As night fell, Yuu took a break from doing laundry in Savanaclaw to walk around campus; he still couldn't get what had happened that day in Octavinelle out of his mind and needed to calm down if he didn't want to be awake all night.

Out of habit, he decided to head to the Ramshackle dorm and stopped in front of the gated door, just as close as he was allowed to be near the place.

He looked at the old building sadly; it had recently been renovated inside and out to make it more habitable. And even though it still had many issues to fix, it had been his home for months.

"I only have one day left until they take my dorm away from me..." He thought.

He knew it was too late to regret it, and it was useless to wonder what would have happened if he had taken a different path, but he was running out of time and ideas. Azul made it clear he would take over his dorm to turn it into a new restaurant and force him to work for him as soon as the third sun was down.

The only thing left for him and his friends was a tiny bit of hope that kept disappearing with every passing second...

Suddenly, some strange but beautiful green lights began to float like fireflies, momentarily distracting him from his despair. He took a few steps back to admire them.

"What are these lights? So beautiful!" He thought in wonder.

A dry thud sounded behind him like someone had fallen from a low height.

"Hm? You are..." A calm, deep voice spoke to him.

The lights disappeared, and Yuu turned around to meet that mysterious and handsome fae from Diasomnia he met last month; it was a night like the current one: he was alone outside the dormitory after a bad day, and the young stranger was walking through that place to visit Ramshackle without knowing that it was inhabited, hoping to admire the calm and the ruins of the place.

Even though he had told him that he could continue walking around the place as much as he wanted, they had not seen each other since that curious encounter ended with a handshake.

"Oh, Tsunotaro!" He unconsciously called him by the nickname he had decided for him. "It's been a while."

Completely surprised by that bizarre nickname, the Diasomnia student opened his eyes wide. "Tsunotaro?" He repeated to make sure he heard correctly. "With Tsunotaro... Are you referring to me?"

"My friend Grim suggested that name when I told him about you, and you said I could call you whatever I wanted," Yuu explained cheerfully. "What do you think?"

Deep down, he was nervous about how he would react to being called by a name that literally meant "boy with horns". To his bewilderment, the young man - far from getting angry - snorted in a failed attempt to contain a cheerful laugh: "Ha ha ha! To think that someone would call me Tsunotaro! You really are fearless," he exclaimed, amused.

That human never ceased to surprise him: first, he asked to shake hands for an agreement as soon as they met, and now he casually used such a name for him.

"I can choose another name if you prefer; even I found it strange at first..."

"It's alright, it was I who told you to use a name of your choosing," the newly named Tsunotaro reassured him. I will grant you permission to call me by this curious nickname."

Yuu sighed in relief; at least he had gotten a few laughs from that stoic student.

"You're right: it's been a while since we last saw each other, child of man," Tsunotaro continued. "I've heard the news about your sister, the young human girl who moved into your dorm as a Savanaclaw student."

"Yes, my twin Yukiko. The Dark Mirror placed her in Savanaclaw, but the headmaster said that here she would have more privacy and security while she recovers from her condition. She also became friends with Lilia, your vice-dormitory leader; he even welcomed her at her entrance ceremony."

"That's right, Lilia has spoken well of her," Tsunotaro revealed, showing they knew each other personally, and suddenly became serious. "I've also heard about her strange condition; it's unheard of blot accumulating on its own inside a human body due to the possession of more intense magical energy they barely can resist. I assume it must be a complicated situation for her, a human who has just acquired her magic."

Yuu looked away. "She is. But she's strong: I know that one day she'll get to control it without sealing it."

"Lilia mentioned something similar, so I'm confident that will happen. This reminds me that our student Sebek, on the other hand, directed some hurtful and inconsiderate insults toward her because of those same difficulties... I apologize for the behavior of one of our students, the incident was not overlooked and we dealt with it accordingly."

After hearing about that incident from Lilia, Silver, and Riddle, "Tsunotaro" scolded Sebek, sternly telling him that an insult towards someone was not a compliment towards him - no matter the circumstances.

