Dungeon Crawling!

Revelations

     "You ready, Leo?" Asta asked as he held his sword up with both hands. 

     Leo drew in a deep breath. "Yeah, I'm ready."

     "Alright then," Asta shouted as he switched into his dark form. "Let's gooooo!" 

     The fake Mereoleona was gone before Asta and Leopold even moved. If it wasn't for Asta's ability to sense ki, Asta wouldn't have been able to dodge the punch that came from behind him less than a split second later. Unfortunately for Leo, he didn't have that ability, so he became the fake Mereoleona's punching bag.

     "Clearly, one of you has more battle prowess than the other," The fake Mereoleona laughed. "but that begs the question: How do your two female friends compare to you two on the battlefield? I would like to find that out."

     Upon hearing those words, Noelle flipped the pages of her grimoire until they landed on the page where her last resort waited. Noelle watched as the fake Mereoleona simultaneously beat Leopold up and launched light swords at Asta. Asta shot upwards to avoid the light swords, then shot back down with his sword in hand, ready to slam it down on Mereoleona's imposter.

     In the moment the fake Mereoleona turned to stop Asta's attack, Leo shot the hottest flames he could muster at the copy of his sister. The fake Mereoleona fell forward with singed skin. Asta and Leo held off their next attack for a brief moment. That moment was enough for the fake Mereoleona to escape and make it to Noelle.

     Noelle aimed her wand at the fake Mereoleona before she was pulled into a headlock that got tighter by the minute. A sword filled with dark magic appeared out of thin air. Shooting Noelle a smile, the fake Mereoleona pinned the sword against Noelle's neck.

     "One more step, and it's over for her." 

     Leo and Asta immediately ceased their movements. Asta glanced a Leo with a worried expression, but Leo ignored him and looked past the fake Mereoleona to meet Mimosa's eyes. Leo nodded his head just enough for Mimosa to get the message.

     "Plant Magic: Magic Cannon Flower!"

     Mimosa created a giant flower the shot beams of magic at the fake Mereoleona. The fake Mereoleona loosened the grip on Noelle's neck for just a moment. That gave Noelle enough time to use the ace up her sleeve.

     "Water Creation Magic: Valkyrie Armor!"

     Asta's jaw dropped as he witnessed Noelle's magnificent transformation. She had told him about a new spell she unlocked during the battle with the elves, but he had yet to see it in action. If he was being honest with himself, Asta had yet to see a lot of things involving his relationship with Noelle. Noelle was amazing, powerful, and beautiful. Watching her streak across the cave to fight the fake Mereoleona made Asta realize that she was someone who could always fight beside him in battle. She was a royal, making her powerful. But Noelle's real power came from her training and her willingness to help others. Asta felt his eyes follow Noelle's every move as she danced across the battlefield. She was having almost no trouble with the foe that nearly annihilated Leo and Asta a few minutes before. Noelle was also beautiful. In her Black Bulls robe, Noelle was mesmerizing enough, but her new outfit really threw Asta for a loop. It accentuated her best features while simultaneously making for a sturdy suit of armor. Asta couldn't tear his eyes away from Noelle as she gracefully navigated the battlefield to protect her friends. How could he not realize it before? Asta mentally face-palmed at his own stupidity. Noelle was everything he would want in a significant other. His love for Sister Lily was more of an obsession than love. He loved everything about Noelle and wanted to keep her in his life for as long as he could. If he wanted to do so, he would have to act soon. To do that, he needed to fight beside Noelle and conquer this next challenge with her.