Chapter 84: Controlling Fate

Disclaimer:

Hi guys! I uploaded two chapters today with this being the first one. I did this because, originally, this chapter had both the contents here as well as the next chapter's but I felt that it didn't work very well together with how many words there were. I know I've done 10K+ words before but, for these two chapters, it didn't work too well in my opinion. (Also, I was having a hard time figuring out the chapter title so separating it into two also helped, hehe ;P)

So, once you finish this chapter just head on straight to the next one :).

With that said, I hope you enjoy!


The aftermath of the battle between Asta and Ladros was all around the immediate area and even beyond. Burned trees that had become darkened ash, withered leaves that had hardened and crumbled, and destroyed land that was scorched deep through.

Asta stood next to the unconscious Ladros but only stared at the Anti-Magic sword that he was holding, thinking about the battle that took to the skies just a few minutes ago.

"That black stuff… I wonder what it was. It gave me so much more power and I feel like I fought something before I transformed but… I can't remember what it was".

He massaged the temple of his head with his thumb and index finger as he tried to think even harder but then smoke burst out of his ears and he shouted in frustration.

"Gah! I can't remember and thinking too hard is only going to get me even more confused!" He slammed his foot down on the ground repeatedly. He then brought his grimoire to the front and examined it briefly. "Whatever it was, it was awesome. I used some kind of cool power like that… I only hope that I can use it on command in the future!"

"Anyway…", Asta continued, focusing his mind elsewhere. He looked around and saw Mars and Fana, also unconscious. The only ones who were awake were Fanzell and the Black Bulls with all four of them looking somewhat relaxed as they gave an audible sigh. "I guess the day is over…", he said as he joined in with his own sigh of relief.

"I wouldn't say that just yet", a voice said from the sky. The ones that were awake looked around but only Vanessa knew where to focus as she furrowed her brow. A flock of pitch-black crows swirled around which started from the distant trees and eventually swarmed near Asta, revealing a tall but familiar figure to the rest of the mages.

"Ah, Witch Queen! Nice to see you and all but, since we protected your forest and everything, could you heal my friends, pretty please?" Asta requested, asking very nicely.

"I guess congratulations are in order. Though it was messy, you managed to end the threat. I'll heal you - Blood Recovery Magic: Curse-Breaking Blood-Filled Cocoon", she summoned as a blood sphere surrounded and healed Asta's wounds.

"Thank you, thank you", he replied with a wide smile.

"However…", the Witch Queen said suddenly with a fierce venom, sending a shiver down Asta's spine. "Your request for the others has been denied", she replied and pointed her arm towards the battlefield that the Anti-Mage just fought on.

All of a sudden, a flood of blood gushed out and covered the ground that the mages were all on. A crimson river filled each and every crack, corner, and crevice of the damaged battlefield as well as surrounding the group. Crucifixes then rose out from the ground, one at each individual that was trapped, restraining them as if they were being ready for execution.

"Blood Creation Magic: Fresh Blood Execution Ground".

Asta looked down at his arms and legs and realised that he was the only one that was free. He turned around with an overwhelming emotion of anger filling his body. "You come here out of nowhere and this is what you do? Release them all or I'll just have to defeat you as well!"

The Black Bull gripped tightly on the handle of his Demon-Slayer sword, ready for battle, but before he could make another move, his body stopped and a high-pitched scream came out from his mouth.

"It was I who allowed you to do as you pleased in my forest. I could have defeated those imperfect beings with a snap of my fingers but I wanted to see what you could do. Now, then…", the Witch Queen spoke calmly. "Blood Magic: Puppet's Blood".

She pointed her fingers at Asta, causing him to scream even more. His skin started to turn pale and his eyes were now completely white. Small, red tendrils were attached all over the mage's body and he was pulled up into the air as if he was a doll on strings.

"Of course, my magic allows me to control blood and that is exactly what I'm doing with you. Earlier, I gained control of your bloodstream when I healed you, predicting that this outcome would arrive"

She pointed again. This time, she controlled Asta's arms to use the Demon-Slayer sword.

"I've analysed how you transform and that is what you'll do right now", she ordered. "Spend the rest of your life as my own, personal soldier!"

