0713MM: Hey guys! I welcome you to the 45th chapter of The Silver Valkyrie! I do not own Black Clover, nor its characters, nor the OCs that are used in this chapter. The OCs and spells used in this chapter belong to guardian of the aura Aurasoul and Warmachine375. Chapter start!^^

Chapter 45

"A-Almost th-there…" William panted as he weakly hurried through the plains, exhausted and heavily injured. "J-Just need to r-reach the r-realm." William staggered, his vision blurring slightly, but continued onward until finally seeing a building to what he thought was a church he staggered to it, panting.

"F-Finally… I-I'm home…" He panted. Finally the adrenaline wore off and the exhaustion took its toll as William passed out right in front of the doors. Just as he did, the doors swung open to reveal Father Orsi, who looked around in confusion before he looked down and gasped in shock.

"Dear god this poor man needs help!" He yelled. He then carefully but quickly took hold of William and took him inside the church.

"Oh Ren~"

"Time to wake up~" Ren stiffened in her sleep, hearing 2 very evil voices before curling up tighter, nuzzling the warm chest.

"Go away." She mumbled.

"Oh come on Ren. Can't be in bed all day~" One voice said.

"Goes for you too, Yuno." Another voice snickered. Yuno groaned.

"Mm…. 5 more minutes…." Yuno mumbled. Ren grumbled, opening one eye to see Asta and Noelle with matching grins on their faces.

"You're enjoying this." She stated with a mumble.

"Mmhmm!~" Noelle grinned, she and Asta walked out of the room. "But seriously, you 2 need to get up. Otherwise you'll miss breakfast."

"Ugh, fine." Ren groaned, sitting up with a yawn. Yuno groaned again before sitting up.

"Whaa? Why are we getting up?" Yuno wondered aloud. Ren pecked Yuno's lips.

"Because you have to eat of course." Ren smiled. Yuno grunted out of some irritation, but nonetheless accepted it.

"Yeah yeah." Yuno remarked. He then blinked. "Wait, who made breakfast here?"

"Noelle. Why?" Ren asked, as she stretched.

"Noelle?" Yuno repeated. "I thought it'd be one of the servants or maids working here."

"You know she and Asta aren't used to having servants." She pointed out.

"What do you mean?" Yuno asked. "Have I missed something? I thought Nozel would have been the head of House Silva."

"He's too busy being Captain of the Silver Eagles. So the job of being head was given to Noelle and Asta." Ren said, sitting on the edge of the bed. Yuno hummed, then nodded.

"Yeah, I missed that part." Yuno noted before frowning. "But that just puts a lot on Asta and Noelle's plates."

"That's what I said. Acier assured she would help them if they needed it." Ren replied.

"Kek kek. Well, Asta and Noelle's plates may be full," Liebe began as he passed by Ren's room of House Silva. "but they at least don't have to worry about Solid. He's getting trained by Nozel and Courtney, in addition to a few others. That's one thing off Asta and Noelle's plate. Although they too need training."

"Sounds like a long day." Kane only yawned, walking past Liebe. The devil blinked, along with Ren and Yuno, as well as their spirits.

"Uh… He does realize Liebe is a devil, right?" Fay asked.

"I… Don't think he cares." Ren sweatdropped.

"Well then." Yuno deadpanned before turning to face Ren. "We better go down there. Otherwise Asta and Noelle will probably come back up here to drag us down."

"Sounds like them, yeah." Liebe agreed as he continued down the hall before going down the stairs at the end of said hall. Yuno soon got out of the bed and held his hand out to Ren.

"Shall we go downstairs?" Yuno asked, smiling lightly at her. Ren smiled happily, taking his hand as the 2 got up and out of the bed. They were going to change into their regular clothes from their pajamas later. But for now, the 2 would head downstairs for breakfast made by Asta and Noelle.

.

"Yes we shall." She chirped. Yuno held her close, making Ren purr happily as they walked out the room and downstairs for the dining room.

"Make way for the flaunting couple!" Fay announced.

"This is gonna be a thing until they're married." Bell groaned.

"5 yul says it'll be worse when they get married." Liebe deadpanned, making Kane groan, his head on the table.

"Ugh… Don't remind me…" Kane groaned in regards to Liebe's words.

"Ah, I don't mind. It was worse when they were pinning." Asta replied, eating his muffin.

"Exactly." Noelle groaned, eating bacon. "I mean it would've been quicker if Ren weren't so stubborn." Ren stuck her tongue out at Noelle as she and Yuno took a seat. But Yuno moved his chair closer to Ren, making her purr once more.

"Can't you 2 eat separately?" Kane deadpanned.

"No." Yuno replied bluntly. "Besides, even if we were, it'd be in the guest bedroom Ren is using."

"But then Noelle would get cranky if we did. And I'm not that crazy to deal with a cranky pregnant lady." Ren hummed, sipping her tea.

"Good to hear, Ren." Noelle remarked, continuing to eat her breakfast. "Plus I'm not a huge fan of people eating in other rooms. Unless I or Asta say yes to it."

"Case and point. Besides I have him, so I am taking advantage." Ren hummed, leaning against Yuno to his satisfaction.

"Ugh…!" Kane groaned. "Make the lovey dovey stop…!"

"Give them 6 months to get it out of their systems. At least one thought he was dead, the other nearly died. We gave them 6 months." Fay sighed.

"Oi!" Kane groaned loudly as Liebe stood up.

"Well, I suppose I should get outside to train for a few hours." Liebe spoke. "Kek kek. I know for a fact Asta will join me sooner or later." Asta looked up at Liebe and gave a light smile before going back to eating his breakfast.

