(A/N):
Drop a meme here that you find funny. Or reflects your mood.
-------------------------------------------------
Charlottee stepped forward again, still burning with protective fury.
"What do you REALLY want from him?!"
The Queen let the façade drop completely.
And her voice finally revealed the truth.
"The witch forest will be destroyed in a future war.My people slaughtered.My land scorched.My life ended."
Charlotte froze.
"...."
Dorothy gasped.
-Gasp
"...."
The Queen continued, stepping closer.
"I have foreseen every path.Every outcome.Every attempt to avoid our extinction."
Then her gaze lifted—
Almost pleading.
"Only one future survives.The future with him in it."
Ben felt the weight of her words in his bones.
The Queen's eyes softened—
A very rare thing.
"Benjamin…I invited you because you alter destiny itself.We need an alliance.A binding contract.The Witch Forest and the Clover King."
Charlotte lowered her arms slightly.
Not out of acceptance.
But out of shock.
The Queen turned to her, voice firm.
"And you, Rose Princess…You misunderstand."
A faint smile touched her lips.
"This is not a matter of desire.This is a matter of survival."
Dorothy whispered.
"She's telling the truth…"
Ben inhaled slowly.
"So you want an alliance."
The Queen nodded.
-Nod
"A pact.Equal.Bound by mana. One that will protect both our futures."
Charlotte clenched her fists.
"…And the dance?"
The Queen smirked mischievously.
-Smirk
"That part was for me."
Charlotte exploded—
"YOU—!!"
Ben quickly wrapped an arm around her waist,
Pulling her back before she launched an attack.
Her face burned red against his shoulder.
Dorothy sighed in relief and collapsed onto the floor.
Witches outside the door whispered excitedly:
"The Queen has a crush!"
"She invited a MAN!"
"She danced!"
"Is this the end of the world??"
MEANWHILE...
OUTSIDE THE WITCH FOREST...
The outer perimeter of the Witch Forest pulsed with heavy mana,
A swirling barrier of crimson leaves and drifting cinders.
No man had ever crossed that boundary alive.
"...."
"...."
"...."
But that didn't stop a certain group of maniacs from trying.
Standing in a loose formation—
Well, "formation" was generous—
Were:
Asta, vibrating with panic.
Noelle, pacing like a distressed noble princess.
Vanessa, drunkenly swaying while clutching her broom.
Finral, sweating bullets.
Magna, arms crossed dramatically.
Captain Yami Sukehiro,
Smoking with the same patience as someone babysitting hyperactive toddlers.
Asta pointed at the shimmering barrier.
"BEN-NII-SAN IS INSIDE THAT TERRIFYING FOREST FULL OF SCARY WITCHES—AND WE'RE JUST STANDING HERE?!"
Magna cracked his knuckles with a grin.
-Grin
"Damn right! If they're trying to cook the king into some kind of mana soup, we'll bust in and—"
A broomstick smacked his head.
-Smack
Vanessa.
"For the LAST TIME, Magna, the Witch Queen would use him for ritual magic, not soup."
She hiccuped.
"Probably."
Finral nearly fainted.
"...."
"No, no, no—ritual magic is WORSE! What if she drains his life force?! Or marries him by force?! Or uses him as a breeding—"
Noelle's face turned scarlet.
"...."
"FINRAL-SAN!! Stop saying disgusting things!!"
Asta stomped his foot.
"WE HAVE TO SAVE BEN-NII-SAN RIGHT NOW!!"
Yami finally exhaled a long cloud of smoke.
-PUFF
"Tch. Oi. You brats need to calm the hell down."
Everyone turned to him as if he were the last sane man on earth.
Yami flicked ash off his cigarette.
"The king told me—ME—to babysit this idiot while he goes gallivanting into witch territory with two captains. TWO. CAPTAINS."
Asta raised his hand nervously.
"…But Captain Yami… Vanessa said the Witch Queen might be plotting—"
Vanessa waved dramatically, bottle in hand.
"OF COURSE she is! The Witch Queen is always plotting something! And she can see the future. What if she foresaw a future where she MARRIES BEN and now she's trying to make it happen?!"
Noelle stiffened like a statue.
"...."
"M-Marriage?! With my teacher?! With MY— I mean— THE KING?! How dare she—"
Yami's eyelid twitched.
-Twich
"Are you all seriously trying to pick a fight with the Witch Queen?"
Silence.
"...."
"...."
"...."
Except Asta.
"Yes."
Yami cracked his knuckles.
-Crack
"...Wonderful. I get one day off duty, and you want me to commit suicide."
The air shifted the moment Asta crossed the mana boundary—
As if the forest itself inhaled sharply.
The Witch Forest wasn't just a place.
It felt alive.
The wind carried the scent of herbs and curses,
And crows croaked ominously from twisted branches.
But the Black Bulls marched forward anyway.
Venessa led them—
Reluctantly to come back here—
Her red cloak fluttering behind her like a shadow of her past.
Asta charged beside her, determined.
Noelle followed, worried but proud.
Magna walked with theatrical swagger.
Finral shuffled in fear.
And Captain Yami…
Well, he looked like he was ready to break someone.
All of this, of course, was watched by a raven perched far above—
Its eyes glowing faintly purple before it took off into the sky,
Carrying news straight to its queen.
Before long, five witches dropped from the branches above,
Their cloaks swirling like the wings of monstrous bats.
Their cold gazes zeroed in on the group—
"...."
"...."
"...."
But especially on the men.
Hostile.
Suspicious.
Ready to attack.
But then their eyes fell on Venessa.
"…Princess Venessa."
Their expressions shifted—
From fierce warriors.
To disappointed aunties.
Venessa stiffened, her smile trembling.