The familiar black and red sphere engulfed Asta once again and he came out transformed. His decayed and jagged, black wing came into view as well as the right side of his body turning an eerie black colour. A single horn and fang emerged but his red eye didn't.

The sky turned from a calm, blue into an ominous, purple colour. Black and red sparks of Anti-Magic shot out from where the magicless mage was standing, causing the rest of the group to turn their heads away from the stray sparks that were being sent their way.

The sphere around Asta disappeared and he stood still, swinging the Demon-Slayer around and lodging it into the ground beneath him. Saliva dropped to the ground from his mouth and he looked like a monster without a conscience.

Seeing this, the Witch Queen smirked.

"As your master, I command you to kill your comrades… perfectly".


"Man, I hope Mariella is okay", Lucas spoke out loud, continuously glancing backwards as he hoped to see the Ice Magic user catch up.

"Yeah, same. She's acting like it's nothing but you can tell that something's up", Daisy added, looking back as well.

"She'll be fine. Mari is much stronger than you're giving her credit for. She'll bounce back soon enough!" Domina pumped her fists while running.

The trio kept on running in the direction of where Asta and the others would be. Lucas and Daisy were with the others before they fought against Mystic and were just hoping that the way they were heading in was right.

They trampled over plants, made deep footprints in the mud, and brushed aside the growing grass as they made their way through. The part of the forest that they were in was relatively untouched which meant that they were still quite far away from the other mages.

"You're way too slow, guys".

The mages lead by Lucas stopped in their tracks as they heard the familiar voice from behind.

"That was quick", Lucas greeted.

"Well, I did say that I'd catch up, didn't I?"

Mariella had rejoined the group after a brief escape. Mystic was in tow, floating in ice-blue chains made from ice.

Lucas and Daisy exchanged looks with Domina who shook her head implying that they shouldn't ask what was up. So, that's exactly what they did - they listened and kept going in the direction.

Carrying on like nothing had happened, the group fell silent with nothing much to talk about. Well, there were two major things on their minds with Lucas's transformation and Mariella's relationship with Mystic but they all universally thought that it could wait for later.

"Are you sure we're going the right way?" Domina asked Lucas who was starting to get frustrated at this point.

"I'm sure it was this way!" He thought to himself, repeatedly tapping his forehead with his fingers.

All of a sudden, and with no signal whatsoever, the sky turned into an ominous, purple colour. Black and red sparks of Anti-Magic reached as far as this group of four and a chilling feeling swept through the forest.

"This… is familiar", Lucas shivered as he looked around at the changed scenery.

"What do you m-!" Domina began to ask but then quickly held herself as tight as she could with her own two arms wrapping around her body. She shuddered and cringed, sweat dropping as she looked around.

"This is familiar to you?" She asked, confused. "Well, it's definitely familiar to me… not the sparks or the colour that we're seeing but… I just know the Queen of Witches has something to do with this…!" The craftswoman breathed in heavily and then exhaled slowly. "G-Guys… whatever's happening right now can't be good. We have to get to Fanzell and the others!" She urged.

"The one positive about this is that it confirmed we're heading in the right direction…", Daisy said, trying to lighten the mood slightly, whilst sweat-dropping.

"That's right. Don't worry, Domina, Teach will be fine and I know the rest of them will be as well", Mariella encouraged, looking at the Diamond fugitive first and then the Clover mages.

"Th-That's right…", she straightened up.

The group followed Lucas again, this time knowing that they were on the right track.


Asta moved forwards, slowly, at the command of the Witch Queen behind him. The mage wore an angered expression as he closed in on the rest of the group - The Demon-Slayer sword in hand.

"Asta… fight back!" Fanzell shouted, saddened to see his newest student fall to such a spell.

"Is there anything we can do?!" Finral asked out loud, looking at his hands and then his grimoire. He tried opening his palms to generate some Spatial Magic but nothing came out.

The Witch Queen smirked as she saw their struggle. "Don't waste the last amount of energy you have. It seems like the previous battle took a lot of your mana away, so there's no need to tire yourselves out".

