The captains' eyes lit up.
"However," Julius added, "whether you accept or decline, you must give your reason."
He turned to William first.
"I accept," William said without hesitation. "Serving in the Golden Dawn would allow Mr. El to familiarize himself with the Clover Kingdom while strengthening our defensive position against the Diamond Kingdom."
El smiled faintly. He had planned to choose the Golden Dawn before arriving—but things had changed.
"Captain Fuegoleon?" the Wizard King asked next.
"It would be an honor," Fuegoleon replied. "The Crimson Lions would grow stronger alongside him, and together we would protect the kingdom more fiercely."
El wasn't surprised.
The Wizard King nodded and turned to Nozel.
"I will accept," Nozel said simply, "if Mr. El is willing."
"I understand," Julius replied.
He glanced briefly at Charlotte, then moved on, knowing her squad was female-only.
"Dorothy doesn't like him." Dorothy spoke and went back to her dream world.
With a sigh, the Wizard King turned to the next captain.
"Captain Gueldre Poizot of the Purple Orcas."
Gueldre stepped forward—his attire making him look more like a thief than a Magic Knight captain.
"Though my specialty lies more in trade than combat," Gueldre said carefully, "if Mr. El wishes to join my squad, I would gladly accept him. Strengthening ties with the Heart Kingdom would greatly benefit the Clover Kingdom's economy."
He spoke while fully aware that his chances were slim.
"Thank you," the Wizard King nodded. "Captain of the Aqua Deer, Rill?"
"Ohhh! I was waiting for that!" Rill exclaimed excitedly. "Watching him fight was so inspiring! Please join my squad! I can even make you captain if you want!"
"I think we understand your enthusiasm, Captain Rill," the Wizard King said gently, moving on.
His gaze landed on the final captain, who was currently drilling his fist into the head of Asta standing beside him.
"Yami," Julius said casually, as if addressing an old friend. "What about you?"
"What about me?" Yami replied lazily. "I've already got my hands full dealing with these idiots. I can't afford another weirdo. Just thinking about losing my precious dump time to babysit them makes my skin crawl."
The arena fell silent.
"What?" Yami snapped. "Did I say something wrong?"
"Brute!" Charlotte scolded. "How can you speak so crudely in front of us?! (…Why do I fall for men like this?)"
What a letdown, El thought. 'I heard the Black Bulls were struggling with funding. I could handle that—and their unruly members—for the next six months.'
El relayed the thought through a telepathic connection, a mana link he had formed using his advanced runic knowledge.
'Telepathy?' Yami shot back. 'Damn brat, how many abilities do you have? And why are you so set on joining my squad when better options exist? Are you some kind of stalker?'
'Setting aside my abilities,' El replied calmly, 'Your squad offers the most freedom. As for my credibility—you can ask Vice-Captain Nacht. We've worked on the same mission for the past three years.'
Yami narrowed his eyes.
'I don't sense lies—except the part where you said you're here purely to improve relations between kingdoms. So tell me. Why are you really here?'
'It's not a secret,' El answered. 'I'm hunting a rogue demon. Strengthening ties is my sister's vision. The Wizard King knows and has permitted my investigation in return.'
Understanding flickered in Yami's eyes.
He took another drag from his cigarette, staring upward as if pondering something distant.
"On second thought," Yami said aloud, "maybe I should let him join. A Heart Kingdom prince's gotta be rich. I can dump all my paperwork on him and take a nice long vacation."
He laughed loudly, unfazed by the stunned expressions around him.
Then El spoke.
"Then, Captain Yami," he said calmly, stepping forward and extending his hand, "please take care of me."
"What?!" Rill and several other captains exclaimed.
But the decision was already made.
There were several members of the Golden Dawn who were clearly displeased with El, a noble, joining the Black Bulls. Yet El had his reasons.
His investigations into the demon within Asta's grimoire—and the deeper secrets surrounding the Black Bulls—had intrigued him far too much to ignore.
"That was quite unexpected," Fuegoleon remarked.
"If you ever change your mind, you are always welcome in the Golden Dawn," Captain William added.
"Hahahaha… both you brats are something else. Today seems to be my lucky day. Maybe I should try my luck at the gambling den tonight," Yami said, gesturing for them to follow. El, Noelle and Asta did so without hesitation.
With that, they parted ways, each returning to their respective squads and bases.
Yami initially insisted on going to the gambling den, but midway changed his mind and decided to head to the hideout instead.
As they passed through the crowd at the exit, murmurs followed them—people whispering about El's overwhelming strength and the magicless boy who had managed to last so long. Their departure was further delayed when Asta suddenly announced he needed to take a dump.
Along the way, El learned about the other person accompanying Yami—a young noble named Finral. Due to his limited talent in spatial magic, Finral had been assigned to the Black Bulls instead of a more renowned squad.
