Chapter Text
finding the escape.
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“WE CAN TALK about this later.”
Klaus felt his eyes twitch in frustration. “Later? Just how long do you plan to keep everything about you a secret?”
“I’m going to discuss this later because we still have a person to deal with.” You pointed at Mars with an annoyed expression. “And we shouldn’t be staying here for too long, the other magic knights outside might think we’re dead. They’re still waiting for our reports, remember? Asta, Luck, you two are taking too much time dealing with him. Finish this as soon as possible so we can get out of here already.”
Asta blinked owlishly at what you just said. “H—Huh?”
“You’re too slow!” You shook your head in disappointment, almost looking similar to how Yami used to do during your training. “If Yami were here, he would have made you run in circles until your legs break and cry for help. Maybe I should ask him to give you proper training once we’re back at the base. Anyway, hurry up or else I’ll have to step in to finish this fight.”
“No!” Asta glared at Mars. “I can do this.”
Noelle gasped. “What? Don't be ridiculous! You're already beaten up from the previous fight and just look at you. You’re tired from swinging your sword around, there’s no way—”
“Shut up! I’m not tired at all and I can still fight. If Yuno has trouble kicking his ass, then I should be the one to finish this fight. I am going to be the next Wizard King! If I can’t even deal with this, how can I show everyone that I’m strong enough to protect the people I care about? I’m going to be the one who defeats him, not Yuno! I will win this time, Yuno.”
Yumo smiled as he held out his grimoire. “I don't think so. I would never lose to you, Asta.”
Mars felt his own blood boiling at the scene in front of him. The friendship and disgustingly sweet relationship in front of his eyes made him slowly realise that he was forgetting something important. He struggled to find the forgotten information at the back of his mind, but Mars knew that it was so important that he should punish himself for even being like this. Was it a friendship that he’d forgotten? Mars had no clue, and the confusion seemed to make him agitated. He let out a vexed cry; the thoughts of the mission struggled to go against his own consciousness.
“Stop getting in my way!”
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It took three steps for Mars to finally collapse onto the ground.
Bewildered from Mars falling to the ground weakly, Asta raised a brow at the sudden silence. He poked Mars with his sword carefully. “Hey, what gives? Done already, you jerk? That’s a lot of talk for someone who kept saying we’re useless. Guess who is going into the treasure hall? We, the magic knights of the Clover Kingdom, are going to be the ones getting the damn treasures!”
Yuno sighed, but was unable to stop smiling. “Seems like you’ve won the fight this time.”
“Hell yeah!”
You clapped out of excitement and ruffled Asta’s hair like a proud sibling, a wide grin that matched his. “You’ve done a good job, Asta! Just look at you go, that’s an excellent job for your first important mission. You really are a special kid, aren’t you? I’ll have to keep praising you to Yami so that he knows just how awesome you are.”
Flustered, Asta scratched the back of his head and laughed nervously. The sight of him being so flustered with red cheeks sent your entire heart warm with affection. Your eyes softened at Asta’s cheerful and shy behaviour; suddenly, you were eagerly looking forward to how strong he would become in the future. Once he was prepared and was old enough to understand where you were coming from, you could finally use him as a sword. A sword to go against you. Though there was a slight guilt gnawing at your heart, you knew it had to be done.
You needed to protect everyone from you.
“That’s not fair!”
Luck’s jealous voice interrupted the silence as he suddenly lunged onto you. He wrapped his arms around your neck like a koala and flashed an innocent-looking grin at you — you knew very well that there was not even a single drop of innocence within Luck. It was all a trick yet somehow, you couldn’t stop yourself from ruffling Luck’s hair this time. Despite his peculiar demeanour, you weren’t too fazed about it. “Yeah, yeah. You’ve done well too, Luck. In fact, I’m happy that you’ve managed to fight as a team. If you’re fine with that now, maybe I’m more willing to go on a mission with you next time.”
His eyes instantly shone in exhilaration. “Really? Does that mean we can fight—”
“No. ” Before Luck could even whine about it, you pushed him away and suddenly shoved something into his mouth. “Anyway, I have some recovery herbs that Vanessa bought, which should lessen the pain you have since they’re technically painkillers. Here, Yuno, you should take one too before we get into more trouble after this. Mimosa still doesn't look like she's in good enough health to use her magic, so we should deal with this with herbs for now.”
Yuno took the green leaf and nodded. “Thank you.”
Mimosa gave you a sad smile. “I’m sorry...”
“Don't be. This is not a situation any of us wants. I should be the one to apologise since I didn't give you the herb before this.” You carefully fed Mimosa the herb and watched as she scrunched her nose at the bitterness of it. “I didn't want you to think you're alright enough to fight when you couldn't feel the pain anymore. It's a rule for the support to actually fully regain their energy by worrying about themselves first.”
