"Dialogue"
'Thought'
~Flashback~
[...] Crimson Lion's Base, Fuegoleon's office.
"Good! Who cares about those tight-ass nobles. The fewer the better!" — a woman stood cross-armed looking at a painting on the wall.
"Mereo, those nobles have been our supporters since before our birth, we can't afford to lose their cooperation" — the Crimson Lion's captain sat on his desk writing on an elegant-looking paper.
"Of course we can! We're the ones giving them money not the other way around. We get nothing out of keeping those backstabbing rats with us. We should focus on the commoners, they are loyal and we get income from them" — Mereoleona argued fiercely.
"We'll keep the relationship with the commoners as we have, but we need the nobles now more than ever" — he continued to write as he spoke.
Mereoleona gave him an incredulous look as she rolled her eyes. "Why?" — she asked exasperated.
He stopped and set aside the quill. "The power struggle between the royal families is commencing again. You weren't here to experience it before so I won't fault your ignorance of it" — He leaned back and closed his eyes. "Ignorance is bliss, after all, you would know".
She snarled and grinned. "I didn't realize you became such a pansy. Why don't you say what you want to say".
Fuegoleon remained unphased by her verbal attack and relaxed in his chair. "There is no hidden meaning, I think you made the right choice for yourself and I would recommend you do so again".
"Really? — she scoffed. "If it's such a good idea then why don't you leave and let me handle things here this time, and don't give me that bullshit about responsibility and duty"
"You really think you can?" — he leaned forward and stared at her intently.
"Heh, you actually don't think I can do it" — her amusement was clear.
'Of course you can't...' - he thought. "You lack the experience and knowledge of past and current politics, you are also not well-favored within high society which will..." — he stopped when he noticed a wide smirk on her face, directed at him, a reaction he didn't expect.
"Keep going" — she commanded.
There was no hostility in her tone nor any threatening mana pressure, the same smirk never left her expression. 'Let's see then…' - he was puzzled.
He straightened himself slowly. "You have no tact, you're overbearing, you use intimidation and fear to get your way, you don't have the patience to work through a problem without resorting to force, and you're volatile" — he paused to wait for any rebuttal from his older sister as he noticed her smirk was being wiped away slowly.
'If she's serious then this will be a good test' -he knew well that this might lead to more than an exchange of words and prepared himself for it. 'Better to put a stop to this here'.
"Leading the Crimson Lion's suits you well, but being the head of our royal duties, you would either run us into the ground with incompetence or run away when you get fed up or bored" — his arm flared slightly as he subtly gathered mana in preparation of any potential physical conflict.
"Seems like you're ready for a fight, you really do think that little of me" — she didn't show emotion.
"In this particular aspect yes, I do think little of you. You're one of the reasons our reputation has diminished with the nobles" — he said bluntly.
"Hahaha! That's perfect, it'll make things more interesting! — she continued to laugh loudly, which surprised her brother for the third time today.
'Very strange…' - he arched a brow. "The reports from the war have been made public, and in their eyes, our contribution was less than the rest of the houses"
"You know that's bullshit, another good reason to cut off ties with those roaches" — she scoffed.
Fuegoleon sighed in frustration. "This is why you are not fit to handle our side of the household, you don't even attempt to understand how they operate".
She walked over and sat down ungraciously in front of him. "Alright then, enlighten me" — she made a mocking circular hand gesture in front of his face.
Being used to his sister's behavior he maintained his composure. "First of all, you need to understand why we need to at least keep the nobles who are allied with us" — he still doubted that she might be considering getting involved in anything royalty-related.
"I'm all ears" — she prompted him to continue.
Fuegoleon cleared his throat. "Nobles give us influence, votes, and information. Without influence, we have no respect or presence as a ruling class, which means our authority will be circumvented easily and we would be hard-pressed to defend ourselves from any covert attempts to be made puppets of the higher tier nobility. Without votes, we have no power to affect any decisions made by the other royal houses or have them take ours seriously. Without information… well, that one speaks for itself" — he concluded and began searching through some documents.
"Explain that one too" — Mereoleona demanded bluntly.
He continued searching his drawer. "Nobles and the other royal families are cunning, knowing their movements give us insight if they're threatening our position, thus we are able to act accordingly to counteract them" — he threw a file to her side of the desk. "This is a good example of why votes matter, I'm sure you'll understand right away".
She took her time looking through the information. "Haha, what the hell… You mean I would've been forced to stay here if..." — a surprised half-smile made itself present on her lips.
"That's right, one vote, you were given your freedom because of that one vote" — he said.
"I would've fought my way out even if they didn't vote in favor" — she frowned.
"Yes, I know, and they did too, another reason why you're not fit" — he said sternly.
"What do you mean?" — she questioned with interest.
"The opposing nobles wanted you to refuse and fight to allow them to brand you as a traitor, or a danger to the kingdom at the bare minimum, and with that, they would leverage it to discredit and damage our reputation and our influence would suffer" — he gave her a concerned look.
"The perfect example of that… of losing your influence and reputation… is house Silva" — he closed his eyes with a sad expression.
"It was a challenge they had to overcome, it made them stronger" — Mereoleona said without sympathy and crossed her arms and leaned back.
Fuegoleon observed her intently, unlike his sister, he was well versed in reading body language and what it meant, a skill he was forced to learn after he was made responsible for both his order and household.
"You weren't here Mereo. You didn't see it. As soon as Acier died you ran" — he made sure to be as direct as possible.
"What the hell are you on about?" — she scowled menacingly and glared at him.
"I think it's time you admitted the truth to yourself" — Fuegoleon knew he had the advantage and he opted to respond calmly.