Using his spatial magic, Finral transported them to the Black Bulls' hideout. However, the welcome El received was far from what he had expected.
As they emerged from the portal, El immediately took in their surroundings. They were deep in the wilderness.
Thick, dark trees encircled a lone, haunted structure standing ominously in the middle of nowhere. From within, eerie screeches and sudden explosive sounds echoed out, sending an unsettling chill through the air.
Soon enough, El's suspicions were confirmed. A fireball came crashing out from within, blasting apart the hideout's door along with a massive chunk of the wall.
"This is not the welcome I was expecting," El said, carefully taking in his surroundings.
Inside the hall, a rowdy maniac was firing fireballs indiscriminately, completely unconcerned with the damage he was causing, while a battle junkie dodged them effortlessly, laughing like a madman.
A strange woman lay half-naked on a sofa, clutching a half-empty wine bottle as she shouted at them to stop causing a ruckus. Two or three more odd individuals were scattered around the room, each indulging in their own bizarre activities.
From behind him, Yami spoke.
"Welcome to the absolute worst Magic Knight squad—the Black Bulls."
El couldn't help but agree. He now understood why Nacht preferred not to return to his squad, though El was far more curious about why he had joined it in the first place.
"Is there any way I can change my decision?" El asked, only for Yami to pat his back and shove him forward.
"Come on, kid. What's the worst that could happen?" Yami said reassuringly.
At that moment, Asta stepped forward and introduced himself.
"I'm Asta from Hage Village, and I joined the Black Bulls today! It's great to meetcha!" he shouted at the top of his lungs.
No one paid him any attention.
"Hey, that pudding was wonderful!" the battle junkie yelled.
"It's gonna be your last meal," Magma shouted back.
Suddenly, a stray fireball flew toward them, unintentionally aimed straight at Asta's face. Asta was in no condition to react, and El made no move to deflect it. Sensing this, Captain Yami stepped forward, casually grabbing the fireball and extinguishing it as if crushing a mosquito.
Annoyed, Yami took a deep breath, completely inhaling the half-burnt cigarette in his mouth, and roared at the top of his lungs.
"YOU IDIOTS! WHO'S GOING TO PAY FOR THE DAMAGE TO THE HIDEOUT?!"
As he spoke, he slammed his ogre fist into the wall, collapsing it entirely and finally drawing everyone's attention.
"Captain, shouldn't you be worried about Asta if that fireball had hit him?" El asked, baffled by Yami's priorities.
"Don't worry. He's a tough kid," Yami replied, ruffling Asta's head.
Asta's eyes sparkled with stars as he stared at Yami, clearly awestruck by his feat of grabbing a fireball barehanded and demolishing a wall with his fist.
'They're all clowns,' El thought, glancing at the squad members who had gathered and were now kneeling before their captain.
"By the way, Captain, who are the brats beside you?" one of the Black Bulls asked.
"Oh, these are the new recruits. Go on, introduce yourselves again," Yami said, shoving Asta forward.
Asta stumbled, still not fully recovered from earlier.
"I'm Asta from Hage Village, and I joined the Black Bulls today! It's great to meetcha!" he shouted again, forcing everyone to cover their ears.
"Haha… another country bumpkin," Magma sneered.
"Hey, idiot, why are you shouting so loud? What if my lovely Marie wakes up?" another member complained, clutching a photograph—though the magic power El sensed from him was nothing to scoff at.
Ignoring Asta, the battle junkie Luck stepped forward, eyes locked on El.
"Hey, newbie. How strong are you?"
"You two stay put," Yami said sharply. "The Brats has pushed themselves far enough for today. Your baptism or whatever can wait until tomorrow."
"What's a baptism, Captain Yami?" Asta asked curiously.
"It's a sacred duel between juniors and seniors. If you pass, you get the sacred robe of the Black Bulls and officially become one of us," Magma explained, deliberately baiting Asta. "Too bad we have to postpone such an important event. This batch of recruits seems really weak."
"What?! No, I'm perfectly fine! I'll take part in the sacred duel!" Asta declared, ripping off his shirt and revealing his abnormally toned physique, gleaming under the moonlight.
'Does he have some kind of regeneration ability?' Both El and Yami stared at him in astonishment.
"That's the spirit. Let's go," Luck said eagerly.
Out of nowhere, Magma punched Luck, sending him flying.
"That's for stealing my pudding. I'll fight Asta." Magma declared.
From the rubble, Luck raised a thumbs-up in approval.
As they exited the hideout, El noticed something peculiar—the damaged walls were slowly repairing themselves, either naturally or due to someone's magic.
One of the Magic Knights, Charmy, began preparing a barbecue and handed food to everyone. El also retrieved a rare mango-like fruit from his ring and offered it to her as a gesture of goodwill.
