Star Award Festival
It's been a month since Julian returned from the Witch Forest.
During this time, the activities of Eye of the Midnight Sun almost toned down to zero.
The news of the Black Bulls eliminating another general of the Eye of the Midnight Sun spread all around adding to the achievements of the Black Bulls.
This time alongside Julian, the Magic-less knight Asta gained popularity too.
The concept of a Magicless Magic knight appeared to be ridiculous but it seemed more believable as time passed since the people who witnessed Asta in action spread the word around.
With fame, came more responsibilities too since more people now requested the Black Bulls for their missions making everyone busy.
Yami cussed out Julian every time he got a new mission since his workload increased.
Since Julian was now a grand mage, he too received difficult and time-consuming missions.
Kirin was asleep as he was undergoing his evolution while Secre was busy with the Magic research department so Julian had to do all the missions alone.
Julian's background as a commoner was already known but also his accomplishments and strength so no Royal or Noble dared to mess with him or interfere in his missions.
Another interesting news that reached Julian's ears was Fuegoleon being chosen as the new host for the great Fire Sprit Salamander.
Since Julian absorbed all its powers, Salamander was currently the size of a lizard and would take some time till it shows its true powers.
Still, that lizard's flames were not to be underestimated since it was a great spirit after all no matter the size.
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Today evening every Black Bull member was in an elevated mood, not because they were getting a holiday from doing missions but because it was time for the STAR AWARD FESTIVAL !!!
Everyone set out to the capital to enjoy the most exciting festival of the year.
Unfortunately for Henry, he couldn't enjoy the festival so Julian would be showing him the recording of the event.
A few days ago Grey accidentally stumbled upon Henry's room and freaked out drawing the attention of Magna, Gauche, and Magna who were currently in the base.
By the time Julian got home, he found everyone lying on the floor barely hanging on due to the lack of Mana despite having Secre's seal on them.
This is how everyone found out about Henry's existence.
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Just like last year, the streets were full of decorations, stalls, and people from all around the country.
Everyone formed small groups and separated to enjoy the festival.
Asta and Noelle formed a group and went towards the entertainment area since they heard Kahono and Kiato were going to have a concert there.
Charmy set out to enjoy as many different types of food items as possible.
Gauche picked up his sister from the Church since he wanted to see the festival with her. Grey followed Gauche since she was the closest to him in the squad.
Luck and Magna went towards the game section to compete while Gordon followed the theme since he was confused about where to go.
Yami brought a food stall and dragged Vanessa and Finral with him to help him.
By strange coincidence, Captain Jack had also bought a food stall beside Yami's stall.
This led to the starting of a competition as to who can sell more food.
Finally Julian and Secre went on a date to visit all the areas.
Both of them were busy for the past month so couldn't do anything together so they were going to enjoy this event to the fullest.
On the way, Julian saw Yuno and Annie on a date so he didn't disturb them but he made sure to mess with Lucis and Olivia.
After a few hours of selling food, Yami and Jack ended up in a draw so they closed down the shop.
Finral somewhere else to cool off while Yami took Vanessa to the drinking area where they coincidentally meet Captain Charlotte.
Vanessa knew Charlotte liked Yami so to tease her, she stayed very close to Yami.
Charlotte who was already drunk challenged Vanessa to a drinking contest which Charlotte had no chance of winning.
Yami decided to join in too taking Charlotte's alcohol making her flustered.
The main event was about to begin so Julian wouldn't let the two captains stay intoxicated so Secre went there to make them sober.
Julian stood on the roof of a building with a glass of wine while a person wearing a black cloak stood beside him holding another glass of wine.
That man was Nacht, the vice-captain of the Black Bulls and a grand mage.
"How did you find me, Julian ?" Nacht asked.
"I remember your mana signature.
That aside, don't you want to meet the members or even Yami ?" Julian asked.
"I will meet them when the time comes.
Moreover, I don't have any interest in meeting a man like Yami and ruining my day" Nacht replied taking a sip of his wine.
"How is the situation in the Spade Kingdom ?"
"Small-scale clashes have been taking place between the Diamond and Spade nation.
The Heart nation has not been involved yet but they would defend themselves if the war spreads that way" Nacht replied
"The situation with the Clover Kingdom is not that stable as well with organizations like Eye of the Midnight Sun causing chaos"
Julian and Nacht continued their conversation till it was time for the final and main event of the day which was the Award ceremony.