"You're just spouting bullshit, I didn't run" — her disposition was defiant, and her tone confrontational.
"You didn't even bother to ask them how you could have helped" — he pressed.
"It wasn't my business to meddle in their things, and even if I asked they would've refused" — she argued, growing more agitated.
"Even on your short visits you never stepped foot there, all you did was go to her grave and turned a blind eye to what was happening" — he had gathered his resolve.
"Like I said, none of my business, if they were too pathetic to let that break them then good riddance" — she replied coldly.
"Eventually Nozel did the impossible and recovered their standing, but he locked his family into an image of near perfection that they've had to maintain".
"It's nowhere near what it used to be, nothing to be proud of" — she dismissed. "Just tell me where all of this is going already and quit your sob stories" — she hated how he made everything so long-winded.
He sighed. "You ran away from your responsibilities when Acier died, you ran away again whenever father brought up the subject, the only reason you kept returning was to test the waters and see if they gave up on you enough to leave you alone, and you never visited the Silvas because you didn't want the attention from being caught in the crossfire of Nozel's struggle to maintain his home" — he was visibly frustrated, getting his sister to admit to any faults was always an impossible ordeal.
He was tired of trying, he wanted her gone before she could cause any damage because of her inconsiderate nature. "The war is over, the Crimson Lions are still well respected, I will handle the reputation of the household".
His stare turned cold and his voice resentful. "Your actions have spoken for more than you think. You berate Nozel for his inadequacy to live up to his mother, but he's proven to be far superior to you where it matters the most".
Mereoleona sat patiently, arms crossed and expression neutral.
He took a deep breath and relaxed his tone. "You were allowed to leave and I am happy that you found your way in life, I don't have a problem with it. My problem is that you refuse to admit that the reason wasn't only because you wanted it, but also because you were afraid. The fighting is over so if you're going to leave, do it now. If you're going to stay, then stop telling me how to do the job that you refused to do for your entire life" — he picked up his quill and began writing once again, thoroughly focused on it.
Mereoleona said nothing. 'Ran away' - she thought about what that meant.
'I did hate anything that involved being royalty' - she thought.
'It wasn't for me' - she remembered loathing being in those social gatherings and the aftermaths of her unruly behavior.
'What's there to lose...' - she reflected on the choices offered to her..
'I can always leave anytime I want' - she stopped and held her breath.
'I see...' - she resumed her breathing.
She uncrossed her arms and straightened. "Alright then. Let's say I decide not to run as you put it. I'm not gonna go around kissing anyone's ass, but I'm willing to try things your way to an extent".
'As I put it…" - he accepted that it was the best he would get from her. "And what does to an extent mean?" — he opted to give her a chance.
"It means if I think something is stupid then you have to convince my that it's not, or else I won't do it".
"You've never retracted on anything you thought to be stupid, even if shown otherwise, so no"
"Wrong, you convinced me that those clowns have their use" — she countered immediately with a grin.
'I highly doubt that' - he handed her a document. "I can see that you're not going to back down and I don't have the time to waste on this any longer".
"Is this recent?" — she eyed it all around, pictures, numbers, and descriptions.
"Yes, that is the performance report on our magic knights involved in the war, it's the first revision and not official yet"
"There's no way this is accurate, did you even see it? And who the hell made this?" — she said genuinely surprised.
"I did see it and it was Marx" — he said seemingly unaffected.
"The Wizard King's errand boy?" — she relaxed in her chair. "This means nothing then" — she threw aside the papers.
"The Wizard King was also involved" — Fuegoleon decided to add.
"That doesn't make much difference, he wasn't there, all he knows is what was reported to him and I know that a lot of those reports passed through the hands of the Kira's first" — she dismissed.
"They were revised together with Heart's queen" — he casually divulged the information.
She frowned slightly then picked the document again and took a moment to see through it. "What's the criteria they used for this?" — she asked seriously.
"The reports, the queen's knowledge, and her observations along with our own data during the war against the elves".
"That data is outdated and her knowledge was stolen wasn't it? There must be something more to this" — she analyzed.
"It seems she did, but even so, she was with them for the entire duration of the war, I don't see a reason to doubt her assessment".
"For someone who doesn't have time to waste you sure know how to drag things out unnecessarily" — Mereoleona looked at him with annoyance.
He took the hint and cleared his throat. "Fair enough, I'll get to the point, I have a good idea of why we're losing favor among the nobles" — he leaned back and opted for an ambassador pose. "I believe that…"
"Wait wait, before you say anything, are you gonna let me in on this or not?" — she interrupted.
He contemplated on that for a moment. "I'll be blunt, I'm can't let you get involved in household matters until you demonstrate, patience, restraint, and tact, but I do want you to handle my backup plan if it comes to that, I'm certain you won't refuse".
"Oh? I like your confidence, let's hear it" — she smiled widely.
"The list I gave you, who is at the top?" — he asked knowingly.
"Don't start on another one of your long-winded series of questions, it's pissing me off!" — she picked up the document before he could answer. She looked straight to the section mentioned.
"Noelle?" — she stated.
"Yes, her." — was his only reply.
She looked at him. "Well? Explain already!" — she demanded.
"Since you're not interested in the current trends you must have missed that Noelle Silva is the most talked about subject in the entire upper-class tier. Everyone is talking about her, including the royal house of Kira" — he paused to let her process the information.
"Can you just tell me the whole thing in one go? So the nobles are leaving because of Noelle? Is that what you're saying? And what's this got to do with me?" — she was nearing her limit of patience with him.
