Disclaimer: Black Clover is owned by Yūki Tabata, Studio Pierrot, and Shonen Jump.

Saga 7: Hell's Bells (Pt. 2)

Gravitos Rock Belt, Eye of the Midnight Sun's Base Interiors, Central Hall (Night; about 6 hours until daylight)

After the frenzied battle cry from the Ars Goetia, Astaroth leads the charges towards the panicking gaggle of white-cloaked mages, weapons in hand, pointed towards the enemy, with a suffocating killing intent radiating from the demonic army upon the hapless fools that dare call themselves "mages".

Astaroth winds Ravager back mid-charge, and upon releasing the built-up force, the black broadsword cleaves through the entire front line of mages in a single swing.

The top halves of the mages go flying in the air, spraying blood in its wake, the now-lifeless lower half buckling under its literal dead weight onto its knees or in an undignified heap of broken flesh and bone.

Their reactions varied from horrified awe to a complete failure of their digestive tracts.

Something new then awakens withing Astaroth.

Seeing them gawk as they struggle to find the words to describe this carnage around them.

Seeing the look of terror in their eyes stained with tears.

Seeing them tremble flat on their asses before his awesome presence.

Seeing them put up a futile attempt of a resistance against him, then seeing their mangled expressions of fear of the fact that their so-called magic couldn't do jack shit to him or his black armor.

To the the Eye of the Midnight Sun, they were death incarnate.

To the Fallen Angels, they were only food.

But to Astaroth, he himself found meaning.

In bringing death, he's found life.

For the first time in his life, he's alive.

"JIAK'M ALIVE! (I'M ALIVE!)"

Astaroth's declaration to the heavens above and depths of hell below was the very first time that he's spoken in Daemontounge.

Around Astaroth, various Fallen Angels were in their chaotic frenzy of festive carnage and gleeful sadism.

They gutted them like a fish with only their bare hands, they flayed them alive with their crude weapons, they bombarded the cowering runaways with their poisoned arrows, and the ones trying to put up a fight in a group against one Fallen Angel were massacred in a matter of seconds.

In short, it was a scene straight out of the nightmare from the darkest, deepest bowels of Hell. More fitting that the Demons were now pouring boiled animal fat and fish grease from the above, smashed their stolen lamps onto the now-oil-drenched floor, and setting the entire central assembly hall and everyone else on fire.

Mostly everyone. The three cloaked figures and their leader at the center were the only ones not on fire.

Because there was a ring of fire around the four, preventing the outside flames from entering.

The biggest one of the four then pounces out of the ring and towards Astaroth's way. Mid-jump, his cloak flies off, revealing a muscular man built like a brick house with a long blonde mane flowing behind his back and shark-like teeth, this mage was more beast than man.

Made even more obvious with the kind of magic that he was declaring.

"[Beast Magic: Bear Claw]!" A pair of spectral bear claws formed around his burly arms, swiping toward his direction, only to be intercepted by Claudius, digging his fingers int the beast-man's temples.

"Milord, I must tell you that your main priority is to kill the four-leaf leader here." The fingers around the beast-man's face begins to draw blood.

"Yeah, he's with those two other freakazoids, right?"

The beast in Claudius's grasp tries to say something, but all that was audible from him were incoherent mumbles coming from through the Demon's palm.

"Astute as expected, milord. Now if I may excuse myself..." Claudius's wings spread open.

"I've got a kitten to neuter." He then takes off into the air, throwing him through the exact same door that they came in from and out towards the now-fallen rock.

Astaroth then turns toward the leader with his two lackeys. All three of them throw off their hoods, revealing the one in the left was a man with black hair with a patch of white on it, a young woman on the rightmost side with peach hair and feral eyes with a red lizard-like creature perched on her shoulder, and at the center was an angelic-looking young man with braided white hair, and an ornate-looking round black and gold cap adorned on the top of his head.

Quite a diverse bunch, in all honesty.

"I'm assuming that you're the leader." Astaroth points his sword towards the man at the center.

