While Yuu and Grim worked with Ruggie to clean Leona's room before bed, Azul quietly drank tea in Octavinelle's living room.

"...What did you say? Mr. Yuu is with Leona?" He asked, surprised by the twins' report.

He couldn't care less where the prefect and his cat-raccoon-like monster would settle down after confiscating their dorm. Still, it would never have occurred to him that the lazy and grumpy Leona would offer them aid.

"That's right," Jade nodded, "it seems our client has somehow found refuge in Savanaclaw."

Azul placed the cup on the table and thoughtfully put a hand on his chin. "I see. This is... really unexpected. Although I suppose having friends and family in that dorm has made his stay there easier..."

"What should we do? Can I squeeze 'em?" Floyd suggested.

They didn't know what could happen now that their customer had a little help from one of the dorm leaders.

However, Azul shook his head. "No, I think we can leave Leona alone," he announced.

Jade didn't completely agree with his dorm leader's decision; even though they had made deals with him in the past, Leona was strong and difficult to deal with, unlike other clients and students. "Wouldn't it be troublesome if he becomes our opponent?" He pointed out. "I think it would be wise to deal with him as soon as possible, but..."

"He's a slothful lion, after all. I highly doubt he'd want to stick his nose into troublesome matters," Azul refuted calmly. "Of course, he'd be a tough enemy, I completely agree, but... I'm sure he thinks the same of me. He wouldn't even consider antagonizing me just for fun."

After hearing him out, Jade understood his decision: "Understood. Then we won't mess with him to avoid getting into trouble ourselves."

"Man, I was looking forward to givin' him a good squeeze," Floyd complained. He, on the other hand, didn't usually hesitate to get into trouble to have some fun.

After the discussion of plans was over, Azul went back to drinking tea. He had a perfect plan - nothing and no one would thwart it in the two days left until the contract was finalized. "I'm counting on you two to keep a close eye on them," he said to his competent henchmen.

Both twins answered at the same time. Jade with an "Understood" while bowing formally, and Floyd with a lively "Okay".

The next day at lunchtime, Yuu, Jack, Yukiko, and Grim met Ace and Deuce in one of the school hallways. They finished the sandwiches they had just bought in the cafeteria while leaning against windows overlooking the courtyard.

"Look for a way to destroy the invincible contracts?" Ace repeated after hearing the suggestion Leona offered the night before. "Sounds good! Pretty cowardly, though."

Deuce swallowed his food before speaking: "It's true it might be our best bet. Although it's true, it sounds cowardly."

Just like Jack, Deuce didn't like the idea of ​​ending the contract with a different means than the one established, and Ace would have preferred to confront his oppressors in the face instead of doing it secretly.

"Oh, shut your mouths! This is not the time to say it's cowardly, you know!" Grim exclaimed, irritated.

"And it was Azul who started it. They set us up!" Yukiko reminded them, squeezing the last bit of her cheese sandwich.

"That's right, Azul and his thugs are in the same boat. They told us to go get a photo from the ocean, but they already planned to get in our way," Jack added. "Leona's strategy may be a cheater with cowardly commands, but he's very smart."

Yuu agreed with Jack. "I think it'll be worth a try," he commented.

"I think the word 'coward' is losing its meaning..." Deuce whispered, realizing that they had already repeated it several times in that conversation without giving it importance.

"You said it was impossible to defeat the twins in their true forms, right? It'll be much better to defeat them on land acting behind their backs," Yukiko summarized.

Grim shuddered just thinking about the battle from last afternoon. "Ooh... Just remembering them chasing us underwater makes my skin crawl, yanno!" He groaned nervously.

Deuce clenched his fists in frustration. "They were so fast... If I could just use a magical wheel underwater, I'd teach them a lesson!" He muttered.

"Uh-huh, right..." Ace snorted, not wanting to imagine Deuce spinning around in the depths of the sea, which led him to another thought: "Mermen, huh? If the Leech brothers are moray eels, I guess it's the same with Azul and he also transforms underwater."

Yuu crumpled the wrapper of his food into a ball as soon as he finished. "You mean he's a merman too? He probably is, since he implied knowing Jade and Floyd for a while. And I wouldn't be surprised if it's him who makes the potions that turn them into humans."