"You think you're so tough, huh?!" Noelle called out to the woman. "You want to kill us yet you're using a human to do so… So much for us being 'imperfect' when you're needing to rely on them to do your very deeds!"

"What is she doing?!" Fanzell asked himself, extremely worried. "That's only going to anger her even more!"

Noelle clenched her teeth together, focusing only on Asta despite insulting the Queen. "I know that was a bad move but I have to buy Asta some time. I just… know that he can break free from that control…!"

The Witch Queen remained silent for a moment. It looked like she was in deep thought as her eyes looked down on the floor, darkened by the shadow that the brim of her hat cast.


FLASHBACK:

The Witches' Forest has been around for many centuries.

The Queen was floating in the sky, surrounded by the grey and white clouds, as she replayed many memories in her head. She watched her home down on the ground go through many tests of time.

We have endured many battles.

We have endured many wars.

Despite the little knowledge that humans have of this land, we have been subject to trauma and death throughout our history.

She watched as fires broke out around the forest from invaders wanting to seize the land. The skies were painted black with the ashen fires rising up high. Humans were attacking, year after year, month after month, day after day, despite losing every single time.

Then, the scene changed to the throne room in the castle. appeared with a lone witch kneeling down. She was addressing the one in the chair made out of dead branches on the elevated platform at the end of the room.

"My Queen, the reports are indeed true - The Wizard King has died after his battle against the Ancient Demon".

"I see", she pondered deeply. "And is this the reason as to why we have been seeing a rise in human-related invasions across the kingdom?"

"I believe so. Following his death, the royals and nobles of the kingdom have been waging war on many different areas and tribes across the land. The Forgotten Forest was hit last week and we have already been seeing human traffic nearby as you obviously know".

The Witch Queen was silent in her thoughts. She waved the attendant away so it was just her left in the throne room, sitting at the back on her throne.

Suddenly, contrary to the vibe and feeling she was giving off, she slammed her curled-up fists onto the sidebars of her throne, creating a small, but loud, wave of sound.

"I have no problem defending my forest from these imperfect outsiders… but a queen such as myself should not have to entertain these fools that dare invade! The Witch Queen should oversee everything instead of wasting time fighting… I need…", she gulped heavily as she realised what word was about to leave her mouth. "... help".

Someone as powerful as I… needed help to quell these imperfect creatures from daring to set foot near my forest.

The scene switched to the Witch Queen's bedroom. She watched everything unfold and then the door on the side of the room flung open, revealing her past self.

She walked in, thunder and ferocity in her footsteps. Instead of changing her clothes to get ready for bed, she just sat down on the side of her large, black mattress and held her head in her hands as she sighed.

The Queen leaned backwards, her hands rustling against the dark-green bed sheets. Her windows were all open and she stared at the half-crescent moon in the distance.

"After I admitted to needing help in defending my forest, I began birthing many daughters. Year after year… there would be a new child in my arms…".

She closed her eyes.

"When they came of age, I personally trained them as any mother would - perfectly. Mana control, magic spells, forbidden tomes. I even let them be free to enjoy their lives, free to become who they want to be, free to choose for themselves… everything that would be necessary to be strong and to keep them happy - just what am I missing?!"

The current forest is filled with my daughters and their families. Each witch is an extension of myself and I love them all dearly… which is why I need help in protecting them.

The volume of invasions began to slow down after the past few Wizard Kings came into power but how much hope could I realistically place in a human?

Almost half a millenia had passed since the First Wizard King's death and the Witch Queen was no closer to achieving her goal that she had set out. She was going to stop but that exact thought was before the next period of five years.

I thought hope was lost with all my children not being able to wield the power that I sought. Then, I birthed the first one that would shift that negative feeling I had.

"Your name will be… Dorothy".

The Witch Queen held the baby with small, purple hair and glowing, purple eyes. Her smile at seeing this child was enough to know that there was something different about this one.

Then, three years later, another baby with a large amount of latent power was born. She also had a shade of purple hair which transitioned more into the pink colour. Her eyes were the same as Dorothy's but just a bit calmer.

"Your name will be… Vanessa".

Yet, the love she felt for these children was shown in horrid ways in the next few years. Instead of treating them like she had the children in the previous half millenia, she switched up her methods.

