[Third Person POV]

"Alright!" Gary smirked. "Wanna see him fight?" 

The girls eyed him in confusion.

"Fight as in...?" Serena was the first to state her confusion.

"...Combat fight?" May finished for her.

Gary nodded with a grin. "You'd be surprised."

———

The six of them stood behind a wall that led to an empty hallway. With a simple gesture coming from Gary's hands, four body guards dressed in all black hurried towards a room a few meters away from where they were hiding.

"These Mafia Org members are currently serving as body guards," Gary explained, "their skills and ruthlessness have been honed from countless missions. I hired them to go and pull a surprise attack on Ash, that way we'll be able to see him fight!"

"You're going through all this just to show us how he fight?" Iris said in disbelief, "that's going too far!"

"Oh, don't mind. These exchanges are quite common between Ash and I. It's like our game," Gary shrugged.

"Trying to take each other's lives is like a game for you guys?" May shuddered.

"Is Ash going to be ok?" Serena gulped at the fearsome backs of the group of men in black. "They don't seem like the type to go easy."

"You should be worrying about these four, not Ash," Gary said, with a tsk of his tongue. "Just look and see."

They all shifted their attention to the body guards as they approached to Ash's room and held out their guns.

"THEY HAVE GUNS AS WELL?!" Misty gaped, worried about the outcome. Tension inundated the hallway as they watched the body guards kick the door wide open and point their guns in the room. The girls squeezed their eyes shut while Gary watched in amusement.

After a few seconds, the body guards who edged into the room came out empty handed and one piece. The four men shook their heads towards Gary.

"Dang it, he's not in the room," the latter grumbled.

Hearing that, the girls slowly opened their eyes and cautiously poked their heads from behind the walls. At that moment, just for a split second, they saw a shadow move around the hallway. Before they knew it, all four Mafia Org members were all knocked onto the ground, unconscious. The girls just stood there in shock, trying to process in their minds what had just happened.

"You see," Gary said with an unfazed expression. "Ash is the top assassin in Mafia Org and that was the Lightning Shadow technique."

"Lightning Shadow Technique?" They asked in unison.

"Yeah, it's a move that allows you to go at Godspeed," Gary paid no attention to the dumbfounded expressions on their faces as he searched around the hallway for any signs of Ash. "Dang it, he's not there!"

"Looking for someone?" A voice emerged behind them. The girls and Gary spun around, only to see Ash leaning against the wall with a smirk on his face. "Hey, Gary. What have you been up to lately?"

"Damn," Gary muttered under his breath before lifting his head with an innocent smile. "Ashy Boy! It's sure a coincidence, isn't it? I was just about to show these girls where their room are when I bumped into you! Haha..."

The girls rolled their eyes at him.

"I totally believe you," Ash said. "Though I couldn't care less, anyway."

He then turned his attention towards the girls. "Why are you all here?"

Gary cleared his throat. "I have been told by your mother to bring them to their rooms because they will be living here from now on."

"More people?" Ash said with a frown before shaking his head. "Whatever."

"Geez don't be so mean Ashy Boy, they're really pretty girls!" Gary defended with his illogical reasoning, earning a sigh from the raven haired boy.

"Says the person who thinks every girl in the world is pretty," Ash retorted. His gaze landed on the girls again before he started walking away. Not bothering to turn around, he lazily raised a hand to gesture a wave.

"Later."

The six of them just stood there, not knowing what to say.

"You know..." Eventually, Gary broke the silence. "Ashy Boy may seem like a blunt and careless person, but he's actually just not good with expressing himself. He's actually pretty fun to be with once you get closer to him."

Nobody could say anything to his statement.

Seeing the awkward atmosphere, Gary just sweat dropped. "How about I show you girls your rooms."

———

"What's with him?!" Dawn threw a pillow on the ground. "His attitude was just...UGH!"

"Calm down, Dawn." Iris jumped from one bed to the other, lifting her shoulders in a resigned shrug. "Shouldn't you be used to this by now? That's just how Ash is!"

