The VENOM Squad: Vespid & Octopus (Book II)

(This happened way before Hanabi's capture)

Magical City lies at the northern part of the Land of Dawn. It is greatly known for its great and scenic view and most of all, it is where well-known mages are being taught.

Lion Academy is the prestigious school for all mages. The academy is divided into two, the higher education for magic is the Primary Magic where older mages are while the other is the Secondary Magic where younger mages are.

At the Secondary Magic, Harley Vance is known by everyone for being the top student, a genius high schooler.

"Reducio!"

"Reducio!"

"Why the hell are they taking too long just to shrink the size of a damn apple?" Harley gritted as he watch his other classmates practice.

"It's not easy to shrink that apple!" Nana whined as she pointed at the super tiny apple on her desk. "I've been saying 'reducio' , 'reducio' for more than fifty times before I got to shrink it!"

Harley reached out to her and flicked her forehead.

"That only means you're not good enough, Nana," he smirked proudly.

"If one of you could not shrink their apple, we won't be able to move on with the other spells," Lunox informed the class.

Hearing this only added fuel to Harley's irritability. He stood up and yelled.

"Damn it! You all got to focus on pronouncing the spell correctly! Focus on shrinking the apple, you blockheads!" he raged on. "You got to do it like this, REDUCIO!"

Upon waving his wand at 180 degrees in front of him, all the apples shrunk.

Everyone clapped their hands in acknowledgement of him which made the mage stand proud in front of them.

"Immobulus!" Lunox exclaimed in anger as she held out her hand towards Harley who is now immobilized. The equinox goddess struts towards him and captured his wand.

"The purpose of your classmates to come here is to master magic on their own. I am confiscating this wand of yours until you finish reflecting on your actions. You got that, Mr. Vance?" she lectured.

"Yes, master," Harley replied.

"Relashio," Lunox muttered, releasing Harley from her previous spell. The young mage went on his seat with a grumpy face.

"Idiot," Nana giggled which made her cute ears move back and forth.

"It ain't funny," Harley hissed as he crossed his arms.

After their class, Harley and Nana headed to the Vance household. They went to the wide garden where they could practice magic.

"Okay, like what I have said before. Focus on shrinking the apple, think of it to become little. Plus, make sure you pronounce the 'reducio' correctly. Got that?" Harley explained.

Nana nodded with perseverance. She lets out a sigh and reached out her hand.

"Reducio, reducio," she repeated in her mind. "Shrink, shrink."

"Reduc---" she winced when she bit her tongue before finishing her spell. This made Harley laugh out loud while pointing at her.

"You've got to be kidding me, Nana?" he laughed. "You really bit your tongue?"

Nana blushed red in embarassment but when Harley couldn't stop laughing, it made her mad that she summoned molina, a blue magical creature that runs after its target until it could trap them inside itself.

Harley immediately stopped and tried to ran away from the creature but the faster he ran, the faster Molina chases him until it managed to trap him inside before going back to Nana.

"Nana, let me out of here!" he yelled.

"No way! You are making fun of me," Nana replied angrily.

"I promise not to tease you again. I swear," Harley seriously stated.

The pink-haired Leonin snapped her finger, returning Molina back to the magical world. Harley puffed out with his blond hair all messed up.

He stood up with a frown as fixed himself and clears his throat.

"Okay, back to the lesson. Try again and make sure you won't bite your tongue," he said, keeping himself from bursting into laughter.

"Princess," a young assassin greeted as she knelt down on one knee. "I bring bad news."

The Swan Princess smiled with sadness in her eyes and replied, "Rise, Fanny, tell me what news you have brought back from the Iga town."

"Your Highness, the two strongest clan still does not want to be in any relationship with the city," Fanny replied.

"Seems like we cannot change their mind. The Land of Dawn has long been abandoned after Alice's underlings attacked. It became a ghost town," Princess Odette stated as she looked beyond the window as if staring at the far away Iga town.

"Your Highness, pardon my intrusion but I think it would be best to form an alliance with Mr. Ton," the assassin said.

"I have considered that option but we differ on the process in order to bring back the old Land of Dawn. Mr. Ton would only manipulate us for his own greed. And I have the feeling that he might do underhanded things to handle this," the princess replied.

Footsteps came rushing to the isle and a soldier knelt before Princess Odette.

"Speak," she permitted.

"The Queen had sent a message for you, Your Highness," the soldier claimed as he hands a scented envelope.

Princess Odette accepted it and read. She lets out a sigh before dismissing the soldier and turned her attention back to Fanny.

"I am being summoned by the Queen. Please do take charge and I will be back in two days," she said before taking her leave.

"She's complete, Dr. Rooney!" Dr. Baker exclaimed in joy as he presented a mechanical human.

"What does it do?" asked the doctor as he observed the new invention of his co-worker.

"Hi! I'm called Angela," the doll said with its mechanical voice. Her eyes blinked just like a normal human but her voice has no emotion at all.

"She's adorable," Dr. Rooney complimented.

"Hey, we're not done yet," insisted Dr. Baker as he drags his friend back to Angela.