I changed the way I raised these two daughters. Judging by my past mistakes, allowing them to be free only served as shackles for their potential to shine. This time I would be stricter in my teachings, no matter what.

Dorothy would be locked in her bedroom. It only had one, small window that was constantly away from the shining sun. Darkness was a mainstay in her room with one, small bed to the side.

She would always feel tired with no light entering her bedroom so all she could do was sleep. She slept for days on end, but it was all according to the Witch Queen's plans for her.

That was… until she managed to escape. Her power grew too big to contain in one room and her enormous magical power helped her leave the forest, never to return.

Dorothy left the forest and that was the last time I ever saw her. Perhaps it was due to the sudden change in tactics in raising the children, so mistakes were bound to arise. I knew where she was at all times but I saw no reason to bring her back as all of my focus turned to the next daughter. This time, I was sure to not repeat the past.

FLASHBACK - END


The Witch Queen raised her head before responding to the Silva's jibe. "Hmph. You know nothing of my motivations and need for perfection. You don't think that I know about the contradiction with me using a human for my goals? Sometimes… sacrifices have to be made for the greater good and if that means I have to bend my ideals to reach that perfection that I seek, then I shall do that!"

She pointed at Noelle and Asta's body shifted to follow.

"Why don't you start off by killing the little girl? It'll be quite fitting seeing a royal of the Clover Kingdom slain by that very sword…", she chuckled.

"Stop it, please!" Vanessa screamed, causing everyone to look at her.

"I see that you've finally piped up, Vanessa", the Queen said as her smirk went away.

"Please… Don't kill anyone here. I don't want any of these people to die so just… stop all of this!" The Black Bull asked, her voice shaking.

"What you want and what I want are two different things, Vanessa. I want this forest protected but you only want your imperfect relations protected. Tell me why I should care?" The Witch Queen asked rather mercilessly.

"These people are my friends and my family! I owe it to them that they're protected!"

"And the witches in this forest are MY family!" The Witch Queen shouted back, sending a shiver down Vanessa's spine. "All of this violence could have been avoided if you simply stayed in your cage and never abandoned us… abandoned me!"

Meanwhile, Asta walked on towards Noelle. He stopped near her with only a few metres in between their bodies. His eyes were white and soulless which was a huge contrast from his everyday nature.

"A-Asta… Please, w-wake up!" Noelle pleaded but it fell on deaf ears as Asta finally swung his sword across.

Noelle closed her eyes and awaited the inevitable. However, as the seconds went by, she realised it never came.

She opened her eyes and saw Asta, still in the same spot but now holding his right hand tightly with his left, preventing himself from swinging anymore. "Asta! That's it… fight back just like that! I know you can do it!" She tried to encourage and break through to him.

"Grrrrrr…", is all that left Asta's mouth. Even though he wasn't able to speak, his body answered for him as he tried his best to ignore the Witch Queen's commands. The muscles and veins in his left arm were straining and bulging out with how hard he was fighting back.

"This boy… He's unconscious, and yet his body is fighting back. Is it his will, his ability with Ki, or his ingrained attitude? Well, whatever… I'll just turn up the intensity on Puppet's Blood", the Witch Queen thought.

Asta's left arm slowly loosened and his right arm was now free, able to swing at Noelle with no resistance.

"Stop all of this nonsense!" Vanessa screamed again. Just like before, the Witch Queen responded instead of ignoring her.

"You do understand that if you stayed in the forest, you would have been able to prevent such a thing from ever occurring. If you ever mastered your Thread Magic, fate would have been in your hands to manipulate and yet… you chose the route of imperfection".

"I… never had such power".

"On the contrary, you do and you still do. Though, you will never unlock it as you've sullied your potential because of the humans. However, there is still love in my heart for you as we're family so I'll let you live. The same cannot be said for the others, so watch as you see your precious, yet utterly imperfect friends and family die!"

There was no getting through to the Witch Queen and Asta was already making another step forward so that his incoming sword swing would definitely hit.

"Though it pains me to see you believe in this nonsense, I still harbour love towards you. If you simply listened to instructions, you could have been the strongest witch, rivalling me. Protecting this forest was my goal and you shattered it with your betrayal. I'll never forget the day you severely disappointed me, Vanessa!"