"Thinking of joining them beloved?" Ren asked Yuno. Yuno looked at Ren and shrugged.

"I don't know." He admitted. "I might. I might not."

"You should. Liebe can give you a challenge." She grinned.

"But you can give me a better challenge." Yuno countered, making Liebe roll his eyes in annoyance at Yuno's words.

"You'd just rather spar with someone that you know well." Liebe retorted coolly. "Pardon my bluntness, but that shit way of thinking will not help you face off against others you don't know. You need that sense of unfamiliarity. Otherwise…" His lips curled up and into a playfully wicked smile. "You have no chance of becoming the Wizard King of the Clover Kingdom." Yuno opened his mouth to retort, but his communication device interrupted him.

"Ugh…! I gotta answer this…" Yuno grumbled, taking out said device and answering it. "Hello?" An image of the head of the Hage Village church, Father Orsi.

"Oh good, I got through!" The elderly man sighed in relief. "Your Captain is here in Hage."

"Captain Vangeance?" Yuno asked. "Is he alright? Wait…how did he end up in Hage?"

"What's this about William?" Ren questioned. Yuno looked over at Ren. Noelle looked up from her breakfast plate to listen in. Asta and Liebe had already gone outside to train. While Kane at this point decided to up and leave for the library within House Silva.

"Yeah, I'm curious as well." Noelle chimed in.

"Captain Vangeance is in Hage Village." Yuno eventually answered.

"He escaped?" Fay gaped.

"He's alive?" Ren questioned, shocked.

"I'm not sure how he ended up in Hage, but he did." Orsi spoke. "I and Sister Lily have done the best that we can to heal him." He paused for a good 2 minutes before continuing. "As it turns out, the problem isn't wounds like we first thought. We did a blood test on him a little while ago, and it turns out that… Well, his mana levels are extremely low." Noelle, Ren, and Yuno looked at each other before turning back to face the image of Father Orsi via Yuno's communications device.

"Low mana levels can only mean 2 things." Fay frowned. "Either he used a large portion of his magic in order to escape. Or-"

"Or they took a large quantity of his mana and left him for dead." Ren finished with a frown. "If that is the case, then we need to take him to Elysia."

"You mean your tribe?" Noelle asked, surprised.

"Our lands are rich in mana. Not only that, but our healers specialize in mana recovery in situations like this. Plus it'll be easier and quicker for him to be there for his healing process." Ren explained.

"I can go and get Captain Vangeance from Hage Village and bring him here." Yuno remarked. "Then he can be moved to Elysia from there." He put a hand to chin. "Or perhaps if some Elysia healers are willing, could come to Clover Kingdom to help him recover."

"I suppose I could see if one of my healers could come here." Ren hummed thoughtfully. "Most aren't keen on stepping out of the tribe lands, but I'm sure I can persuade one of them at least."

"Would you mind giving one of them a call, then?" Yuno asked, standing up. "I'm going to go to Hage to retrieve my Captain." Before Noelle or Ren could say anything more, Yuno already left the dining room area of House Silva and had already headed outside. Hilariously enough, not long after Yuno left, Ren's own communicator began to blip. Ren blinked, then pulled her communicator out of her pocket.

"Who is it?" Noelle asked.

"Your Mom. Apparently." Ren answered, a light frown present on her face as she answered the call. "Yes Acier?"

"Ah Ren! I'm happy you answered!~!" Queen Acier's image appeared, a light smile on her face.

"Did you sneak out of the Infirmary again?" Ren asked with a deadpan expression.

"Whaaa?! Of course not!" Queen Acier retorted "innocently". Yet if Noelle and Ren looked closely at the background of the call, they'd notice that Queen Acier was within the throne room of the Clover Kingdom Castle.

"Dammit, fledgling. We talked about this." Ren scowled, pinching the bridge of her nose. Noelle glanced at Ren, then at the image of her Mother. Even she, too, felt herself mentally facepalming at her Mother's antics.

"Mother." Noelle sighed.

"What? This is important!" Queen Acier replied, making somewhat of a pouty face.

"More important than your recovery?" Ren frowned.

"Yes." Queen Acier nodded. "After many hours of work from Julius and Makusa, they finally managed to reform mana from the blood sample they got from Asta."

"That's great news!" Noelle smiled brightly. "What magic did Asta, or I guess now, have?"

"Star Magic!~" Queen Acier answered excitedly.

"Star Magic?" Ren blinked.

"Oh that takes me back centuries ago! That magic is practically a lost relic in this era!" Fay remarked.

"Until now anyway." Ren hummed.

"What do you mean?" Noelle asked.

"Star Magic is very rare magic, on the same level as Moon Magic You'd only see magic like that with an elf tribe or a Royal Family." Fay explained. "The last Star Magic user I met was a prince I met centuries ago."

"A prince?" Noelle repeated, her curiosity not faltering.

"Yeah. Though I don't recall which kingdom at that time, the naming situation was still being established." Fay replied. "So Asta having this magic is surprising."

"Well he doesn't have it yet." Queen Acier corrected. "He'll need to go to Julius and Makusa to get it. Which leads me to my next point."

"Which is?" Ren asked.

"If you're willing Ren dear, would you go with Asta?" Queen Acier asked the Elysia Elf Tribe Leader. "Julius and Makusa will also no doubt suggest that you teach him the basics. I don't expect you'll need to do much teaching, since Asta is such a fast learner. It's more of just in case and if he needs any help or questions."

"I can teach him the mana control and such, but the actual magic he'll need to learn on his own spell formations and such." Ren pointed out.

