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!
Mereoleona showed up at the Black Bulls' hideout without warning,
stealing away Asta and the others.
Their destination was the strong magic region, the Yultim Volcano.
This was where Asta and Noelle
had trained with the Crimson Lion Kings before.
Mereoleona and Fuegoleon announced that they would be training here yet again,
in order to prepare to fight the devil.
Let's haul ass to the hot springs at the top!
Hold it.
Wha?!
You won't be climbing the volcano this time.
You'll be heading underneath the volcano...
Into the Yultim Underground Cave!
They ended up facing an intensely fiery mana unlike any they faced before
as they headed toward their goal, the hot springs.
But...
Take this!
Flame Magic: Spiral Flames!
Leopold's powerful attack was enough to make the spider monster back down,
but then they discovered the cave's surprising secret.
Don't tell me that's...
A dungeon, eh? Things are getting exciting.
The Lion Awakens, Continued
Lady Mereoleona, what is that?
You're late!
Did you enjoy your nice little stroll with the Black Bulls, you pathetic fools?!
And you call yourselves Crimson Lion Kings?!
We're terribly sorry.
If it were just just Vice Captain Randall and me, we could've gotten here faster.
We are unworthy.
And... who gave you permission to eat?
Munchy, munchy, munchy...
Watch it, Miz Charmy! You gotta read the room!
We've already reported to the royal capital that we found a dungeon.
Stand by for further instructions.
Yes, sir!
Huh?
You guys were attacked by that giant spider, too?
Yup.
Who would've thought it'd run away into a dungeon?
Isn't it exciting?
How?!
I was a fool to let that spider escape.
I cannot let it end like this!
Sister!
Let us explore the dungeon!
Don't get cocky!
You're the foolish, inexperienced weakling who let that bug escape!
You have some nerve saying that to me!
I promise that I will succeed next time!
There is no next time in battle!
Go whip yourself back into shape in that dungeon!
Yes, ma'am!
I see she's still as fired up as ever!
So she's letting him go into the dungeon after all.
Eyes up here!
Captain Fuegoleon filled me in on the situation.
It appears that a rather powerful magic item lies deep within that dungeon.
According to a book that Master Julius found in the library,
that magic item was sealed away deep in
the Yultim Volcano by those who feared it would be used for evil.
Otherwise, it's shrouded in mystery. Little is known about it.
Yes, that's right!
Honestly!
Could you please be quiet?!
Oh, sorry about that. But won't it be exciting to find out what the magic item is?
Shh!
Let me head over there, too.
Absolutely not!
What? But I'll wear a disguise!
That's not the issue here.
Who's he talking to?
No idea...
It's the Wizard King!
It sure is.
A-Anyway, the magic item and any other treasure you happen to find in the dungeon
will be essential to getting this kingdom back on its feet.
I'm counting on all of you to investigate it.
Understood.
Now, then—
Listen up, you fools!
You will carry out this investigation with your pride as the Magic Knights
who protect this kingdom on the line!
Yes, ma'am!
Sister, as the current Captain of the Crimson Lion Kings, I'll tell them the rest.
Right. Hurry up and tell them the plan.
The first group to go in will be
Asta, Noelle,
Leo, Randall,
Luck, and Magna. You will search for the location where the magic item sleeps.
The rest of you will rendezvous with the first group as soon as your mana has recovered.
And I'm going to sneak a peek...
You absolutely will not.
All right, let's go!
Yeah!
So hot...
It's so damn hot! It's nothing like the heat from earlier.
I still don't sense that spider's mana.
But...
Well done, my rival!
I see you've already taken out the first one!
That wasn't my intention at all!
We'll be in trouble if we get stalled here for too long.
He held back just enough so that the trap spells wouldn't activate.
I can't believe he pulled off such a high-level spell so easily.
He's definitely the Vice Captain of the Crimson Lion Kings!
Now we can clearly see where all the traps are!
Catch you guys later!
Lightning Creation Magic: Holy Lightning Boots!
Now, hold on a second!
Flame Reinforcement Magic: Risky Stolen Base!
Hey! Stop stepping on those on purpose!