'This is the patience part, Mereo' - he sighed. "Yes, in short, they believe that now that she's unlocking her potential she will be the most influential royal in the entire kingdom in the future, even greater than her mother. They have no guarantee of that happening, but this is how nobles operate, they don't wait for when things happen, they take risks and invest long before to establish a solid foundation and reap the rewards later without setbacks. Of course, all of that with careful planning and factual data" — he took a deep breath.
The new set of information greatly caught the interest of his sister. She looked at the young Silva's section while she listened to her brother's explanation.
"While she is impressive and has demonstrated her worth, I think they are greatly exaggerating, but what I think does not matter, it's happening and my plan is to bring Noelle Silva to join the Crimson Lions and slowly tie some of her influence with ours as members of royalty" — she concluded and waited for a response.
It seemed as his speech was all but ignored, Mereoleona didn't indicate any acknowledgment, her attention remained on the piece of paper she held.
'Heart Kingdom first responder' - she read. 'Defeated Vanica Zogratis' - she went to the next. 'Devil Combatant: Megicula' - the list went on, then something caught her attention. 'Heart Kingdom - Assault Team Leader'. Then further down, there was something else. 'Appointed Heart Kingdom Regent by Queen Lolopechika of Heart'.
"Mereoleona" — her brother called.
She remained unresponsive and gazed intensely at the document. She looked down the page.
'Leopold Vermillion: Heart Kingdom first responder, Devil Combatant: Dark Disciples, Heart Kingdom - Assault Team Member, Appointed Head of the Disaster Relief Efforts by Noelle Silva during her regency' - she looked above her little brother's section.
'Mimosa Vermillion: Heart Kingdom first responder, Devil Combatant: Dark Disciples, Heart Kingdom - Assault Team Member, Appointed Head of Healing Operations by Noelle Silva during her regency'.
She breathed deeply. "I think I see your point" — she put down the document slowly and looked at him.
"Yes, having Noelle with us would be the best course of action, all I have to do is be patient and wait for the next round of missions"
"No, I meant I see what you mean about how nobles operate" — she clarified.
He was taken aback by her demeanor. "I see, good then, I think you would agree to the plan then?" — he asked curiously.
She kept staring at nothing in particular in his desk. "No, I don't agree, but that doesn't matter, what's the backup plan you want me to handle?" — she said starting at the same spot.
"I would like to hear your reason as to why you disagree".
"I said it doesn't matter, you're doing it anyway, and you said you wanted me to show restraint, well, this is me showing restraint" — she turned her head to him.
He raised a brow. "Very well then, the second plan is simpler to execute, harder to set up. We need to have Leopold defeat her in combat" — he said.
"Hahaha! What the hell kind of a plan is that, if it can even be considered a plan, it sounds like you just slapsticked it together" — she laughed in his face.
He clenched his jaw as his face turned red. "The reason why the nobles even considered her was because of the battle reports, if we can demonstrate that our house is stronger then it will shift the attention away from her".
"As I understand, battle prowess doesn't matter to them" — she retorted.
"It will buy us time, the other part of this plan involves our cousin, which will be taken care of by our Aunt, I've already spoken with her and she has recalled Mimosa for the time being" — he added quickly.
"I'm tempted to ask what it is, but I don't really care, what am I gonna do?" — she asked.
"I need you to test Leopold and Noelle, and find out if he's strong enough to defeat her, if he is not, then you have to make him stronger until he can, also, no one must know about this. If word gets out to the nobles then it will look like we are desperate and it might be the end for us".
"You know, this is exactly the kind of shady rat-like behavior I hate" — she said as she got up from her seat. "Don't make it a regular thing" — she warned.
"I am not happy about this either, but this cannot be won by conventional means, I would not be doing this if not absolutely necessary" — he said sadly.
She glanced at him. "Mmmm".
"By the way… what's your plan for getting Noelle to join us" — she asked as she walked to the door.
"It's a bit long-winded as you say, so I don't know if you want to hear it" — he continued to write on his piece of paper.
"Knock yourself out" — she affirmed.
"Nozel already has her for the first round of missions which I expected, so I will ask for her assistance for the next round of missions. Nozel is her family, and it's clear he's taking steps in mending his relationship with her, but the other two, they don't seem like the forgiving kind" — he said as he finished his letter.
Mereoleona waited for him to continue, knowing his explanation was too short.
"I know Nozel is planning the same thing as I, but he's targeting the wrong person, that will be his downfall" — he proceeded to fold the letter.
"The anti-magic boy, will be the key to winning her over, and I will get him first" — he packaged it in an envelope. "I overheard Noelle and captain Roselei mention him, it seems she has or is developing feelings for him, if he decides to stay with us, then it increases the chance that she might as well".
"Real cold, interesting, didn't expect that from you" — she stated.
"You are mistaken, I think Asta and Noelle are one of the best magic knights this kingdom has had in a long time, I would be honored to have them be a part of our order. I will not go as far as to damage them just to get my way, I will only set up and put the cards on the table and they will decide" — he pressed the wax with the Vermillion royal seal.
"I don't really care anyway, do what you want" — she said, opening the door. "I'm starting with Leopold right away" — she grinned as she walked out and closed the door.
Fuegoleon slouched and picked up his communicator. "Randall" — the image of his vice-captain showed after a brief moment.
"I have a task for you, come to my office" — he concluded.
[...] Black Bulls Base, Noelle's Room
"Noelle?" — a voice and a knock was heard from the outside of the room.
"Yes, come in" — the young girl answered.
"Ehh…? Um… w… what's going on?" — Grey asked as she entered the room.
The sight was something she didn't expect from their only member of royalty. The proprietor of the room didn't answer as she kept focused on her current task.
Grey walked in slowly. Footwear scattered on the floor, clothes strewn on the seat, nightstand, and bed, and a few expensive-looking items that she's never seen littered around randomly.