"That's fine." Queen Acier nodded. "Asta or you should be receiving a call from Julius on this soon. Alternatively, you could go get Asta and go now."

"Right, but it'll have to be a moment." Ren sighed. "Yuno received a call from the Father of his church. It seems William is in Hage Village."

"Oh?" Queen Acier wondered aloud. "I wonder how he got there. Regardless, I take it you plan to wait for Yuno to come back before pushing forward on anything else?"

"No. According to Father Orsi, William has been drained of a large portion of his mana. Most likely by the Dark Triad before being left for dead. I plan to contact my tribe and see if one of my healers will come here in order to see him." Ren explained.

"Oh! Then yes, please do that Ren dear." Queen Acier agreed.

"Right. Once I do that, Asta and I will go see Lord Julius." Ren said, before glaring at Acier, making her meep. "And you young lady will march right back to the Infirmary and return to your cot or so help me I will form my Seraph Knight to carry you there like a sack of potatoes and make sure you stay there. Understood?" Queen Acier fiddled with her fingers and her lips formed a sheepish smile.

"Can't I just sleep in my bed in the Clover Castle?" Queen Acier asked.

"No cause you need healers checking on you and it'll be easier for you to sneak out if you stay in your castle bedroom." Ren deadpanned. "You need rest and you are gonna get it. Are we clear?"

"Yes Ren dear." Queen Acier spoke in a slightly deflated/defeated tone.

"Good. Now you better be there by the time me and Asta show up or you're in big trouble." Ren warned.

"I'll be there." Queen Acier replied. "Goodbye Ren dear. See you later today." And with that, she hung up. Noelle's mouth was slightly agape, glancing at Ren with said shocked expression on her face. After a few minutes of silence, Noelle finally finds the words in her mouth and begins to speak. Slight shock was still evident within her tone of voice as she spoke her words towards Ren. (Hence the slight pause when Noelle begins to speak towards Ren on the matter: Ren being able to keep her Mother, Queen Acier Silva, in line.)

"H…How are you able to do that?" Noelle asked Ren. "Keeping Mother in line like that. I mean, we're her children, and she doesn't listen to us when we tell her she's going overboard, or when she needs a rest. Tell me, what's your secret?"

"It's really no secret." Ren sighed. "I've known her since she was a child. Plus power wise I'm practically her only equal besides Julius. Add in the fact I'm older than her, it's not hard." Noelle's mouth made an O before she nodded.

"Ohhh! Yeah, that makes a lot of sense." Noelle nodded.

"Quite. Now if you'll excuse me I have to contact Koji next to get a healer to Hage Village." Ren replied.

"But isn't Yuno bringing Captain Vangeance back here?" Noelle questioned. "It wouldn't really make sense to send a healer to Hage Village if Yuno is bringing his Captain back to House Silva. At least for the time being."

"That's only if William is unconscious. Knowing that man, he'll be demanding to be sent to a dungeon instead. Believing himself as a traitor to the kingdom for allowing Patri control of his body to go with his plan for genocide on humanity." Ren sighed. "By the time I get a healer, Yuno will most likely be still arguing with William. So I'll be sending them to Hage to make things easier. And with who I have in mind, I will get him here easier than Yuno."

"Who do you have in mind?" Noelle asked curiously. Ren smiled lightly.

"Heh. Let's just say a certain healer that gets the job done." She reassured Noelle, a playful, but also wicked, smile on her lips. "For now, you just finish your breakfast and you can keep training in your condition so long as it's not overboard. But once you're swollen you have to stay in bedrest." Raguel's apparition appeared next to Noelle.

"That won't be an issue." Raguel told Ren. "Because Noelle will be doing mental magic training with me. And I will make sure she doesn't strain herself too much."

"I should hope so. Otherwise I'll be after your hide next." Ren said with an 'innocent' smile that made Raguel shudder.

"Hey, I'm not like Jehoel." Raguel countered.

"As I said, I should hope so. Because agents of god or not, I won't hesitate to give you Angels… Proper punishment." Ren smiled, before walking away a snickering Fay on her shoulder. Noelle and Raguel shuddered.

"Scary." Kane remarked, chewing on a muffin nonchalantly.

"Yes, she is scary." Noelle agreed before she deadpanned. "Which is probably something Yuno loves about her. Besides him just naturally loving Ren for who she is."

"Like how you love your knucklehead of a husband." Kane stated, sipping his tea.

"Yes. Yes I do." Noelle smiled lightly. "And I do not regret it."

"Neither does he, I bet." Kane smirked.

"I don't see why he would regret it." Noelle remarked. "Forced marriage by Mother or not, it's better this way."

"Oh no I meant Yuno. Despite the fact my niece was in denial about liking him." Kane scoffed.

"Oh! Yes!" Noelle laughed. "I don't believe Yuno regrets it either. You know the saying of love at first sight, right? That was basically Yuno and your niece. Well, more specifically with Yuno, but my point still stands."

"Ugh don't remind me. Despite the fact I was asleep inside him, I could still feel his emotions. And it was driving me crazy with him being smitten with her." Kane grunted.

"Pftt!" Noelle snickered.

"And don't get me started on the dreams too." Kane scowled. This however just made Noelle laugh even more.

"Oh do tell!"

"Let me put it to you this way." Kane scoffed. "He already has a good idea on their wedding." At that remark, Noelle went into full blown laughter.

"Hahahahaha!" Noelle laughed. "Oh wow! This far in advance, too?!"

"He's dreamed of her in the wedding dress, you tell me." Kane deadpanned.

