A/N: It's taken longer than I thought it would to get this chapter out. Don't worry! I haven't stopped working on it, college has just been tough to find free time with. I took 6 classes this semester and it has been a little overwhelming, but I'll be bringing that back to 4 next semester. For now we'll be safe and say around 2 months for another chapter going forward. Thank you all for your kind words and feedback in the reviews! For those wondering. Yes Julius will get more powerful and I do want him to end up as powerful as he is in Black Clover. But he is going to build that up as a protagonist should. Just like it took Asta over a hundred episodes and a time skip to get juiced, it's gonna be like that here too. And you get your first taste of it here! I'm gonna try to come up with my own spells but the ones from BC might come back who knows. Now without further ado, here's your chapter!

Juilius blinked his eyes open, bewildered by the fact that he was still alive. He felt pain in his stomach, but it was a phantom pain. As if the events he just suffered through had never even happened at all. He put his hand to his stomach.

" Oi Oi, You look like you're about to fall over. Don't collapse in front of my shop!"

He was back where he had started the day, It was even the same time from what he could tell. What happened? Did he awaken to a new spell? He summoned his grimoire/ The man running the shop in front of him looked surprised and sputtered asking about what that was. But Julius paid him no mind. It appears he did gain a new spell, but the spell did not explain why he was alive.

The new spell reads as follows: Hands of Time, shroud your right hand in mana and slow any existence touched by it, stealing time from the target. Shroud your left hand in mana and speed up any existence touched by it, consuming stolen time. Interesting Julius thought, this spell would certainly come in handy. But still… If his own magic was not the reason for his situation, then did he somehow receive a divine blessing? One that allowed him to somehow peer into the future so vividly? Or rewind time in the event of his death altogether? Yet… Emilia said you would instinctively know for sure. So it couldn't be that. Perhaps it was a part of what brought him here in the first place. If he could be brought back from death once, surely it would stand to reason that he could be brought back again. The only question was who, or even what, was responsible for it? Did someone cast a spell on him, or was it the will of the world? It was worth the thought, but he ultimately knew nothing and all was speculative. He pushed that train of thought to the back of his head. In any case, he wanted to see if he could take advantage of his knowledge of the future.

He paid no mind to the merchant as he continued speaking to the brick wall known as a Julius lost in thought. He only turned and left, following the same path that he walked before. He had no time to lose. He swiftly walked down the road past the crowds of the markets. He received some glares from the people he brushed past, but no further attention was drawn to him otherwise. It was only a short stretch of time before Julius entered the alley he had been in before, and he waited for the thugs to show their faces. Sure enough, after a few minutes, they did.

"Well well well, would you loo-acck!"

Julius did not wait even a single moment for him to finish before sprinting toward the thug and knocking him out cold. He then immediately set to work testing his new spell.

"Time Magic: Hands of Time!"

He shrouded his hands in his mana and blocked an incoming punch from the large thug. He noticeably slowed, not enough to make him a non threat though, and he imagined it would only have a minimal effect on more speedy opponents. But his main purpose was only to steal some time for the thief. He then turned towards the short runt after shoving the large and rotund man away. He looked shocked and afraid, before Julius threw a punch into his stomach. He keeled over like a sack of rocks, also slowed by Julius' magic. He turned back toward the large thug once more, who was letting loose a slow punch at him. Julius dodged the punch with the utmost of ease and unleashed a quick flurry of punches to the thugs face, leaving a broken mess behind. With his work complete, Julius slowed all three of them and kept them in the corner of the alley as some form of cruel time farm. He then sat in wait for the thief to show herself.

It was quiet in the alley while Julius waited. The men he had beaten made no noise in their slumber. He thought about his new magic. He had never had magic that could necessarily speed him or others up before. If he had had this against Licht, perhaps he could have stopped him before he had a chance to cast his last spell. Ironic to awaken to such a spell after his death. Speaking of such, his grimoire had grown. Two more blank pages had appeared, bound to the first by their edge. The grimoire would grow based on both how many spells he had, as well as how much time he had stored. He was sure the two blank pages represented enough time for his uses in the immediate future. He hoped the thugs wouldn't mind the collective few hours he had taken off their lifespan.

