Episode 48

Despair vs. Hope (絶望希望) is the 48th Page of Yūki Tabata's Black Clover.

Summary
Vetto gets hit in the face by Asta. He cannot heal the wound because the sword negates magic. Vetto admits that Asta's weapon might be the only thing that can defeat him. Vetto runs at them and Asta rushes to meet him. When they would have collided, Asta disappears through a portal and reappears on Vetto's side. He slices him again but the wound is not deep. Finral Roulacase and Vanessa Enoteca realize that they have to get Asta closer if they want him to cause more damage. Elsewhere, Gauche Adlai and Grey are sitting on the ground because both have used up all their magic. Gauche tells Charmy Pappitson that she should go on without them but finds her eating. Again. She tells them that they should eat and recover their magic. Gauche reluctantly agrees that Charmy has a point. Asta continues his attacks on Vetto and continues to be pulled and transported to different areas of the cave by Vanessa and Finral. Gifso cheers them on but is upset that his son and grandchildren are hurt. He tells them to get revenge. Yami Sukehiro is impressed by Asta, Vanessa, and Finral for working together. He believes that together they have surpassed their limits. Vanessa realizes too late that Vetto's timing is starting to match their attacks. She tries to pull Asta out of harm's way but he gets cut anyway.

Asta tells them that he is fine and that they should continue their attacks. Yami interrupts him and tells them that Vetto was purposefully not attacking as much in order to understand their habits. Yami warns him that if he goes in unprepared, Vetto is going to catch him. Asta says that they have to try. He calls Yami out and tells him to come help them. This gets Yami mad but he tells Asta that he needs to calm down too. They can attack but they just have to change it up. The trio agree to surpass their limits even more. They speed things up and make it harder for Vetto to catch Asta. Asta manages to land a few good slices. Vanessa remembers when she used to live in the Forest of Witches. How she was kept in a cage by the order of the Queen of Witches. She thought it was her fate to be trapped there but she realized later that she lacked the courage to leave. Vanessa tells Asta to trust her and allow her to make his movements. Asta agrees. Finral complains that they are going too fast.

Finral remembers that as a child he was reprimanded for having weak magic because he did not want to attack people. He was called a weakling and even his younger brother, Langris Vaude, surpassed him. When he was older, he was put down for having joined the Black Bull while Langris joined the Golden Dawn. He was disinherited and Langris was made heir instead. He remembers when he met Asta and how he had no magic but still kept fighting. Finral says that he may not be the strongest but that he will strive to make the Black Bulls the strongest squad. He tells Asta to trust him and Asta says that he already does 100%. Vetto muses that they are soon going to reach their limits and wonders how long they will last. Asta tells him until they beat him. Both Finral and Vanessa realize that because Asta believes in them they can never betray that trust. Vetto asks about their magical limit and says that they will probably reach it soon and that it is the difference between he and them, saying that he has way more mana than they do. Asta says that he is going to believe in them both and win.

Just as he goes to attack, Vetto gets hit by a ray of light. Gauche, Charmy, and Grey appear revitalized and ready to fight. Gauche lures Vetto closer so that Charmy can use her sheep magic to hit him. Grey uses her magic to create many Astas and they all attack Vetto at once. Vetto is getting tired of this and tells them to despair already. Asta appears and stabs him in the torso. He tells Vetto that they do not have time for that.

Fights

 * Asta, Vanessa Enoteca, and Finral Roulacase vs. Vetto

Events

 * Temple Battle Royale

Petit Clover
Trinity (三位一体): Vanessa, Finral, and Asta work together to play Red Light, Green Light with Gordon, but they fail because Gordon's mumbling is too soft for them to hear.

Trivia

 * In the anime, Gauche, Charmy, and Grey interfere in the fight against Vetto, while in the manga, they show up after the fight's end.