"Yeah... Don't worry about it, that was resolved. But now Yukiko hates him and refuses to get close to him, if anything she gives him dirty looks if she sees him from afar."

Tsunotaro sighed. "I understand. Sebek is stubborn and often behaves rudely towards other people, especially humans but at the end of the day, he is a good young man with noble intentions. I just hope he doesn't damage any more relationships in the future with his impulsiveness and prejudices."

He stared at the dorm for a moment.

"...By the by, I've noticed that this dorm has seemed rowdier as of late. Do you have any new residents aside from your sister?"

One of the things that Tsunotaro enjoyed the most from that place was the silence, which had been interrupted by the daily inspections of the twins and probably Azul.

"Well, you see..." Yuu began to tell him everything that happened, from the contract with Azul, handing over the dorm as collateral in the process, to the planned sabotage to make them lose.

Tsunotaro listened to everything without expressing much emotion apart from an occasional hint of surprise.

"A deal with Ashengrotto? I see... So that's what happened," he murmured before looking at the dorm again. "Then once the sun sets tomorrow, this place will belong to him and become a meeting place for noisy students."

Yuu gulped. "You talk like we're definitely going to lose," he muttered.

He already felt lost enough, he didn't need to be reminded that the odds of winning were low and didn't look like they were going to increase.

Malleus laughed lightly as if the annoyed expression amused him. "Does that bother you?"

"Of course! This is the only place we can live and my sister needs space to recover, not to mention that she'll feel more uncomfortable if she lives in Savanaclaw, but Azul doesn't care about any of that," Yuu replied and forcefully grabbed the fence door. "And the worst part of all... I can't think of anything else to do to avoid it...!"

Tsunotaro might not be the right person to share his frustrations with, but he really needed to release them in some way or another.

Without reacting much to his fit of anger, the Diasomnia student remained thinking in silence until his gaze stopped on one of the corners of the roof. "Incidentally, this dorm has some rather impressive gargoyle sculptures, did you know that?"

Yuu raised an eyebrow, confused by the sudden change of topic, and followed Malleus' gaze to a dragon-shaped gargoyle sitting in the corner, its jaws open to the outside.

"You mean the sculptures that spout water from their mouths? Yes, I noticed them one day when it was raining. There are some more on the other side."

He always saw those sculptures when he read or watched something about Gothic architecture: one of his favorite historical periods.

"At first glance, these gargoyles appear to be scary monster-shaped sculptures. But actually, they are a type of drain spout designed to keep rainwater, as you mentioned, from sullying the walls," Tsunotaro explained solemnly and smiled. "They may be terrifying to behold, and yet they are faithfully devoted to the preservation of their home."

Yuu reflected on the young man's words, it was clear that he felt admiration for those sculptures. "You mean that they are not what they seem and are actually good, right?" He concluded thoughtfully.

Tsunotaro looked at him again, seconding his conclusion. "Sometimes what you see with your eyes is the complete opposite of the truth," he simply answered.

He closed his eyes before sighing dejectedly.

"...And I, too, would prefer to avoid this place becoming rowdy every night," he took a few steps back and looked at Yuu one last time with a confident smile. "So do everything in your power to protect your dorm and your sister."

Saying goodbye that way, Tsunotaro disappeared in the blink of an eye, just as he had done in the first meeting.

"Tsunotaro...!?" Yuu exclaimed, but there was no trace of him except for the small sparks of magic that quickly vanished.

He looked back at the gargoyle from before with a feeling of confusion. Why did Tsunotaro say that about appearances and protection? Was it his way of encouraging him? Or was he trying to reveal something cryptically?

His thoughts trying to find some other meaning were interrupted by footsteps running towards the dormitory.

"Hey, Yuu!" His sister called him from a distance. She was dressed in her dorm uniform.

"Weren't you going to come back until later?" He asked since she had decided to return late to Ramshackle to avoid running into Jade and Floyd.

"I was looking for you: I didn't see you anywhere and got worried. Grim told me that you went out and I was right thinking you'd be here."

