Maria P.O.V

We were still running from the Leech twins as they continued to pursue us

"They're coming after us!" Deuce said

"Hey, hey, wait up~" Floyd said with a playful tone and Riddle got mad

"Who in their right mind would do that?! Everyone retreat!" Riddle shouted and we successfully ran away

No One P.O.V

After Maria and her boyfriends made their escape, Floyd started to pout

"Aaah. There they go" Floyd said

"Hehehe, it was an enjoyable game of tag" Jade said and looked at the time of his watch "My my, Floyd. It is almost time to get ready at Mostro Lounge. We'll have to save playing with them another time"

"Fine. But at least I got to see the Angelfish" Floyd said with a happy look on his face as they went back to their dorm

"Oh. We should remind her about sampling her dishes. She did promised Azul after all" Jade said

"Yay! I get to see Angelfish again!" Floyd said happily

With Maria - Main Street

Once they got far enough, they stopped by Main Street to catch their breath

"Huff... Huff... That was scary. What's their deal?" Grim asked as he catches his breath

"Don't ask me. They've been that way since last year and I can't handle them" Riddle said

"I'd be afraid of their revenge if I went after them: Cater said feeling scared at the thought

"I wouldn't even try" Ace said as he agreed

"The sun's gonna start going down soon, so let's get to our last 'Cater Check' for the day" Cater pulled out his phone to see who's next "Jack Howl from Savanahclaw Dorm. First year. He's super good at anything involving physical activity, and I heard a rumor that he got a flood of invitations from every sports club" Cater said

"That's impressive if I have to be honest" Maria said

"It's late enough, he might already be back at his dorm" Deuce said as he checked the time on his phone

"Ah, it's already 5. Laws of the Queen of Hearts, Number 346: One must not play croquet in the garden after 5pm. I'm going back to the dorm. There are those who break the rules if I take my eyes off of them" Riddle said

"I thought you'd loosen up a bit, but you're the same as ever" Grim said as he crossed his arms

"Guh... I thought I had loosened the rules up a lot, like a lot" Riddle said

"Don't be so hard on him, Grim. Riddle is trying and it's the thought that counts" Maria said, and Riddle's cheeks turned red

"T-Thank you Rose. I b-better get going" Riddle said as he kissed Maria's cheek and left

"He is much more lenient than before. His seriousness is of his good points" Cater said as he wrapped his arms around Maria's waist and put his chin on her shoulder

"We should get over to Savanaclaw" Ace said, and they nodded in agreement and they made their way to the Hall of Mirrors where the mirror to Savanaclaw is

Once they entered the building, the group headed to mirror that has the emblem for Savanaclaw and they entered through the mirror

Savanaclaw Dorm

"Whoa. So this is Savanaclaw Dorm?" Deuce asked as he looked around in awe

"It's rugged and looks like it's made of rocks! What animal did that big skeleton come from?" Grim asked

"I think it's an elephant" Maria said as she inspected the skeleton

"It's got a totally different vibe from our dorm" Ace said

"Right? It's like, rough and tumble. Just like the air feels wild, y'know" Cater said and everyone nodded

"Okay, we're looking for Jack? What's he look like?" Ace asked and Cater pulled out his phone

"Tan skin with silver hair. His wolf-like ears and bushy tail are his trademarks apparently" Cater said and they started to look around to see if anyone fits the description

"Bushy tail..." Grim was looking and he noticed someone "Oh. Is that him? He's running around the yard!" Grim pointed at a boy who fits the description

"Bingo! Grim wins this one. He fits the description perfectly. There's no doubt" Cater said

"We've got another big one after those twins earlier!" Ace said while looking freaked out

"That's why all the clubs were trying to scout him" Cater said

"He's probably good at martial arts too with that brawn" Deuce said

"You guys, you might not believe this but... I'm actually a bit nervous" Maria said

