank you. I will do my best to update more!