"Hey—what are you doing?"
Seeing Luck like that, Magna spoke up in surprise.
That expression made him seriously suspect that Luck might start a fight at any moment. After all, this was exactly how he looked whenever he got the urge to battle someone.
"My instincts are telling me… he's dangerous!"
Luck's eyes widened slightly. His blue pupils burned with excitement and fanaticism, his body shuddering as faint arcs of electricity danced across his skin.
"Who?" Magna asked, baffled. "You mean Yuuki? Asta's fellow villager?"
His face was full of disbelief.
Luck tilted his head, confusion appearing alongside his excitement.
"That's the strange part. His magic power isn't high at all… so why does he feel so dangerous?"
"We're Asta's seniors, you know! How can we go after someone from his village? Besides, we were invited here!"
Magna still didn't believe it. He hadn't sensed anything dangerous about Yuuki at all. The man wore a gentle smile and looked like someone with a very mild temperament.
If anything, Magna suspected that Luck just wanted an excuse to spar.
Luck leaned forward, resting his arms on the table, then turned toward Asta, who was sitting across from him.
"Asta, Asta—how strong is that companion of yours, Yuuki?" Luck asked eagerly.
"Huh? Senior Luck?"
Asta looked puzzled, but answered honestly, scratching his head.
"I'm not really sure how strong Yuuki is now. But back in the village, I was basically the one getting beaten every time."
"I think the score right now is… thirty-seven wins for me, two hundred thirteen losses."
Asta raised his head slightly, thought for a moment, and then spoke.
The moment those words left his mouth—
Every member of the Black Bulls at the table showed looks of surprise.
They all knew Asta's strength firsthand.
And yet, that tavern owner with the gentle smile had beaten him that many times?
Luck's excitement surged even higher, his desire to fight practically spilling over, while even Magna started to look intrigued.
Suddenly—
Electricity crackled around Luck again, his blue eyes shining brighter than ever.
"Another interesting one's arrived."
At the same time, the sound of approaching footsteps echoed from behind.
Yuuki walked over with Yuno and two others.
"Huh? Golden Dawn?"
Vanessa rested her chin in one hand, lazily raising her brows in mild surprise.
"Yuno!"
Seeing him, Asta immediately waved enthusiastically.
"Asta."
Yuno smiled in return.
Meanwhile, Charmy, who had been sitting idly with a knife and fork in hand, instantly turned starry-eyed upon seeing Yuno.
"It's the prince who catches food—he's appeared again!"
Why are they all here?
Walking alongside Yuno, Klaus felt his eyelids twitch when he saw the Black Bulls—widely known as the most undisciplined squad among all the Magic Knight orders.
"I knew this was a bad idea," Klaus muttered coldly.
"Senior Klaus," Mimosa whispered hurriedly.
"…Fine. We're on the same squad, after all."
Klaus pushed up his glasses, his tone carrying a hint of reluctant pride.
Yuno glanced at the empty large table not far from the Black Bulls and immediately understood—it had been prepared for them.
But the noble members of Golden Dawn were never going to accept Yuuki's invitation.
If not for what they had experienced together in the dungeon, even Klaus—this noble—and Mimosa—royalty—might not truly have considered him a companion.
"No need to worry about that," Yuuki said softly, as if reading Yuno's thoughts. He gently patted Yuno's shoulder and smiled.
"We never needed that kind of recognition in the first place, right?"
"…That's true."
Yuno looked at Yuuki and smiled back.
Mimosa's golden eyes lingered on Yuuki, curiosity flickering within them.
"There aren't many of us. Why don't we sit together?"
Yuno glanced at the Black Bulls' table, which still had open seats, and asked Klaus and Mimosa.
Klaus choked on his breath and coughed.
As a proud member of Golden Dawn, he really didn't want to sit with the bottom-ranked squad.
But before he could object, Mimosa smiled and spoke first.
"That sounds nice. It's been a while, Noelle."
Mimosa leaned forward and greeted Noelle warmly.
"Hmph. We just saw each other not that long ago," Noelle replied, turning her head away.
Klaus sighed inwardly. Seeing both Yuno and Mimosa take their seats, he had no choice but to follow.
"Hey—long time no see, four-leaf clover grimoire user Yuno. Want to spar sometime?"
