Chapter 13
You Are Not Alone

"Wait, what?' Asta scratched his head."What do you mean? What apocalypse?"

"Dunno. Not even I know." Troy shrugged nonchalantly."Probably the destruction of humankind? Could mean a lot of things. Regardless, one thing is for certain. Our goal is to revive slash find our God."

"What? God?" Mia narrowed her eyes."What are you talking about? There is only one God and that is the creator himself."

"Yeah, that is true. God's position seems to be set in stone for all eternity and no one can oppose him. However, what if I were to tell you that that's bound to change soon? See, what we're looking for is to bring the perfect being to this world. One who will bring chaos and change the nature of things with his mere presence. One who will oppose any being, be it a devil or an angel. The Harbinger of Calamity."

"End of the world? The apocalypse that he mentioned?" Gauche asked, not receiving a straight answer."I asked you a question, old hag!"

'Look at these idiots.' Troy snickered silently, glancing over his shoulder carefully.'Sally is healing up nicely. Once she's up and ready to go, I can retire from here. But if I keep talking, as long as I don't reveal everything, I should be able to give her enough time without having to fight at all. I'm so smart.'

"Tch. They're just lunatics. Fanatics that believe in nothing but nonsense. Whoever this "Harbinger of Calamity" is isn't real and I can confirm that because you said you're looking for him. This means that all we have to do is take you down before you get the chance. IF you get the chance." Raiden's blades flared up with black fire as he dashed at the hooded man."And if you're plotting against God, you deserve to be wiped out."

"Well, so much for not fighting." Troy sighed in exasperation, opening his Grimoire."Air Magic: Wind Bullets!"

Compressed air was fired at Raiden's direction, seemingly homing. The raven-haired teen waved his blades, cutting the air bullets with relative ease.

"Got you. Air Magic: Violent Whirlwind!" A great gust of wind came out of the Grimoire, engulfing Raiden's body and tossing him high in the air."I see. That fire of yours can cut through spells but is useless with attacks that cover a wide range. Good to know."

"How about this!" Asta appeared behind him, swinging his sword horizontally.

Troy quickly jumped in the air, using Asta's sword as footing. The man put his hand on Asta's chess, taking him off guard."Air Magic: Cyclone!"

Asta was sent flying by a cyclone created from Troy's hand, sending him crashing into a wall.

"We can't get close enough to get a clean hit. And if we do, he just sends us flying. Then how about we try some long-distance attacks. Soul Energy Magic: Divergent Fists!"

Winding her fist back, Mia threw a punch in the air, confusing her opponent. His confusion soon turned to realization when he saw a shockwave rapidly coming his way.

"Now I see. Well, so it happens I have a similar spell to yours, girly! Air Magic: Thundersound Wave!"

Similar to Mia's attack, a blast of wind was launched against the other, clashing in the middle of the cave and creating a crater in the middle of it. The kids huddled together, trying to not succumb to the air pressure the two attacks created.

"Man, I'm spent!" Mia collapsed to her knees. I've been using too much of my stamina...I need a minute."

"Great." Gauche grumbled."Guess that just leaves me and the old hag." Out of the corner of his eye, Gauche saw Raiden sitting up, preparing to launch another attack. On the opposite side was Asta, sword in hand.

Mia's grabbed her hair tie and removed it, leaving her long hair run free."Soul Energy Magic: Ethereal Knuckledusters!"

"We'll attack simultaneously." Theressa created a fire hammer from her Grimoire."We'll be the distraction and let the others handle this. Let's go, Gauche!"

Gauche groaned, wondering why he was even sticking around at this point. He had half a mind to grab Marie and leave, but he felt inclined to stay and help Raiden. Out of all people here, he found him the most tolerable and not a complete moron like the rest. And above that, he had someone he cherished and love, just like he loved his sister.

Running past the Sister, Gauche flipped through the pages of his Grimoire."You'll owe me big time for this! Mirror Magic: Reflect Ray!"

"Now! Inferno Magic: Blazing Cut!"

"Soul Energy Magic: Divergent Fists!"

"You're ours!" Asta lunged at Troy as everyone's attacks surrounded him.

"Air Magic: Violent Vortex Blast!" A dome of air surrounded Troy before it exploded in size, preventing the attacks from reaching them and sending them all scattered around the cave. Gauche noticed he was going to land where the children were, so he quickly used Mirror Shift to change his trajectory and crash into a wall.