"Really? Thanks, I'm fine... physically, I mean. I just needed a moment to be alone."

Understanding what he meant, Yukiko looked at the building with sadness and shook his hands in hers, noticing how cold they were compared to hers.

"hey. I know it's hard, but we'll get the dorm back no matter how," she swore. "I won't let those jerks get away with it."

Yuu nodded, although he wasn't quite sure; just as he had told Tsunotaro, he had run out of ideas. "We'd better go back, it's cold and there must be things to do in Savanaclaw," he simply said.

Yukiko nodded and they set off. "Are you sure you don't want me to help with that? I'll be bored doing nothing in the dorm until I leave."

"It's fine by me, but I'm sure Leona will insist you again not to do it."

She shrugged. "Then I'll insist even more. By the way, you said you needed to be alone, but who were you talking with? I just saw you with someone who disappeared out of nowhere. Were they a fairy, like Lilia?"

It hadn't occurred to Yuu that his sister would have seen the visitor from afar. "Oh, that's right. Remember when I told you about a Diasomnia student who used to wander here at night? It was him, we just met by chance."

Yukiko's eyes widened. "Oh, the mysterious Tsunotaro! Did you give him the name yet? What did he think?"

Yuu finally smiled. "Yes, he laughed and told me that I was fearless for giving him a name like that, but he ended up liking it and let me call him that."

"Nice!" Yukiko said laughing. "Yes, it's kinda weird to call him 'boy with horns' just for having them, but what did he mean by 'fearless'?

"I have no idea, but I don't know if it has something to do when he said it would be better for me not to know his real name or 'I would feel chills on my spine'".

"If he told you that, he must be an important guy or he thinks too highly of himself, but we would have already found out if that was the case, right?" Yukiko questioned, thoughtfully. "I mean, Leona is a literal prince, Riddle 'chops heads off'... and I've heard some other things about Vil Schoenheit: not very good ones, by the way.

"Who knows."

"Anyway, you have to introduce me to him someday. You said he was very handsome, didn't you?" She asked with interest.

"I don't think that's relevant right now..." Yuu replied sheepishly.

They returned to Savanaclaw and Grim greeted them lying on one of the lounge chairs in the main room.

"It's 'bout time!" He exclaimed upon seeing Yuu. "I was startin' to think you were goin' to slack off and leave all the work to me, yanno?"

"You know I'm not like you, Grim," Yuu sighed.

At that moment Ruggie peeked in. "Done with your break? Then it's time to get back to work! Come with me, I'll tell ya your next task."

Grim growled and Yukiko decided to accompany them to Leona's room, who was lying on the headboard of his bed.

"Oh, never thought a lion's den would be THIS chaotic," Yukiko thought as she looked at the mess from the entrance: there were clothes scattered on the floor and furniture, a large number of objects out of place, and the closet doors weren't even properly closed. She wasn't the tidiest person in the world either, but she wouldn't go that far.

"Now it's your turn to clean Leona's room," Ruggie said.

"Work to earn your keep, herbivores," Leona haughtily said; in the end, he found the pleasure of seeing those unwanted guests working for him - at least they were somewhat useful.

"Azul made me work me to death, and now Leona works me to death... I'm gonna fall over. Gosh..." Grim complained tiredly. When would all that ordeal end!?

"Come on, at least it's easier than cleaning Ramshackle dorm," Yuu tried to cheer him up.

"First you'll start by putting the dirty clothes in the laundry basket and organizing the desk," Ruggie indicated. "The accessories go in this drawer and the books on the shelf. When you finish putting everything away, clean the surface with a cloth."

"You ain't a child, so you could clean up by yourself, yanno?" Grim criticized Leona in a low voice.

Leona heard him anyway with his great sense of hearing and gave him a withering look. "Ha? Did you say something?" He asked with a dangerous tone.

"Ah...! Nothin' at all," Grim answered, completely changing his attitude while hiding behind Yuu.

"By the way, Yuki, what brings ya here?" Ruggie asked her. "Trying to snoop around a man's room at night? What a naughty girl. Shi shi shi!"

