Memoirs of a Witch (In Bloom Book 1.5)

Beanfest Part 4

The two Savanaclaw students bolted out of the woods once they met the glare the Crown Prince of the Valley of Thorns.

As if it was a reflex, I aimed my bow towards him, but before I could release the net, he brought out an apple from behind him. He looked at me with the most gentle of expressions, "Truce?"

I looked between the apple and his eyes, "Do you think I'm the type of lady you can bribe with food?" 

"Absolutely not, but there's the saying that the way to a person's heart is through their stomach."

I shook my head, "The way to a person's heart is through their fourth and fifth rib."

"Are you feeling alright, Cassandra?" he stepped closer and I took one step back, "I wouldn't want you getting...what's that word you used the other day?"

"Hangry?"

"Exactly. Let this be me extending an olive branch," he knelt down and rolled the apple towards me, "Can we pretend to not be enemies for a few minutes?"

I stopped the apple from rolling any further using the bottom of my shoe.

He asked again, "What do say? Can we temporarily be on peaceful terms?"

In response, I pressed my boot on the apple, completely crushing the fruit, "Does this answer your question?"

"So be it," the sparkle in his eyes and the smile on his face faded.

I released the net, but Malleus disappeared from view before it caught him. I prepared another net to launch and scanned my surroundings, on the ground and up in the trees. "Afraid I'll catch you, dragone? Is that why you're hiding?"

His deep voice echoed, "You're the one who should be afraid."

"Unless it's Lilia's cooking, nothing you do will scare me." I continously scanned in between the tree trunks, but there was still no sign of Malleus.

I could already imagine the cheeky grin Malleus wore when be asked, "Is that so?"

"If I'm yours, like you said I was, come and get me."

He laughed, "What you wish of me, I will deliver, my lady."

He sneakily approached me from behind. I dodged his attempt and released my second net. Missed.

Malleus reached into his pocket and began to throw his beans at me. Despite not having a bean blaster, his tosses were precise and powerful. Using the long sides of my bow, I miraculously managed to block them all off.

"My, my, it seems we've taught you a little too well," Malleus' eyes locked on mine, "I wonder what else you can do."

Malleus and I continued our game. He would throw his beans and I would dodge them while attempting to get a clear shot, either to launch a net or physically tag him. However, with neither of us willing to back down, we needed intervention.

A cheerful voice from nearby raised my hopes, "Reine de Sorciere, shall we provide assistance?"

Malleus turned to see Rook, Trey, and Lilia.

I replied, "I would love some help, thank you."

Diasomnia's Vice-Dorm Leader flashed a mischevious smile towards Malleus, "You've grown into quite a cheeky little boy," Lilia rolled up the sleeves of his P.E. uniform and adjusted his visor.

With Malleus' attention away from me, I ran towards the Dorm Leaders of Pomefiore and Heartslabyul. I thought Malleus would come after me, but he set his eyes on a new target.

"You'll find me far from little," Malleus got into a stance, indicating he was ready, "I will not show you mercy."

With those as his last words, Lilia charged at Malleus. What happened afterwards, no one could tell. Their movements were so swift, a dust cloud gathered around them. We tried to make sense of what was occuring with the barely visible silhouettes, to see if we could catch Malleus off guard.

"Let Lilia handle this one," I told the group, "If we make one wrong move, Malleus could get away or catch us all instead."

"Good idea," Trey nodded in agreement, "Let's get out of here for now."

With Diasomnia's two leading figures preoccupied in their duel, Trey, Rook, and I escaped the scene.

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After several minutes of making twists and turns in between the trees, we found an area safe from farmers' eyes and ears.

I looked at the both of them, "I cannot thank you enough."

"It's our pleasure," Rook said with a smile, "Allow me to hazard a guess, you were with a Roi de l'Effort and Monsieru Fier-a-bras and the three of you got separated?" Strangely, I knew he was referring to Azul and Jack.

After I explained to the two Vice-Dorm Leaders what happened with my team, they gave me an account of their own experiences.

Before they found me, Rook and Trey ran into Jack and Azul who were battling with Vil's band of farmers once again. This time, they added Floyd to their team. After the monster team got out, Jack and Azul headed towards the main campus while Trey and Rook went deeper into the woods, where they found Lilia.

With time quickly running out, we needed to predict the farmer team's next move. Based on how long the game had been going, the farmers should be making attempts to steal the harp by now. 

I thought, "We should eliminate any farmers on route to the coliseum or ambush them on pre-planned pathways."

Trey nodded, "The same principle as tower defense games."

I tapped on my earpiece to contact the Octavinelle Dorm Leader, "Hey, you still alive?"

There were a few moments of silence before his voice came on, "What do you take me for, Cassandra?"

"I was checking, that's all. What's your next course of action?"

"Jack and I will be scanning the grounds a bit further. I want to ensure Jade is out of the picture before we head to the coliseum."

"Shouldn't you be more worried about Floyd?" Both Leech twins on the farmer team provided a dangerous scenario. How can one be more concerning than the other?

"Floyd and Jade are two twisted peas in a pod. Floyd is actually the easier one of the two since his nature is far more obvious. Jade, on the other hand...he's a devious man," he warned, "If you run into him, back away slowly, don't provoke him and avoid eye contact."

I tried to suppress my laughter, "You realize you're talking about your Vice-Dorm Leader and not some sort of animal, right?"

"I'm simply speaking the truth."

"Anyways, good luck out there."

Rook, Trey, and I continued to walk through the natural scenery when the aroma of exotic spices reached my nose.

Cumin, paprika, allspice, garlic powder, and coriander.

Who thought it was a brilliant idea to cook in the middle of a game, especially with such potent ingredients?

"You smell that, right?" I asked the guys.

"Something would seriously be wrong with our noses if we couldn't snell that," Trey said.

Rook's head turned toward the main campus, "Judging by the direction of the wind, the aroma is coming from the botanical garden."

I secured another net in my bow, "Gentlemen, looks like we know our next destination."