FLASHBACK - MANY YEARS AGO:

"My Queen!"

Many attendants of the Witch Queen rushed into the throne room, panicking and sweating. They were practically gnawing at the door which eventually broke apart from the sheer force that the attendants came through.

"Just what is the matter?" The Witch Queen asked, sitting on her throne.

"It's… a man! He just entered the forest without a care in the world! We tried to stop him but his scary magic made it too hard for us!"

The Witch Queen's eye twitched. "A man? How big is the army that's with him?"

"N-No army, my Queen. He's by himself…", they said, all worried about him.

The Witch Queen remained silent. "Only one human? Surely he can't be a threat but, because of the last few years of peace, it makes sense as to why the witches are worried and not confident", she thought. Suddenly, she stood up and made her way down to the same platform as her attendants. "Work on keeping the others safe. I'll deal with this problem".

She made her way out of the castle and saw the man immediately. He was jumping from tree to tree with a cigarette in his mouth, leaving white ash on every leaf he stepped on.

"You there. What is your business in this forest?!" The Witch Queen shouted, immediately bringing the human to a halt.

He turned around, still on top of a tree, and flicked his cigarette away which landed all the way onto the grassy floor beneath the shade of the tree. "Huh? I'm just training and all these girls started screaming for no reason. It's like they'd never seen a man in the first place", he shrugged.

"Have you never heard about this forest, human?"

"No? It just looked like your normal, everyday forest so I thought I'd do some agility training. And why the hell do you refer to me as a human?! It's pretty obvious that I am one, just like you, ya oldie".

This made the Queen angry, seeing as a few veins started to show on her forehead and neck. Her eyes widened and she gritted her teeth. "That was your second mistake, you creature. The first was entering my home! Blood Creation Magic: Blood-Scalding Scythe!"

She made her way to the man with a large scythe in her two hands. The blade of the weapon was oozing blood and, as each droplet fell, whatever it hit started to melt.

"Oi, oi, oi! What's the big idea?" The man asked, trying to dodge each slash. "Huh, well whatever. This will help in my own training! Dark Magic: Dark Cloaked Lightless Slash!"

The human's sword was covered in a dark aura and he flung slashes of pure darkness at the witch. She easily deflected the magic as she swung her scythe in a circle, still closing in.

"What a weirdo…", he said with a plain expression. "Dark Magic: Dark Cloaked Black Blade!" The man coated his sword in darkness again but opted to close in on the witch this time. He reeled his sword back but his opponent was too quick for him.

"Is this the best you can do?" She asked, clearly not impressed with the human's abilities. She was so quick that each dodge looked like she was moving at the speed of light but the man wasn't giving up.

"Good going, witchy", the man smiled. Suddenly, he increased his output of mana and managed to bypass the witch's evasion, slightly scratching the edge of her scythe's blade.

"You dare lay a mark on my magic?" She bellowed. She let go of her weapon and now formed a large, red orb around herself which also enveloped the man inside. "Blood Magic: Witch's Rejection".

"Rejection?" The Dark mage repeated, intrigued.

Not explaining her magic, she just smiled. As she did, the orb burst and flung the man outwards into the distance and away from her, leaving a large amount of injuries over his body.

However, just before he got too far away, the man pointed his hand at the distancing witch. "So, that spell rejects whoever isn't a witch, ay? I'm certain there's something else to it but I don't have the time to think about that. Don't think I've lost, though! Dark Magic: Black Hole!"

Right before he was too far away, his magic cast a similar orb around the Witch Queen, encasing her in darkness. She was trapped for the time being with the sound of bangs being heard from inside.

"That'll teach you to attack me for no reason", he laughed. He pulled out a packet of cigarettes mid-air, putting one of them in his mouth to smoke. "Wherever I'm headed, it's gonna hurt so… might as well enjoy the ride", he said, not being able to lessen the speed at which he was going.

FLASHBACK - END


"Do it!" The Witch Queen ordered once again, getting her anger across.

