[38.2] The Never-ending Suspect List

Cyrus reluctantly let go of me, "Would you like something to drink?"

I nodded slowly, "Sure."

I followed Cyrus to sit down underneath the pure white gazebo.

I took a deep breath and leaned back so the sun could move past my light blue bonnet. I drummed my hands placed in laced gloves on the metallic table. In front of us was a picturesque lake reflecting the sun and the clouds on its still surface.

Caldwell, the dutiful butler he was, served Cyrus and me snacks and tea as we sat leisurely at the table. He gave me a wink, "Miss Reika. You look very lovely today. Don't you think so too, Young Master?"

Cyrus was a bit startled to be addressed, but he still looked over at me. His eyes assessed me and the dress before he averted his eyes, "The dress really suits you."

I winked at him, "Since you like it so much, I guess I should wear dresses like this more often."

His cheeks turned pink before he forced a cough and changed the subject, "The competition for the throne is starting soon."

My eyes lit up, "Oh right! I've actually been preparing for that."

He looked surprised, "You have?"

"I have! Caldwell, do you have a paper and pen I could borrow?"

Caldwell produced it out of seemingly nowhere. He grinned, "What kind of butler would I be if I didn't come prepared?"

I grabbed it from him and started scribbling over the pages. I held up a drawing of Cyrus flexing his muscles on the throne. I pointed to it, "Let us begin our meeting of: 'How to make Cyrus King'!"

Cyrus pursed his lips, "Why did you draw me shirtless?"

I ignored him, "As your Royal Magician, it is my duty to make sure you are prepared for what lays ahead."

He looked at me in disbelief, "Are you actually taking this seriously?"

"Of course I am! I'm a very sore loser, so there's no way I'm going to accept defeat. I chatted with Felix to get all the details so I could prepare." I flipped the page to the drawing of an island, "This brings me to the first test! The Vanishing Island. Your strategic and critical thinking will be evaluated on the island that is filled with traps and mazes."

I flipped to the next drawing of Cyrus with a mustache, "The second test will be to uncover your ethics and dependability… Obviously, I can't help you with that one."

Cyrus clicked his tongue, "That picture doesn't even make sense."

I flipped to the drawing of Cyrus standing victorious on a pile of people, "The third test will be one of perseverance and strength. You'll have to fight it out with the other contestants and only the top three will proceed. Royal Magicians cannot participate so you will have to do that on your own."

I flipped to the final page which had a question mark on it, "The final test is a secret. How stupid is that? Maybe they just haven't figured out what it should be yet."

Cyrus let out a sigh, "Reika. We first need to find the leader of the demon sympathizers. It's obvious he intends to keep on targeting us."

I waved him off, "That's the job of the Royal guards and the Investigation bureau. It's bad enough he keeps trying to corrupt me. I don't want to also exert the effort to find him."

Cyrus reached out to grab my hand.

I looked back at him to see his face full of concern.

"We need to stop him." He spoke with conviction, "I don't want him to hurt you ever again."

I felt a warm feeling crawl through my chest, causing me to smile.

I laughed to myself and stood up. I walked over to Cyrus and sat on his lap. I gave him a hug, "Why are you so sweet?"

Cyrus tensed up as he tried to bite back his words. He struggled to control himself as he gripped the arms of his seat until his knuckles turned white. He tried to speak to distract himself, "Why are you sitting on me!?"

I ignored him and thought aloud, "You know, it's strange. He seems very familiar with us. He always shows up whenever we are by ourselves or when we would be defenseless. So it got me thinking-"

"Reika! I-"

"-who could it be? Is it Hazel? I mean, she is a quiet and timid girl who always hid but then suddenly turned into a cold-blooded fighter with superhuman strength... Or maybe it is your Uncle? I really don't trust that idiotic waste of space. I won't ever forget how cruel he was to you! He wouldn't know family if it bit him on the-"

"R-Reika… If you keep sitting on me I'm going to-"

"-You're right! How could I forget the most obvious suspect?! Captain Lou! Oh! That irritating man has always had it out for me! He's clearly the most suspicious! Why hasn't anyone pointed the finger at him?! It's really annoying!"

"REIKA!"

"Huh?"

I looked up to see Cyrus trembling with a lustful look on his face, "I don't think I can let you go if you treat me like this."

"E-Eh?!"

Caldwell cleared his throat and turned to walk away, "I-I think I will take a walk…"

Cyrus tilted up my chin so that I was staring deep into his eyes. I could feel his breath on my lips as he spoke in a hush, "Are you trying to tease me again?"

My face twitched, "W-What? No… What makes you think that? Heh heh."

His lips curled into a smile, "Then I will have no choice, but to punish you~"

My heart thumped loudly in my ears as his face drew near.

"Oi! Trashy girl! The Headmaster is looking for you-" We were suddenly interrupted by Zephyr running through the hedges, nearly crashing into Caldwell. He froze once he saw Cyrus and me in such a suggestive position, "Um…"

I quickly scrambled off of Cyrus, "It's not what it looks like."

Zephyr's eyes narrowed, "Yeah right! Are you two flirting again?"

The Headmaster came out from behind the hedge with killing intent, "You're flirting with MY daughter?!"

Cyrus jumped out of his chair so quickly that he nearly fell over. He held up his hands in innocence, "I-I wasn't-"

"I'm going to make you regret laying a hand on my daughter!!!"

Sharp, enormous icicles suddenly appeared and soared through the air at Cyrus. Cyrus let out a shout and dodged the icicles, "Let me explain!"

"Explain THIS!" The Headmaster created a large snowball and sent it through the air. Cyrus summoned his sword and cut it in half. However, this didn't stop the Headmaster as he continued to attack with larger snowballs.

My mother appeared and walked over to Zephyr and me, "Your father wanted to go out to dinner tonight so we came to find you… But what's got him so riled up?"

Zephyr snickered, "The snowman caught Reika and that blonde-haired brat kissing."

I glared at him, "We were not."

"Oh my!? Kissing?!" My Mother let out a dreamy sigh, "Oh! Young love… What a magical feel-"

I covered her mouth quickly, "Don't say those cursed words."

Zephyr snickered beside us, "I think the snowman is going to kill him."

"Don't worry. I got this." I pulled out my wand, "Hey Papa! Watch! I think I finally learned how to control my fireballs!"

As I pointed my wand into the air, everyone froze and looked at me in horror, "DON'T DO IT!"

I sent out a large wave of fire.

The Headmaster acted quickly and created a barrier around the attack. Once the smoke cleared, he stared at me with a frown.

I smiled innocently, "Aren't you impressed?"

He walked past me and muttered, "You're grounded."

"WHAT!?"

My mother started pulling me along to follow him, "You heard your father. Now let's go."

Zephyr followed behind me while snickering.