Send Help. The Orange is Flexing.

Niko, Rai, and Lia once again stand in front of Mr. Mister's desk. He sits calmly, reading today's newspaper.

"Good morning, sir," Lia greets him.

"Well, I would say the same, except it's already 11 AM and the sun is shining bright, which is obviously NOT morning." He folds the newspaper and sets it on the table.

"Now... head to the gardener's office to meet with Ms. Jobber. She'll explain the drill. Report back to me at sundown," he continues.

"Yes, sir," Lia replies.

"Good." He sips his coffee and reopens the newspaper.

The trio exchange glances and head off toward the gardener's office.

The greenhouse is far from the main building, situated at the academy's western edge. This side of campus is far more pleasant—lush green fields, buildings overtaken by bramble vines, and the occasional massive, log-like plant slithering along the sidewalk. It's a stark contrast to the dismal main hall and the boggy, near-toxic southern grounds.

As they approach, they spot a small greenhouse topped with a gigantic bloom, releasing golden spores into the air. The entire structure is overgrown with brambles—no trace of the original frame is visible.

Then—

Rai notices a group gathered at the front. He immediately spots someone in blue and white stripes.

"Oh crap, it's the 5-0," Rai mutters.

"Police? What are they doing here?" Lia asks, confused.

"Guys... Pssst! Over here!" a voice hisses from behind the building.

It's a woman, around 27, with red hair, thick glasses, tall and slender. The trio sneak toward her, unnoticed by the officers.

"Are you the ones scheduled to visit the body—I mean, the greenhouse today?" she asks.

"Are you Ms. Jobber?" Niko asks.

"No, I'm her assistant, Ms. Quacknell. Or you can just call me Ms. Quack," she says with a nervous smile.

"O-kay... Ms. Quack. What are we doing here today? And what's with the police?" Lia asks.

"Unfortunately, Ms. Jobber's not available this morning, so I'll be guiding you through your remedial task. As for the police..." She glances around cautiously. "Let's just say they're here to contain an anomalous plant."

She's smiling, but sweating bullets.

Rai whoops and takes a step back. Lia groans and holds her head again. Niko calmly writes "bring flamethrower next time" in his notes.

Then, she ushers them through the storage room door and locks it behind them.

CLACK.

* * *

Inside, the trio pass by dangerously scattered power tools—buzz saws, nail guns, and a massive broad-blade just lying on the floor. Hazmat suits are everywhere—some torn, others splashed with red paint that looks suspiciously like blood.

"This looks like a LARP-ing room for a zombie survival horror," Lia mutters.

The other three stop and stare at her.

"What? I play D&D!" she insists. "Level 20 warlock. Built for necrotic damage!"

"Built for social damage, more like," Niko mutters.

Rai giggles, and the two of them walk ahead, leaving Lia grumbling to herself.

They stop at a sealed metal gate, guarded by staff in full hazmat suits, armed with live firearms.

"Seriously? What is this, a zombie apocalypse?" Rai giggles.

"Umm... close. But not as bad as what happened in Raboon City. My friend, Lyon was the only survivor from that mess," Ms. Quack replies casually.

She nods at the guards, who start opening the gate. A deafening siren blares. The trio wince, covering their ears as a gust of wind blasts through the corridor.

And then... the gate reveals a massive biome, easily the size of three football fields. Strange plants cover the land. Small animals roam. Hazmat crews can be seen in the distance collecting something like white goo from a vine. Meanwhile, on the far side, a mutated baby carrot—with jagged teeth and sprinter legs—is chasing a screaming crew member.

"Alright then! Happy exploring!" Ms. Quack beams. "Oh, almost forgot!"

She pulls something from her pocket and slaps a device onto each of their wrists.

"Ji-Pi-Es bracelet!" she croaks, raising it high like she just pulled it out of a magical belly pouch.

"Straight from the Department of Extremely Unhelpful Safety Devices! With this, whenever you die—I mean, get lost—we can track you down and recover your bodies—I mean, assist you with great urgency!"

"Is there a panic button on this thing?" Niko asks, inspecting it.

"Sadly... NO." She pauses.

"But then, how would you—"

"Anyway, good luck!" she adds cheerfully, cutting him off, waving goodbye as she scurries off.

The gate slams shut behind them with another blaring siren.

The trio exchange unimpressed looks and begin scanning the area.

"Man... it looked nothing like this from the outside," Rai mutters in awe.

Suddenly—

BOOM!

