I do not own Black Clover or any of its characters.
Rapid Turnaround
Dane knelt, placing his hands above and below the amputation. It was a surprisingly clean separation, so reattaching it would be easy but incredibly painful.
"Bite down," Dane instructed.
Kiato did as instructed, biting down on a leather strap he'd made for him, and Dane activated his magic, Kiato instantly shrieking in agony and thrashing against the steel restraints Dane had formed. Kahono's eyes went wide with fright, but as she watched, his amputated leg unsealed its end and liquid flesh stretched between it and his missing leg, connecting them to each other before pulling it back into its proper position again. Then, it was over and Kiato fell limp in the bed, Dane removing the restraints.
"Can you feel this?" Dane asked, pressing a thin, rounded rod to the sole of his foot. Kiato stared at it in shock, nodding slowly.
"It's...amazing!" Kiato breathed, then stared at the scar where he'd reattached his limb, then at the matching ones on Dane's own arms. "Your arms..."
"They're fine, now," Dane said, then turned to Kahono. "Are you ready? Yours will take longer, because I have to be more careful not to kill you."
Kahono nodded, and Dane restrained her with his magic, taking special care to keep her head still. Then, he gently set his hand over the front of her throat. There was no scream this time, as she bit down on the leather strap he'd given her, but her entire body thrashed just as violently as her brother. Then, as he finished restoring her throat, the scream came, piercing and terrible. But then he was done, and the scream fell away, Kahono panting for breath.
"Wait for twenty four hours before speaking," Dane said. "That should preserve your singing voice."
Kahono nodded, still crying from the pain but nodding. Noelle hugged Kahono happily, and Dane walked out of the room, returning to the room the rest of the Black Bulls, minus Asta, were using as a medical bay, as Dane was supposed to be. Outside the room's window, the entirety of the city was cheering, and as Dane walked over to the window, the cheers renewed and grew louder.
"You're their favorite," Charmy said, hugging him from behind in her adult form. "They saw how hard you worked to fight Vetto, and they saw that you sacrificed your arms for it, and now you're their favorite, even more than Asta."
Dane stared down at them, and Vanessa used her threads to lift his hand in a wave and the cheers went deafening. He smiled slightly, eyes watering, and Vanessa released his arm, allowing him to turn away from the window. He returned to his bed, and Charmy sat beside him, hugging him.
"I've...I've never..." Dane choked up, but Charmy nodded, hugging him.
"You earned it," Vanessa said, sitting on his other side and also wrapping her arms around him. "You're a hero."
He smiled, letting the tears fall, and Charmy and Vanessa both wiped his eyes for him, then took turns kissing him, the others all staying respectfully at the window.
"How long should we give them?" Finral whispered to Magna.
"I'd give it a minute or so," Magna whispered back.
After about a minute, they looked back carefully, seeing that the three were behaving themselves, simply lying on Dane's bed together, Dane holding both girls against himself. The others all also returned to their own beds just as Charmy's sheep entered with platters and plates of food, passing meals out quickly. Except, as everyone else began to eat, Dane, Vanessa, and Charmy all stayed in the bed.
"Go eat, Charmy," Dane said. "I know you're hungry."
Charmy shook her head. "I'm alright. There's always time for that later."
Dane smiled, kissing her. "Thank you."
"For what?" Charmy asked.
"For being yourself," Dane smiled. "And you, too, Vanessa."
"Of course," Vanessa smiled, also kissing him.
Finally, Dane sat up. "Alright. Let's eat. And Vanessa, I think it's safe to finally break out the booze."
Vanessa groaned. "Finally!"
Charmy giggled, kissing Dane one last time before returning to her toddler form and digging in, Dane beginning to eat as well, then smiling and accepting a bottle of wine from Vanessa when she returned. After a couple of days of recovering, they were finally ready to leave by way of Finral's magic, so they gathered in front of the temple, the whole city and all of the Temple Mages coming to see them off.
"How're our prisoners doing?" Dane asked.
"They're screaming a lot, but they're not going anywhere, so I'm not worried about it," Charmy said, holding four small balls of cotton, each of which had one of the four Eye of the Midnight Sun underlings miniscule head sticking out of it.
"Man, that is one seriously strong binding spell you got there," Magna complimented.
