The very next day, the annual Unbirthday Party was underway. "Make way for our great leader! The Crimson Ruler! Dorm Leader Riddle!" one Heartslabyul dorm member announced proudly as the trumpets sounded. "Dorm Head Riddle!" all the other Heartslabyul dorm members cheered. "Hip, hip, hooray!"

Now that the whole Overblot battle was over and done with, the entire Heartslabyul Dorm had worked hard to bring life back to their rose gardens and dorm, bringing their Unbirthday Party anew as a celebration for Riddle's recovery and the revival of their dorm.

The four girls were also invited to the Unbirthday Party, all of them dressed in their Heartslabyul dorm outfits. Even Grim had the Heartslabyul bow around his neck. All seemed peaceful. Riddle took a seat upon his throne and surveyed the area.

"The roses are red, and the tablecloths are white. A perfect Unbirthday Party. Very good." he said with a calming smile. "You made sure the dormouse is...ah." He then paused and shook his head. "Actually, it really doesn't matter." he concluded as he smiled. Riddle had changed considerably.

He had become less strict over the top rules, putting himself more at ease and starting to open up to his fellow students. "You don't have to change everything right away. Instead of putting jam on the mouse's nose, try putting it on a scone." Trey said, spreading the jam onto a scone.

"Change your thinking from, "This absolutely must be here," to, "It would be nice to have it." Sound good?" Trey smiled at his best friend as he set the scone on the table. Riddle nodded in agreement. "Yeah, you're right." he said, smiling brightly.

"It's alright, Trey-senpai. Let him have this moment for today." Alice said, smiling. She was then seated right beside Riddle in a red stool with a soft cushion. Her dormmates sat with the boys at the table. "Riddle-san, I'm absolutely glad that to see that you're doing well." Alice said, smiling at Riddle.

Riddle smiled shyly at her. "Yes. It feels wonderful to be back. And it's all thanks to you and your friends, Alice." he replied gently. Alice giggled softly as she smiled. "You're utmost welcome, Riddle-san." she said modestly.

While the girls were enjoying themselves with tea and sweets, the boys were...less than enthusiastic, to say the least. "Uughh. In the end, we have to handle getting the garden cleaned up and all the prep work..." Ace grumbled as he laid his head on the table before he lifted his head and enviously glared at Riddle.

"Come on, now. Dorm Leader making a full recovery is the most important thing." Deuce said, trying to sound as calm as possible, but even he wouldn't stop glaring at Riddle. Cater gave his two juniors a sly grin. "Are you two getting jealous because Riddle-kun is having Miss Alice-chan all to himself~?" he asked teasingly.

The two boys' faces exploded into a bright cherry red of embarrassment. "W-W-Wh-Wh-What?! What makes you say that?!" Deuce shouted. "Stop making such stupid jokes like that, Cater-senpai!!" Ace yelled as he glowered at Cater.

Grim giggled at the boys' flustered expressions. "Ha! Look at these idiots! They're blushing." he said mischievously, joining in on the fun in teasing Ace and Deuce. Ace and Deuce glared at Cater and Grim as they started teasing the two boys about their little crush on Alice.

"Shut up!" Ace hollered. "We're-?! Why would we be jealous?!" Deuce howled. Kira, Aria and Jazmin all looked at the boys bickering. Jazmin sighed and facepalmed silently. Aria and Kira looked over at the boys and let out laughs of their own. 

"Hehehe. They're so jealous." Aria said. Alice looked towards her crimson-haired friend in confusion. "Huh? Who is jealous?" she asked curiously. Kira just shook her head. "Oh, it's nothing, Alice-chan. Don't worry about it." she said.

"Hahahaha! The garden is looking really photogenic, so I'm super satisfied~." Cater said, pulling out his phone and began to take photos of the party and the gardens. Grim set his sights at the glorious amount of food laid out before him and his mouth was already starting to water.

"Yeah! I'm ready to eat all this food~!" he said eagerly. "Okay, then without further ado–" Cater said as he got ready to get the party started. But then, Riddle noticed something that made him abruptly stand up from his throne.

"Just a moment!" he yelled loudly. Everybody immediately froze as they turned to look at Riddle. A very stern glare was plastered on his face. "What?" Cater asked softly. "Those white roses..." Riddle said, pointing over towards the few roses that were only half-painted red. Everybody's faces instantly went white with shock.

