Note: Sorry this one is not that long or that great. I didn't have that much time this week to write or make changes to it, ut i didn't want to keep you all waiting that much. The next one will be better I promise.

Mei flopped, exhausted, on the bed. Everything hurt. Her arms, legs, chest, and especially her head. But that was more a result of her friends' argument rather than her fight against Erika.

What made it worse for Mei, was the fact that she agreed with both of them.

She understood Hana's frustration. She was pissed at Kaito for intervening in her fight. Even though he did that to protect her, it made her look weak and like she can't take care of herself in front of a noble. Heck, even Mei had been frustrated when she realized Erika went easy on her.

She also understood why Kaito stepped in. She had gotten the vibe that the noble had strong feelings against them, but she never thought that he would go as far as to attack Hana while she was defenseless like that. She didn't think that the noble was trying to actually kill her, but the fact that even Leo stepped in to stop him, made Mei glad that he never got to her.

A knock stopped Mei's train of thoughts. Wondering if it was either Hana or Kaito coming to complain about the other, Mei opened the door.

It was Leo.

"Hi, Mei." He didn't have his usual smile on his face. Instead, a serious and somewhat guilty expression replaced it. "How is Hana?"

"Hana is fine. She has a few cuts from where the strings tightened too much, but in rest, she's fine." Mei wanted to ask him where he got her room number from but didn't. "Well, her ego is a bit hurt too."

"I wanted to talk to her directly and apologize, but I figured that might not be the best move. She probably doesn't want to see me right now."

Mei could see that the boy was actually feeling bad and guilty about the whole situation. She didn't know how Hana felt about it, but Mei didn't think that it was Leo's fault at all. He couldn't control his friend's actions or views. Plus, his other friends seemed alright. The way Mei saw it, it was only Makoto's fault.

"Will you please tell her that I'm extremely sorry and that I didn't plan for something like this to happen? Or maybe ask her if she is willing to meet me so that I can tell her myself."

"Leo, I think Hana will need some time to think before she agrees to meet you."

Leo's expression turned even sadder, before nodding. He understood.

"But I will tell her you asked about her and that you are sorry for what happened." Leo gave her a sad smile as a thank you. "But the way I see it, it wasn't your fault."

"No. I was the one who organized everything. And despite knowing how he feels about commoners, I brought Makoto." Leo shook his head. "I just-- he was - is - a good guy. I've never seen him like that. I don't really know what made him act in such a way."

Mei understood Leo perfectly. Makoto was his friend. It was hard for him to imagine that someone he considers a friend would try to kill someone out of pure hate. She was the same with Kaito. She knew that he was a good person and wouldn't kill someone just because they pissed him off, but Mei couldn't tell what would have happened if Kaito was the one fighting Makoto.

"If it will make you feel better, I enjoyed my fight with Erika."

Leo smiled. This time it was a bit less sad.

"I enjoyed my fight with Haru as well. It made me realize I need to train more on my physical strength though."

Mei raised her eyebrows, an idea popping in her mind.

"I could help you with that, I mean, if you still want to train with me..."

Leo's eyes widen. "You still want to train with me?"

"Well, yeah. But with one condition. You teach me how to use mana skin."

Almost every squad member in the Crimson Lions knows how to use mana skin, except for Mei and her friends. No one bothered to teach them that.

"Deal!"

* * *

Two weeks later

Mei looked at the sky. She was laying down on the ground, panting. Her legs were trembling and she could feel them start aching. 'Great. I'm gonna be sore tomorrow'. The worst thing, however, was that she was drenched in sweat. That's her usual state after the training with Leo.

But she couldn't complain.

The past two weeks she had trained almost daily with Leo, except for the weekends or the days one of them was on a mission. The training usually began with Mei working on her control of the mana skin. At first, it was pretty hard for her to make it work, and Leo wasn't the most patient teacher either. Keeping it on while moving at the same time was another struggle for her, but at the end of these two weeks, Mei had managed to maintain it for a good amount of time while also using her magic to attack and defend against what Leo was throwing at her.

After mana skin training, the two would follow up with a sparring session to build up Leo's physical strength. Mei was a better teacher than Leo, but the royal boy was still struggling to not use his magic during it. The combination of the two sessions will leave them both breathing heavily and covered in sweat. For Leo, however, it was not over. He would ask Mei to summon something made out of tungsten so that he could use his flame on it. He didn't manage to melt it yet, the only thing changing about the tungsten thing being the color, which meant that Leo's flames were in fact affecting it but not enough to melt it.

"Do you want to train tomorrow as well? I know it's our free day, but I have nothing better to do."

Mei looked at the red-haired boy who stopped from setting the tungsten ball, which Mei created, on fire, and looked at her.