"Big Brother!" Marie cried out in horror.

"That's my strongest defensive spell." Troy stated, dusting off his robe."You can't cancel it with Anti-Magic because of its wide range. You can't escape it."

"Shut up!"

Troy's eyes shot wide open, glancing to his side and watching a slash of inferno coming towards him. Jumping out of the way, the Air magic-user safely avoided the attack."That was close. You work fast. Shame you're a blind follower of God. You could make a great asset to our group."

"You're on a stupid mission to revive a being that may not even exist." Raiden cut him off."You're already doomed for going against God. I want no part of that."

Meanwhile, Sally was rolling on the bubble Troy had created for her over to Baro."Hey, Sally! Come and get me out of here!"

"Yeah, yeah. Sorry, I was going to ask you for your consent for this, but extreme circumstances require extreme measures."

"Huh? What are you talking about? Just hurry up and ge-" A needle went against Baros' neck, sinking deep.

Back in the battle, Troy was chuckling at the sight of the fallen mages before him."Don't tell me you guys are done already. It would be a shame for such prestigious mages to be defeated like this. You haven't even touched me yet!"

"As much as I hate to admit it, this guy is right." Mia muttered to herself, removing some rocks that had landed on top of her."We have to think of something. I don't want to know what that crazy girl is planning but we have to stop all of them now."

All of a sudden, a blade went past Troy's arm, cutting him slightly."What?!"

Asta, who was getting back on his feet, yelped as the sword landed in front of him, almost stabbing his foot."Hey! What's the big idea?! That almost hurt me, you know?!"

"That's the point." Raiden grumbled, his arm still extended after throwing his blade."You just happened to be in the way. Better not do that next time because I will move you aside if I have to."

"Why are you being a jerk about this?!" Asta snapped, tired of Raiden's constant snarky comments."I get you don't like me, but that's going too far! There are too many things at stake right now for us to bicker like we usually do!"

"Ah, seems like you are fighting each other, eh?" Troy calmly grabbed his arm, getting a feel at how deep the wound was. Smirking, he notice the sword had only graced him, so he decided to let it go for now."Don't mind me."

"Never mind the moron." Raiden rose his other sword, cladding it with inferno."My objective right now is you. It's because of you the world is filled with rotten people like you and is filled with evil. And what I do best is to purge the evil from this world and that includes you."

"If that's the case, feel free to come at me."

Taking his words as an invitation, Raiden dashed at the man, prepared to strike.

"Asta, get over here!" Mia hollered at the Magic-less knight.

"What is it, Mia?" Asta inquired, holding onto Raiden's sword and frowning at it."Jeez, why did he have to throw that sword at me anyway? Now he has to fight with only one of his swords."

"An odd move, I must say." Theressa noted."He seems like a calculative individual who knows how to approach a battle. I wonder why he would do that?"

"Probably fed up with this like I am." Gauche spat on the floor, eyeing his sister from afar."I want to get Marie someplace safe already. This is taking too long and he most likely realized that."

"You guys are all wrong." Mia shook her head in dismay."Come on, didn't you notice the way he threw his sword just now? Up to now, he's been fighting with his blades covered in that black fire of his. But when he threw that sword, it was completely normal. Not covered in magic whatsoever."

"And if I recall correctly...that same attack managed to surprise that maniac and cut his arm..." Theressa rubbed her chin, her eyes widening in realization.

"So an attack without magic took him by surprise. But why would he throw that sword at me anyway? Compared to you guys I'm not that smart. Mia was the one who figured out the plan."

"Probably because he just doesn't like you." Gauche nonchalantly supplied.

"No, no." Mia folded her arms."Probably because he wanted to get that point across specifically to you by giving you an example. He knew you wouldn't figure out from the start, so he went to go fight and give us a distraction to come up with a plan."

"I see!" Asta exclaimed, a smile present on his face and gears in his head turning, coming up with a plan using his previous experiences.

"How remarkable. He came up with a plan and tricked our enemy into believing he didn't. That's why he was bickering with Asta." Theressa theorized."He made it seem like Raiden had something against Asta and used that to make Troy overlook the fact he had grazed his arm."

"Yeah...he kinda doesn't like me to begin with." Asta deflated, sheepishly laughing."Anyway, I think I came up with a plan to take down Troy."