"You're nervous, Maria-chan? It's okay, you're fine, just relax!" Cater wrapped his arms around her shoulders "If he tries to bite you, I'll protect you, okay?" Cater said and Maria pecks his cheek, and Cater looked happy

But they didn't notice Grim was already heading towards Jack

"Hey, prickly guy!" Grim shouted

"Huh?" Jack stopped his running and looked at Grim

"Some bad guys might be coming after you, so we have decided to protect you! Aren't you happy?" Grim said with a smug look

"What's your problem? Don't get in my way of my running" Jack said as he looked a bit agitated that someone disturbed his run, and Ace has no words to say

"Grim! That's not how you should talk to someone!" Maria said as she quickly picked up Grim and covered his mouth

"Sorry about him. Do you think you could listen to us for a moment?" Cater said

"What do you want out of the blue? You were saying something about protecting me?" Jack said

"Recently, there has been a large number of accidents around campus involving students likely to be playing in the upcoming Magical Shift Tournament" Deuce explained

"And we're looking for the culprit" Ace said

"What's that got to do with me?" Jack asked

"To put it bluntly, we think you're likely to be targeted next, so our plan is to put a mark on you and catch them in the act" Cater said "Thoughts? Would you be willing to help us out?"

"........... I refuse" Jack declined the offer "I'll figure something out on my own, so there's no need for you to protect me" Jack said

"But it might be more dangerous if you do this by yourself. There's safety in numbers" Mira said and Jack looked at her

"...I said, I don't need it. And... Me being targeted... probably won't happen. See ya" Jack said as he left

"And there he goes" Cater said

"He sure was a rude jerk, huh" Grim said

"Well, the way you talked to him would rub anyone the wrong way" Ace said to Grim

"Gaaah! Having to pick a different way to talk to everyone makes humans such a pain!" Grim said as they started to leave the dorm, while Maria was lost in thought

'What did Jack mean he's not gonna be targeted? Is there some kind of connection going on with the dorm?' Maria thought as she bumps into Ace's back and saw three Savanaclaw residents blocking the way

"Oi, what are you guys doing?" The first resident said

"They're from Heartslabyul" The second resident said

"Hehehe. They're that red brat's grunts!" The third resident said with a smirk

"Did you really think we'd let you come onto our territory and just leave like that?" The first resident said

"Ugh. This pattern..." Deuce sighed

"Ah, we're leaving! Sorry about the intrusion" Ace said as they try to leave, but one of the residents grabbed Maria's arm

"Where do you think you're going, cutie?" The resident asked

"Yeah, stay here and let's play a game of cat and mouse, except you're mouse~" The third resident said, Maria got angry,  grabbed his arm and tossed him over her shoulder

"Never call me a mouse" Maria said as she blew some strands of her hair out of her face, and that her boyfriends love her even more. The resident looked ready to fight her, but a voice stopped them

"Knock it off" A male's voice said and Maria recognized that voice, the voice belonged to none other than Leona Kingscholar

"Dorm Head Leona!" The first resident said as he was helping another resident stand up

"These guys are the ones who thoughtlessly encroached on our territory" The second resident said

"We're jus gonna rough'em up a bit!" The third resident said and Ruggie looked at both Maria and Grim

"Aren't y'all the guys I met in the cafeteria?" Ruggie asked

"Aahh! You! Deluxe menchi katsu sandwich thief!" Grim shouted

"But he didn't take the sandwich though" Maria said with a sweatdrop

"She's right. The cutie gave me another Deluxe menchi katsu sandwich. Also, don't go around giving people delicious sounding names. I've got a very manly name, Ruggie Bucchi, y'know" Ruggie introduced himself and Leona was looking at Maria

"Ah, now that I get good look at you, you're that furball that stepped on my tail in the botanical garden" Leona said

"Whaaaaaat!? Dorm Head Leona's tail!?" The first resident shouted

"Not forgiving that!" The second resident said

"You don't know how to let things go or something?" Maria said as she lifted up her eyebrow

"We wouldn't need the police if sorry fixed everything!" The first resident said

"These guys are morons" Maria said

"Oh yeah, I was wondering where I saw you. It was the botanical garden" Ruggie said as he remembered

"Leona, Ruggie, let's show'em who's boss!" The second resident said, and Leona grew annoyed

"Stop barking up a fuss, mutts" Then the residents went silent "What're you gonna do if your little fit of violence interferes with the Magift tournament?"