"I won't confirm or deny it." The leader spoke in a gentle tone laced with subtle hints of rage seeping over before blowing its lid off into space. "BUT YOU DARE TO COME TO OUR BASE OF OUR OPERATIONS-"

Astaroth cuts him off and charges toward the leader, but before his sword could reach him, the leader with his two other companions appear behind him.

"Now be judged." A blast of light is shot from his hand, but Astaroth's black armor bounces it off like a dew on a leaf.

"Oh dear..." The man with the black and white hair sighed. "We're not gonna finish this in one fell swoop, aren't we?"

"Doesn't matter..." The young woman with the red lizard spoke in a hoarse tone. "He didn't accept Licht's judgement... I'll burn him nice and slow..."

Then said woman immediately files off her handle. "... WITH ALL OF MY HATE!" The woman then opens up her grimoire.

"[Fire Spirit Magic: Salamander's Breath]!" Her pet then spits out a gigantic blast of flame towards Astaroth.

"Welp, better follow it up, then." The man then opens his grimoire while touching the woman's own. "[Copy Magic: Salamander's Breath]." Another massive blast of fire spews towards his way.

Before the two pillars of fire can reach him, Astaroth winds Ravager back, then swings the massive blade in a diagonal arc, cutting both blasts of fire in two, petering them out.

The two casters just stare in shock with their jaws hanging open.

"What's wrong? Getting cold feet already?" Astaroth taunted.

"SURROUND HIM!" The other white cloaked mages then circle the Fallen Angel Prince. "IT'S OVER, YOU BASTARD! THERE'S SEVERAL OF US AND ONLY ONE OF YOU!"

Astaroth just scoffs at their bloated bravado. "And are those going to be your last words?"

"THOSE WILL BE YOUR LAST THEN!" "KILL THE FUCKER!" "I'LL ADD YOU TO MY COLLECTION!" "I'LL TAKE HIS BODY FOR SCIENCE!" "FOR LORD LICHT!" All the mages around him open their grimoires and blasts their spells in tandem.

"[Wind Magic: Tornado Needles!]" Five lances made of wind shoots toward Astaroth.

"[Gel Creation Magic: Sticky Salamander] +[Special Property: Formula Gamma]!" A gigantic lizard made of slime is summoned. The female mage then injects a giant syringe filled with a blue liquid, causing the lizard to be surrounded in sparks of blue lightning.

"COME ON! NUMBER 0! MICHAEL CAESAR!" From the one-eyed mage's black portal, an anatomically mismatched figure with a clown mask appears and haphazardly blasts [Wind Magic: Devouring Hurricane], [Fire Magic: Wildfire], [Water Magic: Flood Banquet], [Lightning Magic: Tempest Blast], and [Ice Magic: Negative Zero] towards the armored Demon.

"[Tree Magic: Vampiric Roots]!" The hooded mage blasts out a bramble of thorny roots towards him.

"[Earth Creation Magic: Titan Punch]!" A short mage shoots a gigantic fist made of compacted earth.

"[Ice Magic: White Burial]." A wave of ice towers over Astaroth.

"[Water Creation Magic: Squall Bullets]!" Several droplets of water fire towards the Demon at lethal velocities.

"[Emerald Magic: Verdant Spires]!" Green crystal spikes sprout towards Astaroth's direction.

"[Spatial Magic: Dimensional Cutters]!" Disk-like black projectiles spins toward Astaroth.

"[Fire Spirit Magic: Salamander Talons] and [Crystal Creation Magic: Lævateinn]." The small red lizard jumps up and swipes its hind claws, sending slashes of fire. In tandem, a massive sword made of diamond is brought down towards Astaroth's head.

"[Copy Magic: Talos Puppet Cluster]." The man with the [Copy Magic] touches the [Fire & Crystal Magic] user's grimoire, and summons a small army of diamond clones of himself to dogpile the Demon.

"[Light Magic: Divine Ray of Judgement]!" From the leader's four-leaf grimoire, a massive beam of burning light blasts towards the Demon.

All of the magic attacks connects to the Demon Prince, creating a gargantuan explosion that engulfs him completely.