He supposed that it was nearly time for the thief to show herself. He will start his plan now. He used his magic to speed himself up to prepare to catch her, and also prepared a slow to make the capture smoother. He waited a few moments, one then two more and then he spotted her flying down the alley towards his in the blink of an eye. He reached out as she came and grasped her arm, slowing her as he did. Even with his own boost to his speed, he had almost missed her. The girl was wild, and now that he got a closer look at her, she appeared to be very young, Shining golden hair and brilliant ruby eyes. Even if she was a criminal, he would save her from the fate he witnessed. But even with the effects of Julius' magic, the young girl was still able to draw a dagger with blinding speed, and directed the blade at his arm. Thankfully the effects of his magic, he was able to react at the very last moment, and dropped her.

"Hands off your old creep!" The girl spat out with venom. Julius frowned.

Why did everyone always have to call him old and creepy? Sure he wasn't exactly a young man, but creepy? He had always done his best to look and be a warm and welcoming person. But that was the least of his worries right now. Just as quickly as he caught the girl, she had zipped away as fast. He was unable to stop her here. He needed to come up with a different plan. The problem was, he knew he would not be able to stop that assassin on his own. He would need help. He could guess that this country had knights. Emilia seemed surprised before when he told her that he used to be one. Speaking of, he turned to see her running towards him after the thief. Just as he expected. But this time, he would not be going with her, she would be safer if he did not lead her to the slums as he did previously. He would only ask her for directions.

"Excuse me miss, I appear to have been thefted upon, and I am new to this city. Could I trouble you to point me to the knights?"

Emilia seemed surprised for a moment, at the sudden question that was addressed to her. But she quickly composed herself and gave him the directions that he was after. Julius was glad for the quickness and conciseness of the directions Emilia gave as he turned and swiftly followed them. He did not know when the killings would happen, and so he had no time to lose. He couldn't be sure he would get a third chance in this new place.

Julius weaved his way through the crowds with swift movements. Some people gave him looks, but he largely went unnoticed by those around him. But at the same time, he didn't spare much attention to those around him. It was a consequence of this fact that he collided with someone and was sent tumbling over. It felt like he had slammed into a brick wall, and he had to cradle his head as he picked himself up. He looked toward the one he ran into.

A woman who looked sure of herself, disciplined. She had long dark green hair, and an outfit that made her look the part of a noble who sees battle. It appears she did not even budge when he ran into her.

"My apologies miss, but I am in rather a hurry right now. Sorry I bumped into you."

Julius hoped she would simply take the apology and leave it at that, he really had to be on his way. As much as he would like to enlist her aid, as battle confident as she seemed, he needed a whole force. Not one noble. And nobles usually aren't people who would listen anyway. He turned to leave before any further conversation could ensue. But it seems it would not be that easy.

"What is your name? And why are you in such a hurry that you are running through crowds?" The composed woman asked of him.

Julius really did not want to explain himself, but at least he would speak a small truth.

"Julius Novachrono, and I'm off to help someone."

Julius then ran off into the crowd once more before the woman could get another word in edgewise.

"Well wasn't he an ignorant one, nya? I mean, he didn't even call you by your name Crusch-sama!" Spoke a girlish looking cat-boy.

"Indeed Felix, but it was strange, the wind blew in an odd way around him. Almost as if… they were slow?" The woman now named Crusch mused. An interesting man indeed…

Julius had started to notice that there were significantly less people around than before. The buildings and surrounding scenery also became more refined as he followed Emilia's direction to the knights. He supposed it made sense that they were closer to the wealthy than the poor, but it did not sit well with him. At the very least, the less people around the faster he could go, even if it did mean a few odd looks. But now that he thought about it, what would he even tell the knights? Would they believe him? That there was a dangerous assassin lurking in the slums? Even if they did believe him, would they even care about the poor people who dwelled in the slums? He sincerely hoped that they were like the magic knights that he knew, who would come to anyone's aid.

While Julius was deep in thought, he felt a hand on his shoulder, and he immediately came to a grinding halt. He had not even noticed them behind him until they had the opportunity to touch him. That was alarming.

"You look distraught, is there anything I can help you with sir?"

Julius slowly turned around, he didn't know why, but this presence made him feel nervous. As he did, what he saw shocked him. A man with brilliant red hair, shining sky-blue eyes. He carried a regal sword at his hip, but he almost looked like…

"Z-Zara?"