"So the entire wedding then." Noelle replied after she finished laughing. "That's just…oh my god… That's just too rich." She paused, then continued. "Hey, what do you plan to do? I think Licht is in the library now. I did see him get up from the table by the corner of my eye earlier and he seemed to be heading in that direction."

"There are still things I wanna do myself given I have my own body now. Plus I still need to get my own grimoire for my magic." Kane said. "I'll get to know my father and niece soon enough. But there are things I wish to learn about myself as an individual, given the fact I died in the womb and have been brought back as a full grown adult now."

"Ironically by the hands of Zagred, the one who took practically everything from you." Noelle frowned deeply.

"Yes, fate is ironic like that." Kane replied lightly. "Regardless, my grimoire comes first. I'll ask Ren where to go before she leaves with Asta."

"Dammit Captain! Will you stop being so stubborn?!"

"What are you talking about Yuno?" William asked Yuno. "I'm not being stubborn. I am simply stating facts."

"You can be reciting the rules of a Magic Knight for all I care. But the fact is you're malnourished, injured, drastically low in mana, and just plain weakened. You need to come with me to see a healer." Yuno scowled, staring down at his Captain, who was laid on one of the church beds.

"I don't need a healer, Yuno." William remarked. "Besides, I see this more as my punishment."

"No. Being tortured and forcibly drained of your mana by the same people who forced a devil contract on me is your punishment." Yuno deadpanned. "Now you need to recover."

"Recover?" William repeated before shaking his head. "I don't deserve it."

"Oh for the love of…!" Bell groaned. "Yuno! Just knock him out, bind him with Liable Tempest, then carry him back! This is going nowhere!"

"He's still my Captain." Yuno deadpanned. "And I rather not have to explain to the Wizard King or Queen Acier what happened." Father Orsi sweatdropped, watching his foster son argue with his spirit and Captain before hearing the door and walking to it as Bell groaned loudly.

"Well he's not listening to reason!" She scowled. "It'll be easier just to knock him out!"

"I'm not going to do that." Yuno retorted firmly. "As tempting as it is to do so, I will not."

"I knew we should've let Ren come with us. She would've stared him down into submission." Bell scoffed. Yuno glanced at Bell, then back at his very stubborn Captain on whether he should be allowed to recover or not.

"...Yeah. I suppose we should have brought Ren with us." Yuno agreed.

"No duh!" Bell yelled.

"Well I can definitely see what Ren meant." The 3 quickly looked to see Father Orsi with him, a cloaked individual stepping up.

"I'm sorry Yuno, but she said she was sent by Ren." Father Orsi explained.

"Sent by Ren?" Yuno questioned. The individual removed her hood to reveal a pretty female elf with long pale gold blond hair tied back by a sunflower, aquamarine eyes, pale skin, and after removing her cloak showed to wear a gray-white dress with a braided belt around her waist, and brown sandals.

"My name is Alina, I am one of the healers in the Elysia Tribe. Ren asked me to come here in regards to a William Vangeance." She explained.

"Oh. That's good." Yuno remarked. "Because my Captain is being super stubborn about this."

"Yeah, Ren warned me about that." Alina nodded, looking at William. "And I see this is him. And already I can tell his mana range is at embers. Those bastards nearly drained him to the bone."

"I can tell." Yuno groaned. "And yet even still, he's still being stubborn."

"Honestly." Alina sighed. She walked over to William, getting a good look at his face.

"And malnourished. Clearly hasn't been fed or drank any water in days, I can smell the dry blood on him as well, and no doubt unable to sleep either." She frowned, reaching for William, who quickly moved back.

"There is no need for you to do anything, I-!" Before William could continue, Alina grabbed his chin and moved him forward.

"Behave." She deadpanned. "You are a 26 year old man who has been through hell for who knows how long and needs proper treatment. And I refuse to hear any self hating and self blaming smack talk to avoid the necessary treatment you need in order to survive. Because at the end of the day, you are still one of the Magic Knight Captains of this Kingdom who will be necessary in protecting the citizens here from those things we call the Dark Triad. Yes, giving your body to a genocidal, angsty, emo elf spirit was idiotic on your part, but if you wish to make up for what you did, then recover and protect the people like you should. Because it is your job to do like how it is my job to help you recover as a healer. Are we clear?" Yuno and Bell gaped at Alina's words, while William just looked down.

"...Yes….." William spoke softly.

"Good." Alina nodded, letting William go and looked at a gaping Yuno. "And Yuno I take it. I would like for you to use your winds to take us to the Silva Manor to keep William in a private environment without chance of others coming in to give him a chance to relax and to focus on recovery, alright?"

"I was going to do that." Yuno remarked. "But my Captain was being quite stubborn. Regardless, I'll do it now."

"Excellent. I'll need you to help carry him then and we'll be off." Alina smiled. "Come along." Alina walked outside as the others watched her.

"...What just happened?!" Bell yelled.

"The healer Ren sent put Captain Vangeance into submission." Yuno answered. "Far better and faster than me. Regardless, come on Bell."

"Yeah yeah." Bell rolled her eyes. "Just carry your Captain with your winds."

"That Acier better be in that Infirmary or so help me." Asta followed Ren inside the palace of the kingdom to see Julius.

"I still can't believe you can get Queen Acier to submit like that." Asta remarked.

"Like I said, it's not hard." Ren shrugged.

"Huh." Asta mused. "Regardless, we're going to see the Wizard King first. We could see Lady Acier after that."

"And if she isn't in the infirmary." Fay said, looking to Ren. "Hunting?"