"I guess I never really thought about it," Charmy shrugged.
"Okay, let's go," Yami sighed.
"Yes sir!" Finral grinned, forming them a portal.
"Good, I can finally see Marie," Gauche said, walking through the portal.
"Um, thank you for everything!" Grey called back at the underwater citizens before following Gauche.
"See ya," Vanessa waved.
"Bye-bye!" Luck called, waving over his head like a child.
"Later guys," Magna called.
"Yeah!" Charmy agreed. "Thanks for the food!"
As Yami headed for the portal, the citizens began to call their goodbyes at his back. Dane followed after him, but before he could get through, Kahono began to sing. He stopped, feeling his eyes sting, then continued through the portal. Charmy and Vanessa were waiting for him and took his hands. They all headed to the dining room where Charmy got several sheep started cooking, using them to keep herself as an adult, and Dane kissed her.
"Vanessa and I are going to grab wine," Dane said. "I promise that's all, this time, so we'll be right back."
Charmy nodded, kissing him, and as he and Vanessa walked away, she returned to her toddler form. Once they were in the basement, Vanessa wrapped her arms around Dane from behind.
"So, why are you so jealous of me going on a date with Finral?" Vanessa asked, grinning.
"Because you were the first person here to genuinely accept me, and I don't want to share you with anyone," Dane said. "Except Charmy, but she's a special exception."
"Because you've been having sex with her, too, right?" Vanessa teased, kissing his neck.
"Something like that," Dane said, turning his head and kissing her before pulling away and beginning to grab wine bottles. "Now do me a favor and stop making me think by asking hard questions."
Vanessa watched him for a moment before voicing her suspicion. "I think that Raya might be in love with you."
Dane stopped, hand resting on a fourth bottle of wine. "I know."
"You know?" Vanessa asked. "So why haven't I been getting to make out with your sexy spirit while you stick your dick in her?"
Dane picked up the wine bottle. "Are you going to help me with this, or not?"
Vanessa sighed, joining him at the wine rack and beginning to pick up bottles. Once they had about a dozen between them, they headed back upstairs to where Charmy was enjoying her feast. As Dane and Vanessa joined her and started helping themselves to food, she aged back into an adult again.
"Did I miss anything important?" Charmy asked. "It took you guys a minute."
"Vanessa just decided to ask me a million questions about random shit," Dane said dismissively, enjoying his feast and his wine.
Charmy nodded, hugging him before returning to her toddler form and continuing to gorge herself. However, after a few minutes, Yami walked in, reporting that he needed to head to Headquarters to report on the mission, and that he wanted Charmy to bring the prisoners and Dane to accompany him, as Dane was the first to find Vetto and might have important information. Then Asta demanded permission to go, and Yami accepted, since Asta had been present when Julius gave Yami the mission. As they walked out of the room, however, Dane stopped as he was passing Gordon and stopped, holding out a chunk of stone with numerous different shell fossils he'd found inside of the temple. Gordon blinked in surprise, then looked up at him through wide eyes. When they'd gotten home, Gordon had been crying and had drawn all of their faces on rocks, and amid his mumbling, Dane thought he had caught the words "real friends" and felt bad even before that for leaving Gordon behind, though it ended up being for the best.
"It's the best souvenir I could find," Dane said. "We ended up trashing a lot of the temple, and I know this doesn't make up for us not bringing you, but I figured it would at least help."
Gordon began to cry instantly and hugged Dane around the middle. Dane sighed, patting him on top of the head for a moment before Gordon released him and Dane caught up to the others.
"That was really nice," Finral said.
"Well, he's the one we ignore the most, so I figured it must get lonely," Dane shrugged. "Besides, after fighting Licht and Vetto back to back, my impulses are completely silent now."
Finral nodded and opened a portal for them all, all five of them walking through together. THen, once they reached the capital, Finral was dismissed, and only complained for a moment before leaving to find women to flirt with. The others all headed to Julius to make their report and turn over their captives and Vetto's body.
"Your binding magic is impressive," Julius complimented Charmy, who was munching on a loaf of bread. "That fluff is surprisingly strong."
"And who are you, again?" Charmy asked, then cheered as Julius lifted her.
