"It's just lying down, did you have to make up such a sad story!"
Noelle pouted, then, as if throwing caution to the wind, lay down beside Asta, pressing tightly against him—the kind of closeness where they could kiss if they just turned their heads slightly.
"Rest your head on my arm."
Asta thoughtfully extended his right arm. Unexpectedly, Noelle cooperated and lifted her head. The two of them then lay quietly together, smelling the fragrance of the soil and grass, feeling the gentle breeze, and watching the blue sky and white clouds.
"Asta, is that Village you mentioned earlier real?"
Noelle asked after a long while. Young girls are always sentimental and will sigh for a long time over trivial matters, let alone hearing a tragedy of such magnitude that even men couldn't bear it.
Asta gazed at Noelle without speaking, because he felt she had more to say. Sure enough, tears flowed from Noelle's eyes. "Are beautiful things really so fleeting? If that's the case, I really want to fade away with them..."
The destruction of the Magic Palace and Asta's words made Noelle think of many things: her mother whom she had never met, the longed-for but unattainable familial affection, and the indescribable Asta. At this moment, Noelle felt very helpless. She really wanted to grasp these things and have them always by her side.
It was precisely because the defenses of her heart had collapsed unexpectedly that she was leaning so close to Asta.
Noelle was crying like a pear blossom in the rain, and even the most hard-hearted person would soften upon seeing it. So, Asta said with a cheeky grin, "Of course it was to trick you into lying in my arms!" After saying that, Asta even gave Noelle's little shoulder a squeeze.
"Bastard!"
Noelle was naturally furious, shoving away Asta's mischievous arm and scrambling up from the ground. "Water Bullet!"
"Bang!"
Asta was hit magnificently...
"Damn, you know, even that guy from the Diamond Kingdom just now couldn't touch a single hair on me!"
Asta climbed up from the ground in a sorry state. Had this girl studied Peking Opera? Changing her face just like that!
"Serves you right!"
Noelle couldn't help but laugh at Asta's disheveled appearance. Just then, the space beside them fluctuated, and Finral poked his head out.
"You two really are on a date here. I wonder if I've interrupted you?"
Finral said with a playful smile.
"Date, my foot!"
Noelle almost couldn't help but curse.
"Little Noelle and Asta, come in quickly. Big sister was so worried about you!"
Vanessa's voice came from within the spatial fluctuation.
"I've already heard what happened from Luck. In short, well done, you brats!"
Yami's voice followed closely behind.
"Let's go!"
Asta stood up, grabbed Noelle's little hand, and smiled. His amber eyes were filled with righteousness, which made Noelle instinctively squeeze Asta's hand tight. It must be said that when Asta got serious, he was truly heart-fluttering!
"As your senior, I really appreciate your adaptability this time!"
Magna said, giving a thumbs up.
"Asta, Noelle, I've prepared little cakes for you!"
Charmy happily brought the two pieces of cake she hadn't been able to bring herself to eat to Asta and Noelle.
"Thanks."
Asta smiled and took the cake from Charmy's hands, intentionally brushing against her little hand as he did so. This made Charmy's face turn bright red as if she'd eaten chili sauce, and she said in a voice as soft as a mosquito, "You... you pervert who peeks at panties!"
"Haha."
Asta laughed and swallowed the cake. This was the first time Charmy had spoken to him since the bet.
"Flirt, fickle, scum leader!"
Noelle delivered another triple combo of insults, then ate her piece of cake resentfully. Must say, it was really delicious!
"I will report this mission to the Magic Emperor personally. Perhaps you might even get a personal commendation from the Magic Emperor. To think you defeated Lotus of the Abyss, that's really not easy."
Yami said, yawning.
"It's Lotus! Captain!"
Magna corrected him.
"Is that so?"
Yami frowned, which seemed to be a precursor to his anger.
"No, no, no, I must have remembered wrong! It's called Water Lily of the Abyss!"
Magna felt incredibly panicked now. How could their great Captain be wrong!
"Where's your integrity?"
Everyone stared at Magna, all feeling that their worldview had been refreshed...
"Oh, I remember now, it seems it's called Lotus of the Abyss, but it doesn't matter what it's called."
Yami waved his hand, signaling everyone to disperse.
"Lotus of the Abyss?"
Asta was lost in thought as he left the hall. That was truly a cunning enemy. If it hadn't been for his use of the Lazy Man's Cart and concealment magic, the few people from the Diamond Kingdom would have already turned into fertilizer to nourish his naruto mall.
But ultimately, it was because he wasn't strong enough. If his Sharingan were upgraded a few more levels, wouldn't seeing through such tricks as invisibility magic be a piece of cake?
Therefore, tomorrow he would go to Yami and ask if there were any combat missions. Upgrading the naruto mall was already imminent!
The next day, Asta was fully revived. He first went to the forest for a series of warm-up exercises, then went to the cafeteria to eat his fill. By the time he returned to the hall, Yami had already returned from the Magic Emperor.
"You're awake, perfect."
Yami called Noelle and Asta over. "The Knights headquarters wants to hear a report on the exploration of the Magic Palace. You two go there personally in seven days."
"The Knights headquarters?"
Noelle panicked subconsciously. That place was where many powerful nobles and royals could be seen; if she went, she would definitely be mocked!
"Not going."
Asta refused very straightforwardly, citing trouble as the reason, but it unexpectedly earned him a look of super admiration and gratitude from Noelle.
"You brat, what a great opportunity this is! Captain, don't worry, I'll take them!"
Luck raised his hand, eager to try. There were countless strong people there; he could really have a good fight with just about anyone he pulled over!
"If you go, you'll definitely cause a huge mess, so you can't go."
Yami refused directly.
"But they don't know the way."
Luck argued strongly.
"Is that so? Originally, I had a few combat missions I wanted you to go on, but now it seems I'll have to give them to someone else."
Yami exhaled a smoke ring and said.
...
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