They all held their breaths, fearful of what Riddle was going to do. He may have become more lenient on the rules, but he still strictly upholds them. And who knows what was going to happen right now?!

"Oh, crap! Did we miss some?!" Ace shouted in shock. "Ahhhh, Acey, Deucey, didn't I tell you to make sure you got them all?!" Cater exclaimed, starting to freak out. "This is our fault?!" Deuce questioned incredulously. "Oh, no! Are we doing this again...?!" Aria asked nervously, fearful of what was going to happen next.

"Ri-Riddle, this is..." Trey said, quickly jumping to his juniors' defense. Alice quickly reached out to Riddle. "Please overlook this! It was all my fault, I should've been—!" she cried. Riddle didn't say a word as he marched towards the rosebush and ran his finger against one of the roses, red paint dripping from his finger.

"The rules are broken...!" one Heartslabyul member whimpered fearfully. "We're gonna lose our heads!!" another moaned woefully. But then, much to everyone's surprise, Riddle simply waved his magic staff at the rosebushes. In a flash of bright sparkles, all the white roses were soon colored red.

Riddle then started to laugh when he saw everyone's shocked faces. He just couldn't do it. It was just too good. "Hahaha! ...Kidding." he said smilingly. "I'm not going to punish you for one or two roses." All jaws dropped to the ground when everyone saw how nonchalant Riddle's attitude was.

Especially for the trio of friends who were sure they were going to get the punishment of a lifetime. Then, everyone let out a collective sigh of relief, seeing that Riddle was no longer willing to behead people for a single little mistake. "R-Really?! You're being so lenient!" Cater cheered with joy.

"Oh, thank goodness." Alice breathed out. "It'll go faster if we work together." Riddle said. "You still want them painted?!" Ace questioned. Trey smiled as he let out a soft chuckle. "Don't worry about it. But really...yeah. You have changed, Riddle." he said, relieved. The red-haired boy smiled back as he turned to offer his hand to Alice.

The honey blonde-haired girl happily took his hand and stood up from her seat. Things would be a lot faster if they worked together and a lot more fun too. "Okay, then." Kira said as she got up from her seat and tugged at Grim's bow.

"Come on, lazy cat. Let's get to work." she said firmly. Grim gave her a sour look as he was being dragged away from the food. He let out an annoyed groan. "I can't wait another second! Let's get this painting stuff over with and party!" he said as he jumped from his seat and he and Kira headed into the Rose Maze.

"Then everyone, are you ready?" Riddle asked. The group all cheered jubilantly, then they all got to work. Back then, painting the roses was such a menial, dull chore that just had to be done.

But now, now that Riddle's heart had been healed and was brimming with life, it was a lot of fun. Especially when Ace challenged Deuce to see who could paint the most roses. "How long has it been since you've painted the roses, Riddle?" Trey asked as he dipped a paintbrush into a can of red paint.

Riddle shrugged. "Not sure. I've left it to the other dorm students once I became Dorm Leader..." he replied. He then frowned when he recalled the times he'd often yelled at his fellow dorm members and punished them if they missed even a single rose. He sighed as he bowed his head in shame and guilt.

Suddenly, Riddle felt a strong hand pat his shoulder and looked up to see Cater smiling at him. "It'll still be fun to do it every once in a while~. Well, even though today, we've got a couple of troublemaker first graders helping today." he said cheerfully, gesturing towards the first-year students.

"You talking about us?" Ace asked, turning towards Cater. "We had to paint a bunch of these already, so we're definitely going to be better at this than Riddle!" Grim boasted. Instead of an angry frown, Riddle just smiled at him, raising an eyebrow as he chuckled. "Fufufu, then show me what you can do." he asked.

And so, it became a challenge between Riddle and Grim. As Riddle used his magic to turn the roses red, he then turned and saw Deuce painting the roses in a weak shade of red paint. Riddle stopped and glared at him.

"You there, your painting is too haphazard! You should coat it evenly with a dark crimson!" Riddle snapped. Deuce stiffened before he quickly applied more paint onto the roses. "Y-Yes, sir!" he said, panicking. Ace was greatly taken aback by Riddle's sudden yelling.