Tears fell down Vanessa's face. "You refer to me as family. You refer to me as your daughter… yet you've done nothing to show that bond. In your eyes, I'm just a puppet. It was the same then, and it's still the same now!"


FLASHBACK - MANY YEARS AGO:

A metal cage was in the middle of the inside of a tall, dark tower. It was left suspended with a lone chain holding it up, connected to the top. Inside the cage was what looked like a bedroom with a young woman sitting at her brown desk, face flat on the wooden piece of furniture.

Suddenly, screaming came from outside. There were shadows being cast inside of the cage from the flock of fleeing witches that flew past the light of the sun.

"I wonder what's going o-?!"

On top of the screaming from the outside, there was screaming inside of the tower and cage which came from Vanessa. The wall to the outside was blown open by a large crash. The pink-haired young woman fell to the ground and was blinded by the overwhelming light of the sun that was allowed inside for the first time.

"Wh-What… is happening?!" She shouted, demanding an answer.

"Ow, that kills… Just what is that old witch having for breakfast to be that strong?" The answer to Vanessa's question arrived in the form of a man. He was holding his arms and neck, massaging them as it looked like he was quite injured. He looked around and spotted the trapped witch.

"A m-m-m-man…", Vanessa stuttered as she crawled backwards and away from him.

The smoke from the debris started to clear and a tall, black-haired man was revealed. He was wearing a long, black cape with a white vest underneath. He also wore dark-brown trousers with a pair of black boots. On the side was a sword that he had tucked into a sheathe.

"Why is it that all of you act like you've never seen a man before. The name's Yami, by the way", he waved, rolling his eyes and sighing since he didn't understand this place.

"You're right. I had never seen one before. I've always been trapped in this cage…", she replied.

"I guess you literally are a bird trapped in a cage then! Well, today's your lucky day since you can escape now, haha!"

Vanessa stood up this time, getting quickly used to the man opposite her. "I can't escape from here! It's my fate to be here until I unlock my potential".

Yami groaned and rolled his eyes. "Oh, good ol' Mr. Fate again, huh? Screw that guy", he sighed. "Fate isn't something that's dumped onto you. Fate is something you make for yourself or, at least, that's what my definition is".

"Something you make for yourself", she repeated to herself.

The man turned around. "Well, I can't make your decision for you. Anyway, I've gotta get going and resume my training somewhere far away from here.. Hopefully I don't run into that old hag again. She was quite the pain!" He said, brushing the dirt and dust away from his muscular arms and chest. That was the last thing he said before jumping away into the distance.

A few seconds passed and Yami's words were repeating themselves in Vanessa's head. She tightened her fists and stared outside the hole of the tower. She saw the inviting landscape and knew just what she had to do.

Before making her move, she looked around the now-damaged room. She saw clothes on hangers and puppets on her bed. "Those two were the only things I was able to make with my Thread Magic. I may have this extraordinary power that the Queen seeks but… I'd rather do my own thing. I want to be… free!"

Vanessa started walking and then her footsteps quickly turned into running. She jumped outside and decided to follow the man she just met who was already at the edge of the forest.

"I'll create my own fate… with the people that I meet… in the outside world!"

FLASHBACK - END


"You aren't my family. I'm not your daughter, and you are not my mother!" Vanessa cried out, earning a pause from the Witch Queen.

"Outside of this godforsaken place, I found true friends and family. They taught me that the ones who care for you want to see you thrive. They want to see you happy and free. I never got that while acting as your puppet for all those years and I sure as hell am not going to act like one right now!"

Memories of meeting her new family played out in her head, filling her with happiness and determination.

"If I truly have the power to change fate then I implore you, my Thread Magic, protect my family!"

At her call, Vanessa's grimoire started to turn its pages to an empty one. The spellbook started to inscribe a new spell with a powerful, pink and purple glow. Red threads burst out and began weaving themselves together in front of the Black Bull.

"What is this?" The Witch Queen asked as she watched on.

The red threads finished weaving and what was left was something odd. A shape materialised in front of the Magic Knight and it was of an animal.

"A… cat?" The two witches spoke in unison, both surprised.

The small, red cat appeared and sat on the Thread mage's head, purring and licking its arms and legs.

