“Thank you, Narias,” Emilia said, clinging to his arm tighter.

“Oh, sorry, I must’ve made you feel uncomfortable back there,” Narias said. Now that he was calmer, he could understand his move might’ve put Emilia in a somewhat difficult spot.

“No, no. I appreciate you stepping up and taking me away with you,” Emilia smiled happily.

“That jerk definitely needed to be punched in the face. He’s a real creep, after all.” Flamiris wasn’t shy about expressing her thoughts.

“I would have to agree that Louneus Vilmanos’ conduct a moment ago was nothing but disrespectful towards Emilia. You showed an exceptionally heroic side back there, Narias and... I really like that about you,” Ileena said, finding a way to slip in a favorible compliment.

“Yeah, Narias was totally cool,” Flavia added, smiling wide.

“Ah, thanks. I just... I just couldn’t stand Louneus treating my girlfriend in such a disgraceful way. And not only that. He treated all of you, me included, like we weren’t even there and didn’t even bother to introduce Jennifer to us. It didn’t really matter who she was, although I believe she is a highly influential woman, but that just showed Louneus didn’t think we were worth introducing to her. I don’t care how high or mighty people think they are, I will not let anyone treat my girlfriends with disrespect,” the more Narias spoke the more intense and stronger his words were becoming. He clenched his fist and furrowed his eyebrows on his last sentence, suddenly realizing his girlfriends were looking at him with very big, sparkling eyes. “Ah, sorry, I... got a little intense there.” And of course, becoming self-aware after that made Narias feel uncomfortable himself.

“I’d like to take back what I have said a moment ago. I don’t like you, Narias. I love you,” Ileena stated without a hint of hesitation in her voice.

“You’re so dang cool, Narias,” Flavia couldn’t help but cling to him.

“Damn you, that speech was totally hot, you... Mastermind Hero,” Flamiris said, averting her cherry red face away.

“You’re so amazing, Narias,” Emilia couldn’t have looked happier.

“Come on, let’s play two more games,” Ileena ushered everyone suddenly.

“Huh? Why two?” Flavia was puzzled.

“Because I need two more wins,” Ileena declared confidently.

“Hah, don’t think so highly about yourself. Those will be my two wins,” Flamiris caught what Ileena meant behind her words.

“I don’t think we’ll need to play two games. After all, I am missing only one win,” Emilia cooled the other girls off, reminding she was in the lead.

“Eh? Dang it. No way, I’ll win the next game,” Flavia declared. The mood was up high in the sky while the group was making their way to look for the next game to play.

{after two or three hours when everyone met up again}

“Hi guys, how are you all doing?” Nicky greeted her friends when her and Growly met up with them.

“Bah, not good,” Flavia said, dropping her shoulders.

“Wha... did something bad happen?” Nicky gasped, seeing Flavia being so down.

“Yes, I lost,” Flavia blurted, looking defeated.

“Lost?” Nicky was puzzled.

“Yes, we were competing who would be the first one to win three games and... I lost too,” Ileena explained, letting out a disappointed sigh.

“We had such a wonderful time,” Emilia on the other hand, sounded and looked like she was walking on air.

“Yeah, Emilia was the first one to win three games,” Flamiris said, pursing her lips.

“Oh, now I get it,” Nicky said with a giggle, finally understanding why the other three girls were looking so down.

“Nicky won more times than I did too,” Growly said, probably wanting to help Ileena, Flavia and Flamiris feel better.

“Hey, that’s because you let me win, Growly,” Nicky addressed him, pouting her lips.

“Not during all the games,” he defended himself, scratching his fur covered cheek with one finger.

“Growly,” Nicky pouted her cheeks too.

“I’m glad to hear you two had a good time,” Ileena said, a smile entering her lips.

“Did anything else happen?” Nicky wanted to know more.

“Oh, yeah. That guy from the Elite Magicians club showed up. You know, Louneus Vilmanos. He wanted to take Emilia to go with him,” Flavia had no problem spilling the beans.

“Oh, no,” Nicky gasped, covering her mouth with one hand. “Did... did you go with him, Emilia?”

“Of course she didn’t... thanks to the Mastermind Hero here. Humph,” Flamiris answered Nicky’s question, adding a satisfying smirk at the end too.

