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*****
Early the next morning, after returning the black five-leaf grimoire to Asta, George headed to the royal capital's inn to pick up the First Wizard King and Secre.
However, the moment the trio appeared at the castle gates, they spotted a massive sphere of water hovering in the air above the headquarters.
"Magic out of control," the First Wizard King, Lumiere, identified the problem at a single glance.
George, meanwhile, locked his gaze onto the young girl inside the water sphere who was on the verge of suffocating. "A mage of the Silva family."
With her silver hair, she bore the unmistakable hallmark of House Silva, one of the three great royal families.
Whoosh!
In the next heartbeat, he saw Asta being grabbed by the collar and hurled into the air toward the giant water ball by Yami. Asta drew the Demon-Slayer Sword from his black grimoire, negating the sphere's mana with a single strike and rescuing the silver-haired girl.
"What's the situation?" George stepped forward and asked Magna.
Magna quickly summarized the events. The silver-haired girl was Noelle Silva, indeed of the royal House Silva—their youngest child. Because her mother had died in childbirth and Noelle lacked any control over her magic, she had been cold-shouldered by her family. Forbidden from joining the Silver Eagles, she had been scooped up by Yami for the Black Bulls. Like Asta, she was a newcomer reporting for duty today. The surge of emotion had caused her magic to go berserk, trapping her in a prison of her own making.
"Way of the Fallen Angel!"
Seeing the two falling from the sky, Finral hastily used his spatial magic to teleport them safely to the ground. Afterward, the squad members took turns encouraging the insecure, "tsundere" noble lady, giving her a first taste of the warmth within the Black Bulls.
George noted that while Yami's recruits were eccentric, they shared a common thread: they were fundamentally kind and gentle at heart. Well, mostly. George didn't necessarily consider himself "gentle." He had been recruited because Yami owed him too much money and because of a few subtle psychological nudges.
"And they are?"
Having settled Noelle's situation, Yami looked at the two strangers George had brought back, a look of confusion on his face. George didn't waste words and got straight to the point.
"These are two friends I met on the way to the capital, Lumi and Re. Some delays kept them from participating in yesterday's exam. When they heard I'd joined the Black Bulls, they wanted in too, so they begged me to bring them for a trial."
"Please to meet you, Captain Yami! We've always felt the Black Bulls were the most impressive of the nine squads," Lumiere said, his face a mask of absolute sincerity. "Captain Yami may seem wild, but he's a true man—unrestrained, brave, and resourceful. When I heard George made the cut, I was envious, so Re and I wanted to try our luck. We'll take any test you have. We just hope for a chance."
Lumiere spoke with such earnestness that George felt a flicker of surprise. He had worried that the First Wizard King—a former Prince of the Clover Kingdom—might find it beneath his dignity to spout the flattery George had coached him on. Instead, Lumiere had added his own flourishes and delivered a stellar performance.
If George hadn't known the truth, he might have believed it himself. It helped that Lumiere's handsome face and warm smile were naturally disarming. Mages specializing in Light Magic inherently radiated a "good guy" aura.
Mages specializing in Dark Magic, like Yami, had the opposite problem. With his burly frame, stubble, smoking, drinking, and cursing, it was no wonder the public misunderstood him.
"I guess you can't always trust the legends," George mused. Just like Roselle in the Mystery world—described in legends as wise and dignified, yet in reality a chuunibyou lecher—Lumiere was righteous, yes, but he wasn't a rigid traditionalist. He liked designing clothes that were considered "weird" in his era and inventing strange magical tools. A man like that wouldn't be a stickler for rules.
Strictly speaking, Lumiere was only in his early twenties. He looked like a seventeen or eighteen-year-old youth and was younger than Yami. He was only "five hundred" because of the seal.
"Hahaha! Good! You've got a good head on your shoulders, kid!" Yami roared, his mood instantly lifted. The flattery hit him right in the sweet spot. "Since you're George's friends, I'll give you a shot. You two team up and spar with Magna. If you can beat him, I'll let you in."
By the standards of the entrance exam, Magna was strong enough to take on four or five average candidates at once. Yami set the bar high not because he expected them to be masters, but to push them to their limits. In reality, as long as they showed grit or potential, he'd take them. His philosophy was that even the least talented mage could become a powerhouse if they kept breaking their limits.