"I didn't expect a cat to appear. I wonder what it can do?" Vanessa pondered.

The Witch Queen was of the same mind but she decided to act quickly considering there was an unknown factor at play now. She swiped her arm forwards, controlling Asta, and commanded him. "Kill her, now!"

Asta, who had stopped since the Witch Queen had paused control for the last few seconds, was now back to following orders. He looked at Noelle, still with soulless eyes and an angered expression. He held the Demon-Slayer sword up high and slashed downwards, cutting the royal's head clean off.

"No, stop it!" Vanessa screamed, struggling in her blood chains on the crucifix.

"Now that she's dead, I can see her new spell was nothing but a facade. I thought she finally gained the power to change fate but it was nothing. Hmph". The Witch Queen shook her head in disappointment.

However, as she focused on Asta again, something was wrong. He was still in place as if he had never moved with Noelle on the crucifix like nothing had happened.

"What? I swear he cut that girl down!" The Witch Queen was perplexed, thinking that what she was seeing was wrong.

Then, a meow was heard. Everyone who was conscious looked at the source and the cat was on top of the swordsman's head, yawning.

"The cat?" The Queen said in her head. She then turned her focus to the next mage that she wanted to target. "Asta was resisting earlier in killing the royal so that must be a factor again. How about killing someone else?"

"Stop!" Vanessa screamed yet again.

Asta moved at the head witch's command. He ran over to Finral who was next to her and, right before he cut through his torso, the cat meowed and gently touched Asta's hand that held the sword.

"How's that?" The Witch Queen asked, seeing Asta tear Finral's body into two. She glanced at Vanessa who kept screaming, and then back at Finral again. However, instead of seeing a severed corpse, she saw the Spatial mage fully intact. "Again?!"

The cat jumped in the air and that's when the Queen had a thought in her head. "It seems like the cat only needs contact with the subject to change its fate. By touching Asta, it prevented his friends' deaths. It's likely that those two never even felt the sword since the cat made it so it never happened. It's certainly interesting. If that's the case, then… What about the cat itself?" She commanded Asta to cut the red feline.

He swung the Anti-Magic sword straight through the middle of the animal but it just passed through, leaving the cat unharmed.

"Anti-Magic can't sever it?! No, calm down, the cat must have changed fate for itself so that it wouldn't be cut in half… This is… the ability to control destiny!" The Witch Queen had finally found the power that she had been seeking for centuries.

After that, the cat put its paws on Asta's head, causing him to use the sword's crossguard to dispel Puppet's Blood. He quickly fell to the floor, his transformation coming undone and falling unconscious. The sky reverted back to normal as soon as the ominous control over Asta was gone.

"I- I'm not sure what's going on but… whenever the cat got close, Asta missed his attacks. I wanted the Queen's hold on Asta gone and… then it was. Is this the power she was on about for all those years? Can I truly… manipulate fate?" Vanessa realised.

The Witch Queen also realised that this power is what she needed to protect the forest. The wars that humans waged on her home all went through her mind. She remembered all of the dead witches and dead family members that fell to the works of the humans and she finally had the power to prevent any more tragedies from occurring.

"Yes… Haha, yes!" The Queen shouted and laughed out loud. Her eyes were wide open with the shine of the setting sun reflecting off from them. "Finally… The power to win… The power to control destiny… It's all here!"

She charged forwards towards Vanessa, using Puppet's Blood on her daughter to gain control of her magic. "Finally, my daughter! Now… this is what you call love!"

The Queen of Witches almost gained full control but the red cat had another idea. It jumped forwards and sat on top of the incoming Queen, causing her to fall on the floor and her magic to power down.

Within seconds, all of her Blood Magic faded away from the area. The crucifixes were gone as well as the sea of red blood that was all over the floor. The mages were all free from their shackles with a few of them still remaining unconscious.

Vanessa walked forwards to where the Blood mage was kneeling on all fours. The look of complete shock was etched on her face and her body was trembling from the weight of failure she felt.

"I… I was so close. The power to win my wars was in my hands…", she said slowly.