"I think I'll leave these here" — Noelle shifted through her closet. "This is much more annoying than I thought" — she grumbled and huffed.
"Um…" — Grey fidgeted as she looked around.
"I'm packing my things. Deciding what I should take…" — she trailed off and rummaged through a container.
"What for..." — Grey curiously asked.
Noelle looked back slightly puzzled. "Didn't the captain tell you yesterday? I'm going be part of the Silver Eagles for a while"
Grey felt her stomach drop and a gripping feeling in her throat formed. "You're leaving…? No… Why?"
Her rise in panic was clearly evident to the young Silva. "Wait wait, calm down, I'm not switching orders, well… I am, but it's temporary" — she gently patted the shy girl's shoulders and smiled.
"But this is so sudden, you were away for so long and now you're leaving again" — she looked away from her friend.
"I know, I'm a bit unsure myself, but it's something I have to do as a magic knight… and as a Silva" — she took on a determined demeanor.
Grey smiled weakly and covered her face. "You're staring too long, that's all I can take..."
"Hahaha, you're doing better, I'm proud of you" — Noelle smiled confidently and took a step back. "So what did you need?"
"The captain wants you to come down, and…" — she stopped and frowned. 'I guess she can't anymore'. "Um… when are you leaving?"
"I don't know yet, but it shouldn't be long before a mission comes in. I wanna be ready so I'm not running around last minute" — she turned around and resumed her rummaging.
"Well… I'll let you finish then" — Grey said dejectedly.
Noelle stopped and turned to her friend and frowned. "Stop right there. We talked about this before, I can tell you want something, what is it?"
Grey turned to see a cross-armed Noelle with a serious expression. 'How does she do it…?'. She felt the rebuttal just by her poise alone.
"I don't want to take any of your time… you have to finish packing… so…" — she stammered.
"I'll decide if you're taking my time or not, so, out with it then" — she said sternly.
Grey looked to the ground, the stare she received weighed down on her, and began to feel self-conscious but was overcome by her junior's ability to establish her presence so confidently.
Perhaps it was the lighting that illuminated her stern expression, or the breeze from her window swaying her elegant nightgown in rhythm with the curtains behind her. 'She looks even further away now…'. It amazed her, regardless of if it was false bravado or not.
She walked over to the bed and sat then looked out the window. "Um… two things. I wanted to know if you wanted to meditate with me today and I… I'm going to be doing missions with other squads, I need your advice, I've never done that before..." — she half-covered her face with one hand.
The young Silva relaxed and sat next to her. "I can understand how you feel, in a way".
"You do? But you've done it before and you looked fine"
"Hmmph, of course I was fine, I'm royalty, it's nothing for me" — she dismissed and crossed her arms.
Grey's cheeks puffed and she attempted to put on a frown. "I thought we agreed you wouldn't do that" — she pouted.
"We did" — Noelle responded bluntly giving her a side glance. "We also agreed that you wouldn't shy away from saying what you want" — she leaned closer and raised her brow. "And that you'd stop covering your face when we're alone".
Grey's pout remained and looked away causing a slight giggle from her younger friend. "If you don't keep your end of the deal I won't either" — Noelle grinned.
Grey fidgeted and sighed. She placed her hands on her cheeks and squeezed them before putting them on her lap. "I think I'm okay now" — she took a deep breath.
"I wasn't fine..." — Noelle looked up to the ceiling. Grey looked at her patiently.
Noelle's expression turned thoughtful, lost in her own mind. "As a follower or leader, I do have anxiety days before the event, and the... occasional dreadful feeling of failure right before it starts..."
She turned to Grey, eyes deep in thought. "It never really goes away, but it stops showing itself the more you throw yourself into the things you see as terrifying".
Grey looked to the side questioningly. "Well, I already know that, I keep hearing it from everyone here… that advice doesn't really help me at all though, it feels generic" — a hint
Noelle's face went red and scowled heavily. "Well fine then! I'm here pouring myself out for nothing, I'll just finish packing, go on, leave then!" — she turned around motioning for her to leave angrily and very forcefully.
"Nooo… I appreciate your advice, I really do… please don't be mad..." — Grey covered her face immediately and pleaded as a ball formed in her throat but then noticed something strange on the corner of the Silva's face as well as some questionable sounds. "Are you… laughing?".
"Hehe, hahaha!" — Noelle turned to reveal her snickering to her superior.
Grey's face puffed tremendously. "You…! You…!" — she picked up a pillow and proceeded to smack the royal repeatedly with it. "You! Big! Meanie!".
Noelle's laughter increased in intensity and volume as she received the pillow assault, allowing herself to be hit by some.
"Stop laughing!" — the transformation mage was genuinely upset as she intensified her barrage.
"Stop, you're wrinkling my clothes" — Noelle said in between laughs then lunged at Grey and pulled her down to the bed as she wrestled the pillow out of her hands. The young girl was thoroughly enjoying the moment, she could have taken the pillow any time she wanted, her physical strength was refined by the change in training method with her valkyrie dress.
That difference was noticeable to the older woman but she kept her grip and attempted to use the Silva's strength against her, feinting a pull then pushing the pillow into her face.
After a few moments of struggling the two Black Bulls members laid side by side staring in silence at the ceiling.
"That's a first, you've never gotten angry like that, much less express it that way" — Noelle said with a wide smile.
"You deserve it… you took me by surprise more than once today" — Grey responded calmly.
"How so?"
"You've never talked to me that way, and knowing that you're leaving made it worse, I didn't want you to leave while angry with me" — she received no answer again, the Silva remained still in her position. "Are you really leaving? Or is that also part of the joke".
