Asta's Adventure

Asta's punch forced Luck to step back.

"What strength! And without magic too!" thought Luck, trying to compose himself. "If he hits me even once, I'm done for."

But Luck quickly recovered and once again went on the offensive, beginning to pressure Asta.

Asta, in turn, tried to land a hit on Luck, but Luck was simply too fast. Besides, Asta couldn't use a weapon and had to rely solely on his fists. However, Luck's punches, though swift, didn't deal much damage. Slowly but surely, Asta began to pick up speed.

Luck noticed this.

"He... He's getting faster!" Luck thought in surprise. Asta's fists started flying dangerously close to Luck's body.

From the stands, the squad captains observed the fight carefully, especially Yami.

Realizing that his chances of winning were slipping away, Luck heard a loud yell:

"Hey, Luck! Push past your limits! Beat that shorty! You can't lose, no matter what! Or else I'll kill you myself!" Yami roared.

Asta's face turned red with rage as a vein bulged on his forehead. He turned to Yami and shouted:

"Who are you calling shorty, you mountain bandit?!"

The arena fell into a tense silence.

Countless veins appeared on Yami's face as he stared at Asta with a murderous look.

Meanwhile, Captain Jack burst into laughter.

"Good one, kid, good one! You hit the nail on the head!" he said, laughing so hard he nearly doubled over.

Nozel allowed himself a faint smile, though he looked as if he was trying to hold back laughter. Looking at Asta, he raised a thumb in approval, as if to say, "Well done."

Solid, seeing his brother's reaction, was astonished.

"I haven't seen brother smile in ages," he thought.

The other captains couldn't help but grin.

"You're done for, kid," Yami growled, glaring at Asta.

But Jack cut him off.

"Don't even think about interfering! If you do, you'll lose automatically, and you'll owe me money."

Yami clicked his tongue in irritation and lit a cigarette.

Meanwhile, down in the arena, Asta finished the fight. Like a raging bull, he simultaneously struck Luck with both fists – one hitting his chest, the other his throat. Luck went flying across the arena.

"Luuuck!" Magna yelled as he watched his teammate crash into the wall and slump motionless to the ground.

Asta barely had a moment to celebrate his victory before Yami appeared in front of him. Without warning, Yami grabbed Asta by the head and began squeezing.

"Ow, ow, ow! What are you doing?! That hurts, you mountain bandit!" Asta yelled, struggling to free himself.

Yami only tightened his grip.

"This isn't up for discussion! You're joining the Black Bulls, and you don't have a choice!"

"What?! Why?!"

"Let's go over the reasons," Yami began, raising his fingers to count:

"First, you called me a mountain bandit. Second, you injured a member of my squad."

"But he was the one who challenged me!" Asta protested.

"Quiet! Third, I lost 100 gold betting on you, and now you're going to pay me back!"

"What?! That's your fault! Take responsibility for your own actions!"

"Hey, Yami, why are you so sure he should join your squad? He'd be a better fit in mine," Jack chimed in.

"Forget it, bug-brain. You've already taken enough money from me," Yami shot back.

"What did you say?!" Jack and Yami clashed foreheads, glaring at each other.

At that moment, Fuegoleon stepped forward.

"I'm also interested in him."

"Me too! Me too!" Rill exclaimed, joining in.

"Forget it! A hard-headed king and a white-haired shrimp like you don't stand a chance!" Yami barked.

Meanwhile, Asta, feeling overwhelmed, hesitantly said:

"Aren't Magic Knights supposed to accept members only at 15 years old and with a grimoire? I'm not 15 yet, and I don't even have a grimoire."