chapter 18: Battle of the capital part 2

At the same time:-

"Asta.. Rowan.. I have to help them, or else... How... Could someone like me..." Noelle clenched her fists and closed her eyes.

The words of her brother were heard in her head, calling her a failure. Some undead managed to get close to her. The Captain of the Crimson Lions set the creatures on a blaze and Noelle thanked him with a smile. "Thank you," she said gratefully.

Fuegoleon let out a sigh and karate-chopped her on the head. "Focus," he said sternly. Fuegoleon continued, "There is no time for such things on a battlefield! One wrong decision means one life lost! You are standing here as a member of the Magic Knights! If you join the Knights of your own free will, then steel yourself and get stronger! Being weak is nothing to be ashamed of, but staying weak is! You must hone your skills and become stronger, not just for yourself, but for your comrades as well!"

Noelle thought to herself, "That's right... they both keep proving that even if they are weak, they can still fight and protect each other. I have to get stronger too, so I can do the same and help protect them!" She clenched her fists and stood tall, ready to join the fight.

She looked at Asta and Rowan with a determined expression.

****

Rades shouted from behind them, "Weak guys die while they're still weak! die!"

Asta was feeling increasingly weaker, and the pain in his arm was getting worse. He was struggling to keep his grip on his sword, and he could feel his energy draining away. Rowan, too, was starting to feel the effects of the constant attacks from Jimmy. His wounds were starting to freeze, and he was struggling to keep fighting. With each attack, they were both getting weaker and weaker.

"[Water Creation Magic: Sea Dragon's Lair]!"

Rades shouted in surprise, "What!? No way!"

Noelle ran forward and used her Water Creation Magic to create a sphere of water that surrounded the little girl and protected her from his cursed attacks.

"Noelle!" Asta shouted in amazement.

Noelle huffed and said, "What are you two doing? Honestly, it's just painful to watch! I'll save you, so you'd better be grateful!"

Rowan glared at Rades with a fierce determination. "You're done now!" he said.

With a wave of his hand, a horde of undead creatures appeared and began to swarm towards them. "You little brats! Don't get cocky!" he shouted.

With a wave of his hand, a burst of flames shot out from Leopold and engulfed all of Rades' troops, quickly burning them to ash. Leopold shouted, "I'll back you up, rivals! Get that monster good! Show me your power!"

Asta smiled and said, "Uhm... Thank you very much! And don't worry, I was gonna do that anyway!" He then gripped his sword tightly and ran forward, ready to join the fight.

Asta rushed at Jimmy, who tried to hit him with his cursed beams. Asta spun in circles, repelling the attacks at the same time Rowan swung his sword rapidly and sent many slashes at Jimmy. With each attack, Jimmy became weaker and weaker, until finally, one last slash from Rowan finished him off.

Leopold let out a hearty laugh and said, "What an un-mage-like fighting style! You're way too much fun! Bwa ha ha ha!"

Rades glared at them, his face twisted in anger. "Don't let a dumb attack like that one take you down," he growled. "Jimmy! Quit gripping!"

Rades stepped back in surprise as Rowan appeared in front of him. His face went pale, and he could feel the anger radiating off of him. "You're next..." Rowan said coldly, his grip on his sword tightening. Rades knew he was in trouble now.

"Alfred!" Rades shouted. A new zombie Alfred sent out a burst of lightning, sending Rowan back.

Noelle shouted, "Rowan!"

Suddenly, a new figure appeared, a zombie wielding muddy water magic. This zombie was the opponent to Noelle and Leopold, and it unleashed a powerful deluge of water that threatened to overwhelm them.

Rades shouted, "That guy's your opponent! I control corpses and win just by watching! That's how I fight, you morons! End them Alfred!"

"Asta won't be able to hit the guy if he's flying... He'll just get zapped. I can take him from a distance but we'll just be trading blows at that point... Neve is my only option left..!" Rowan thought.

Suddenly, a figure appeared—it was Fuegoleon, the captain of the Crimson Lions. With a wave of his hand, the zombie Alfred was engulfed in flames. Fuegoleon smiled and said, "My apologies for horning in on your fight. I thought it would be a shame to let men like you die out here. Forgive me!"

"The Captain of the Crimson Lions...," Rowan whispered.

Fuegoleon then turned to Asta and Rowan and gave them a slight nod.

Fuegoleon smiled and said, "You two are truly remarkable." It's no wonder you said you wanted to become the Wizard King. You have shown that you have the heart and courage of a true warrior."

Rades scoffed and said, "Become the Wizard King? Like a nobody like them could do that! They must be out of their minds!"

"In that case, you and I are rivals as well. Leave the rest to me!" Fuegoleon said.

Asta clenched his fists and replied, "I'm not gonna stand around like a wuss! I'm still good to go! I'll show you what I'm made of and prove that I'm worthy of becoming the Wizard King!"

Asta was karate chopped on the head by Fuegoleon, who then turned his head and said, "You need to learn when to step back. Don't be hasty or overestimate yourself." Then he turned his head toward Rowan.

"Don't put me in the same category as the idiot!" Rowan said. "I'm just about to counterattack!"

"SHUT UP YOU LIAR! YOU ARE JUST LIKE YUNO!" Asta shouted.

Neve flew forward and said, "You shut up! Rowan and I are about to end this!" Her voice was cold and determined.

When Fuegoleon approached Rades, he asked what drove him to attack. Rades revealed he was vengeful for being exiled from the Magic Knights.