Jack raised his eyebrows as he remembered something: "Now that you mention it, Leona often calls him an 'octo-punk'," he muttered. Now he understood the meaning and didn't like it at all.

Deuce gasped. "Is his true form an octopus merman?"

"Fgna! So if he has more legs underwater, he'll be much stronger than moray eels!" Grim exclaimed before gulping.

"And that's why we're saying we have to find a way to defeat them on land!" Jack insisted. He didn't even want to imagine facing such a strong individual on his own territory.

"But do we even know where he keeps the contracts?" Yukiko questioned. There would be no point in going after those damn papers if they didn't even know where to look.

"There's a huge safe in the VIP room that looks pretty suspicious..." Jack replied, thinking again about how similar it was to the safes you could find in a bank.

"That's true! I thought he'd keep the restaurant's money there, but he could also use it to store other valuable things," Yuu commented, wondering why he hadn't thought about it.

"Alright then! We're sneakin' into Octavinelle!" Grim exclaimed, immediately agreeing to the idea.

Deuce looked around, noticing that there were few other people besides them. "There shouldn't be anyone there yet, now that everyone is on lunch break. Let's check it out."

Everyone set off, although Yukiko barely moved from her spot. "Aren't you coming, Yuki?" Grim asked."

"Well, I'd love to go with you, guys. But now that I've finished eating, I must take this."

She pulled out a blister pack of the anti-nausea pills that the doctor who visited her every two or three weeks gave her, and she couldn't move much after taking them to avoid feeling sick later. She could skip it, but she had Alchemy class with Crewel later and didn't know if he would make her use some magic for the lesson. Better safe than sorry, as she had been advised.

"On second thought, I can also take it later. I go with you, we destroy the contract, and then..."

"Are you sure?" Deuce interrupted her. "We don't know what could happen and we might have to use magic..."

"Deuce!" Yuu stopped him forcefully.

But it was too late, Yukiko had already understood what he was getting at; it was the straw that broke the camel's back. "Oh, right. Going to destroy some paper would be too dangerous for the girl with unstable magic, right?" She spat, more than fed up with feeling left out. "Well, I guess you're more than enough, and you don't need me anyway. Right, Jack?"

It was the third time in a row that they questioned her help with the contracts. It was hard enough not to be able to use her magic like everyone else, and even harder to be constantly told about it when she literally had the reminder on her neck. The worst part was that she felt that people around her, including her friends, considered her too fragile and incompetent to do other things.

The atmosphere became uneasy. Deuce immediately regretted mentioning the possibility of using magic; it was already difficult for him to look her directly in the eyes to talk to her without getting nervous - even though they had already known each other for a few weeks - and now he made that comment.

Jack also felt some regret when he remembered he had told her something similar. "We never said we didn't need you..." He replied. "We don't intend to leave you out either, Yuki, but remember what Ruggie said: it's better if there are fewer of us to sneak into enemy territory."

"And there's no need to get like that," Ace scolded her. "It's easy for you to say it, you weren't chased by two guys as fast as sharks. And you don't have this thing on your head either! Besides, it's not like you don't have a reason not to go, you have the pills!"

"Ace!" Yuu and Deuce exclaimed energetically, the latter trying to compensate for the fact that he had hurt her feelings.

Yukiko, offended, gave him a dirty look. "I don't know about you, Ace, but I don't like feeling like a burden just because my magic doesn't work as well as yours. I don't want to feel like some useless spectator that doesn't do anything either, you know? I remind you that I can lose Ramshackle Dorm, too!"

Frustrated and discouraged, Yukiko leaned on the railing again and stared at the courtyard outside but immediately closed her eyes when she noticed the well, right where she would have fallen into Overblot if it weren't for her brother and their friends. How much fear and despair she had felt then! And no matter how hard she tried, she was still far away from making sure it didn't happen again...

"I would also be furious if I was told all the time they don't need me, yanno?" Grim commented, empathizing with her.

Yuu knew he couldn't understand his sister - him being unable to do magic and having Grim instead - but he understood well what it was like to feel underestimated in that school of magic. He approached her and gently placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Yukiko, you're not a burden to anyone," he ensured. "You may still have trouble using magic, but you're very strong. I don't have any magic or as much strength as you, I can't do this alone. And you're right, you're about to lose the dorm too; you have every right to go and defeat Azul. If you come with us and anything happens, we can count on you like we did the other day in Savanaclaw. You won't even need to use magic..."