“...Thank you.”
“No problem. Klaus, do you need one?”
While Mars was unconscious, Klaus quickly tied him up with his binding magic. “That won't be necessary. I'm not that injured, and I can deal with it. You should give it to your other Black Bull member instead.”
“My name is Noelle Silva, not just any other Black Bull member!” She retorted with an annoyed expression.
Klaus only rolled his eyes in return. “Anyway, I’ve done what I can with my binding magic with this man over here. He shouldn't be able to do anything funny after this. We should hurry up with the treasure hall so that we can bring him back to the Wizard King. He will decide what to do with him, but because he's from the Diamond Kingdom, things will be a bit complicated.”
Asta chewed the leaf and flinched at the awful bitterness, choosing not to comment on it. “Is it going to work? The binding magic, I mean.”
“Of course it's gonna hold. It's not something that a flimsy wounded person could break.” Offended, Klaus glared at Asta. “I don't expect you to understand anything in depth, but at least have some common sense.”
“Geez, I get it. No need to get touchy.”
Klaus fixed his glasses and glowered at Asta, somewhat not on good terms with him and all of the Black Bull brutes. He was only being patient with them because of the mission and the Wizard King. As much as he wanted to sneer at them, Klaus took the Black Bull’s help into consideration. If they were late, Klaus knew that he and Yuno would be gravely injured; Mimosa’s condition probably wouldn't be as good as now either. Besides, the brief conversation with you had changed his mind albeit slightly.
Maybe the Black Bull wasn't as bad as everyone said.
“We were competing to see who would get here first. Technically speaking, we’ve won as we reached here earlier than the rest of you.” He averted his eyes bashfully and cleared his throat. “However, just this time, we’ll let you into the treasure hall first. You get that?”
Irritated, Asta's eyes twitched and he spat sarcastically. “Why are you so full of yourself, four-eyes?! Thank you very much then. Hmph!” He tried to push open the door but hesitated. “So, how do we open this door?”
You chuckled in amusement. “The two of you are funny.”
Klaus groaned. “What an idiot.”
Luck touched the door. "Looks like the door is made out of magic. You can just cut it open, Asta."
You did the same thing and stared at Luck in awe. “Amazing, I’m surprised you can detect the mana even though it's very faint. I wouldn't even notice it on the first try. You seriously have the best mana sensitivity among all of us.”
“I did well, right?”
You chuckled in amusement.
Listening to Luck's suggestion, Asta used his sword and sliced the door with ease. Eventually, the door faded away into golden ashes and revealed several mountains of treasures in the hall. You flinched at the strong glow of the treasures, every golden coin was shimmering like the sunlight. Just when you were about to follow the rest of the magic knights into the hall, you suddenly felt a shudder running down your spine. Something was staring into your soul. You didn't even need to look to know what it was. You took a deep breath and caught a glimpse of the black figure, the shadow, who kept following after you. They hid behind the treasure, glowing eyes threatening you. Their voice echoed deep inside your mind, so jumbled up that you couldn't discern what they were saying. You closed your eyes in defeat, the headache once again coming back just like every other night.
It was unfortunate that you had to open your eyes to face the reality once again.
Asta asked, “You okay?”
Not really, you didn't want to deal with another headache.
“Right, yes. Just thinking about something.” You shook your head. “I still have something to ask that guy and I’ll make sure that he's not pulling any tricks to escape.”
Asta looked at Mars. “You sure?”
Noelle bobbed her head. “Do you need me to—”
“I will be fine. Go on.”
As the rest of them entered the treasure hall, you were left behind with Mars. You took a seat on the floor beside him, making sure to keep a gap between the two of you out of comfort. Mars kept his eyes closed and back hunched as if he was travelling in his dreams. You, however, noticed that his breathing was rather frantic — perhaps the defeat was way more affecting than you thought.
“Still acting unconscious?”
Mars finally opened his eyes and used the opportunity to glare at you. The trail of blood on his face was gradually drying and seeing his condition made you realise that Asta did indeed beat him up well. Now Mars’ mana didn't seem as amazing as you first expected.
“You need help wiping that blood?”
Mars scowled. “Don't touch me.”
“Geez, sorry for even caring. It just doesn't seem comfortable having dried blood on your face. Say, what's your name?” You asked, but he didn't respond. “I know you're from the Diamond Kingdom and I’m sure you know that the Clover Kingdom is your enemy. There are many reasons why we dislike the Diamond Kingdom, one of them is the news about the experiments conducted on mages like you. Seeing you makes me wonder if you're one of the many who are experimented on.”
Mars stiffened. “What?”
“Were you?”
He glared at you in response.
“Hm. How does it feel living in the Diamond Kingdom?”
