Positive little sun, magical girl, I am awesome

Lilith, fearing that it would arouse Leila's suspicion, quickly changed her clothes without taking too long, while Zephyrion took the initiative and brazenly climbed onto her bed to rest.

Didn't you sleep last night?

Since Zephyrion had been unusually cooperative earlier, Lilith didn't bother with him. However, she was curious about his dejected appearance and asked him about it before leaving.

When Zephyrion heard Lilith mention last night, his face immediately showed disgust. Ha, that gloomy mushroom spirit, he said he would teach him a trick, but what happened? He couldn't even be bothered to talk about it, just thinking about it made him nauseous.

So he closed his eyes and waved his hand: "No need to bring me breakfast."

Lilith: ...Who asked you?!

She turned and left, locking the door in one swift motion.

On her way to the school cafeteria, Lilith remained lost in her own thoughts, with a persistent unease that she felt she had missed something, until she turned the corner at the tree-lined intersection—

“I, Ian.” — Lilith finally remembered that she seemed to have forgotten something.

The dark-haired boy stood quietly in the shade of a tree, with lush morning glories climbing all over the campus behind him. He wasn't wearing his Guardian's uniform today, but a simple dark gray linen shirt, which made his skin appear even paler, and there were faint dark circles under his eyes. When he saw Lilith, his eyelashes trembled slightly.

"Good morning, Lilith." Ian's voice was lower than usual, as if shrouded in a layer of night fog that couldn't be blown away.

...It’s over! !

Lilith started screaming in her mind again. She had invited Ian to dance yesterday, only to stand him up right then and there! And because she was so tired and eager to go to sleep, she had completely forgotten about it!

Her face flushed crimson with guilt, and she stammered, "I'm sorry, Ian, yesterday, yesterday I..."

She was somewhat at a loss for words to recount what had happened that night.

“It’s alright.” Ian interrupted her, then realized he had reacted too quickly, and lowered his eyes, his gaze falling on the ground in front of Lilith’s shoes: “I know you wouldn’t do this for no reason, there must be something important.”

He spoke softly, without a hint of blame, as if he had long been accustomed to it, used to Lilith rushing to his aid when in danger, used to waiting at the edge of the dance floor for a dance that would never begin.

Lilith was even more embarrassed. She would rather Ian be angry or complain than be so considerate: "No, Ian, I'm just too tired. My head just went blank..."

She quickly stepped forward, "You don't need to be understanding, it's my fault, you can be angry with me, really!"

At that moment, Ian raised his eyes. His dark eyes were tinged with brown in the sunlight pouring down from above. He stared at the girl for a few seconds, and the corners of his mouth curved slightly.

“I’m not angry.” The voice was gentle, almost soothing: “Because I know you, Lilith.”

I understand her passion and impulsiveness, her sincere but easily distracted nature. Oh well, what can I do when she cares about so many people?

“You do look very tired. It seems you didn’t get a good night’s rest last night?” Ian subtly shifted the topic to his concern for her.

“I…” Lilith paused, deciding to be honest at least about this: “I had a very long nightmare, and my head was still spinning when I woke up.”

Ian's gaze lingered on her face for a moment, then he nodded slightly. "Would you like to go in and get something to eat? Some hot soup might be better."

He simply brushed aside Lilith's appalling behavior from the previous night, which warmed Lilith's heart but also deepened her guilt. She stood there without moving.

From Ian's perspective, Lilith's head was drooping so low that only the top of her head was visible. A smile spread across the boy's eyes as he took two steps forward.

"I'm so pitiful, Lady Lilith."

Lilith looked up in surprise.

Ian was usually quiet and aloof, but at this moment, although he still had a straight face, his tone revealed a rare hint of mischief, and she almost doubted that she had heard correctly.

“I waited and waited, until the ball ended, until the moon climbed over the castle, until the teachers turned off the ballroom lights…” he said slowly, each “wait” feeling like a feather tickling Lilith’s conscience. “And now, not even a decent breakfast to comfort me?”

Lilith was stunned for a moment by his lively appearance, but finally came to her senses: "It's on me! It's on me! Eat whatever you want today!"

"Fine, I won't stand on ceremony with you." Ian lowered his eyes, and when he looked up again, the mischievous glint in them was gone, and he returned to his usual quiet and docile demeanor.

"Let's go, or there won't be any food left." The boy watched Lilith walk backwards a few steps before finally turning around to lead the way.

“Ah, oh oh…” Lilith followed in a daze.

As it turned out, Ian's worries were unnecessary. When the two pushed open the cafeteria door, they found that there were hardly any people there today. The entire hall was completely different from its usual hustle and bustle, with only the sound of clinking cutlery, so quiet that it was somewhat oppressive.

