The Clover Kingdom.
In this kingdom where magic is everything,
there is one boy who can't use magic.
His name is Asta.
With guts and hard work, he made it into the Magic Knights,
and he never gave up, despite how much he got hurt.
He continues to diligently aim for the top!
Even if you are a peasant,
or even if you're poor...
Anyone in this world can still shine!
He's working hard to prove that,
and to become the Wizard King!
Asta and the others arrived
in the Heart Kingdom to learn more about the devil's curse,
but Asta was taken away, and Noelle, Mimosa,
and Finral were forced to fight the Spirit Guardian Gaja.
Meanwhile, Asta, after being taken away,
was forced into a fight with the Water Spirit, Undine.
I'm Undine. I'm one of the four Great Spirits, and I'm contracted
to the Queen of the Heart Kingdom.
Undine and Gaja...
Asta and the others were forced to face one of
the four Great Spirits as well as a Spirit Guardian, but...
Sealing Magic: Inverse Release!
Sorry, but we can't just back down after you did all that showing off!
Pardon me! I'm coming in!
The Devil Megicula
A doll?
But I could've sworn I felt a person's ki in here.
Uh...
Hey.
I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!
This thick-pelted beaver just felt so good on my skin!
What the heck was that fo—
Glasses... My glasses....
Goodness... What are you doing, Loropechika?
I told you to hurry up and change out of your pajamas.
I'm sorry, I'm sorry...
Loropechika
So she's the queen of the Heart Kingdom?!
I might've been in trouble if my technique hadn't defended me.
It appears that she was holding back. What a magnificent talent.
Now, as for them...
He's way too fast!
I do apologize.
I forced you into a fight in order to assess your magic stages.
Huh?
Magic stages?
The stage nine, eight, seven thing,
where the smaller the number is, the stronger you are?
Yes. Mages fight not with force of numbers, but with how powerful their magic is.
There are cases where dozens may attack,
and they would be no match for a single mage.
That's why, in wars between magical nations, power is measured by magic stages.
In other words, a kingdom's power is determined by how many mages
Stage Zero Stage One Stage Two Stage Three Stage Four Stage Five Stage Six Stage Seven Stage Eight Stage Nine
it has that are near stage zero.
And if you're dealing with a devil,
no one lower than stage one will be able to keep up with it.
A devil... That's right!
We came here because we detected a huge curse signal here that may be
the work of a devil!
Why do they know something that only a Spirit Guardian should know?
Do you know anything about devil curses?
You don't hold back, do you?
It's too bad for you, but no one's going to talk about them.
Oh, that's me... I got cursed by a devil.
If nothing is done, I'll die in about a year.
Huh?
Huh?!
Huh? Why did you tell them?! What?
Huh?
Honestly... What am I going to do with you?
That side of you is adorable, too.
That's right. The reason we brought you here and measured your magic stages
was so that we can defeat Megicula,
the devil that cursed Loropechika.
I'm sure this interests you, too.
Citizens of the Clover Kingdom, please join us in—
What's wrong?!
I forgot to water the poplatatta trees!
D'oh!
I'm pretty sure we were in the middle of talking about something
really important just now!
Is it okay for the queen of a kingdom to act like that?
Holy crap!
There you go. Have some water.
I see the zozo squirrels are as lively as ever today.
Hey now, Michely. Don't run too fast.
Old man Kakalasa's cough seems to be better. That's great.
Oh, the totohl fruits grew so splendidly!
She's watering whole forests at once!
She obtained information from all around the kingdom in an instant.
And she's controlling the water everywhere.
An all-encompassing benevolence
combined with delicacy that doesn't miss a single thing...
So this is the magic of the Heart Kingdom's queen.
Now, now, Loropechika...
Go and get changed into some proper clothes already.
The current queen has inherited the power of most of the previous queens.
The guardian deity of the beautiful and peaceful Heart Kingdom...
The all-knowing priestess...
Someone who cannot be lost to a devil's curse.
There is no one else like her!
See? You're beautiful when you actually clean yourself up.
But it's so hard to move in this...
Why, though?!
For crying out loud, Loropechika...
I get it! Her insane klutziness must be due to the devil's curse, too!
Oh, no. That's just me.
What?!
Curse... The loathsome devil that cursed my beloved Loropechika...
Megicula is in that kingdom.
Diamond Kingdom
We came to scout the Diamond Kingdom just in case, but...
This is...
He managed to defeat all those Diamond soldiers on his own...
Some of them were as strong as our captains,
yet he defeated them so easily.
Don't you dare get any stupid ideas, Luck!
I hate to admit it, but I've never felt like this before.