"H-Heh… long time no see…?"
The witches stared.
And stared.
Then one of them clicked her tongue.
-Tch
"Finally remembered your home, did you?"
Venessa cringed.
"...."
"...."
"...."
A painful, awkward silence filled the clearing.
Magna whispered to Asta,
"Princess?! She's royalty?!"
Asta's jaw dropped open like a broken door hinge.
"VENESSA-SENPAI IS A PRINCESS?!"
Vanessa nearly strangled him.
"DON'T SHOUT THAT!!"
But Asta was already stepping forward, eyes blazing.
"WHERE. IS. MY. BROTHER?!"
The witches blinked, confused.
"...."
"...."
"...."
"Your… brother?"
Asta puffed his chest.
"BEN-NII-SAN! THE KING OF CLOVER KINGDOM!! WE'RE HERE TO SAVE HIM!"
Magna pumped his fist.
"HELL YEAH!! WE'RE HERE ON A RESCUE MISSION!!"
Finral whimpered.
"I don't want to die—please tell us he's alive—"
Yami smacked his head.
-Smack
"Let the damn witches speak."
Venessa stepped between them before Asta could explode again.
"We're here for King Benjamin Salvador Kira. He entered the Witch Forest earlier today."
The witches froze.
"...."
"...."
"...."
Their eyes widened in perfect synchrony.
"...THE king is here?"
"You mean the real one?"
"The young king the Witch Queen personally invited?"
All five of them exchanged looks of utter disbelief.
As if the ground itself had just turned into chocolate.
One witch leaned forward, whispering.
"You mean the man in the diamond body earlier…?"
Asta nearly jumped out of his shoes.
"HUH?! YOU SAW HIM?! WHERE IS HE?! IS HE SAFE?!"
The witches nodded absently.
-Nod
"He is inside the Festival Grounds. With the Queen."
Another witch added.
"And the Queen is… talking to him."
All six Black Bulls froze.
"...."
"...."
"...."
Even Yami.
Even the trees.
Even the wind.
'T A L K I N G T O H I M'
Vanessa grabbed her hair.
"No… no… no… this is BAD. If she's talking to him… it means she's INTERESTED!!"
Asta roared.
"BEN-NII-SAN IS IN ROMANTIC DANGER?!?!"
Noelle's face turned red.
"W–WE HAVE TO GO! NOW!"
Finral fainted upright.
Yami sighed deeply.
-Sigh
"…Let me guess. We're kicking down the Queen's front door."
The witches held up their hands immediately.
"STOP. STOP. STOP."
"You cannot just enter the Queen's Castle!"
"Men are forbidden!"
"And the Queen is IN THE MIDDLE OF—"
The witches suddenly stopped talking.
Cut themselves off.
Looked away.
"...."
"...."
"...."
Too suspiciously.
The Bulls leaned in.
"…In the middle of what?"
Asta whispered.
The witches said nothing.
Which told them everything.
Asta screamed.
"NoooOOOOO—!!! My brother is being seduced—!!"
The witches flinched, mana surging instinctively.
They were one second away from unleashing curses on him for yelling in their territory when—
FWIP—
A black shadow dropped from the sky.
A raven.
Not a normal raven.
"...."
Its feathers shimmered with blood-crimson mana, eyes glowing with an eerie gold sheen—
The unmistakable signature of the Witch Queen.
The raven landed on the lead witch's shoulder and croaked softly into her ear.
Instantly, the witch's expression changed.
Her stern face tightened.
Her eyes widened a fraction.
Her shoulders stiffened.
The other witches inhaled sharply—
This was no ordinary messenger.
This was a direct decree.
Venessa's heart almost stopped.
"...."
She recognized that raven.
Recognized its mana.
Recognized the authority.
"...Mama?"
She whispered under her breath, turning pale.
The lead witch turned toward the Bulls.
"You may come inside the Witch Forest."
Asta fist-pumped so hard Finral flinched.
"YES! LET'S SAVE BEN-NII—"
But the witch raised a hand sharply.
"BUT— you are allowed to go only to the Witch Queen's Castle."
The forest wind fell silent.
"...."
"...."
"...."
Noelle gulped.
-Gulp
Magna swallowed hard.
-Gulp
Finral choked on his own breath.
"...."
Even Yami tensed for a second.
The witch continued,
"You are forbidden to wander elsewhere. If you do…"
Her eyes darkened, mana swirling ominously.
"...."
"You will face the Witch Queen's wrath."
Venessa's knees nearly buckled.
This was what she had been dreading—
The moment she would stand before the Witch Queen again after running away years ago.
Asta, of course, didn't understand the gravity.
"Great! Then we'll just go straight to her!!"
Venessa trembled.
"I… I-I'm going to meet Mother again… after all these years…"
Yami clapped her shoulder with brutal sympathy.
"Well, kid. If she kills you, I'll drink in your honor."
"THAT DOES NOT HELP AT ALL, CAPTAIN!!"
The lead witch gestured.
"Follow us. The Queen is expecting you."
The witches formed a semicircle around them—
Not escorting.
Guarding.
Watching.
Measuring.
Asta's determination burned.
Noelle's worry sharpened.
Magna cracked his knuckles.
Finral prayed internally.
Yami lit a new cigarette.
And Venessa…
Venessa tightened her jaw, hiding her trembling hands in the folds of her cloak.
"Let's go,"
She whispered.
"Before she gets angry."
Together, the Black Bulls marched forward—
—toward the Queen's palace—
—toward fate—
—toward trouble—
—and toward a confrontation which she is been avoiding all this time.
**********************************************************************************************************************************************************
(Author's POV)
(A/N)Thanks for reading the chapter!
Please give a review on this Fanfic.
Don't forget to send your power stones!!!