Here is the sixth chapter of this story released early as a special New Year's bonus chapter because I am ahead in the draft and because I wanted to make sure that my 4 new stories that I published on the same day all have the same number of chapters at this point and 3 of them were a chapter down hence this bonus release. This is the first of the two big time skip chapters now that the settlement in Earth Land has been complete so as to quickly progress the story with this chapter explaining what has been going on up to this point and as y'all will see the plans for the future with the next chapter, well, I won't say anything about that as it's coming soon enough. That is all the administrative stuff I have for you and while there are no questions that need or can have an answer here there is a guest review to respond to which will also respond to its question which I will do now. Do keep the reviews coming as I enjoy hearing from those who enjoy my work.
To Flame Fox (guest), thank you for your question and review and to answer it no I will not be covering the events of Sword of the Wizard King in this story. The main reason is as you pointed out the events of the upcoming Black Clover film take place during the 6 month time skip which is also the time period in the Clover Kingdom in which Black Bull Banishment is set so naturally the events of that film can't coincide with this story. It's not out yet and even when it comes out I'll be waiting for the dub so it's going to be a while anyway. I may include the film in my 'Akame ga Clover' story as that is set in the Black Clover world but I can't here. Who knows, if it works I may do a fun non canon retelling of it with the Fairy Tail core added to it as part of the Black Bull Banishment universe after it comes out just like I'm considering with Phoenix Priestess and Dragon Cry but that is a long ways off at the moment. Do keep reading and enjoying my work.
That is it for pre-chapter note so it is time to end it so that y'all can sit back and enjoy the sixth chapter in Black Bull Banishment.
Disclaimer: I own nothing related to these two great animes.
Chapter 6: Post Games Update
"Oh man those games were awesome!" Asta said his eyes stars still remembering what they'd just watched as the sheep cooks served him, Mimosa, Noelle, and Nero dinner. "I can't wait to compete in them next year, we are totally going to win them."
Currently Asta and the girls who made up the unofficial, and much to Noelle's chagrin but also happiness, Team Asta, were in the Grey Deer Tavern in Crocus, the capital of the Fiore Kingdom as they recounted the events of the day before. Well, the whole week before as they'd been here since before the event had started.
That event was the Grand Magic Games, the annual tradition that had started sometime after the disappearance of the top ranked members of Fairy Tail to determine Fiore's strongest Guild, had just concluded the day before and they'd gathered back in the tavern to discuss it. This had been their first Grand Magic Games after all, they'd arrived after the last one had ended the year before, and while the Black Bulls hadn't entered on Yami's orders.
However, all of them but Henry had been in Crocus to watch it. They did make sure to get what was needed so that Henry could watch it from the base and Gordon ended up staying behind to keep him company in the end while Grey returned during the games having gotten too embarrassed around everyone to stay in the crowd even when she was transformed. The rest stayed though and paid close attention to the games on Yami's orders while several of them wished that they could take part in them.
They hadn't entered them though and the reason why they hadn't entered the games this year was simply because they were still getting established as a Guild in Fiore. True they could have used the 30 million jewel prize money, it would have furthered their already growing treasury that they'd been building up over the year, but Yami had deemed it better to watch so that the next year when they entered they could easily win it and then some by betting on themselves. Well, the last part Yami would do through some third party contacts he had but that was to be expected from their gambling Captain.
As such they'd just come here to watch the games and understand them while checking out how the major Guilds of Fiore fought in such events and battles. This was crucial intel for the next year as this was their first real exposure to the strength of the top Guilds that Fiore had to offer, as well as showing them just how far Fairy Tail had fallen since losing their top members.
Naturally they'd run into some of the other top Guilds from time to time on jobs to various results ranging from Noelle constantly attacking Ichiya and the Trimens of Blue Pegasus for hitting on her though both Mimosa and Nero have also had enough of them as well, to dealing with Mermaid Heel being this world's version of the Blue Rose Knights minus the extreme misandry, the rowdy broness of Quatro Cerberus, and the calm composure of Lamia Scale. However, until the games they didn't get a real chance to watch them in action hence why they were paying close attention to then in the games.