"Hey, see, he's still being so strict! I thought he'd be a bit nicer!" he complained. "Now, now~. That's our Dorm Leader's charm point~." Cater said. "If you're going to do it, do it perfectly. In order to have a wonderful party, I won't allow anyone to cut corners. ...Fufu." Riddle chuckled, his friendly smile returning.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Their dorm leader really had changed. Riddle then turned towards Alice. "Alice?" he asked. Alice was in the middle of painting a few of the roses red when Riddle walked up to her.

"Yes?" Alice asked curiously. "I..." Riddle said before hesitating. He then took a deep breath. "I...I can't thank you enough, Alice. Also, I apologize for everything I put you and your friends through." Riddle blushed a little as he spoke. Alice smiled.

"You really don't need to apologize, Riddle-san. I only did what I had to do to help you. To be honest, anyone else could've done it better." she replied humbly. Riddle nodded. "Even so, you were the one who saved my life. None of this would have been possible without you and your friends." he said with a bright smile.

"And for that, I am greatly indebted to you. Thank you." Alice's cute cheeks blushed a rosy pink as she smiled brightly. "I'm...I'm glad to hear that, Riddle-san. I would also like to apologize for calling you a selfish, rude, irritable tyrant." she said.

Riddle chuckled. "Well, I did deserve being called that. But all is forgiven." he said. Alice nodded. "Yes, all is forgiven. And I promise you this, Riddle-san. I'll become the most wonderful friend you could ever ask for. Whatever you need, please let me know. I'll do my best to help you." she said happily.

Riddle nodded. "I know." he replied softly. Alice couldn't believe it. Just a few days in this strange, yet wonderful new world and she had already made another new friend. A person she would always cherish and protect. Alice had never felt this happy in all her life.

As she was about to paint another white rose red, Riddle suddenly reached out and gently grasped her hand to stop her. "Riddle-san?" Alice questioned as she turned to face Riddle. Riddle then shook his head slowly.

"No. We can leave that one alone." he said before he reached out and plucked the white rose out from the bush. He stared at it with warmth in his eyes as he twirled it around his fingers. White. The color of purity and innocence. The color of virgin snow.

He then glanced down to view Alice's soft, honey-colored locks. The pretty contrast to the rose in his hands. Riddle blushed deeply as he gently brushed away some of Alice's locks and delicately placed the white rose behind her ear.

"Beautiful..." he quietly whispered. Riddle's heart beat faster when he realized what he did and quickly cleared his throat. "Ahem! Uh... I-It-It looks really lo-lovely on you." he stuttered softly as his cheeks turned redder. Alice looked up at Riddle with a surprised expression before she gently touched the rose with her fingers.

She then blushed faintly and smiled joyfully. "Thank you, Riddle-san." she said sweetly. Riddle smiled as he blushed. "You're welcome." he said softly, feeling a strange yet warm emotion blooming in his chest.

Kira and the other girls smiled at the two and stealthily snuck away to give them some privacy, going to the rest of the roses. Alice's heart pounded in her chest, reacting to the compliment Riddle had given her. No one had ever made her feel that way before, so she felt a little weak in the knees.

Oh, but it was such a wonderful feeling. It was similar to when Ace and Deuce became her new friends. This sense of feeling like you truly belong. This soothing, calm, warm feeling was overwhelming, and she embraced it full-heartedly.

Riddle stayed by Alice's side as they continued to paint the rest of the roses red while the others watched on with mixed emotions. Ace and Deuce were both glaring at Riddle when they saw what he did with Alice while Cater and Trey just watched with amused smiles on their faces.

To the two seniors, they took it as a friendly challenge. It was much livelier than the last. Before long, all the roses in the Rose Maze were painted red. "Alright, this looks about done." Riddle said as he finished the last rose. Ace, Deuce and the others were really impressed by his skills.

"Wow—he finished them all in one go!" Ace exclaimed in amazement. "He painted all the roses red with a blinding speed... The Dorm Leader is amazing." Deuce added. Cater chuckled. "That's cause Riddle-kun is particularly talented when it comes to practical magic~!" he said.

"Good job, Riddle." Trey said, patting Riddle's shoulder. Riddle beamed at him, his smile brighter than the sun. "And with this, the preparations are complete. Let us begin the Unbirthday Party!" he announced. Everybody cheered as they all went back to the Tea Garden and began the celebration of the Unbirthday Party.

