Laws of Clover

“You think you’re capable of stopping me?” Zakai asked, standing firm and tall like the Magic Knight he was. His robe bearing the insignia of the Golden Dawn flew in the wind, while his forearm had been held out right in front of him. Members of the Golden Dawn stood behind him, prepared to back their second-in-command up without hesitation. He led his comrades through multiple battlefields plenty of times throughout this war, each leading to a victory. He carried the House of Draconus’ name just as well as his older brother.

The World Magic War was like something never seen before. Each of the countries pit themselves against one another in attempts to simply gain land from the other. What initially threw the countries into war was still unknown, but the Magic Knights refused to question their Kong’s authority. The King ordered the Magic Knights to destroy a village within the Clover Kingdom had been used as a camp for the enemies of the Spade Kingdom. Without question Zakai accepted this task while the other Magic Knights refused to do so and set out on his mission. And here he’d been approached by another fellow Vice-Captain with the intentions of stopping him.

“How do you suppose this battle will turn out, Vice-Captain of Azure Deer? I don’t want to hurt a fellow Magic Knight, so it’s be best if you step aside.” Suddenly, the ground would begin to shake but it was not due to any shenanigans being pulled by Zakai.

The sound of something falling could be heard from the sky. Something big! Members of the Golden Dawn looked above, eyes meeting with a gigantic sphere of rock which had been falling from the sky. “You do remember your oath, correct?” Zakai asked, stopping the meteor through his Gravity Magic. “Thou shall carry out all missions given to thy by country.”

"You're so full of yourself." Ezekiel said jokingly as he sat on a magic broom. It hovered peacefully despite the overwhelming presence of the Golden Dawn members. "Of course I remember my oath."

To think that he would be standing against *him* of all people. Despite also being a Vice-Captain, Ezekiel often found himself swimming in the man's great shadow. The genetic superiority granted by his noble lineage allowed Zakai to showcase miracles on a daily basis. Meanwhile, Ezekiel had to rely on his innate cleverness and tendency to overthink to get him out of situations. And of course in this situation Ezekiel noticed the butterflies hatching in his stomach as Zakai forced the meteor to obey his command. To think Zakai could simply carry out such horrific orders as if the Golden Dawn were somehow above all other squads.

But he stood tall before Zakai. Not just for the innocent civilians caught within the brashness of royalty, but also for his own pride as a Vice Captain. In fact, it was Ezekiel's legendary teacher who helped the young mage develop *another* method to express his magic. One befitting of his scholarly habits. And in doing so, made Ezekiel promise to hold pride in his thaumaturgy.

"And I'm not interfering with your mission.." The Azure Deer were scholars and researchers. Masters of magic who placed an importance on evolving thaumaturgy above utilizing it as a weapon. There was a rumor of a miniature mana zone influencing the wildlife and Ezekiel was tasked with exploring it. However, after spending several nights in the fields, the nearby village offered him such hospitality. And for the man whose teacher raised him within the confines of a grand hotel, he took hospitality as serious as he took his duty. And such, his greatest repayment for their food and board was to protect their lives. "

The thought caused Ezekiel to sigh. There was no way he could win. And a treasonous execution awaited him if, by some miracle, he found victory against the vice captain before him. The ebony mage knew this better than anyone else. And was for that reason, when he retrieved word of their arrival, Ezekiel hatched an elaborate plan.

"I'm just asking that you approach this more cautiously. Rather than a blind massacre, why don't you comb through and search for the target."