"It's true…" — Noelle barely said. The joyful interaction with her friend left her relaxed and thoughtful, followed by a bittersweet feeling which she tried hard to suppress. "I'll come back soon, it's just a few missions, and I can come stay anytime I want" — she reasoned.
"Even so, I'll miss you" — Grey said, still looking to the ceiling.
Noelle frowned, those words bothered her. To her, they sounded as if she was saying goodbye, that she wouldn't be coming back. She remained silent and after a moment Grey turned to see her, but Noelle just stared ahead and remained calm.
"How do you feel right now? After venting on me with my pillow"
"Pfff" — Grey tried not to laugh, provoking another muffled laugh from the young Silva.
"I feel… I don't know how to put it in words" — she turned back to stare at the ceiling. "I felt so light just right after... Everything I was anxious about didn't seem to matter, and… slowly…" — she paused for a moment.
"Slowly my body is starting to feel heavier and heavier. Very slowly, I'm losing control, and it's so difficult to maintain that feeling of… freedom…? Would be the word…?" — Grey questioned to herself.
"Acceptance" — Noelle interjected. She closed her eyes. "The lie that we believe in, the moment that we desperately cling to, it always ends, and all that's left is the feeling of longing to experience it again"
"Yeah…" — Grey whispered. "We're left stuck with the reality of who we are. It's so cruel, we get a taste of who we want to be and it's taken from us without knowing how or when" — her sadness was evident.
"We'll find it again in a different manner, it's just harder for us than for others… so we, unfortunately, revert to what we've always done" — Noelle sat up and looked back at Grey. "Get angry, kick and scream, if you can't then wait for the next time, and the next, let them know you exist at least..." — she said with a tinge of sadness of her own.
The older woman seemed doubtful and said nothing.
"I'm also afraid. Afraid of disappointing the people that I value and respect, and want to be respected by. I sometimes think that any mistake will be the end for me, it terrifies me to think that it will follow me for the rest of my life" — Noelle got up and pulled her friend up with her then smiled gently.
"I feel kinda bad for being relieved that you're also scared. If someone as confident as you gets scared then I feel like it's okay for me to be scared too" — Grey looked at the ground.
"Hehe, of course it's okay, what matters is how we handle it, so lets you and I both do our best" — Noelle said cheerfully.
The honest and radiant smile coming from her youngest team member provided a source of comfort that she gladly welcomed. She felt much closer to her junior and friend, as she knew that it was a smile that she only felt comfortable enough with her to show to.
For Noelle, the heartfelt talk they shared gave a boost in confidence that she didn't realize she needed. It was therapeutic. Again she was thankful to have met such great people.
"Let's go downstairs before the captain starts smashing things, I'll finish packing later" — Noelle led the way out of the messy room to which Grey cheerfully followed.
[...]
Upon arriving, Grey left to join Gordon and Gauche in their side of the area. Noelle looked around and noticed her captain was not there. She was unsure of what to do, her usual spots were taken.
'I don't want to deal with Vanessa right now…' - she found her first choice of companionship was irritating her more easily lately.
'Asta's there, I could thank him for yesterday, maybe...' - she noticed he was beside Zora, Luck and Magna close by on the other end of the bar. 'Yeah… I'll do it later'
She perked up when she noticed Nero waving at her and walked over.
"You look better today" — Nero greeted.
"I feel better, a little lightheaded still"
"I meant your mood, but I'm glad to hear it" — Nero smiled and handed her a teapot.
"Hehe, yeah, you look pretty happy yourself lately, anything interesting happened with the Wizard King?" — she poured herself a cup.
'Very interesting' - she smirked. "You would be surprised, but I can't say much, Wizard King's orders"
"What's up with everyone being so secretive now, as royalty I'm the one who should be holding the secrets not the other way" — she pouted. "At least give me a hint".
"You'll find out soon enough, what I can say is that we were able to trace my family lineage, I'm getting some tests done from Marx and doctor Owen for proof".
"Excellent, that will effectively block the citizenship argument, congratulations, you can have a trial now, no sarcasm intended" — Noelle took a sip of her drink. "Did you confirm your status?".
"I am nobility" — Nero replied casually.
"Perfect, what about your past history? Any relatives?"
"It seems I'm the last one, there were records of a possible inner power struggle which resulted in my direct line being wiped out" — Nero said sadly.
"Yes… that's not an uncommon occurrence, I know at least that much. I'm sorry" — Noelle comforted. "What was the official story?".
"Failed to produce an heir".
"Hmmm, very unlikely, the declaring actor might provide a link to the truth, it could lead to the perpetrators if they're still active in some way" — Noelle declared with hope.
"It doesn't matter, I'm not concerned with that, I have made my peace after meeting the prince again, and living with all of you" — Nero smiled contently. "I want to enjoy my time here, now, and move into a future with everyone".
Noelle was touched and smiled. "I'll make sure that you get the chance to".
The two remained talking while they waited for their captain for a considerable amount of time, the day felt like when they were unconcerned about elves and devils, and it would not be complete without some familiar roughhousing.
After a number of taunts and jabs from the blonde-haired lightning user and with their captain nowhere to be seen, it was inevitable that the recipient of the abuse would retaliate, and he did.
Fire and thunder were thrown all over, cheers and laughs sounded, and others were ignoring them completely, but one thing was different.
"Hey! Stop it! Hey!" — Asta yelled loudly.
This caught Noelle's attention and looked over.
"They'll stop eventually, you know that already, no need to worry" — Vanessa said then cheered them on.
"Miss Vanessa please don't encourage them" — Asta said. The spells were becoming more erratic and violent. "Luck, Magna, I said stop!".
