Library

At exactly 5:55 in the afternoon...

Sir Tigreal showed up to pick up the three. The tea party and afternoon itineraries ended peacefully, aside from Harith who became scared of drinking his bubble milktea because he almost choked on the tapioca pearls. All was well in the end when he was given another glass of the lavender milktea but without the sinkers.

They loved the mild sweet taste of the milktea Guinevere made. And it tasted heavenly when it was paired with the cream puffs and doughnuts the two leonins brought from their fave pastry shop. The aroma emitting from the lavender tea was very calming.

As additional parting (and apology) gift, Guinevere gave Granger a small pouch filled with lavender buds so he could add it to his tea collections. The three guests held on to their boxes of the preserved flower as they boarded on to their car. Some swan servants followed them behind to load their chosen flower pots at the back of imperial SUV. The Baroque siblings together with the swan servants, all had satisfied smiles on their faces as they bid their young guests goodbye.

Nana chose a preserved pink rose because she wanted to be graceful and elegant in the near future; Harith picked a blue rose because it was his favorite color; and as for, Granger, the young marksman unexpectedly chose a preserved lavender rose. He didn't specify his reason and just shrugged.

The duckling rested in a small cage on Nana's lap. It was very tired after the ruckus it made earlier at the guerrilla tea party. The black duckling was so energetic and even tried escaping. But thanks to Molina, the duckling was once again neutralized and caught.

When their car arrived at the Lightborn Castle parking lot, they saw Prince Dyrroth being escorted out by Princess Silvanna and Fanny. He looked pissed and stressed out at something and slammed the black van's door. The van sped away, leaving dust particles. Then the three greeted Moniyan Empire's heir to the throne when they got out of the SUV.

"What happened?" Granger asked. Nana ran up to Fanny and hugged the orange haired girl.

"That brat-- I mean Prince Dyrroth barged in on our meeting with the Queen of the North and accused Princess Silvanna of kidnapping his attendant. Thankfully the Queen Aurora was very understanding and even promise to help search for Sir Helcurt. " Fanny replied as she ruffle the young feline's hair.

"Don't be like the prince okay, Nana? Accusing people is bad!" Nana only nodded.

This is why Granger doesn't like Dyrroth, he's a spoiled brat and would wreak havoc if ticked. At first he sympathized with the lost Moniyan prince since they were a bit similar; misunderstood due to their aloof appearance. But he later on found out that Prince Dyrroth was a prankster and a foul-mouthed asshole. And it didn't help that the prince was the reason why his winning streak in Rank was cut short in the previous season. He was an awful teammate!

"Well that was an understandable reaction of my little brother. I was after all the last person Sir Helcurt talked to and he had been missing for almost 24 hours now." The princess sighed.

Princess Silvanna's face showed concern for her younger brother. The prince came back to the capitol on his own accord and was staying here for the rest for the year as vacation away from the Abyss but now his trusted aid was missing.

"He couldn't be contacted but if situation calls for it, I'll be using the Citizen Tracker. My poor little brother would be so sad without his aid."

"We can't do that, your highness! If we use the forbidden app, our citizen's privacy will be exposed! You know everyone's whereabouts will be revealed once used." Fanny was alarmed. The app shouldn't be used carelessly and to find a mere Prince's secretary at that! The citizen's wellness should be top priority!

Granger only nodded halfheartedly and then excused himself. It didn't concerned him and he have a lot more important things to do. He had to try the lavender tea Guinevere gifted him!

Just then, his phone buzzed a couple of times. He handed the flower pot to a nearby butler and instructed him to put the pot on his desk at his office in the Monastery of Light. He fished out his phone and he couldn't help but smile at the notification.

2 unread messages from Guinevere Baroque.

He opened the messages and his smile got wider. Her usage of stickers were adorable.

[Did you guys went home safely? I hope you three enjoyed your visit!