Saying goodbye to Nacht, Julian gathered all the Black Bull members and reached the central plaza.
The place was already full of people by the time Julian and the others gathered there.
The star award ceremony ranked all the Magic Knight Squads based on the number of stars they earned throughout the year.
The 28th Wizard King Julius Novacrono stepped on the stage making the crowd go wild with their cheers.
Wizard King took the mic and started speaking"THANK YOU, EVERYONE, FOR GATHERING HERE TODAY.
TODAY IS THE DAY WE APPRECIATE THE PEOPLE WHO WORK HARD FOR OUR WELL BEINGS AND SAFETY.
IN TIMES LIKE TERRORIST ORGANIZATIONS THREATEN OUR SAFETY, THEY BECAME OUR SHIELD.
THESE PEOPLE DISREGARD THEIR SAFETY TO FIGHT FOR THE SAFETY OF OUR NATION AND A BETTER FUTURE.
SO, GIVE A ROUND OF APPLAUSE TO THE MAGIC KNIGHT CAPTAINS!!! ".
One by one every captain including Captain Mereoleona walked entered the stage as people welcomed them with applause and cheers.
Since the last Captain of Purple Orca was a traitor, a mage named Kaiser was now the new captain.
Crimson Lion Squad was unique amongst all the Squads due to the fact that they had two people who shared the captain position i.e. Fuegleon and Mereleona.
With some more small speeches by the Wizard King, it was finally time to reveal the ranking.
1 Black Bulls - 150 Stars
2 Golden Dawn - 120 Stars
3 Crimson Lions - 100 stars
4 Silva Eagles - 96 stars
5 Blue Rose - 80 stars
6 Coral Peacock - 74 stars
7 Praying Mantis - 70 stars
8 Aquadeer - 60 stars
9 Purple Orcha -58 stars
The ranking came out as shocking to everyone including the Black Bulls members.
Everyone knew the current Black Bulls were different from the one in the past but them to take the first position surprising Golden Dawn was truly shocking.
Now it appears that the Purple Orcas had become the worst squad in terms of performance.
Since some people were still not convinced, Wizard King displayed all the achievements the Black Bulls acquired to earn the stars.
"Now I would like to invite the three mages who earned the most stars this year onto the stage !!!
Coming in third place is Yuno from Golden Dawn with 28 stars!!!
Not only he was chosen by the legendary four-leaf clover Grimoire but also by the great wind spirit Sylph !!!"
Yuno slowly walked up the stage as people cheered for him.
"Coming in second place is Asta from the Black Bulls with 30 stars!!!
Despite having no mana in his body, Asta wields the power of Anti magic completing missions with utmost efficiency !!! "
Same for Asta, people continued to cheer as he stood beside Yuno.
It was a long way for Asta and Yuno to reach this stage.
"Despite being rookies, both of them have already surpassed several ventral magic knights with their performance.
And finally, the one who earned the most stars is…..Julian with 60 stars!!!!
Not only he was chosen by the legendary four-leaf Grimoire but also the Lightnin Spirt Kirin.
Everyone here knows the feats Julian has performed the past year which includes Saving the capital, eliminating two generals of Eye of the Midnight Sun, and many more."
Julian directly teleported to the stage as people went wild for him with cheers that were at the level of the Wizard king.
It was no doubt that Julian was the most popular magic knight after the Wizard King surpassing the popularity of the captains.
'He has gotten stronger….. can't wait to fight him again!!' Mereoleona smirked seeing Julian.
"Let me share some interesting facts with you all…." Wizard King continued.
"All three of them grew up in the same Church as commoners.
They started from zero and reached the level that people can only dream of.
They are living proof that as long as a person has determination and is willing to work hard, it doesn't matter if a person is a commoner or royal, they can reach their dreams!!!"
As the crowd quiet down a bit, Mereleona took the mic from Wizard King for the next big announcement.
"Until now, we only have been defending against the attacks of Eye of the Midnight Sun but it is finally time for a counter-attack!!!!
We have located all the bases of Eye of the Midnight Sun and soon would be destroying them ending the organization once and for all.
We will conduct an exam which would be broadcasted to select the best magic knights for this operation and they will be called the Royal Knights.
So Mages of Clover Kingdom dedicate your Grimoires to Clover Kingdom!!!"