"Stop talking nonsense, Ruggie," Leona warned him.

Yukiko rolled her eyes at his upperclassman's joke. "Very funny, but there's nothing here I haven't seen before. So, may I lend you a hand around here?"

"We've talked about this, Yuki: you're already our student," Leona reminded her calmly, "it's your brother and your raccoon friend who have to earn their stay here."

"I ain't a raccoon!!"

"But I'll have to do something while I'm here, don't you think? I'm not going back to Ramshackle yet."

After thinking about it for a moment, Leona sat on the left edge of the bed. "You're right, those idiots might be lurking around. Hey, Ruggie, hand me the board and the pieces."

Surprised by such an unusual order, Ruggie obeyed, putting the pieces scattered around the desk into a wooden box and handing them to him along with the chess board he had there.

"Well, since you're here, I could teach you some chess," Leona suggested, raising an eyebrow proudly. "I don't mean to brag, but I'm quite the expert in this game - I could even tell you about strategies that I wouldn't reveal to anyone else."

Yukiko had very little idea about the game, nor had she been very interested, but she shrugged and sat down next to him; that was better than doing nothing.

"Before we start, I'd like to ask: do you know anything about chess?" Leona asked her.

"I know that the pawns move one square forward and the knight moves in an L-shape, the queen is important and you say 'checkmate' when you win; aside from that, not much."

"And all that is correct. Well, the first thing you need to do is learn the pieces and their movements..."

Yuu tried not to get too distracted by Leona's explanations and started picking up the clothes. "Hey, Grim. How about I work with this and you take care of the desk? We may finish sooner this way."

"Okay..." Grim mumbled before climbing onto the chair to examine the messy table. "Oh!? That's some expensive jewelry lyin' around! There's Leona's wallet and everything!" He exclaimed in an impressed whisper.

Gold bracelets and necklaces with shiny cylindrical beads fit for a prince of the savannah were all spread out before him and on top of them all was an expensive brown brand wallet.

Grim made sure Leona kept his back to him as he spoke to Yukiko about that complicated and boring chess game that he could never quite understand, and smiled evilly. "He wouldn't notice if just one of these disappeared, would he?" He muttered as he put his paws on the wallet. "It's his fault for being so careless. He he he..."

"Hey!"

Before he could even unzip the wallet, Ruggie caught him in the act and stopped him by punching him on the head; the impact hadn't really been strong, but hitting the anemone right in the head and bending it in the process made him feel such intense pain that made him tear up.

"OUCH!"

The twins immediately turned around to see what was going on.

"Hey, don't do that! I already got dibs on... I mean, if something's missing, he'll notice it right away!" Ruggie scolded him and turned to his boss. "And Leona, I keep telling you not to leave your valuables in plain sight. You'll end up getting robbed one of these days!"

Leona growled: "Ah, shut up. Who are you, my mother?"

"He's right, you know?" Yukiko replied. "Although I can't think of anyone else who would dare to steal from you."

"Grim! What did I tell you about taking things that don't belong to you!?" Yuu lectured him.

"It's not a big deal; even if they do steal from me, I wouldn't lose anything important," Leona replied, shrugging. "If someone has the balls to steal from me, they can go right ahead."

"Of course it's a big deal! People who treat money like it's nothing don't care if they lose it," Ruggie exclaimed indignantly before whispering: "Jeez, this is why the privileged types are so..."

"Hey, Yuu. Is something wrong?" Yukiko interrupted when she realized that her twin brother had stopped dead and seemed deep in thought.

Yuu didn't answer; the word "steal" made him think again about the failed attempt to destroy the contracts: they were really important and were locked away, probably along with the restaurant's money, but Azul hadn't hesitated to leave one outside to set a trap for them and show that the contracts were untouchable.

However, Azul had been very upset when the safe was hit even though he could still open it, even Floyd had described it as a "simple scratch". Maybe he only cared a lot about the appearance of his dorm.

"Wait a minute... appearances..." He repeated quietly.