"Wow, Yami, I didn't know you had a child," Julius said, then looked to Yami. "Look how big she is, though, when did this happen?"
"Whoa," Yami said. "Not mine."
"Hey, mister, do you have any yummy treats for me?" Charmy asked.
"Look, just drop it," Yami said.
And drop it Julius did. Literally. Dane caught Charmy before she could hit the floor, then set her on her feet, passing her a cupcake, which she began to eat happily.
"Here you go," Yami said, holding out the Magic Stone. "One Magic Stone as ordered."
"Thank you for this," Julius nodded. "I know it wasn't easy to procure. You've probably heard, but there were many casualties among the Magic Knights who fought in Raquey. Now they can rest in peace. You did receive your share of injuries, but the Black Bulls completed this critical mission without losing a single member. That's nothing short of marvelous. You've done well. I'm so proud of the amazing Magic Knight Captain you've become. Truly."
"I'm twenty-eight, not twelve, so cut it out, would ya?" Yami sighed. "You're embarrassing me."
"Yes, of course," Julius chuckled. "Sorry about that."
"Tell me if you remember this little quote," Yami said. "'If you wanna say you're right, get results from doing things your way.' Well Julius? Those were your words. Just like I told ya before we left, I accepted that mission to prove that you weren't wrong. That you hadn't made any mistakes. The way they fought against that monster back in the Underwater Temple..." he tapped Asta on the shoulder, making him scream in pain, "my squad members proved that I wasn't wrong, either."
"Yes," Julius nodded, resting a hand on Asta's shoulder. "And Asta, you've had another impressive showing, young man. You're doing well. Very well, in fact. I expect we'll see a lot more from you."
"Thank you, sir!" Asta said, then blushed and grew hesitant. "Um, there's something I was wondering. I know you're super busy and I don't wanna bother you, but I was hoping that, maybe..."
"Of course, what is it?" Julius asked.
"Well, if it isn't too much trouble," Asta conceded, then began to shout. "Sir, could I have your autograph please!?"
Julius fell over from surprise, and Yami grabbed a quill.
"Tell you what, you can have mine on your face," Yami growled.
"No, thank you!" Asta shrieked.
"Be nervous around me for once!" Yami snarled.
"I am! I am!"
Just then, a shining circle of light appeared, displaying Marx's face. "Please forgive the intrusion, sir, but it's important!"
All eyes turned to Marx.
"Hey, Mushroomhead," Yami greeted him.
"I told you before, it's-" Marx began. "You know what, nevermind. Now's not the time for this."
"Go on, Marx," Julius said. "What is it?"
"It's Kiten, the border village and site of frequent skirmishes with the Diamond Kingdom!" Marx said urgently. "A Diamond Unit is attacking it as we speak!"
"Mars," Dane breathed.
"Of course, they had to strike now," Julius growled.
Marx displayed an image of the force in question. There were a lot of them, but Dane didn't see Mars.
"So many," Julius noted.
"Whoa!" Asta shouted. "It looks like a whole army of 'em!"
"This is a far cry from our usual skirmishes," Julius mused. "Especially when you consider those who appear to be in command."
"Yes," Marx agreed. "Lagus, Brocks, and Yagos."
"Three of the Eight Shining Generals," Julius mused.
"The Eight Shining Generals?" Asta asked. "I've never heard of them before."
"You have," Dane corrected him. "Mars was one of them."
"They are the eight most powerful people in the whole Diamond Kingdom," Yami explained. "You might think of them as being kinda like our Magic Knight Captains."
"That's super not good!" Asta said.
"Worse, Kiten is the linchpin of our border defense," Marx explained. "If we lose it, we'll be wide open to a Diamond Kingdom invasion."
As they watched, a barrier was erected around the town, only to be immediately blasted through by a Lightning Magic wielding member of the Eight Generals. Instantly, Diamond Kingdom mages swarmed in, going on the offensive, and one of the other Generals, one who used Red Clay Magic, rammed a massive boar he'd created through the wall. Then, the other two generals followed him in, rapidly laying waste to the city.
"That's not going well," Dane said. "Permission to reinforce them, sir?"
"Kiten's defense is shattered!" Marx reported. "They're in trouble!"
"No kidding!" Charmy panicked.
