Strange use of Magic (Black Clover AU) Chapter 117: Strange and Mysterious

[Third Person's PoV] 


As Stephen and the rest of the Black Bulls traveled through the portal to be with Yami, Langris jumped down toward Yuno and Mimosa, an arrogant and haughty look on his face.


"Good grief, what a vulgar lot they are. You should choose your friends more wisely, Yuno. Aren't you embarrassed to be seen with people like them? And you, Mimosa—how can you act so lovey-dovey with that commoner fiancé of yours? If I were you, I would have done everything I could to oppose such a disgraceful union."


Yuno merely stared at Langris with an impassive expression. "No. Why should I be embarrassed? It's quite the opposite—I'm proud of both Stephen and Asta. They're my rivals."


Langris laughed. "Bahahahaha! Seriously? Rivals? What are you guys in, some kind of competition?"


"Yeah," Yuno replied. "Although Stephen has different ambitions, Asta and I are both working to become The Wizard King. The goal all three of us strive for is to see which one of us can accomplish our dreams first."


“...”


"Hahahaha! Wow! You really aren’t embarrassed! Do you commoners even feel embarrassment? I’d expect no less from the great peasant who was chosen by the four-leaf grimoire!" Langris teased.


"There are no rules that say a commoner can't become Wizard King. And first, I'll become Captain of the Golden Dawn," Yuno stated confidently, narrowing his eyes.


An irritated expression appeared on Langris’ face. "Oh yeah? So you’re completely ignoring me, the vice-captain—" He stopped mid-sentence as he noticed Mimosa looking at him with a sneer.


Yuno heard Mimosa click her tongue and mutter under her breath, "Why did I stop Stephen? I should have just let him punch him when he had the chance."


Yuno’s impassive expression broke into a faint smile as he heard her.


Langris sneered back. "What's with that look? That’s not a look you should be giving your vice-captain—I'm your superior, after all."


"Superior or not, I won’t let anyone talk badly about or look down on Stephen and our relationship," Mimosa scoffed coldly.


Langris looked down, pinching the bridge of his nose with one hand while the other rested on his hip. Chuckling and shaking his head, he sneered, "Just what spell has that commoner cast on you that you seem so enamored with him? Honestly, it's pathetic." With that, he turned and walked away.


Mimosa turned bright red, fuming, her teeth grinding together as her fists clenched. A green wave of mana slowly began swirling around her, growing in intensity.


Before she could act on her impulses, Yuno placed a hand on her shoulder and shook his head with a faint smile. "Like you told Stephen, you could get into trouble. And since you're his fiancée, I feel like it's my job to make sure you don’t. He’d be hurt if something happened to you," Yuno explained, managing to calm her slightly.


She took a deep breath, and the mana surrounding her began to settle. Exhaling, she released her fists and sighed. "The next time I see Stephen, I won’t stop him. In fact, I’ll encourage him—no, I’ll join him!" she declared, lifting her fist in determination.


Yuno suppressed the urge to laugh, his lips twitching in amusement. "You know, I’ve been meaning to ask—what is it that you like about Stephen? You seem to really care about him. Surely, it’s not just because he’s your fiancé, is it?"


Mimosa blushed and looked down in embarrassment, pressing her fingers together as she muttered, "He's… mysterious."


"Excuse me?" Yuno raised an eyebrow, taken aback by the unexpected answer.


Mimosa smiled as she reminisced. "It’s what drew me to him… When I first saw him, the first thought I had was that he seemed interesting. I wanted to get to know him."


"Interesting? Don't you mean handsome?" Sylph asked with a teasing grin.


Mimosa's ears turned pink. "You're not entirely wrong…" she muttered under her breath.


Yuno simply stared at his wind spirit. Noticing his gaze, Sylph frantically waved her hands. "But he's in no way more handsome than you! Mwah! Mwah!" she yelled, puckering her lips and making kissing noises as she floated toward his cheek, arms outstretched.


Yuno stopped her with his hand and turned back to Mimosa. "So, is it only because you find him mysterious?" he asked, narrowing his eyes as a small frown formed on his lips.


Mimosa chuckled and shook her head. "No, I said his mysteriousness caught my attention. Then, during the dungeon mission and beyond, I started to learn more about him. I realized he’s kind, compassionate, and intelligent. He has a cute, aggressive side when someone messes with the people he cares about, which I adore. The more I got to know him, the stronger my feelings grew," she said softly, pressing both hands to her chest and closing her eyes with a loving expression.


Her hands then moved to the four-leaf clover necklace he had given her. Chuckling, she continued, "Even so, that mysterious side of him never disappeared. It just makes me want to know more and more about him. And the more I learn, the deeper my feelings for him seem to grow…" she muttered mostly to herself, unconsciously voicing her emotions out loud.


"You're in loooooovvvvveeeee, huh?" Sylph teased, drawing out the word with a mischievous grin, a hand over her mouth.


Mimosa's cheeks burned a deep red as she began fanning her face. Then, she turned to Yuno with an embarrassed expression, only to find him looking at her with a faint smile. She glared at him, flustered, realizing she had shared more than she intended simply because she got caught up talking about Stephen.


"Don't you dare mention a word of this to Stephen, got it?" she demanded.


Yuno continued to smile before walking away. "Don't worry, I won't say a word… Sister-in-law."


Smoke practically puffed from Mimosa's forehead as she glared at his retreating back. "Don't you start teasing me too!"



---


When Stephen and the others arrived back on top of the walls of Kiten, they found Yami waiting for them, a cigarette in hand.


Yami looked at Stephen, an eyebrow twitching. "Have you forgotten the reason I brought you all here?" he asked, his expression showing mild irritation.


"Huh? Of course not. It was to gain experience—oh…" Stephen started before trailing off.


"Oh," Yami repeated mockingly. "Yeah. And how was anyone supposed to gain experience when you went and one-shot all of them with your little girlfriend—"


"Fiancée," Stephen interrupted, correcting him.


"Don't care," Yami scoffed. "Luckily, you all still trained sufficiently at the temple, so I’m not too upset about it—"


Before he could finish, both he and Stephen turned to look off into the distance, their expressions confused.


"What? What’s wrong? Is it another invasion?" Finral asked nervously, grabbing Stephen’s cape as if using it for protection.


The cape whipped out of his grasp and smacked him across the hands for suddenly gripping it.


Whack!


"Ouch," Finral muttered, rubbing the back of his hands.


Asta and Charmy turned in the same direction as Stephen and Yami, narrowing their eyes as if trying to see into the distance.


"What is it?" Charmy asked.


"You all stay here. Let me handle this. That’s an order," Yami said, shooting forward with a burst of mana, his aura glowing purple.


"It’s the Captain of the Golden Dawn," Stephen informed them, his eyes locked on a distant figure. "He’s here… watching from a safe distance."


"WHAT?!?!" everyone shouted in disbelief.