"HA! HOW'S THAT, YOU ARROGANT BASTARD!" "YOU STOOD NO CHANCE AGAINST US!" "THE EYE OF THE MIDNIGHT SUN IS IMMORTAL!" "LONG LIVE LORD LICHT!" "AW SHIT! THERE'S NO BODY LEFT FOR ME TO PLAY WITH/DISSECT!"

Key word, "connects", not "kill off".

From the choking smoke, Astaroth emerges from the smoke, with not a single scratch on his corporal form.

The mages stop celebrating immediately. Their expressions of haughty glee replaced with unfathomable horror.

"So, any last words?" Astaroth spoke in an unamused tone.

"HOW!?" They all said in unison.

"Simple. 1000 push-ups with rocks tied to your back, 1000 sit-ups while clinging onto the ceiling like a bat, 6-hour mediation under a waterfall or in a middle of a raging blizzard, 20,000 sword swings per session, sparred with my tactician for five rounds, and a steady diet of boar meat and raw fish. Every. Single. Day." Astaroth stated in a dry tone. "Also worth mentioning, but I'm a hundred-percent legit Demon."

Their expressions of horror reach existential levels of realization.

"A Fallen Angel, specifically."

"We're fucked, aren't we?" One of them stated in a whimpering tone.

"Thanks for reminding me that." Astaroth then spreads his wings then suddenly appears before the one-eyed mage. He then grabs his familiar, Michael Caesar, by the back of its head, and swings it over his head, down towards the mage's horrified face.

Astaroth then proceeds to use his familiar as a makeshift bludgeon, beating the mage's skull in until said skull implodes in a messy heap of blood and splattered grey matter.

"One."

Astaroth then appears behind a group of mages in a flash. With his free hand, he pulls Ravager out of his five-leaf grimoire, and cleaves through several mages like sickle to wheat.

"Seven."

He then throws his bludgeon/stolen familiar towards the bespectacled female mage, which she then catches it with her slime familiar. Astaroth's Ravager then bursts out of her chest, impaling her through, then he lifts the sword upwards through her convulsing top half, splitting her skull in half.

"Eight."

The black-eyed mage then blasts several black spatial projectiles in hope of fending him off. The Fallen Angel then throws Ravager into the mage's chest, which then Astaroth then pulls the sword out with his right, and in tandem, punches the mage's head off of his neck with his left.

"Nine."

A group of mages to his left haphazardly fires their spells with what remaining mana they had left from their initial assault. Their magic bounces off of his black armor like toy balls to a castle wall. Once seeing that their magic was useless against this death incarnate, they try to make a run for it, but only to find themselves all impaled through the same sword.

"Fourteen."

The mage to his right shoots out a flurry of icicles towards him. Astaroth smacks them back with his right wing, with one of them hitting the mage in the shoulder. He then flash-steps toward the man, grabs him by the throat, and rips his head off along with the spine.

"Fifteen." Astaroth then dumps his head into the patch of grease fire.

He would go after everyone else that was running, but he won't for two specific reasons.

One: the other Demons were already beating them dead before he himself could.

Two: the remaining three, that being the [Fire & Crystal Magic] user, [Copy Magic] user, and the leader using [Light Magic], were pissed off as hell, and it doesn't look like they'll make a run for it anytime soon.

"YOU BASTARD!" The leader in the center roared out. "HOW DARE YOU KILL MY MEN!"

"Why, were you supposed to do it?" Astaroth responded in a bored tone.

The leader's freezes into a grimace.

"Licht... I'll do it..." The woman's pet lizard transforms into a gigantic fire dragon. She then jumps on top of its back as the dragon itself readies to attack with its master. "I'LL BURN HIS BODY AND SOUL TO ASH!"

"Hey, hey, hey. Don't you go acting cool all by yourself." The [Copy Magic] user then touches the leader's four-leaf grimoire, copying its [Light Magic], then forming a serrated sword made of light into his hand. "Oi Licht. Normally, in a situation like this, I would tell you to make a run for it, but knowing who you are, you're not gonna listen, aren't ya?"

"You speak the truth, Raia." Licht then forms a long whip-like construct with his [Light Magic] into his hand. "I will not stand idle after what he did to my men."

The three mages then ready themselves for the fight of their lives, but to Astaroth, all he saw were cornered vermin with bared teeth.