"Hunting." Ren confirmed.

"Oh dear." Asta gulped. They then reached the research lab where they went inside, seeing an excited Julius talking with Makusa, while Max tried to calm him down.

"Sir please! I know you're excited, but you might accidentally break something in this research lab if you keep your excitement levels up so high!" Marx told Julius in a scolding mannerism. Despite his words, Julius ultimately seemed to ignore him.

"Julius heel." Ren deadpanned, making the 3 jump.

"Oh! Hello Ren!" Julius greeted the bluette. "I take it you got me and Makusa's call, then?"

"From Acier, yes." Ren said.

"Good." Julius smiled. "Now then, Makusa will explain how this will work." Makusa nodded and stepped forward.

"Think of this like an IV." Makusa began. "With that, you're putting fluids into your body to help it. This is similar. We will be injecting the mana into you, Asta. Of course for a time, you will need to inject mana doses on a daily basis. This will enable your body to get used to it before being able to use it as a means to reproduce the mana naturally."

"How long does Asta need to take the mana doses until his body gets used to it?" Ren asked. Makusa looked at Julius for a brief moment, then looked back at Asta and Ren.

"That solely depends on Asta's body." Makusa frowned. "Because he's been manaless his entire life, up until now, it will probably take his body, I'd say…about 2-3 years to get used to it. Of course this is just a guess and nothing more. It could take 2-3 years as I said. Or it could take 1 and half years, or even less than that."

"But it could also take more time." Julius added. "Regardless of how long it takes for his body to get used to the mana, he will need someone to do the mana injections for him. Preferably you or Noelle."

"There's also the possibility that my body gets used to it right away, right?" Asta questioned.

"We can't rush it Asta." Ren frowned. Asta turned to Ren and nodded.

"I know Ren." He replied. "But it is a possibility, right?"

"It is, but the chances are low; given you've been manaless your entire life. If we inject it into your body all at once, it would be too harsh on your body with negative effects." Makusa warned.

"Indeed." Julius agreed. "For example, you could get extremely sick. That is something none of us want." He laughed awkwardly. "And if you ended up getting sick because of me and Makusa's work, I know Noelle, Acier, and quite possibly Ren, would have my and Makusa's heads."

"You're learning." Ren smiled.

"I am yes." Julius laughed lightly as Makusa handed Asta a box.

"This box holds the needle and mana tubes you will need to have injected into you." Makusa told Asta. "When you start running low, you will need to call me so I can make refills."

"Sounds like a plan." Ren nodded.

"How many are in here?" Asta wondered aloud.

"A year's worth." Makusa answered.

"Plenty then." Ren replied. "Come on Asta, let's head back and do the first dose."

"Alright Ren." Asta smiled lightly. "Thanks Wizard King sir! Mr. North!"

"Of course." Makusa nodded.

Asta and Ren walked in the Silva manor as Ren closed the door.

"Now then, we should get started for the first-"

"For the love of God William Vangeance, hold still! You make it look as if I haven't seen a male naked before!" An aggravated Alina shouted from upstairs. "I have to clean the dry blood and dirt off of you!"

"I can do it myself thank you very much!" A flustered sounding William shouted.

"Like hell you can! You look ready to pass out in the tub!" Alina shouted.

"Oh looks like she got him here." Ren remarked unfazed by the shouting.

"Yeah, she did." Asta remarked. "That means Yuno probably dropped his Captain off and left. But before we do that dose, I should probably see how Noelle's doing."

"You can do that after we give you the dose." Ren said. "Better to do it now rather then later."

"Ugh… My head…" Noelle groaned as walked out of the living room area of the house's main floor. "All that shouting not only woke me up, but it gave me a headache." She looked up and noticed Asta and Ren. "Oh! You 2 are back. That's good."

"Yup. Just about to give Asta his first mana dose." Ren replied.

"Mana dose?" Noelle repeated before she realized what that meant. "Oh! Now I see. Mind if I watch? I'm going to have to learn to do it myself at some point. Better start to learn now rather then later."

"My thoughts exactly." Ren nodded, as they walked to the dining hall. "Ok Asta, sit down and we can get started."

"Alright." Asta pulled out one of the dining room chairs and sat down on it. Ren got to work with the IV placing the first dose connected with the tube before tying the needle.

"Ok, the needle is all set." Ren hummed. Upon seeing the needle, Asta flinched and started to move away. Unfortunately for him, since he was sitting in a chair, he couldn't move back too much. Otherwise he'd make the chair tilt backwards; thus ultimately could end up hurting himself.

"I know Mr. North said it was like an IV, but still!" Asta groaned. "Why can't I just drink the liquified mana instead?!"

"Cause that's the equivalent of pouring molten lava down your throat." Ren deadpanned. "What's the big deal? It's just a needle."

"Exactly!" Asta partially shouted. Noelle blinked at Asta's squeamish attitude towards the needle, then started giggling. Asta turned to face Noelle and gave her a frustrated, yet pouty look. "What's so funny Noelle?"

"Pfft! Hahaha!" Noelle laughed. "I'm sorry, but you? Afraid of a needle? Asta. you train daily, you've fought against powerful opponents like Patri and one of the Diamond Kingdom's Shining Generals, Anna Dreyfus. Yet you're afraid of a tiny needle. I'm sorry, but I can't help but laugh."

"Plus you're the first person to jump head first into danger without any regard for your safety." Ren added with a deadpan expression. "Yet a tiny needle freaks you out?"

"Hahaha!" Fay laughed.

"Yes!" Asta shouted in a high pitched tone. "Everyone has a fear, right?!"