Luck spoke with burning enthusiasm.
Yuuki's gaze briefly swept over the Black Bulls' side and quickly noticed something missing—two people, to be precise.
One was Captain Yami.
The other was Finral.
If it were only Yami, it could be chalked up to disinterest. But Finral's absence meant something else was keeping him occupied.
Once everyone's here, the feast can truly begin.
The thought flashed through Yuuki's mind, though his expression remained calm.
With both Asta and Yuno present, Yuuki had already instructed the tavern to stop accepting new customers.
Two Magic Knight squads dining together was more than enough publicity.
"Isn't Finral here yet?" Asta looked around.
"Forget him—I can't wait anymore! Booze!"
Vanessa waved her slender, pale arms and shouted eagerly.
Seeing this, Yuuki stopped hesitating and headed to the kitchen. Together with Rebecca, he quickly brought out the dishes they had prepared in advance.
Before long—
The entire table was engulfed in rich aromas. Dish after dish made everyone's eyes light up.
Rebecca's cooking skills were undeniably impressive.
The atmosphere quickly grew lively.
Yuuki was even pulled into a seat by both Asta and Yuno.
Originally, he wanted Rebecca to join them, but she excused herself, saying there were still dishes to prepare, and left early.
Watching her retreating figure, Yuuki hesitated briefly but didn't stop her.
He could tell—Rebecca wasn't quite comfortable with this kind of scene.
Maybe people like me, who can stay calm while chatting with Magic Knights, really are rare, Yuuki thought.
"Yuuki, I forgot to introduce everyone. This is Senior Magna, and this is—"
Asta spoke while chewing, enthusiastically introducing the Black Bulls.
After Asta finished, Yuno also introduced the two beside him.
"These are Senior Klaus, and Mimosa."
Yuuki smiled and nodded in greeting.
Though he already knew everyone present, this was their official first meeting.
The Black Bulls had thirteen members in total.
Among them, three were mysterious—even their own squad members barely knew them.
One was Zora, user of Ash Trap Magic. Long ago, he had been defeated by Yami and invited to join the Black Bulls, but he continued wandering alone and never appeared before the others.
Another was Henry, user of Recombination Magic. Due to a cursed illness, he could only survive by absorbing others' magic power, so he remained hidden deep within the Black Bulls' base. Only Asta—who had no magic—knew of his existence.
And the final one—
The Black Bulls' vice-captain: Nacht.
Despite his position, no one in the squad had ever seen him. He worked as a spy, operating long-term within the Spade Kingdom.
He was also the only other devil host in the Clover Kingdom besides Asta.
Unlike Asta, who gained devil power through a five-leaf clover grimoire, Nacht obtained his power by forming a Devil Binding Contract.
This ritual was another method—besides five-leaf grimoires—through which one could obtain devil power.
The Dark Triad of the Spade Kingdom used this very method, as did their subordinates, the Dark Disciples.
However, the ritual was extremely dangerous.
One had to fight the devil and earn its recognition.
In simple terms—the initiative lay entirely with the devil.
Most who performed the ritual contracted with lower- or mid-rank devils.
Nacht himself had bonded with mid-rank devils.
That was why—
Forming a contract with a high-rank devil was almost impossible.
Unless the devil willingly cooperated—just like the Dark Triad and their followers.
Every one of them was Zero Zone–level.
Yuuki looked around the table, his gaze briefly lingering on Vanessa, whose cheeks were flushed red, her expression slightly tipsy.
Among everyone present, only three truly caught Yuuki's attention.
Vanessa—who would one day wield Fate Magic.
And the two rivals—
Asta and Yuno.
Asta's Anti-Magic was impossible to ignore.
As for Yuno, while Yuuki had fully replicated his Wind Magic, Spirit Magic was something entirely independent.
Beyond that, Charmy's Cotton Magic and Food Magic were already in Yuuki's grasp.
Only Grey's Transformation Magic still piqued his interest.
Though called "Transformation Magic," it could actually alter the nature of matter itself—a truly special ability.
As for the others, their magic was decent, but among the sixty-plus pages Yuuki had obtained from the assassination unit, there were plenty of similar spells.
Better than nothing—but nothing exceptional.
The lively atmosphere at the table suddenly stalled—
As two figures stepped into the tavern.
(End of Chapter)
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