Rades summoned his strongest minion yet, Carl.

"[Flame Creation Magic: Leorzenas]!"

Fuegoleon then summoned a massive lion made from pure flame and shot fire from its mouth towards Rades and Carl, who covered themselves and Rades in a sphere that protected them from the Captain's attack.

Rades laughed and said, "Number One Carl, when he was alive, this guy was a defensive magic expert. I added my Curse Magic to that and made him even tougher to get past! He'll make sure no one gets close enough to hurt me!"

Fuegoleon then turned to Asta and said, "Remember what I said a moment ago? Watch closely. You too, Rowan. Learn from this."

Rades shouted, "What're you acting so calmly for!? This guy does more than defend!" Spears were released from Carl's sphere, targeting Fuegoleon.

"[Flame Creation Magic: lgnis Columna]!"

Fuegoleon created a wall of fire that surrounded him, melting the spears that were coming at him. He then commanded the flames to spread out and consume the spears, rendering them useless. Rades was shocked at the captain's power and began to tremble in fear.

Rades shouted, "How's this!? Whaddaya think of the iron defense plus super barrage!?"

Fuegoleon calmly replied, "I certainly can't touch you..."

Rades laughed mockingly and said, "Ha ha ha! Is that all you got, Mister Captain of the Crimson Lions? I thought you were supposed to be the strongest!"

Suddenly, Fuegoleon released a condensed beam of pure flame that went straight through Carl, destroying him instantly and leaving Rades in shock.

Fuegoleon continued, "Listen well! When you are pitted against powerful enemies and magic, if you gauge the ability calmly and maintain a bold fighting spirit, you will never lose. Understand?"

Noelle and Leopold replied in unison, "Yes sir!"

Rades stammered, "No way... You took out my best just like that!? You.... You.."

Fuegoleon then looked sternly at Rades and said, "Rades, was it? If you possess phenomenal abilities and polish them to their fullest, but without a just spirit, they are nothing but violence! There is no one who will acknowledge something like that!"

Noelle and Leopold worked together to use their own magic to destroy David the mud zombie.

Leopold exclaimed, "We took advantage of the gaps in the enemy's mana and evaporated it with intense fire power!"

Fuegoleon praised them with a proud smile, "That's the spirit! Well done! That's what qualifies you to lead a country as Royals!" Noelle and Leopold saluted proudly in response.

"Yes sir!"

Rades shouted in disbelief, "It can't be... That can't be... I've got just as much magic as a Royal...!"

Fuegoleon approached Rades and took his grimoire.

Rades shouted, "Get your hands off my grimoire!"

Fuegoleon examined the grimoire and realized that it only had one page.

Rades yelled desperately, "DON'T LOOK! QUIT LOOKING! DON'T YOU DARE LOOK DOWN ON ME!"

Asta stepped forward and said, "Who'd look down on you? You could have used your power for good and gone about it a different way. You had so much potential and so much power, but you chose to use it for destruction and violence. What a waste!"

Rowan glared at Rades and said, "You attacked your own homeland for revenge against some nobles who had bullied you? You're pathetic! A loser in every way!"

Fuegoleon demanded, "You will pay for your crimes, At the very least. A spatial magic user has invaded the capital. Where are they!? Did they run already? Even if your objective was revenge, there are consequences to your actions. What is your group's objective?"

He started to chuckle, "Our real objective is... You! Fuegoleon Vermillion!"

"What...!?"

Suddenly, a portal opened up at Fuegoleon's feet, and he was quickly absorbed into it. Everyone else was too shocked to react, and the portal quickly disappeared.

Leopold screamed in fury, "You freak! Where did you send my brother!? I won't let you get away with this!"

Rowan quickly realized that the caster must have used a teleportation spell, and it was powerful enough that he couldn't sense the caster's mana. He narrowed his eyes and said, "The caster must be close by, and they're powerful enough to cast a teleportation spell with such precision."

"Over there!"

Asta suddenly yelled and everyone watched as one of the bodies that Asta had swept away suddenly disappeared in a portal that looked identical to one of the Finrals.

Valtos looked around the group in disbelief and said, "Good job seeing through that. I figured if I disguised myself with magic, magic couldn't find me out, so I wore this filthy disguise...You are like wild animals. But... it appears to be over now."

Rowan was interrupted by a portal opening in front of him. Fuegoleon came out of the portal and landed on the ground, missing an arm and bleeding profusely.

Leopold shouted in disbelief, "FUEGOLEON!"

Rowan quickly checked Fuegoleon for signs of life and realized he was still alive, albeit barely. He looked up at the group and said, "He's still alive. We need to get him to a healer immediately!"

Leopold looked around the group in disbelief and said, "This can't be real. My brother... wouldn't lose. There's no way... My brother won't be so easily defeated. He was too strong for this..."

Noelle quickly ran to Fuegoleon's side and tried her best to stop the bleeding. She quickly grabbed a piece of fabric and used it as a makeshift bandage. She applied pressure to the wound and did her best to stem the flow of blood.

Rades appeared next to Leopold and said, "Remember when you mouthed off to me a minute ago? Well, now it's time for you to pay the price!" With a wave of his hand, Leopold was sent flying into a nearby wall.

Rades laughed menacingly and said, "I always do just what my heart tells me to! Yap your head off in the next world, Fuegoleon Vermillion!"

Valtos quickly opened a portal below Rades and yelled, "We've done what we came to do, let's go Rades! Before more Magic Knights show up!" Rades nodded in agreement and jumped into the portal.