You wouldn't think it when you first saw him, but Magna Swing was a guy who had a fondness for the written word. Hard to believe a street punk not only affiliated with the notorious Black Bulls squad, but gave off an "intimidating bad ass" vibe in public, would be into books.
Only his squad mates and people from Rayaka village knew what a huge dork he was beneath that tough guy act. But even then, most didn't know his appreciation for stories of daring heroes who faced untold amounts of danger and ventured to faraway places. The protagonist with an iron clad set of morals who fought against the odds and saved the day? He admired how manly they were!
He had his favorites in book series, even an author or two he admired. One being a series of fiction based around a far off country where instead of Magic Knights they had only four knights that were the living embodiments of the seasons. The knights were always reborn into a new body when they died and hearing how they protected the land against beings from a demon realm was highly interesting.
There were only three books so far, and Magna owned two of them. They were kept safe in a space under the floorboards beneath his bed. Less chance of Luck destroying them...
"C'mon Magna! Let's fight! If you do I'll give you my pay this month?" Luck pressured as soon as Captain Yami passed out their earnings, his fists charged with lightning magic. "We have the day off and I wanna fight!"
"How about no ya lunatic?" he replied, a sneer on his lip. Magna knew Luck wouldn't be deterred by his answer, and made a note to make sure he didn't try to follow him into the Capital. He'd tried it a couple of times before, and there had been a few close calls.
He didn't want to have to pay for the same book twice, and if Luck knew he liked to read he would hunt for his other books as bait to fight. Then there would be the chance everyone else would find out and give him hell for it. He knew it would be good natured teasing, but he preferred to keep his "bad boy" image as intact as he could. Not that there was much left of it around his friends as is, but if they saw he was a bibliophile it would be irredeemably lost.
He knew they probably wouldn't care about him being a closet nerd, but he just wasn't ready to admit to it. Not yet...
Regardless, Magna had no wish for Luck, or anyone, to discover his secret trips to the bookstore. So when he left on his broom for the Capital, he had snuck off when almost everyone else had left. Vanessa was drinking away in her little corner of the den, sending a small flirt or two his way.
She was miffed when he ignored her, calling him a virgin street punk yet again. But he just snarked back with a comment along the lines of, "What would you know ya drunk?"
She didn't reply other than to grin cheekily.
Asta still had yet to leave, as he was writing his letter home he sent every pay day with all of his earnings. Noble of the squirt, something Magna really admired about the kid. He'd probably spend the day training once he was done. If anything, he doubted Asta would ever judge him for liking books more than anyone. But he'd still rather not risk it.
Then Noelle was lurking about, but he had no idea what she was up to. He doubted it was anything he should worry about, seeing as she brushed him off if he tried to ask, so he just shrugged and walked out the door. Noelle would tease him for sure, but as long as she didn't know, it didn't matter.
Once he had Crazy Cyclone prepared for travel, he did another check to make sure Luck was nowhere around, before lifting off and gunning it towards the Capital.
Magna loved traveling with Crazy Cyclone. The wind in his face, the thrum of his mana pulsing through his broom, the view? It was exhilarating!
Some days he wondered what lay beyond the Clover kingdom. Not as in the Diamond kingdom, or even Heart kingdom, but beyond all of that. It was a known fact there was so much more to the world than just what they knew. Captain Yami himself was a testament to that, coming from a faraway country called "The Land of the Rising Sun".
Yami rarely talked about his birth country, and Magna respected him too much to ask. But it left him in awe that someone as powerful as his captain came from a place never heard of beyond whispers in the history of the Clover kingdom.
Were all the people in that country just as amazing as Yami? Able to read ki and would wield swords instead of magic? Were there more places without magic too?
Maybe that's why he enjoyed the Knights of the Fallen Seasons books. They existed in a far off country that while they did use magic, it was rare and most people didn't have it. Kinda like Asta, but not as cool.
The first book had been about an old warrior named Kefnir, nearing the end of his life as he searched for the Spring Archer. He was a mage gifted with ice magic and descended from a demon clan which gave him a frightening appearance. But he still had a kind heart and protected his land and the people within from the curse of eternal winter.