She groaned. "Don't you ever take a break?"

Leo looked at her confused. She got up in a sitting position.

"I mean, I guess you can't. Since you're royalty, you're supposed to be perfect and dedicate your life to your duty and family." She shook her head. "That's one thing I will never be jealous of. Even though we don't have money, us commoners know how to live life."

"I know how to live life! Nobles and royals can have fun too!"

"Yeah, sure!" Mei gave an amused huff. "Have you ever been skinny dipping as a child? Or have you ever stolen something with your friends and run so that you don't get caught, feeling all the adrenaline pumping in your veins? Or have you ever attended a party with actual good music where you don't need to dress like a puppet?"

Leo looked at her defeated, a hand running through his messy red hair. "Well, not really. I have spent most of my childhood taking etiquette lessons and being homeschooled. Not to forget about magic lessons with Leon."

"And now you're spending your best years here, training or going on missions." Mei got up. "You need to learn how to have fun, Leo. C'mon now, get up. We should hit the showers before we get to lunch."

Leo didn't look at her. He was still processing what she said. "Go ahead. I'm gonna leave in 10 minutes."

Mei shrugged and left.

After taking a shower and changing her clothes Mei headed to the cafeteria. She knew her friends were already there, sitting at their usual table, hopefully waiting for her so she doesn't have to be the only one eating.

What she didn't expect, however, was to see Erika, Rin, and Elric sit with them.

The table where Mei and her friends usually sat was joined with another one so that it made room for both groups. Hana, Erika, and Rin were on one side and Elric and Kuro on the other. Haru had transformed himself into a penguin with the head of one of their seniors, Rowan, a short, chubby middle-aged man who likes to pop off on subordinates and give newcomers hell. His hair makes him look like a royal penguin, hence Haru's transformation. Erika, Elric, and Rin were laughing hysterically, the two girls holding their bellies with tears in their eyes and the boy slamming his hand on the table. Kuro and Hana were laughing as well but not as hard as the other group, them having already witnessed Haru's act before.

"When did this happen?"

Leo suddenly appeared next to her. He was carrying a tray with food, meaning that he just got there as well. After arriving at the cafeteria and getting his food, he had searched for his friends only to find them sitting at the table with Mei's friends.

"I have no idea."

Leo and Mei approached the table.

"If Rowan sees you, you will be washing his toilet for three months this time."

Haru's face turned into his, disgust clear in his expression as he remembered the time when he had to clean his superior's bathroom for a week when he got caught making jokes about his hair.

Mei put down her tray next to Hana's as Haru turned to normal before sitting between Kuro and Elric. Leo put his tray down next to Elric.

"Leo, Mei, hi. How was your training session?" Asked Erika.

Elric greeted Mei with a smile before winking at her.

"It was good. How come you guys are sitting together?"

"Ah, I see you have no patience for small talk, as usual, Leo. Well if you must know, Hana and I have been assigned a mission together, and since Captain called us in his office, I got a chance to... apologize."

"Ahh, I see. Well, I would like to do that as well. Hana, I—"

"Leo, don't. Just like I told Erika, I don't blame any of you for what happened. I would have come to talk to you earlier, but I was very... embarrassed."

"Trust me, there's nothing to be ashamed of. We all got our asses handed to us by Makoto one way or another." Elric added with a sigh.

"Speaking of which, where is he?" Leo asked.

After a long pause, Elric answered.

"...He said he wasn't hungry."

Nodding in understanding, Leo grabbed a fork and started eating. While he and Mei ate, the group started making conversations. Erika asked Mei for a re-match, and then Hana told Erika that she is interested in fighting the royal girl as well. Erika accepted her challenge.

"So, Rin," Kuro said, giving the girl a cheeky grin. "What type of magic do you have?"

Before the shy silverette could respond, Erika put her arms on her friend's shoulder and glared at the boy.

"Don't get any weird ideas spike head. Rin is taken."

Rin's face flushed red in embarrassment.

"E-Erika! You c-can't s-say that, it's so embarrassing! And I'm not t-taken."

Erika rolled her eyes and then she whispered so that only she and Rin could hear. "Not yet."

Rin put her hands on her cheeks, trying to cover the intense blush. She was throwing shy gazes at Elric, trying to see if the boy was paying attention to their conversation. To her relief, he was too focused on his conversation with Haru about mermaids. 'Ah, so that's how it is. I wonder if the boy knows and doesn't care or if he's just clueless.' thought Mei, who just finished her lunch.

"What about you then?" Asked Kuro, throwing his grin at Erika.

Mei and Hana rolled their eyes. They were already used to seeing Kuro hit on girls and they knew that most of the time he was successful. But it was obvious that Erika was out of his league.