No, he was sure that he was mistaken, but the sudden appearance gave him a shock, that was for sure. But from the way he carried himself, he could guess that he was indeed a knight.

"Zara? I'm afraid I don't know who you're talking about." This man was a little confused as to how someone could mistake him for someone else.

"Apologies, I have mistaken you for someone else. They had the same red hair and blue eyes as you, you see."

'The same hair and eyes as me huh? Interesting, could they have been a distant relative of the Astreas?

"I see, that aside, I would like to know if there are any problems that I can help with? You look rather troubled."

While Julius didn't want to just spill the details to just anyone at the risk of sounding crazy, he felt like he could trust this man. Looking like Zara aside, he just emanated an aura of warmth and trust. So Julius told him all that he knew about the situation in the slums. That there was a female assassin there who posed a threat to many people. And that he had directed himself to the knights so that he could seek help. Meanwhile this supposed knight listened attentively to his explanations.

"Luckily you have a knight right here. We haven't exchanged names yet though, I am Reinhard Van Astrea. And what is your name sir?"

"I am Julius Novachrono, now, should we go and retrieve more knights?"

'Julius Novachrono, I haven't heard of any name or family like that among the noble houses of Lugunica, yet he is clearly a noble. Interesting…

"Oh don't worry about that Novachrono-sama, I shall be plenty enough to deal with this cowardly assassin."

While Julius was taken aback for a moment at this Astrea's confidence, for some reason he felt content to put his trust in him. He practically radiated power, he could feel the pressure of the mana around him as he spoke of taking care of the assassin. He felt that he certainly had no reason to doubt him.

"Then let's go good knight. I may not look it, but I can fight too! I was a knight myself long ago you know."

If Reinhard was surprised by this statement, he did not show it. He only nodded as they both started racing towards the slums as Julius directed them. While Reinhard was loath to admit it, he was not too familiar with the slums, and so he was grateful for Julius' assistance. Although he knew where the slums were at least, and was able to take them through a few alleys and passages that sped them on their way.

As they were travelling, Julius had noticed many looking at Reinhard in awe and admiration. It seems he was a very well known figure. Julius supposed that he was very lucky to have bumped into someone of his stature. But before long, they had arrived in the slums. People's reactions had flipped. Where once were gazes of excitement, there were now looks of sheer disgust and hatred. While he himself got some looks when he had been here before, he got nowhere near as much attention. Then perhaps Reinhard was a knight of particular renown then. He hoped he was renowned for his skill and not some deplorable act.

Julius paused for a moment to look around. They were here a couple hours before future events, and the sun was just above the horizon. He didn't have time to muse on one's possible character though. He would have to hope that his initial impression would hold true. Whom speaking of, was looking at him quizzically, wondering why they had stopped. Julius only offered a nod in acknowledgement before continuing in their race to the end of the slums. As they ran, he could no help but to think about how much faster it would be to fly. He wondered if it would be as easy to pick up again as it was when he had first learned to. But for now, he filed that thought into the back of his mind as something he would have to try later. For now, they were nearing their destination. As they both moved up to the large house, they could hear yelling and immediately broke into a dead sprint, closing the remaining distance to the door in an instant.

As Julius swung open the door and evaluated the situation inside. And… It was not quite something he was expecting. Inside, there were two people on one side of the building. Immediately Julius recognized the two as the one he saw the corpses of before, and was immensely relieved at seeing them alive and well. One was a large man with dark skin. He had bulging muscles that looked like they could snap a sword in half if struck. He appeared to be old if his grey hair was anything to go by. He was wielding a large club as easily as one might wield a small blade. He swept his gaze to the second person. He recognized this one as the thief girl named Felt. An odd name, but an apt one in considering her chosen profession. She had golden hair and ruby eyes with a fair complexion. She had a small blade strapped to her waist and appeared to be holding a small insignia, which he believed to have been taken from Emilia. Speaking of Emilia, she was the final person to grace the other side of the room. He was surprised to see her there so early. It appears that he had only been holding her back before, rather than being of any help.

The bigger issue than the argument however, was that he did not see the assassin. It would be easy to say that it is too early, but he will stay on guard. After his initial thoughts, everyone in the room turned toward him. Emilia and Felt looked toward him in recognition, both with very different impressions. Emila seemed to give an indifferent reaction, while Felt certainly harbored obvious contempt for him. Likely a consequence of what he tried to do earlier in the day.

