The moment the communication projection appeared, Mars tensed up. But when he recognized the young face on the screen—one he wouldn't easily forget—he let the magic gathered in his hand quietly dissipate. His expression didn't change in the slightest.
Another type of magic, huh, he thought.
Even though they had fought once before, Mars still didn't fully understand Yuuki's true strength—something that only made the boy feel even more mysterious.
"Long time no see, Mars. Looks like you've recovered pretty well," Yuuki said lazily from within the projection. "Training first thing in the morning… you really don't hold back."
"Talk."
Mars's brow twitched. It had barely been a few days since their fight—what "long time"? His tone was cold and clipped as he spat out the single word.
Yuuki didn't mind his stiff expression. He knew Mars was naturally stone-faced.
"Help me revoke Domina's kill-on-sight bounty," Yuuki said directly, not bothering with extra words.
"Domina?"
A flicker of confusion passed through Mars's eyes. Judging from the name, it sounded like someone from the Diamond Kingdom, but he never paid much attention to the affairs of the assassination corps.
"Who is she?" he asked after a brief silence, voice as flat as ever.
"Dominante Code, the wife of former commander Fanzel. Technically your teacher's wife, you know. You really didn't know?"
"Fanzel…?"
Mars's eyes narrowed. Fanzel had trained him for a brief period—only a short time—before Mars was taken away for experiments. It wasn't exactly a secret, but very few people knew the details.
And yet, this kid even knew that much.
As Mars stayed silent, Yuuki chuckled. "What's wrong? Don't tell me you can't handle it?"
Mars snapped back to his senses.
"No problem," he replied flatly, though a faint domineering confidence lay beneath the monotone. As one of the Eight Shining Generals, this matter was trivial to him.
He didn't know much, but he had heard that Fanzel's wife wasn't from the Diamond Kingdom and had held no government post. Her bounty was clearly guilt by association—punishment for Fanzel's betrayal.
Revoking her bounty would be easy.
"As expected of a Shining General. You really do speak with confidence."
Yuuki smirked, then added teasingly, "In that case, how about you revoke Fanzel's bounty too?"
Mars's expression visibly froze.
Naturally. Even with his authority, the Diamond Kingdom was still ruled by royals and nobles. Domina meant nothing to them—but Fanzel was a different story.
He knew too many secrets. And worse, he'd slapped the royal family and nobility right across the face with his betrayal.
For Fanzel, there were only two endings: execution if captured, or a lifetime of running for his life.
"Just a joke," Yuuki said with a soft laugh. "Only revoke Domina's bounty. Whether it's the Clover Kingdom or the Diamond Kingdom, the ones who truly control everything have always been the royals and the nobles."
Mars stared deeply at him, expression unreadable.
"…I hope you can follow through on what you said."
"Naturally."
Yuuki nodded and ended the call.
His final words were a reminder: if Mars wanted to change the Diamond Kingdom's future, Fanzel was the perfect example of the real enemy—not just powerful mages, but the entire royal and noble class.
Clack!
The tavern door swung open.
Rebecca stepped in, cheeks dotted with sweat, both hands full of ingredients.
Seeing her, Yuuki immediately stood up.
"You worked hard, Rebecca. The carriage's outside, right?" he asked as he took the ingredients from her.
"Mm! I bought a lot this time, and I even got some great discounts," she said with a bright smile—like she'd just secured a victory.
"Looks like Miss Rebecca saved quite a bit."
"'Miss'? That's for nobles," she said quickly, face turning pink.
Yuuki had originally planned to go with her, but someone needed to watch the shop. And Rebecca was worried he'd get ripped off by unfamiliar vendors, so she insisted on going alone.
After placing the ingredients aside, he stepped outside and saw the carriage piled full.
The two of them worked quickly, unloading everything and storing it neatly in the back kitchen.
By the time they finished, Rebecca was panting softly, her wavy reddish-brown hair sticking to her forehead, cheeks flushed—fragile yet stubbornly hardworking.
"I hope this is enough," she said between breaths. She had heard from Asta that someone in the Black Bulls was a massive eater, so she stocked up heavily to avoid running out of food when they arrived.
"It's more than enough. Here."
Yuuki handed her a glass of water.
"Thank you."
She took a small sip, gray eyes lifting toward him. Seeing how relaxed he looked, she couldn't help but say, "Amazing… you're not even sweating."
"In the church, I had to chop firewood in the forest outside the village all the time. It was a long walk, too. And I'd train and spar with Asta and Yuno on the side," Yuuki explained with a shrug. "After a while, your stamina just gets better."
Rebecca's eyes sparkled with curiosity.
"You, Asta, and Yuno are really close."
"Of course. We grew up together, and we're about the same age."
"Speaking of which… Asta and Yuno both said their dream is to become Wizard King. What about you, Yuuki?"
Rebecca leaned forward slightly. Her generous curves tightened her clothes, and her voice carried a note of curiosity.
(End of Chapter)
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