Erika snorted. "In your dreams."

Next day.

Mei, Kuro, Hana, and Haru were having breakfast at their usual table. Hana was sitting next to Mei across from Haru and Kuro. They all had finished their food, except for Haru, who always got food as if he was eating for two.

The black-haired boy cleared his throat and looked at the two girls in front of him.

"So, are we still going even if Kaito doesn't show up?"

Hana shook her head and glared at him.

"Don't say that Kuro! If Kaito doesn't show up today, it means something bad happened during his mission. It was supposed to be only two-days long."

Kuro rolled his eyes. Hana was worrying too much. The mission wasn't that hard. He had been sent with other two squad members to investigate a nearby underwater dungeon. The reason why it would take two days was that the dungeon was only open at night for some reason. So it was a possibility for them to get stuck if they don't leave before it closes. But for a water mage like Kaito, it should be an easy mission.

"Oh, c'mon. I'm sure Kaito is fine. He's quite literally in his element."

Hana sighed. She knew Kuro was right and that she wouldn't be helping anyone by worrying, but she couldn't help it. She always got anxious when any of her friends would go on a mission. They have become her second family.

Trying to calm her friend, Mei put a hand on her shoulders and gave her a reassuring smile. Kaito is strong. Hana smiled back.

"Alright, fine. We will still go even if Kaito doesn't show up."

"Go where?"

The three friends froze. Hana's and Mei's eyes widen as they recognized the voice that was coming behind them. Not wanting to confirm, they didn't turn around. Kuro wasn't so lucky, however, as he was looking straight at the red-head royal.

Not noticing how tensed his friends are, Haru answered.

"The Black Market."

Kuro gritted his teeth as he slapped the back of his friend's head. Moron.

"Ouch! What was that for?" Asked the boy as he started to rub the back of his neck." I thought we all liked Leo now!"

Leo ignored the slap and he sat next to Mei. The girl avoided his gaze as he slid closer to Hana to give Leo more room to sit.

"You guys are going to the Black Market? What are you doing there?"

"Uh, well, you see—"

Mei started to respond but was interrupted by Haru's excited answer.

"Gambling!" Kuro slapped him again. "Ouch! Stop fucking smacking me!"

Leo raised his eyebrows. He looked at all of them with an incredulous look on his face.

"What? You guys gamble?"

Hana put her hand to the back of her head and gave him an innocent smile.

"Well, only the boys do. Mei and I don't get involved with that sort of stuff."

Kuro glared at her. 'Traitor'. Hana raised her eyebrows at him and then glared back. 'What? It's true.'

Kuro tried to save himself. He shot a friendly smile at Leo. "We don't do it that much. Just occasionally for fun."

"And what do you guys put in? The money you get from being a Magic Knight?"

"That and what we stole from dun—"

This time Kuro didn't settle for a smack behind the head. He opened a portal next to the talkative guy and pushed Haru in.

Putting his innocent smile back, Kuro looked at Leo.

"Sorry about that. He had had a lot to drink and he looked like he was about to puke."

Leo knew that Kuro was lying but he didn't say anything. He had a feeling that he would rather not want to know what Haru was about to say.

Looking at the three friends that were looking at him trying to seem as friendly and innocent as possible, Leo told them what he had decided since he had heard where they were going.

"I want to go with you guys to the Black Market."

Their jaws dropped at the same time.

"What?!"

Mei put one more question, and, oh God, she felt as if she was gonna hate the answer. "Why?"

"Because I have never been there. And if I want to become Captain, I should know what kind of places my people frequent." The boy excitedly answered. Shooting a glance only at Mei and then quickly looking back at all three of them, he added. "Plus, someone told me I should have more fun."

Mei tried her best to resist facepalming. This was all her fault. Why did she have to encourage him to have more fun? Why couldn't she keep her ideas to herself? Mei wanted to slap herself.

Seeing that they weren't saying anything Leo asked again.

"So, can I go with you?"

Kuro raised his index finger to say something, but Hana went first.

"Of course! We're leaving after lunch."

She had an obviously fake smile on her face, but Leo didn't seem to notice. Instead, he smiled back wider and got up.

"Alright. See you then!"

After they made sure that the royal boy was way out of earshot, Kuro and Mei turned to Hana.

"What did you do that for?" Mei asked.

Hana rolled her eyes, annoyed that both of them didn't get it.

"It's better than to have him go and tell Captain. Now that he goes with us that will make him an accomplice."

Even though Kuro wanted to argue, he couldn't. She was right.

Mei wasn't so convinced.

"I doubt Leo would do that."

Hana shrugged.

"Better safe than sorry."