The words Tsunotaro had told him just a while ago when they were talking about the gargoyles came to mind: "Sometimes what you see with your eyes is the complete opposite of the truth"

"They are not what they seem..." He muttered again.

Riddle and Leona also seemed invincible, but they had been able to defeat them in one way or another, the latter had also said that every Unique Magic had its weak point, no matter how strong it was. And Ruggie had spoken of the possibility that the invulnerability of the contracts was part of a simple act of a swindler.

"It's not what it seems... An act..."

As all those pieces fit together, the information fell suddenly and Yuu felt what could be considered an epiphany:

"OF COURSE!"

Everyone was startled by that sudden shout, especially coming from someone usually calm like him.

"Ah!!! What happened, Yuu?" Grim asked.

"Don't go yelling like that out of nowhere," Leona complained in annoyance.

Yuu was quick to share his conclusion: "Contracts aren't really invincible, that's why they're kept under lock and key!"

"Oh?" Ruggie asked with a sly smile, feeling a bit of pride at seeing that innocent first-year finally use common sense.

"Well, it's obvious he wants to keep them if they're important to him, yanno?" Grim answered without seeing the point.

On the other hand, Leona had a very similar reaction to Ruggie and was unable to hold back a laugh. "Ha ha ha! I get it, in the end you do come up with interesting things!" He exclaimed and put aside the chess board.

"Huh? What do you mean by 'interesting'?" Grim questioned, unable to see where they were going.

Yukiko didn't understand either: she heard that the contracts were untouchable thanks to an electric spell.

"To sum up, you're sayin' that the contracts are only 'invincible' as long as they are inside the safe, right?" Leona reiterated, now serious.

"...Hm? Hmmmmmm? What do you mean?" Grim asked again nervously.

"Don't worry, Grim: I'm just as lost as you are," Yukiko said as she looked at the three boys there.

Ruggie put a hand to his chin in thought. "Ah, now that you mention it: it's true, I already found it kinda strange," he commented. "If what Azul says is true and everyone who touches the contracts is struck down... What's the point of keepin' 'em all in a safe and I could just leave them there, like Leona with his wallet?

"Ah! Speakin' of the safe: Azul got really angry when it ended all banged up, yanno?" Grim commented as he remembered the argument with Floyd that had allowed them to escape.

"Aah, the door is damaged!! The handle and hinges are still working, right!? ...Oh, thank goodness. 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!?"

"I already said sorry. You don't have to get angry over a simple scratch."

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

"Of course..." Ruggie sighed. "It's common sense to keep valuable things in a safe, so I didn't even question it." He sneered at Leona. "That would be good for a careless prince to know."

"Pfft!" Yukiko snorted to hold back her laughter and Leona clicked his tongue in annoyance. "Sometimes you say annoyin' things like that," he growled.

"But there's something I don't get: why are they protected by a spell if they are already protected by the safe?" Yukiko questioned.

"Exactly, that would mean there's a good chance that all that stuff about the contracts being electrified is nothing more than a bluff," Ruggie explained.

"WHAT!?" Grim shouted, almost meowing.

"Azul knew you newbies were lurking aroun' and left that contract outside on purpose for you to see," Leona supposed. "All he had to do was hide and wait for you to touch it and immediately blast you with some lightning magic. Come on, stop falling into his traps."

Grim clenched his claws in fury. "That damn Azul! Such a liar! I'm sick of being fooled!" He shrieked.

"At any rate, taking the contracts out of the vault will be the quickest way to see what you can do with them," Leona concluded.

"This is amazing!" Yukiko exclaimed happily and jumped up to run and hug her brother. "This means we can still get the dorm back. I knew there had to be a way and you found it!"

Yuu hugged her back tightly. "You're right, we can still win!" He replied, his enthusiasm spreading.

"Dude, you're so smart and have a good memory. Are you sure you don't want to be a doctor or a detective like Mom or Aunt Yoshi suggested?"

He laughed nervously; this was not the time to talk about that.

Grim got up and headed for the door. "That's it! Now that we know their weak point, let's sneak into Octavinelle and...!"