"Well look, you need the dose. So we can do this the easy way or the hard way." Ren sighed. Asta looked at Noelle, who looked back at Asta, then the 2 looked at Ren.

"I take it the easy way is to just let it happen." Noelle remarked.

"And the hard way would be…" Asta trailed off, as if he knew what the hard was.

"This." Ren snapped her fingers for ropes of light to tie up Asta on the chair.

"Ack!" Asta yelped. "Okay! I get your point!" Ren smirked as she got out a tourniquet before wrapping it around Asta's upper left bicep before taking his forearm and lightly tapped it.

"...Ok see a vein." She hummed, getting the needle. She easily pierced Asta's forearm with the needle making him yelp. With his free hand, Asta grabbed Noelle's hand that was closest to him and lightly squeezed it.

"Let me know when it's over." Asta spoke softly to Noelle. Noelle looked at Asta and nodded, glancing at the IV.

"It's already in." Ren assured, starting the IV. She watched as the mana was transferred from the vial through the tube and in Asta's arm. "Feel anything?"

"Other than the pain of the needle? I do feel the mana coming in." Asta answered.

"Any tingling? Anything at all?" Ren asked.

"What do you mean by that?" Asta asked, completely oblivious to the fact that he was indeed feeling a tingling sensation.

"By the mana Asta." Ren sweatdropped. "You've never had mana in your body your entire life. Does it feel like anything to you?"

"He's getting a tingling feeling." Noelle remarked. "He just hasn't noticed it himself yet."

"Of course he hasn't." Ren sighed. Then they heard grumbling and looked up to see a ruffled Alina walking down the stairs.

"Honestly he makes my children patients look well behaved." She scoffed.

"You can see why I called you to come here." Ren smiled amused.

"Oh yeah, laugh it up giving me a highly difficult patient." Alina scowled, undoing her tie and ran a hand through her hair. "It's gonna take months for him to be healthy enough physically. And that's not even adding into his mana depletion."

"Think you can help him with that?" Ren asked.

"I got a spell for it. But if what you told me about his normal mana quantity is true, then it's gonna be a long process." Alina frowned. "He needs to stay in bed, which means no Magic Knight duties whatsoever. And to keep someone next to him when I'm not around so he won't try to do something behind my back."

"Yeah that sounds reasonable. I'll be sure to tell Julius." Ren said.

"Thank you. Now I have to go to the kitchen to make his meal." Alina said, going off to the kitchen. Noelle watched Alina go before turning to face Ren.

"So she's the healer you called." Noelle noted.

"Yup, Alina. She's an Elf hybrid like myself and one of the best healers in the tribe, second only to the head healer." Ren smiled. "And with a sharp tongue to boot. I figured she'd be the best person to deal with the stubborn one upstairs."

"Makes sense to me." Noelle hummed, looking back at the IV. "Oh, it's done it seems."

"Ah good." Ren hummed. She got a piece of gauze to press down on the injection spot before removing the needle and securing it.

"And there all done. It wasn't so bad.""

"Yes it was." Asta groaned as Noelle put tape on the gauze to secure it.

"Even if you don't get used to it, you still have to do it." Noelle told him. "I know it's a pain, but it's necessary."

"Especially when you want to use magic." Ren added, putting away the equipment. Asta only groaned loudly in response, knowing full well that not only was his wife right, but so was Ren.

"Yes I know." He spoke in a defeated tone.

"Good boy." Ren smiled. "Now I'll go check on William."

"Alright Ren." Noelle nodded. "Oh before you go, I talked to Kane earlier today. Think you could at some point lead him to a grimoire tower? If he's going to be helping us in these upcoming fights, he's going to need a grimoire."

"Yeah you do have a point. I'll take him to the one near Hage after I see Wiliam." Ren hummed.

"Isn't it getting a bit late though?" Noelle pointed out.

"Please. I got mine in the dead of night." Ren shrugged. "Besides if it ends up being a 4 leaf clover, I would rather not have him deal with the attention swarming in."

"Hmm, that's fair." Noelle hummed. "Come on Asta, we should probably go upstairs ourselves."

Ren went upstairs to a guest room to find a ruffled and freshly cleaned William sitting on the bed, making her smile in amusement.

"Well you look fresh." She smirked. William looked up to see Ren as she came in.

"You sent her, didnt you?" He accused.

"I did." Ren grinned.

"She's a menace." William groaned.

"She wouldn't have to be if you weren't so stubborn." Ren smirked.

"Ugh…" William groaned.

"At any rate, she'll be in charge of your recovery. Which means no work for you." Ren replied.

"What?" William questioned.

"Yup." Ren nodded. "How do you feel?"

"Tired." William remarked.

"Well that's to be expected. It's gonna be some months until you fully recover." She replied.

"Sorry, but I can't sit idly while my squad needs me." William retorted.

"Your squad is gonna be watched by me since I'll be supervising their training to learn Mana Method and to improve their mana skills." She smirked. "Which means you can focus on your recovery." William once again groaned at Ren's words; this time in defeat. Even if he'd never say it aloud, he knew Ren was right.

"As long as you don't kill them, then I'll allow it." William eventually replied.

"What makes you think I'd kill them?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Well…" William began. "You can be a bit…scary."

"Ah! Me, scary? I'd never!" Ren faked gasps, while Fay laughed.

"Yes." William spoke tiredly.

"Don't worry, they'll be fine." She smirked. "Once you eat, just get some rest."

"Right…" William spoke softly. "But…where's Alina?"

"Went to the kitchen to make you something." Ren replied.