"A toast! To a very merry Unbirthday!" Riddle proclaimed as he lifted his teacup, raising it high. "A very merry Unbirthday! Cheers!" everyone exclaimed together, clinking their teacups with those around them.

"Great, now we can eat!" Grim happily dug into the little cakes and treats, a happy grin on his face as everyone else began to eat, drink, and just make merry. It actually felt like a chance for everyone to just have fun without worry. "Speaking of eating, how did your apology tart come along?" Ace asked, getting Riddle's attention.

"I-I baked it, don't worry." Riddle replied, sounding a bit nervous as he picked up a large white box that was next to his seat. "This. I made this strawberry tart." He opened the box, revealing a strawberry tart inside.

Everyone soon gathered to get a closer look at the confection. It didn't look perfect, but nevertheless, it looked delicious. "It looks good. The shape needs a little work, but you've spent time glazing the strawberries to give them a nice shine. This is great work for your first time." Trey said, admiring Riddle's handiwork.

"Aaaand there's Trey-senpai straight into doting on him~." Ace said, rolling his eyes. But he then smiled as he eyed the tart in front of him. "Let's give them some space and get to the taste testing ourselves." Soon, Trey cut out each slice of the tart for everyone. Ace was ready to dig into his until Cater waved his arm to stop him.

"Ah, I wanna take a pic of this ultra-rare tart, so hold off on cutting it!" he said as he held up his phone and steadied it. With a 'click', he took a picture and began to post it. "... Okay, done~!" he exclaimed. "He never changes either..." Ace said with amusement in his voice. He then cut a piece of the strawberry tart with his fork.

"...Let's dig in!" he exclaimed as he and the others each took their first bite of the strawberry tart. Everyone happily ate the tart pieces... before the expressions on their faces changed. "...Hngh?!" They all scrunched up their faces in disgust.

"Th-This tart is...!" Trey and Cater started to say. "SALTY!!!!" everyone exclaimed in unison. Riddle's eyes widened. "What?!" he shouted. Ace and Deuce couldn't take it anymore and spat out their tart pieces onto the grass. Everyone else followed suit and spat the salty strawberry tart pieces out from their mouths.

They then quickly grabbed their teacups and gulped down the sweet tea to wash out the salty aftertaste while Riddle blinked in utter bewilderment. "Well... it's certainly a rather... interesting...flavor." Alice coughed, covering her mouth with a napkin.

Ace gagged and spitted, trying to get rid of the disgusting taste in his mouth. "The heck is this?! What do you even do to make it this salty?! Did you grab the ocean and just shove it in or something?!" he shouted. Riddle was greatly baffled. Could he have gotten the tart recipe wrong?

"I carefully measured all the ingredients, and I made it all according to the rules. There shouldn't be anything wron—Ah!" Riddle said before a thought suddenly crossed his mind. "Is it perhaps because I added oyster sauce...?" Deuce wiped his lips clean before he looked at his dorm leader in disbelief.

"Oyster sauce?!" Jazmin exclaimed. "...Are you referring to that Walrus oyster sauce that Clover-senpai used as a joke?" Deuce asked as he coughed. "Riddle-san, you didn't, did you?" Alice asked after she set her teacup down.

Riddle looked at everyone with an anxious look on his face. "Trey used to say that all good tarts have it even if it's not in the recipe as a secret ingredient..." Riddle said nervously, trying to defend himself. "Blegh, there's no way!" Ace shouted. "Use your brain a little and you'll realize it was a joke!"

Jazmin couldn't help but giggle. "Well, to be fair, Ace-kun, you also fell for it." she said, an amused grin on her face. "But this goes beyond secret ingredient levels. How much did you add?" Cater asked.

"I-I mean, if you just say "a suitable amount" without giving me precise measurements, what am I supposed to do?" Riddle asked, feeling very embarrassed. At that point, Trey just couldn't hold himself back any longer and he let out an amused giggle.

"Ahahaha! I never thought there would be someone who took that joke seriously! Ahahaha!" he said as he laughed hysterically. He had been waiting for years for someone to fall for that prank, and he was so happy that Riddle was the one who did it!