“Narias? Wow, I wish we’d gone with you guys instead. I really want to hear the details,” Nicky spoke, her face catching a gleam from the curious excitement.

“How about we find a place to sit down and eat first, because... talking while standing here...” Narias suggested, throwing one hand behind his head. They were standing in the middle of the main hall with lots people coming and going.

“Yes, I’m sorry, Narias. We should go sit down first,” Ileena agreed.

“For sure. Playing all those games made me really hungry, actually,” Flavia admitted.

“Where will we go eat then?” Flamiris wanted to know.

“I believe it is up to Emilia to decide. She is the winner, after all,” Ileena reminded her, speaking mainly to Emilia, however.

“Ah, yes. I... almost forgot,” Emilia said, catching a blush. “How about... we go find a restaurant outside of the Magic Dome where... it’s not so crowded?”

“Good idea,” Ileena agreed, with everyone else approving as well.

Again, the girls were showered with stares from the onlookers as they walked down the street to find a restaurant to eat while Narias had to bear the killing intents from the guys who were visibly envious of him having such beautiful young women by his side. Fortunately, the group managed to find a somewhat remote restaurant that wasn’t overfilled with people, considering it was Sunday today. The moment the waitress left after taking down their orders, the girls went on an overdrive discussion with Ileena, Flavia, Flamiris and Emilia sharing their experience about the games they had played and the encounter with Louneus Vilmanos, not forgetting to tell how Narias handled the situation by putting Louneus in his spot for wanting to steal Emilia from him too.

“Wooow, Narias actually did that?” Nicky gasped loudly when she learned about Narias kissing Emilia in front of Louneus.

“Ah, well...” which also made Narias feel uncomfortable too because of how much praise his girlfriends were giving him.

“Oh my, I wish I could’ve been there and seen it for myself,” Nicky was laughing out loud.

“What about you, Nicky? Did you two had a good time?” Ileena finally turned the tables to ask how Growly and Nicky had spent their time.

“Yes. It was fun,” was all Growly said. You couldn’t see it, but Growly was actually blushing.

Stolen novel; please report.

“Oh, it was a little unfair in the beginning, because Growly would let me win most of the time, so I had to add a rule to motivate him to not give up on purpose. We had lots of fun after that,” Nicky told everyone, chuckling to herself.

“A rule? What kind of rule, Nicky?” Flavia wanted to know.

“The rule was that whoever wins a game would be able to request the other person to do one thing for them. Growly became so serious at one point, I felt like I was being bullied, because he was winning one game after another,” Nicky admitted, slightly pouting her lips.

“Sorry,” Growly said, scratching his cheek with one finger and looking away.

“Aah... you’re so sweet, Growly,” Nicky clung to his arm, showing her act earlier was only an act.

“Hah, that’s a hell of a cool rule. We should include that rule the next time we come here too,” Flamiris had an intimidating grin on her face.

“But if Narias plays, it will be very hard to win,” Flavia offered a fair concern.

“In that case, we’ll be able to learn what this Mastermind Pervert wants us to do for him,” Flamiris wasn’t against it one bit, grinning wider than before.

“Hey, that’s...” Narias suddenly felt a drop of sweat forming on his forehead.

“I think that’s a good idea, Flamiris,” Ileena agreed with her, adjusting her glasses while her eyes caught a cheeky glow.

“Wha...” Narias’s jaw dropped, him totally not expecting Ileena would agree with what Flamiris had said.

“Happy to help,” Nicky couldn’t help but chip in, trying not to laugh too loud at the same time.

The time flew by fast while the group was enjoying the food and sharing more stories about what kind of games everyone played until the talks shifted to the Magic Power Games that were about to start next week. Monday was the preparation day. That’s when the students and the student clubs had to decide and register for the events they wish to participate in. The main three events were the Solo Arena Competition, The Field Battle Competition and the Exhibition event. There’d be some other events going on the sides too, but those three were the main ones.

“Hah, I’m definitely participating in both the Solo Arena Competition and the Field Battle Competition,” Flamiris declared confidently.

“Yeah, me too,” Flavia added, flexing her arm.

“I think I would like to pass on the Solo Arena Competition, actually,” Nicky admitted, adding a tiny smile.

“It’s ok. I will fight for both of us,” Growly was willing to put in the extra effort.