"Wait, hold on!" Marx said. "Is that..."
"What now!?" Yami snapped. "Speak, Mushroomhead!"
"It's them!" Marx said. "They came!"
"Who?" Dane and Asta both asked.
"The mightiest Magic Knight Squad in the Clover Kingdom!" Marx said. "The Golden Dawn!"
Dane groaned. "Fuck them. Pompous assholes. Only Yuno, Klaus, and Mimosa are decent people."
As they watched, William Vangeance ordered the attack, and everyone moved to meet the Diamond Kingdom forces, Yuno in the lead with the Spirit of Wind, Sylph, hovering next to his shoulder.
"Oh, hey, Sylph's up and about," Dane smiled. "Good for her. It's about time Yuno learned how to work with her."
As they watched, Yuno moved to meet the general rampaging around on the boar, immediately blasting the boar apart and sending the general and all of the Mages around him away.
Even while Marx was showing the battle from a distance, Dane could see that Sylph seemed to be lecturing Yuno, and through his Spirit Magic, could sense that that's exactly what was happening. Sylph was a three-inch-tall Spirit of a fairy with pale skin, and short, green hair just shy of her shoulders, and pointed ears. She wore a green dress cut low on her chest and ending just above her knees, and according to Raya, she had a surprising amount of attitude for someone so tiny. Raya actually claimed that her attitude was a bit like Noelle's, actually.
"The Golden Dawn will help even things up a bit, but the enemy still has three Generals," Julius said. "I'd like to send reinforcements, but I'm not even certain who we have available."
"Neither am I, sir," Marx admitted. "The Crimson Lions are in the Ioto Mountains, The Silver Eagles are tied up with the Spade Kingdom."
"We're fighting the Spade Kingdom, too, right now?" Dane asked.
"There's a simple solution," Yami said. "You can send me. I'm your best option. I think Finral's been to that village before, so I can get there quick."
"Really?" Julius asked. "Are you sure? Your squad only just returned from the Underwater Temple."
"Yeah, I can handle it," Yami said. "Hell, right now, I feel damn-near invincible. And besides...there's somebody I've been meaning to check up on."
"Well, in that case, I gladly accept your offer," Julius smiled. "I just wish I could go with you."
"That's not possible, sir!" Marx snapped. "What if they're using this as a diversion to launch an attack on the capital!?"
"Yes, yes," Julius sighed. "We mustn't be rash now. There's the king's safety to consider."
"It's settled, then," Yami said. "Too bad I let Finral go wander around town instead of comin' with us. Lousy good-for-nothing's never where you need 'im."
"Captain Yami," Asta said. "Please, take me with you, sir!"
"Your arms are broken," Yami reminded him.
"Even if I can't fight, maybe I can help evacuate people!" Asta snapped.
"Someone with your injuries would only hold me back, so you're gonna hafta sit this one out at the base," Yami said. "You too, Dane."
"But, Captain!" Asta began, only to stop as Charmy held her hand in front of him, aged into her adult form.
"As his superior, I'm willing to accompany him and make sure he's unharmed," Charmy declared. "And I'll need Dane's help."
"You'd do that for me?" Asta asked.
"What do you say?" Charmy asked. "Will that work?"
"Oh, really?" Yami asked. "You're volunteering, Charmy? Fine! Then I guess you idiots can come with me! Whe-Where the hell's Finral!?"
"Awesome!" Asta cheered. "Thank you, sir!"
"Mars, here I come," Dane said, smirking.
"Why do you want Mars?" Asta asked.
"I want his Phoenix Feathers Robe," Dane said, tapping his bracer.
A few minutes later, they'd found Finral, Yami's expression scaring off the women he was talking to.
"Hey, you sabotaged my date!" Finral shrieked.
"Finral, Kiten, now," Dane said darkly. "It's under attack and we're reinforcing."
"What!?" Finral shrieked. "But I thought I had the day off!"
"Did you really just say what I think you just said?" Yami snarled. "Listen, you little lowlife, you'll get a day off when you're dead, you understand? Now hurry up and open up that portal before I open one in your head! And there'll be no gettin' out of it this time!"
"Come on!" Asta said, getting in Finral's face. "You're our only hope!"
"Whoa!" Finral said. "I wouldn't go that far!"