That was because for the most part they'd spent the year training, doing jobs, and building their reputation in Fiore in more than just the Guild sense. They had to hit the ground running to make the money and all of them had done several jobs in the first few weeks to make the initial money that they needed while also learning all that they could about Fiore and Earth Land in general. They certainly learned a lot, especially about how the magic worked here, and were much better versed in the nature of this world as they got used to it and made their Guild's name in it.
They were still doing that but thanks to the upswing that they'd had in Clover they kept that momentum going here and that showed in how they were able to pull off many jobs with only the occasional bout of mass destruction that would have gotten them negative stars back in the day. Even that though wasn't too bad as apparently Fairy Tail, in addition to their reputation as the strongest before the incident now 6 years ago, was destructive on a level that the Black Bulls could have only dreamed of in their heyday before Asta turned them around.
As such the damage they did do, while costing them a good chunk of change when it happened, wasn't a concern for most and they had ways of making up for it especially when it was one of the women who caused the damage much to Noelle and Mimosa's embarrassment over that particular photoshoot. That had surprised them but none of them really complained about it as they kept going about their jobs of making money, training to get stronger, and establishing the Black Bull Guild's name and reputation so that they could get more jobs that paid more money or find other financial avenues.
It had been a bit of a grueling task for them at the start but finally after almost a year things were starting to really pay off for them in all aspects of that. So much so that it was actually a little surprising but did go to show how well they could do in a new place with new concepts and where they knew no one.
Firstly, the money, they were actually doing really well on that front, and it wasn't just the jobs they were doing that was raking it in. Thanks to a suggestion from a man called Lahar who Yami had met when he'd arrived at the Magic Council they had more than one source of funds coming into the Squad.
Yami himself was doing really well as he took several high paying S-Class mission early on, often bringing Finral for transport reasons, to rack up several million jewel as a base of funds for them. While Yami certainly gambled plenty of it away, he had still invested some of it in buying this tavern in Crocus, naming it after his first Squad that Julius had recruited him to and been part of when Julius was in Fiore as a way to honor Julius's idea of sending them here, and the tavern had already more than paid for itself.
That was because between the top-level food that Charmy, the designated head cook for the place, made, the good booze that was well stocked and reputation for allowing grayer things like gambling had made it a place to go while in Crocus. When Yami bought it, it had been more because it gave them a presence in Crocus and to possibly gain some intel that went through taverns to supplement what Nero brought in, which it did, but the boon it had provided was a nice bonus as well and it allowed for them to have more requests in a back room that catered to the area specifically.
Of all of them, Vanessa was the best poster girl for it though, literally she was the poster girl as shortly after Yami had bought and established the tavern she'd been scouted by the main magic magazine in Fiore, Sorcerer Weekly, to model for them. Between her beauty, large natural bust, and lack of shame coupled with the witch style she had had made Vanessa an instant hit to the point that she some thought she might challenge the current top model, Jenny Realight of Blue Pegasus, for that spot. She wasn't near the level of the great, and missing, Mirajane Strauss but no one was apparently.
Regardless, Vanessa had taken to being a model the way she took to a bottle of wine, that is to say extremely exuberantly and with gusto. As such she had opened a whole new avenue of finance for them with her modeling, which sometimes included the other Black Bull women for special spreads though none were as into it as Vanessa, as well helping get their name even further out there.
As a result of all of this Vanessa was placed permanently at the Grey Deer tavern to focus on her endeavors as a model, which helped her get in better booze for them, and do local jobs when she had the chance. That also meant that she was often drinking at the tavern which ensured that many men came to drink with her, especially some dude from Quatro Cerberus called Bacchus who always popped around when he was in town to drink Vanessa under the table, claim her bra of the day, and blow all his earnings on their booze. All in all, she'd found her element and was raking it in for herself and the Squad in general.
The only odd thing that had been strange in the whole tavern thing was that when Yami decided to buy a tavern in Crocus, the Magic Council had said that he could only buy from a set list of building. That had been confusing, and he still didn't know why the was the case, but this one was right where Yami wanted it so it all worked out and now they had two additional sources of income for the Black Bulls that was doing great.