Charmy's eyes sparkled. She inhaled deeply, mesmerized by its fragrance, and—contrary to El's expectations—swallowed the entire fruit in a single bite.
Soon her facial expression twisted so drastically that El briefly wondered if he had accidentally fed her poison—though he was certain he hadn't stored anything of the sort in his ring.
Moments later, her mouth fell open as a cloud of steam escaped from within, and she collapsed, unconscious from sheer euphoria.
"Damn, kid, what did you feed her?" the half-drunk woman muttered, completely unfazed by her fallen squadmate. "She can digest even the most potent poison. For her to pass out like this, that fruit's taste must be otherworldly."
She wasn't wrong. The fruit was otherworldly—a reward El had received from his grimoire during one of his missions. Not only was it exceptionally delicious, it also restored mana. He had since begun cultivating it in the Forest of Elysium under the care of the Dryads.
Soon, a loud commotion drew everyone's attention as Asta and Magma confronted each other nearby. Asta gripped his signature sword while Magma formed a flaming bat, launching volley after volley of fireballs. Asta dodged them effortlessly.
At a glance, El could tell Asta's movements had improved since their earlier encounter.
"The brat's worth teaching Ki," Captain Yami commented.
"I think so as well," El replied.
Yami shot him a sharp look. "How did you learn it, brat—at that level? I thought Ki was exclusive to my hometown."
"It was a necessity," El answered calmly. "Without it, my teleportation wouldn't work so I taught it to myself."
"Whatever," Yami said, waving it off. "You'll teach it to Asta whenever you're free."
Just like that, the responsibility was dumped on him.
Meanwhile, Asta weaved through Magma's barrage with ease, drawing impressed murmurs from the onlookers. Frustrated, Magma taunted him to take the next attack head-on.
Asta agreed, declaring he would use his strongest move. He raised his sword overhead, preparing to cleave the incoming fireball.
As Magma hurled a compressed fire cannon, Asta swung—but his exhausted body betrayed him. The sword slipped from his grip, splitting the fireball cleanly in two as it continued forward without losing momentum.
Magma barely ducked, confusion written all over his face. How could a simple sword nullify his strongest magic?
The blade pierced the hideout wall behind him and vanished from sight.
"Hey, you idiot! Are you trying to kill me?!" Magma roared.
But the others only laughed, throwing him sympathetic looks.
A magic mirror suddenly materialized in front of him—Gauche's doing—revealing he hadn't escaped unscathed. A clean strip of hair was missing from the middle of his head, leaving him half-bald in a way that perfectly suited his delinquent image.
Enraged, Magma shattered the mirror and turned to chase Asta, only to find him collapsed on the ground, unconscious at last.
"Hey, kid," Magma muttered, hoisting Asta onto his shoulder. "Don't know if you can hear this, but you did good. Welcome to the Black Bulls."
He placed Asta onto a nearby chair.
"Now it's our turn," Luck said eagerly, bouncing on his heels.
At a glance, El could tell—this one was different. Luck was an experienced fighter, unlike anyone El had faced that day.
As if responding to his thoughts, El's grimoire activated.
⚔️ [Mission Interface]
Mission: Bully the Senior
Rank: B
Time Limit: None
Objective: Defeat Luck Voltia within 60 seconds
Reward: B-Rank Treasure or B-Rank Ability Card
[Accept / Reject]
Defeating Luck within the given time wouldn't be difficult. But if the mission imposed restrictions, El might be forced to reveal abilities he preferred to keep hidden.
I'll worry about that later.
"I accept," El answered silently—to both his grimoire and Luck.
To his surprise, no restrictions followed.
Luck bounded closer, grinning wildly. El cracked his neck and rose from his chair.
"Luck—" Captain Yami began.
"Don't worry, Captain! I'll control myself!" Luck cut in excitedly.
"Shut it, moron," Yami snapped. "No fights today. I've seen enough bloodshed. I'm not sending you to the infirmary this late at night."
Luck sulked but only backed down on the promise of fighting tomorrow.
They ate, sang, and drank late into the night. Eventually, Magma and Luck led the new recruits to their rooms, which were barely fit for habitation.
"If it were up to me," El muttered aloud, "I'd declare war on the Clover Kingdom over this hospitality."
A presence stirred in the darkness.
"Weren't you planning to join the Golden Dawn?" a voice asked from the shadows.
"How did you end up with the Black Bulls?"
***
Author Note: I know the story is moving pretty fast, and El seems to know everyone already, but I thought introducing his backstory too soon would get boring. I've got a perfect backstory lined up—I'll drop hints along the way and reveal it at the right moment.
By now, you've probably realized how weak El is without his cards. His arsenal is almost exhausted, and he's stuck with a measly 25K Xeni coins, while an S-Rank card costs 50K Xeni. Honestly, I wonder how he's going to survive in the future.