"You're saying we should just ignore these trespassers? But they're such tasty looking prey especially the girl" The third resident said as he looked at Maria

"Nobody said anything ignoring them. We'll solve this 'peacefully' with a game of Magical Shift" Leona said with a grin

"With magift?" The first resident said sounding excited

"We can go crazy with magic during the game without breaking any rules" Leona said

"Shishishi! Leona, you're such a bully. These guys don't look like they could handle more than one game" Ruggie said, and Grim looked mad

"Mmggh mmggh mmggh! I'm not gonna just take that lyin' down!" Grim said

"Ugh. Doesn't feel like we can refuse and go home" Deuce said

"Alright, let's do this" Then Ace looked at Cater "Cater! Don't forget about the tryouts" Ace said

"Eeeh? Seriously? You're all hopeless" Cater said and looked at Maria "Maria-chan, stand somewhere out of the way. Watch the other team and help us figure out their plays" Cater said and Maria nodded

Savanaclaw Dorm - Magift Stadium Maria P.O.V

[There should be a GIF or video here. Update the app now to see it.]

The guys were out of breath and looked ready to collapse

"Huff... Haa..." Grim was laying on the ground as he tries to catch his breath

"Huff... Huff... This is insane... We can't even get a single point" Ace said

"There was no opening in their formation" Deuce said

Huff... They day... Leona is a genius at being a 'command tower'. We don't stand a chance with just the five of us" Cater said and Leona walked towards the group

"Oh, what's the matter? Done already?"

"Shishishi! Where'd all that bravado from earlier go?"

"Come on, get up herbivores. Let's go one more game" Leona said

I couldn't stand it anymore. I rushed towards them and stood in front of Leona-senpai

"I believe that's enough. I suggest we call it a day" I said

"Hm? What gave you the idea on ordering me around little mouse?" Leona said as he lifted my chin up "The offer still stands, y'know"

"I kindly decline" I said, and we heard someone heading our way

"What's so fun about kicking newbies around?" Jack asked as he walked towards us

"What's this? Jack, you're so cool. Like a hero of justice and trying to protect the girl too. Shishishi!" Ruggie laughed

"I can't stand by why something heinous is happening in front of me" Jack said

"Tch. You're a buzzkill" Leona said as he let go of my chin

"Hey, Jack! You're sure cheeky for a first year!" The first resident said

"...I could say the same for you, you're not doing something befitting of an upperclassman" Jack said as he crossed his arms

"Come again?! You wanna join them?!" The third resident shouted at Jack

"Ha. Fresh baby, being assertive is splendid" Leona sighed "Whatever, I'm bored. There's no point in going against you guys. Let's go, Ruggie"

"Yes" Ruggie said

"We won't let you off so easy next time you trespass on our turf!" The second resident shouted as they all left, leaving us and Jack

"Thank you for stepping in before things got ugly" I thanked Jack and turned to the guys "Are you guys alright?"

"Ah ha ha, I showed you a pretty ugly side of me" Cater said as I helped him up along with Ace and Deuce

"Jack, was it? You saved us" Deuce said

"It wasn't like I was trying to help you or anything" Jack said while looking away as he scratched his head

'Cute' I thought to myself

"Ugh, I'm so gross. Let's just go straight back to the dorm" Ace said

"And I'm starving" Grim said as his stomach growled

"Well, Jack, we're heading out, but be careful, okay?" Cater said

"You guys aren't in position to worry about me. Go home already" Jack said as he walked away, and we decided to do the same

To be continued