Asta's Adventure

"Oooh, now I remember!" Yami said, gripping Asta's head tightly. "You're the one who made me lose my money!"

Hearing this, Asta got angry and shouted:

"Don't blame me, you bastard! Bet responsibly or don't gamble at all if you never win!"

Yami loosened his grip slightly, recalling that he truly never won at gambling. This only fueled his anger further, and he tightened his hold on Asta's head again.

"Damn, that kid's out of luck. That's one of the Black Bulls' psychos,"

"I heard they're all crazy," came murmurs from the crowd.

Normally, Yami wouldn't have paid attention to this kind of talk, but today, with his anger already boiling, it added fuel to the fire.

Seeing the situation escalate, Asta decided to act. He grabbed Yami's hand and began squeezing it, trying to break free.

"Hm, so you're fighting back?" Yami smirked, feeling Asta's strength. However, he was shocked—Asta's skin felt like steel.

"I'll surpass my limits!" Yami shouted, gritting his teeth. He brought his other hand into the mix, pressing harder on Asta's head.

Feeling the additional pressure, Asta pushed himself to his own limits.

"Damn it, he's trying to kill me! But I'm not losing to some gambling bandit!" Asta growled, clenching his fists.

This remark infuriated Yami even more.

"5... 4... 3..." Yami began counting.

"What the hell are you counting?!" Asta yelled, desperately struggling for his life.

"The last seconds of your life," Yami replied coldly.

Watching the scene, Yuno made a detached comment:

"You two are just fooling around, huh?"

Meanwhile, Noelle panicked, waving her hands in distress.

"Asta! Asta! Stop it already!" she shouted, shifting nervously from foot to foot.

At that moment, Finral approached. Seeing Yami choking Asta, he froze in confusion, then hesitantly asked:

"Captain, uh… what are you doing?"

Without letting go, Yami casually replied:

"Nothing much. Just trying to kill this kid."

The situation was interrupted by a loud voice from the tribunes.

"Dear participants, apologies for the delay," announced one of the captains.

The other captains began appearing on the stage.

Seeing them, Yami clicked his tongue and released Asta.

"Alright, you'll live, kid. But if you don't join my squad, I'll kill you," he muttered before walking off.

Rubbing his head, Asta watched Yami leave and muttered:

"What the hell have I gotten myself into..?"

The crowd's attention shifted to the captains.

"Wow, the captains!" people exclaimed.

"Look! The captain of the Blue Rose squad! She's so beautiful!"

"Oh my god, the captain of the Crimson Lions! I can't believe I'm seeing him today!"

Everyone was buzzing about the captains—except for Yami and Jack. About them, comments were either neutral or outright negative.

"Look, Yami, they don't like you," Jack sneered.

"What did you just say, bug?! They don't like you!" Yami shot back.

Jack headbutted Yami, and the atmosphere on the captains' tribune became tense.

The most serious of them all was Nozel. He wasn't looking at the gathered participants in the coliseum, lost in his own thoughts. He shouldn't have even come today, but guilt weighed heavily on him. Noelle's disappearance troubled him deeply. He blamed himself—not only for allowing Nebra and Solid to bully her but for adding to it himself.

"I'm unworthy as a brother," he thought.

Next to him, Solid also seemed unlike his usual self. This was due to the harsh lecture Nozel had given him. Nozel had made it crystal clear: if Noelle returned, he wouldn't tolerate any more bullying from either Solid or Nebra.

Suddenly, Solid noticed someone in the crowd. He pointed toward a figure with silver hair, tapping Nozel on the back.

Feeling the tap, Nozel turned to Solid, silently asking what was wrong. Following the direction of Solid's finger, Nozel's eyes finally widened.

"Noelle…" he whispered.