"Now, Finral!" Dane snapped.
"Clock's tickin'," Yami snapped.
"Okay, okay!" Finral shrieked. "I'll get right on it!"
"Hey Captain, before we get there," Dane said. "Killing. Go or no go?"
"Go for it," Yami said. "If you're worried about your impulses, don't. Diamond Mages are fair game."
"Excellent," Dane nodded. "Then I have a request. If you fight Mars, the one with Crystal Magic as his primary attack, please don't kill him. He has the healing spell I want."
"Got it," Yami nodded. "Shouldn't be a problem, since by your reports he was weaker than Vetto."
Dane nodded. Finally, Finral opened the portal and they all walked through, only to find that the entire city had changed from what they'd seen. Now, in the few minutes they'd taken to reach Finral, a giant tree had grown over the entire city.
"Vangeance's World Tree Magic at work, I see," Dane said, then extended his senses.
He was glad Raya had taught him to sense for mana and recognize different ones. Because at the moment, he sensed a group of mana signatures he didn't recognize all converging on Mimosa's.
"I'll be back," Dane said. "Ko."
Ko's flames burst to life on his clothes, and he crouched.
"Spirit Magic, Fox Trot!" Dane said, then exploded into movement. He raced across the city, passing dozens of wounded Mages from both sides before reaching Mimosa just as a dozen Diamond Kingdom Mages fired a barrage of spells at her. Then, as Dane landed beside her, his hands slammed to the ground and a steel dome, burst from the ground, slamming closed around them and shielding her.
"Hey, Mimosa," Dane smiled. "Hope you don't mind if I drop in."
"Dane!" Mimosa smiled. "Perfect timing!"
Ko left Dane's clothes, and Dane stood, retracting the wall.
"Hey there, guys," Dane said. "Nice try, but it's my turn now."
"How're you gonna take us all down?" one of the mages scoffed.
"Oh, something like this," Dane smiled. Then, he snapped his fingers six times, the six resulting explosions each catching two of the Mages, who'd made the mistake of flying their brooms into a tight circle. "Wow. That was disappointing."
"Thank you!" Mimosa smiled, hugging him. "How was your beach trip?"
Dane sighed, glancing at his hands. "It was...bad. We went for a mission, but then we fought...a fucking monster. If not for Yami, he'd have killed us all." He hesitated. "After this fight, would you mind seeing what you can do about a few new scars I got? I had to patch myself up a few times. Rather extensively."
Mimosa nodded. "Sure."
"Also, has anyone reported sighting that Diamond Mage we fought in the dungeon?" Dane asked.
"No," Mimosa shook her head. "He was the first one I thought of, too, but he's not here, apparently."
"That's disappointing," Dane sighed, sensing around. "Looks like three left. Generals all. Oh, hey, one of them's that one that fought Luck in the Dungeon. He could be fun." He frowned. "And Yuno's still with two of them."
"What!?" Mimosa gasped.
"Don't worry," Dane smiled. "He can handle them. But even so, I'll go even the odds. I'll see you later, alright?"
Mimosa nodded, and Dane resummoned Ko, using Fox Trot again to reach Yuno and the two Generals, just as the one with Red Clay Magic began to head for Vangeance. Yuno began to try and stop him, only for the Lightning Magic user to stop his attack. So, instead, Dane tapped a hand against the clay as he was passing it, transforming it to steel and sending him exploding back down in the street.
"Please tell me I didn't just end the fight in one go," Dane said, landing on a rooftop, looking down at the General. "That'd just be disappointing."
"I'm not...done!" the man growled, squirming in the tiny amount of space inside of the metal
Finally, after nearly a minute, he'd wormed his upper body out.
"This is pathetic," Dane sighed. "Hurry up and attack me."
"Alright, fine!" The man shouted, standing. "You asked for it! Red Clay Creation Magic, Bright Armor!" He reformed the same construct Dane had just immobilized, and Dane yawned exaggeratedly.
"Well?" Dane asked. "I'm waiting."
The man snarled in rage. "It's clear you use some kind of Flame Magic, but that won't save you!"
"Flame Magic?" Dane asked, looking down at Ko's flames. "Sure. Flame Magic. Let's go with that."