In fact, things were going so well thanks to the tavern and the mail order broom business that they'd set up thanks to Lahar's suggestion that they sell brooms that Yami was looking into buying stores to sell them and other items that Nero made and merch of the squad. Well, Henry was looking into it not Yami.
This was because Henry couldn't help out with missions, he was now the manager of the Squad and had set up a full office for himself in the hideout where he ran their Squad funds, managed the tavern, sorted out their inventory and mail order business, worked as the agent for modeling gigs for Vanessa and the others when needed, and generally helped grow the wealth of the Squad. Gordon stayed back more often not to help him and continue doing research as he was the main researcher of the squad and did the magic things that Henry couldn't, so they worked hard together to keep growing the Black Bull brand.
In this vein they'd finally decided to set up the Black Bull Emporium to sell the items that Nero made. That part had been booming and was in high demand, so they decided to set up some stores, right now Henry was looking at property in Crocus and Magnolia but had plans for other towns like Hargeon and Era, to expand into them. They'd have to hire local help, they didn't have the numbers to run them themselves and didn't recruit new members for obvious reasons, but it would pay off in the end. That said this was something that wouldn't occur for a month at least due to the Grand Magic Games.
On the money front in general, however, all of them were doing really well there. While those like Noelle and Mimosa didn't need or really understand the importance of money, well Noelle didn't, the others did and the fact that in this world you got paid for jobs and not just a standard monthly salary from the kingdom was a big deal.
It had been what had motivated Yami to make so much money from the start that had put them in such a good place and their efficiency in jobs and other endeavors had built up their reputation so that while they weren't a top Guild they were a respectable one that got plenty of jobs. Well, that and the promotions of them thanks to Vanessa and the other girls modeling, the men did so as well but they weren't as good at it, helped get them the attention they needed for better paying jobs.
Of all of them, Asta was the one who took the most and as such had Noelle and Mimosa with him on almost all of them as the girls insisted on joining him to, in Noelle's case, make sure he didn't mess up and in Mimosa's to fight by his side and heal him when he inevitably got injured. Nero joined them as much as she could, she was fiercely loyal to Asta and looked after him though she had no romantic interest in him like the other two did, not that that meant anything to those two as their jealousy was easy to trigger, but she wasn't with him as much as she would have liked.
The reason for that was a simple one, she was their spy for on the ground information and as such she often went on jobs on her own that would allow her to gather intel on the world they now lived in be it on other Legal Guilds, Dark Guilds for jobs against them, or otherwise, Nero would do it. Her intel, along with research continued by Gordon and sometimes Gauche, helped further broaden their understanding of this world and make plenty of jobs, especially some of the S-Class ones Yami went on, easier for which she got a cut of the reward. Well, all that and she was the one making the items as well which took up additional time.
It also helped her training though, so Nero didn't mind, and they were all training hard to get better. The jobs often helped in that regard as they all got to encounter and face things they wouldn't back home which pushed them to surpass their limits and all of them were constantly getting stronger. Yami had even begun to work on Mana Zone more thanks to several missions that forced him to use it to survive though he could tell that it would be more effective when they got back home, and he could use the mana of their own world with it.
Naturally, Asta was improving the most and not just because his body was getting even stronger and bulkier, which was definitely happening and soon he'd have to change his outfit as his clothes were on the brink of being too snug on him, but also with his Anti-Magic. Asta's never give up mentality coupled with several jobs that forced him to surpass his limits to complete had made him grow exponentially and his control over his anti-magic and what he could do with his swords was now much stronger though of course only the Squad knew the full extent of his improvement.
The one slight drawback from this was that when Asta used his dark form for too long, which he avoided doing outside of training or on tough missions as they were still unsure how it would be accepted here though Gordon assured them it would be given what he'd read about certain spells involving demonic things, was that it had the unintended consequence of removing his Guild Mark. Magic was magic and his Anti-Magic nullified it so that included the Guild Mark which Yami would frustratingly reapply though even he didn't mind as it showed that Asta was surpassing his limits whenever it got removed.
