Strange use of Magic (Black Clover AU)

[Third Person's PoV] 

"What?" Stephen asked, his voice laced with surprise, his brows furrowing as he stared at her.

Secre let out a weary sigh, her expression softening. "They're tied to my past... and part of the reason I ended up like this in the first place." Her voice carried the weight of years, each word heavy with memories she had long buried.

"What?" Stephen repeated, but this time his tone was colder, sharper. His narrowed eyes gleamed with suspicion, his demeanor shifting to one of guarded intensity.

"It's not what you're thinking," Secre quickly clarified, her voice calm but firm. "They're not the ones who forced me to use the forbidden spell. But they are connected to it. Let me start with who—or what—the Eye of the Midnight Sun truly is." She paused, taking a steadying breath before continuing. "They are elves. Elves from five hundred years ago. They should have been long dead, but it seems they've survived... or rather, been reborn."

Stephen's eyebrows shot up. "Elves?" he asked incredulously, motioning toward his own ears with his hands, stretching them upward for emphasis. "You mean those beings? Beloved by mana, with long lifespans and pointy ears?"

Secre gave him a small nod, a faint smile tugging at her lips despite the gravity of her tale. "Yes, those kinds of beings. But for you to understand my connection to the elves, there's something else you need to know about me." Her gaze turned serious, and she held Stephen's eyes as she spoke. "I've told you before that I was a servant... but I never told you who I served. I, Secre Swallowtail, was the servant and caretaker of the First Wizard King of the Clover Kingdom: Lemiel Silvamillion Clover."

Stephen's jaw dropped. "WHAT?!" he exclaimed, his voice echoing in the room. He stared at her as though she had just claimed to be royalty herself.

Secre looked away, awkwardly nodding.

For a moment, silence stretched between them. Then Stephen spoke again, his tone oddly contemplative. "...You weren't in love with him, were you?"

Secre blinked, her expression shifting to one of pure disbelief. "Excuse me?" she asked, her voice sharp with indignation. "Seriously? This is an important conversation we're having, and that's your question?"

Stephen scratched the back of his neck awkwardly, avoiding her piercing glare. "It's a genuine question. Don't most servants fall in love with their masters? I mean, I've seen the First Wizard King's statue. He's not bad-looking, so I wouldn't be surprised if some of his servants felt something for him."

Secre's deadpan stare could have turned him to stone. "Again, I must ask: seriously?"

Stephen mumbled, still not meeting her eyes. "I mean... it's just the selfish part of me talking. I'm not going to judge you or anything. It's fine if you were in love with someone else—you're 500 years old, for crying out loud. But... there's this selfish part of me that kind of wants to be your first."

Her exasperation melted as she saw the faint blush on his cheeks. Despite herself, she rolled her eyes and smiled softly. "I wasn't in love with the Wizard King," she admitted. "I held a deep respect and admiration for him, yes. But love? No."

Secre stepped closer, placing a gentle hand on his cheek. "Thanks to that all-seeing eye of yours, you know I'm telling the truth when I say this: you're the first and only person I've ever loved."

Stephen's face lit up with a grin he tried to hide by glancing downward. His hand reached up to cover hers, holding it against his cheek. Secre rolled her eyes again, though she couldn't help but find his reaction endearing.

With a light tap on his chest, she said, "Can I continue with my story now?"

Stephen chuckled sheepishly. "Yeah, sorry. Go ahead."

Secre took a deep breath before resuming. "As I was saying, I served the First Wizard King. His Majesty was a visionary who dreamed of coexistence between humans and elves. He befriended Licht, the leader of the elves, and their bond grew strong due to their similar ideals. Over time, the King's sister and Licht met frequently, and their connection blossomed into love. They were set to be married and were even expecting a child." 

Secre paused for a moment before continuing. "It seemed like His Majesty's wish of coexisting with the elves was finally going to come true… However, as you can tell by now, that wasn't the case. I'll spoil the ending for you—all of the elves were massacred. Not a single one was spared.

"All of this happened because of the manipulation of a demon—a devil, whatever you want to call it. He set up a trap for His Majesty, and while I managed to free him from it, by the time we arrived, it was too late. The elves were already slaughtered, and the only one left alive was Licht.

"The devil tricked the elves into believing that His Majesty had betrayed them. Consumed by despair, Licht's grimoire transformed into a five-leaf clover grimoire, giving the devil the opportunity to take over Licht's body.

"Just as the devil was about to succeed, His Majesty and I arrived. Seeing us made Licht realize that His Majesty wasn't the one who betrayed him, and he managed to stop the devil from fully possessing him. However, the only way Licht could prevent the devil's plan was by turning himself into a demon.

"He used the magic stones crafted by the elves to transform into a giant demon and begged His Majesty to finish him off. You remember that demon skull in Hage Village where you used to train?"

"That's Licht!?" Stephen asked in astonishment, trying to process what he was hearing.

Secre nodded in confirmation. "While the devil watched in amusement as His Majesty defeated Licht, I used the same magic stones Licht had used to seal the demon in an eternal prison. But just before I could complete the spell, the devil managed to grab the stones and used them to capture the suspended souls of the elves, reincarnating them—and himself—into the future. Or rather, into the present."

"Wait, so your failed spell backfired and turned you into the anti-magic bird?" Stephen asked, still confused about her fate.

Secre shook her head. "After the devil escaped and His Majesty defeated Licht, he was left mortally wounded from the battle. Knowing the devil would one day return to wreak havoc on the Clover Kingdom, I used a forbidden spell. I turned His Majesty into a statue, ready for the day the devil would return. For his deeds in defeating the demon and saving the kingdom, he became known as the First Wizard King. And as a result of the forbidden spell, I was transformed into an anti-magic bird."

"That's… insane!" Stephen exclaimed, clearly in shock. "That statue is the First Wizard King's actual body?"

Secre nodded solemnly.

"Licht's goal—" Stephen began, trying to piece everything together.

"That's not Licht," Secre interrupted.

"What?" Stephen asked, taken aback.

"He may look like Licht, but that's not how Licht acts or behaves. Who you fought was merely an impersonator. If I had to guess, I'd say it was Patolli. From what I remember, he deeply admired Licht. It seems that Patolli was reincarnated into the Captain of the Golden Dawn and is now collecting the magic stones to bring back the other elves," Secre explained.

"Wait, but there's still something I don't understand… How do I fit into all of this? You said this helped you remember where my name came from," Stephen said, still puzzled.

Secre nodded. "You see, His Majesty was very close with the leader of the elven clan, Licht. Because of that, he was privy to some of the elves' ancient history. According to legend, a strange and powerful wizard by the name of Agamotto created the elves. But that wasn't all—Agamotto also created a clan before leaving this world. A clan with the surname Strange."

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