Julius did not notice before, but Reinhard had not entered the building with him. He supposed that if he was a knight of renown, the assassin may try to escape should she know that he was there. If Emilia wondered why he was there alone after he had asked after the knights, she did not make her curiosity known. In any case, the current situation was tense, and Julius felt more than awkward as all three people in the room had their eyes fixed on him. He raised his hand in a friendly, placating ammner, hoping to break the silence with a greeting. But the little thief interrupted him before he could even start.

"What are you doing here, shitty noble?"

Julius was getting really tired of being called a noble right about now. He would hardly consider himself one considering how they tended to act, but that was the image he gave, and he didn't want to sit here with the girl and argue semantics.

"I was hoping to recover something that was stolen you see."

The girl seemed skeptical for a moment, likely because she had not actually stolen anything from him, but she did not question him further. While he would like to recover the odd emblem that was stolen from Emilia, that objective came secondary to preventing unnecessary deaths.

"Well now that we have tha-"

Julius was interrupted once again, but this time, it was the assassin who did so. He had been the first to notice her, and his perception of time slowed to a crawl as she leapt out of the darkness with a blade aimed for Emilia. In a reflexive move, Julius stretched out his hand to cast an orb to lock the hand of the woman in time. He only succeeded in stimulating the mana there into a slight stagnation. He was about to curse himself for his foolishness, but it seems his actions were enough to make the assassin falter.

"Puck!" Julius yelled, hoping that with the sun in the sky still, the great spirit would yet be awake. And it seems he was, as the second pass on Emilia was blocked by a wall of ice.

"Oho? A spirit arts user is-"

"Elsa Granhiert"

The woman was interrupted by Reinhard as he entered the room. He was no longer content to remain outside of the room as the situation deteriorated. And it seemed that he knew who this assassin was. All eyes were focused on the two, but Julius saw the large man tense up, he could tell he was going to try to crush Elsa with his club. The images of his decapitated corpse came into Julius' mind, of his own death at her hands, and he felt himself moving before he even thought. He sprinted across the room, and as the giant lifted his club, Julius threw himself into his side, tackling him to the ground. Both the giant and Elsa looked taken by surprise. One surprised by this average man's sheer strength, and the other surprised that her blade had misstated the throat that she had intended. In witnessing this, Reinhard cursed his refusal to use his own sword. He grabbed the nearest sword on the wall next to him and boomed.

"You will face me Elsa, turn on the others and I will have your head!"

Elsa turned back towards Reinhard and grinned. She did not seem as though she were worried by any stretch of the word.

"Oho? Why don't you use your real sword? Am I really that much of a simple bug to you?"

Reinhard grinned himself, and nodded as he gave this spare sword a few test swings.

"Indeed, you are nothing more than a bug. Your tainted blood is not worthy of staining my true blade."

An uncomfortable silence filled the room. The tension was so palpable that it felt as if it were choking the life out of those in it. The stillness only lasted a few seconds, but to Julius and the others it felt like a lifetime. But at once, Elsa rushed Reinhard with a flurry of slices. Reinhard perfectly parried each one before countering. He broke through Elsa's defense and left a gash across her arm. Elsa was unperturbed nonetheless and pressed her attack. She stepped to the side and thrust one blade towards his face, forcing him to block. While he did so, she took another from behind her and aimed for his stomach. Reinhard let one hand go of the sword, letting Elsa's blade slide past his face as he used his free hand to grab Elsa's wrist. He then kicked her in the chest sending her flying back into a wall, undoubtedly breaking ribs. He threw the blade he wrested from her and his grin grew wider.

"That's too bad, a little trick like that would only work once. I fear I am no longer interested in this fight, so I will end it with the next blow."

Reinhard's face became serious as he looked at Elsa's battered form laying against the wall. He raised his sword above his head as he judged that Elsa would be slow to rise. The mana in the air began to gather around his blade. Visible streams and sparkles coalesced around his sword, bathing it in light and giving it a holy visage. The sound of the mana pervaded everyone's senses. But just as quickly as the show started, everything stopped. Silence. Then Reinhard let his blade fall towards his slowly rising opponent.