"You? A plan?" Gauche scoffed."I doubt that."

"I'm serious!" Asta cried out, stomping his feet."Just listen to what I have to say!"

Raiden screamed, waving his hand and launching a slash of fire at Troy, who responded by creating Air Bullets.

"A mistake letting one of your weapons go, boy." Troy snickered, watching Raiden's speed increase and dodging his attacks."Though I have to admit, you're a lot faster and stronger than regular magic knights. I guess you're not an ordinary kid."

"I thought that was obvious!" Raiden suddenly appeared in front of him, prepared to cut him down.

Troy jumped back, avoiding the attack and casting another spell."Air Magic: Solid Hit!"

Raiden braced himself, feeling the wall of air launching him away successfully."So you're capable of offense and defense. Funny. My friend and I specialize in defense and offense respectively."

"Oh? So you're not that impressive after all if you're just a one-trick pony! Wind Bullet!"

"Maybe so, but as it turns out, I'm particularly good when it comes to offensive spells! Dark Hollow!" Raiden swung his blade, cutting the air bullet in half and sending a slash of fire at Troy, who skidded a few meters away after not expecting the attack to land so close."This is where we claim victory!"

"Victory? Sorry, but there's no victory to be found here."

"Think again!" Two voices declared simultaneously. Two Gauches were floating in the air on top of two brooms, various mirrors surrounding them."Mirror Magic: Double Reflect Refrain!"

A countless number of light beams were shot from the mirrors, aiming down below. Raiden jumped out of the way to safety.

"They're fast, but if I jump back now then I-"

"Soul Energy Magic: Twin Divergent Fists!"

The sound of the attack set all alarms in Troy's head. He could feel the attacks coming and Gauche's attack was already on him. Much to his bewilderment, some of Gauche's attacks changed trajectory and hit the ground below, raising a cloud of dust."Air Magic: Violent Vortex Blast!"

His spell repelled the remaining light beams along with Mia's shockwaves, dispersing some of the smoke.

"You'll need more than that to beat me..." Troy muttered, a cold sweat going down the back of his neck. From the smoke behind him, Raiden appeared with his two blades back. Troy quickly turned around, putting his hand against his stomach and creating a cyclone that launched him against a wall. However, unbeknown to him, Asta came out from behind him, gritting his teeth.

Before Troy realized he had missed one of them, Asta smacked his torso with his sword, basically batting him away towards a wall, knocking the wind out of him and damaging him immensely. His eyes rolled to the back of his skull as he landed harshly on the cold ground.

"Gotcha!" Asta screamed, grinning at the fact he had landed a solid hit.

"Took you long enough." Raiden grabbed Gauche's hand, helping him up."But still, whoever came up with that plan, kudos to you."

"It was me!" Asta enthusiastically rose his hand.

Raiden remained silent, clearing his throat."I said, whoever came up with that plan, kudos to you!"

"Aw, come on!"

"Whatever the case, he's down for the count." Gauche noted, letting go of Raiden once he was back on his feet."So now all we have left is the other one."

A scream made them all perk up, turning to where Baro was once tied up. His body began secreting brown liquid from every orifice of his body, engulfing him and changing him drastically.

"I must say, that guy certainly bought us enough time." Sally laughed at what Baro was becoming."Well, we better make sure his sacrifice doesn't go in vain! You're healed up and your magic has been restored. Just as you asked!"

"What the heck is that?!" Asta yelled, taking a step back as the giant mud monster towered over them.

"Hey, Baro! Can you hear me?!" Sally asked, not expecting an answer."Seems like his personality is gone. Oh well. This could work."

"We have to get the kids out of here." Mia exclaimed, glancing back at the terrified group of children."I'll go ahead and start evacuating them. The sooner we get them out, the better."

"I'll lend you a hand with that. Fire Magic: Ignited Leopard!"

A leopard made out of fire appeared in front of the kids, allowing them to get on its back. Mia grabbed two children in her arms and let two get on her back."Okay, we're off! Don't worry kids, I'll be back before you know it!"

"It'll take quite some time for everyone to evacuate safely," Theressa stated, standing next to the other mages.

"I have to get Marie out of here." Gauche stepped away from them, grabbing his broom."I can't have her wait here inside with that abomination."