The wine red-haired boy stared at Trey in shock before he smiled sheepishly and giggled. "Aha...ahaha, so true. What an idiot I am. Ahahaha!" he said, laughing along with Trey in amusement. Riddle's smiling face was just so adorable and boyish, it was exactly like how he used to smile back when he was a child.

"So cute!" Alice thought to herself. "Whatever it takes, I will protect that lovely smile." Deuce shook his head and laughed with them. Trey's prank was quite amusing, he had to admit. "Haha, it's so bad it makes you laugh." he said amusedly. "Honestly, laughing it off is all we can really do now. Haha." Ace said, laughing along.

The girls laughed, too. "But, y'know, now I think it's good in its own way." Grim said as he took another bite of his strawberry tart. This time, he took his time to savor its salty oyster sauce flavor, taking note of the small amount of sweetness in the mix. The four girls all gagged in disgust as they watched him eat the tart.

"Yuck! Monsters gotta have the worst sense of taste." Kira said, wrinkling her nose in disgust. She then reached out to take a nice, sweet cream puff from the plate to clean her taste buds.

"Oh, I totally get you~. It's not as bad as you think~." Cater said as he also decided to eat his salty strawberry tart. "You...like it, Cater-senpai?" Alice asked in astonishment. "Diamond-senpai, your palette is just as crazy as Grim's!" Deuce said in disbelief. "Nah, I'm not as bad as him~." Cater replied with a bright smile.

"That tart isn't so bad because it isn't sweet...right?" Trey asked. "Huh?" Cater asked, glancing at Trey. "Cater, you hate sweets." Trey said simply. Cater's eyes went wide at Trey's words. Alice looked at Cater in confusion. "He...? But didn't you just come to try our Mont Blanc tarts earlier, Cater-senpai?" she asked.

If Cater really hated sweets, then why would he come and try their chestnut tarts? Oh, and if he did hate sweets, then she should remember that in the future. "Wh—I... Huh? Trey-kun, how do you know that?" Cater asked as he blushed nervously. "I've never told anyone about my aversion to sweets."

"You pretty often have me change the flavor of any cakes you eat by using my "Doodle Suit" as a topic of conversation, right? You never show it, but I'd had a feeling for a while that you didn't like sweets." Trey explained with a cheeky smirk on his face. Alice's eyes widened with realization.

"Oh, I see! So that explains his use of "Doodle Suit"..." she said. "Ah... So I'd been found out, huh? This is so embarrassing... I'd been thinking this with the whole incident with Riddle, but your habit of not saying what you're thinking really isn't great~." Cater said as he elbowed Trey, giving him a playful glare.

Trey laughed good-naturedly at his friend. "I'll cook up some quiche for the next Unbirthday Party~." he said. "How kind of you ...Make it as photogenic as your usual cakes, okay?" Cater said, still feeling a bit betrayed. Just a bit. Alice giggled at her friends' banter. There never was a dull moment with them, was there?

She then picked up her fork and was about to eat some of her tart when she suddenly saw that her plate was empty. She blinked in confusion and wondered where her tart went. Surely Grim hadn't stolen it from her that quickly.

"Humm-hmm-hmm. Trey's sweets are always purr-fect. Nom, munch-munch." an unknown voice suddenly said. Alice let out a startled gasp as she and the others looked up and saw Che'nya lying on top of the girl's chair, happily munching on Alice's tart. Even Riddle was surprised by Che'nya's sudden appearance.

"Che'nya! What're you doing here?!" Riddle questioned. "Hnh?" the purple-haired cat boy hummed, taking a moment to chew and swallow his food before answering. "I came to celebrate the Unbirthday Party. Congrats, Riddle." he said as he smiled warmly.

"The Unbirthday Party is a Heartslabyul tradition. You don't have anything to do with it." Riddle said. Che'nya's Cheshire Cat grin widened as he reached down to play with Alice's white rose. "Neither do those girls, right~?" Che'nya said, motioning to Grim and the other girls.

"They are special guests here. Honorary members are always welcome." Riddle stated. "Ah, you! You're the guy from before with the cat puns!" Grim exclaimed, pointing at Che'nya. Then he remembered something as he looked at Che'nya's cat ears. "Oh, yeah. You never did tell us what dorm you're from."