"Red Clay Creation Magic," the man roared, "Brilliant Armor, Heavy Artillery!"
Dane raised an eyebrow, but all that happened was that the man's clay armor, which had swelled as he cast the spell, reached out and grabbed him. Dane's eyebrow fell as a look of annoyed disgust filled his face.
"Seriously?" Dane asked as the man began to squeeze him. "That's your attack? Crush me slowly? Seriously, compared to him, you're a joke. My turn."
"And how are you gonna-" the man began, only to stop as the entirety of his clay hardened into solid stone and dozens of thin spikes stabbed through him inside of the armor.
He coughed up blood, then went limp, and Dane used his magic to free himself easily, then broke down the clay into dust, allowing the man's body to crash down in the street, just as Klaus and Mimosa ran over.
"Seriously?" Klaus asked. "He grabbed you?"
"I know, right?" Dane asked, dropping down into the street with them. "How disappointing."
"Is he...dead?" Mimosa asked.
"Nah," Dane sighed. "I'm going soft. Even without being healed, he'll live."
"Seriously!?" Klaus gaped. "You, of all people, spared an enemy?"
"I've been...getting plenty of exercise for my impulses, lately," Dane said. "Come on. Asta and Yuno should be this way."
He formed them a stone platform to ride on and quickly transported them across the city to where Asta and Charmy were evacuating civilians. Klaus and Mimosa both immediately ran to check on Asta when they saw he was injured, though Klaus repeatedly tried to deny that he was worried for Asta, and Dane walked over to Charmy, who was still in her toddler form, as she finished using her cotton to ferry the last of the civilians around them to Finral, who was holding a portal open for them.
"Looks like you're doing well, Charmy," Dane smiled.
"Yeah!" Charmy smiled. "How was the fight?"
Dane groaned miserably. "It was awful! I picked the guy with clay because I thought I could toy with him, but then after I'd already turned his clay to steel once, the dumbass just grabs me and starts trying to crush me with all the speed of molasses!"
"Seriously?" Finral asked. "What kinda dumbass grabs you, of all people!"
"That's what I said!" Dane said. "And also what Klaus said, coincidentally." He glanced at Yuno. "Raya, Sylph's here."
Ray appeared in a flash of light, thankfully in her human form, and snatched Sylph, cheering and spinning, instantly firing off a million questions at the miniscule spirit. Sylph instantly began to shriek that she was going to throw up. Dane smiled, then looked back to Mimosa.
"Anyway, Mimosa, you should get going," Dane advised her. "I'll find you later."
"How?" Mimosa asked.
"I hope it's not your instincts," Klaus said.
"No, no," Dane smiled. "Those are laser focused on only one person right now."
"Who?" Asta asked.
A column of stone erupted from under Dane's feet, launching him up the massive tree. As his momentum died out, he activated Fox Trot, sprinting up the side of it until he found Yami and William Vangeance, stopping and forming himself a platform from the tree.
"There you are," Dane said, making eye contact with Yami. "William Vangeance." He shifted his gaze back to Vangeance. "It's an honor to meet you."
"Oh, have you been looking for me?" Vangeance asked.
Dane hummed thoughtfully. "In a sense." he rested his hand on the tree, then pulled a new Diamond Metal sword, once again identical to his last, from it, complete with a new harness, and hung it on his back. "Much better. Anyway, I wanted to thank you. I might have considered joining your squad instead of the Black Bulls to prove that my family wasn't worthless, but since you didn't pick me, it made my choice easy. And It turns out that joining the Black Bulls was the right choice. We meet all kinds of interesting people, don't we, Captain?"
"That's right," Yami nodded. "You've gone up against, what, two of the Eye of the Midnight Sun's higher ups now?"
"That's right," Dane nodded. "And just think. If I'd joined the Golden Dawn, I'd have never gotten to introduce them to my instincts. I'd probably have become a serial killer."
"I see," Vangeance nodded. "Well, you're welcome for not choosing you, then. Honestly, it wasn't an easy choice. Your power is impressive, to say the least, but it was exactly your impulses that I turned you down because of. I'm glad that you joining the Black Bulls helped you find some modicum of control."
Dane inclined his head.
"Vangeance, if you don't mind," Yami said, taking a drag from his cigarette. "Lose the mask."
