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Crown Organization, led by a mysterious queen whose full appearance as well as identity remained a puzzle but she was powerful enough to pull strings and create this circle consisting of diverse gentlemen—each had their own version of showing everyone why they should not be underestimated.

"Hmm, we are missing a few" A long-haired man named Victor did a quick scanning of the hall where he gathered the members. There were four present inside excluding him.

Alfons, the man with dark blue hair and narrowed eyes glinting with mischief chuckled. "No worries, we can carry on and just fill them in later, I can't wait to get started"

The tall male standing in the middle of the room in his long dark garb and elusive aura began to share their highlighted topic for that day. "We are doing smooth in eradicating the menace but still nowhere near finding the source of those creatures which started lurking in our home" He turned on the projector and showing at the spacious wall before them were photos of Riddle and his dorm during NRC days.

A devious grin plastered on Alfons' face, "Hey, what perfect timing this is! Those are some of the guys Roger and Harrison ran to days ago and they gave our mates hell of a hard time" He snickered, pointing towards Ace and Deuce.

Even William suddenly grinned albeit remaining silent in his seat, the ruthless gleam in those crimson eyes shone more while staring hard at Riddle. Curioser and curioser...

"At this moment they are our most pressing concern, the residents of this town reported the killings to their group and based on the gathered research, they were graduates from a prestigious magic school called Night Raven College" Victor explained.

Ellis furrowed his brows, stretching his arms onto the long table. "Why did the folks report to them again? Are they someone really important?"

"They formed a detective agency and from what I collated through reliable resources..." There was a cunning smirk on Victor's lips, "These young men are not to be underestimated, their magic affinity is above average especially this short lad in the middle"

William continued being silent whereas usually, he would be vocal with his opinions like the others but he was more marveling at the idea of using magic and being in control of it not the other way around. If only...

Perhaps these men playing heroes could be useful to us during our stay here.

"I also want to raise the concern relating to the crimson robin who found us" Elbert's toneless statement cut through William's train of thought. "Will it be fine to leave her walking around knowing what she knew?"

Alfons turned to the pale blonde, slightly gaping in surprise. "Ohhhh, did someone catch your attention here?! Is she pretty?! You must tell me more, my friend"

"I would prefer that you not know and stay out of it," Elbert countered without room for pushbacks, his eyes narrowing slightly. He was somewhat irked at the idea of Alfons getting close to the 'crimson robin'.

Victor placed a hand under his chin, "We cannot allow her roaming outside with what she saw, it's going to be a hindrance to us"

"I have a fantastic suggestion" William finally spoke, smiling widely.

--

A ballroom lit with a dazzling chandelier hanging in the ceiling like gemstones, the sound of merriment and cheer floated in the air as everyone either chatted or danced with their respective partners. They were all clad in dashing suits, and gorgeous dresses with masks covering the upper part of their faces.

"Good evening, Princess"

"Milady, your simple kind of beauty is alluring as always"

"Princess, thank you for joining us tonight"

The amount of people greeting Mary here and there was overwhelming, a wave of unexpected anxiety from this huge social event in her body made her want to run. Despite the gossamer and shimmering pink dress she wore, it was not enough to get in the mood of the night.

She hadn't been a princess for a long time, not since the fall of Moors. At this present, she was just Mary—without any fancy titles attached to the name.

"Calm down, my Alice, you just need to be yourself and I will be by your side the whole night"

The crowd suddenly faded, turning blurry along with the walls, and the music was also muted—Mary stood in the middle of four men in suits—the first one standing in front of her was in a dark tuxedo with a rose in his breast pocket, it was not hard to tell this was Riddle despite the mask he had on. The tall blonde with his back on her was not familiar yet he stood close to her right, the way he stood straight gave the air of a regal king. Meanwhile, the one on Mary's left was also another unfamiliar figure—he was clad in pure black, like a royal garb but he looked like a formidable fighter. It was hard to see his face due to the haziness of the surroundings yet Mary could somewhat see he had glistening black hair and instead of a mask, he had an eye patch.

"Your obvious look of fear and nervousness excites me"

Those taunting, disembodied voices got Mary shivering—it was coming from behind but she couldn't find it in her to turn around.

Mary reached a hand out to the man she loved since Night Raven College, "Riddle, promise you won't leave me..."

But her hand never got near Riddle, it was intercepted by another hand coming from behind—she was enveloped by a pair of arms and warmth behind.

There went the sinister voice again, "I will NEVER leave you"

.

.

Grim was startled early in the morning because of a loud sobbing and hysterical crying, he hastily got out of his bed without fixing the bed sheet and cursed after tripping. He shot out into the hallway and then bolted into Mary's room.

"What's wrong?! Is there a burglar?!" He was in battle mode, the blue fire in his ears blazing up as he stood there in a fighting stance.

His ward was on the floor with a messy tangle of red hair, rocking back and forth crying. Grim frowned, he walked towards Mary and placed a paw on her shoulder.

"I missed him, it's been four weeks, I tried acting alright and I'm doing what I can at work but--" She babbled, leaning onto Grim while sobbing. "Then I have a nightmare about him"

Grim exhaled, he couldn't feel annoyed at all, it was actually worse back in their freshmen years when she would never be honest with her feelings and thoughts. "You know where he lives, why not pay him a visit today then?"

"I don't want to disturb them...they are busy" She replied in a muffled tone.

Seriously this woman-- "Are you kidding me? How would you know if you won't even try? Besides, I doubt they will push you away, come on, dry your tears, and after breakfast go and visit Riddle. If it will make you feel better you can bring him a packed lunch"

Her mood swung so quickly it was like she didn't shed a bucket of tears. "You're right! I've been practicing in preparation for a married life! I will cook them lunch and bring it to them later!"

"What do you have in mind?"

"Spicy Gumbo!"