A large boom resounded, and a wave of pure destructive energy flowed forth towards Elsa. The force from the blast blew apart the building, the other people in the room could hardly remain on their feet. Smoke billowed up from the destruction, blinding everyone to what was happening around them. It was only Julius who could sense that Elsa was moving toward them. She was moving toward Felt, likely with the thought that she would be an easy kill in the haze. He would not let that happen.

Julius quickly placed himself between the two and steeled himself to deflect a blow. Elsa's blade came just as the smoke began to clear out and Julius swiped her arm to the side, and delivered a powerful punch to the underside of her chin, sending her falling back. Julius was surprised that he was able to land such a solid hit, but upon seeing the state of Elsa, he could understand why. He was even further surprised by her broken form using her fall to flip backwards and leap up the rubble of the building. As she peered down from her perch atop the rubble, Reinhard peered back, unmoving. Elsa looked toward Julius and smiled as she licked her lips.

"I will be back for you. Oh I simply cannot wait to see the color of your insides."

And with that parting statement she disappeared into the growing darkness as the sun set. Reinhard didn't give chase, deeming it an unnecessary risk to those who would be left behind here. And the rest were grateful for it. Julius let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. Without the overwhelming power to which he had grown accustomed, every second in a fight was tense and exhilarating. But just as soon as he had composed himself, he turned to the other to make sure they were alright. Felt and the old man were standing side by side. Felt looked at him with conflicting emotion, but it seems she decided on gratitude as she said "thank you". She said no more as she quickly looked away and hid her face with the old man. Both of them gave a small smile at this as the man began to speak to Julius.

"Thank you, it looks like you saved us both here. I'll never forget that. If you ever need somethin' around these parts, you can let old Rom take care of it for ya!"

Julius gave a small laugh and replied, "I appreciate the gesture Rom, if I'm ever in need then I'll be sure to come to you."

Julius then turned towards where Reinhard and Emilia were standing. They appeared to be speaking about something important, but he could not hear what. A small glint caught his eye, and he spotted the small insignia stolen from Emilia resting upon the rubble. Of course, this would need to be returned to her. He bent down and picked the emblem up, as he did so, it began to glow. An interesting little thing he thought. He began to walk toward the pair. Reinhard turned to him first and for a moment looked surprised before quickly striding up to him.

"May I see that?" he questioned.

Julius was sure he was simply going to return it to Emilia himself, no matter. He was not looking for credit anyway. He stretched his open hand forward. Reinhard's eyes widened at what he saw before he swiftly snatched the emblem up. He then quickly shuffled over and handed it to Emilia.

"Keep it safe Emilia-sama, I'll make sure no one knows you lost it."

"I am very grateful Reinhard-san, I will keep it safe." She turned towards Julius. "And I am grateful for your help as well. Without you, most of us would have died here. What is your name?"

She gave him a low bow and he gave her a warm smile and nod.

"My name is Julius. Julius Novachrono my lady."

"Well then sir Novachrono, I would like to invite you to the Mathers estate to properly express my gratitude."

Before Julius could say a word in reply, Reinhard interjected.

"I apologize Emilia-sama, but I must take charge of Novachrono-dono myself. It is of the utmost importance."

"Are you sure? It would not do to let his assistance go unrewarded."

"I am afraid that I must insist. We have very important matters to attend to Emilia-sama."

Julius supposed Reinhard was going to grill him with questions about tonight. It makes sense, he would want to know how Julius knew all this was going to happen. He turned towards Emilia.

"Worry not Emilia-sama, I need no reward. I was only doing my duty as a former knight. Though I am not from here, I could not let innocents come to harm."

Emilia did not look satisfied with this, but she let it go nonetheless.

"Excuse me, but what is going to happen to us?"

Reinhard turned towards Felt and Rom, who looked at him questioningly.

"Well as a knight I would be duty-bound to bring two thieves in."

The pair became crestfallen at these words. They knew they would not be able to escape if they ran.

"But I am off duty right now. And I was so focused on my quarry that it seems that I did not notice the pair of thieves make their exit."

The pair looked genuinely shocked at the words he spoke. It seems they fully expected him to take them in as a knight would. Though Julius was glad he was willing to compromise on his duty a small bit. Reinhard was a good man. The pair gave Reinhard their thanks and quickly scuttled off after gathering a few items that were left undestroyed. With the other two gone, Julius and Reinhard said goodbye to Emilia, with the latter promising a reward one day.

