The Spade Amongst Clovers

Chapter 9 Progress

A few days have passed by. Asta was doing chores as usual. As he was doing laundry, he saw Kyoya walking outside with a tired expression on his face. Seeing this, Asta decided to strike a conversation with his senior.

"Hey Kyoya! Can you give me a hand for a second?"

"Huh? Sure, i guess I can kill some time."

Soon Kyoya was sitting next to Asta as he helped him with the laundry. Asta realized something about Kyoya ever since he joined the Black Bulls. Kyoya rarely smiles or laughs and he's had a tired expression on his face lately. Soon he decided to talk to the ice mage.

"Hey Kyoya, are you feeling okay? You seem a bit off today."

"Don't worry about me. I just didn't get enough sleep, that's all."

Kyoya starts folding all the clothes but Asta noticed something. He saw Kyoya's hands were trembling. Soon he smiled and hits his back.

"Well we're squad mates now! If anything is bugging you just say the word. After all, us Black Bulls have to stick together."

".........heh. I never thought i'd get lectured by a runt."

"What was that?! I was trying to be nice you stripping jerk?!"

Kyoya just walks back in the hideout as Asta follows him while yelling. However, since Kyoya was in front of him, Asta didn't notice the smug look on Kyoya's face.

"Hey Kyoya, there's something i want to ask you."

"Go ahead. Though don't expect much from me."

"Okay....well, i was wondering why you became a magic knight."

Kyoya soon stopped in his tracks as he was lost in thought. Why did he become a magic knight? He already knew the answer to that question.

"I just......wanted to keep a promise I made to my teacher."

"Your teacher? What were they like?"

"Well......she's an old hag who smacked the crap out of me, left me out in the cold until I managed to control my magic properly, and she stripped a lot."

Asta's face was full of shock. With the way Kyoya described his teacher, Asta thought she was difficult to deal with. However, that thought was short lived when he saw Kyoya had a small smile on his face.

"Despite all that she's a good person. She gave me a place to sleep, made meals, and even went out of her way to train a kid she just met. She was strong too. In my eyes, she was unbeatable."

"Was?"

"Yeah......she passed away shortly after my training was done. After that, I bumped into some guy who annoyed the crap out of me. Next thing you know, i'm a member of his magic knight squad."

Asta was surprised at what he heard. Though he was more surprised Kyoya was willing to speak about all this. Yet, he felt like something was off. He could tell that Kyoya wasn't lying, but it didn't feel like he was being completely honest either.

"Well....i'm glad to have you as a squad mate, Kyoya."

"Really? Heh, looks like you're an interesting rookie after all. Let's see how far you can make it, Shrimp."

"What was that you jerk?! Just wait until I become the Wizard King, then you won't be calling me shrimp anymore!!!!!"

"Asta, its okay to have dreams not delusions. Being Wizard King won't make you any taller."

~Meanwhile~
Juvia is seen inside of her room at the headquarters of the Blue Rose Knights. As she was lying in her bed, she kept thinking about what happened during her mission at Sosshi Village.

"Thank you......Juvia."

Juvia's face was slowly turning red as she remembered the Black Bull that she worked with. For some reason, she just couldn't stop thinking about him.

"No no no! Calm down Juvia! You're a member of the Blue Rose Knights! I can't let Sol or the Captain see me like this. Just keep your wild fantasies in your head."

Soon Juvia started rolling all over her bed until she fell on the floor. As she did, she rubbed her head as she stood back up. However, there was one thing that stood out to her during her mission.

"Though when Kyoya was fighting Mukuro, why was he so hesitant to use his grimoire when he's so strong. Plus his magic felt incomplete, like it was missing something."

Juvia didn't understand this. She couldn't understand why the ice mage was so reluctant to use his grimoire despite how strong he was. Yet the more she tries to think about Kyoya, the more questions she begins to ask herself.

"Kyoya Fullbuster.....you really are an enigma."

~At the Royal Capital~
A single man was seen walking through the halls of a prison. As he did, he asked one of the guards to guide him to the cell of a certain prisoner. When he reached his destination, he told the guard to leave him be as he began to speak to the prisoner.

"So you're the fugitive from the Diamond Kingdom, Mukuro Rokudo."

"Kufufu. I'm honored that someone of your status knows of me, Julius Novachrono."

Julius smiled as he was impressed that Mukuro knew about him. Meanwhile, Mukuro was kind of upset. If he had his trident, he would form a pact with Julius immediately. However, he knew the Wizard King was leagues above him.

"Well then Mukuro, i have something to ask you. Why did you attack a village in the Clover Kingdom?"

"Kufufu. To search for someone. A certain witch to be precise. However, if I were you, i would keep my eye on a certain ice mage."

Julius was curious as to what Mukuro was talking about. Seeing the Wizard King's expression, Mukuro simply laughed as he said one thing.

"You and the witch i'm searching for have a lot in common. When faced with a mystery, you show a lot of passion when you try to figure it out. Just know this, Julius Novachrono, Kyoya Fullbuster can either be an ally or an enemy depending on how you move forward. After all, he's also a person the Witch of Greed has her eyes on."

After saying that Mukuro remained silent. Julius simply left the prison as he thinks about what Mukuro said. As this happened, he heard someone scream at him.

"Sir, there is urgent new-"

"We have a situation on our hands, right Marx."

Julius smiled as he heard from his advisor. As he turned around, he spoke to Marx in a confident tone.

"It's about the dungeon that has just appeared, correct. Don't worry, I already know who to task with this mission."

~Meanwhile~
The woman with long white hair is seen drinking tea. As she puts down her cup, she had a small smile on her face. Soon she began to speak up.

"It seems the wheels of fate are finally starting to move. I wonder how you'll progress, Kyoya Fullbuster. Will you follow the path that fate has given you.....or will you become a creature that shatters it. Either way, i hope my little experiment goes well. If it does....you might be able awaken it. Your true magic."