"You can't be serious, Gauche!" Asta hollered after him."We need all of us here to take that thing down!"

"Just shut up, idiot!" Gauche barked at him, grabbing his broom and flying away with Marie in his arms.

"That insolent little..." Theressa hissed, shaking her head."Fine. The three of us will have to deal with this creature.

Raiden glanced back at the kids then back at the exit of the cave."We have to keep him in one place. If he moves too much it'll cause collateral damage. The last thing we need right now is for this whole damn cave to fall on us. Inferno Magic: Blazing Cut!"

Two slashes of inferno cut the mud creature's arm, causing it to lose balance. Raiden then lunged at it, spinning around and cutting the other arm, landing on the opposite side. Before long, the monster regenerated its lost limbs, going back to normal.

"What the fuck?" Raiden muttered to himself, facing the not too happy monster."He can regenerate?!"

Jumping out of the way, the raven-haired teen covered his eyes to protect himself from the debris in the air."What now?!"

"We just have to keep cutting!" Asta declared, slicing the monster's arm cleanly off thanks to his Anti-Magic."Easy!"

"Yeah, right. We'll have to relentlessly attack him to do some noticeable damage. Not to mention it seems to regenerate at a great speed." Raiden told him, jumping back to gain some distance."We need a plan."

"I'll watch your backs, boys." Theressa stood behind Asta, casting a fire spell and repelling Sally off."She's still after you, Asta. Don't drop your guard!"

"Aw, come on!" Sally whined, growing impatient."Stop getting in my way already!"

The mud monster swung his arms down, causing Asta and Raiden to fall back."The Sister can't back us up and protect the children at the same time."

"I know. But we've got our hands full with this guy as it is." Asta said, huffing."If you need to take a breather, let me know. You must be exhausted after putting all that work into fighting that Troy guy."

"Keep dreaming. It'll take away more than this to get me winded." Raiden snorted at Asta's comment. Both boys perked up at the monster that was combining both its arms together, forming a bigger one that shadowed over them."Holy shit!"

"We can't stop that, Raiden!" Asta cried out, eyes shooting open wide.

"I have to help them!" Theressa hissed upon Sally launching another spell at her."You!"

"You don't need to worry. I won't let Asta die. I can't say the same for the other guy though." She grinned maniacally.

"No choice! Inferno Magic: God Hand!" Raiden stretched his arm out while his left one held it by the bicep. From his Grimoire, black flames emerged and engulfed his hand, growing rapidly in size and forming a giant hand of inferno that clashed against. The black flames engulfed the mud, evaporating it and overpowering the monster as it was forced on the ground.

"What was that?! Is that a new spell?!" Asta exclaimed in amazement, turning to Raiden."That was soooo cool! I can't believe you just did that!"

"Using it in here is a gamble." Raiden narrowed his eyes, noticing the creature getting back on its feet."Inside of here? It could cause a big fucking mess. And you know how that good that will do to us with kids still being here."

"If only Gauche were here, maybe we'd have more of a chance." Asta pondered aloud, wiping sweat off his forehead.


"What a rundown place."

Sekke and Toby had arrived at the Black Bull's place, standing outside of the door."I can't believe we have to ask the Black Bulls for help."

"Black Bulls did...asked for help. So in a way, they are...helping themselves." Toby reasoned, knocking loudly on the door only to realize it was left open."Huh?"

"It's open?" Sekke voiced his confusion, waiting behind Toby as he walked inside."Wait, we're just going in?!"

"Might as well get it...over with, don't you think?" Tobias shrugged, marching inside the dark base. He scanned the floor carefully, noticing scattered empty bottled everywhere."Seems like...they had a party in here..."

"If so, then they're long gone for an after-party. Bah-ha! Oh, guess there's nothing we can do here if no one is home, right?" Sekke put a hand on Tobias' shoulder."Seems like our intimidating auras scared them off. A pity. I suppose we have to go ask for help somewhere else. How about we go ask those beautiful ladies in Blue Rose? Maybe your sister could help." He wigged his eyebrows suggestively.

"How do you know I have a sister?" Toby swatted the arm off him, narrowing his eyes."Ah, so it was you guys who were following us...I had a feeling." Toby rose a brow, looking past Sekke."I see...there was someone in here after all..."

"Huh? What are you-BAH-HA!" Sekke yelped, falling on his rear after turning around a coming face to face with Gordon.

