In the morning of day eighteen, Asta wakes up remembering last night's duel. Not being happy about it, he gets up, puts on his armor and robe, and plans to go on a walk. But his squad members stop him asking "Master, where are you going?" "It's captain, and I'm going for a walk" he told her in a low tone. "Captain, want us to go with you?" "No Tara, I just want some time to be alone" he saw the lizard girl sad so he went to her and pet her "I'll be fine Kiera just need to think alright" he stopped petting her and left the three girls behind.
During his walk, he noticed people staying away from him. L starts speaking "Why are they treating you like this, human" "Because one of their hero was beaten without a chance to fight back" "But you won and he lost" "It's doesn't matter who win or lose I hurt their hero and that's the only thing they care about" done with their discussion Asta end up at the merchant tent.
Once in, he meets the merchant who starts talking "My boy, I heard about your duel with spear hero and fight that's happened" "I don't willy call that a fight" "Yes from what I hear you didn't give him a chance" "Can we please not talk about it, I'm not happy about it either" "So you what something to get your mind off, then try buying one of these eggs" he was shown a box with two dozen blue eggs. "An egg, how does buying an egg help me?" "You see, my boy, you can have a chance to get a dragon for only one hundred silver coins if not you get a filolial instead" without looking he senses the Ki of a dragon, then reaches for it but stops releasing this is cheating and grabs the one next to it. "I'll choose this one" After paying for the egg, he left the tent.
When walking to his next destination L began to say "Why did you change your mind and didn't get that dragon, human" "I didn't want to cheat to make myself feel better, everyone gets a same chance, and if I did that I'll regret it" Asta explained his reason what he did.
Then he made it at Blacksmith's shop, when enter he saw Elhart look at him so he walked toward him. "Hey kid, I heard about your the duel" "Ya I think everyone here knows now" "But I also heard about the king force it to happen, so feel down about it ok" he kept quiet "Hey listen if it's bothering you that much just leave that capital maybe go back to that town from before" "Thanks I will try that" he left the shop and head back to the forest where his squads are waiting.
"Captain, your back, how are you feeling?" "I feel better, Tara" "Master, what with the egg?" "It's captain, and I bought this to help me keep busy" Then he told them how they take time out of the capital for a while and start heading to the mining town.
Meanwhile, with the sword and bow heroes talking about last night's duel "I expect he loses the fight like that" Ren spoke up. "You're kidding me right, he was beating to unconscious" Itsuki complained back "To be honest Motoyasu didn't help either, he just mean to the guy even though he gave us the chimera corps" "Your right and that guy didn't want to duel in the first" "Ya but the king had to force him to do anyway" "Now wonder who that guy is anyway he was really strong if he did that?" "Same here, did he even say his name at all" "No, but one of those demi-humans who call him master, he said it's captain" then continued to talk for a while.
Sometime later, in the castle throne room, the king, high priest, knights, and people of the church are talking about the teen. "So do anyone know that guy in black robe" the king ask out loud "Well the report of the guards, say that he first show up seventeen days ago but no name was taken" the leader of the knights spoke "And he only show up at the church once and never came back, four days ago" a nun spoke next "And still nothing about who or where he came from" the king complained. Until a woman says "So I see you met the boy then" Everyone looks at the woman who spoke, seeing it was one the shadows. "What are you doing, and you know about that guy" the king asked "For why I'm you need not to know, but for the boy we saw what he's capable of" "What do you mean by that?" "One of our own was keeping an eye on him, but he kept finding her until she was tricked and ambushed" "How is that possible?" "We don't know, but two other shadows rescue her then try to get away, but he catch up and knocked the two out forcing the first one to fight back but she got overwhelmed quickly, but the rest of us had him capture then set him on fire but he wasn't fazed, and so our leader fought him alone leaving her with no choice to blow him up and thought he died, but two days later he's was back up like nothing happened" the people was shocked by story "We already gave a report to the queen, and she ordered use to not give him a reason to hunt us down" when she finished her speech she leave the room. The people still can't believe what they heard.
Now at the town they visited at the wave the group of four and an egg, Asta got them two rooms at the inn, him with Raphtalia and Tara with Kiera. He just finished making a nest for the egg using cloth, reminding him about Nero when she was a bird sleeping in his room at the back of the hideout. Then night came because they got here near sunset, so he went to one of the two beds in the room and slept.
The next morning, he hears Raphtalia "Master, wake up" he gets up tired "It's captain, and what is it?" She pointed to the hatching egg, then a small pink chick hatched out. Now the other two girls are in the same room looking at the filolial on Asta's head hood down "Captain, what are you going to name her?" "Her name is Filo" "Really master, Filo like in filolial seems to be on the nose" "It's captain, and there is nothing wrong with that" the chick now known as Filo chirps in happiness.
For three days, the three girls were training while he took care of Filo, feeding her and letting her get bigger each day until she grew to an osheridge-like animal gone from pink feathers to white ones. "Filo look how fast you have grown" he said in excitement. Filo feels the same way "Captain, I heard that you can ride a filolial by mounting it" "I'll try that then" he gets on of Filo then start running "FILO YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE THIS FAST" he yell trying to get her to stop. "You think master will be alright?" "Can't say but captain seems happier than before" the girls kept watching their captain struggling with riding Filo.
