"He did?" Lotus said when it dawned on her with a sigh, "Ah, that's right... He's usually next to Malleus..."
"He had to explain things to him in the end." Silver explained.
"I see." Lotus frowned before speaking up, "Seeing that his voice is always so loud, I had always thought it was just a natural thing for him to be loud. I shouldn't have held it against him just because of his voice... But, what gift would be good for him...?"
Hearing this, Lilia looked to her curiously, "You're going to give him a gift?"
Lotus nodded with a heavy sigh, "That's right. It sounds like I hurt him pretty bad or I got him mad enough to stay silent."
"That does sound about right..." Lilia said in amusement, "However, I always thought that the only one capable of putting him into that sad mood would be Malleus, but to think there would be someone else capable of doing it too... Well, since it's like that. What will you give him as a gift?"
Lotus sighed, "The only thing I've usually given to others aside from family are usually food and such... However, that won't do this time since I don't know enough about Sebek or even his favorite food. Perhaps I should just make a gift for him now that I'm feeling better..."
Silver raised a brow when he heard this, "Perhaps... However, he has a prideful personality, so I don't know if it would be easy to get him to cheer up..."
Lotus frowned in deep thoughts, "Sebek has always been centering everything around Malleus-senpai... So unless it's regarding Malleus or from Malleus, it wouldn't be that easy to cheer him up completely..."
"So you already know this much about him." Lilia noted with a wide smirk on his face.
Lotus nodded, "He's not hard to read, after all, but he makes up for that with determination and strength. So, who can really say anything bad about him? I just need to think of what could make him cheer up again..."
"Then, we'll just leave this to you." Lilia said with a wide smile, "I'd like to talk more but we have some homework to finish up. See you later!"
"Bye!"
Lotus watched the two leave with a small and forced smile on her face. Once they were gone, Lotus finally resumed her thoughts as a tiny and tearful whine could be heard from her mind, "M-My deepest apologies, my lord..."
"It's fine already." Lotus responded, "The pain was too much and it wouldn't go well with Sebek's loud voice, after all."
"Then, the gift..." Zhang Li muttered nervously. As a cultivator, she did not know what would be considered something of great value to a magician who doesn't cultivate.
"What should I do..." Zhang Li groaned nervously.
Hearing this, Lotus suppressed the chuckle in her throat and her lips curved up into a smile, " Do you want to give him a gift in apology?"
"If... If my lord wishes, I will do my best to prepare a gift..."
Which means that she was unwilling to apologize to that little goofball. Lotus shook her head in a bit of exasperation and amusement played on her lips as she sighed, "Then, I'll prepare and send one in your place."
"My lord! You don't have to do this for me!" Zhang Li cried out in horror when she heard this. According to teaching and watching, it was a natural thing for servants to pay others they have offended, so how could she allow her master to take the blame and payment in her place?! That was it...
Tearfully, she felt that she had already become a burden upon her little master in just the first year.
"Since you are now my people, how can I let you suffer? There will be more days in the future where I will suffer a lot, but what's the point if you guys suffer now? When the day come where I'm weak, it would be hard if you're also weak. Leave the gift to me. You probably don't know what to give the guy." Lotus said with a slight shrug.
Everything she said was the truth. In the future, there will be a time where she will be weak and the only way to get past that is to have supporters who are strong enough to protect her. Since the Zhang siblings swore to protect her, then she must protect them now so they can become stronger now. When that day come, they can help give her enough time to get stronger and find support so she can keep them safe. Since they are going to be her people, she also have responsibility over their lives. Giving them up to be someone else's fodder was truly be a waste considering that Zhang Yong's martial arts aren't bad and Zhang Li's alchemy was really good. It would be a waste if she just tossed them aside since they have so much room to grow with so much time on hand. Zhang Li knew the logic that this girl was thinking of and knew, after seeing so many good things in the spatial ring that she was willing to let her stay and become stronger. With a secret this big, most people would keep this boon to themselves. However, their lady was willing to share this benefit with them which was already very generous from her thoughts. Now she was also willing to help her pay the price as an apology to that rude man she hated so much?!
She knew that the student must have some military position seeing his posture was so stiff and rigid with a resolution that would fit the position of a soldier. She also knew that angering him was going to bring trouble to her master, but she still lost all reason in the middle of that pain and brought trouble to her master.
"Please leave the gift matter to me, master." Zhang Li responded with deep resolution.
Hearing this, Lotus raised a brow in amusement, "Oh? You want to take on this task for sure?"
"Yes, Master."
Lotus thought for a bit before she nodded her head, "Fine. I'll leave the gift decision to you. However, remember that Sebek is a very honest person. If he doesn't like the gift, he won't be afraid to say so. However, if he likes it, he will also tell you too."
"This lowly one understands." Zhang Li nodded her head nervously.
"Also," Lotus noted sensing her looking to her direction as she continued, "you are not to express yourselves lowly during our private conversations. I understand if it was outside, but do not refer to yourself in this manner privately."
"P-Pardon?" Zhang Li's eyes widen in bewilderment as this was not what she was taught by her grandparents who had been the Hui's family's butler for generations.
"It's been so long since I last spoke with another human cultivator in this world. It would be easier on me if we spoke more intimately amongst ourselves." Lotus explained with a grin, "Your skill as an alchemist isn't inferior compared to me either. There's no reason for you to speak lowly of yourself. The same goes for your brother and his martial abilities."
Stunned, Zhang Li stammered nervously with a slight blush on her face, "O-Of course, master! I'm honored for your praise-"
"Lotus." Lotus cut in, "Just Lotus is fine. In the future, you may call me by my real name when the opportunity arrives."
"Yes!"
.....
Lilia and Silver walked into a wide room with clean stone walls and a spotless smooth floor. The interior was furnished with black chesterfield sofas, wingback armchairs, and chairs that surrounded other types of tables. The room was also decorated with numerous candles lit by green fire representing the green flames that the thorn witch used to spout from her dragon form. Aside from the rugs laid out under each tables and seats to prevent sliding across the floor, there was a double staircase of smooth marble leading up to a large ornate throne decorated with a set of black dragon wings. However, the chair was empty. Instead at one of the sofa's by the tall glass window sat a familiar dark figure with long black hair and a pair of large black horns. This familiar figure also wore his dorm outfit that consists of an asymmetrical and ornate black uniform jacket with lime green accents over jodhpur pants of the same coloring, embossed leather gloves that reach his elbows, a small pillbox hat, and heeled black leather boots. A holster style leather belt holds spools of thread at his waist. His cape, whose outside is embossed with patterns of thorny rose stalks, is pinned to his left shoulder by a silver brooch of a dragon head that also connects to two silver aiguillettes.
As expected, the only figure that could dress this much could only be the dorm leader of the Diasomnia dorm.