Sekke trembled in fear, observing in horror as Gordon moved his lips without making a sound."What is he saying?! Get away from me! Toby, do something!"

"Gordon, you said?" Toby folded his arms, receiving an odd stare from Sekke."We are from the Green Mantis. We came here because we received a call from help from members of your Squad who are currently in Nean."

"What?!"

The trio turned to the side, meeting a sleepy-looking Abel who was rubbing his eyes."What do you mean you got a call from help from the guys at Nean?!"

"Where did he come from?" Sekke could only blink, not knowing how to react. The cream of the crop was seeing a giant man next to him, eyes completely white."I'm...not going to question it."

Toby and Abel exchanged looks, their expression remaining passive."I'm afraid so. It would appear as though they...ran into trouble over there..."

"We have to go get the Captain, now!" Abel cried out, fixing up his attire."Shit, how long did we sleep for? It's pitch black!"

"I'm awake. Hard not to be. You guys are so loud together you make Asta seem quiet all of a sudden." Yami yawned, scratching the back of his head as he came into the room."Now, what's this about members of my squad in trouble?"


As the battle raged on, Gauche flew on his broom as fast as he could, eager to get his sister out of danger already.

"Brother, why are you leaving your friends back there?" Marie asked him."They needed your help."

"They aren't my friends. We're squadmates and that's it." Gauche muttered more to himself than to her."Regardless, I need to get you out of danger. My magic doesn't work on that crazy woman and that mud creature just made things even harder. Not to mention we haven't restrained that crazy guy from earlier so if he wakes up again, it'll be more trouble. I can't risk your safety."

"But...what about the other children? You could have picked some of them up too."

"I don't care about anyone else but you." Gauche coldly responded."You're my main and only concern. Marie, you know as well as I do just what people are capable of. What happened to us...I will never trust people again. Everyone is always in for themselves. Doesn't matter what happens to those around them."

"Asta and Mr. Raiden aren't like that." Marie pouted, earning Gauche's attention."They stayed behind to protect the other children! What would they gain from risking their lives for that?"

Gauche bit his tongue, thinking her words over.

"They are doing it because they are brave, Big Brother." She grabbed his hand, squeezing it."Just like you are. I know you're very brave and you care for me. I'm happy I have such a caring brother. But please, don't leave the other children alone. They were just as scared as I was and not all of them have an older sibling that can save them..."

"Okay..." Gauche muttered, facing his sister."Anything for you, princess. You're right. I can't disappoint my little sister, now can I? I'll go drop you off safely outside of the cave and I'll go back to help those fools out."

"Really?! Thank you so much!" Marie engulfed his brother in a tight hug, causing his nose to bleed in satisfaction.

"Hey, Gauche!"

Mia hollered from below as she ran, keeping up with the siblings. She was carrying a few children on her back and two others wrapped around her arms."I've been going through this path a lot now and I just saw you!"

"How's the situation over there?" Gauche cut straight to the point.

"Pretty bad. Asta and Raiden aren't doing any noticeable damage to that mud monster thing and the Nun is keeping that Sally girl at bay. Good thing is that there are a few children left to evacuate but...I'm spent. I don't think I can do another run!"

"That's fine. Take care of my sister for me." He ordered, earning a pouty face from Marie."And the other kids. I guess."

"Sure thing! Look at you!" Mia grinned."At first, I thought you were a bit selfish but you have a heart of gold, don't you?"

"Shut up."


Raiden was tossed against the ground once more, moaning in agony as his whole body ache. Asta soon joined him on the ground, his lips bloody.

"This getting nowhere fast." The raven-haired teen forced himself up."We've all been fighting for a while and this thing isn't showing any signs of slowing down. Not to mention that Sally has fully healed thanks to Troy and is pushing Sister Theressa back. What now?"

"We have to keep on trying." Asta panted for breath."Come on, we're Magic Knights. We can't just turn tail and leave. Not when there are still kids here."

"Well, worst-case scenario, we can just bring the whole cave down and trap this fucker here." Raiden gave a dry chuckle."Not my favorite way to win a fight, but the situation merits it."

"Think you up for this?" Asta readied his sword, earning a scoff from Raven.

"I'm not letting you get the best of me, Asta."

