Lillie tried to ignore the loud, continuous slurping produced by her senior brother on his cup of coffee. With her back facing him, she could feel him staring intently at her.

The sun hadn't risen yet when Death returned to the house. With the exemption of the security, most people at Tranquil Villa were still in their dreams. ​​

To not disturb them, Death snuck in.

He was tired after a long day at work, his stomach wouldn't stop grumbling out for food.

So, the first place he went to was the kitchen to make himself a cup of coffee and rampage through their fridge for something to eat, just in time for Lillie to come down the stairs to get a glass of water.

Lillie was quick to hide her surprise when he found him standing by the kitchen counter, munching on the donuts she bought yesterday.

A silent greeting took place when their eyes met.

Lillie calmly went on to grab a glass and fill it with water.

Going back to the situation at hand, Death couldn't help but look suspiciously at Lillie, and her rather conservative choice of clothing.

Like, was she really that chilled for her to wear a long sleeved, turtleneck shirt and long pants in this warm morning?

"Are you injured?" He asked her.

"No, why?" Lillie was genuinely wondering why he would ask her that.

"Then, why are you limping?"

"..."

She was walking fine! Although the sensation between her legs was uncomfortable as she walks, it's bearable enough for her to walk without anyone finding anything strange!

Lillie thought she could hide it. Alas, her senior brother seem to find it necessary to use his eagle eyes on her. "I—uh, yeah. I was training with Ethan yesterday..."

Death hummed, getting the point, but not completely letting the matter off the hook.

"What's the point of training him if the master will kick his ass in the end." He scoffed, changing the subject.

"It's for his survival. The master might actually kill him...accidentally." Lillie took a sip on her water. Her choice of clothing was really uncomfortable.

But, she need it to hide all of the marks Ethan generously left. He's fanatical about not leaving her body unscathed with his love bites.

Lillie sighed. The welcoming party is later this evening.

She either cover these marks with a lot of concealer, or wear something that covers her neck, arms, and legs.

The latter seem to be the best choice. She would hate the feeling of make-up sticking onto her clothes, and it'll be a waste to use that much concealer.

So, absolutely no dresses tonight.

"Lillie, are you here?" Ethan peered from the kitchen's entrance, rubbing the drowsiness from his eyes. "Were you thirsty? You should've just woken me up so I..."

Regaining clear vision, his sentence halted when he noticed a familiar figure.

Death looked at him up and down, then at Lillie.

What's up with these two? Is this a match-your-lover's-outfit day?

Why are they so bundled up?

Death racked up his brain to think of an answer.

Lillie and Ethan turned their attention at the sound of a finger snapping.

"You two..." Death's face darkened. And before his blood vessel burst from anger, Lillie stuffed a whole donut in his mouth.

"Senior brother, you're overreacting." She received an angry, muffled, rebukes in response.

Death rapidly chew the dessert. Swallowing, he pointed at Ethan and exclaimed, "You beast! If I don't pummel you to death, I will not be called Death for nothing!"

Ethan remained unfazed. He clicked his tongue saying, "Don't scream, you'll wake everyone."

"I don't give a f*ck if I wake the whole city! My master told me to look after my junior sister, and that is what I'm doing! Prepare to die!"

Death's hoodie was roughly pulled back.

"If you want to fight, do it on the gym." Lillie shamelessly took advantage of her senior brother's anger to train Ethan.

"Fine! I agree to a duel! But don't expect me to give out lectures!" He harrumphed.

In the first round of the match until the third, Ethan lost against Death. But in the fourth, he slowly got the hang of Death's water-like movements that held similarities to Lillie.

Five hours passed and Ethan finally managed to corner and block most of Death's attacks in the sixth round.

Unfortunately, the final and the majority of the match was won by Death.

Death glanced over the heavily breathing man, impressed by his resilience.

Lillie assisted Ethan on the bench and tended to his bruises. A relieved sigh left his lips as the cool cream soothed the pain.

"Thank you." He smiled gratefully.

Death grumbled at the sight. He received bruises too, you know. Where's his love?

Lillie just thew a pack of pain relief patches at him.

Bright sunlight seeped through the windows. Everyone had woken up to start another new day. Tranquil Villa's servants did their daily routines in tending the house, and the cooks preparing today's meal.

After exhausting their energy on the match, no one could blame the two males for eating heartily.

Ethan, however, was subtle in recovering his energy compare to the other male who was stuffing food in his mouth like a hamster.

"Ethan and I will be attending my relative's welcoming party this evening at the Bai estate," Lillie said to her senior brother. "Would you like to join us? Father will be glad to see you again."

"Nah, I'll pass. As much as I would like to attend for the food, you know how I don't like family gatherings. Just send my regards to uncle Alex and grandpa for me."

"Alright."