Everything I Wanted

Prologue

Five Years Ago

The Clover Kingdom was celebrating because a new magic knights squad was established. Led by the foreigner, Yami Sukehiro himself. Many thought it was a mistake. A man with rough manners, a frightening amount of power, and a habit of solving problems by hitting them. Yet standing before the newly appointed Wizard King, Julius Novachrono, Yami only grinned. "So you're really letting me have a squad?" Julius laughed. "Of course! The kingdom needs people who don't fit anywhere else."

Yami: "Sounds troublesome."

Julius: "Exactly why you're perfect for it."

And so, the Black Bulls were born. At least, on paper. The problem was finding members willing to join. Or rather—Finding members nobody else wanted. Nacht Faust stood in silence near the recruitment grounds, hands buried in the pockets of his dark coat. 23, almost 24 years old. A noble. A prodigy. And someone who looked completely uninterested in being there. The other captains had already passed him over. Too cold. Too distant. Too unsettling. Nacht preferred it that way. People disappointed him. Animals did not. His gaze drifted toward the noisy man arguing with another captain several meters away. Yami Sukehiro. Loud. Crude. Obnoxious. Everything Nacht disliked. "...What a pain." Yet for some reason, Yami's mana felt honest. Unrefined, but honest. Nacht wasn't sure whether that made him respect the man or dislike him even more. "Oi." The voice came from directly behind him. Nacht didn't need to turn around to know who it was. "You look bored enough to die." He sighed. "Captain Yami."

"The hell's with that expression? Someone kick your puppy?" Nacht finally glanced over his shoulder. The foreigner was grinning. Nacht immediately regretted making eye contact. "I don't have a puppy."

Yami: "That's your problem."

Nacht: "What?"

Yami: "Everyone needs a puppy." Nacht stared. Yami stared back. The silence stretched. "...You're an idiot." Yami burst out laughing. Elsewhere on the grounds, another rejected applicant stood alone. Eira Silva. Second-born heir of House Silva. Twenty-one years old. A royal. And apparently a disappointment. Not because she lacked talent. Quite the opposite. Her Ice Magic had already earned praise from nobles and captains alike. The problem was her.

Eira had never enjoyed the arrogance of noble society. She hated seeing commoners treated as lesser beings. Hated watching status matter more than character. And most of all—She hated pretending. It made many nobles uncomfortable. Including her own family. So when captain after captain overlooked her application, Eira wasn't surprised. A royal who refused to act like one was inconvenient. The cold wind stirred strands of silver hair across her face. She watched Yami arguing with another captain and quietly wondered if she should simply leave. Then—"YOU!" Every head turned. Including hers. Yami was pointing directly at her.

Eira: "...Me?"

Yami: "Yeah, Ice Princess." Eira blinked. "That's not my name."

Yami: "Didn't ask." The captain marched over. "You wanna join my squad?" The question caught her completely off guard. "Just like that?"

Yami: "Yep."

Eira: "You don't even know me."

"Neither do they." Yami jerked a thumb toward the other captains. "They looked at your last name." His grin widened. "I looked at your mana." For a moment, Eira simply stared. Then she smiled. A small one. The first genuine smile she'd worn all day. "I suppose that's a better reason."

"Good." Yami pointed toward Nacht. "You'll fit right in with the other weirdo." Nacht immediately frowned."I'm not associated with her."

Yami: "You are now."

Nacht: "I never agreed to that."

Yami: "Too late."

That evening, beneath the fading colors of sunset, the first members of the Black Bulls stood together outside their unfinished headquarters. A squad mocked before it had even begun. A squad made up of people nobody wanted. A squad destined to become infamous. Yami stood before them with his arms crossed. Nacht remained silent. Eira watched the setting sun paint the horizon gold. None of them knew what the future held. The battles. The losses. The friendships. The family they would become. Or the feelings that would slowly grow between two people standing several feet apart and pretending not to notice one another. For now, they were simply strangers. Two outcasts brought together by chance. Neither realizing that years later, they would become everything the other had ever wanted. And everything they feared losing. The story began there. With the birth of the Black Bulls. And with the first meeting of Nacht Faust and Eira Silva.