Is this what being powerful feels like? Perhaps, but for now...

"Let the records show that your choices is going to be your undoing."

He's got vermin to exterminate.

Gravitos Rock Belt, Eye of the Midnight Sun's Base Exteriors (Dawn; About 4 hours before daylight)

"[Beast Magic: Bear Claw]!" The beast-man mage swipes the claw-like constructs towards Claudius.

He stops both of the claws by catching one of each of them between his fingers. After confirming the handle on them, Claudius then flings his arms upwards, sending the beast-man flying into the air.

"[Beast Magic: Eagle Wings]!" A pair of spectral orange wings sprouted from his back, slowing his decent back down to the ground.

"Sweet maws back at home, how many fucking animal traits are you packing in there?" Claudius sighed.

"Tell me..." The beast-man snarled. "Why aren't you feeling the despair yet?"

"Pardon me?" Claudius mused. "What is this so-called 'despair' are you talking about?"

"The word 'despair'... a sensation of sheer helplessness in the face of unimaginable power." His voice rumbled. "The same sensation... that I felt during that day-"

Claudius then punches the beast-man into his jaw, sending him flying towards the fallen stone fortress, leaving a very deep impression of his physical form onto it.

"It was a rhetorical question, you gargantuan oaf." Claudius spat out. "It's just that why do you keep using that word without knowing what it really means?"

The beast-man emerges from the dent, while forcing his dislocated jaw back into its proper place. "What do you mean by that, you filthy human?"

"Okay, first of all, you've got a few things wrong about me. "Claudius then spreads his wings open, revealing their black feathers. "Do regular humans normally possess wings on their backs?"

"Of course they do. They were envied our magic and stole it to have them."

"Ugh..." Claudius facepalms. "Good fucking accursed lord above, you really are an idiot..."

"NOW FEEL DESPAIR!" The beast-man files upward with his magical eagle wings and floats there before unleashing his titanic attack. "[Beast Magic: Whale Body]!" A spectral whale surrounded the caster, sending its own bulk and weight down towards his foe.

Claudius then raises his hand upwards, catching the bloated fuck in its path before it can hit the ground.

"Do humans regularly possess the constitutional capacity to bench-press a 300,000-pound blue whale, one-handed and without using magic?"

"You bastard..." The beast-man growled through his spectral whale. "JUST WHAT ARE YOU THEN!?"

"If you excuse me, I was just about to get to that." He then pushes the whale upward off of his hand, right before digging his fist into its blubber-rich hide, elbow-deep, sending the beast-man flying out of his whale, and said whale dissipating in tandem with the beast-man hitting the ground.

"If you must know, I'm a Demon." He then places his foot onto the [Beast Magic] user's head. "A Fallen Angel, specifically."

The beast-man then begins to emit a sinister aura around him, causing him to slowly rise up against the Fallen Angel's heel.

"Human... Demon... It matters not." His voice echoed. "Because my power shall bring despair upon all the living."

The beast-man then begins to levitate off the ground, opening a third eye on his forehead.

"I AM VETTO! 'THE HOPELESS'! AS ONE OF THE THIRD EYE, I SHALL INSTILL TRUE DESPAIR INTO YOUR VERY SOUL, AS I GNAW ON YOUR FLESH AND BONES UPON YOUR DEFEAT!" Vetto then opens his grimoire, preparing his new attack.

"[Ancient Beast Magic...]"

"What." Claudius flatly spoke out.

"[Dragonbreaavh]" A spectral head of an unknown creature was summoned from a magical portal, which it then breathes out a beam of reddish-black fire.

To Be Continued...

Author's Notes: ... a few things have happened in this chapter.

One: Astaroth/Asta is slowly falling into the dark side.

Two: Eye of the Midnight Sun are being massacred in droves (Rades, Sally, George, Valtos, Heath, in that order).

Three: I've changed [Mythical/Demon/Monster Magic] to [Ancient Beast Magic] because a) It just rolls off the tongue better. And b) it just makes more sense in the context for this kind of magical world.

I'll get to that in the next chapter.

So what do you guys think?

Leave a review or comment, for I'd like to know what you're all thinking.