Major information concerning the Paladins and Lucius’s power over them has been revealed in the spoilers for Black Clover chapter 349. Some viewers may have assumed that Sister Lily’s Paladin status afforded Lucius Zogratis some measure of protection for his spell, given that she was his first paladin. Unfortunately, it seems as though the events of Chapter 349 may have revealed Lucius’s scheme. Asta rescued Ichika in the last episode, and now he has to overcome his own self-doubts. He utilised his Anti-Magic Zetten to swiftly slice them to pieces, ultimately resulting in his defeat of the Paladin Yrul. Fans are confident that Asta would be able to restore Sister Lily to normal after her counterattack restored Yrul’s Yoryoku to its regular state.
Chapter 349 of Black Clover provides a possible way to counter Lucius Zogratis. Black Clover 349 spoilers showed that Paladin Sister Lily did not want to kill Asta, but that she felt she had to due to Lucius’s influence over him. The chapter’s explanation showed that Lucius Zogratis didn’t have complete sway over Sister Lily’s feelings or actions since he could only teach the Paladins to follow one rule: “Lucius is correct.” He only to say that, and all of the Paladins would obey him. That the Paladins still had feelings indicated, however, that they weren’t Lucius’ puppets. In Chapter 349 of Black Clover, Sister Lily wept because she had to execute Asta. She was reluctant to participate and continued probing Asta about why he hadn’t passed away sooner. Sister Lily’s dual identities stem from the fact that Paladins had the freedom to do what they wanted, yet the rule imprinted in their spirit required obedience.
Just now, Sister Lily’s actions revealed a weakness in Astaroth’s Devil Host, proving that Lucius’ control over his Paladins was not absolute. Chapter 349 of Black Clover demonstrated that, contrary to popular belief, the Paladins did preserve their own personalities and memories by showing both Paladin Sister Lily and Heath Grice reflecting on their former interactions with Asta. This meant that the magic of Lucius Zogratis did not brainwash them, but instead imbued them with his moral beliefs. However, Sister Lily’s recent displays of feeling and expressiveness suggest that Lucius’ influence may be fading. Sister Lily’s Paladin persona may have been carried away by her genuine feelings when she thought she had slain Asta in the past if Lucius’ spell had the same impact then as it does now.
Her genuine self clashed with her Paladin self for the first time in chapter 349 of Black Clover, implying that their true selves are not lost but rather repressed and that the ability to do so may be fading with time. Asta and his allies may be able to take advantage of his vulnerability of Lucius in the upcoming fight on the Day of Judgment. The ability of Asta to restore Paladins to their regular selves has not yet been tested, and readers will have to wait until the next chapter is released to find out if this is the case.