Yukiko was grateful that her brother still held her in high regard and took into consideration her capabilities beyond magic. However, she shook her head and gently pushed his hand away. "Thank you, but you know what? Forget it," she replied and took out the pills again. "You better go without me, don't waste any more time because of me."

She felt that the situation had become too awkward and that they would let her partake in the mission only because she had whined about it. Besides, pride prevented her from admitting that she had just become afraid; deep down she wanted to avoid that dreadful, living nightmare again if she could help it.

"But..."

"I insist, I'll be fine," she interrupted him with a sad smile. "I have to buy a bottle of water for this anyways."

Understanding she needed to be alone now, Yuu took a few steps back. "Alright, see you later..."

"Sure, see ya. Wish you luck," she said before fixing her gaze on the apple tree in the courtyard to avoid the well.

The rest, with some remorse and regret, began to walk away down the hallway towards the mirror vault.

After making sure that Yukiko wasn't near, Grim snorted in frustration: "Ugh! Did you really have to say those things to her, Ace!?" He snapped at him. "That was so inconsiderate, yanno!"

"Hey! You're the last one to say that to me!" Ace replied, offended. "Besides, it wasn't me who brought up the topic of magic."

Knowing that he was referring to him, Deuce clenched his fists. "Are you blamin' me!?" He shouted, before realizing that he was letting his anger get the better of him and sighed regretfully. "I didn't mean to underestimate her... We were there when she was about to fall into Overblot state, she even threw up! I just didn't want her to risk going through that again in case something happened. But... I'd also hate to feel like she does."

"That's enough! There's no point in fighting like some brats," Jack scolded them. "I admit I said similar things to her and I'm not proud of it either, but Yuu just suggested to her to come along and she decided not to. And right now we have to focus on other things."

"Jack's right," Yuu agreed with him calmly. "Don't worry about Yukiko, she'll be fine. That said, she won't forgive us if we lose this chance, so let's go to Octavinelle."

Minutes later, they passed through the mirror to Octavinelle Dorm and were transported inside the building by the giant magical bubbles.

Even though the hallways of that elegant place with marine themes were empty at that hour, the boys kept their guard up in case there was a trap or some student was passing by who could raise the alarm.

Remembering the way to the restaurant, they made their way to the VIP Room in Monstro Lounge. They opened the door slightly, confirming that it was not locked, and Grim crept in to inspect the place.

"Nothing to the left. Nothing to the right," he whispered, and seeing that the coast was clear, he stood up. "OK, guys, follow me!"

The four boys entered carefully and looked around. The furniture was still in the same place: the sofas placed in front of each other, the low table between them, the desk... And also why they had sneaked into the room: the large safe built into the wall that was supposed to contain the contracts.

"It's true, there's no one here," Jack commented.

Yuu felt a chill as he walked back through that room where he had bet his dorm and freedom in exchange for saving his friends. He couldn't help but wonder if things could have ended differently, or at least not ended up in the situation they were in now...

They approached the safe, and Deuce - knowing of machines and gadgets you could find at home - took a look and pointed out a lock and a wheel with numbers. "It's double-locked with a password and a key, it looks pretty secure," he commented. It was clear that it would not be an easy task to open it.

But they didn't have time to figure out how because Jack detected some approaching footsteps with his keen sense of hearing and became alarmed: "Someone's coming!" he whispered.

The footsteps became louder as they approached the door, signaling they would be caught red-handed if that person entered the room.

"Oh no! Let's hide!" Ace exclaimed. There were hardly any hiding places, but he thought quickly and didn't hesitate to get under the desk. Deuce and Jack followed suit and hid there as well.

"Jack, you take up too much space!" Ace complained, trying to fit himself into that space that was too tight for three people, especially with how tall and robust Jack was.

"What did you say?" Jack growled, not exactly happy with the outcome either.

Seeing there wasn't any more space left under the table, Yuu followed Grim and hid under the left couch with him. He ensured that neither his head nor his feet were sticking out and gestured for Grim to be quiet.