"Who put a stick up your ass today? Just let them do their thing" — Zora mocked.
Asta frowned then called his sword, he stepped in the middle of them, deflecting some of their spells, the ricochet flew to other unintended areas of the room, causing destruction upon it and some close calls.
"Aren't you going to stop him?" — Nero asked calmly.
Noelle looked at Asta struggling to maintain order and failing horribly. She frowned worriedly. "No… let's wait a bit more".
"I told you both to stop, this is getting dangerous!" — he yelled with frustration evident in his voice. Magna hesitated for a moment but Luck increased his aggressiveness.
"Hahaha! I'll take you two on one! Magna needs all the help he can get!"
"Asta, get outta the way! I'll shut this guy up right here!" — he shoved Asta out of the way.
Asta growled and pushed him back. "I'm not joking" — he deflected another one of Luck's attacks. "Graahh!" — he lunged at Luck but the thunder mage was too quick, he effortlessly moved away.
"Hahaha! You're a lot more fun to fight" — he was about to attack but Magna launched his own set of attacks.
The two mages continued their fight, completely ignoring Asta.
"Hahaha! They don't give a shit about you, but keep trying, please" — Zora laughed harder.
Asta clenched his fist and had a pained and embarrassed look. "Listen to me! Both of you!" — his scream was poured with full anger but went unnoticed.
The loud clashing of spells, the cheering and yelling, and the attention heavily focused on the battle left him with no opportunity to be heard.
Noelle had enough, the blatant disrespect he was being given made her blood boil. "Now I'll stop him". She got up and walked towards the mayhem.
Asta was about to try again but noticed Noelle walk past him. "Noelle! Get away from them you might get…"
"LUCK VOLTIA!" — Noelle yelled fiercely.
Luck froze as soon as he heard her voice. His mana dissipated and his crazed smile disappeared.
"That's enough" — she commanded.
"Noelle…" — Asta looked between her and Luck. The standoff gave him the impression that she was planning to fight.
"Lady Noe, you're too close, I'll handle this" — Magna felt no mana coming from her, she was full of openings and seemed too unconcerned about challenging a hyperactive Luck. He genuinely was concerned for her safety.
She raised her hand in dismissal, the ambiance quieted, Noelle's unamused expression and piercing stare was a sight to behold, no sign of faltering or nervousness as if her eyes cast a spell that held him in place.
"Ignoring orders is something I thought you were already above of" — she reproached seriously.
Luck dropped his arms and stiffened. "But… we're just having fun, Magna didn't stop" — Luck tried to defend himself.
"Luck Voltia! I'm addressing YOU!" — she glared heavily and pointed to him.
Luck instinctively took an attention stance. "Yes ma'am!".
The scene was stunning, no one expected those turn of events, they expected a fight, not a scolding, and not from the two people involved. Her target was Luck but Magna felt very uncomfortable being in front of her as she continued her correction.
Noelle crossed her arms and relaxed, looking at Luck straight in the eye. "I'm disappointed" — she turned around. "Apologize, then come sit with us" — she walked back over to Nero.
Luck quietly followed her but stopped in front of Asta. "Sorry for not listening to you Asta" — he rubbed the back of his head.
"Ah… yeah… it's okay" — Asta still had not recovered from what just happened and Luck moved along.
"Hi Nero!" — Luck greeted happily and sat down.
"We don't have sangria here, so you'll have to settle for this" — Nero poured a cup of tea and kindly handed it to him.
[...] Clover Kingdom Capital, Wizard King's Office.
Nozel Silva sat in front of the Wizard King's desk, waiting patiently for his arrival. The decrease in activity combined with the lulling of his breathing made his eyelids heavier with each repetition.
His eyes crossed while he kept his eyelids semi-opened. It created the belief that he was awake, his mind trying to make sense of his surroundings to further the illusion that he was still aware. He was violently jolted awake by the force with which he pulled back from his inability to hold his head straight, producing a loud and embarrassing snort.
It happened, he lost consciousness for a moment. Thankfully no one was there to see it.
'I want this to be over…' - he complained. He pulled out the family picture he's always kept on him, he smiled sadly. 'It's almost over, just two more things to take care of' - his thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the door.
"Nozel, my apologies for making you wait" — Julius walked over to his desk. "Now, how can I be of service".
"I require more time before you speak with Noelle" — he was too tired for anything other than a direct request.
"I already arranged the visit with consideration of your previous time extension request, and I think the sooner she is informed the better" — Julius replied.
"I just need one more week, starting from today, I assure you I will not ask again"
"Nozel, house Kira and its allies are already making adjustments to counter her, she needs to make a decision, and for that, she needs time which you are robbing her of" — he stated calmly.
"There is no time waste. She's royalty, she needs to learn how to handle herself in that environment anyway. I will instruct her on it as her family".
Julius' gave him a worried look. "Perhaps I should rephrase. She needs to have sufficient time to process and properly make a decision, I'm sorry but I can't postpone it any further"
"Four more days then, give me that at least" — he pleaded.
Julius reclined slightly. "This kingdom has no wizard king to protect it, we're lucky we've made it this far. With my condition exposed, I have little influence to object to or overturn any decisions from the king, I will be ineffective in granting her the authority she would require if I wait too long" — he frowned worriedly. "Damnatio is doing all he can to maintain the status quo, but he cannot hold for much longer, he's running out of loopholes and his household is starting to question his actions".
Nozel remained quiet, he knew the selfishness of his request and what it was causing.
"My time is ending Nozel, if I don't delegate responsibilities I will become someone's puppet, and I believe your sister is a perfect fit for many of them, you should be proud of her" — he smiled kindly.
