WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Black Clover Chapter #277, “The Vice-Captain of the Golden Dawn,” by Yuki Tabata, Taylor Engel and Annaliese "Ace" Christman, available now in English from Viz Media.
To gain the advantage against the Dark Triad, each of Black Clover's Magic Knight team has someone who either has faced them before or has a magical ability that can counter the devils. In Charlotte’s case, she has neither advantage... or so we thought. In Chapter #277 of the Black Clover manga, Megicula is confronted by Charlotte and Rill, and right off the bat, the match seems one-sided.
Megicula is the master of curses and has the ability to use other mages to fight for him. But in the devil’s moment of arrogance, Charlotte reveals her ace -- unlocking the cursed magic sealed within her to unleash a new ability, Queen of Briars.
Charlotte has not had a stand-out moment in the Black Clover universe so far, so to see her confront Vanica and Megicula with such confidence in Chapter #277 is welcomed. Charlotte was cursed with briar magic at a young age but through perseverance and studying, she overcame her struggle. In a flashback, it's revealed that she has been specifically studying the Rune Arrays from the Heart Kingdom, which resemble the symbols of her curse. She also discovers that the source and father of all curses in the world originated from Megicula.
Charlotte confronting Megicula is no mere coincidence, and her relentless pursuit of knowledge in curses has allowed her to use the Rune Arrays from the Heart Kingdom to unlock her curse to develop a new magical ability, Modified Briar Magic: Blue Rose Paradise. The mana method seeks out curses and absorbs them to bloom blue roses. The stronger the curse, the more they absorb, so when they confront Megicula, who is pretty much a manifestation of curse energy, the briar envelops the devil-host completely.
While the blue roses absorb the curses, Charlotte unleashes her crimson whip made of red roses for an offensive strike. Her ability, Queen of Briars, gives her mastery over curses and briar magic while unlocking her true potential. Megicula is filled with excitement knowing that a worthy enemy has appeared, but the anti-curse briar magic encapsulates him and renders the devil-host powers useless.
Now, the battle seems like it’s over, but the connection of Rune Arrays and curse magic is starting to change its tide in Chapter #277. Megicula is surprised by Charlotte’s application of the anti-curse magic, but it’s too soon to count out any hidden Spade Kingdom magic that the other Knights are unaware of. Curse magic has many different uses and forms, so for the father of all curses to be easily defeated by anti-curse magic seems too good to be true.
For starters, Megicula’s curse can affect Spirit magic and surpass the magical abilities of arcane mages. Not to say that Charlotte’s new abilities aren’t great, it just seems like Megicula is toying with the Clover Kingdom Knight to prepare himself for the main fight. The fact that he calls out Noelle and Asta means that he’s searching for a worthy fight, and with all the history Megicula and Noelle share, it would only seem fitting that the Silva Princess get the final blow on the devil.
The mention of the Rune Arrays will prove to be vital in the battle against Megicula, and now that the devil is aware of the Rune’s awakening abilities, maybe he’ll implement them into Vanica’s magic to unlock more powerful curses. The battle is barely beginning in Black Clover, but it’s safe to assume that we have not seen the end of Megicula and Vanica’s devilish smile.