"Brother, since you've got such great taste, I'll go easy on you!" Magna wrapped an arm around Lumiere's shoulder, rubbing his mohawk with hot-blooded enthusiasm. As Yami's number-one underling and the most "honorable" senior member, he loved Lumiere's praise of the squad.
Secre's eyes nearly bulged out of her head seeing Magna manhandle her Prince so crudely. If Lumiere hadn't shot her a warning glance, she would have sealed this rude fellow and tossed him in the river.
Lumiere, unbothered, mirrored the gesture and put an arm around Magna. "I'll be in your care, Senior."
"Not bad for the First Wizard King. He really does have incredible charisma," George noted, rubbing his chin. Lumiere hadn't even officially joined, yet everyone's favorability toward him was skyrocketing. It wasn't mental magic; it was raw "Protagonist Energy." He was the kind of person who could win a room over with three sentences.
George lacked that—and didn't need it. He preferred "persuasion" through psychological intervention, hypnosis, or simply turning people into marionettes.
"Flame Magic: Exploding Fireball Scatter-Shot!"
On the grounds before the castle, Magna used his favorite magical baseball bat to pelt Lumiere with fireballs. Lumiere opened his grimoire, conjuring light arrows and faking an expression of extreme strain, barely intercepting the shots.
His goal was to recover his strength quietly while investigating the devil's plot from within the Knights. Showing too much power would only alert the enemy.
"Great acting!" George gave a mental thumbs-up. Lumiere's control was so refined that no one, perhaps not even Yami, could see the deception. From the sweating to the stumbling footsteps, it was an Oscar-worthy performance. Even at a tenth of his power, Lumiere could have easily flattened a Captain.
"Go for it, Lumi! Re!" Asta and the others cheered as Lumiere seemed to "falter" under Magna's assault.
"Seal!"
Just then, Secre—who had quietly slipped behind Magna while he was distracted—struck. Instantly, Magna was frozen in place, his mana temporarily cut off.
"Whew... we got lucky," Lumiere panted, looking like he'd barely won by a fluke. He even gave Magna an "out": "It's lucky Senior Magna was going easy on us. If he'd gone all out from the start, we never would have lasted long enough for Re to find an opening."
Ten seconds later, the seal broke. Magna regained his movement and mana, laughing as he slapped Lumiere's back. "Hahaha! Well done! Even if it was a sneak attack because I was careless, you guys are impressive!"
George shook his head secretly. Lumiere aside, even Secre could have handled Magna solo. She might not be a "combat" mage, but she was the top-tier Sealing Mage who had once trapped a high-ranking devil.
"I should give him some guidance later," George decided. Magna was probably the lowest-potential member of the squad. George planned to adapt some fire magic from other worlds for him. Fire Devil Slayer Magic from Fairy Tail seemed appropriate for dealing with the devils of this world.
"Good! You pass!" Yami tossed two Black Bulls cloaks at Lumiere and Secre. He lit a cigarette and turned toward the castle. "I'm going to go take a dump and then catch some sleep. Don't bother me unless it's a disaster!"
With Yami gone, the group gathered in the hall to drink and chat. The seniors began educating the rookies on the types of missions they'd face and their reasons for joining. Vanessa was there for the pay and handsome nobles; Luck for the fights; Gordon for friends; Charmy for food; Grey to hide; Finral for the girls; and Gauche for his sister. Not a single one mentioned "glory" or "protecting the kingdom."
The bonds grew quickly.
A half-month passed. George spent much of it discussing magic with Lumiere. As the First Wizard King and a friend of the Elves, Lumiere was a walking library of ancient magical theory. George gained immensely from these exchanges, fleshing out his understanding of this world's fundamental laws.
"Your insights into magic... I can't even begin to catch up," Lumiere sighed as they walked to dinner one evening. He wasn't arrogant, but he knew he was one of the greatest mages in human history. Yet George constantly offered perspectives that were entirely alien and revolutionary. In just two weeks, Lumiere felt his own magic had evolved more than it had in decades, adding a dozen new pages to his grimoire. His mana was only at a third of its peak, but his overall combat effectiveness had already returned to near-maximum. He was starting to suspect George might be a reincarnated deity.
"I've learned just as much from you," George replied with a smile. He hadn't taught Lumiere specific spells from other worlds, only the theories. Lumiere's ability to synthesize those ideas into his own system was a testament to his genius.
"Senior George! Lumi! We finally have a mission!"
As they entered the hall, they saw a beaming Asta waving them over.
(End of Chapter)