BLACK CLOVER: The Whisperer - Yuno Grinberryall

CHAPTER XIX. Purpose

──────────────────────────

⠀

"Commence execution."

⠀

And at that moment...

The shards fell onto the villagers—helplessly giving in their lives to the hands of fate itself.

"Oh, no, you don't!" Magna ran in with a war cry whilst Xierra rode on top of the enlarged Inari, going ahead of the senior. Both their grimoires flipped wide open as Magna chanted his spell quicker than he could breathe: "Flame Magic: Explosive Scattershot!"

The air blazed and swirled, forming fireballs from the centers. They launched into the air with trails of golden flame on their tails. As strong as the spell was, the number of ice shards above them was greater than Magna's explosive fireballs.

It concerned Xierra. Her grimoire stormed through its pages, stopping at a certain page.

"Astral Creation Magic: Night of a Thousand Stars!"

The sky turned dark and split in half, making way for them to see the starry night sky. Stars came lining from the welkin, shooting down at high speed, creating explosive impact upon touching the shards. The more she trained, the more her spells surprised her. Xierra looked at the portal that stretched across the graying sky, leading to space itself.

With the combination of Magna and Xierra's spells, they managed to stop the shards from massacring the villagers. Their spells collided with more of the oncoming shards, shattering them before they touched the lives pleading below. Clouds of dust formed, finally thinning down.

Asta and the two royals couldn't react, standing frozen in their places. They watched the shards shatter before their eyes, raining and glistening from the reflection.

The villagers stared at their saviors in disbelief. Others started to straighten themselves once they heard and realized that their lives had been spared. They looked around, landing their eyes on Magna and Xierra's forms that barely saved them from the reaper's grasp.

"They're alive."

Asta, Noelle, and Rhein approached both mages that acted, making sure they were fine. The villagers noticed the emblems on their robes; a roaring lion, with its wide jaw and golden mane; and a bull's head, gold-rimmed and darker than night—the Black Bulls and the Crimson Lion Kings saved them.

"It's the magic knights..."

"Did they come to save us?!"

Xierra's eyes softened when she saw the children who teared up. Everyone in her village knew she had a soft spot for children, including Asta and Yuno. She cleared her throat, trying not to get emotional in the middle of an emergency. Rhein snickered beside her, patting her back to comfort her.

They then walked towards the villagers, reaching their middle. The closer they got, the more the villagers knew their faces, recognizing especially Magna.

"Magna, it's you!"

"Nick!" Magna called the dirty-blond boy, his concern lacing his tone audibly. "What the heck is going on?" he asked.

Xierra glanced at them, softening her eyes at the sight of their helpless state. Her heart ached and she clenched her fist onto her chest, feeling the tightness in it suffocating her.

They were scared.

They were frightened.

They were powerless.