"Hey, early to bed champion." Jaina's partner was the first to spot Lilith, yawning and waving at her.

They all arrived in an orderly fashion, but like the students at the other tables, they looked listless, as if they hadn't yet recovered from the revelry of the previous night, even their movements as they ladled soup were slow.

"What's wrong? Is it post-ball syndrome?" Lilith sat down next to Jaina and noticed that her face was also a little pale.

“Maybe so. I always feel like I’ve slept the same way I haven’t.” Jaina was also yawning, and answered the question in Lilith’s eyes: “The dragonsteel from Blackrock Depths has arrived. Many people have gone to the school gate to see the weapon that can allow ordinary people to kill Void Beasts.”

That's why the cafeteria was so deserted. As students who had received the first batch of Longgang Steel early, they naturally didn't join in the fun. Lilith suddenly realized.

With all their courses finished for the semester, they naturally gathered together to discuss their summer vacation plans. However, before they could even exchange a few words, the introverted Hannah suddenly put down her knife and fork, mustered her courage, and said:

"I probably won't go this time."

All eyes were naturally drawn to her. Hannah was a little embarrassed, but she still explained earnestly, "I had a dream last night that my hometown was hit by a locust plague, and all the crops we had worked so hard to grow were gone. I couldn't rest easy after I woke up. After all, it's very close to Lionheart Castle, and I'm worried that my family will be affected by the war..."

“Then we really should go back and take a look.” Lilith was cracking eggs on the edge of the table and was the first to stand up and express her support.

Such reasons may not hold water in the eyes of ordinary people, but magicians, who have studied astrology for many years, value the revelations in dreams far more than ordinary people do.

"I can do a divination for you later." Lulu naturally understood her best friend's worries and offered to help and comfort her.

"Don't worry, maybe you're just homesick. After all, we haven't been back for years. Oh! I dreamt about my hometown last night too. I felt like I was back in my childhood, sleeping on a haystack and sheltering from the rain with my dog ​​under a cow."

"That sounds so wonderful." Lilith, who had never experienced the life of a herdsman, listened with envy.

"Yes." Lulu looked a little dazed, still savoring the carefree childhood she had dreamt of. "But I don't remember ever raising cows at home, how strange..."

"Ah, you're all here!" A sudden shout rang out, so loud that everyone was startled.

Lilith looked up—tsk! She'd forgotten all about this unfortunate fellow.

"Lucas?! What are you doing?" Lulu's reverie of the dream was interrupted by Lucas's sudden shout, and she complained somewhat angrily.

The latter, however, didn't banter with Lulu as usual. His eyes were blank, as if he hadn't fully woken up from a hangover. After being pulled to a seat, he simply shouted into Lulu's ear:

"What did you say, Lulu? I didn't quite hear you. Teacher Phoebe said I hurt my ear and need to rest for a few days!!!"

"No need to shout so loudly!" Lulu said in exasperation, pulling Lucas away from her. "What trouble have you gotten yourself into now?"

Lilith is clearly the only one who knows the inside story. Lucas was innocently caught in the crossfire of Principal Graceia's conflict with Zephyrion and has not yet fully recovered.

"Eat, eat!" Feeling guilty for the trouble caused by her unruly child, Lilith pushed the plate in front of Lucas's face.

Lucas's eyes remained fixed, and he slowly picked up the bread and stuffed it into his mouth, chewing mechanically. He seemed to be struggling to adjust to the hazy sensation in his ears, as if through a thick layer of cotton, and the faint buzzing sound that occasionally rang out.

The hushed conversations between Lilith and the others about their holiday plans reached his ears as indistinct static.

He ate a few bites quietly, then suddenly, without warning, raised his head and shouted to his companions in an unconsciously loud voice:

"I had a dream last night!"

The sound exploded, like a stone being thrown into still water.

The already sparse clinking of tableware in the cafeteria came to an abrupt halt.

All the students scattered around, looking listless—those who were mechanically eating with their heads down, those who were staring blankly with their chins propped up, and those who were rubbing their temples trying to relieve their headaches—all stopped in their tracks.

One by one, pale faces, weary and tired, slowly and in unison turned around.

Lilith's mind went blank for a moment. Although the gazes directed at her were scattered, they suddenly reminded her of the uniform, lifeless stares she saw in the interview waiting area of ​​her dream.

Lilith's heart pounded wildly in her chest, each beat striking her eardrums, reminding her that this was not a dream, yet strangely resonating with it.

The boundary between dreams and reality seems to be blurring.

Not right.