Black Clover - By My Side (Asta X Noelle)

Chapter 26: The Royal Knights Exam (Part 8)

[It appeared as though humanity would be destroyed by demons. But a single mage saved them all. He was called the wizard king, and he became a legend.]

Noelle POV:

"How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine, Yuno. What do you want," I question impatiently.

Yuno lets out a sigh, "I'm just checking in on my teammate. We still have another match."

"Oh, now you want to be nice to me? I thought I wouldn't be needed for the upcoming match."

"I could easily win this tournament with no teammates, but Asta probably would not be happy if you didn't participate."

I don't respond, and Yuno doesn't say anything else either. This leads to an awkward silence. He just stands in the doorway, looking around the room. 

Finally, the awkwardness gets to me, causing me to break the silence, "do you have something else to say," I ask, somewhat frustrated at the situation. 

Yuno clears his throat, "I was watching you fight your brother. When we split up, I made quick work of his teammates. I was looking for their crystal when I saw you two."

"What are you getting at?"

"Well, I was going to step in when he kept hitting you. But I didn't. I wanted to see if you'd somehow win. And surprisingly, you did," Yuno pauses, seemingly to collect his thoughts. He then walks over to the chair next to me and sits down. "It seems Asta's stupidity has rubbed off on you."

"Huh- what's that supposed to me," I say in a fit of rage and embarrassment.

"He always rushes off with no concern about how things will end up for him. He always would be the one who got hurt. But no matter how grim things got, he'd end up on top. Completely shattering everyone's expectations." 

I think about his words, and he's right. Asta does always manage to pull through somehow. No matter the situation. Wait- Is he trying to compliment me or something! 

"Yuno," I saw with surprise and hesitation in my voice, "are you trying to say I did a good job?"

Yuno's face slightly turns red, and he stands up from his chair, "all I'm saying is that you're stupid, just like Asta," he says while crossing his arms.

"You're totally embarrassed to admit it," I laugh.

 "Asta seems fond of you. Therefore as his brother, I have to respect that.  You seem like you can handle yourself. So, I'll allow it."

Now I find myself holding back my laughter. Hearing Yuno talk like this is nothing short of funny. His face is all red too. "You seem really protective of Asta. I didn't expect that."

"Well, he doesn't take care of himself. So someone has to."

"You can say that again." 

Yuno laughs, "but if you hold me back in our next match, my opinion might very well change," he says while smiling.

"Huh? that's unfair. I'm injured."

"If you can argue, then you can fight."

We both laugh. I didn't think that we would be able to get along at all, especially after our earlier encounter. But it turns out he was just a protective brother. After the laughter dies down, we both sit in silence. I lay down on the bed, thinking of how Asta's match might be going. He's definitely winning. I smile as more thoughts of Asta flood my mind. I want to know more about him.

I turn to Yuno, "what's Hage village like," I ask, breaking the silence. 

Taken aback by my question, Yuno looks at me sideways, "why the sudden interest?"

"I dunno. Just wondering."

Yuno hesitates. Almost as if he's wondering if he should tell me or not. However, he finally responds, "it's a small, poor village. Nothing really special about it."

"Well, it's your home. That's special, right?"

Yuno smiles, "you're right. It's our precious home."

"I always see Asta writing letters back home. So I'd like to see it."

"I'm sure he'd be happy to take you. After all of this stuff with The Eye of The Midnight Sun, you should ask him."

"Yeah, I think I will," I say as I make myself comfortable on the bed.

"Well, I'll leave now," Yuno says while standing up, "If you don't show up for our match, Asta will be upset. So make sure you're better by then."

"Of course, I'm royalty after all."

Yuno smirks and walks out of the room. I guess he isn't that bad of a guy.

[Chapter 26 end]

{Author's notes: HAPPY NEW YEARS EVERYONE! I hope that your first day of 2021 went well, and I hope you guys have a great year! Stay safe!}