It appeared as though humanity would be destroyed by the demons.
But a single mage saved them all.
He was called the Wizard King, and he became a legend.
I'm going to win
against a Magic Knights Squad captain!
I'm going to win!
The Royal Knights Selection Exam
was conducted to counter the Eye of the Midnight Sun.
Good...
Good, good!
Huh?
In the end, Yuno, Noelle, and En's team won.
As for the mysterious mage who called himself Xerx, we found out his real name was...
Your trap magic and knowledge are vital.
You will probably pass the Royal Knights Selection Exam,
so I'll be counting on you.
I think it's about time you put on the robe from your own squad, don't you,
Zora Ideale?
Who the hell is that jerk?
I'm just a guy passing through who couldn't become a super mage.
Together in the Bath
Asta hasn't moved at all, huh?
He's like a doll.
I-Is he breathing?
He's breathing, but his soul's definitely gone.
It must've been a real shock that he couldn't win.
After the battle was over...
I'm going to catch up to you!
I'm the one who's going to become the Wizard King!
Or so he said. I can't really blame him, though.
That pretty boy gave him a clear show of just how different their ability levels are.
The shock of realizing his rival had surpassed him over time must've been huge.
I know exactly how he feels.
Ah, my little sister... The goddess Marie...
The longer I go without seeing you,
the more damaged my soul becomes.
I-I'm pretty sure that's not the same thing.
Yeah...
I know! I'm gonna ambush him!
I'm sure he'll feel better after risking his life in battle.
Lightning Magic: Thunderbolt Destruc—
Hold on a second! Fighting's not going to make him feel better right now!
We'll never know unless we try!
We most certainly do know!
He'll die!
Well, if I can't use magic, can I hit him with some bricks?
No!
My bestest friend in the whole world, I know exactly how you feel.
It's time that I, Gordon Agrippa,
go over there and gently pat you on the head to cheer you up.
Why do you look so out of it?
Who cares if you couldn't fight your rival in the finals? Right, Rouge?
You kicked plenty of butt!
You passed! You definitely passed!
Come on, smile. Smile for me.
I'm telling you to smile. Come on!
What the hell, Vanessa?
Vanessa... She's pushing herself so hard to be cheerful just to cheer Asta up.
Huh?
Yeah, she's just putting on a brave face.
I also put on a brave face when I can't see my precious Marie.
W-We should also put on our brave faces and act chipper!
You're right. Let's cheer Stupidsta up.
Yay! That means I can attack him, right?
No!
Hi-yah!
Oh, dear...
I just told you not to do that!
A-Are you alive, Stupidsta?
Hey, I think it's about time.
Huh?
For the results of the Royal Knights Selection Exam!
I'm sure the messenger owl will be by any minute.
Oh... Right.
Yeah! It should be any time now.
Asta! If you pass, you'll catch up to that cool pretty boy in no time!
Catch up to him and surpass him!
Do you really think I passed, though?
I mean, I ended up withdrawing.
I'm sure you'll be fine.
Yeah, Stupidsta. Believe in yourself a little more.
Noelle...
I mean, my team won, so I definitely passed.
You saw how talented I am.
Wha? The only reason you guys won is because of that cool pretty boy.
What did you say, you stupid delinquent who lost because of your own magic?!
The hell did you say?!
You've got some nerve, talking like that to your senior!
And who're you calling a delinquent?!
I'm royalty!
That doesn't matter!
It most certainly does!
Please don't fight...
No, it doesn't!
You're the one who should be worried about whether you passed, not Asta.
I'm not worried at all!
I'm sure I passed! No doubt about it!
Magna, you're super nervous, huh?
I-I am not, gosh darn it! How rude!
I can tell.
Your heart rate and body temperature have gone up, and you're sweating.
You're definitely nervous right now.
Oh, fine. I feel like being nice.
I'll show you Marie's picture for 3.5 seconds to cheer you up.