Only two more paths remain!
My rival, let us compete to see which one of us finds the magic item first!
Heck yeah!
How can he move so well in this space that's filled with so much mana?
Vice Captain Randall, let us hurry!
Sure.
But I must say,
I guess it's obvious that you've trained harder than any other member of our squad.
This is still not enough to catch up to and someday exceed my rival!
In the last battle, Asta not only fought with a devil, but defeated it!
I heard that the other Black Bulls also fought valiantly in the last battle.
This is not enough.
I see now.
So that's why Captain Fuegoleon and Lady Mereoleona
invited the Black Bulls to this training.
Leo! I think you came close to a realization in that last battle yourself.
When you fought against me after my body was taken over by an elf.
What in the world is this incredibly violent mana?
Let's go see.
Noelle! This is only going to get worse!
Let's just break through!
We're in a dungeon! That might be easy for a meathead like you,
but you're asking me for the impossible!
Then let me carry you!
Huh?!
I'll carry you on my back to get us outta here, so just back me up!
C-C-C-Carry me on your back?! Wh-What are you saying?!
I'm royalty!
Noelle!
A-Asta?
Wait, why are we turning around?
We're pulling back for now!
This is...
Look.
Those must be the golems that were guarding this place.
Be careful.
That shock wave almost made it seem as if it was telling us where it is.
It might actually be trying to lure us in.
There you are! I won't let you escape again!
That conniving little...
Well, this is interesting.
I will burn them all to ashes with my raging inferno!
We've neutralized all of the trap spells by the entrance.
All right. Recover your mana, and then widen the search.
Yes, ma'am.
Go on, eat up!
Did you find anything?
Not a thing.
Because of Asta, we ended up having to run away from lava. It was awful.
That's my fault?!
We came up empty-handed, too. Though we did find a bunch of weird-ass treasure chests.
Here you go!
What in the world?
Why the hell did you bring that back?! Don't you dare open it!
Close that thing already!
Is that yummy?
Y-You probably shouldn't find out.
What was that?
The only ones from the first group who haven't returned are Randall and Leo.
Sounds like they hit the jackpot.
Let's do this, Leo!
Right!
Go up in flames!
There are just too many.
We are the proud Crimson Lion Kings! Running from our enemies is not an option!
Wait!
Leo!
Randall!
Leo, fall back.
You have to survive this.
Leo, you're going to lead this squad one day.
We'll buy you some time.
Take everyone who can't fight right now and survive!
It's just like last time.
Why did I bother to train so hard?
This is...
Leo! I think you came close to a realization in that last battle yourself.
That's right... I was fighting within the powerful mana
that Randall created during that fight.
None of my attacks seemed to work,
but I learned to read his mana and calmly control my flames!
Leo!
Are you okay?
Asta!
All right, let's get a little wild!
Hope you guys are ready, because I'm killing you even if you're not!
One never forgets their grudge when it comes to food!
You will pay for eating all those never-before-seen ingredients!
How dare you do that to my friend?
All right, let's begin our counterattack!
Water Creation Magic: Sea Dragon's Roar!
My spell seems more powerful... Could it be from all my training?
Eat this! Flame Magic: Gargantuan Exploding Fireball!
Lightning Magic: Thunderbolt Destruction!
Poison Curse Magic: Dwelling of the Poison Cloud!
Cotton Creation Magic: Strike of the Sleeping Sheep!
Secure Leopold and Randall!
Roger!
There are even more of them?
We've gotta do something about that spider controlling them with its web!
Let's do this one more time!
No.
I'll go.
I'm going to use what I realized then, right here and now.
By heightening his senses to their limits and calmly reading the flow of mana,
Leopold can momentarily use the mana around him in his favor,
which allows him to explosively increase his mana!
Th-That was amazing!
Leo!
So this is the spider's original form.
It appears that the magic item here makes the user's life force go berserk,
and turns them into a monster.
Excellent work finding the treasure room.
All of the hardships you dealt with here
will surely aid you in the fight against the devil!
Yes, sir!
I think I'm starting to get the hang of this Mana Skin thing!