He in time found the Spring Archer, and the land was freed from 100 years of snow. As Kefnir died, he was surrounded by the warmth of Spring and content his journey had come to an end.
Magna only cried a bit, mourning the loss of a great character but invested in knowing how the cycle would end. So he bought the next book.
The second book told more about the Spring Archer, a boy named Jas, as he tried moving on from the loss of Kefnir and seeking a way for the curse laid upon the land to come to an end. He'd been only seven when Kefnir had given him the gift to bring life back to the land. But as he grew, the plant life did too, without end.
Jas had to endure the scorn of people who viewed him as a part of the reason the country was cursed. But he still protected them from the demons that pilfered the land.
Magna was almost finished with the second book, when he heard the third was already out. He could tell from clues in the second book it would end on a sudden plot twist, so he needed the third just so he wouldn't be eaten alive by questions of what would happen next.
Magna had made it to the Capital in record time, and as he touched down to the ground he made sure he landed in a secluded spot. Leaving a binding spell on Crazy Cyclone, he walked towards the bookstore. It was just a precaution while he was gone, but the less chance his baby was stolen, the better.
The jingle of the bell above the shop door was a bit of a nuisance, not only because of the unnecessary noise, but the fact it drew attention to him standing in the doorway.
Magna felt the stares, but only glared as he sauntered in like he owned the place. The shopkeeper gulped, seemingly worried about his presence. But they saw his robe and despite it belonging to a Black Bulls member, decided if he was a magic knight, he was probably here on official business instead of mischief.
He knew he was out of place among the other patrons, mostly citizens who backed away when he drew near, or glares from the few other magic knights. But once he ignored the people around him, looking instead at the thousands of books lined upon the shelves, it clicked. The scent of ink and paper greeted Magna like an old friend and as he slowly perused the aisles there was a small smile on his face.
He'd stop once or twice to check out a promising title, making notes for future reading material, but his fingers skimmed the covers looking for a particular symbol on the spine.
The author of the Knights of the Fallen Seasons was anonymous, leaving only a strange mark on the spine. It was some kind of squash bearing a blue heart underneath the title. It was a strange way to sign a book, but he grew familiar with the insignia, having traced it many a time when pulling his books from the enchanted box he kept them stored in.
The box had been a good investment, seeing as it was impervious to magic attacks and made to store items much bigger than itself inside. He'd saved up three months of his wages for it, even skipping a few gambling sessions. It could only be opened by a key he hid on his person at all times.
But back to his search, he was having a bit of trouble locating the symbol. Since there was no letters to go by in the author's insignia, he'd have to scour the shelves instead of searching alphabetically.
The next twenty minutes inched by, Magna checking cover to cover, pausing only if he thought he had a lead. He almost bumped into a few people looking, but they just scurried out of his way before he'd mumble any kind of apology. He was on the last two rows when he froze.
There it was. That weird symbol!
Grinning, he stretched his hand out for the book, hoping it wasn't another copy of The Winter Warrior from the Demon Realm or The Archer of the Spring Solstice.
As he reached for the book, his fingers about to touch the spine, he saw the small hand brush his and heard the soft intake of breath as the person beside him looked over, and he returned the favor.
It was a girl. A very tiny girl with a Blue Rose robe tied together with a black ribbon and frilly lace decorating the edges of the fabric. She was dressed in an orange, long sleeve shirt, and instead of a skirt she wore jeans cut off at mid-thigh.
Her wide gray eyes looked at him with curiosity from beneath her choppy brown bangs, stunned for a moment or two before flitting off towards the ground.
Her hand retracted as she whispered an apology and despite himself, he spoke before she scurried off.
"You can take the book girlie."
Her gaze returned to his, the shock returning. But she just smiled nervously the next second and spoke.
"It's fine. You had it first."
Normally he wouldn't be bothered by people being a bit afraid of him. It made his ego inflate most of the time. But he actually was trying to be nice and show some kind of manners? So maybe he was a trifle offended.
And enough of a "trifle" to insult the crazy chick. "Uh? No? I said you take it. Or are you hard of hearing?"
Her resulting frown and determined expression told him he was in for a fight. Which was fine with him. He'd be damned if he'd back down whether she was a girl or not.
"I insist," she replied, placing her hands on her hips.
Oh, it was on~