"Che'nya's not a student of our school in the first place. He's from Night Raven College's long-standing rival, Royal Sword Academy." Trey said. As soon as he said that name, every single member of Heartslabyul suddenly paused and snapped their attention towards him, wide-eyed.

"What?! He's from a completely different school?!" Deuce shouted. "Freaking Royal Sword Academy?!" Ace added. "Royal Sword Academy? Sounds like a cool, regal name!" Aria added, wondering what kind of school this Royal Sword Academy place is. It sounded like a place for the most chivalrous of knights.

Hold on, if he's from a different school, then... Alice turned to face Che'nya. "Che'nya-kun, you're not being truant, are you?" she asked. The cat boy merely grinned playfully as he chuckled. He wasn't even trying to deny it.

"Would you like me to give you and your friends a tour? I'll gladly give you one if you'd like." Che'nya said as he gave the bow on Alice's headband a playful poke. "Did they just say Royal Sword Academy?!" one Heartslabyul student suddenly asked anxiously.

"One of those stuck-up morons is here?!" another student angrily questioned as he suddenly sat up from his seat. "What?! Where?! We'll toss them out!" Much to the girls' surprise, they saw most of the Heartslabyul students standing up from their seats, glaring daggers at the grinning cat boy. But Che'nya wasn't in the least bit bothered by their anger-filled eyes as he just laughed.

"Oopsies~. Well, I got my tart so it's time for me to scurry on home. Hum hmm hmmm~!" Che'nya purred as he disappeared in an instant. "Ah, he got away!" one Heartslabyul student snapped. "After him!" Soon, the Heartslabyul students went on a rampage as they ran out of the Tea Garden.

They looked everywhere, but the young cat man was nowhere to be found. The girls were quite bewildered at the sight. "Oh, my...!" Alice exclaimed. "They got so aggressive all of a sudden." Grim said, just as bewildered as the girls were.

"They must really hate Royal Sword." Kira remarked. "Do they dislike Royal Sword that much?" Alice asked as she turned to the two boys. Riddle nodded and sighed while Trey just shook his head. "A large percentage of Night Raven College students view Royal Sword Academy as their enemy." Riddle explained.

"That's what 100 years of losing does to you..." Trey added as he let out a sigh. The girls' eyes widened when they heard that piece of information. "100 years?!" Aria exclaimed in surprise. "Wow!"

"No more gloomy talk! We're celebrating~!" Cater said, bringing cheer back to the party. "Let's enjoy our Unbirthday Party today~!" The girls all nodded. No way they'll let something like this spoil the party. "Nyaha! I'm gonna eat until I burst! Happy Unbirthday Party!" Grim cheered.

"Happy Unbirthday Party!" the girls all chorused cheerfully, starting the party.

Meanwhile, up at the bedroom balcony of the Savanaclaw dorm, Leona was lying on his bed with his eyes closed and his arms folded behind his head. "Looks like those little tea nerds are having another party. Didn't think they'd invite outsiders to their fancy little shindig." he muttered.

At his bay window, Ruggie was leaning against the pillar, his arms folded in the same manner as he looked out over the savannah's horizon. "Maaaan, I'm so jealous. Those Heartslabyul guys are having a party with a huge feast." he said with an envious sigh.

"Sure would be nice if Savanaclaw just happened to have a stomach-bursting tradition like that~." Leona gave out a scoff. "Hmph... What's so fun about a party where all you do is eat cake and cookies under the afternoon sun? Disgusting." he said before he opened his eyes and turned his head towards Ruggie.

"That aside, Ruggie, how is that coming along?" Leona asked as he faced him, his voice taking on a more serious tone. The hyena boy smiled as he jumped away from the window, doing a lazy salute to his dorm leader.

"You just leave it all to me~. Things are coming along smoothly. Shishishishi~." he snickered. A sly, smug grin then curled on Leona's lips as he stared out his window. Everything was going exactly as he planned. He'll wipe the grins off everyone's faces. Even the mighty Malleus would fall to his knees.

"We have our chance while those guys waste away their time drinking tea. That cocky Malleus, too. He better be ready... Hahahahahahaha!" A chuckle bubbled in Leona's throat before it escalated into a sinister laugh.

The hunt will start very soon...