Of course, Asta's constant improvement motivated all of them to do so as well. Noelle was on the brink of something new she knew it, well not new but an adaptation of something she already had that would allow her to use it more efficiently in other terrains where its current form wasn't ideal, Mimosa was getting stronger in both offensive magic and healing, Luck and Magna were constantly pushing each other to get stronger, and so was everyone else in their own ways.
While they all still had their weaknesses, the Black Bulls were not what they were before Asta joined and it was showing as they established themselves more and more in Fiore. Be it in training, reputation, or actually making money via other means, the Black Bulls were on the up and up in ways they'd never been, or could possibly manage, back in the Clover Kingdom.
Logically, then, the next step was to enter and win the Grand Magic Games and thus claim the title of Fiore's strongest Guild. Nothing short would satisfy them and as such all but Henry and Gordon, who was now apparently closing in on a solution to Henry's curse, had come here to watch the games. Yami had even closed the tavern for it despite the profitability the games would bring it so that they could use it as their base away from their normal one, which was now in a forest clearing just like it had been back in Clover, to while watching the games.
The games had ended with an epic battle royal in the city that the King had personally paid to repair afterwards before throwing a party for the winning Guild and the other competitors in the castle this evening. Nero had spied on that, but it wasn't really more than a party and had come back afterwards with an update while other members of the Squad had headed out to do their own things now that the games were over. That just left Team Asta to discuss them Vanessa lay drunk in her underwear on the bar and Charmy made food for them and herself.
"It was certainly entertaining." Mimosa said with a smile at Asta's enthusiasm for the games as he also tucked into his food with his usual gusto that Mimosa found endearing in a way while Noelle found it disgusting but as it was Asta she tolerated it. "Definitely something that we don't have back home. The closest was the Royal Knights selection exam but that wasn't like this. Perhaps we could suggest to Lord Julius something like this when we get back, I know he'd love it given how he loves watching interesting magic."
"Well, there are more Guilds here than Squads back home so there needs to be a larger way of ranking them then the stars we use." Noelle said dismissively as she daintily ate the food that Charmy had made for them which was as good as ever even if it was heavy on the meats. "But we are better, and we will show it next year, we just had to wait and see the nature of this contest so that we can enter when we are ready. Better to be prepared so that we can win it in one fell swoop than to enter unprepared and humiliate ourselves which as royalty I will not stand for."
"Still wish we could have entered the Grand Magic Games this year." Asta said showing that he didn't care what happened he just wanted to participate. "We've been here almost a year now, so we have to be ready, right?"
The girls looked at him with a mix of agreement and reservation as they weren't fully sure they were ready for this tournament especially after what they'd watched from the top Guild in Fiore, Sabertooth, dominate the games to win their 4th straight title and continue the streak of them being the only Guild to win it. They'd comfortably handled the other major Guilds that the Black Bulls had gotten to know the reputations of over the year and really shown why they had that rank. In fact, they were so dominant that only really the second place Lamia Scale had made any other impact on the Black Bulls watching.
"It could be hard." Mimosa said thinking on what they'd seen. "That team that Sabertooth has is all S-Class wizard, the 5 who turned them around with their power, so besting them won't be easy."
"Class and magic strength means nothing though, I've proven that." Asta said. "Besides, the Captain said that if I can complete that S-Class mission that he has for me I'll move up to it, so we'll have one at least."
What Asta was referring to was a special solo mission that Yami hadn't been able to complete so had allowed any of the Squad to take it if they wanted and as it was S-Class they would be promoted to that class if they completed it. Asta wanted to do it and would be going off on it in a few days but the biggest problem with it, for the girls at least, was that it was a solo mission. They all wanted to be there for him be it because Noelle just wanted to be by his side for no other reason than that she was his normal partner, or so she told herself, to heal and fight by his side for Mimosa, and to look over him for Nero.
"We should be with you for it." Noelle said with a sigh. "You'll just mess it up otherwise."
"No, I won't I'll do it and become S-Class and besides I've been good this year." Asta said with a grin and thankfully not bringing up a failed mission that Noelle and Mimosa had gone on without him that had apparently reached Fairy Tail levels of destruction and led to the girls having to do a special photoshoot for Sorcerer Weekly to cover the damages they'd caused. "And then when we enter next year we'll have at least one S-Class Mage of our own as Captain Yami can't enter. Plus, we saw them, we can take those 5."
