[Third Person's PoV]
After Stephen and Luck's sparring session, a little girl with black hair approached them carrying a picnic basket. "Here's one for you, Luck. And you must be Stephen, right? I'm Charmy. Here, have one; it'll help restore your magic power!" Charmy said cheerfully, pulling out a cupcake from her basket.
"Thanks…" Stephen said as he took a bite. His eyes widened in surprise. "Whoa, these are actually really good."
Charmy rubbed the back of her head, a little embarrassed. "Aww, shucks."
Stephen glanced over and saw that Asta had already finished his fight, evident from the soot-blackened face of Magna nearby.
"Whoa, dude! To be able to keep up with Luck, you must be pretty strong!" Magna said, giving Stephen a thumbs-up, clearly impressed by his abilities.
Magna then pulled out two Black Bulls robes and handed them to Stephen and Asta. "The two of you earned these—wear them with pride! From now on, you're officially members of the Black Bulls!"
As Stephen took his robe, he levitated slightly off the ground. A ring of his magic appeared around him, passing over his body as his clothes transformed. His shirt and pants turned black, now emblazoned with the Black Bulls' logo on his chest and thigh, while keeping a stylish flair.
He floated back to the ground with his hands casually in his pockets, and Vanessa let out a playful whistle. "Talk about fashionable!"
She then turned to Asta, pointing her wand at his headband, which turned black with the Black Bulls symbol while he donned his new robe.
Stephen, puzzled, glanced at Vanessa and asked, "So... why aren't you wearing any clothes? Is this squad really that poor?"
"Freedom of choice!" Vanessa winked.
Stephen shrugged slightly, bowing his head politely. "I see. I will not judge you then. As long as you're happy."
Vanessa gave him a playful pat on the back. "Aren't you just adorable? How about having a drink with me?"
"If you're not talking about beer, sure. If you are, maybe another time."
Vanessa nodded with a grin. "I'll hold you to that promise."
Before the conversation could continue, Magna hooked his arm around Stephen's neck, dragging him and Asta. "Let's go, you newbies! It's time for your senior to show you around the base!"
As they were hauled through the base, Magna led them into a large dining hall. "This is where we eat!"
Asta's eyes widened in amazement. "Whoa! It's huge!"
"That's what she said…" Magna added with a cheeky grin.
They moved to the next area. "And this is the main bath!" Magna presented the steaming room.
"Wow! It's so big too!" Asta exclaimed again, brimming with enthusiasm.
Magna, not missing a beat, responded, "That's also what she said."
Magna pointed down a hallway with spikes and chains. "That way leads to the girls' rooms. And if a guy tries to go down there, he's met with trap magic."
"Offed? WHAT!?" Asta asked, his face frozen in horror.
Stephen merely shrugged, adding dryly, "I don't even have anything to say to that."
"And over here is the wild animal room!" Magna continued, showing them a heavily barred room with wild beasts.
Asta's eyes widened. "Why would you even need that!?"
Stephen, however, looked inside thoughtfully. "They seem nice…"
Both Magna and Asta exchanged a look as if Stephen had lost his mind.
As they continued the tour, they ran into a girl with bright silver hair and an air of nobility.
"There you are! Asta, Stephen, meet your other teammate—a newcomer just like you two!" Magna said, gesturing toward her.
"I'm Asta from Hage! Let's get along!" Asta said cheerfully, extending his hand.
The silver-haired girl slapped his hand away. "Don't address me so casually, commoner. I am Noelle Silva—"
Before she could finish, Stephen, unimpressed, began walking away.
"What—why are you walking away!? Don't you know it's rude to leave during an introduction, especially when it's royalty talking?" Noelle called after him.
Stephen turned his head slightly, his expression apathetic. "It's also rude to treat people the way you're treating them. So, unless you plan to fix your attitude, I couldn't care less about learning your name."
Noelle's eyes widened in shock, while Asta rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. "Uh, sorry about that. Stephen's the type who believes you should treat others the way you want to be treated. Since you were rude, well… he's going to be rude back."
Noelle's face twisted in indignation. "Who does he think he is? I'm royalty!" she huffed, summoning a large ball of water in her hand. "Let's see how he deals with this!" She launched the water spell at Stephen's back.
Without turning, Stephen kept walking. The water ball veered off course, splashing harmlessly against the wall. Noelle clicked her tongue in frustration.
…
Stephen stood in front of what was supposed to be his room. It was small, filled with cobwebs, and looked more like a cell than living quarters.
"This will be your room from now on! Enjoy!" Luck said, patting Stephen's back before skipping away cheerfully.
Stephen cracked his fingers and muttered to himself, "This is going to need some serious remodeling." He opened his grimoire, flipping through its pages.
"You ready?" Stephen asked Nero, the small bird perched on his shoulder.
Nero chirped in response as Stephen summoned his magic, enveloping the room.
…
A short while later, Stephen stood proudly in front of a completely transformed space. A large bed occupied the center wall, surrounded by shelves filled with books on magic and medicine. To one side stood a wardrobe and cabinet, while on the other, empty shelves awaited artifacts he planned to collect in the future. His Cloak of Levitation rested on a nearby hanger.
Stephen admired his work. "You know, Nero, we could make a lot of money if we went into construction," he teased, glancing at the bird, who chirped in agreement.
With the room to his satisfaction, Stephen sat down on his newly crafted bed and noted that night had fallen. He decided to head into his grimoire's magical library, his body floating peacefully in meditation as he studied.
An hour later, Stephen returned to his body, while Nero settled on one of the pillows, falling asleep. Meanwhile, Stephen, ever the scholar, entered astral projection, continuing his studies in medicine, as one way or another he was going to want that Doctor title to his name, even if it was the last thing he ever did.
As he read, his focus was interrupted by a series of explosions outside. Confused, he glanced out the window and spotted Noelle standing near a tree, attempting to hit a target with her magic but missing spectacularly.
Curious, Stephen quietly opened the window and observed, raising an eyebrow at her efforts.
'It's really early in the morning… Shouldn't she be getting her beauty sleep since she's nobility or what not?'
Stephen saw her train and train until sweat covered her face and was panting heavily.
'Maybe there's more to her than meets the eyes' Stephen thought, impressed with dedication, as he continued to study her. Trying to find out why she kept failing.
He then tilted his head in confusion, 'Why is she expecting to fail every time?'
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