I have a better idea, Asta! Let's fight!
Huh?
You're feeling better now, aren't you?
Of course he isn't!
Can I attack you with everything I've got? Can I?!
No, you can't!
Huh? Charmy?
What's the matter, Charmy?
Just thinking about how cool Yuno was
makes my heart feel so full that I can't even eat...
I only ate a fifth of my usual.
That's still plenty.
Asta's not calling her out.
Guess he's still out of it.
My meal-saving prince...
My chest hurts, la...
You probably just ate too much.
She's also a goner.
Yeah... What should we do?
All right, bath time!
Mister Yami?
Bath time?
Sweating off your stress in the bath will perk you right up.
Come on, let's go!
Nah, I'm gonna pass.
Captain's orders, brat. Shut your trap and go!
Man... The water feels great, doesn't it?
Y-Yeah...
Stop that, you little shit!
Don't make me boil you!
We're all in the bath.
We're undoubtedly connected right now.
Ah, I'm so happy.
How's everything over there? Is the water too cold?
Nope, it's just fine!
Being in the bath with everyone... With everyone...
It's so embar...
Gondola...
Hey!
Why, though?!
Sure is noisy over there.
This makes me think about the past.
Mister Yami?
Just shut up and listen.
This was when I first joined the Gray Deer.
It's the Aqua Deer now, though.
When Julius was the captain, it was known as the Gray Deer.
Right...
So back when I joined them,
I went out on a journey to train myself.
He just launched into story time.
One day, I got pretty hungry, so I was fishing.
And then...
Man, I'm hungry.
Hurry up and give me a bite. One bite...
Take the bait, damn it.
Looks like a dine and dash.
I can catch the real deal out on the shore,
but I'm just not cut out for a small-time place like this.
My gut's gonna touch my back soon.
You guys thieves?
If you want a fight, I don't mind giving you one.
But I'm kinda pissy right now because I'm starving,
so I might not be able to hold back.
P-Please, have these.
S-Sir Magic Knight, you seemed rather hungry.
These things had better not be poisoned.
O-Of course they aren't! Please, help yourself.
All right, don't mind if I do.
Sir Magic Knight, if you would be willing to listen to our request,
we could prepare even more for you.
Request?
Okay, sure.
It's almost harvest season.
Thankfully, we foresee a good harvest this year.
Well, that's good.
But...
Despite our good harvest, they're going to come around.
Who's "they"?
Bandits.
As soon as the harvest's done, they show up
to steal the precious crops that we spent so much time nurturing and harvesting.
We sent a petition to the royal capital,
but apparently the bandits are hitting other towns, too,
so they just can't afford to send help to our remote little village.
So you want me to deal with the bandits.
W-We'll be happy to feed you while you stay with us.
Three meals a day!
To hell with that!
You want to hire a Magic Knight, and all you're offering is food?
W-We don't have any money.
Our harvest was stolen last year, too, so we barely made any money.
The bread I gave you earlier had been hidden in one of our storerooms.
Naps!
I won't work for food alone.
Add naps to it. That's my final offer.
Do that, and I wouldn't mind fighting off these bandits for you.
Guess that seals the deal.
And now that I'm full, I'm going to take a nap.
S-Sir Magic Knight...
Could you tell us your name?
I'm Yami.
Yami Sukehiro.
What are we going to do?
About what, boss?
Looks like they had a good harvest this year.
I wonder if we're going to be able to steal all of it.
It might be too heavy for us to carry back.
Not to worry. Some of our guys can use spatial magic.
We can just send it all back to the hideout.
Then I guess we don't have to worry.
Right. Now, I'm sure the guys in the village are on their guard.
Take them down if they get in our way.
Steal every last crop, boys!
Yeah!
Let's see. Where to start...
Guess I should hit up their storehouse first. Where is it?
It's the building to the right there.
Thank you.
Huh?
If I just scare you off, you'll probably come back again,
so I need to make extra sure you don't come back.