"I don't know, they are pretty strong." Mimosa said nervously before looking to Nero who would know the most of them about the 5 mages in question. "Nero, you know them best from observing them during the games, what can you tell us about Sabertooth."
"Well first off their Guild Master is a right bastard." Nero said angrily. "Complete ass obsessed with power and expels those who fail him and his Guild. He rules them with an iron fist and through fear and that is why they are so strong but anyone who rules by fear also makes that strength brittle. Still, it doesn't negate that those 5 are strong and use magic that for the most part we don't know, especially the ones they call the Twin Dragons of Sabertooth, Sting and Rogue."
"Yeah I don't get those guys at all." Asta said. "What the hell is Dragon Slayer Magic? It sounds so cool, but I don't get it."
"Idiot, it's in the name, and we've discussed it before you just keep forgetting it." Noelle said. "It's magic that can slay dragons. Remember we read about it a few months back when Nero first reported on those two, it's a lost magic because the dragons vanished some 400 or so years ago here but there are still some who can use that magic be it via teachings from dragons like the two in Sabertooth or by some special magical item being implanted in them, which they might have as well apparently."
"Wait if dragons vanished all that long ago then how were they taught by dragons?" Asta asked his brain hurting as he tried to think on it. "Are they like from the past and were sent to the future by magic or something because they were needed in this era for something, that would be so cool."
"Don't get dumber Dorksta, of course that hasn't happened, something like that would be impossible." Noelle said dismissively. "Obviously there were some dragons that didn't vanish and trained those two hence why they are here."
"It's not just them." Mimosa added. "Remember we heard that three of the missing Fairy Tail wizards are also Dragon Slayers who were trained by dragons. They were part of why the Guild was so strong and they even had what they call a second-generation slayer, those are the ones who got their powers artificially via what they call Lacrima Crystals here."
"Wasn't that the one that got expelled though?" Noelle asked. "Nero? You'd know as you've spied on Fairy Tail a fair bit."
"Laxus Dreyar, the grandson of their master." Nero said with a nod, she'd spied more on Fairy Tail than the others just because that was the Guild that the Wizard King had been a part of, so it made sense to keep a close eye on them. "I heard the tale of the Battle of Fairy Tail while spying on them about 2 months ago. Laxus was an S-Class wizard for them who used Lightning Dragon Slayer magic that had been implanted in him by his father who I hear is not a good man at all. Laxus apparently deemed the Guild weak and decided to launch a coup on his own Guild to take it over and lost so he was expelled. He hasn't been seen for 6 years so many feel he was on that island as well though why he was there I don't know."
"Sounds a bit like Luck only more of a jerk." Asta said. "Still would be good to fight these people, they use magic so I can negate it. I should be fine against anyone be they a Dragon Slayer, one of Sabertooth's strongest, or both. I'll take 'em all on and win because my magic is never giving up."
"I do think that four of them would struggle against Asta." Nero said as the other girls both agreed with Asta though their biases were well known at this point. "Only the woman, Minerva, wouldn't. She's the strongest and uses some form of spatial magic called territory that is very different to what we know spatial magic to be. Add in that she's a right sadist and she's the worst of them."
"She does have some interesting magic, from what I saw it gave her basically complete control over a certain area or so it appeared to me." Mimosa said. "Other than Asta's anti-magic I can't really think of how to fight her."
"Captain Yami can but he'd be unable to participate as he's out Guild Master." Noelle said. "And I think Finral could cancel it with his own spatial magic and in my Valkyrie Armor I might have a chance so long as I get a feel for the magic in the area but yes next year Asta would be the best one to face her."
"What about the other two?" Asta asked. "They're strong as well. There's that black lightning dude and whatever the fancy guy can do. I still think I can take them but at least one of them I don't get what the fancy guy does."
"Even I don't understand what Rufus can do." Nero said as Asta blinked at that. "The fancy guy that you don't understand."
