Clover Kingdom- Royal Capital
The Royal Capital stood as the beating heart of the Clover Kingdom, a magnificent city that housed both the nobility and the legendary Wizard King, Julius Novachrono. Positioned at the very center of the kingdom, this sprawling metropolis was home to over 50,000 residents, making up nearly twenty percent of the entire kingdom's population.
Bustling streets wound through the city like arteries, filled with shops and vendors selling everything from exotic spices to magical artifacts. Grand houses lined the wider boulevards, their architecture a testament to the wealth and power concentrated within the capital's walls.
At the city's highest point, overlooking everything like a sentinel, stood the grand castle. This imposing structure housed the four prominent royal houses, the king himself, and the headquarters of the Magic Knights—the elite force that protected the kingdom from threats both within and beyond its borders.
Inside this castle, tucked away in what appeared to be an unassuming office, sat a tall blonde man with a distinctive star mark on the right side of his forehead. Julius Novachrono, the 28th Wizard King, wore his ceremonial red robe adorned with white fur and countless gold medallions, but his current posture suggested anything but regal authority. He looked like he was on the verge of death as he stared at the towering stack of paperwork on his desk.
"Marx, come on, let me take a break," Julius whined, turning to his assistant with the expression of a man who had lost all hope. "I've been at this all day. A man can only take so much."
Marx, a stern-faced man with an unwavering sense of duty, ruthlessly slammed another stack of papers onto the already groaning desk. "Absolutely not."
Julius looked utterly defeated and was about to launch into another complaint when a magical transmission crackled to life, alerting both him and Marx to an incoming communication.
Walking over to the crystal orb that served as their communication device, Marx answered the call. Both men waited expectantly as the magical connection stabilized.
"Julius, my friend, it has been a long time. How have you been?" came the familiar voice of the Hage village grimoire tower master, his face materializing within the orb with a warm smile.
Julius perked up immediately, his exhaustion momentarily forgotten. "Ah, Drouot! How have you been? The ceremony was today, right? How did it go? Any interesting magic?" Stars practically appeared in his eyes as he asked the last part.
Drouot chuckled at Julius's predictable enthusiasm. "Well, you could certainly say that."
Both Julius and Marx leaned forward, their interest piqued by the tower master's tone.
"Actually," Drouot continued, his voice taking on a more serious note, "do you remember around ten years ago when that phenomenon was reported throughout the commoner realm? I believe it was a loud snap that was heard and a large concentration of mana?"
Julius's demeanor shifted instantly, his playful expression replaced by one of sharp focus. "Yes, I remember. The previous Wizard King sent members of my squad to investigate at the time, but they didn't find anything. Why? Have you discovered something?"
"Yes, I believe so," Drouot replied gravely. "Today in my tower, something spectacular happened, and I'm not sure I can even put into words what exactly I saw."
"Try," Julius urged, his full attention now fixed on the communication orb.
Drouot took a deep breath before continuing. "Well, that same noise and mana fluctuation was felt in my tower today when a grimoire appeared. And not only that—it was a four-leaf grimoire."
Marx's eyes widened as he exclaimed, "Are you positive?"
"Yes, I am certain," Drouot confirmed. "And not only that, but when it appeared, it seemed the entire room was affected. I cannot even put into words what I saw, but everything around us was distorted in numerous different and peculiar ways."
Julius's mind raced through possible explanations, his vast magical knowledge working overtime. Space magic? Something like Dorothy's dream magic? Or perhaps something I haven't encountered before? At that last thought, his eyes began to shine with barely contained excitement.
"Did you see who the grimoire went to? Do you know who it is?" Julius asked eagerly.
"Yes I believe so"
Drouot replied, then proceeded to give a detailed description of the mysterious boy who had received the legendary grimoire.
After receiving the description, Julius thanked his old friend, and the communication ended, leaving him alone with Marx in the suddenly quiet office.
Marx immediately recognized the dangerous look that was creeping into Julius's eyes—the same expression he got whenever he was about to abandon his responsibilities to chase after something interesting.
