The four of them left the massive doors of the royal castle behind. The marble stairs stretched down into the heart of the capital, and for the first time, Zura noticed the eyes waiting at the bottom.
Whispers carried through the crowd before they even reached the streets.
"Those are the ones from the dungeon, right?"
"I heard they fought Diamond mages head-on."
"Isn't that the new Black Bull? The one with the strange magic?"
Zura shoved his hands deeper into his pockets, shoulders loose, but his ears caught every word. People were staring—pointing even. The last time he'd gotten this much attention, he was just some loser in his old world, the kind of guy who'd rather slip under the radar. Now, they were treating him like some sort of spectacle.
Klaus lifted his chin, looking smug as if the gossip was meant for him. Mimosa waved awkwardly at a few kids who were pointing and smiling, cheeks pink with embarrassment. Sekke, of course, puffed out his chest, throwing his arm around Zura's shoulders.
"See that? We're celebrities, bro! The Sekke Squad is officially famous!"
Zura tilted his head, deadpan. "Sekke Squad? That's what you're calling this?"
"Of course!" Sekke grinned like he'd just invented gold. "Has a nice ring to it, doesn't it? Sekke Squad, conquerors of dungeons, saviors of Clover!"
"You didn't do anything," Klaus snapped, veins already popping in his forehead. "If anyone should be recognized, it's me—or at the very least, Zura and Lady Mimosa."
Mimosa flinched at her name being dragged into their bickering, smiling nervously at the crowd while whispering, "Please, not so loud…"
But it was too late. The crowd's whispers grew sharper, clearer.
"Which one of them fought the Diamond mages?"
"I heard the new Black Bull was the one who stopped the dungeon from collapsing."
"That guy… he doesn't even look like a noble. How strong is he, really?"
Zura kept walking, ignoring the comments as best he could, but inside he could feel it—the shift. This was the first step. The world was watching him now. No matter how much he tried to brush it off, there was no hiding anymore.
Sekke leaned in, smirking. "Yo, you hear that? They're talking about you, man. Bet it feels nice, huh? All that recognition."
Zura side-eyed him, lips quirking up. "Feels like a headache waiting to happen."
And yet… he didn't hate it. Not fully.
The four of them kept moving, the castle shrinking behind them, the streets of the capital alive with voices, cheers, and suspicion.
'Now then, I will go to the restaurant Rebecca works at and have dinner. Although I am not sure if she would be on shift right now. Oh, well, I just want to eat so it doesn't matter.'
Zura had half a mind to just vanish into the city, grab something cheap, greasy, and quiet where nobody cared who he was. But Mimosa turned to him with that polite smile of hers and asked, "Would you like to join us for dinner at the Golden Dawn base? You too, Sekke."
Sekke was already nodding like his head was on springs. "Of course! What an honor! Eating at the top squad's table—this is the life, man."
Zura thought about brushing it off. Then he remembered who the Golden Dawn were—the Clover Kingdom's golden children. If their food wasn't the best in the entire damn kingdom, then what was? His stomach rumbled at the thought. "Fine," he muttered, "but if the food sucks, I'm walking out."
The trip to their base was lined with whispers again, but it shifted when they entered Golden Dawn's halls. The walls practically gleamed, lined with banners and polished armor sets, and the air smelled faintly of flowers and expensive wine. Sekke kept gawking like a tourist, Klaus walked stiff and proud, and Mimosa tried to downplay it, fidgeting with her hands as though she knew the place looked way too pretentious.
When they reached the dining hall, Zura stopped dead. A table longer than his entire apartment back home stretched before them, lined with golden cutlery and a chandelier overhead that looked like it belonged in a royal palace.
Sekke whistled. "Man, this is—this is insane. Forget squads, I should've been born a noble."
"You wouldn't last a day," Klaus muttered.
They sat down, servants sweeping in with trays. Dish after dish was laid out—steaming meat, fresh bread, roasted vegetables, soups with spices Zura couldn't even name. The plates clinked as they filled the table one by one, but after maybe the seventh or eighth, the flow stopped.
Mimosa clasped her hands and bowed her head slightly. "I'm so sorry… most of the chefs and servants went with the squad on a mission. We can only serve a limited amount tonight."
Sekke blinked like she'd just insulted the gods. "Limited? This is what you call limited?" He gestured at the spread in front of them. "My entire family could live off this for a week!"
Zura leaned back, staring at the table, then at Mimosa. A grin tugged at his lips. "If this is limited, I don't even wanna know what a full feast looks like here. I'd probably die from overeating."
He grabbed the nearest roasted leg of something and bit in without hesitation. The flavor hit him hard—rich, juicy, cooked to perfection. He almost groaned. 'Yeah. Definitely the best food in the kingdom.'
Klaus sat properly, cutting into his meal with noble precision, though his ears turned red when he noticed Zura tearing into his like a starving wolf. Sekke, meanwhile, was already on his third plate, muttering between mouthfuls, "Man, I could get used to this life… Golden Dawn's luxury, baby!"
Mimosa giggled softly, covering her mouth. For her, this was normal. For them, it was paradise.
Zura didn't even care if people stared. For once, he was eating like a king.
After eating and spending some time at the Golden Dawn base, Zura left.
Zura dragged himself back to the Black Bull base with his stomach full and his mind buzzing. Golden Dawn's food had been ridiculous—like eating in another world altogether—but now the walk back through the quiet night made his eyelids heavy. The base was silent when he pushed the doors open. Everyone else was still on their mission, the place dead as a graveyard.
"Perfect," he muttered, stretching. "No idiots screaming, no chaos. Just me and my bed."
He trudged to his room, kicked the door shut, and flopped onto the mattress. For a moment, he just lay there, staring at the ceiling. Then the thoughts crept in—the sword, Sylph, Julius' words, Mimosa's damn smile—and his body decided it needed a different kind of release.
"Yeah, fuck it," he sighed, hand sliding down as he settled in.
Minutes later, he was fully into it, breathing rough, face buried in his pillow. The base was so silent, not even a floorboard creaked. His head was blank, body coiled, just seconds away from unloading when—
thunk!
A noise at the window.
Zura's eyes flicked over with pure annoyance. "...You've got to be kidding me." He was so close, his whole body screaming not to stop. But something perched on the ledge, feathers shifting in the moonlight. A small black bird.
He narrowed his eyes. He knew that bird. That wasn't just any bird.
"Nero…?"
The little anti-bird tilted her head, crimson eyes locking onto him like she was judging every damn thing he'd ever done. She gave a sharp caw and hopped closer against the glass.
Zura froze mid-motion, torn between finishing and grabbing a blanket to cover himself. "…The fuck are you doing here?"
Nero didn't answer—obviously—but the way she kept staring, it was like she was saying, Pathetic.
Zura groaned, rolling his head back. "Man… cockblocked by a bird. My life's a joke."
*~*~*~*
A/N- Bro is unhinged.