They managed to hide right before the door opened and Azul walked in. They had assumed he would be having lunch at school, so what was he doing there at this hour?

Yuu covered his mouth to hold his breath and Grim followed suit. They watched Azul's feet walk towards the safe.

"Now then..." Azul muttered to himself as he pulled out a small key set from his jacket pocket.

From their hiding spot, the students under the desk watched Azul introduce the code for the safe by turning it in three different directions and then inserting a long key into the lock.

After opening the heavy door - making a deep metallic sound - he revealed that inside were three shelves, each containing two thick stacks of approximately one hundred golden sheets of paper. "The contracts we signed!" Deuce identified in an almost inaudible voice.

"So he kept them there in the safe," Ace muttered.

Yuu and Grim peeked their heads out slightly, just enough to not be discovered, and watched as Azul grabbed about twenty contracts and began to count them while smirking. "One, two, three..."

And he chuckled as if seeing them gave him some kind of satisfaction.

"That jerk's counting them off like a stack of bills," Grim whispered with a shiver.

"Now that's a sinister hobby..." Yuu added, wondering if his contract was among them.

It was scary to see the large amount of golden papers in the safe. Azul had just made over two hundred deals and hadn't had the same success last year, which meant he must have been signing contracts long before he entered school - years, even - to own so many right now.

It was clear that the contracts were trophies of success to him, most of them surely achieved through cheating, false promises, and the intervention of the twins...

After counting the contracts, Azul put them away again. "Well then, I guess it's time to go back," he muttered before closing the safe, locking it, and introducing the password again.

Once finished, Azul left the room and the boys didn't dare move a single muscle until they heard the door close and footsteps move away in another direction.

Now that the danger had passed, everyone gave a huge sigh of relief and finally came out of their hiding places; those under the desk stretched their limbs to get rid of the numbness after being pressed against each other.

"We were so close to gettin' found out..." Grim muttered, his heart still racing.

"Thank goodness he didn't think of looking under the desk," Yuu sighed.

When he finished recovering, Jack noticed something that wasn't there before and pointed at it. "Look! He left a contract here."

A single golden contract now rested on the desk.

Excited and relieved that they weren't wasting time trying to open the safe, the five students stood around it; Grim climbed onto Yuu's shoulders so he could see.

"Wow, so lucky!" Ace exclaimed and moved his hand towards the paper. "Let's get out of here and find a way to destroy them."

"Azul's clumsier than I thought he'd be..." Grim mocked. "Let's see..."

Grim's comment gave Yuu a bad feeling. No, Azul was very smart; he had proven to be very detailed when making plans and always made sure to get a few steps ahead. And the contracts were so important that they were kept under lock and key, he wouldn't be so easily distracted around them and leave one out by mistake.

Besides, Azul was still nearby...

"No, wait!" He shrieked.

But it was too late. The moment Ace's fingertips touched the golden paper, a strong electric shock struck the intruders. And it wasn't like some spark or small lightning, the energy was so intense that it made them convulse, and they could not talk or move.

Yuu hadn't felt such intense pain since that strong burning sensation in his left shoulder months ago while reading in the library.

After a few long seconds that seemed like an eternity, the electricity finally stopped, and the boys collapsed on the floor, exhausted and seriously weakened.

As if things couldn't get worse, Floyd's chilling laughter suddenly broke out: "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"Well, well. You're shaking as if you got attacked by an electric catfish," Azul's voice sounded mockingly, holding back his laughter as he re-entered the room, this time with the twins. "You're quite unsightly, everyone!"

It was clear that it wasn't a coincidence that the dorm leader was back so quickly after leaving the contract on the table.

"Damn it...! You knew we were here!" Jack exclaimed, still pained.

"But of course, that bushy tail of yours was in plain sight under the desk," Azul replied.

Jack clenched his jaw in frustration; his haste to hide made him forget to hide his tail to avoid being exposed. If he was there, Leona would severely scold him for being so careless around the enemy.

Azul walked towards the desk. "It seems that you were trying to steal the contract to destroy it..." He said before grabbing it himself without problem. "However, they are protected by a spell that will electrocute anyone besides me who touches it. How unfortunate for you."