I actually...
don't want to fight him.
Heart Kingdom Royal Palace
The Queen's Chamber
Hey, guys!
Asta!
Hey!
Thank goodness you're okay.
You get kidnapped way too often.
Give it a rest already.
The queen has arrived.
She's so majestic and beautiful.
And she possesses vast, immeasurable magic!
So this is the queen of the Heart Kingdom?
She's so beautiful!
You are truly a goddess who has descended upon this land!
Damn it! You know better than that, Finral!
You! Are! Going! To! Change!
What the heck's going on with Finral?
Who knows?
Citizens of the Clover Kingdom,
please lend us your strength.
Wait, why?!
Come on, Loropechika! You need to act like a queen!
Ow...
Oh, your nose is bleeding... But you're so cute!
Wh-What was that?
I got some blood on my dress.
Okay, okay, just a second...
This is why I said she shouldn't meet them in person.
Why do you need our help?
Doesn't the Heart Kingdom have many mages who are stage one or higher,
including the Spirit Guardians?
I mentioned earlier that everyone needs to be stage one or higher
to keep up in a fight with devils,
but even if one was stage zero,
they would not be able to finish off a devil.
The Spirit Guardians borrow some power from natural mana to use powerful magic,
but they still cannot defeat devils.
Unlike us, the Clover Kingdom has created types of magic that are not natural,
such as chain, steel, and the eccentric spatial magic,
in exchange for giving up the divine protection of natural mana.
Some of the irregulars who were born
in that environment have the power to defeat a devil.
For example, the Wizard King who uses time magic, Julius Novachrono,
or the Captain of the Black Bulls, Yami Sukehiro, who uses dark magic.
Though it appears that Julius has lost most of his power...
She even knows about that?
Just how much does she know?
And...
Asta and Nero.
In terms of combat magic alone, Nero is about a stage six,
but she has ancient sealing magic and has used forbidden magic.
And Asta doesn't have any magic,
but he was able to obtain anti-magic because of that.
People with inexplicable powers such as yours are known as arcane stages.
Stage Zero
Arcane Stage
Arcane stage...
I'd like you to lend us your arcane powers to help defeat that devil.
In exchange, I'll offer you any information that is available to me.
We can't make decisions like that.
I'll use a transmission magic item to ask Captain Yami!
I'm taking a dump right now!
What? You've got something really important to tell me?
Well, what I'm doing right now is really important, too.
This might be the biggest dump in history.
Call back later!
What?!
Pooping is indeed very important.
She agreed with him?!
You mustn't use such vulgar words, Loropechika!
Um... I figured something like this may happen,
so I borrowed a magic item that lets us connect with Marx's transmission magic.
Good job, Mimosa!
Way to go, Mimosa!
All right, I'll go ahead and connect.
Mimosa? Did something happen?
Wait, is that...
You must be the queen of the Heart Kingdom! What kind of magic do you use?!
Please don't just pop up like that, Master Julius!
You're small right now, remember?
People will find out.
Well, yeah, you did just call me "Master Julius."
Don't worry. The queen already knew.
Huh?!
And so, in order to defeat devils, we need to be...
at the arcane stage, or something.
Of course, that's fine.
You all might get something amazing out of this, too.
To tell you the truth, I'd prefer to be over there myself.
You absolutely may not!
It's settled, then. Thank goodness.
But in your present states, all of you will be killed so easily.
Wow, she's honest!
So the Spade devil is that strong?
Yes. Stronger than the devil you fought, I believe.
Stronger than that guy?!
During that fight,
we only managed to win because we had help
from incredible people like the first Wizard King and the leader of the elves.
The scar Gaja has is the work of that devil, too.
Him? The guy we barely stood a chance against?
That Spirit Guardian fellow fought me in the past. He's quite skilled.
He fought you?!
A devil that can't be beaten by someone the Wizard King praises...
We don't stand a chance right now...
We have to get stronger.
The devil Megicula is haunting the Spade Kingdom,
using its citizens to amass power...
in order to invade and conquer the Clover Kingdom,
the Heart Kingdom, and the Diamond Kingdom.
As things stand, I will also die from this curse.
I'd like to invade the Spade Kingdom before my power weakens.
We have half a year.
We'll need all the combat power we can get.
Please gather those who stand a chance in a fight with a devil.
I'd like you to get stronger and fight alongside us in six months.
Right! We'd also appreciate...
...your help!
Master Julius, are you sure you're all right with this?
The Magic Knights are still exhausted from the battle against the elves.
Though we have half a year,
if we fight alongside the Heart Kingdom to defeat a devil,
we may face even greater casualties.
I'm sure you heard what our scouts said.