"Oh." William spoke. "I wonder what it'll be." Then the door opened to reveal Alina coming in with a tray that had a bowl and a glass of water.

"Ok I'm back. Now since you haven't eaten in ages, we'll need to start you off with something malleable for your stomach to handle." Alina said, walking past Ren to set the tray on William's lap. "I prepared a warm broth and a glass of water. If this goes well, we'll check more solid foods next."

"Alright." William nodded as he took the spoon from the tray and began to eat the broth. "Mmm…"

"Going down ok?" Alina asked. "Does it feel like it'll come up?"

"No, it's quite good." William spoke.

"Hmm ok good. Try to finish the entire bowl, but don't force yourself, got it?" She told him.

"Got it." William nodded.

"Well I'll leave you 2 be then. If he gets difficult be sure to tell Julius. He's the only one William listens to." Ren replied, going for the door.

"Oh believe me I will." Alina scoffed. William looked up at Ren, then at Alina, then back at Ren. A slightly embarrassed look appeared on his facial features. After a few seconds, he looked back down at broth and water on the food tray before him.

"H-Hey…" William mumbled.

"William, I heard enough about you to know how you tick." Ren smirked, leaving the room. Alina watched her leader go before glancing at William.

"You know she's right. You're quite predictable." She replied.

"What do you mean that I'm predictable?" William questioned.

"You're easy to read, naive, and quite innocent for a man your age." Alina stated.

"Considering how my life was when I was younger, that probably has something to do with it." William replied. "And then Julius found me. Gave me a place to call home." He laughed hoarsely. "I don't even remember my family's home."

"I take it that it was because of the birthmark on your face?" Alina asked. William turned to look at Alina and nodded.

"Yes, but this isn't a birthmark." William answered. "It's a curse."

"A curse?" Alina questioned.

"Yes." William nodded. "Though I do not know who did it to me. Nor do I know who cursed Charlotte. Yami apparently freed Charlotte from her curse around 10 years ago."

"But what sort of curse is it? Does it harm you in some way?" Alina questioned, taking a good look at the marking.

"Not that I can tell, no." William remarked. "It's probably related to one of those stories where those that bear this mark are destined for misfortune or something."

"Oh that's a bunch of malarkey." Alina scoffed, waving her hand. "It's just a mark on your face. It's not gonna hurt anyone, let alone you."

"Yeah? Tell that to my Mother." William mumbled. "She despised me to no end. Hated me with a passion because of this mark. Saw me as a defective child. The only person who never treated me differently, besides Julius, was Patri. Even if it paints me as naive, I…. I truly understood Patri's feelings. I suppose that's why me and him got along so well." He shrugged before continuing. "I don't know. That's just my viewpoint on my relationship between myself and Patri. Maybe he feels nothing towards me, but I do towards him."

"In regards to your mother, she was just the plain old stereotypical noblewoman who cares only of appearances and status and would step on anyone to get higher status. To put it simply, she was a monster." Alina scoffed. "And as for Patri, despite understanding his pain, you should've known he was unstable, dangerous, and a menace to humans who had nothing to do with what happened to his tribe ages ago. If you had really wanted to help him, then you should've done what your Wizard King did for you instead of letting him take control of your body and nearly wiped out an innocent kingdom. Anger doesn't help nor save anyone. Pain doesn't justify one's actions. Trying to 'get back' at someone feeling as if you have the 'right' to do something similar to what was done to you just makes you the same as them. You have to be the bigger person in these sorts of things and to prove those tragedies don't define you. You have to learn to use those experiences to make you better as a person. That was something your Wizard King wanted for you. To give you the chance to be who you want to be and not let the words of your mother define and rule your existence." William took in all of Alina's words and had them go on repeat in his head several times. After several minutes of silence and him taking a few more sips of the broth and a sip or 2 of the water, William finally spoke.

"Yeah…you're right." William replied.

"Oh?" Alina asked.

"I've been letting my Mother and Patri define who I am." William answered. "I won't let that be the case anymore. Though this won't stop me from trying to keep my friendship with Patri. In the end, no matter how heinous his acts were, I still care about him. Nothing you or Ren say about him will change my mind about it."

"Heh we all know that. That's why I said you're quite innocent for a man your age." Alina smirked. "But if he keeps acting smart with Ren, don't bother trying to save him from her wrath. Especially when he deserves it."

"As long as Ren doesn't kill him for anything stupid he says, then I won't say or do anything to intervene." William replied.

"Good, you're learning. As for your squad and companions, if you wanna start regaining trust again with them, I suggest not hiding your face." Alina replied. "Ren told me you used to wear a mask given to you by your Wizard King to hide your face. But if you want to regain trust, you'll need to be more open and that would be a good start."

"Right." William nodded. "From now on, I'll show my face to them." He then frowned. "The only problem with that is… There is the possibility that they'll reject me. I….. I don't want to experience that ever again."

"I highly doubt that's gonna happen." She scoffed. "From what I heard, you have quite the loyal squad despite what you've done. Even that Yuno was still worried about you even though he doesn't show it. And it's clear your Wizard King still views and values you as a comrade and ally. So I'm sure it'll be the same for your fellow Captains as well. Besides." William jumped when Alina touched his cheek gently stroking his temple and giving a light smile.

"You're quite the looker. Mark and all." She admitted.

"Wh-Whaaaa…?!" William felt his face heating up at Alina's words.

"Oh yeah, especially your eyes. Such a lovely shade of purple like an amethyst." Alina hummed.

"E-Ehh?" William gaped, his face becoming redder by the second.