There was a brief silence until Mars realised that something was wrong. Again, his mind struggled to remember anything except the mission. It was blank. He could only remember what the mission entailed and how amazing he was at completing a mission. He’d never failed, not until today. The humiliation was severe enough yet now he had to deal with your annoying questions.
“I… don't remember.” He mumbled weakly.
You eyed him, disregarding his panicked look. Suddenly, you weren't as interested in him as before. He was just another empty husk with no other ambition inside him, there was nothing you could even extract out of him. Mars almost reminded you of yourself except that the reason he was in such a dishevelled condition was due to amnesia or something similar to it. He had no memories of himself and you found out that memories were what made a person human. Mars was nothing like a human right now, not in your eyes.
He was like a puppet, ready to be disposed of.
“Is that so? What a pity then, I have a lot of questions for someone like you. For example… I wanted to ask you how you get into that state of yours.”
“...State?” Mars got confused.
“Did you not realise it yourself?” With a cold smile, you pointed at where his brain lay. “You're so broken that it's pitiful, nothing is interesting about you at all. You can't even remember anything about yourself or what it was like in the Diamond Kingdom. You're not living at all, it almost seems like you're just a pawn to be used.”
Mars felt his sweat trickling down his face.
Was he a pawn? He wanted to deny your comment — Mars didn't want to admit that you were right but somehow, he couldn't bring himself to. He couldn't remember who he was without missions, he couldn't find out what he liked or disliked. There was something heavy at the back of his mind, something that he’d sworn to never forget. But what was it? Mars couldn't even think of anything other than the kingdom he served, his mind was broken just like you said. Harsh realisation dawned upon him.
So he wasn't even living?
He was solely living for the missions.
“Ah, but it's the Diamond Kingdom so I’m not surprised at whatever techniques they use to brainwash someone as naive as you. That's just what humans are, isn't it? You have the good and bad apples, I suppose it's your luck to have met the rotten one. I merely want to know if you were drawn in by sweet words or by brute force. How humans behave has always been my interest and somewhat a form of envy—”
Your voice rang deep inside his ears and he couldn't focus on what you were saying. His heart was pounding terribly fast, and Mars was panicking at what or even who he was. The name was all he had but was that just it? His headache was insufferable and there was a brief flash of fire in his memory. Warm and supposedly unforgettable.
Fire?
“You're sweating a lot.” You frowned. “Are you—”
“What am I?” He mumbled. “Who am I?”
“Hey, you— Ack!”
Fire began to engulf Mars whole and though it burned through your skin, it didn't for him. His injuries from the previous fight healed miraculously. You shouted at everyone as the binding magic snapped into pieces, your voice echoing deep into the treasure hall. Before anyone, you included, could react to Mars’ sudden fury, a crystal pillar hit straight into your abdomen. The sheer impact sent you flying through the wall which broke into pieces from the force. You skidded across the floor, the harsh friction burning your arm.
“[name]!” Noelle called you out in worry as she rushed to your side, her arms wrapping around your shoulders protectively. “This is— How could this happen?”
Luck cried, “No, don't die!!”
Asta ran as well, his voice ringing inside your ears. “Are you okay?! That bastard, how dare he!”
Klaus hurriedly yelled, “Mimosa! Are you able to—”
“It's fine.” Sitting up with Noelle’s help, you raised your hand to stop Mimosa from wasting her magic, you knew she wasn't in top condition either. “Save your energy, I’m fine. In fact, we should keep our magic to deal with that brat right now. I… might have pushed the wrong buttons on him.”
Mars took a step forward, his entire body covered with a gigantic crystal armour that no normal human could beat. You’d indeed pushed the wrong button. You didn't expect Mars to have healing magic or the strength to continue, it was your mistake to gloss it over. This was a bad situation that you didn't want to deal with: everyone was drained, and there was no certainty that everyone could use their magic without passing out. Mimosa also wasn't ready to keep the healing magic going, you needed to carefully think this through.
“What did you do…?” Yuno asked.
“The questions didn't go very well.”
Klaus glared at you. “Anyone can see that! This is ridiculous. How did he even break my binding magic in the first place? He was supposedly too injured to even move!”
“Wh—What's this?!”
Crystal suddenly formed around everyone's feet.
Asta shrieked, "Damn! I can't move my legs!"
“He has two attributes out of nowhere.” You explained, “That flame magic of his is a recovery magic. I don't understand why he kept it hidden from the fight before or how it was possible. But there’s something wrong with this guy that we need to be careful of.”
“What?”
Mars lowered his gaze dejectedly. “...I don't remember.”
“Asta! Your nullifying magic, use your sword and remove the binding magic. Hurry up before we get squashed like pancakes!”
“Oh, Luck, nice one!”
Mars advanced towards you and Noelle, a huge crystal blade suddenly appearing above both of you. Stunned, Noelle stared at the blade in horror — the two of you weren’t able to avoid that attack in time, not when you two were still bound by Mars’ crystal magic.
