I, the slave boy, awaken with the most potent seed!!

Mara turned, offering a halfhearted smile. "Oh, morning," she replied, her tone lacking its usual warmth.

Zafron\'s heart sank. \'She\'s still upset about yesterday,\' he realized. Taking a deep breath, he stepped closer.

"Mara, I... I want to apologize for yesterday," he began. "Things happened yesterday that I really couldn\'t handle and it was a lot for me, but that\'s no excuse for how I acted. I\'m feeling better now, and I\'m sorry for worrying you."

Mara\'s hands stilled over the stove, her back still to Zafron. He continued, "I\'m going out today to keep looking for work. I want to be able to contribute, to buy you whatever you want."

At this, Mara turned, a glimmer of her usual playfulness returning to her eyes. "Whatever I want?" she asked, a hint of a smile tugging at her lips.

Zafron nodded, relief washing over him. "Anything at all."

Mara\'s smile broadened, a girlish excitement lighting up her face. "Well, in that case... I\'ve had my eye on this beautiful dress in the market. It\'s got these lovely embroidered flowers and—"

"Consider it done," Zafron interrupted with a grin. "As soon as I start making money, that dress is yours."

Mara\'s eyes sparkled as she threw her arms around Zafron, breast pressed against his chest, pulling him into a tight hug. "Oh, thank you! And... I\'m sorry too. I shouldn\'t have been so cold."

"It\'s okay, I deserved it," Zafron said.

As they embraced, Zafron felt a weight lift from his shoulders. \'One down, one to go,\' he thought, remembering he still needed to apologize to Matilda.

Breaking away from the hug, Zafron said, "I should go clean up. I\'ll be down for breakfast soon."

"Sure thing, should be finished before you return," Mara said, her usual warmth back.

As he turned to leave the kitchen, Mara called out, "Zafron? It\'s good to have you back."

He smiled warmly at her before heading upstairs. As he reached the landing, he nearly collided with Matilda coming down.

Zafron\'s eyes widened as he took in her appearance. Matilda looked as if she\'d just stumbled out of a battlefield. Her usually immaculate hair was disheveled, sticking out at odd angles. There were dark circles under her eyes, and her clothes were rumpled. But what was more obvious to see was her boobs which had spilled slightly out of her night dress, hanging loose at odd angles.

\'Not exactly what I expected to see first thing from her this morning,\' Zafron thought for a second as he let his perverted side get the better of him. But very quickly, he changed trajectory, choosing to focus squarely on what actually mattered and that at the moment, was how Matilda looked like she fought with a kangaroo and lost, terribly.

"Matilda!" Zafron exclaimed, concern evident in his voice. "Are you alright? What happened?"

Matilda blinked, seemingly surprised by his reaction. "Oh, this?" she gestured vaguely at herself. "It\'s nothing, just a... rough night." She noticed Zafron\'s eyes lingering on her chest area. When she looked she saw that her nipple was sliding out of one of the holes between her chest buttons. Very shyly and slowly, she pushed her breast back in and did the button right.

The act in itself was more out of necessity than urgency.

Looking at her still, Zafron frowned, not entirely convinced, but decided not to push the issue. \'There\'s clearly more going on here,\' he thought. \'But now\'s not the time to pry.\'

Instead, he took a deep breath and said, "Matilda, I wanted to apologize for yesterday. I shouldn\'t have shut you out like that. I got into some trouble and... well, the orb you gave me broke. I\'m really sorry about that."

Matilda\'s eyes widened with worry. "Trouble? What kind of trouble? Are you hurt?" Her hands moved to check him for injuries.

Zafron gently caught her hands, giving them a reassuring squeeze. "I\'m fine, really. It\'s nothing to worry about. But I am sorry, and I promise I\'ll make it up to you."

He paused, remembering something else. "Oh, and thank you for the cash you left in my pocket. It really helped."

Matilda\'s worried expression softened into a warm smile. "Anything for you, Zafron. You know that."

They stood there for a moment, hands still clasped, before Matilda asked, "Where were you coming from just now? It\'s quite early."

"Oh, I went for a run," Zafron replied. "Thought it might help clear my head. I\'ve got... some things I need to do in my room now." Clearly that was a lie but what was he supposed to say? That he got a magic system that now made him do quests for rewards every day? And today\'s quest involved him running around the neighborhood like an unhinged freak?

...Pass.

Hearing what he had to say, Matilda nodded, her smile not quite reaching her eyes. "Alright. Don\'t forget to come down for breakfast."

Zafron nodded and pulled his hand from her grip before heading up while she headed downstairs. He turned aprimd to see her descending and saw the way her ass moved with the delicate night dress, swaying left and right like a pendulum clock.

As Zafron continued up to his room, Matilda turned herself and watched him go, her smile faded into a look of deep contemplation. \'What really happened yesterday?\' she wondered. \'And why do I feel like he\'s not telling me everything?\'

Meanwhile, Zafron closed his bedroom door behind him, leaning against it with a sigh of relief. \'That went better than I expected,\' he thought. \'But I can\'t shake the feeling that there\'s something Matilda\'s not telling me either.\'

Shaking off these thoughts, Zafron turned his attention to the quest notification still hovering in his vision. He had push-ups and squats to complete.

\'No time to dwell on mysteries,\' he told himself as he dropped to the floor, ready to begin his push-ups. \'I\'ve got stats to improve and a job to bag before we run out of money in this house. Can\'t go letting her handle everything,\'