"You are the Wizard King," Marx said firmly, pointing an accusatory finger at his superior. "You absolutely cannot go harass a boy to see his magic."
Julius's expression grew serious as he nodded slowly. "I know, I know. But this is certainly... interesting."
Marx's stern expression softened slightly. "Do you believe it could be a threat?"
Julius shook his head thoughtfully. "I don't believe so. Drouot didn't portray the boy as a threat, but rather as someone the people admired. Someone they looked up to."
Hearing this, Marx nodded and fixed Julius with another stern look. "If that's the case, then you should get back to work."
Julius looked utterly dejected as his assistant's words crushed any hope of an exciting investigation, and he slumped back toward his desk and the waiting mountain of paperwork.
_______
Meanwhile, back at a humble church in Hage Village, the air suddenly shimmered as two figures materialized out of nowhere in front of the building. Father Orsi let out a high-pitched scream that echoed across the courtyard, his dignified composure completely shattered by the experience of magical transportation.
"AHHHHHHH! A little warning next time!"Father Orsi gasped, clutching his chest as he tried to regain his composure.
But as he yelled at Kenji, he suddenly noticed the kids staring at him with bewildered expressions. His face fell as a dark cloud of depression settled over him. They must have seen that... my cool father image is completely ruined.
Just then, Asta came jogging back from his training session, standing beside Yuno as he looked over at the figure in white standing next to Father Orsi. "Hey Father, who's this flashy guy in white?"
Hearing this, the others looked over curiously. Dark lines immediately appeared over Kenji's face as Asta had completely ruined his cool entrance in front of his younger siblings.
"You idiot," Kenji responded with barely contained irritation. "After all this time you can't even recognize your big brother?"
"Kenji, is that you?!" Asta responded with shock.
But seeing the dark energy starting to surround Kenji, Asta began to feel genuine danger and slowly backed away, laughing nervously. "Hahaha, you know I was just kidding, Kenji, you kn—"
"I guess as the big brother, it's my job to educate you, right?" Kenji interrupted, his voice taking on an ominous tone.
Yuno, standing beside Asta, solemnly nodded in agreement, while Asta began running away shouting, "I'M SORRRRRYYYY!"
Snap.
When the sound reverberated through the air, Asta—who had been running toward the house—suddenly found himself trapped within the walls as a two-dimensional character, running laps around the building but unable to escape the flat surface.
Everyone's eyes widened in shock at this display, while Kenji muttered thoughtfully, "Huh, guess I can use my powers a lot more freely now. Wonder if the amount of mana affects how hard it is to transport another person."
He slowly turned his gaze toward Yuno, startling the golden-eyed boy. "Hey Yuno, come help me experiment with my new grimoire."
Yuno resolutely shook his head. "Absolutely not," he said, looking over at Asta, who was now yelling and banging his fists trying to escape his two-dimensional prison.
Hearing this, Kenji clicked his tongue and turned to face the trapped Asta. "You're on timeout now. Think about what you've done."
"WHAT DID I DOOO?" Asta yelled, his voice sounding like it was coming from an old television.
Kenji clicked his tongue again. "You know what you did."
Sister Lily then appeared and announced "Lunch is ready".
She smiled warmly when she saw Kenji, not yet noticing Asta's predicament, and asked "Is that you Kenji? You look so handsome! How did the ceremony go?"
Hearing this Kenji looks over at Asta as if to say See, then looking back smiling back towards Sister Lily says "It went well," showing her his new grimoire.
Seeing the four leaves, Sister Lily unlike the others not yet knowing the meaning of a 4 leaf grimoire widens her eyes, and before she could say more, Kenji said "lets head inside for lunch and talk"
Hearing this she smiles and nods her head and they all head into the house to eat lunch, completely ignoring Asta, who was running alongside them on the wall in his two-dimensional state, still trying to get to the kitchen.
Only little Recca looked concerned, asking Kenji, "Will he be okay?"
Kenji responded casually, "He'll be fine. I'll take him out once he smartens up."
Everyone else sweat-dropped and thought in unison, He's never getting out.