“Hurry up, Asta!” Yuno shouted.
“Damn it, you jerk. Your opponent is me!”
Asta severed the binding magic on him hastily, darted towards the blade above you and raised his blade high. However, everything went wrong when Mars swung his crystal arm to hurl Asta away from you and Noelle. Asta crumpled onto the ground, his sword clattering away from his loose grasp. A heavy discomfort settled in the pit of Luck’s stomach, his wide teary eyes glancing at you and Asta. His face was as pale as a white sheet which you would jokingly assume he saw a ghost.
“Asta! Get us out of here, quick!”
Asta coughed harshly and pushed himself up.
No, he couldn't make it in time.
Luck shouted in panic, “Asta!”
Noelle closed her eyes tightly as she hugged you tighter out of fear. As if the clock chimed, the blade fell towards the two of you. The soft sound of it cutting through the wind could fool you into thinking that it was an alarm for your death.
“Must I do everything?”
“Vector Magic: Aegis’ Protection.”
Fingers moving across gracefully, you controlled the vectors of gas molecules around you. The velocity and position of the air molecules had been altered, forming a dense shield around you and Noelle. Many weren't interested in how your magic worked but Julius, on the other hand, could sacrifice his sleep just to hear your ramble. If he were here to witness this, he would start acting like an eager child—you could already hear his enlightened voice in your mind unfortunately. The blade stopped abruptly in front of your face, its tip attempting to push through the dense air around you. Mars didn't seem so shocked to witness what had happened compared to everyone else. You briefly touched the tip of the blade and instantly, it spun around excitedly before stabbing into the ceiling above you.
Luck blinked owlishly. “Huh?”
“Don't look so surprised, you saw what I did. It's only the same thing as before.” You sighed. “It has become such a nuisance now that he's gotten stronger that I've to consider joining the fight.”
“That's what you're supposed to do in the first place!” Klaus lectured you and then pinched the bridge of his nose afterwards. “No, it should be a good thing that among all of us here, you still have the energy to go for a fight. Our chance to get out of here alive might not be that slim after all.”
“I guess you're right. I’m also quite pissed off that he managed to land a hit on Asta. That looks painful too. If one of them dies, I will have to explain the situation to Yami and no doubt that he’ll kill me too.”
Asta almost fell back in shock. “That's your reason!?”
“What else would be my reason? Think about it, nobody would want to get onto Yami’s bad side. Anyway,” You pointed demandingly at Mars. “Hey, you little Diamond Kingdom’s puppet, if you're upset over what I said then you should just focus on me alone. Count this as your luck, I’ll be finishing this fight quicker than you could imagine.”
Noelle cried, “Stop joking around!”
“But I’m actually not joking around.” You tore yourself away from Noelle’s embrace and took a few steps forward towards Mars, full of confidence and animosity. Even Luck shuddered at the dirty look you were giving. “I’ll finish this within ten minutes. We don't have the time to loiter around here.”
You eyed Asta’s sword.
“Asta, hold your sword.”
“Y—Yes?” He did what you asked for.
“Come here.”
Once he stood beside you, you placed a hand on his shoulder and smiled. “Well then, let me introduce you to my newest member of the Black Bull squad. I’ll be needing Asta’s help here so,” You made Asta point his sword at Mars. “Make sure to keep your eyes wide open and see what I could do with that power of his.”
Mars scowled, unsure what tricks you were pulling.
“Huh? Wait, I don't get it—”
“Thank you, Asta.”
“Huh? For what?”
“For being my weapon.”
“Wha—”
“Vector Magic: Thunderbolt of the Temperamental.”
As soon as your hand left his shoulder, Asta felt his entire body flying forward at an insane speed that he couldn't possibly handle. It was quick—too fast for him to feel his entire body aching from the wind going against him. Mars flinched at the magic knight who was aiming for him. He shielded himself with his crystal arms, unable to completely avoid Asta in time. Mars desperately summoned more crystal attacks towards Asta but you were watching behind the scenes with a relaxed smile. With just a swift flick of your hand, Asta moved through the air as if something was controlling him.
Klaus gawked in shock. “What?”
“It's like a thunderbolt that steers the course of everything but has a very bad temper, sometimes I couldn't control it well at all.” You laughed. “But it seems like the vector is listening well to me today!”
“No, that's not it… Just who are you?” Klaus asked with uncertainty — was there a reason why you tried to blend in with the shadows all the time? “What magic even is that? I've never seen anything like that!”
You smiled.
Asta’s blade managed to cut through Mars’ crystal armour.
