"Among the Captains here, which one is the one with a close-combat fighting style?"
Hearing this question from Brian, the Captains also briefly guessed what Brian wanted from them. Based on what Brian had demonstrated, it could be seen that close-quarters combat was his fighting style.
Almost simultaneously, all the Captains looked toward two of the nine people present above the plaza. Yami Sukehiro and Jack the Ripper, the two Captains of the Black Bulls and the Green Mantises. These two were the ones who had a close-combat fighting style, exactly as Brian desired.
Magic Knights have many different fighting styles, and when it comes to close combat, none of the remaining Captains could surpass Yami and Jack.
"If you want to find a Captain with a close-combat fighting style, I can suggest you consider between Yami and Jack." William spoke up, directing Brian's gaze to these two. Although he had guessed Brian's intention, it seemed William had not given up on winning his nod of approval.
"The two of them are the best close-combat Magic Knights among the Captains. But if you feel their Squads do not fit your orientation, you can still consider other options that you feel more satisfied with."
William's confidence had a basis, because compared to his Golden Dawn, the Black Bulls and the Green Mantises were not exactly Magic Knight Squads with good reputations in the Clover Kingdom. The possibility that Brian would consider choosing to join a better Magic Knight Squad instead of Yami's Squad or Jack's Squad was something that could happen. Not only William, but the other Captains also thought so. Only Yami and Jack looked at Brian with eyes as if waiting for something interesting.
"Is that so…" Brian lowered his voice, looking as if he were thinking about his choice. He raised his hand to scratch his chin, and after standing still for a while, he finally spoke out what he was thinking in his mind.
"Although I have heard that the reputations of the two Captains of the Black Bulls and the Green Mantises are not good, I think to become a Captain of a Magic Knight Squad, their strength and personal qualities are certainly beyond doubt."
Brian did not want his choice today to look too strange and suspicious, so he needed to put on a show. Although his choice afterward would certainly be perceived by others as unbelievable.
But oh well, Brian also didn't want to drag it out any longer.
"I will join the Black Bulls. This is my choice."
And exactly as Brian had predicted, when he made his choice, the expressions of all the Captains changed; whether it was William or Yami, none of them could have expected Brian to make such a choice.
"Huh…?"
Even Yami, the one Brian chose, felt surprised by his choice.
"Hey, are you sure you're going to join my Squad? I feel a bit like I don't understand; it's like I'm having a crazy, meaningless dream."
Not only Yami, but the Captains as well as the other examinees were also confused by Brian's strange decision.
A person chosen by a four-leaf clover Grimoire did not choose to join the strongest Magic Knight Squad at the time, the Golden Dawn, but instead chose to join the worst Squad, the Black Bulls.
"I am certain of my decision."
Brian once again affirmed his determination, "I want to join the Black Bulls not only because I feel I can learn something from your fighting style, but also because I am interested in you."
"That sounds creepy, kid."
Yami took a drag of his cigarette and exhaled, "What makes you feel that way?"
"Isn't this very easy to understand?"
Brian replied to Yami, and under the curious gazes of others, he looked straight into Yami's eyes, which were looking back at him.
"Captain Yami himself is a foreigner. What kind of person are you that you were able to become the Captain of a Magic Knight Squad in a country like Clover? Don't you find this very interesting, Captain?"
Hearing this from Brian, not waiting for the others to answer or react to his words, Yami laughed with amusement.
"Haha… You're really funny, kid."
Yami used his hand to wipe away some non-existent tears on his face. Immediately after, Yami's attitude changed completely; he looked straight into Brian's eyes sincerely.
"If you want to join the Black Bulls that much, then fine. Come here, you will become a member of my Squad!"
Brian smiled, a very bright smile; he considered himself to have joined the Magic Knight Squad he desired.
Brian's gaze at this moment glanced at Yuno, who was also looking at him. Throughout the time from childhood to now, the two of them had never separated, but now everything had changed.
Each of them chose to join two different Magic Knight Squads, so meeting each other in the future would not be very frequent.
And when they had the opportunity to meet again, they would surely want to know how the other person had changed during the time they did not see each other.
"From now on, let's see how far each of us can go…. Yuno/Brian!" x2
There was no need to speak directly, but from each other's eyes, they could understand the message the other wanted to convey.
The next time they met, both of them would surely have become outstanding Magic Knights.
While Brian and Yuno were still performing their farewell ritual, the atmosphere on the Captains' side was completely opposite to the scene that made people feel the enthusiasm of youth rising below.
"Haha, this year is truly a jackpot!"
Yami laughed out loud comfortably; his laughter was extremely unpleasant to the ears of the other Captains. Perhaps in this place, only William did not feel too annoyed.
"Who would have thought that you people sitting here would be rejected by that brat! Haha!"
Even though they wanted to retort to Yami's words, because the selection was still ongoing, plus the fact that they couldn't help but care about their image unlike Yami. So even though they were bitter, they had to swallow their anger, to settle the score with this rude guy another day.
Not long after, this year's Magic Knight selection exam ended; the selected candidates were about a dozen out of hundreds of candidates, the rest were all eliminated.
Brian at this moment had finished saying goodbye to Yuno; although the goodbye was a bit perfunctory, for them, that was enough.
Skipping the farewell with his best friend, Brian was now standing waiting for Yami; beside him were also two members of the Black Bulls who followed Yami: Finral and Gordon.
"Goodness, until now I still can't believe that you chose to join the Black Bulls."
Finral stood next to Brian and exclaimed, "A person like you should have chosen a better Squad."
Although Gordon didn't say anything, he also had the same thoughts as Finral. Obviously, with his talent, Brian could have completely joined the Golden Dawn like Yuno, who was also chosen by a four-leaf clover Grimoire like Brian.
"I feel that I have a connection with the Black Bulls, and also that I can learn the good points of Captain Yami."
Brian casually replied to Finral, but it seemed Finral still didn't believe his words.
"Just that?"
"Yeah, just that."
Brian glanced at Yami's figure walking toward them from afar, "Maybe it's partly because of Captain Yami's personality?"
Hearing this, Finral looked at Brian in confusion; he really didn't understand even though Brian had explained the reason why he chose the Black Bulls.
That's understandable; who would believe that someone like Brian would choose the Black Bulls for a reason like that?
"Looks like I don't need to wait for you guys anymore."
Yami, holding a cigarette, slowly walked over to where the three people were standing, his gaze shifting to Finral.
"Finral, let's go."
"Understood."
Finral quickly used his Grimoire. Immediately after, a spatial portal appeared right in front of them.
"Get in, brat."
Yami patted Brian on the back once, "You'll arrive at the Black Bulls' base right now."
The cigarette smoke Yami was smoking swirled everywhere; Brian ignored it and walked into the spatial portal Finral had just opened. Once he had passed to the other side of the portal, he saw the base of the Black Bulls.