"What? It's the truth. Oh wait, you don't get compliments that often do you?" She asked, mildly amused. William shook his head, confirming what Alina had said.

"That's the truth." William remarked sadly. Alina looked surprised, but then smiled, patting his back.

"Well I'll know what to do while helping you recover." She remarked.

"And pray tell, what's that?" William asked, somewhat afraid of the answer.

"Why complimenting you and help you feel good about yourself of course. After all, I'm not just here to help you heal physically, but mentally as well." She smiled. William nodded at Alina's words a bit numbly.

"R-Right…" He spoke softly. She then saw his empty bowl and cup and took the tray.

"Looks like you were able to keep it down. We'll try a slightly larger portion tomorrow and see if you can swallow some bread." She hummed. "Now we'll be starting the treatment."

"Treatment?" William repeated.

"For your mana." She said, getting out her grimoire and opening it. "Sunflower Recovery Magic: Blessed Flower." Growing from her magic was a beautiful sunflower as it shined a pale gold light onto William. "This recovery spell helps one recover their mana. But of course your mana reserves are very low, so we'll do this a few times a day and every night while you sleep." She explained.

"O-Oh." William spoke softly. "So this is what you meant by treatment."

"That's right. But for right now you just get some good sleep. Something you haven't had in a long while and deserve." She said, gently settling him on the bed and tucked him in.

"Right…" William mumbled. "N…Night…"

"Goodnight William." She smiled gently.

"Would….Would it be alright if you stayed in here?" William asked. She looked surprised for a moment before she gently smiled, pulling up the chair by his bedside and sat down. "Thanks…"

"You're welcome. Now sweet dreams." She smiled.

"I can't promise that." William laughed softly.

"I can when I'm here." She chuckled, rubbing his hand.

"H-Ha. Right." William replied. She smiled as she watched him slowly fall asleep as she relaxed on her chair.

"Ok this is the place." The next morning (probably around noon), Ren stood in front of the same Grimoire Tower she received her grimoire years ago with Kane next to her, both wearing cloaks with their hoods up.

"Come on, let's go in." Ren replied.

"Right." Kane nodded, heading inside the tower. Once they stepped inside, they put down their hoods and looked at the grimoires within.

"There's way more in here than I thought there'd be." Kane noted.

"Well this tower gives grimoires to not just the ones in this village, but the neighboring ones as well." Ren explained.

"Huh. Well that makes sense." Kane remarked. "Which village is this, then? The village where your boyfriend grew up?"

"No actually. Hage is the next village over, but he did come here to get his grimoire." She replied. Kane hummed as he continued to look around the inside of the Grimoire Tower. Each grimoire design caught his eye due to their uniqueness.

"I wonder what my grimoire will be like." Kane hummed to himself. "Though I may not even get one. Since I may be over the age of 15."

"Well if Patri was able to gain his while using William's body, then I'm sure you can gain yours." She replied.

"Oh yeah, that idiot got his grimoire through William's body." Kane grunted. "Except Patri was 15 at the time. Still, I'm moreso curious on what mine will be."

"You mean how many leaves it'll have?" She asked, amused. Kane only humphed before responding.

"Something like that, yes." He grunted. "My magic has already been determined, so that's not a non issue at this point."

"Very true." She hummed, looking around. "So really all it comes down to is your grimoire."

"Imagine if it was a 4 leaf clover grimoire." Kane snickered.

"Hahaha! Well given how I have a 4 leaf clover, your Father has a 4 leaf clover, and your human incarnation has a 4 leaf clover, luck might just be with you." Ren snickered.

"Heh. We shall-" But before Kane could finish, a green auraed grimoire flew out of one of the shelves and down to him. And just as they were talking about, it's a 4 leaf clover grimoire.

"See?" Ren finished with a grin.

"...Oh wow." Kane muttered. "I guess I have a 4 leaf clover grimoire, too."

"Bwahahaha! Your family just breaks the traditional sense of 4 leaf clovers." Fay laughed.

"I guess it does." Kane remarked. "What's next? I gain a spirit?"

"Bell is with Yuno and she aint leaving him any time soon." Fay smirked.

"Oh I know." Kane remarked. "But my Magic is Vortex Magic."

"Still wind based." Fay pointed out. Kane only humphed at Fay's words; not fazed by them whatsoever. He then crossed his arms and grunted again, feeling some form of irritation from Fay.

"Enough you two. We got the grimoire, so best we get going." Ren said, putting up her hood. "Kane has training to do. And I have to go to Golden Dawn to train them."

"Huh?" Kane wondered. "Why go there?"

"A while back Acier asked me to help teach the Magic Knights here on the Heart Kingdom's Mana Method. And since William is in no condition to lead, you can say I'm sort of a pseudo leader for them until he's back on his feet while teaching them the Mana Method." Ren explained.

"Plus it's her boyfriend's squad. Need I say more?" Fay smirked.

"Heh. Fair." Kane snickered.

"Oh shut up Fay. And let's go." Ren scoffed, hiding her red face.

"Sure sure, niece." Kane snickered.

0713MM: And that does it for Chapter 45! As I said, Chapters 45-56/57 will be longer chapters than most due to the fact that these chapters are covering 1 year of training for the characters for what's to come for the Spade Kingdom Arc. And I know I missed a few things I wanted to cover in this chapter, but I will be bringing them up (hopefully if I remember lol) during the next chapter. Also, I apologize for how long this took to come out. I suffered a burnout for a time in regards to writing for this fanfic. But hopefully I'm able to get back to writing soon. Not just for this fanfic, but for all the fanfics I have.