~Stop being such a grump, try it my way next time, she might appear heartless but she's not, and she's right, you did overreact~ - Dorothy's words sprung to his mind.
'This might constitute the same category' - he reasoned with himself. "I am, and I need this time to demonstrate it, maybe that will be the difference to make her choose an option that allows her to stay" — he sighed. "It may also be my only chance to mend our relationship and give Solid and Nebra the opportunity to do the same'' — he looked tiredly at Julius. "One week, please, I am willing to owe you a favor for it".
"It's not my intention to make you plead, and I would grant the extension without compensation, but I will accept your offer this time, your assistance will be greatly needed should it come to it"
Nozel's body felt as if it turned into liquid, he wanted to drop to the ground and stay there forever.
"I am… relieved that you and house Vermillion remain reasonable" — Julius said.
"Yes…" — Nozel replied automatically, not really all there.
"I'm happy to hear you're having Noelle as your representative"
"Yes… we concluded the exchange for the time being..."
"Yami always seems to know what's best for his members, he trusts you" — Julius commented.
"Yes… he seems capable..."
"I hope you get to have her for the second round of missions, Yami already agreed to it" — Julius smiled.
~I would like to be the one, brother. I will not disappoint~ - his senses returned to him. "I do not mean to be rude, but I have something I must attend to" — Nozel said.
"Of course, I was just making small talk"
"With your permission, and thank you again" — he got up and promptly left.
He exited and closed the door, ready to go on his way, but his eyes met with those of someone sitting on the side.
"Nebra?" — he turned in surprise.
"Nozel?" — she replied in the same manner.
An uncomfortable silence was shared between them. Nebra averted her eyes in a portrayal of irritation. Nozel was unsure of what he wanted to do.
'Before the elf invasion, I would have simply left, in fact, I never would have bothered with all of this, have I become so weak?' - he contemplated.
"Lady Silva, you may enter now" — an attendant instructed.
Nebra began to arrange her papers hurriedly paying no attention to Nozel.
~Hmmm, how about the next time you feel like that, you think, what if it's Noelle instead~ - again the small captain's advice crossed his mind.
'What if it was Noelle...' - he thought. "Nebra wait".
"Yes?" — she stopped and answered begrudgingly.
~Try it my way next time~
"Perhaps I was not fair to you on that previous occasion. If you're not occupied, would you accompany me to lunch, I'll wait for you here if so" — those words were not to his liking, he felt not like himself at all, similar to when he held back with Noelle, and it frustrated him.
'What is happening' - Nebra was left speechless. In no way did she expect him to be the one to initiate any sort of friendly dialogue. Her royal training kicked in and recovered. "I am occupied, but I can take my break earlier, I will be out soon" — she wasn't thrilled about talking to him yet but she didn't want to miss the opportunity to get back to normality.
"Very well then" — Nozel acknowledged.
He was then left by himself, he sat down and proceeded to wait.
[...] Black Bulls Base, Lounge Room.
Noelle was sitting comfortably on a sofa, deep in thought, a table in front of her.
The rest of her friends looked on at the scene.
"Hey Asta, do you know what's going on? I mean… since when is Luck so… um…" — Magna asked in a low voice.
"Tame?" — Zora finished, quite curious himself.
"Erm…" — Asta struggled to answer.
The man in question was calmly sitting across his junior with his usual smile on his face and simply waited.
"Zora, he's not an animal" — Vanessa said as she moved over to observe.
"I don't know" — Asta replied surprisedly.
"Side leg strike on a half turn into a disengage" — Noelle said and looked at Luck.
His expression lost the trademark smile and took on a questioning one. "Why disengage and not follow up?"
"Analysis and control. You dictate the pace and assess the damage or lack thereof" — she stated assuredly as she leaned back slightly.
"I was thinking more of into another leg strike on a full turn, or into a heavy strike at the same spot" — Luck exclaimed.
Noelle looked down at the armrest as she tapped it with her fingers, deep in thought once again.
"Seems like they're really into it, I'm gonna go ahead and take a nap, now that everything's quiet" — Zora said as he yawned.
"Yami said to wait for him" — Magna said.
"Tell him I already know what it's gonna be and said my part" — he replied and casually walked over to the two sitting in front, leaving the rest even more surprised and confused.
'I can't believe it… me of all people, to a royal...' - he lowered his pace as he got closer. 'Probably the first one…' - he stopped right beside Noelle's seat and stood there in silence.
Noelle didn't pay him attention but soon noticed he wasn't leaving. "Yes? What is it?" — she looked up and asked calmly.
'Doesn't matter, this might be the only time anyway' - he looked straight ahead with a disinterested look. "Make sure you show them what real royalty is" — he calmly said and walked forward.
Noelle was stunned and wide-eyed, something that he missed as he didn't bother to look at her. Her surprise lasted longer than she would have normally allowed, but the shock was too great for her to care.
Luck smiled again but it was clear he was just as surprised as she was and he blinked many times.
She watched him disappear up the stairs and wondered what he meant, then wondered if he knew, then how much he knew.
Her stupor ended and she turned her attention back to Luck. "Ah… sorry for spacing out, where were we?"
"What did he mean by that?" — Asta turned to Magna for answers.
"I don't know, he didn't tell me anything" — Magna replied.
They had no more time to speculate about it as Yami entered the room.
"You're here, good" — he addressed Noelle. "Alright, gather over here!"
They all took their designated positions like always.
"Um…" — Asta was about to speak.
"I heard what Zora said, it's fine" — Yami anticipated him.
"Noelle has something to say, but before that, there's something everyone needs to understand about where we're at, as a team, as a family, and as individuals".
