Received

"I'll have the special drink!"

"And I'll have the limited edition food and drink set."

"Coming right up!" Her Octavinelle friend called out.

"Eh!? Why're there so many people?" Ace stared at the bustling lounge in bewilderment.

"Oh, my. It looks like the 'advertisement' is already working wonders." Jade said with a proud smile.

"Advertisement?" Jack flicked his ears in curiosity.

"Well, we got scolded by the Headmaster for stealing magic without a contract after that incident, so…" Floyd explained, "Azul made point cards~!"

"Point cards?" Ace raised a brow in confusion, "For Mostro Lounge?"

"Yes." Azul explained, "You get 1 point if you order the 600 Madol special drink. If you order the special food and drink set, then it's 3 points. If you manage to rack up 50 points, the Manager, meaning, me, will listen to your troubles."

"Th-that's…" Grim grew speechless, "Any kind of trouble's okay?"

"For example…" Deuce spoke up at the sound of this after looking over the menu, "Even school-related trouble…?"

"Haha..." Lotus shook her head in exasperation and smirked, "They got hooked once again..."

"Yes, of course." Azul answered with another business-like smile ignoring her statement.

"Moreover, if you manage to save up three point cards, you will get an even more desirable reward." Jade added.

"If you would like more information please take a gander at this pamphlet or the restaurant website." Azul said with a smile.

"Ffgna!" Grim called out without hesitation, "Then, I'll have the special drink!"

"Me, too~!" Ace called out as well.

"I'll go with the meal combo…" Deuce replied.

"Thank you for your orders." Azul said with a smirk as he pushed his glasses back with his white gloves.

"You guys…" Jack groaned in exasperation.

"None of them look particularly repentant..." Yuu shook his head in defeat.

Lotus laughed, "This is his entrepreneurial spirit. Nice recovery!"

Azul chuckled before getting up from his seat hyped up to work once more, "Now. Jade, Floyd, it's time for business!"

"Yes!" The two responded readily.

As those three left in a hurry, the rest of them ordered a meal combo as well. Jack grumbled, "Just what does the guy plan to do this time?"

"I'm not sure either... Hm..." Yuu muttered in deep thoughts, "He's not going after the photo again, so it can't be that."

Lotus chuckled, "He's a business man, you know. If you think about it from a business prospective, there's a few things you would want to do in a business. One of which is money. The better the business, the more profit they earn. The second is business. When you earn enough profit and reputation, you would be able to get the chance to open another branch in another place and spread your name. The more profit and fame you build up, the higher the owner of the business would stand in society too, but there aren't really many restaurant owners who achieves that level from my knowledge and I don't dive into this field either. You're going to have to find someone else if you're curious."

"So..." Jack glanced over to the three busy around the bar counter with the drinks.

"We have a lot of customers today, so it looks like we'll be busy." Jade noted bluntly.

"This would be easier with the anemones." Floyd sighed in dismay.

"I will be helping out today, do not worry. Making the customers have fun is the best way to ensure great service, after all. Now then, let us ensure our profit-!" Azul cleared his throat, "Ahem, that we give them good service today, too."

Jack twitched his ears and sighed, "So, that's it..."

"It's business, after all." Yuu shrugged with a smile of exasperation.

Lotus took out her book again and returned to her reading to which surprised Jack as he watched her return to her reading.

"I wonder what sort of book Lotus is even reading..." Ace grumbled curiously.

"I don't know." Grim responded, "It's just some strange book he brought with him from home apparently."

Yuu smiled and shook his head as well, "It looks a little like calligraphy, but I don't understand it either."

"He seems to be pretty absorbed in it though..." Jack said curiously, "I wonder if it's some sort of practice book she reads from."

"I guess..." Ace grumbled, "He's always reading books like these."

"He's always studying and stays on top of his tests and homework." Jack stares at her in awe as he muttered to himself, "Despite this, he doesn't possess any magic. Then, there's the prefect that was even able to help in battle without magic and still be able to think up such a plan..."

Ace felt something move behind him and looked back in bewilderment, "What the..."

He elbowed Jack, "Dude, your tail..."

"Eh? Ah!" Jack quickly tucked his tail to the other side.

"Geez..." Ace sighed, "First, it was dorm leader Riddle and, now, Lotus. Why is it always these guys that can study so easily? Well, at least, he won't be able to do much for Halloween!"

"Lotus said that he had some personal matters to take care of and it is unknown if he would make it in time to spend the Halloween." Deuce responded.

"Huh? How did you know that, Deuce?" Ace raised a brow.

"I was talking about it with him when he came over last time to help me with my homework." Deuce answered bluntly.

"We're back." Jade called out to them with the tray of food in hand and a wide smile, "Apologies for the wait. We have a lot of customers than usual today."

"Still, there are more people than I thought." Azul thought carefully.

"I know. There are a lot of customers we're seeing for the first time today…," Jade smiled as he added, "This is our chance to make a bigger name for the shop. Floyd is watching over the other students so that they don't slack off as well."

Azul chuckled, "Fufu, looks like I didn't have to give you orders."

Lotus put away her book and smiled, "Thank you."

