Marvel's master of cosmic magic-Chapter 838

"A mission? That’s rare."

Rowan raised an eyebrow.

The Black Bulls didn’t exactly drown in requests. Unless the Wizard King personally assigned something, most clients preferred the more reputable squads. Veterans and rookies alike spent more time loitering in the base than saving the kingdom.

That suited Rowan just fine.

Noelle folded her arms, silver brows knitting together. "Captain Yami gambled away everything last night. Including his pants. This job is to pay off his debt."

Rowan nodded solemnly. "Yes. That sounds exactly like him."

He added, almost helpfully, "For the record, I joined because I cleaned him out at a casino."

Asta and Noelle stared.

"That works?" Asta asked.

"It worked," Rowan replied.

Magna strode in, broom slung over his shoulder. "We’re heading to Sosshi Village. A bunch of fire boars have gone feral."

Sosshi Village.

Rowan paused.

That was where this body had been born. He’d already written home under Nokia’s name, sent money, reassured the family. The least he could do was show up in person.

"Convenient," he murmured. "I’ll visit while we’re there."

Outside the base, Magna mounted his modified broom. Asta and Noelle did not.

"I can’t ride one," Asta admitted.

"My control isn’t good enough," Noelle muttered.

Magna sighed and shifted back. "Fine. You two sit behind me. Rowan, Lumi, Secre, you good?"

Rowan opened his grimoire instead.

A spatial doorway unfolded in midair.

Magna blinked. "That’s Finral’s spell."

Rowan smiled. "Support magic overlaps in interesting ways. I’ve been studying."

Asta accepted this instantly. Magna and Noelle did not.

Dual attributes were rare. Advanced mages sometimes branched into secondary elements after years of mastery. But Rowan’s primary affinity seemed restorative in nature. Spatial magic was something else entirely.

Before questions could form, Rowan stepped through.

Sosshi Village greeted them with fields, dirt paths, and the smell of turned soil.

A woman washing clothes froze when she saw him.

"Nokia?"

She rushed forward and wrapped him in a tight embrace.

"You reckless child, running off to the capital without telling us—"

Rowan listened quietly. When she finished, he reassured her and explained they were on assignment.

Nokia hadn’t been an only child. Two younger brothers. A sister. All helping their father in the fields. In villages like this, children learned work before they learned pride.

Nokia had wanted something else. 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

He hadn’t made it.

Rowan walked to the village chief’s house with the others to ask about the fire boars.

Before they could begin, a thick fog rolled in.

It swallowed the village in seconds.

Lumi’s expression sharpened. "That’s not natural. It’s a barrier."

Magna grimaced. "Diamond Kingdom?"

The Diamond Kingdom was aggressive and resource-hungry, known for experimental mages and ruthless expansion. Their grimoires bore the diamond crest.

Rowan extended his senses.

Four casters. Three maintaining the fog. One stronger than the rest, but nowhere near captain-class.

Asta, Noelle, and Magna together could manage. Lumi and Secre were insurance.

"We’ll find out soon enough," Rowan said.

An invisible pressure nudged villagers toward the central square.

Magna thumped his chest. "Don’t worry! We’re here."

By the time they reached the plaza, the entire village had been herded together.

The chief calmed the crowd. Rowan and the others formed a line in front of them.

"Isn’t that Magna? From the next village over?"

"And Nokia too. Joined the Magic Knights..."

Pride flickered across Nokia’s parents’ faces.

Four figures emerged from the fog, grimoires hovering beside them.

"Black Bulls," one sneered. "Irrelevant. Execute them and retrieve the magic stone."

So that was their goal.

Three of them raised their hands.

"Fog Magic: Phantom Vortex."

The mist condensed into massive hands, lunging forward.

"Rowan, Secre, Noelle, stay back and guard the villagers!" Magna barked. "Asta, Lumi, with me!"

Fireballs erupted from Magna’s bat, shredding the fog constructs.

Asta didn’t hesitate. He charged straight for the apparent leader.

The man checked a pocket watch calmly.

"Ice Magic: Frozen Execution."

A forest of ice spears formed overhead and rained down.

Wings of light flared.

Lumi’s arrows struck the tail of each spear with surgical precision, tilting their trajectory just enough to miss.

He used minimal mana. No spectacle. Only control.

The leader frowned.

A massive sphere of ice formed, spinning with crushing force.

Asta leapt and cleaved it cleanly in half. Anti-magic erased it from existence.

The leader’s eyes narrowed.

"Impressive trick."

As Asta closed in, three fog mages moved to intercept. Magna blasted them back again.

"Ice Magic: Bloom of Execution."

An enormous ice flower burst from the leader’s body, detonating outward. The impact sent Asta flying.

Rowan glanced at Noelle.

"Your magic surpasses his," he said quietly. "Why not use it?"

Her jaw tightened. "I can’t control it."

"That’s fear speaking."

He touched her shoulder, subtle as a passing thought.

Confidence is not summoned. It is remembered.

Noelle inhaled.

The doubt that usually strangled her loosened.

Water gathered before her in perfect spheres, dense and steady. Not wild. Not erratic.

The magic responded.

For once, it listened.