Twisted Wonderland | Mickey's Print

44. Abysmal Contempt

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."