However, Ruggie quickly grabbed him by the neck to stop him. "Hey, wait. Don't start celebrating: you still have another problem," he said.

"Fgna?" Grim asked without any idea what he could mean.

"If Yuu's hunch is correct, the Leech twins will rush to get in your way," he reminded them, making a good point. "If you ask me, those two are harder to deal with than just a vault. You're gonna need a good strategy."

Grim brought his front paws to his head in a feeling of defeat. "Damn it! We were so close...!" He shrieked frustrated.

"It's true: no matter if we go for the photo or to destroy the contracts, they will always follow us," Yukiko growled.

"So what could we do about them? They're too strong in a fight, especially under the sea," Yuu questioned.

"In both hand-to-hand combat and Magift you must look for open spaces when facing opponents bigger than you, but the only thing I can think of for this case is to distract them with something so big that they won't be able to control. Something like..."

As if they had come to a similar conclusion, both twins stared at Leona. "Huh? What are you two thinking now?" He asked angrily. "I think I get the idea, but I absolutely refuse to help."

"What...!? Why?" Yukiko asked, caring for the first time instead of expressing anger towards her dorm leader.

"The last thing I need is to get involved in something as problematic as that, especially if it's related to that octo-punk."

"No way, it's impossible. I recommend that you give up," Ruggie seconded him, who also didn't want to be part of whatever they were planning. "I'm sorry, Yuki, I'm glad you got something out of the club, but it's better not to get involved with Azul anymore."

It was already mentioned several times, but Grim and the twins had almost forgotten that Leona was aware of Azul's great power and cunning mind; not to mention how imposing he is, managing to convince - or rather blackmail - the very headmaster to make a deal with him.

Grim wasn't going to give up so easily. "Hey! Did ya forget it? Yuki's the only girl in school; If we lose Ramshackle dorm, she'll have to live here in Savanaclaw with you, yanno!?" He exclaimed.

The twins exchanged a look and checked the reaction of the other two Savanaclaw students: they looked at Grim as if he had just said something extra weird.

"And that would be a HUGE problem because..." Ruggie questioned, waiting for him to finish the sentence.

"She's part of this dorm, she can stay here without any problems," Leona added as it seemed the most logical and natural thing in the world.

"Didn't you say that there were no more free rooms?" Yuu questioned.

"Then we'll prepare one for her to move in, it's that simple. We might even 'persuade' other dorm mates to agree to collaborate."

"Hey, that's not the only problem!" Yukiko exclaimed, offended. "Alright, I appreciate you guys taking me into the dorm, but I don't want to live in a place full of boys either! Didn't it occur to you that I'd have to use the washroom, too? Or I'm supposed to use the gym's showers in the middle of the night? That, and visiting someone in his room are two different things, you know?"

"That's true, Yuki doesn't have that problem in Ramshackle, it's just me and Grim," Yuu reminded them.

Ruggie blinked nervously and gulped; that possibility did cross his mind, but he hadn't realized until now how close it felt. Then he examined Leona, who simply shrugged.

"That's also easy: I'll set up a schedule. I'll say which hours will be reserved solely for your use, and the other students will have the minimum decency to understand that these measures are necessary for the circumstances, and those who don't, whether they complain or dare to do something... let's say they'll regret it."

"That sounds good, fine with me," Ruggie said, considering the idea.

"Thanks again, but that doesn't mean I don't feel comfortable: someone might forget or come in by mistake at any time."

"Then we'll increase security, we can give you a key or use a spell to seal doors," Leona said without hesitation. "I'm thinking of several options right now."

"Are you serious!?" Grim exclaimed when he realized they would not give up so easily either.

"Well, what if living here makes it harder for me to fix my magic? I'd feel uncomfortable and the negative feelings would affect my blot production."

"We'll leave you a place with enough space to train, the Magift stadium would be a good option."

"What if the headmaster says no!?" Yukiko exclaimed in despair.

"Well, let him put up with it, he should've considered that possibility the moment he sent your brother to fix the anemone issue."

Yuu looked away, ashamed, and Yukiko snorted in exasperation.