"This idea of protecting the forest had clouded your judgement for years. Your pride to not use your own strength and instead forcing others to do your bidding was the beginning of your downfall. There have been no wars waged on your home for many years, even before I was born and yet… you were obsessed". Vanessa spoke calmly and without fear for the first time in a long while. The cat sat on top of her head, rustling around to find a comfortable spot to rest.

"I was… obsessed?" She repeated to herself.

"Yes. And you drove that obsession into me, your daughter. Locking me up for all those years, feigning that it was love from family. You don't know the first thing about family, let alone love", Vanessa flicked her long, pink hair.

"How did you… acquire such a power in such a short amount of time?" The Witch Queen asked.

"I didn't acquire it just now. Years of my life went into it but only after I escaped from this place. I formed friendships, I found a family… I forged bonds. Those are what strengthened me and it only happened once I stopped being your caged bird… your personal puppet!"

"I… see", the Witch Queen gulped as she found the little strength to stand up. Vanessa took a step back and her grimoire opened quickly. "Relax… I'm not going to fight anymore".

All of a sudden, from the edge of the blood-dried battlefield, appeared two familiar figures. The leaves of the bushes that scattered around shook and rustled as they jumped into view.

"We're here to help all of you!"

Lucas and Daisy came into the scene, grimoires in tow and with a strong determination as well. However, as soon as they made their declaration, they realised they may have been too late.

"Party's over, you two…", Fanzell called out from the middle. He was sitting on the floor near Mars and Fana. "You're a bit late, aren't you?"

"We were quite far away", Lucas answered, scratching the back of his neck in embarrassment.

"Yeah, we saw the sky change colour. It was kind of scary and all but we were determined to rush back and help but then, after a while, we realised how far away we were and then we got all worried and then…", Daisy trailed off in her explanation.

"Darling!"

Another familiar voice came out from the side and before anyone could react to it, the source of the sound came rushing through, striking both Lucas and Daisy down onto the floor with their sheer amount of haste.

The two Magic Knights were on the floor, dirtied by the dust. They slowly looked up and saw that Domina was in Fanzell's arms, kissing him.

"Do you know how worried I was about you?!" She left the last peck on her cheek before repeatedly hitting him on his chest. "I told you to take care of yourself!"

"Yeah, yeah, Domina… I'll remember", Fanzell said with one eye closed. With the other eye he scanned the area. "I don't see Mariella with you. Is she…?"

"Am I what?"

"Huh?!"

Another hit came from above. Mariella was right by the red-haired fugitive and she gave a hard knock to the centre of his head with a right fist.

"You thought I was dead? Yeah, no".

Whilst their antics were starting, the Witch Queen sighed. She took a look at Vanessa who remained on guard. "It seems like you're all here. I don't like to admit it but you've shown me that my way of gaining perfection was… imperfect", she said as she gritted her teeth.

Her grimoire opened and a red aura swirled across the entire area that all of the mages had gathered in. "Blood Recovery Magic: Curse-Breaking Blood-Filled Cocoon".

A large, red sphere formed and held every mage inside, even herself. There were smaller, dark orbs within which encased each individual person. Veins of thin blood extended out of the Queen's fingers and, within seconds, everyone was healed of their wounds.

The sphere disappeared and everyone looked at their bodies, examining themselves. Even the unconscious quartet of Asta, Mars, Fana, and Ladros were awake with no wounds to show. Mariella thought the same of Mystic but, as she looked to the side, the violet-haired soldier was still in a deep sleep.

"Now that you're all healed, head back to the castle. I assume you all have questions and I believe I have some answers for you", the Witch Queen said.


NOTES:

Just like I said above, there's another chapter uploaded so head right over :)!

Originally, I had a thought to skip this part in this fic since we haven't really focused on the Black Bulls all that much but then I immediately thought no. It's an important part to the story and I couldn't write what I wanted to write about the Witch Queen without Vanessa's part.

Speaking of the Witch Queen, I added some cool scenes for her which I hope you enjoyed. Obviously we never saw her fight Yami but it was mentioned that they had a little scuffle before he met Vanessa for the first time. I also added all of that to give light to her motivations since she's not really a bad person.

Next chapter is quite the information-heavy one. One that a lot of you have been waiting to see!