"You had planned this far ahead?!" Ace stammered in disbelief as he tried to stand up.

"I already told you, didn't I? My contracts are impossible to destroy."

Seeing them still on the ground, Floyd was unable to hold back his laughter. "Bahahahahahahaha! What a bunch of morons! Why do you bother tryin' if you know it won't work?"

Jade snorted, making a huge effort not to laugh too. "Floyd, don't laugh so much at the poor things," he said while showing his sharp teeth with an evil smile. "They are doing their best with what little intelligence they have. Hehehe."

The boys recovered enough to stand up, but Azul wouldn't let them go so easily. "Bad children who try to steal valuable treasures must be punished," he said threateningly.

"That's right. We must discipline them so they don't even think of doing it again," Jade nodded.

"I'm gonna take my sweet time squeezin' you all one by one," Floyd warned as he stretched out his arms.

The five intruders knew well that nothing good would happen if they didn't escape as soon as possible.

"Quick, retreat!" Jack shouted.

Everyone ran towards the door, but Azul grabbed his magical pen and struck them down with a painful electric attack, knocking them down again.

It was the first time they saw Azul use his magic on someone; the twins had been in charge of fighting until then.

Jack tried to catch his breath and strength to get back on his feet. "Sh*t... The dorm leader is this strong?" He gasped furiously.

Even knowing that this was not a compliment, Azul was proud to hear it anyway. "If you can't even handle this, stealing the contract is out of the question," he boasted arrogantly.

"Wouldn't it be faster to go to the Atlantica Memorial Museum?" Floyd asked them mockingly as he looked down at them on the floor.

"You're running out of time, you only have until the sun sets tomorrow," Jade reminded them.

Yuu glared at them with the strength he had left; they said it as if they wouldn't get in their way if they tried to go to the museum. "You cowards..." He muttered.

"Well, I guess you'll have to sleep this little fight off in the infirmary," Floyd said dangerously while cracking his knuckles. "And by the time you get up, it'll be too late!"

He was going to do the same thing he did during the first battle in the dorm!

Even though he had a hard time standing up, Ace wasn't going to lose that easily. "Crap, summoning magic isn't my thing," he said after taking out his magical pen. "But... Come forth, cauldron!"

"Hey, don't copy me!" Deuce exclaimed; he regretted giving up his ability to summon cauldrons, and it annoyed him that Ace could still do it without a problem.

A huge cauldron appeared out of nowhere, surprising the Octavinelle students, and threatened to fall on the twins' heads.

Floyd quickly pulled out his magical pen while cackling. "I told you yesterday that your spells won't work!" He exclaimed. "Bind the Heart!"

The moment the heavy cauldron was about to reach them, Floyd used his Unique Magic with all his might to deflect it in another direction. However, he didn't realize he had aimed right toward the safe, creating a loud impact that resonated throughout the room.

Azul paled the second he noticed that the door protecting his contracts had been severely affected.

"Floyd! Where do you think you're aiming at!?" He shouted furiously.

"Oops, sorry," Floyd apologized mockingly while putting a hand to his head.

Forgetting about the intruders for a moment, Azul ran to examine the damage to the door: the rudder-shaped handle that allowed it to open was now visibly dented on the top left side, affecting the looks. "Aah, the door is damaged!! The handle and hinges are still working, right!?" He groaned, fearing the worst.

He introduced the password and the keys, and was greatly relieved to see that he could still open the door without any problem.

"...Oh, thank goodness," he sighed, before turning back to Floyd and carelessly grabbing him by the collar of his shirt. "I've told you plenty of times to stop using your Unique Magic so carelessly! How many more times do I have to do it!?"

Floyd lost his good mood with all the screaming. "I already said sorry," he answered in a shrill voice. "You don't have to get angry over a simple scratch."

"It'll be too late if it ends up destroyed!"

"Settle down, you two," Jade intervened sternly. "Or else... They'll get away."

He pointed at the door, showing that Grim and the first years had taken the opportunity to stand up and were already running toward the hallway.

"Now's our chance! So long, yanno!" Grim exclaimed from a distance.

Azul had them right there and couldn't have lost them more foolishly. He immediately let go of Floyd. "Hold on! Jade! Floyd! After them!" He ordered.