“Are you curious? Well, I’m afraid that you’ll need to be intelligent to even grasp the concept that I say. Not just any form of intelligence, but the one that is enough to understand how the world works and is ruled by.” You said, “It's a vector, a concept of direction and magnitude that many wouldn't understand. It encompasses many aspects in our life: the velocity, momentum, force and even fields. I can control them. But it's not as easy as it sounds, I have to calculate and understand everything before being able to do anything.”
Klaus found himself in confusion. From everything that you explained, he understood one crucial idea: you were able to control anything with direction and quantity. You were a monster, and that was exactly his reaction when Julius showed his time magic. Perhaps not many thought of it but certain magics were made for monsters, yours and Julius’ were a great example. The extent of what you could do would frighten anyone, including Klaus.
“So as long as I understand the vectors of molecules and atoms around, I could use them. That's how easy it is for me.”
Mars’ eyes widened as his crystal armour was nullified.
“The good thing is, vectors can be found everywhere.”
Asta fell onto the ground with a pained cry, his entire muscles ached from the speed and force. He felt like his own skin was tearing apart as he was thrown towards Mars, it felt almost similar to when Yami hurled him into the sky. Feeling his entire strength drained away, Mars’ eyes rolled back and all he saw was white before everything faded to black. He dropped to the ground unconsciously, not even a single noise coming from him. A brief moment passed as everyone observed Mars, fearing that he might come back energised again.
But this time, Mars remained defeated.
“Look at that, good job.” You said, “Asta, can you move?”
Asta sobbed in pain. “My shoulders hurt…”
“That's not my question.”
“Stop abusing your newbie already, he's already in such a pitiful state.” Klaus fixed his glasses, sending a sympathetic look to Asta. “Anyway, now that we're done with this— Hey! Are you feeling ill?!”
You stared at him. “What do you mean?”
“Y—You're having a nosebleed.”
That was when you noticed a warm sensation running down your nose and the iron taste coated your lips. You hurriedly wiped it off, only smudging it worse without realising it. The headache dulled and the sudden exhaustion took over your body like a ghost. Noelle worriedly grabbed your arm and asked you a few questions but truthfully speaking, you weren't exactly listening. All you wanted right now was a comfortable bed and a good rest. Yet the nagging voice behind your mind mentioned your responsibility to report the incident to Julius and Yami.
‘This body… is still useless as ever—’
“Stay still, I’ll do it.”
Klaus grabbed your chin and gently rubbed away the excess blood with his sleeves. For someone who once disliked you, he didn't even flinch at the sight of your blood.
“Oh. Thank you.” You murmured.
He scoffed, cheeks flustered. “It's fine. Yuno, go help that short kid out. We should get ready to get—”
A soft crack suddenly echoed throughout the hall.
“Huh? What's that noise?”
“It's from above.”
Everyone’s gaze slowly moved over to the ceiling. A crack was left behind from Mars’ earlier attack, a counterattack that you were behind. Slowly, the crack spread out like a spider web and tiny pieces of concrete were chipped off. You could feel the ceiling struggling to hold the weight. It didn't feel so safe to remain inside the dungeon anymore so you gave a glance at Klaus. He seemed to have an idea of what you were saying but with a vexed look.
“Just… what have you done..?”
“Uhm, something terrible?”
“Everyone… run!!”
The dungeon suddenly shook furiously as the ceiling crumbled and collapsed under the weight. The entire place was gradually giving up. Once the ceiling collapsed, the wall began to shake and crack. The pillars broke and fell apart, the support for the dungeon was no longer there. You flashed a worried look at Asta and breathed out in relief when you saw Yuno’s help. Noelle helped out with Mimosa and Klaus lent you his shoulders as well. You wouldn't have expected the Golden Dawn to be more useful than you thought.
In fact, you didn't expect Klaus to be this bearable.
“We have to go!” Klaus spoke with an anxious voice.
You struggled to see Mars. “But—”
“What are you hesitating for, [name]? The place is going to collapse soon. If we continue to stay here, we're going to be buried under and die here! Even with your magic, you couldn't possibly save all of us!”
“But that kid from the Diamond Kingdom— I need to bring him back with me, he's an important reason as to why this mission has been this way! Just imagine the amount of information we can get—”
“And what can you do right now?”
You paused.
“I don't want to leave him here either but we need to leave. Are you going to sacrifice your newcomers for someone like him? Or are you going to sacrifice yourself for him? Don't be ridiculous! Some kind of senior you are if you're just thinking of dropping dead like that. I’m not going to let you do foolish things with me around, [name].”
The second you saw how serious Klaus looked, you knew you had to give up anyhow. Klaus wasn't completely wrong either. It would be irresponsible of you to leave Asta and Noelle behind for Mars, they weren't in their best condition either; you needed to discuss so many things with Julius and Yami. Despite being unsatisfied with Klaus’ words, you looked away solemnly with a weak nod.
“Yuno,” Klaus ordered. “Yuno! What are you doing?”