“It’s ok, Nicky. You don’t have to participate if you don’t want to. Although, we might need your help at the Field Battle Competition. We probably will be able to have Miss Veila heal us after the Solo Arena Competition, if any of us get hurt that is, but as far as I know, we wouldn’t be able to get the outside help to heal any of our injuries we might sustain during the Field Battle Competition. We’d need to rotate people during the matches to have some of us get some rest,” Ileena informed, providing the take on how they should go about it.

“Yes, but the other student clubs won’t be able to get their members healed in between the matches as well,” Flavia argued.

“Correct, but many other student clubs have more members than our club has. Our club is still small, so we’ll need to give our all if we want to come out on top during the Field Battle Competition,” Ileena added to her explanation.

“We have eight people in our student club right now. That means three of us can be on standby and take over for the ones who will need to rest. I say we’re all good,” Flamiris was confident it’ll work out.

“Yes, we should be fine, but we will still need to be careful.” It’s not that Ileena didn’t agree with Flamiris, but she didn’t want her overconfidence to get in the way of her reason.

“Hah, we have the Crazy Mastermind Strategist on our side here. I bet he’d come up with some crazy plan for us to win no matter what,” Flamiris added, pointing her finger at Narias.

“I’ll... try my best,” Narias said, showing a smile.

“Besides, we have Emilia on our team too, so we have nothing to worry about. Her magic is so amazing. She’ll freeze everyone in their spots before they could do anything,” Flavia declared excitedly.

“Right, yes. Huh? Emilia?” Ileena agreed with Flavia on this one, but only then noticed that Emilia was beeing quiet all this time for some reason. “Is something wrong, Emilia?”

“I... I’m so sorry everyone,” Emilia became emotional all of a sudden, tears bursting out of her eyes before she covered her face with both hands.

“Huh? Wha...” her friends exclaimed in surprise, seeing her do that.

“What’s wrong, Emilia?” Narias became instantly worried.

“I’m so sorry. I’m so, so sorry,” Emilia was apologizing, sobbing sorrowfully. The table became very quiet suddenly.

“S... sorry. Was it something I said?” Flavia asked, thinking she said something that she shouldn’t.

“Emilia?” Narias spoke, placing his hand on her shoulders, and when Emilia leaned at him, hugging her in his arms. They stayed like that for a few moments, everyone else keeping quiet to let Emilia calm down.

“I’m... really sorry,” Emilia finally said, pulling away from Narias.

“It’s ok. You don’t have to apologize,” Narias said, showing a smile. “Do you mind telling us what made you feel so sad?”

“Hey, if it is because of what that jerk Louneus said to you, I’ll make him pay for it,” Flamiris was quick to offer her so called help.

“No, it’s... it’s not about him,” Emilia admitted after taking a deep breath in. “I... I’m afraid I won’t be able to participate at the Magic Power Games together with you.”

“What? You won’t?” Flavia tilted her head, Emilia’s words not yet sinking in.

“Eh? What does that mean?” Flamiris grimaced, feeling confused.

“Well, ahh... I guess it’s ok. I mean, you can cheer us on and join as a substitute at some point when you feel like it, Emilia. We can’t force her to participate, right?” Nicky spoke, wanting to sound supportive.

“I don’t think that’s what she meant, Nicky. Did you, Emilia?” Ileena said, turning to face Emilia.

“Ileena? Hmph,” Emilia procured a smile, noticing Ileena might’ve known more than she led on. “You see... the reason I won’t be able to participate is... because I am no longer a student at Reina’s Magic Academy.”

“Whaaaat?!” The other girls, except Ileena exclaimed loudly. Narias was at a loss for words while Growly simply squinted his eyes but he didn’t say anything either.

“What do you mean you’re no longer a student at Reina’s Magic Academy?” Flavia wanted to know, her face showing she was at a complete loss.

“The hell? The Magic Power Games are about to start and you’re telling it to us only now?” Flamiris flared up, slamming her hands at the table.

“Calm down, Flamiris. I am sure Emilia has a really good reason behind it,” Ileena spoke calmly.

“Actually... I don’t,” Emilia confessed, making her friends gasp again. “My dad... my dad showed up earlier this week. We hadn’t seen each other for a long time and I was really happy to see him, but then he told me that he came here to pick me up. I was confused at first, but then he explained that he didn’t come to pick me up so we could spend some time together. He told me I will be leaving Reina’s Magic Academy for good.”