That's one.
Two.
Three.
Nineteen, twenty... Damn, how many of you are there?
There's no end to this.
Good grief.
To think they had a small fry Magic Knight protecting them.
You the boss of these bandits?
I'm surprised you were able to find all these losers.
Get enough losers together and you can even defeat a whale.
Even a small leak will sink a giant ship, as they say.
Get him, boys!
The one who takes him out gets a reward!
Yeah!
Individually, they're not that strong, but there are too many of them.
What am I gonna do?
Guess all I can do is kick your asses!
You're mine!
Shut up.
Who the hell are you?
I'm no one suspicious.
Weird boots.
Weird pants.
Weird clothes.
A weird cape.
And to top it off...
A weird mask.
Everything about you is suspicious!
Yami, was it?
I'm counting on you to watch my back.
Huh? How do you know who I am?
This guy moves like he can read my mind.
Our ki goes together.
Th-That's impossible...
The two of them defeated all my men?
The only ones left...
...are you bastards!
Hurry! We're retreating!
Y-Yes, sir!
Hey! Who do you think you are, letting your boss escape like that?!
Looks like the bandits' boss got away,
but we managed to round up the rest of them.
Now this village and the ones nearby probably won't be attacked for a while.
Yeah, probably.
By the way, you still haven't answered me.
I asked you earlier. How the hell do you know who I am?
Oh, that.
You're quite famous.
The wild guy from a foreign country who was chosen to be a Gray Deer.
Oh?
And who the hell are you?
I'm a member of the Gray Deer, too.
Huh?
Though most of my missions are within the royal capital,
so this is the first time we've met.
I happened to be nearby on another mission today.
Oh, yeah. I guess I did hear about some guy with a weird mask who joined the squad.
I guess that's you.
Calling it weird is quite mean.
A very special person gave me this mask.
A special person, eh?
Special or not, it's definitely weird.
Who gave you that thing?
Who, indeed?
Thank you for everything, Sir Yami.
Thank you very much.
Now our village is safe.
It's no big deal.
You guys fed me plenty.
Well, see ya!
You want one?
I'll pass. You're the one that village hired, not me.
All right, then.
What are you going to do now?
Continue my training.
Wanna tag along?
I'm sure a lot of interesting things would happen if I went with you.
But I'll pass.
I have my own mission.
I will follow my own path.
Farewell.
Sure.
You and I...
Though our paths may differ now,
I'm sure we'll eventually end up on the same path.
The same path?
In that case...
I guess that makes you my rival.
First, I'm going to become a Magic Knights Squad captain...
before you do.
Please. Like I'd lose to you.
Looks like the challenge is on. Let's see who can do it first.
Hey, weird mask guy.
You never told me your name.
Vangeance.
William Vangeance.
Vangeance?
Even your name is weird.
Let's meet again,
Yami.
Yeah.
Well, guess I should get going, too.
That was the first time that golden weird mask guy and I fought together.
And for many years after, the two would continue their friendly rivalry.
Petit Clover
Petit Clover!
"Vangeance" Is Hard to Say
"Vangeance" Is Hard to Say.
Hey, weird mask guy.
You never told me your name.
Vangeance.
William Vangeance.
Geangeance?
Vangeance.
Vangeance, zansu?
Just "Vangeance."
Chowchowce?
That's even farther off.
Oh, maybe it's this.
No, not a fan (sensu).
This is a hand fan (uchiwa).
Ah, you tricked me.
I'll say it one last time. It's Vangeance.
Shampoo and cream rinse?
Daily treatment for your hair is important.
And for many years after, the two would continue their—
Just stop!
My apologies.
Well, that was a bit embarrassing,
telling my squad about my past like that.
Man, I was a young'un back then.
Next time on Black Clover, Page 86: "Yami and Vangeance."
Page 86 Yami and Vangeance
Actually, I'm still young. I'm only 28!