An orange fruit creature the size of a refrigerator crashes from above. Muscular, veiny, and radiating gym bro energy, it lands in front of them, flexing.

"HEAVYWEIGHT, BABY!!!" it screams.

The trio shriek and scatter. Niko runs left. Lia bolts right. Rai stands his ground, tossing off his academy coat and rolling up his sleeves.

"Time to show off these guns, baby..." he grins, flexing his biceps.

* * *

The orange brute drops into a wrestler's stance—low, wide, seasoned. Rai rolls his shoulders, bouncing side to side, slipping into a boxer's rhythm.

The orange charges.

Rai sidesteps with swift footwork, then counters with a powerful left hook—his fist slams into the fruit's body, sinking deep into pulpy flesh. Orange juice spurts out as the creature bellows:

"HEAVYWEIGHT, BABY!!!"

Rai tries to yank his hand free—but it's stuck. The orange grabs him with freakish strength and hurls him several meters away. Rai crashes onto the ground, groaning. The fruit now sports a gaping wound in its torso, still leaking juice like a busted faucet.

Grimacing, Rai pushes himself up, furious. He thrusts his hand forward and starts chanting:

"O almighty fire lord, bless me with your power to smite this freak of nature—EL FUEGO GIGANTE!"

His body surges with golden light. The glowing mark on his right hand shines the brightest.

Elsewhere, Lia—still holding the bag where Bell resides—notices the grimoire glowing intensely through the fabric. She pauses, eyes narrowing.

Then—BOOM!

A beam of fire erupts from Rai's hand like a cannon blast, obliterating the orange anomaly in one scorching instant. The explosion echoes across the terrarium like a grenade going off.

Stunned, Rai stares at his own hand, wide-eyed and breathless.

The laughter died instantly.

Rai stood frozen, the blast still echoing in his ears.

Then his vision blurs. His knees buckle. He collapses.

"RAI!"Niko and Lia rush to his side.

* * *

5 minutes later…

Rai awoke just outside the terrarium gates, head pounding. Niko knelt beside him, holding out a bottle of water.

"What just happened?" Rai croaked, sitting up on the cot.

"You tell me," Lia said, arms crossed. "That spell… Rai, it wasn't like that before."

"That was the most inexplicable spell I've ever seen," added Ms. Quack, her earlier cheer gone. She was now staring them down with unnerving intensity. "Too good, to be exact."

The air grew heavier as Ms. Quack took a step forward. Her smile disappeared. Her posture straightened.

"Tell me again... who are you?"

"We're students," Lia answered, trying to stay calm. "We were sent here for a remedial task by Mr. Mister—"

"Atatatatatat~ No more excuses," Ms. Quack cut her off abruptly.

"You see... I—we—haven't witnessed magic like that in a very, very long time. Not even in my hundreds of years." She paced slowly, her tone suddenly far too old for her youthful face.

The trio tensed. Something about her had shifted. Ms. Quack no longer felt like a nervous assistant—more like a predator in disguise.

She stopped and reached out, grabbing Rai's right hand. Her grip tightened until Rai winced in pain.

"So tell me again... WHO ARE YOU?"

"That's enough, Ms. Quack," a cold, commanding voice rang out from behind them.

They turned to see Mr. Mister—an unexpected sight, given how rarely he left the faculty building.

"Ah… Reggie, Reggie, Reggie. Long time no see," Ms. Quack said with a lazy smirk, releasing Rai's hand.

"I'd prefer to be called Mr. Mister in this academy, please. Martha," he replied flatly.

There was a beat of tense silence before he turned to the students.

"Since Ms. Jobber's away today, let's reschedule this task for tomorrow," he said curtly.

The trio nodded quickly, gathering their things. Ms. Quack smiled, but her eyes stayed cold—like she was watching prey walk away.

"Still playing the babysitter, are you?" she called after him. "The Reggie I knew was colder. And creepier."

Mr. Mister said nothing.

They left the greenhouse in silence.

"You shouldn't be hiding things from the Crux, Reggie," Ms. Quack added with a sing-song lilt. "Careful with your stride…"

Mr. Mister stopped in his tracks. He turned slowly, locking eyes with her.

"Good day, Ms. Quack," he said sharply—then walked away with the trio, jaw clenched.

A long silence passed.

"So… we're still failing the assignment, right?" Niko mumbled.

Lia didn't answer. She was staring at Rai's hand, which still faintly glowed with golden light.

"…I think the assignment's the least of our problems," she said.

* * *