The fiery red star burned in the sky, but no one noticed it—only Marcus felt the sensation.
Then, the grimoire began to glow. Suddenly,
"ASTROPA!!!" A roar reverberated in his ears, and a blinding light shone down on Marcus.
It completely enveloped him, and then, just as suddenly, the star and its intensity vanished.
He quickly checked his body for any signs of abnormal activity.
Nothing. His body was perfectly fine, but he still felt the lingering force.
"What the hell was that?"
"What was that star and that force?" He quickly grabbed the floating grimoire and examined it. Nothing had changed.
Except... the level had shifted from 0 to A.
Marcus fell into deep thought. Something was going on with this grimoire—the star-shaped symbol on the cover, the bizarre magic.
He sighed. I should learn more about this mysterious magic.
He went to the hideout, suddenly feeling hungry.
As he entered the cafeteria, he began devouring everything in sight.
"Oh, if you're eating everything like that..."
"The food will be gone in no time... la... la..."
"Cotton Magic: Sheep Cook!"
Charmy roared, and three sheep materialized, beginning to cook everything in sight.
Charmy got competitive and started eating even more.
She finished faster than Marcus, and as his hunger was finally sated, he stopped eating.
Charmy, watching him, proudly stood up.
"I win! I'm the winner... la... la... la~"
After devouring the entire food stock, Marcus went for a walk in the hideout.
While walking, Marcus encountered the two newbies of the Black Bulls—Asta and Noelle—walking inside the hideout. He silently followed behind them.
A few steps later, he heard voices.
It was Captain Yami and Senior Magna, both naked except for their Black Bulls robes.
"We're no match for the old man, Seihi... ha... ha..."
"Ha... ha... ha..." Both of them laughed.
They noticed Asta and Noelle. "Oi, Stupido Asta, Noelle, we're back!"
Asta, energetically and curiously, asked, "Who's that man? What about the mission?"
"Mission, my ass. They lost everything gambling," Marcus said, stepping from behind to stand in front of them.
"What?!" Asta exclaimed in surprise. Magna chuckled awkwardly.
"Well, the opponent is strong," Captain Yami said, laughing proudly.
"Be happy, you three are going on your first mission as Magic Knights."
"Huh?" Noelle, embarrassed by the naked guys, turned away as we returned to the living room.
Now fully clothed, the guys gathered around.
"So, we're assigning you your first mission."
"Our first mission... as Magic Knights?"
"It better be something worthy of me as a royal."
"Yeah, you should feel honored… you'll be hunting wild boars in Saussy Village."
"Wild boars? What a lame mission."
"I can beat boars with my bare hands."
"Don't you dare underestimate wild boars! They appear out of nowhere suddenly," Magna warned, taking another drag from his cigarette.
"We lost to the Saussy Village mayor. Like Marcus said, we lost in cards. Now, you must fulfill the task he requested. Any questions?"
All three newbies raised their hands.
"This has nothing to do with us!"
"You two are the ones who lost, so—"
Magna roared, "You idiots! Are you asking Mister Yami to clean up his own mess? We're the ones who should handle Mister Yami's mistakes!"
As Magna finished, Captain Yami stood up with a deadly glare. "Are you going, or are you going to die?"
"Which will it be?"
"We're going!"
We had no choice anyway.
The group began discussing how to complete the task.
Magna turned to Finral. "Oi, Finral, use your spatial magic to get us to Saussy Village."
"Not happening."
"What do you mean, jerk?!" Magna yelled.
"I can only travel to places where I've marked the location with my magic."
"Huh?"
"Meaning, I can't go to places I've never been to before," Finral said calmly as he walked away.
"You're useless," Magna sighed.
"Guess we don't have another choice but to use brooms to get there."
"Magna, sir," Asta raised his hand.
"Yeah, Asta?" Magna turned his head.
"I can't fly a broomstick."
"I can't either," Noelle added, raising her hand.
"Then why act all high and mighty?"
Magna, irritated, turned his gaze to Marcus. "And you?"
"I can fly a broomstick," Marcus replied.
Magna sighed and led them outside. "Guess I don't have a choice. I'll give you a ride on my baby."
"Baby?"
"Her name is... Crazy Cyclone."
Asta's eyes lit up as he stared at it—not a regular broomstick but a motorbike-like design, with a skull head for handlebars.
Marcus cast a glance at it. "Wow, it's cool," he said, though one person disagreed.
"Lame," Noelle muttered, turning her head aside in disapproval.
Marcus brought out his own broomstick—a plain, ordinary one. Asta and Noelle hopped onto Crazy Cyclone, Noelle choosing it because she found Marcus intimidating, while Asta thought the vehicle was the coolest thing ever.
"Let's go! Fly!"
Crazy Cyclone roared to life and soared into the skies, with Marcus following behind.
Midair, Crazy Cyclone glided smoothly as Asta, wide-eyed, marveled. "This is amazing! We're flying!"
"Shut up and stay close, or you'll fall and die, stupista!" Magna roared.
Asta nodded and instinctively reached for Noelle for support, but the royal woman shoved him away with an embarrassed expression.
"What the—!" Magna exclaimed as Asta started to fall.
Marcus, with lightning speed, turned his broom midair and caught Asta with his hand just in time.
"You can follow me," Marcus said to Asta as he tossed him into midair.
Marcus's grimoire began glowing. The broom slowly covered in ice and transformed into a carriage—not a modern car, but a royal carriage from medieval times.
"Ah!!!"
Marcus caught Asta, who was falling.
He brought him into the carriage.
He made the carriage float alongside Crazy Cyclone.
"Wow! This is good!" Magna gave a thumbs-up, and even Noelle was impressed.
Marcus smirked. The top door of the carriage opened slightly, giving Asta a chance to climb to the top and enjoy the breeze.
As Asta cheered, they finally reached the location.
The boars might not have been strong, but they weren't easy either.
Once the task was complete, we walked toward the village while Magna retold his story—how he'd been a delinquent, always picking on the villagers and how the mayor had always kicked his ass.
He even shared his dream of joining the Knight Squad and how it had shaped him into the man he was today.
As the story ended, they reached the outskirts of the village. From there, they could see the village—but it wasn't the peaceful place Magna had described.
It was now covered in a mist barrier.