"Yes he seemed a little different." Mimosa said thinking on what they'd seen. "And even my brother doesn't dress as fancily as that though at least Rufus isn't vain like Kirsch is."
"The hat is certainly a bit much." Noelle said. "But he seems to always know where people are and can attack with a wide range of magics so he's clearly really strong."
"I think it is at its core one kind of magic." Nero said. "From what I heard it's called Memory-Make magic so falls under that maker magic category they have here but beyond that it is classified as ancient magic from what I've heard so in the same category as lost magic from what I understand."
"The maker magic stuff I get." Noelle said. "It's basically the same as creation magic for us only they have more range as they aren't limited to what spells can do."
"Maker magic here is very versatile but in my observations of the talented maker magic users, mainly that Lyon guy in Lamia Scale who uses Ice-Make magic, they aren't as strong as say your creation magic." Nero said. "Our grimoires allow for our potential to be maximized so our spells are naturally really strong with factors such as the nature of our own magic as the limiting factor. Here they have a wide range of spells and techniques but are limited to their own natural power and imagination for a maker mage. It is fascinating really as they show that ingenuity really is a big factor in the strength of a mage here."
Nero had been talking more than usual over the last few months mainly because she was their intel head so she kinda had to with her reports. However, beyond that she was also the expert in the squad when it came to understand the nature of magic.
This stemmed from her work on magical tools that she made and what she'd learned from her Prince, stuff she'd furthered her knowledge of through the magical items here that helped her make the items they used in Clover which they would soon be selling more of from stores rather than the current mail order business they were running. All this combined to make her their primary source for understanding the magic here when comparing it to their own though Gordon's research also helped a lot.
"It is certainly been interesting to see the differences in magic between ours and theirs." Mimosa said. "Though at least items are used here so the few times we've had to explain our grimoires away have been easy."
"The games have helped us really understand the combat side more as those few Dark Guilds we dealt with were nothing to us." Noelle said. "We should be fine though. That lightning guy was nothing compared to Luck even if we had to restrain Luck from going to their base here and fighting the guy for fun."
"Orga's raw power was stronger than Luck's." Nero said. "And I think there is more to his magic than meets the eye, that black lightning is very distinctive, and we've not seen anything like it as most Lightning Mages I've seen back home have either blue or yellow lightning. Based on some of my readings it could be God Slayer magic, another lost magic here but he's not confirmed it as he's not needed to use the full extent of his powers. Regardless, Luck is faster and better at equip based spells which will help him if they face in battle next year."
"So overall what you're saying is that we can beat Sabertooth." Asta said. "I'm sure of it."
"We can give them a good run for it with the right team." Nero corrected. "Asta will definitely be part of the team, his Anti-Magic is just too useful to ignore, and I take it Noelle will be on it as well."
"Someone has to look after Asta." Noelle said imperiously before blushing at what she'd said. "Not in any other way that to make sure he's not an idiot who gets himself killed so don't read into that."
"I can't help but read into it." Mimosa said with a slight squeal as her jealousy was triggered by Noelle but that was at this point a basic daily occurrence between the cousins as Nero just rolled her eyes at the exchange.
Seriously, Nero was friendly with the other girls though more because she had to be due to their closeness to Asta but they both really just needed to be open with each other at least so that they could be proper rivals for the world's densest man. Nero had known since that little heart to heart Noelle had had with her as a bird before her seal was broken that Noelle had fallen hard for Asta way back in their early days as Black Bulls while she'd deduced that about Mimosa during the elf incident.
Only Mimosa seemed to be able to admit it to herself, Noelle's denial was legendary at this point, but neither seemed to be truly aware of the other's feelings for Asta. It was both amusing and frustrating and Nero couldn't wait until they both accepted that they were in love with the same man and opened up to each other about it so that she could properly mess with them.
"Anyway, we need to put forth out best team." Noelle said a little too quickly to be an unforced refocus of the conversation. "Mimosa, Luck, and Zora all made the Royal Knights so they'd all be worthy of the team."
"Strategy will be key though." Nero said. "We can't just rely on that kind of power. Mimosa is talented but she's also our only long-term healer at the moment, especially for serious injuries my Sealing Magic is only temporary with the exception of severed limbs which I can reattach, so it would be better to have her as a reserve to care for our injured because you saw how that happened often in the games."
