Hidden Friends

16 (Bloody)

"Hey, Bob!" Lizzy grinned as she parked her bicycle near Srikandi while I waited in front of said restaurant, my hands shoved deep into my pocket. 

"Lizzy!" I jogged over to her, waving to the LE as she took out a blood red helmet and tossed it over to me as soon as I was close enough. I got on as soon as possible, so Lizzy immediately set off. 

As we traversed through the busy streets of Medan, I decided to stop beating around the bush, "Hey, Lizzy, why exactly did you call me out today?" 

"Eh?" Lizzy turned to me once she stopped at a red light, her glasses clearly reflecting my face. "Oh, you want to know what we're doing today, huh?" 

"Yeah." 

"Well, it's a bit hard to explain. Believe me, the picture will be all you need," Lizzy's cryptic response only confused me even more. What picture? 

Luckily, I didn't have to wait long, since we soon arrived at our destination, a house at CBD Polonia near a school called Batari. I blinked upon seeing it, "Lizzy, is this your house?" 

Lizzy nodded with a smile, "Yup! I wanted to show you my house while we discussed our current quest, so come on in!" While she was saying this, she had taken out a key and inserted it into the lock, twisting it before she opened the door. 

The house was kind of similar to Ceels' house; located on the first floor, simply containing a bed, a closet, a bathroom, and a desk for studying. What made it different from Ceels' place was how messy it was, with all the papers scattered around the place. 

"I have been looking into our quest ever since I heard of it, looking through the files I had access to for Tadeoniu, trying to discover where he is or what his plan is," Lizzy began explaining to me. "And recently, after a few dead ends, I managed to find this at his apartment." She took out a photo from her pocket and let me look at it. My eyes widened.

The picture showed an elderly guy smiling at the camera with a CG sitting on top of his head. I guessed that they were Tadeoniu & Friendliness, judging by the pair of glasses that had a slot for Life Detectors. 

However, what really shocked me was who were sitting on his shoulders. 

4 CGs were sitting on his shoulders, smiling happily while swaying their legs. 

It can't be, can it? 

"Hey, Bob, are you okay?" Lizzy asked me, snapping me out of my daze. 

"Huh? Oh yeah," I nodded. "It's just that I can't really believe what I'm seeing right now." 

"Why? Do you know who they are?" Lizzy pointed to the 4 CGs sitting on his shoulders. I nodded. 

"Those are the 4 Exercise Coaches," I began. "They are famous in the CGR for protecting her Highness from danger at all times when she goes out of the Cottage (what CGs call a palace). Kenny and Mona actually know them. They consist of Military, Sergeant, Lieutenant and Soldier. But I don't get it. They've only been known to go to the Human World when there's an emergency. Plus, they would never leave their posts unless it's allowed by her Highness. If that's the case, how on Earth is this photo possible?" 

"I had a feeling you would say that," Lizzy sighed. "That's the exact reason why I called you here, among others." 

"Eh? What do you mean, Liz?" I inquired. 

"Take a look at this," Lizzy gestured to a blackboard that was stationed beside her desk, filled with information about our quest, from Tadeoniu to CGs. But at the centre, I could see a question mark with the words "Spread her Magic to Ceels, Could be Working with Tadeoniu, But could be the Mastermind too"  written on it.