With the Diamond Kingdom in its current state,
our only hope is to have the Magic Knights get stronger.
I'm sure the Queen of the Heart Kingdom understands that, too.
Master Julius...
Marx, gather all of the Magic Knights Squad Captains.
Yes, sir.
Munchy, munchy, munchy, munchy, munchy...
When's the captain gonna show up?
We have a super important announcement!
Shut up, you stupid shrimp.
If you don't quit yappin', the captain won't be able to finish his business.
He's taking a dump again?!
I won.
Wait, have you been in there ever since then?!
This isn't the end.
As much as I want to celebrate my victory,
the next battle is just around the corner.
That's seriously enough about that.
Right. Let's hear what the group that went to the Heart Kingdom has to say.
Oh, right.
Actually, I'm not sure where to begin.
Me, me!
The one cursed by a devil there is the Heart Kingdom's queen!
And because of that curse, the queen only has about a year to live.
The queen is the most powerful in the kingdom,
and a mage chosen by one of the Four Great Spirits.
If they lose someone like that, the Heart Kingdom will...
This goes without saying, but keep this on the down-low.
So, did you find anything out about this devil?
The devil's name is Megicula.
And they're in the Spade Kingdom right now!
Spade?
Then maybe that explains what we saw.
Huh? What are you talking about?
Apparently, they saw a Spade mage near the border of the Diamond Kingdom.
A Spade?!
He was no ordinary mage.
He managed to
single-handedly finish off hundreds of Diamond soldiers in an instant.
And that cold, dark magic...
Everything would make sense if he's possessed by a devil.
It's very possible that the guy we saw was Megicula himself.
Th-Then the Diamond Kingdom...
They're pretty much done for. All because of that one guy.
Mars...
It was clear just from being near him for a little while... We stood no chance.
Even if we had acted, we would've faced the same fate as the Diamond soldiers.
Yeah, as you guys are right now.
If we can't defeat that devil,
both the Heart Kingdom and the Clover Kingdom are gonna be finished.
In order to stop that...
We're gonna have to get stronger.
The queen gave us six months.
In six months, the Heart Kingdom will attack the Spade Kingdom.
We Magic Knights of the Clover Kingdom
need to train as hard as we can for six months, get super strong,
and defeat Megicula along with the Heart Kingdom!
Question.
Sure thing, Zora!
So this devil's actually beatable if all we do is train?
We won't be able to keep up in a fight
against a devil unless we're all stage one or higher.
For perspective, that would mean we'd all have to be
as strong as 1st Class Senior Magic Knights...
no, we need to be above that, or we don't stand a chance.
So you're telling us to get to a vice captain's level in six months?!
You sure make it sound easy.
And currently, the only ones who stand a chance against the devil
are the Wizard King, Yami, Asta, and Nero,
who all belong to a group called the arcane stage.
Though I don't plan on giving up even if I'm told I don't stand a chance.
Because Megicula is the one who killed my mother.
Come on! Pull yourself together, Luck!
Lady Noe just said she wasn't gonna give up!
We're her seniors! We can't chicken out!
I wasn't being myself.
I don't have time to be scared when our friend's life is at stake.
Friend's life?
Of course, I'll do everything I can to become a stage one.
In order to protect my bestest friend, Asta!
That's right! I need to do something about Megicula,
or I'm gonna be sentenced to death!
How could you forget that?
Guess we don't have a choice, then.
True Magic Knights can't just let devils do whatever they want.
I-I have no idea what I can do...
But I'll do my best!
I'm gonna use these six months to become even stronger
and defeat this loathsome curse!
So that I can become a man worthy of Miss Finnes, as well.
After we defeat Megicula and our curse is broken,
I want to talk to Nozel again...
about Mother.
Anyway, we just need to kick Megicula's ass!
Then I might be able to find out more about my devil, too!
For the sake of their futures and this world...
I can't let another devil have its way any longer.
So that means for the next six months,
the Black Bulls are free to do whatever they want.
You can go wherever you want. You can team up with whoever you want.
You have one mission: to become stronger.
We're dealing with a devil and the Spade Kingdom.
You need to train like your life depends on it.
If you don't, I'll kill you.
I always tell you to do this in the moment,
so if you have six months, that should be plenty of time.
Surpass your limits!
Right!
It's not just the Clover Kingdom.
This is a life-or-death situation for the Heart Kingdom
and Diamond Kingdom, too.
Next time on Black Clover, Page 130:
Page 130 The New Magic Knights Squad Captains' Meeting
"The New Magic Knights Squad Captains' Meeting."
We must become stronger in order to face that devil and the Spade Kingdom.