"True I would be better in support for this." Mimosa admitted though she really wanted to fight alongside Asta this was also just a game so she could be the healer in the wings for it when it came down to choosing the team for it. "And as good as Zora is, his trap spells are distinctive and after the stuff he's been up to it may be best to avoid it as he, and by extension us as his Guild, could get into a lot of trouble if it's revealed that he's been behind the punishments to Twilight Ogre. That will definitely come back to us."
The others nodded at this. After Nero's report about Twilight Ogre and how they were a Legal Guild but very gray in the sense that they cared only for money though never dipped into the area of a Dark Guild while also extorting what was left of Fairy Tail for rent, Zora had been pissed at them for their actions.
Given his history, which none actually knew of, it was only natural for Zora to be pissed and his old habits of bringing justice to Magic Knights who abused their power came back with a vengeance. As such while Yami didn't endorse a war with them as they were a Legal Guild as well he had no objection to Zora being a nuisance to them so long as it didn't come back to bite the Black Bulls in the ass or get in the way of Zora's job requirements.
As such the delinquent looking member of the squad had made it his mission to be a constant thorn in Twilight Ogre's side whenever they did something objectionable, mainly extorting and bullying what was left of Fairy Tail. It wasn't out of love for that Guild, Zora didn't particularly think much about them though the others wanted to look out for them without being dishonorable as it was clear that they were on hard times, but to punish Twilight Ogre for their actions. As such they did what they could for Fairy Tail without coming off as pandering to them though it was good to see that other Guilds did look out for them as well.
When it came to punishing Twilight Ogre, however, it was basically just a mix of trap spells and rainbow stink bugs that Zora had brought with him to frustrate them as Zora chuckled in the shadows. So far they hadn't been able to catch who was doing this to them, which only made it more fun for Zora to mess with them.
There wasn't more that he could do than what he was doing but he would do that much, and it did cost Twilight Ogre money to try and counter him while also making them paranoid and terrified of bugs in the process. They never took it out on Fairy Tail because they didn't think that they would be so bold, but they still couldn't find out who was causing them irritations. As such it was probably best not to have Zora in the games as his spells were distinctive enough that they might accuse him and the Black Bulls thus leading to an investigation that they didn't want.
"Ok that rules out Zora, but we are all strong." Asta said. "So, we can win this for sure."
"The Captain expects it when we enter next year so we can't let him down." Nero said as she rose having finished her meal. "Which means we have to surpass our limits and win it. Now if you excuse me I have to go as I have a few more items to make before the day is up to bolster out inventory for the upcoming launch of our first store."
At that Nero turned into a bird and flew off to find Finral wherever he was trying to hit on women in Crocus so that he could send her back to the hideout leaving Asta and the royals, well and a snoring Vanessa, to their own devices in the bar. There wasn't more to really discuss, Sabertooth was the big threat that they had to focus on, but the other Guilds were going to be of some concern, so they discussed them as well before retiring for the night as they had jobs in the coming days to do.
It had been a year since they got to Fiore and they were steadily becoming known as a rising Legal Guild in the kingdom, getting stronger as mages, and making money. They still had a way to go before really marking themselves on the kingdom but that would come in a year's time when they entered the Grand Magic Games for the first time, and they were determined to win it. That would be their unveiling as a top Guild in this calm, peaceful world. It wasn't like the next year's games would be any more exciting than this one, would it?
Ah a nice bit of foreshadowing to end the chapter on because why not. As y'all can see this is the first of the two big time skip chapters in this arc that goes over what has been going on in the last year or so while also setting up the coming year and explaining the current growth of the Black Bulls as they get established in Earth Land. This will continue to be seen more of in the next chapter that will address the next time skip along with something else and going forward when the next Grand Magic Games rolls around, and we learn how they've come to be seen in Fiore. That is all I really have for y'all with this chapter however so I will leave it off here. If you liked this please favorite, follow, leave a review, or let me know in a PM and I will try to answer any questions posed in reviews and PMs as best I can. Until next time.
Stringdog