"Yipeee!" Grim cheerfully took the drink placed before him with a wide smile, "Thanks for the food!"

He took a sip and hummed in delight, "Yummy!"

With that, they started eating their meals as Lotus started eating her food.

.....

About two hours passed with Ace, Deuce, and Grim getting another serving or so and by the time they were done, it was time to close.

After helping around the place, Azul and the others returned in the best of mood as Azul said with a wide smile, "Spectacular! Our profits went up three times today!"

Jade chuckled, "Fufu, it looks like our plans are finally being set in motion once more."

"Indeed, at this rate we will manage to have all that we need…" Azul announced with a wide smile, "Mostro Lounge's second location will be open soon!"

"He doesn't know when to quit!!" Ace shook his head as he and Jack sighed in disbelief while Grim and Deuce was still stunned in disbelief.

Despite their expression, Azul looked through the records of their profit with a satisfied smile.

Lotus shook her head with a wide smile as her Octavinelle friend returned hurriedly and handed jade a piece of paper. Jade raised a brow and tapped on Azul's shoulder, "Azul, come take a look at this..."

"Ah, right, excuse me..." Azul pardoned himself from them and hurried back to the VIP room or his office after reading the paper.

Lotus brought the group back to the hall of mirrors before accompanying Grim and Yuu back to the Ramshackle Dorm already being decorated for Halloween thanks to the Diasomnia dorm. To her surprise...

Yuu had yet to realize who the Diasomnia Dormleader is...

.....

When she returned to Mostro Lounge, she was surprised to find that everything had been cleared leaving only Jade who had been waiting for her.

"Welcome back." Jade smiled courteously, "Follow me."

He led Lotus to the VIP Room where she saw the other twin was looking over Azul's shoulder as he organized the papers. Hearing the door open, Azul looked up to find Lotus walking in with a wide smile. He returned it with a business like smile and responded, "Welcome back. You said that you've received the item?"

Lotus nodded, "That's correct."

Azul gestured her for a seat and sat on the other side, "May we see this item you have brought over?"

Lotus sat down and took out the wooden case to which Azul raised a brow right away but didn't say anything as she proceeds to take out an gold and strange looking key with a strange pattern on the end of it followed by a tiny red jewel. Without needing to insert it anywhere, Lotus held it close to the box to which there was a click to the box and the red jewel shone. Lotus opened the box and in it sat a small green tablet with strange-looking writing on it in a small container layered with fine silk interior.

"Wow..." Floyd said excitedly as if finding a new toy before him.

Azul asked hesitantly, "May I?"

Lotus nodded, "Go ahead. Just don't drop it."

"Of course." Azul smiled and picked it up.

It was indeed the size of his palm and, observing it closely, he noticed something peculiar, "This stone is rather warm..."

"This type of is different from the other jewels you've probably seen." Lotus responded curiously.

"It's made of jade..." Jade noted in surprise.

Lotus nodded, "That's right. To everyone, the stone, jade, is a jewel that should have a consistent color with a color variation. The stone remains cold regardless of how long you hold it. However, this jade is different from a regular one."

"Oh?" Azul raised a brow, "I've never seen a jewel of this size before. What is this?"

"According to the person, it is a Soul Jade."

"A Soul Jade?" Azul raised a brow in confusion, "What is a Soul Jade?"

"The stone, jade, comes in many colors and, according to the origin, different colors have their own uses and properties. However, it's useless to compare the price of a processed Soul Jade to a regular one." Lotus explained, "Soul Jade is the only jade created in the earth with the sole purpose of connecting with the souls of the living."

"What does that mean?" Azul raised a brow.

"The stone jade is capable of telling whether the person who it has made a connection with is still alive or not." Lotus responded, "Use your senses and feel it for yourself. Can you feel anything from it?"

Jade took the stone and examined it closely before he handed it back to Azul, "There was a strong energy coming from the stone..."

"As long as you can feel the energy and the jade is warm, it means that person is still alive and well in this world." Lotus explained, "The person who handed it to me had been searching for the owner for a long time but had yet to find them with the owner's partner till recently. However, it would seem that some things were rather difficult and I now have custody over it for the time being. Yet, it is unknown if whatever they told me about the history of this stone is the truth or not. It could be that the person has long since passed on and the jade is warm for a different reason. But, the stone is still considered to be of great importance and I was told countless times to not forget about it."

"Would it really be all right if we hold this in the safe?" Azul said with a frown.

Lotus nodded, "You have the owner's permission. The contract is signed and handed to me before the change of hands. As long as I have the proof, you and your dorm would not have to worry about illegal affairs... It'll just come back biting me instead. Haha!"

Lotus smirked causing Azul to falter a little before he nodded with a sigh and placed the tablet back in the box softly. Not to mention, thanks to Leona's little trick, he lost all of his contracts.

"How long before the item would switch hands again?" Azul asked her.

Lotus shook her head with a sigh, "It is unknown when. I was told the stone would choose when to leave. When it does, you would be able to feel it. Till then, the stone can not face destruction. Not a single crack. As you can see, it is cherished by quite a number of people."

Azul sighed, "I see... But..."