But instead of listening to him like he usually did, Floyd slumped down onto one of the couches. "You know? Now I'm in a bad mood 'cause you've yelled at me," he replied with disinterest, refusing to chase after the students he wanted to squeeze seconds ago.

Since they had known each other since childhood, Floyd had always shown sudden mood swings: one moment he was happy and excited to do something, and the next he was in a bad mood and lost the desire to do it; it also happened the other way around.

"Do you really think it's time for that!? How can you be so moody!?

"Also, what are you gettin' so snappy for, Azul? Your contracts are invincible , so what if your safe breaks?"

"Are you saying I should carry a whole bundle of contracts wherever I go!?" Azul yelled once again, this time offended.

But he quickly realized that he would get nowhere if he continued to argue with Floyd over such a matter; He gasped for breath and composure and readjusted his glasses.

"Ah, this won't do at all; I got carried away by Floyd again," he muttered embarrassed. "Good grief... Jade, keep a close eye on them, and look after Floyd while you're at it."

"As you wish," Jade immediately obeyed with a slight bow and encouraged his brother to get up from the couch.

"Ah, how boring. I think I'll skip afternoon classes and nap somewhere," Floyd mumbled as they left the VIP room.

Jade sighed with a smile: "My, my..." Despite wishing his dear brother would never change, he had to admit that his mood swings could become a problem at the worst possible time.

Azul clenched his jaw. That was close; there was very little time left to achieve his victory and he must not let his guard down or make the slightest mistake unless he wanted to compromise it, especially now when his opponents were willing to do anything they could to snatch it away.

Meanwhile, the first-year students ran with all their might without looking back until they returned to the Hall of Mirrors.

They collapsed on the ground to catch their breath. It didn't seem like Azul and his henchmen had any intention of chasing them there, so they considered themselves safe for the moment.

"That was scary," Deuce gasped as he tried to calm the frantic beating of his heart.

"Man, and all this 'cause Jack's a giant," Ace complained, referring to the fact that the beastman had accidentally given away his hiding place.

"What? I'm just bulkier than you guys! And wolves tend to be taller," Jack defended himself.

Deuce looked at the anemones on Ace and Grim's heads with a feeling of defeat. They were still trapped in Azul's deal. "Those contracts, we couldn't even touch them, let alone destroy them..." He lamented.

"Let's call it a day," Jack suggested, knowing that they now had to go to class and then it would be too late to keep looking for how to defeat Azul.

"We completely wasted a whole day..." Grim complained.

"Is there really a way to destroy them?" Ace questioned tiredly.

Yuu was the only one that couldn't say anything. He was terrified; Azul and the twins were right: he only had one day left to retrieve Ramshackle and avoid becoming an anemone at their mercy. He was already afraid that he wouldn't be able to do it even with the help of his friends...!

Still, he felt that something didn't make much sense: it was the first time he saw Azul so angry; he had become utterly agitated when the safe that kept the contracts was damaged. Maybe he was scared of not using it again, but why would he worry so much if he had proven that the contracts were indestructible?

Those thoughts were interrupted when his friends called him to stand up and return to class; they had only a few minutes left until the alarm that announced the start of classes would sound.

His fear and worries increased when the heavy dripping sound he heard only two days ago resonated in his head again... Only this time it was dripping more insistently.

This sound was also heard by Yukiko while she was sitting waiting for her next class. She gasped worriedly; Yuu had told her this did not mean anything good.

"Is something wrong, Yuki? Is the pill making you sick?" Epel asked her, noticing her uneasiness.

They had met on the way and had decided to sit together for the History of Magic class with Professor Trein.

She had already given Ace and Deuce goosebumps when she revealed she could hear them before she arrived at Twisted Wonderland through Yuu; it would not be a good idea to explain to Epel about the chilling sound.

"I'm fine, Epel, thanks. Just worried about Jack, my brother, and the others..."

That was still true and she could share it with other people.

"Right, the thing about his contract..." Epel sighed, having heard something about that matter through Jack and her. "How are you guys doing with it?"

Many students from Pomefiore had also fallen for Azul's scam and, therefore, had grown an anemone on their heads. Considering that they cared a lot about their physical appearance, losing their skills and being forced to work were the second worst things they had suffered from that whole mess - according to them - and Vil did not help by severely punishing them for so stupidly breaking not one, but two of the most important values ​​of the dorm: effort - for cheating to pass the finals - and caring for their looks - for having ruined it with those ugly plants on their heads.