"My face, isn't exactly fit for others to see," Vangeance said calmly.
"What, you wear that thing 'cause you're super ugly or something?" Yami asked. "Hey, it's okay! I promise not to laugh, alright?"
"I understand, Yami," Vangeance said. "You're suspicious of me, aren't you? Both of you are. You think I might be the leader of the Eye of the Midnight Sun. Frankly I do, yeah."
"It'd make this whole thing much faster if you'd just take it off," Dane said. "Or, you can attack us. Either way, if we're right, it'll confirm our suspicions. And if you're not, it's just us three. If you're not Licht, what your face looks like is of no consequence."
"It's been ten years since we met, hasn't it?" Yami asked.
"That's correct," Vangeance nodded.
"So we've had a pretty long history, you and me," Yami reasoned. "Meeting on the battlefield, fighting alongside each other from time to time, even eventually becoming captains together. Remember how bouncy Nozel's braid used to be? I'm not sayin' we're especially friendly, but we do go back a while. So come on. Show me your face."
"Very well," Vangeance nodded.
He reached up, lifting his helmet up off of his head and lowered it, then turned so that Dane could see, too. Vangeance's upper face, starting from just below his eyes, was entirely a burn scar. His hair was cut short, but the burn extended up into his hairline, with only the middle having managed to grow out back, and the burn's bottom edge was jagged.
"Those are some pretty nasty scars," Yami said. "Had 'em long?"
"Always," Vangeance said. "My whole life. They called me a cursed child."
"S'that right?" Yami asked.
"Not even magic could heal these marks," Vangeance said. "People found them eerie to look at, and they feared me. I was a nobleman's illegitimate child. Until I was eight years old, I lived in the Forsaken Realm. But then the nobleman's heir passed away. He summoned me. Brought me into his house to be his successor. Fortunately, I possessed great power, and my magic was a curiosity. But even there, my face was despised, and the nobleman's wife, my foster mother, treated me cruelly. I wouldn't wish the sort of childhood I had on anyone."
"Sounds like you've been through a lot," Yami said.
"Yes, but that's also when I met Julius," Vangeance said. "He paid no mind to my appearance, instead seeing only my strength. He gave me my mask to hide my scars. I was happy, and I vowed to devote my Grimoire to his service."
"Right, well, sorry," Yami said.
"No, I'm glad I got the chance to show you who I am," Vangeance said. "Thank you, Yami. And, if I may, is the fact that you allowed him to stay a sign that he's meant to be your eventual successor?"
Dane blinked in surprise.
"Yeah," Yami nodded. "He's one of the ones I'm considering most strongly. If he finds a way to control his impulses, he'd be a good one. And even if he can't, well...we let Jack the Ripper be a captain."
"I'm..." Dane stared at Yami, then smiled, shaking his head. "Thank you, Captain. And Captain Vangeance, if you would like, my magic actually could erase your scars. However, I should warn you, it'd be extremely painful."
"You can do that?" Vangeance asked.
"Yes," Dane nodded. "My magic breaks things down on a molecular level, then stitches them back together. I should warn you that aside from being painful, it would leave a scar of its own, but your hair would grow evenly, and the scar would just be extremely pale. You'd be able to have your mask off without being afraid."
Vangeance considered, smiling. "I can't tell you how much that offer means to me, even with the warning of pain. I'll consider it."
Dane nodded.
"Captain Vangeance, do you read me?" Klaus's voice asked from Vangeance's communication tool. "The Diamond Kingdom has begun to retreat."
"Very good," Vangeance said. "Don't pursue those who flee. Concentrate all your efforts on healing the injured." he looked up at Yami. "We should get to work. With the number of prisoners we've captured, transporting them all will be difficult."
"Yeah," Yami agreed. "Oh, hey, I got a guy who comes in real handy for that kind of thing! And we can work him hard."
"Not too hard, now," Vangeance smiled, donning his mask again.
"I'll go and warn Finral that he'll be transporting the prisoners," Dane said, then disconnected his platform from the tree and flew it down to the wall where Asta and the others were feasting on deserts Charmy had made with her magic.
He passed along the warning to Finral, then joined Charmy for some food while they waited for the prisoners to be rounded up for transportation.
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