＼（＾○＾）人（＾○＾）／]

[Also, please record the time whenever your headaches resurface

(ﾉಥ益ಥ）ﾉ ┻━┻

I wanna check the longevity of my "healing touches" LOL]

Granger had a grin plastered on his face. Nana and Harith were unfazed as they were used to seeing him being like that since yesterday but it was scaring the living daylights of Princess Silvanna and Fanny. Even the Imperial servants and the nearby soldiers stationed at every corner of the palace had their eyes bulging out. And they all had one thing in mind: The Death Chanter was possessed!!

×

5 days later...

It was a hectic time for Heroes because of the wrapping up of the season. And it was just in time for the upcoming Halloween themed Empire Reborn Grand ball at the end of the month, exactly 16 days left! The Heroes were busy with their scheduled rank up games. But two particular heroes squeezed their time for a research.

Guinevere was leading the research on Granger's scar and the ancient abyssal demon's curse. So after all their scheduled match-up games for the day, the two would make trips to the Moniyan Empire's Imperial Library to find appropriate books about the said demon and tomes about forbidden magic and curses-- ancient curses to be exact.

To look the part, Guinevere had been dressing up in preppy school girl styles because she missed her academy days. She's the type that works well when she's dressed well.

Her theme for the day was elegant punk, so she wore a high waisted purple plaid skirt that came in with a set of belt & chains, and then lacy knee high socks and completing it with a pair of sneakers that she rarely use.

Ah! And of course, the ever supportive Granger was also the one in charge of her hairstyle. A french braid with a low pony tail and topping it with her iconic purple bow. They got weird looks on the steps of the library entrance when Granger started styling her mane there because the curls she painstakingly tamed went limp due to the rain.

Her top was supposed to be a vintage white button-up shirt for a touch of elegance but it got wet, again, from the sudden down pour earlier. She had no spare clothes with her and her violet bra was almost seen through her wrt shirt. Luckily for her, she was friends with a Doraemon-- err male Dora the Explorer.

'Seriously. How many things are inside Granger's over-sized violin case?! And why does he call it guitar case when the only instrument he own is a violin?!' Such thoughts entered Guinevere's mind whenever Granger summons his mighty case.

'Oh Mister Alucard would have no problems getting lost with Granger in the middle of nowhere! Wife-material Granger would even have a tent hidden in his guitar case!' Guinevere internally fangirled as Granger twisted and curled her limp curls.

So, in the end, she wore Granger's extra black hoodie that was stored in his trusty guitar case. It had a matching design with the grey hoodie Granger was currently wearing. They looked like they were wearing uniforms! The oversized hoodie surprisingly went well with the style she was aiming for.

Now, Guinevere was having a hard time reaching for a book about Demonology. The ladder was rickety so she didn't use it to avoid any accidents.

She already tried jumping just to get the book but she was glared at by a novice librarian who was returning books from the study area. She didn't want to risk getting her library card revoked by the head librarian when they haven't finished their research yet! They paid a hefty amount of diamonds just to get the starlight membership which enabled them to get access to the rare books about ancient demons and forbidden magic.

Using books as stepping stone was also a bad idea. As a book lover, it would be a sin to step on books! She couldn't even try opening a newly purchased book widely let alone step on it!

If only she wore her 6-inch heels today but then again, she was heavily reprimanded by Sir Cyclops, the head librarian, because the clicking was very loud and distracting. This library's floor is insulting the high-heeled-shoes lover community!

At this point, tall friends are the best option for problems like this. But sadly, her one and only tall friend was out on a quest of buying their snacks at their fave pastry shop four blocks away.

On their first day of researching, they planned on just checking out the books and study them at the pastry shop for a more calming environment. But the books they were borrowing were ultra rare and limited edition, so their request was denied.

They had no choice but to stay at the library. Thankfully, food and drinks from the outside were allowed as long as they are starlight members.

As Guinevere was strategizing on how to get the Demonology book without disturbing others, out of nowhere, she saw a hand reaching for the book she was trying so hard to get. Alarmed, she suddenly whirled around to see who dared to steal the book from her. Her fists were ready!

The purple-bowed girl stumbled back in surprise when she realized who it was. Thankfully, the guy had an amazing reflex. He placed his free hand behind Guinevere's head and pulled her in before she knocked herself on the hard plank of the bookshelf.

"Are you okay, Guini?"