The monster rose its hands, causing both swordsmen to jump in the air to avoid it. However, the monster had created an extra set of arms, prepared to attack them in the air. Just in time, Gauche swoop by and grabbed them by the collar of their shirts and pulled them away, tossing them on the ground.

"Fuck...be a little gentle next time?" Raiden pushed Asta off him, earning a pained moan from him.

"What's the big idea anyway?!" Asta pointed at him accusingly."You ran off and suddenly came back! That hurt you know!"

"From where I'm standing, it seems you're better off hurt than dead, you moron." Gauche snapped, his attention focusing on the mud creature."I'll deal with this."

"Really? Came back for more? You know your magic doesn't stand a chance against mine, right?" Sally reminded him.

"We're about to find out!" Gauche flew closer to Sally as she created a new gel creature."Mirror Magic: Real Double! And to top it off..." Both Gauches manifested mirrors, surrounding both the mud monster and Sally's gel creature. Light began shooting from them, reflecting off each other than using the gel to Gauche's advantage, using it to reflect the light at the mud monster.

"That's so cool!" Asta cried out.

"Yeah, but look!" Raiden pointed at the creature who was currently regenerating back."As expected, even Gauche's attacks didn't work. I have a plan. Sister, how many kids left?"

"These are the last ones to go!"

"Good. Asta, hear me out. I have a plan but I need you to go get Gauche out of there. As soon as you do, get away from here and stay hidden until everything is safe. Got it?"

"Huh?"

"I said get a move on!" Raiden pushed him, urging him along. Gauche was dodging the many limbs the monster had created, trying to think of any ways to get a solid hit."

"I'm considering using my trump card...but what good will it do in this situation?" Gauche grabbed the left side of his face."At this rate-"

Two mud arms swatted Gauche and his double off his broom, sending him rolling on the floor. The arms rapidly approached Gauche as he struggled to get back on his feet. Thankfully, Asta came in and cut the mud with his sword, saving him.

"You..."

"What were you thinking charging in by yourself?!" Asta quickly wrapped his arm around him."We're supposed to be a team! We protect each other!"

"I know." Gauche admitted, clicking his tongue."But I wanted to try anyway. Can't have my juniors do all the work. What are we doing?"

"Raiden has a plan but we need to get out of the way!" Asta informed him, removing his arm and proceeding to jog with him."Raiden! We're good to go! Sister! Start running!"

"What? Just what the hell is he planning?" Gauche asked no one in particular, gritting his teeth.

Raiden lunged in the air, his blades burning with black flames. The monster opened its mouth, ready to swallow him whole. And he did. Raiden was engulfed by mud as the creature made chewing gestures.

Asta deadpanned, his right eye twitching."WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?!"

"What...?" Even the Nun was at a loss for words.

"That idiot!" Gauche stomped his foot."What kind of shitty plan is that?!"

"Well, not what I was expecting, but it'll do I guess." Sally shrugged, satisfied with the outcome."One less obstacle that's preventing me from reaching you, Asta!"

Asta cringed at her words, grabbing his second blade from his Grimoire. The Demon Dweller Sword."Huh? It's shining again? Just like before!"

"What's going on with that sword of his?" Gauche narrowed his eyes."He doesn't have any magic, so how?"

"Okay, we need a plan." Asta glanced over his shoulder."We have to get Raiden out of there. The question is how?"

"I have an idea." Gauche said."The only way to defeat this abomination is if we attack it so many times at once it won't be able to regenerate. We'll work together. If you and Raiden can cooperate, even for a minute, then I suppose you and I can do the same. We have each other's back, right?"

"Gauche!" Asta beamed, happy to hear those words from his senior.

Gauche's Grimoire flipped open, revealing a blank page that began manifesting writing, forming a new spell."A new spell? I see. Now I understand. Old hag, I suggest you step back and let us handle this. You look like you could use some rest."

"Well, well. You seem confident." Theressa chuckled."Fine. But you need to learn how to treat old hags, you hear?"

Rolling his eye, Gauche shifted his gaze over to Asta."No choice. I'll have to use this now if we can get out of here alive. Asta! Look at me!"

"What?" Asta asked, only to see Gauche move his hair out of the way, revealing a magic item in place where Gauche's eye should be."That's...!"

"I'll use the magic accumulated in the mirror magic item in my left eye to activate my new spell." Gauche was quick to supply, his eyes shining with purple light."Mirror Magic: Barrage Brigade!"