Snapping out of his stupor, Yuno suddenly looked around with curiosity. “Sorry, I heard something... I’ll get ready now.”
“Wind Creation Magic: Celestial Wind Ark.”
“Everybody, hurry! We're getting out!”
Mimosa pulled Noelle up onto the ark, just as Klaus dragged you in as well. Luck lent his arms as support to you easily, his face no longer full of silly smiles and laughs. You protested nothing and sat quietly inside the ark, watching Luck helping Asta. Asta took Luck's hand hesitantly and looked back at the ruined treasure cove. It was a mess yet he could spot Mars’ unconscious body on the ground.
“But he is—”
Klaus' eyes twitched. “What's wrong with each one of you! Is Black Bull just fond of being the hero? He is beyond saving. In fact, he’s the one trying to kill all of us. Just let him get buried inside this dungeon!”
“Because that’s not who we are! We are here to capture the dungeon.” Asta fought back. “Not to kill enemies. I believe even [name] thinks the same way!”
Noelle snapped, “What are you even saying!”
“Enough is enough!” You raised your voice sternly and this time, everyone went quiet at the tone of your voice. You weren't satisfied with it either but there was no other choice. “I don't want to do this either but we don't have enough time. And let's be honest, we can't fit many people onto this ark. We’ll leave the dungeon, no arguments.”
“But—”
“I can't let you die here, Asta.”
Asta's eyes softened as he gave up.
“Let's go, Yuno.” Said Klaus.
Flying through the collapsing roof was a bit of a challenge for Yuno but then again, you noticed he was fairly capable for a new magic knight. Once everyone was out of the dungeon, the wind ark eventually slowed down and hovered above the flat ground, giving the time for Mimosa to use her healing magic. Everyone busied themselves with Asta’s weak state and whining except for you and Klaus. An awkward silence settled between the two of you, eyes staring at the sky in peace.
“Just who are you?”
You raised a brow. “And what do you mean by that, Klaus? I thought you already knew who I am. Just [name] from the Black Bull. Do you need my age too?”
Klaus narrowed his eyes. “Don't act dumb in front of me. You know what I mean. You know that you have a lot of questions to answer, and you told me you’ll talk about it later. This is the right time. So my first question is, who are you?I only know about you from rumours, [name]. That you didn't even go through the entrance exam, and that there were no traces of you before you became a magic knight.”
“From how much you listen to things about me, I would have assumed you're interested in me.” You fluttered your eyelashes cheekily, almost laughing at Klaus’ red face. Well, you knew you had many things to answer to, but that didn’t mean you were keen on answering them. “Nothing was interesting about me before I became a magic knight. Just an ordinary person from a town somewhere, I guess.”
“I guess?”
“Don't remember much of my past, you know.”
That was, of course, a lie.
“So you could only remember after you joined the Black Bull? Hah, that's convenient. Not saying that I don't believe you, but I still have my doubts. Then tell me why you've been acting this way. Hiding your magic on purpose, why did you go to such an extent? You should know that everyone has been talking behind your back about it.”
You hummed. “I think humans generally tend to exaggerate the story. The only reason why I don't use my magic so often is that I hate using it for many reasons. It gives me a headache when I use them, for example and like you saw, I had a nosebleed. The side effects can be annoying, so that's why I’m not fond of using magic. If I can solve missions without magic, then I don't see a point in putting myself through the trouble. I’ll only use my magic when it's necessary. This is how one could survive longer in a battle.”
That wasn't exactly a lie.
“I see, that's reasonable. Do you know why that happens?”
“Who knows?”
Yet another lie coming straight out of your mouth.
“And you didn't bother explaining it to anyone at all?”
“Haha! I know for a fact that if I explain it to someone, they'll just exaggerate the story. Or they'll find fault in me regardless of whatever I say. So in the end, I’ll have to keep repeating the explanation. I might as well keep quiet to stop weird stories from spreading around. Besides, I know what I’m capable of, so I’m not bothered by what others say.”
Klaus snickered. “I seem to have an idea how you act now.”
“Do you now?”
“Anyway, I have many other questions, but I’ll leave them for next time. I’m sure you're tired from today. But before that,” He stood up and suddenly bowed as low as he could, a sight that you wouldn’t see coming often from a royal. “Asta, [name], and everyone. I’m so sorry for my behaviour today. I wouldn't acknowledge Asta or Yuno because they're both peasants. I even said mean insults just because of the false rumours. I'm ashamed of myself. Everyone here definitely deserves to be called the magic knights of the Clover Kingdom.”
You held out your hand to Klaus, smiling. “Apology accepted. Nice to work with you, Klaus. Glad we can be on good terms from today onwards.”
Klaus stared at your hand before giving you a handshake that you deserved for the first time. “My pleasure.”