"I understand that you have reservations about living with so many guys you don't know, but even with all these measures you're still going to insist we help you defeat Azul, right?" Ruggie said with a half smile.

"Of course! Did you really think I'd be okay with my friends being enslaved by Azul!? Besides, I refuse to live in a place full of brutes who don't even put on deodorant before P.E.!"

Everyone stared at her. "Well, no offense. And I'm not saying this about Jack or you two, but you can feel some odor during P.E. - not just from Savanaclaw."

"None taken. And I gotcha, I'm kinda used to bad smells by now, but you don't have to be from Pomefiore to take care of yourself a little bit, I think," Ruggie said while wrinkling his nose.

"Hey, don't change the subject!" Grim demmanded.

"You could also offer something in exchange, but it will have to be big enough for us to agree to face those three madmen," Ruggie proposed, although he doubted it would be possible. "However, this time must be something else than cookies."

"How about a dozen donuts?" Yuu immediately proposed, remembering the hyena boy's favorite food. "They are easy to make, and if the headmaster compensates me, I could even make mochi donuts."

Ruggie's eyes widened and his mouth watered; that was a tempting offer, especially considering how good the
the food the prefect had prepared during his stay looked. Although he was not sure if that would be enough in exchange for messing with the fearsome Azul and his henchmen...

"Alright, even if you manage to bribe Ruggie, you're gonna need a lot more if you want to win against that octo-punk," Leona continued, still refusing. "We've already offered you a lot of help just by letting you be here; if you're so determined not to live with us, Yuki, and you're so determined to fight for your dorm, you'll have to show how far you can go."

He had said it with all the certainty that the herbivore would be incapable of doing such a thing, but as if he had activated something with those words, the latter stared at him thoughtfully and whispered something in his sister's ear, who gasped and smiled evilly.

"How far can we go, you say?" Yuu asked.

They had just gotten another chance to win against that deal and they didn't plan to waste it, but they needed help if they wanted to carry out a plan good enough to achieve it: if they didn't get it the easy way, they would get it the hard way.

Yuu crouched down to the height of his furry friend: "Grim, let's do our best."

Understanding what he meant, Grim's eyes widened. "Oh! Are we gonna do it in the end?" He asked expectantly.

"Huh? What are you two up to now?" Leona demanded to know. He didn't expect them to react in such a cryptic and strange way at all.

"Yuu and Yuki assumed that a moment like this could happen, so yesterday they came up with a crazy idea."

While Grim revealed that, Yuu searched for something in one of his sports bags until he found it. "More than an idea, I commented something sarcastic and Yukiko insisted on making it a reality in case of emergency."

"Don't be modest, you were right when you said that the headmaster taught us a good way to make others do things for us," Yukiko insisted with a half smile. "And in the end you were right, it came in handy!"

When he found it, Yuu handed over the MP3 player the anonymous benefactor gifted him last month and handed it to his sister. "Wanna be first?" He asked her.

She checked the titles of the songs saved on the device. "Yeah, I'll start. I don't think he'll want to eat me and I'll act if something happens. Too bad we can't hook this up to a speaker or something."

"It's not like we have one anyway, so we'll make more noise ourselves."

"You're right too. By the way, you better run away, Ruggie; at least you'll be spared of this."

Ruggie felt a chill. Why were those adorable first-year twins giving sudden vibes similar to the Leech twins...!? "Yuki...!? No... I don't know what you plan to do, but are you really gonna stand up to your own dorm? I thought you were getting along with Leona...!" He stammered.

"Kinda, but I have priorities," she replied and took two steps forward.

"Hey! Whatever you're going to do, don't even think about it!" Leona warned them.

"Too late," Yukiko replied as she put on the earphones. "Believe me, this is going to hurt me more than you. Or maybe not, we'll see."

"I'm sorry it has to come to this, but we really need your assistance," Yuu added in a deeper and more monotonous voice than usual. "The sooner you agree to help us, the sooner we'll go to sleep."

[Published on 7/11/2024]

To Be Continued...