The pair arrived at a large estate. Julius had assumed that he was being taken to a guardhouse or knight's headquarters for questioning, but it seems that was not the case. While he would like to ask Reinhard what they were doing here, he spoke first.

"As Reinhard Van Astrea, I welcome you to the Astrea Mansion."

Julius wondered if he only wanted to reward him in Emilia's place.

"So why am I being welcomed here? Did you just want to do something for me before Emilia could, or is there other business for me here?"

Reinhard looked shocked for a moment, it seems he didn't realize that it could look that way.

"Why no I am not so petty I can assure you. There are certain things I wish to confirm that I'm afraid can only remain confidential on this property. Now, If you would please come in."

Reinhard finished this thought with a bow and gesture towards the door he had just opened.

Julius figured it wasn't so simple as being petty, but it didn't hurt to ask in any case. So he accepted the invitation to the mansion. Just as soon as they had entered the building, Reinhard had led him to a small room seemingly used for meetings, and left him alone immediately. No matter, Julius thought. It would give him some time to think. The first thing that came to his mind was how he first came to be in this country. He had died, he was sure. Then he simply woke up on the streets of this city. But why did the death he suffered here not cause him to wake up elsewhere? He did not know, but he was glad that he was able to save lives today. It gave him peace of mind. To see people alive and smiling. He was helped by and was able to help Emlia, though he was sure she would no longer remember their first meeting. He had also met Reinhard the knight. He was a good man, he could tell. He shone in his duty just like Zara did. He only wished he would come back sooner rather than later, and tell him what is going on.

Speaking of the room he found himself in, it was small. Two small couches on either side of a small table took up the center of the room. The wall on the opposite end of the door was almost entirely glass, and seemed to lead out onto a small balcony. The red drapes were mostly covering the view. What the room lacked in size, it made up for in simple opulence with its reds and golds. Though it was not overly ostentatious. But before long, Julius was taken from his thoughts as Reinhard entered the room, seriousness etched upon his face. Julius entertained the thought that something had happened before Reinhard walked up and sat in the seat across from him. He wordlessly extended his closed fist toward Julius and opened it, revealing an insignia that looked much like Emilia's.

"Is that something most nobles have or did you somehow go retrieve that from Emilia in the time you were gone?" Julius questioned.

Reinhard shook his head no.

"There are not many, they signify that one has been chosen by the dragon as candidate for the throne. I have one because I was tasked by the Council of Wise Men to find the fifth and final candidate. Here, hold this in your hand, if it glows, then that means you have been chosen as candidate to be King."

Julius was a little alarmed. He had already been the Wizard King and was defeated as such. Could he really be King of a whole country, if it were anything like King Clover, he was sure it would not be difficult, but he definitely had a feeling it would not be so simple. In any case, if he was chosen by this 'dragon', he doubted that he had much choice in the matter.

Julius extended his own open palm to meet Reinhard's. He slid the insignia into Julius' open hand both with baited breath in anticipation. Julius held the emblem, and both gazed in astonishment as it shone more brilliantly than any gem they had ever beheld. Julius flinched a little at what that entailed, but he would do his duty nonetheless. Reinhard on the other hand was completely astonished.

"This is… why I have never seen an insignia shine as this one has! There must be no doubt, Julius Novachrono, you are a candidate for the throne of this country of Lugunica!"

Reinhard immediately rose and walked over to Juluis before kneeling on one knee and bowing his head.

"Novachrono-dono, please allow me to offer my oath and word as a knight. I shall aid you in your every endeavor as I shall be your sword and your shield, now and always."

He drew his magnificent sword, an ornate gilded guard and a beautiful silver blade. He presented it to Julius.

"Please allow this humble, noble soul to be your very own knight."

Julius pursed his lips, he was not happy to have another attendant. Marx was his friend of course, but he would frequently sneak away to avoid his incessant nagging. But he would accept in the end. He would need help as a candidate. He did not know much about this country. But to finish this little ceremony, he had seen something similar before. He gently took Reinhard's blade in his hand, before placing the tip upon each shoulder and bequeathing it back to its owner.

"Then I humbly accept your pledge as a knight Reinhard, but please, I would like to stay informal in informal spaces. Call me Julius. Now rise."

Reinhard rose to his feet and sheathed his sword. He looked at Juliu and gave a beaming smile. It was contagious for Julius.