Coddiwomple Trivia #5: When you switch around the letters of Delphia's last name [Rotta], you get "tarot."


Delphia watched on in amusement as the Black Bull hideout was filled with its usual chaos. It filled her with mirth to see that despite the show of dislike and annoyance of individual members, the whole squad tended to have the habit of congregating in the main lounge when they had nothing to do. With the rare chance of having only a few papers to work on, she had taken a break to spend time with her fellow magic knights.

She fondly shook her head as Luck tried to persuade Magna to a fight, while the fire user sat eating his precious pudding on the back of their muscle-brained rookie. She couldn't help but be impressed with the kid's physical prowess. He was already nearing 1000 pushups, and his pace hasn't faltered one bit despite Magna's weight and the handicap of one arm.

"Silvantus Schnauzer!" Noelle cooed over the anti-bird that had made its home in Asta's hair.

Delphia bit back a snort. It seemed Noelle's naming sense hasn't improved a bit. To be fair, the Silva's did have a unique sense in naming things. Nebra and Noelle were indeed lucky to be named by their mother rather than their father. She can't imagine how bad it would have been, considering their brothers' names are Solid and Nozel.

But honestly, to name a bird after a dog breed.

"I think something else would be better..." Vanessa trailed off, her gaze wandering before stopping at the bottle in her hand, "Let's see... Like Wine! Wine?" She called, staring towards the bird who still held its blank expression.

"I will allow you to borrow a single letter from the name of my little sister, the goddess Marie." Gauche says, holding a picture of his sister, "I will let you take the "M." Be grateful."

"Make it something cooler! Like, let's see..." Magna closed his eyes in thought, "MAGNAM FIRE!"

Delphia rolled her eyes. Lame...She smirked as Noelle echoed her thoughts aloud.

"You have no taste, Lady Noe."

"More like you don't."

"Definitely, Toritaro!" Asta grinned, pausing in his pushups.

"No, it's Silvantus Schnauzer." Noelle denied.

Delphia stared at the anti-bird in contemplation, ignoring the back in forth between the two rookies, head tilting in thought. She blinked as the bird fluttered over to rest in her lap. She was dazed as she stroked its head gently with her forefingers.

"Tsubame?" She murmured.

"SU-TAME? WHAT'S THAT?"

Delphia winced at the volume before chuckling.

"Not that, kid. Tsu-ba-me," The vice-captain corrected, "It means Swallow in Yami's homeland."

Delphia blinked when she felt the bird freeze in her hands.

The squad oh'ed in awe at their vice captain's knowledge.

"You know how to speak Yami's mother tongue?" Vanessa blinked.

"Comes with the family," She commented much to their interest. Delphia didn't really talk about her family, and despite their rather known name, were quite reclusive on the inner workings of the family.

Delphia kept her eyes on the bird, shrugging her shoulders, "I don't think the bird likes the name, though."

Asta and Noelle's eyes brightened as they once again cried out their chosen names. Delphia breathed a laugh as the bird seemed to have had enough and flew over to peck the ash blond's head.

"Ow ow ow ow!" The boy cried, "The heck was that for, Toritaro?!"

"Why not, Nero?" The cheery berserker suggested.

Delphia hummed, "Not bad, Luck." She smirked when the bird rose its wing in acceptance, "The bird likes it too."

"What?!"

"Nero means black." Luck grinned.

Delphia nodded, patting the boy's head. "I say it fits, considering the group it decided to stay with." Luck laughed, almost nuzzling into the woman's palm as she continued her petting.

She blinked as a spacial portal opened at the base doors, raising a hand in greeting as the Captain strolled in. He nodded his head in acknowledgment.

"All right, listen up."

"Mister Yami! Hello!" Magna greeted.

"Everyone, we're back." Finral followed behind the captain.

"Welcome back!" Charmy cheered.

"What did they want at the castle?" Vanessa wondered.

"Mission? Is it a mission?" Luck jumped from his place, punching the air in excitement.

"Ah, I have an announcement for you all," Yami said, regaining everyone's attention, "A new dungeon has been discovered.

"A dungeon?! Are you serious, Mister Yami?!" Magna cried.

"OHHH! WHAT THE HECK IS A DUNGEON?!" Asta asked, pumped up despite his cluelessness.

Delphia sweatdropped, holding back the urge to facepalm.

"Huh? Are you serious?" Magna stared incredulously at his junior, "You were surprised, and you didn't even know what it is?"

"I just went with the flow!"

"Talk about predictable!"

"Asta, dungeons are like ancient tombs that contain relics made by people from the past," Delphia lectured, gaining the boy's attention, "Sometimes they hold information about powerful ancient magic and even rare magical tools. With the changes of time, a lot of the language is lost making it difficult to even decipher the knowledge hidden within-"

The Black Bulls listened in rapture despite their knowledge of dungeons. It was rare for Delphia to be so passionate, and they adored seeing her like this. If there was one thing they learned about Delphia, it's her love for ancient history and studying magical tools. It was one of the few things that her magic wouldn't help her in— a complete unknown for her to explore and study.

Luck grinned, nodding beside Delphia. "But you know, the people back then set insane magical traps in them so that they wouldn't get misused by anyone. They're super dangerous and really fun!" Delphia gave Luck a rare smile, patting his head once more, much to the blond's enjoyment.

"The Magic Knights always investigate them since they're so dangerous, and to make sure none of the treasures get stolen." Vanessa explained, winking at the two rookies, "Before the King decided Delphia was too important of a knight to send on dangerous missions, she used to be the first to request exploring the dungeons when they were discovered!"

Noelle stared in surprise at her idol, hiding a blush at the woman's rather pleased and nostalgic expression.