On day twenty-two, there was a commotion at the center of town. The group of four plus Filo went to see what was happening once they made it there, seeing the spear hero and his party. "From now on, this town belongs to the spear hero Motoyasu by order of the king" Myne said while holding a scroll up "And to pay for reconstruction we will be charging five silver coins for the entire and exit of this town" The people of the town are upset by that suggestion. "Master, that's outrageous there is no way they pay for that much" "It's captain, and you're right. What are they thinking?" He starts walking towards the party, which is causing problems.
"HEY, you know doing something like that will cause this town to go under, right?" Asta spoke up to the group. "Oh it's the cheater. What do you think you're doing?" she said "Cheater?, is that what you called someone who beat that blond into unconsciousness and backed you up to the wall for shooting that wind magic" he pointed at Motoyasu and her, the blond flinching from that painful experience. "Well that doesn't matter. Now leave you and your slaves not welcome here," "And who's going to make me" Before anything could happen, they were intercepted by a shadow massager.
"I bought a message from the queen Mirellia herself" The woman in the mask shows a scroll. Myne took it and started reading "Oh it's miss stalker lady again. You look better since that night" Asta spoke to the shadow. "I'm not surprised that you know it was me even though you didn't see my face" "I don't you women work with the queen out of all people" he says in curiosity. "Wait master, you know these people?" "It's captain, and let's say our first meeting wasn't great" "You mean that we fought, I lost, you were set on fire, and blew up in the same night, right?" "That about sums it up" "CAPTAIN WAS WHAT?" "It's ok, Tara. I was fine in the morning" he reassures his squad members.
Until Myne finished reading the scroll "We changed this cheater to a race for the town" she said this while pointing at Asta "Oh I never raced before. How does it go?" "You just need to ride around town first before he does" the shadow explained "Thanks miss stalker lady" "Why are you calling me that?" "I don't know your name," he told her honestly.
The teen is in the middle of getting Filo ready to race when the spear hero starts talking "So you're racing with stupid bird. At least I'm this dragon" "You think I care what you have?" "Keep talking. It doesn't matter. I'm going to win this race" He is getting annoyed by the blond, but Filo kicked him away "That's a good girl, Filo" he said while petting her.
Then the two are at the starting line ready to go, the chef giving them the sign "On your mark… get ready… GO" they went off to the race. Asta and Filo are a head, but he sensed Ki signatures hiding at the trees "So they decided to cheat" and noticed the stalker lady nearby. So he had an idea every time they tried to cast a spell, he used his destroyer sword hidden in his robe, stopping it before they even finished, but he had to slow down a little to do it. At one point, Motoyasu was ahead but beat him at the end and won the race.
"Captain, you did it you won" "Ya, not bad for my first race" "Congratulations, master" "It's captain, and thanks" while his squads talking with him, Myne confront him "Hey cheater, you cheated" "Oh like your party members try" "We didn't cheat, and what proof do you have?" "Let's ask miss stalker lady" When he says that, the shadow shows up "Yes, the spear hero party attempts to use magic, but it always gets canceled before in used" then Myne and the spear left "Thanks miss stalker lady for help" "Can please stop calling me that" "Nope, you're stuck with it" After that done she left.
"We can thank you enough for your help" the chief thanked the teen. "It's not just me you should be thankful for. It was also Filo here" he went to pet Filo, but she began to glow and then grow to a large owl-like body. "Oh Filo, you're bigger now" The teen looks up at the filolial "Either way, we want to repaid you for saving our town" "I don't want your guys money" "There must be a way to repaid you?" Asta starts thinking of wanting to ask, but Filo taps on his shoulder, getting his attention and points out the broken carriage giving him and the chief an idea. Later, the group of four are the carriage being pulled by Filo.
Now we see the queen who just received the report of the duel and town race. "This so-called duel, is proof that he was holding back fighting you girls" she says this to her shadow "Yes your majesty" "But do you know how he stops the spells from being cast?" "No, he didn't even show it" "Will have luck finding out, miss stalker lady" "Please your majesty, don't call me that" "But it is amusing when he called you that" after her queen said that she left in shame.
In the middle, getting to the capital, they stop to rest for the night, with a campfire lighting up the night they are ready to sleep. "Can't believe that Raphtalia had to throw up in the middle ride" Tara spoke up "Tara it's my fault I can't handle it, I never rode a carriage before" she argued back. Asta sees them while sitting on a tree stump, until Filo starts laying on his lap "Hey Filo, you wanted to sleep with me tonight, well, your feathers are soft" she just rubs her head to him. When the three girls and Filo sleep, L start talk "How you feel raising that filolial, human" "It's feel happy, seeing how she grown and I helping with her development" L thinks about his mother and how she raised him "I'm going to sleep, goodnight human" he enter into the grimoire. The teen fell to sleep after that, but then he was woke up in the morning by his squad members "Master, wake up where Filo" "Get up captain and tell us who the girl on your lay" he was confused, because he can sense Filo Ki on him "What are you girls talking about, Filo is right here" he e went to pet her, but accept feeling feathers he felt hair and a person bareback. Asta looked down, then back off the blond girl, she got up showing that she has white wings on her back "Good morning captain, I'm hungry" she spoke to the teen "What… the… fuck…" he just said his first curse words one of many to come. Beginning day twenty-three.