"Captain, I don't think this is such a big deal, it's only temporary" — Noelle protested.
"Maybe it's not, or maybe it's a much bigger deal than you think, no one really knows what's gonna happen" — Yami said.
"Julius said there's no more end of the world, doomsday scenarios, we're going to be doing regular magic knight stuff from now on".
"That's great! Everything's going back to normal then!" — Asta cheered along with the rest.
"Yeah, but things can never go back to the way they were, we grow and mature, and that'll make us see things differently, do things we wouldn't ever think we'd do, and accept things we never thought we could".
"These past two years have been the best we've ever had, I wanna thank everyone here, you've all surpassed your limits in ways that surprised even me" — he looked at everyone and smiled.
"We're going to face a lot of new challenges, I'd like to say that whatever those challenges are, we'll face them together, but sometimes that's not what we need, sometimes we have to face things alone to grow stronger"
He turns and looks at Noelle. "Alright, I set them up, give em the news".
'How should I even start after that speech' - she wondered. She looked at everyone and noticed they had a worried look. 'You sure know how to make someone think of the worst, captain' - she knew how to begin.
"First of all, I want to say that I appreciate all of you, you may already know it, and I know I don't show it very well, but I do" — she said embarrassed. "I want to thank everyone here, you're the best thing in my life" — she looked away.
"Of course we know, but it's so nice to hear you say it" — Vanessa said. Grey suddenly starts to cry and everyone turns to look at her.
"Awww Grey, we feel the same way" — Asta said with his big smile and he patted her gently on the back.
She then unexpectedly rushed to Noelle and hugged her.
"Grey, come on, you already know, it's just temporary" — she turned to Yami. "Captain, you're making this way more complicated than it really is" — she reproached.
"No I'm not, finish what you need to say, I'll tell you why after"
Everyone was worried once again after what Yami said and Grey in her current state.
"Come on, don't look so worried, you're making this harder for me" — Noelle said in a low voice.
"It feels like something's going on, are you alright?" — Asta said.
"Are you in trouble?" — Magna asked right after.
"Shut up and let her finish first!" — Yami patted Grey on the shoulder, which she then let go of Noelle and calmed down.
Noelle took a deep breath. "I don't know how much the captain mentioned yesterday but I'll get to the point, on my meeting with Nozel, he told me that the missions require a member of royalty to be in the joint teams, he offered the position to me and I accepted, I will be representing my family and… I will be staying with the Silver Eagles for the duration of the missions''
"So, you're coming back after you're done?" — Magna asked.
"Yes, I can also come and stay when I want, I'll just be reporting to Nozel from now on"
Asta thought about her statement carefully, grasping everything he could from it. "Then why can't you stay here, if you're only reporting to him then you can do it and stay with us, right?"
"Well, I guess that's true, but, even if it's temporary I'm part of the Silver Eagles now. As a Black Bull, would you like it if I stayed in another squad and just came over here for reports?" — she asked calmly.
"No, I wouldn't like that at all, it wouldn't make any sense either" — Asta frowned.
"Well, if that's it, then I don't see anything wrong, in fact, I'm really happy for you!" — Vanessa hugged her.
"I know, right. See captain, I told you you're overdoing it" — she said triumphantly.
"When I formed the Black Bulls, I thought the same thing. I kept thinking, I'll go back to the Grey Deer after a while, then I kept doing more missions, I met new people, I started liking my freedom, my view of the world expanded, more opportunities were presented and I took them, I don't even know when I decided to stay here, or how it happened, but it happened" — he said with a wistful tone.
"I'm not saying it's gonna be the same for you, but you never know" — he put his hand on her head. "Like I told you before, you'll always be welcomed here, I want you to stay with us, but I'm not going to hold it against you if you decide not to" — he smiled kindly.
"I always regretted not saying goodbye to Julius, and to my former friends and squadmates, and in the case it comes to that with you, that you find yourself wondering how and when it happened, I want to give you a proper goodbye, so you don't regret it down the line. I know you'll do great, show them what you've learned here, and how amazing you've become".
Noelle was crying heavily, her hands covering her face in an effort to hold back.
"With this, I'm officially not your captain anymore" — Yami said as he ruffled her hair.
Everyone was crying as well, some more than others. They all understood now, that even if it's a temporary exchange, she was royalty, and she had a family outside of them that she always wanted to be acknowledged by, and knowing how capable she is, she would get it, and the possibility that she would leave the Black Bulls permanently was very real.
"Ahem" — The sound of a clearing throat sounded from the entrance on the far side.
"I apologize, I seem to have intruded in an inappropriate moment" — Charlotte Roseli stood uncomfortably, not knowing how to handle the current situation she stumbled upon. Finral beside her with a nervous smile.
I have no excuse for taking so long, I'm sorry. ｡ﾟ(｡ﾉω＼｡)ﾟ｡
I assure you that I have no intention of making this a monthly update, but I guess I should show it with actions not with words, and that's what I'll do! ヾ(｀・ω・´)ノ
Everyone loves Mereoleona and I think a lot of people, including myself, see her as perfect. So my take on Mereoleona is that everyone has something they need to confront, and keeping her in character, I chose to write what I wrote on her and Fuegoleon seemed to be the best one to deliver it. Let me know what you thought about it.
I was thinking of having the Nozel and Nebra / Charlotte and Noelle talks in this chapter, but I'm surprised I didn't have enough room for it, so good news is that there's some of it already written.
Yami's main role in this story is done for now, he'll still be around but not as relevant. Like I said, eventually this will all focus on the Silva siblings. One down, many more to go.
Thank you, everyone, for your comments, I'll try and reply to all of them from now on via private message :)
Thank you everyone '-')b