What? Narias heart sank to his ankles when he heard Emilia say that.

“Wait, wait, wait. You’re... really leaving Reina’s Magic Academy?” It was hard to believe for Flavia.

“But then... you’re still here and... you can still stick around, right?” Flamiris was choosing the right words in hope Emilia wasn’t leaving as in leaving for good.

“Not really. My dad wanted to take me away the moment he showed up, which was on Wednesday. I simply managed to agree for him to let me stay until the Magic Power Games start, so I could... spend some more time with you all and... with Narias. I... I will probably be gone by tomorrow evening,” Emilia confessed.

No... Narias couldn’t believe it.

“I see...” Ileena had an unusually calm facial expression, as if she had placed the remaining dots to solve the puzzle she was struggling with for some time.

“But... we can still be able to see each other, right?” Narias finally spoke, his question making all his girlfriends turn to face him.

“I... don’t know,” Emilia said, because she honestly didn’t.

“What if I talk to your dad? You told me that he is a wonderful and... reasonable man. I am sure I can prove to him I am serious with my feelings towards you, Emilia,” Narias was trying to think of what to do, given how shocking the news was.

“Narias...” Emilia smiled at him.

Everyone became very quiet around the table, the news about Emilia going away hitting all of them really hard. Nobody was eating or drinking, or saying anything for short while.

“I’m really sorry, everyone. I... didn’t expect... nor I wanted it to happen,” Emilia said, smiling, yet two more tears squeezed themselves out of the corners of her eyes.

“That’s a bummer,” Flavia said, crinkling her nose.

“Tch...” Flamiris frowned.

“Emilia...” Narias said, his head spinning from not being able to think what to do next.

“I think it is time for us to go now,” Ileena spoke, standing to leave.

“Eh? Now?” Flamiris gave her a weird look.

“But...” Flavia wanted to say something, but couldn’t think of anything.

“It will be getting late by the time we return to the campus. I think it’s the least we could do for Emilia,” Ileena spoke in a puzzling way from Narias point of view.

“Ah, right. She is the winner,” Flavia understood what Ileena meant.

“Tss... I would’ve given my win to Emilia anyway,” Flamiris added, brushing her flaming hair to the side.

“What... are you girls talking about?” Narias felt confused regarding what his girlfriends were talking about, considering the news from Emilia.

“I think it is only fair for you to know, Narias,” Emilia said, making him turn to face her. “You see, we had this competition that whoever reaches three wins first will get to spend the night with you.”

“Huuuh?” Narias gasped, his face becoming red the next second. “Wait, are you all... serious?” Narias looked over each of his girlfriends, with Ileena, Flavia and Flamiris doing everything they could to not look in his eyes.

I feel... flattered, but... Narias had some mixed feelings, not that he felt bad about it.

“Now that I think about it, it is really silly, isn’t it? Silly for us treating you like some sort of prize without taking into consideration your own feeling about the matter. We were really selfish there, weren’t we? I’m so sorry, Narias,” Emilia spoke, looking relieved for some reason.

“Ah, no, no, no. I think... that was an amazing idea. I mean... I feel really happy that all of you want to be with me. I am the one who should apologize for not spending enough time with each one of you, really.” Narias said, taking the blame for it himself. “And since you won, you have the right to demand something that you want from me.”

“Huh? What?” Emilia didn’t expect for Narias to say that.

“Yes. Just like... the rule between Growly and Nicky. The winner can ask the other person to do something for them. It’s not the other person who’s the prize. It’s the deed they have to do and that makes it fair,” Narias called in his rational, logical thinking to help him explain it.

“Humph. I believe Narias is right,” Ileena supported his words, procuring a satisfied smile.

“Damn right, I’d say,” Flamiris backed her up, crossing her arms in front of her before pushing a lock of her hair away from her forehead.

“For sure. Way to go, partner,” Flavia showed a thumbs up sign.

“Everyone...” Emilia gasped, tears gathering in her eyes again.

“Narias is truly a hero here,” Nicky added, clapping her hands.

“Cool,” Growly smiled.

“Let’s pay for our food and head back to campus now, shall we?” Narias suggested, everyone agreeing with him.