Dawn sighed heavily.

"Gary did tell us that he was bad with words," Serena chimed in.

"Yeah, that might just be the person he is." Misty added, "after all, he was still someone full of unknowns." The girls nodded in agreement.

"Why are you all defending him like this?" The blue-haired girl couldn't help but shake her head at her friends' altering attitudes.

"Now, now. I made some macaroons, wanna have some?" Serena suggested with a smile as she brought out a pink box onto the table.

"Ooh macaroons!" Iris's eyes sparkled as she went and threw one in her mouth. Taking in the sugar, she sunk into the couch with a dreamy expression. "Yummy!"

"Let me try!" May exclaimed as she took one as well, her eyes widening in the process. "Wow. Serena, these are so good! You can fully become a patisserie chef."

"Glad you like it!" Serena smiled sheepishly.

Dawn took a handful of macaroons and shoved it in her mouth. "You're right, these are good!" She nodded promptly, but then choked because she ate too much. Banging on her chest, she quickly grabbed a glass of water and chugged it down her throat.

"PHEW. I thought I was going to die!"

"Geez, Dawn." Misty playfully elbowed her, shaking her head at her friend's clumsiness. "Eat properly at least." The girls laughed while Dawn just pouted.

"Take this!" Dawn exclaimed as she threw a pillow at Misty that sunk right into her face. Dawn bursted out laughing.

"Why you..!" At the blue-haired girl's provocation, Misty stood up and jabbed a pillow right back at her. The sudden movement between the two girls caused Serena to drop her box of macaroons.

"My macaroons!" She cried. "...You two!" Next thing you know, Serena had also joined the pillow fight. May and Iris just looked at each other in confusion before grinning simultaneously.

"LET'S DO THIS THING!"

Before you know it, a peaceful night had turned into an intense pillow fight. With shouts, laughters, and excitement filling the room, the girls were able to relax for the first time in three months.

After a few rounds of pillow fight, they plopped in their beds, completely exhausted.

"That was some serious rounds of competition. I'm pooped," Iris commented.

"It sure was." Dawn giggled. "I didn't know pillow fights could be this fun!"

"...It's already three in the morning?!" May gaped at the clock on the wall. "Well, I guess I'm gonna crash."

"Same here." Serena yawned. She smiled at her friends around her. "Good night everyone."

"Sweet dreams."

———

After the pillow fight night, the girls arrived downstairs the next morning feeling more rejuvenated than ever.

"Good morning!" Delia greeted them with a smile. "Did you all have a good sleep yesterday?"

Exchanging knowing glances with each other, the girls nodded in response. "Yep!"

Satisfied at their energy, Delia nodded before looked around the room. "Where did Ash go?"

The girls looked around at her statement, only to notice no signs of of raven-haired boy.

"Delia-sama," a butler said, "it appears that the young master is missing."

"...What?!" Delia's sudden raise of voice caused the girls to subconsciously straighten their backs. "Go and find him this instance. Right now. GO!"

With her authoritative order, the butler went running out the room to fulfill his mission. The girls had weary gazes as they glanced over to Delia, who was tapping her foot as if she was in a foul mood, only to be surprised by her abrupt change of attitude.

Delia took a deep breath before the kind-mother-smile was plastered back onto her face. "Pardon me for the outburst. Frankly, it isn't the first time that Ash had disappeared over night. Usually, it isn't a big deal but today is a very special occasion. He must be here to accompany you on your exams."

The girls slowly nodded at her explanation.

"Now then." She clapped her hands together. "For the time being, why don't we choose the next person to take the final exam!"

The remaining three girls—Serena, Iris, and Dawn—immediately turned their attention to the ballot box. Delia shook its contents before reaching her arm inside to pull out a name. "Let's see..."

"The next person is..." She read the slit of paper with a smile. "...Dawn Berlitz!"

———

[edited x2]

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