Countless Astas came out of Gauche's mirror, their blades shining respectively and fired slashes of Mirror magic at the mud creature simultaneously."Mirror Slash!"

"Hey, don't go overboard!" Gauche hollered to him."Remember Raiden is inside!"

"Yeah, I know!" All Astas shouted, causing Gauche to cringe at how low they were. Sally's Salamander was cut to shreds, leaving her vulnerable. The mud creature was beginning to slowly deteriorate as more pieces began to be cut from its body.

Out of nowhere, various black spikes came out of the monster, piercing various Astas in the process. The real Asta yelped, dodging one of the spikes and recognizing the flame-like structure of them."This is Raiden's Inferno Magic!"

"I sense a great concentration of mana building up!" Theressa commented, her eyes widening."It's about to burst!"

"Get down!" Gauche quickly grabbed Theressa's hand, flying on his broom out of the room. Asta observed as the monster began to convulse dangerously, breaking him out of his daze. Noticing Neige on the floor, he knew he had to save him as well. Not wasting time, Asta easily carried him over his shoulder and ran after Gauche.

"Baro!" Neige cried in vain, tears pouring down his face as he saw what was once his brother explode in black flames. A giant fist of flames evaporated the mud and what was left of gel magic, crashing against the ceiling and spreading flames all around the cave. In the middle of everything, Raiden stood, panting, with his Grimoire. He was covered in mud, holding what was left of Baro's clothing.

"What a spell..." Theressa gaped, surprised."Had the children not been here from the get-go, he would have done that sooner."

"What a show-off." Gauche muttered, flying back and stopping in front of Raiden."Think nothing of this, old hag. But Marie wouldn't like it if I had left you on the dust."

"Don't be so conceited." The Nun chuckled."I could have gotten to safety myself."

Gauche chose to ignore her words, focusing his attention on Raiden."Why did you take so long? Was that your original plan?"

"Yeah." Raiden confessed, his gaze falling to the floor."But I figured I'd looked for the other guy. I thought maybe he was in there somewhere, you know? That's why I didn't do anything for a bit. I was looking all over but nothing. I only found his clothes. I'm sorry. He's...gone..."

Asta let go of Neige, letting the albino rush to Raiden and grabbing Baro's clothes, hugging them tightly."Baro..."

"Why did you try to save him?" Gauche asked him."You were ready to kill when we got here. What changed your mind?"

"Dunno. To be honest, I was taught to eliminate the problem before it became a bigger problem. But on the other hand? I didn't want them to be separated. They're siblings, after all. But I guess I couldn't have helped him...no matter how hard I tried." He shook his head, a frown on his face."Whatever. Guess that's that then. He would have been put behind bars anyway, right? So it doesn't matter."

Gauche narrowed his eyes, noticing that Raiden's words and his expression didn't match at all. Before he could continue, Asta grabbed Raiden by the shoulders, shaking him.

"What was that attack?! You almost hit me with that! In fact, you hit all the clones that Gauche created for me! What if one of them was me, huh?!"

"That's why I told you to get out of here, idiot!" Raiden yelled back, grabbing Asta's arms as they both tried to push each other off."Besides, you almost fucking cut my arm during that barrage of attacks! I had to swim for my life in mud!"

"Must they bicker at every chance they get?" Theressa sighed in exasperation."Gauche, I must say, I'm proud of you. To think you'd let your selfishness aside and assist us when we needed. You are growing up."

"It's nothing. I just thought Marie wouldn't be happy if anything happen to the lot of you, that's all." Gauche huffed, folding his arms."Besides, it wasn't that bad. Asta may be a loudmouth idiot and Raiden may be a gloomy, temperamental know-it-all but they're great Magic Knights in their own way. Not to mention Raiden is like me. We both have someone precious to us that we have to protect, no matter what. He would have done the same for me for the sake of Marie."

Theressa just observed him with a perplexed expression on her face before smiling."Who are you and what did you do with Gauche?"

"Put a socket in it. Wait, what happened to the other guy?"

Asta and Raiden stopped their fighting, scanning their surroundings."Over there!"

In the corner of the cave, the smoke hadn't still dissipated entirely. They could make out a silhouette, assuming to be Troy. But something was off about him. There was some kind of...thing coming out of his back, and something seemed to be growing out of his head. A sickening growl was heard before his silhouette shrunk back in size. Once the smoke dissipated fully, Troy was laying down on the floor, covered in wounds but alive.