"Well, I don't know... We still have no idea how to win," Yukiko confessed while squeezing the bottle of water she had bought from a vending machine. "And that jerk of Azul wants to do everything possible to make us lose by cheating and sabotaging us!"

"What!? That's horrible! And your brother still can't go back to Ramshackle Dorm with you?

"Yeah, and he can only stay in Savanaclaw until tomorrow. And in the worst-case scenario, I'll have to leave Ramshackle, too..."

Epel would have loved to stay for a few days in Savanaclaw, that dorm that he admired so much, but was aware that the circumstances the prefect found himself in were far from ideal, and saying he was lucky would be uncalled for.

"Is there nothing you can do about it? 'F it was up to me, I'd beat the crap out of those Octavinelle guys to get mah house back!" Epel growled and cleared his throat, realizing he wasn't exactly discreet. "I mean... I wish I could help in some way, but knowing him, Vil will stop me and tell me not to get involved, I think... And the Leech twins are also very strong; if they are so good at playing Magift, I don't want to even imagine what it must be like to face them in person.

Yukiko smiled slightly; seeing her friend getting angry on her behalf made her feel quite happy. "Thanks, Epel. I appreciate the consideration, but if the others tell me to do nothing, they'll do the same to you."

Epel was surprised to hear that. "Why do they tell you that? Isn't it about your brother and your house?"

"I know!" She burst out in frustration. "They keep saying it's too dangerous for me to go or do something because of my unstable magic, even though I could do other things without it...

Epel looked at her thoughtfully; the situation reminded him a little of how Coach Vargas forbade her from participating in Flying Lessons like everyone else until she started hurting herself less with her magic, something that already made her feel helpless.

"But I understand that they worry so much about your condition. Did you tell them how that makes you feel?"

"Yes, but I was angry and they had to leave quickly. And..."

She was about to confess to him that she had let herself be carried away by the fear of what could happen and repeat that situation from her first day, but she stopped.

"Well, I didn't go with them, she concluded without further ado and took a sip from her water bottle.

"I never had too many problems with my magic, so I can't really understand your situation. But it really pisses me off... I mean, it really bothers me when people think I'm weak even for simple things; I can actually get you with that."

Yukiko looked back at him; he had already told her about how other people prejudged him for his harmless appearance and short stature, questioning his strength to do activities that required some kind of effort.

"It's true, you told me that day in the botanical garden," she commented, smiling as she remembered the day they had become friends.

Epel smiled back. "It must be frustrating to be told not to do anything, but I bet they appreciate the fact that you want to help and participate," he continued. "Since they're so determined this time, why don't we give them a chance to show how far they can go? How to put it... It'll be like Magift training: they can't stop you from playing on the field for long, your turn will come anytime soon."

Yukiko was still upset that she had been left behind for something she had no control over, but Epel was right: she should trust Yuu and his friends a little more. "So you propose that I wait a bit and support them from here until my turn, right?"

"That's a good way to sum it up, yes. At least I would appreciate it if someone backed me up in a tight spot."

"You're right, me too."

The anger at feeling left out had dissipated thanks to Epel's words.

"That said, I hope they are on time for class, it's going to start soon," he commented while looking at the clock.

Many students entered the classroom and took their seats waiting for the teacher, but there was no sign of Jack.

And speaking of the devil, Jack appeared a few minutes right before class began.

Yukiko gasped inaudibly and looked at him expectantly; she wanted news and hoped that they had found an answer to defeat Azul.

However, Jack made eye contact with her and, lowering his gaze in disappointment, shook his head to make it clear they got nothing.

"Oh, no..." She whispered. She had a lot of questions, she wanted to know what happened...!

But that would have to wait: the school alarm began to ring and Jack sat down for class.

"I'm so sorry, Yuki..." Epel murmured.

Yukiko stared at the surface of the table helplessly. Now they had only one day left to fulfill the contract, they were underwater, and Azul must be considering himself the victor already.

What else could they do!?

[Published on 26/9/2024]

To Be Continued...