And I could actually see that my spells were more powerful.
Speaking of spells, that last spell Leo used was frickin' insane!
I was preoccupied with what was going on.
What was that spell?
If I can learn to use that spell at will...
Praise me even more, my rival!
I will learn how to fully use that spell and become stronger than you!
In that case, I'll become even stronger than that!
That only means I'll become even stronger yet again!
And then, I'll get even more and more and more stronger!
Then I'll become even more and more and more and more stronger!
More, more, more, more, more...
Quit your shouting!
Yes, ma'am!
This discussion isn't over yet.
Show me the magic item that you acquired.
Oh, here you go.
What is that garbage?
Huh? It's the magic item we were after.
You absolute fools!
Retrieving the magic item was the number one goal of this mission!
How dare you reduce it to cinders?!
Right...
We're terribly sorry.
You two are going to go search every corner of that dungeon on your own.
I will not allow you to return empty-handed!
Yes, ma'am!
Uh, wait. You're joking, right?
She's serious.
She's completely serious.
Pretty sure she's dead serious.
The rest of you fools head to the hot springs!
Yes, ma'am!
Have a drink.
Go on, down the hatch.
A special drink that'll quench any thirst,
made from the extracts of every single ingredient I found in that dungeon.
I guess I get to enjoy this nice bath again.
Looks like you've gotten closer.
Huh?
To your mother, that is.
Your form in our last battle...
It reminded me of Lady Acier, who was called the Steel Warrior Princess.
But you've still got a ways to go.
Your magic is not up to par yet.
Er, right.
Your mother, Acier Silva, lost her life due to a devil's curse.
Because those who speak of it will share the same fate.
That's the nature of the curse that befell your mother.
But I want to become even stronger.
I must become stronger!
I see.
U-Um... Would you tell me more about my mother?
That might take a while.
That's fine!
Doesn't this feel great?
You know, the Captain of the Crimson Lion Kings is the total opposite
of Captain Yami. Way too uptight.
Listen well! Hot springs are far more profound than you realize!
Yes, sir!
Stay calm, even if you become overheated.
Learn to determine when you have warmed up enough,
discipline your body and soul with cold water, and then return to the bath.
Consider this an opportunity to train in facing yourself!
Yes, sir!
You must never forget to cleanse your body before soaking.
Never let your towel touch the water.
When you're done using the shower and bathing area,
I-I'm at my limit...
make sure to rinse them off with hot water.
How much longer is he going to keep talking?
Make sure you leave things as you found them.
I wonder if Asta and Leopold are back yet.
Nothing beats washing each other's backs to deepen your friendship at a hot spring.
So we kept looking until morning and still didn't find anything.
Was the bath that nice?
I managed to sweat all my exhaustion away.
All the collagen from the ingredients I found made my skin silky smooth!
True. If the place wasn't in a strong magic region, I'd like to visit every day.
Your skin's all silky smooth, too, Noelle.
Y-You're way too close!
That was a lot of fun, wasn't it? I wonder when our next training session will be!
The hell are you talking about?
She just dragged us away outta nowhere. It totally sucked.
I hope I don't even see her face for a while.
Wouldn't it be funny if she was waiting inside?
Like that'd ever happ—
You're late!
She's actually here!
Petit Clover
Petit Clover!
Reinvestigation
Reinvestigation!
Where the heck is the treasure?!
There's nothing but super-weird treasure chests!
Behold, my rival! I have found an amazing treasure!
Look at how long its legs are!
Whoa, holy crap! In that case...
I found one that's all buff and hairy!
What?!
And it'll even do squats with me!
Impressive, my rival. Let us compete to see who can find the ultimate treasure chest!
Bring it on!
Where is it?! Where is it?! Where is it?! Where is it?!
Forgetting the reason they went in,
Asta and Leopold ran around the dungeon until morning.
Today is such an important day for the House of Vermillion that
it may mean life or death!
Yes! We will be welcoming her!
Next time on Black Clover, Page 134: "Those Who Have Been Gathered."
Page 134 Those Who Have Been Gathered
Let us welcome her with everything we have!