A meteor of fire streaked across the sky, landing perfectly in front of the Black Bulls' headquarters. The flames dissipated, revealing a figure inside.
Drake let out a long breath, looking at the familiar castle. He'd lost track of time; he didn't know how long he'd been gone. It felt like only a few days, yet like a long time. He even missed the dilapidated castle.
Opening the door, he saw Finral and Yami.
"Yo! You're back! Seems like you didn't waste your time. You're different," Yami greeted him.
Drake thought Yami was perceptive, but he wanted to know what had happened.
"Captain Yami and Finral-senpai, are you leaving? What's going on?"
Finral explained, "Noelle contacted headquarters; Asta and Gauche are in trouble. Children have been abducted, and the Black Bulls are closest. We're on the case."
Yami moved aside, revealing Vanessa passed out on the sofa, Magna also drunk, and Charmy collapsed.
"As you see, they're useless. I'll go."
Drake's expression turned serious.
"This is… too convenient."
He felt like fate was on his side; he'd returned just as this incident occurred. The child abduction was orchestrated by the Eye of the Midnight Sun.
Patri needed magic stones and immense magic power for his forbidden magic. The mages working for the Eye of the Midnight Sun abducted children to extract their magic power.
One of the children was Gauche's sister, carrying a mirror Gauche had created. Using its power, Gauche and Asta (who was on vacation) found the children.
After defeating two abductors, they faced the Eye of the Midnight Sun's mad scientist, Sally, and then Patri.
"Captain Yami, let me go!"
Yami laughed. "You want to see how much you've improved? Come on!"
Finral opened a spatial portal. Finral's magic could teleport them to a location marked with magic power. Luckily, Gauche was there; Finral used his magic power to pinpoint the target location.
Asta confronted Patri and realized how strong he was. Before Asta could react, his leg was pierced by a light sword.
Asta remained focused, observing his opponent. His physical training was exceptional; even Drake, without magic, couldn't match him, especially his reflexes.
But Patri's light magic was too fast.
Patri noticed Asta's Grimoire; its original owner was someone he respected.
"Return that Grimoire!"
Patri moved quickly, but a beam of fire struck him.
"Yo, we meet again!" Drake stood before Asta, greeting the retreating Patri.
"Drake? Captain Yami? How are you here?" Asta exclaimed.
"Lost. Could you show us the way?" Yami said, his dark magic-infused blade aimed at Patri.
"And Drake, you stole my cool entrance!"
Drake stood tall. "Sorry, Captain Yami, but I can't stay calm facing this guy!"
Yami examined Patri. "This is him? The Eye of the Midnight Sun's leader who injured the earnest Great King?"
Yami vanished, appearing before Patri, cleaving his light swords and striking him.
Patri retreated, touching his face. "So, using magic to enhance your body and attacking with a sword! And dark magic to counter my light magic. Yami Sukehiro, you're troublesome."
Yami took a drag of his cigarette. "What? I dodged perfectly! I thought he was just underhanded; he's pretty strong!"
As Yami prepared to attack, Drake appeared.
"Hey, Drake, what are you doing?" Yami asked.
Drake said seriously, "Captain Yami, please! Only this guy, I want to defeat him myself!"
Yami exhaled smoke, looking at Drake for a long time, then said, "Don't be reckless! If you lose, I'll take the credit without hesitation!"
This was Yami's way of showing concern. While he saw Drake's growth, he knew the opponent was a Captain-level strongman. But he couldn't refuse Drake's request.
"Yes!" Drake smiled, facing Patri.
"It's payback time!"
Patri hovered, looking down. "Such bravado, but a mere underling… what?!"
Before Patri finished, Drake appeared before him, punching him in the abdomen. Patri doubled over, shocked.
Patri crashed into a mountainside, shattering the rocks. He stood up from the crater he'd created.
"Light Recovery Magic: Healing Ray of Light!"
Numerous light particles healed his injuries.
Patri had sensed Drake's change when he appeared before Yami, but he hadn't expected this level of growth.
Yami whistled. "He uses recovery magic? Amazing! But what's with Drake? He's gotten too strong!"
While sounding joking, he felt urgency. If his subordinate surpassed him, he'd lose face.
Drake changed again.
"Surprised? It gets better!"
White steam erupted from Drake; he seemed like a giant furnace, distorting the air.
Tiny scales appeared on his cheeks; he looked at Patri with vertical pupils. Patri vaguely saw red dragon wings behind Drake. He wasn't facing a human but a dragon.
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