Before anyone could voice a word, they heard something in the distance. Footsteps. But also something grinding against the ground. Whoever it was, they were carrying something with them.

"You all hear that?" Raiden whispered to the others.

"Someone's coming." Theressa announced, her brow furrowed."Whoever it is, it's not good news."

"What do you mean?" Asta tilted his head."Maybe it's the backup that Noelle requested."

"I doubt that." Gauche bit his lower lip."If that were the case, there would be more of them and certainly, they wouldn't be taking their sweet time walking here."

"But-"

Raiden quickly put his hand over Asta's mouth, gritting his teeth."Listen."

Muttering. Almost mimicking a song. The closer that person got, the more clear it became.

"Wolves asleep...amidst the trees. Bats all a-swaying in the breeze..." The voice was feminine but muffled. As if they were concealing their faces with a mask. Every few seconds, the voice would pause before continuing."But one soul lies anxious..."

Raiden unconsciously reached for his blades, his hand trembling. He spared a glance to the others and they all looked as tense as he did. He could have sworn it was the longest minute of his life. Until it happened.

The hooded figure finally entered the cave and the first few things they noticed was that they were wearing a cloak similar to Troy's as well as a weapon. A silver ax graced the ground. Unlike Troy, their cloak was opened up, giving them a chance to see their physique and their attire. They had a slim, feminine figure and fair skin. She was tall. Really tall, easily towering over any of them, even Gauche. The supposed woman was wearing brown pants with black boots along with a white shirt underneath an opened-up brown jacket. Her face and hair were concealed by a pig mask, making it impossible to describe them.

"Anxious...wide awake...In the dark, where good girls and boys lie. Little do they know of the creature hiding nearby. Under their bed? Or their closet? The gates of hell opening at their command." The woman stopped, cracking her neck before turning to Troy."Aw, look at you. You tried to use your Mark too soon. Can't exercise patient, can we?"

Troy moaned in pain, giving that as a response. The masked woman simply chuckled, nodding her head."Sounds about right. Well, you're looking rather comfortable in that position so I don't know if I could just make myself take that away from you. Just kidding. Don't go soiling your pants on me now."

"You're not taking him anywhere." Asta declared, a cold drop of sweat going down his temple."Neither are you! We're taking you all with us!"

The woman tilted her head, her pig mask unnerving the mages present."This is good. This is great. No, fantastic. I'm so happy that you served them on a platter for me, Troy. I hadn't gotten around this week's quota, but with this, I should be just peachy. How kind of you~."

"What the hell are you rambling about?!" Raiden snapped, his blades burning with black fire."How did you get here?! What did you do to the kids and Mia?!"

The woman used the sole of her boots to kick the ax over her shoulder."You'd make a great sacrifice for the Lawless One. Three little calves ready to be slaughtered. I can smell the fear from here. It...reeks. How adorable."

Without warning, Gauche opened his Grimoire and cast a Spell."WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU DO TO MY SISTER! MIRROR MAGIC: Reflect Ray!"

The woman cackled, not even bothering to move as the attack connected, lifting smoke to the air.

Gauche fell on one knee, feeling drained from using his Spell on Asta earlier.

"Don't worry. I didn't touch any of them." They all gasped as the smoke cleared, revealing her unscathed."In fact, no one even saw me. I didn't come from the entrance. But that's another story for another time. Well, there won't be next time. You shot first so..." Dropping the ax back to the ground, she lifted her head."Let's start the ritual. The ritual for the Overlord."


Before anything, I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving day. I'm sorry it took a while to release this chapter. Work and exams make it really hard to get some free time to write. I should have two chapters done before Christmas rolls around. I'll have more time there since the semester is almost over. This arc will finish the next chapter. I know it seems long but that's because I divided it instead of making really long chapters that would put people to sleep. Also, the show makes it look really long as well. Four or five episodes if I'm not mistaken. On another note, I'm planning to have Raiden drawn by an artist so we can have an official story cover instead of the Black Bull logo. Should be done around December. I'll keep you guys posted.

Regardless, look forward to the story as it progresses. I have a few things in mind, especially with the Order of the First. I will be expanding on them as well.