She must have really loved exploring... I wonder if Nozel-niisama has ever seen this side of her.

"My favourite would have been the Crypt of the Silver Horseman," Delphia mused, smirking at the glint of familiarity in Noelle's eyes at the name, "It was said the first Silva was a rather materialistic and possessive man. He created a whole dungeon to hide his possessions, including the magical artifacts sought by many in the royal family. Before it was discovered, the only proof of its knowledge was the journal left behind by the man before he disappeared."

"Eh? Disappeared?" Asta wondered.

Delphia nodded. "Yes, the man disappeared one day, and no one knew why. That is until his dungeon was discovered."

"What happened?" Asta leaned forward, eyes sparkling.

Noelle was much more subtle but eager nonetheless.

"He used his own body as a trap to guard his possessions," Delphia smirked at the gasps, "The ancient spell he cast on himself allowed his body to retain its mana use, so while he was dead, his body would continue to protect the dungeon. That is why the dungeon was called Crypt of the Silver Horseman,for it is the man's final resting place."

Asta and Noelle were in awe of the story.

Yami chuckled, smirking at Delphia, who blushed near unnoticeably as she coughed to regain her composure.

"The Black Bulls were assigned to explore the dungeons particularly because it popped up near our enemy's border," Yami explained.

"Enemy?" Asta asked.

"The Diamond Kingdom. We need to take care of this mission fast so Diamond's people won't get any of the good stuff."

Delphia's eyes flashed before she quickly flared out her cards in front of her. She shuffled and reshuffled, pulling cards and reading them as she focused both on her squad mates and the dungeon. She frowned, eyes glancing at Luck. Yami took notice. The two shared a look before Yami continued.

"By the way, there have been instances in which someone found a magical item that could change civilization itself in a dungeon, and someone even learned how to use the ultimate magic there."

"Me! Me! Please let me go!" Asta snapped his hand up, "I might be able to use the ultimate magic too!"

"You don't have any magic, so that's not happening."

"You never know!"

"Actually, you can go, kid. In fact, the Wizard King chose you himself."

Delphia quirked a brow, humming as she nodded, realizing precisely why Asta was chosen to go.

"Huh?" Asta blinked, "Huh?! The Wizard King?! Why?!"

"That's awesome, Asta!" Magna congratulated, "What the heck? Did you bump into the Wizard King somewhere?"

"No, never!" Asta denied. Delphia rose a brow as a light shined on the boy as he stepped out into his 'spotlight,' "The Wizard King chose me! I don't know why, but... Waaahh! Great Wizard King! As ta the Unworthy will give his all on this mission!"

Delphia smirked, highly amused at the boy's dramatics.

"Noelle, you should go with him." She suggested to the other rookie.

The young water user stared at her idol in surprise. "Huh?"

Delphia only nodded her head in assurance. "You need the experience. A senior member will come along to lead you so you should have nothing to worry about."

"That'll be you, Luck." Yami called, "I'm leaving those two to you."

"Really?" Luck wondered.

"Yup. You'll lose your touch if you stay cooped up all the time."

"Yay!"

Delphia looked back her cards, a bit worried but knew that whatever trials Luck faces, he'll only come out stronger.

"Make sure to look after them, Luck. We're counting on you." Delphia spoke up.

"Leave it to me!" Luck grinned.

"Phia, Goldie gave me a message. Something about needing your help with some research." Yami shrugged.

Delphia straightened. Vengeance always did give the most exciting research projects.

"Then, if you need me, I'll be at the Golden Dawn's base." Delphia announced, "Everyone knows the drill, right?"

Seeing the rather happy aura around the violet haired woman, the remainder of the members shivered and nodded. A happy vice-captain was a happy base. But one tiny mishap meant that happiness will go down the drain and trigger an angry Delphia that was even worse than one that got its sleep interrupted.

"Yes, ma'am!"

Delphia clapped her hands. "Good. Finral, if you would send the trio off and send me on my way after."

The playboy winked and nodded, "Anything for you, Phia~"

"Be careful," Vanessa warned.

"Asta! Lady Noe! Give it your all!" Magna cheered.

"Got it!"

"I guess I don't have a choice."

Delphia peaked out of the portal beside Finral, to see the trio off. She gazed admirably at the location, unsurprised Finral would know such a place.

"The sunset is beautiful from here," Finral grinned, "I recommend this location for dates."

"It is quite beautiful," Delphia agreed.

Finral brightened, "Then we should come back here together! I'll even bring a picnic! Ne, Phia?" The man winked.

"Depends on the paperwork I have when I get back," Delphia shrugged, ignoring how Finral nearly squealed as he danced before disappearing back to base. She nodded her head at the trio, "Like Vanessa said, be careful. Also, stick together. You're going as a team. Got it?" Her eyes were trained on Luck as she said this, who ignored the looks as he bounced in his place, gazing around in excitement.

Noelle and Asta took her words to heart and nodded. "Hai~"

"I'll have some nummies ready for when you get back!" Charmy cheered.

Delphia waved once more before she turned back to base.

"Well, I'll be off as well." Delphia waved, nodding her head in thanks to Finral before stepping through.

Gazing at the gates of the Golden Dawn's headquarters, she nodded.

"Now, let's see what he has for me today."


A/N IT'S MAY! THAT MEANS AT THE END OF THE MONTH I HAVE A BTS CONCERT TO GO TO! I haven't seen any announcements about the date changing or it being cancelled so here's to hoping. Then again I'm probably hoping for too much. But it's my first concert so let me keep it up!

How's everyone doing? Healthy and safe I hope. If you have any suggestions of what you want to see next just leave a comment. I like bouncing between canon and Delphia's own adventures.


UPDATED: 05/05/20