“I suppose I can't wait to go on a mission with you again.”
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“That's all I have to say.”
With a wide grin, Julius nodded several times while clasping his hands together; his full attention was on you. “So that means you’ve made friends with the Golden Dawn. Klaus Lunettes, a very capable magic knight indeed. I know that he takes his missions seriously as a Golden Dawn member.”
Your eyes twitched at the pointless remark. You weren’t focusing on making ‘friends’ when there was clearly a more important matter going on. “Julius! That's what you have to say after everything that I've explained? I wouldn't say that he's my friend. He's merely an acquaintance who has worked with me for the sake of the mission. Julius, many other things are more important than that.”
“Oh? I think having a friend is an important matter.”
“Yami, please say something.”
Yami scoffed, leaning against the couch as if Julius’ office was his in the first place. You sometimes wished he would behave more around the Wizard King, but you weren’t exactly sure how to point it out to Yami. One word from you, and you might actually get a hit on the head; he wasn’t exactly gentle with it either. Though he lacked elegance, that wasn't what Black Bull was in the first place, so you supposed Julius did expect this from the very beginning. You wondered how Yami and Julius became such close friends, if that was what you could label them in the first place.
“Hah? How is that my issue?”
You sighed. “You two are really… Anyway, I get that the Diamond Kingdom has always been on our bad side. There’s nothing really strange about it, but there are still some issues that have been concerning. One, have they caught wind of the dungeon and merely gone there to get the treasure? Or have they been preparing for a war against us? We need to consider that as a possibility as well. Two, the rumour of the Diamond Kingdom brainwashing and experimenting on their mages seems to be true to an extent. The mage we fought seems rather peculiar. He doesn't seem to remember anything about himself. That's quite worrying.”
“Indeed, what you've said are things that we need to consider as a precaution. The matter about brainwashing, I can see why that's a concern based on morals.”
“Not only that, but it can also serve as an issue to our kingdom. Who knows what nonsense they're feeding their mages? It might be too far-fetched, but there may be a possibility of us getting those mages to our side.”
Amused, Julius smiled. “And why would you say that?”
“Of course, I have no intention of using them as a way to bring a war between the Diamond Kingdom and us. But I simply thought it was beneficial to have at least someone from that kingdom to help us. In case there's any bad news that might befall us. And also, I find the mage we fought earlier to be competent. The fact that many decent mages are brainwashed is a shame.”
Julius burst out laughing. “There's never a day when I don't enjoy spending time with you! You have immense talent and knowledge. I bet you could even be His Majesty’s advisor at this point.”
“For that sleazy bastard?” Yami scorned. “Forget it.”
“Don't get yourself beheaded, Yami. There's only a certain extent to which I can protect you from the laws.” Julius pulled out his drawer and grabbed a piece of paper, ready to write down everything that had to be done based on your report. “Very well, I get what you're trying to say. I’ll get someone to look into the Diamond Kingdom further, and hopefully, we can get some information from them. Is there anything else you would like to discuss?”
“There's also the matter of me showing my magic.”
Yami raised a brow. “How's that an issue, you runt?”
Julius shook his head. “Yami.”
“Well… because—”
Standing back up, Julius placed his hand on your head comfortingly. He remained still as soon as he managed to get a touch on you, perhaps realising that this might not be a good time for it. “Fret not, it was never meant to be a secret in the first place. You've worried too much. Though I would want you to take it easy by using it, your body is the only obstacle to your magic. If there's anything, either Yami or I will be the one handling it. Trust us.”
But Yami doesn't seem too happy about it.
Yami frowned. “Why do you think I’m acting this way? You're the one bringing me in here for a pointless discussion. If that's all you have to say, then we’re going back now.”
Julius pouted. “You two are not going to stay?”
“For what? Playing a tea party? No.”
“Haha! Always the grumpy one, Yami. You've not changed. This is why I can trust [name] with you. Anyway, I’ll handle the matters you speak about, but there is still a certain extent I can do without His Majesty’s permission. I’ll seek his audience and discuss further if need be. Ah, expect rewards for today's mission, and please, send my praises to your newcomers and Luck. It was wonderful to hear about your fun journey.”
You bowed and gave him a firm nod. “Thank you, Julius.”
“Don't let the wrinkles get to you.” Yami grinned cheekily.
“Haha! I shall do that.”
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You scoffed. “For a second, I thought you were unhappy about something earlier, but after Julius mentioned rewards, you look like you're about to be a billionaire in a split second.”
“That's because the rewards can only be stars, you idiot.” Glancing at you, Yami crossed his arms and let out a deep sigh. His dark circles seemed even more prominent when he was annoyed. “You're the one who looks upset, not me. Not something you wanna share with Julius, huh? Well, he's a smart guy. He probably knows everything inside that little brain of yours.”
“Quit it, Yami, I’m not in the mood for jokes.”
Yami stopped walking and faced you. The expression he gave you made you understand that there was no running away from him. “Then tell me what's bothering you like that. You know I don't like it when you're making that face.”
You resisted the urge to roll your eyes, shoulders stiff from the truth he spoke. “Hah! And you know damn well that I know you get why I’m so upset. Stop asking and acting like you don't know, it pisses me off even more.” Yami didn’t say anything, just crossed his arms, so you took the chance to continue, your voice full of venom towards yourself. “I don't want to rely on my magic, you know that. You and Julius understand that out of everyone else. That's why using my magic this time is disgustingly frustrating. I do not want this monstrosity, not if I want to remain in Black Bull. I simply can't afford to lose myself as soon as I rely on my magic.”
Your eyes darkened with disgust and animosity, not towards Yami, but towards yourself as usual. Whatever was left of your past, you did not want to uncover it again as soon as you used your magic. That nosebleed? It only served as a reminder that you were always in their clutch. The voice in the back of your mind had been laughing at you ever since you came back from the mission, provoking and mocking you as if you were a laughingstock. Angry for your sake, Yami scratched the back of his head as if he was out of ideas on how to deal with you.
He suddenly flicked your forehead.
“Quit looking like a murderer, I would say you look more like a devil when you're angry than when you're using your magic.” Yami pulled out his cigarette and lit it, taking a long puff of it. He threw you a discreet glance, resisting the urge to comment on your expression again. “Relax. Stop frowning.”
You let out a dry chuckle. “How can I not when you just mentioned I look like a devil. You just know how to press my buttons. Forget it, I don't even know why I told you everything. I'll settle the situation myself.”
“I don't know what's going on inside your mind, but whatever it is, it's probably ridiculous. As long as I'm here, you don't get to make any decision. I'm the captain of this squad, and you're working under me. You'll need to get through me before doing things on your own. Get that inside your head. I know your head is hollow, but at least make it full with my words.”
“You could have said them more nicely.”
He clicked his tongue. “I'm doing this for your sake. I know for a fact that you wouldn't even listen to me if I spoke nicely. Getting straight to the point is how you got into the Black Bull. Besides, when am I ever the type to beat around the bushes?”
You scoffed. “That's right, you never are. I'll respect you as the captain of the squad, of course, but I'll still be the one to settle my own issue. So there's no need for you to worry about anything.”
Yami stared at your determined look.
He knew for a fact that you weren't going to listen to his words, not today at least. So he stopped speaking and continued to walk back to Finral for the journey back to the base. But there was one regret that Yami wished he could say before turning his back to you. And that was to say that there was no way he could stop worrying over you.
You watched Yami's broad back intently, knowing very well what kind of man Yami was. His cold demeanour hid his care and affection well, though there were occasions when he would start ruffling your hair with a laugh. Because he was a person full of warmth, you couldn't break the news that you wanted to get rid of yourself. Perhaps he knew deep down; he was smart for someone as barbaric as him. But for now, you chose to keep your lips sealed. You couldn't tell him exactly that you were hoping to use Asta for your own sake—it was cruel of you as a senior, but it had to be done.
You rubbed your face in exhaustion. When was it again? The first meeting when you tried to kill Yami, who approached you. You’d barely adjusted to your new life and found Yami to be a threat to you—although he actually wasn't. Then there was Julius, who started beaming at you like a golden puppy; it was frustrating yet hilarious. You thought you could use them both to return to where you were—to understand what’d just happened to you, but it turned out you actually enjoyed their company. Too much that you began to think you were someone else. You were an inch away from the darkness and so far away from humanity.
You needed to remind yourself so that you could protect the Black Bull.
“Can you really protect them? What a joke.”
You were appalled by the whisper, which oddly sounded like you, ringing inside your ears. With a horrified look, your eyes shifted from Yami to the shadow beside him. Their black hands were resting on his shoulders, touch so vile that it made you scrunch your nose in disgust. Yami was completely clueless about the nonexistent touch because to him, there was nothing around him. It felt normal to him, yet in your eyes, this was all a nightmare that you prayed would stop haunting you and everyone else around you. The shadow was grinning at you—another mockery towards you. Was it a warning? You couldn't understand what the shadow—the black figure that oddly resembled you—meant. Your heart screamed for Yami in desperation and fear, as your legs weren't listening to you.
You wanted to yell at them to stay away from Yami.
“—ey!” Yami’s voice forced you to look him in the eyes. He looked worried for a moment, and you felt bad for making him feel that way. “Why do you look like you're about to kill someone?”
How could you say that there was a shadow beside him?
You forced out a smile. “...Was just lost in thoughts.”
“You might want to learn how to stop making such a scary look. People would think you're about to pick a fight with them.”
“Haha, I might actually do that.”