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Merlin vaguely remembered the chubby Gute, so he quietly searched his memories. At last, some information about Gute surfaced.
Gute's full name was Douglan Gutt. The Douglan Family had no deep roots and had only risen to prominence in Old Douglan's generation. Though the family's foundation was shallow and they were not nobles, Old Douglan was quite formidable. Starting from nothing as a commoner, he had built himself into one of Blackwater City's wealthy elites in just a few decades.
Nearly ninety percent of the jewelry in all of Blackwater City was run by the Douglan Family. Naturally, Gute was lavish with his money, and he had quickly become close with Merlin, Anson, and the others.
Gute was extremely fat. Sitting in the front row, he alone took up the space of two people. His eyes were tiny, and when he narrowed them slightly, they nearly became slits. Seeing Merlin and Anson, Gute was delighted and hurriedly said, "Come on, I saved you some great seats. These are front-row seats."
Merlin and Anson calmly took their seats, and the two immediately began chattering endlessly about the new history teacher.
Merlin shook his head slightly. Anson and Gute could not go half a sentence without mentioning women. No wonder Macy had warned him not to fool around. Following these two, it would be hard not to get into trouble without strong self-control.
Still, Merlin gained something from their idle chatter. He gradually figured out the situation. This was a noble etiquette class established by a noble in Blackwater City, specializing in teaching aristocratic manners.
It covered music, history, philosophy, painting, and all kinds of complicated noble etiquette. Besides noble children, the sons and daughters of wealthy people like Gute came here as well. Even if they were not nobles, they wanted their children to learn aristocratic etiquette, which would help them associate with nobles in the future.
Before long, the room became lively as people began arriving one after another. The once-empty room was now nearly full. Merlin estimated that there were over forty people.
A thin, pale man entered through the front door. He seemed to deliberately pass by Merlin, snorted coldly at him, then sat in the back with a disdainful expression.
Merlin had no impression of the man, but it was clear that the man was not friendly toward him.
"It's Tilafa again, that conceited bastard. Merlin, don't pay him any mind. Your marriage to Avril has already been arranged. No matter how unwilling he is, it's useless."
Anson spoke in a low voice. Merlin nodded as well, firmly committing the information to memory. He did not know Tilafa's true identity, but fortunately, Anson was a blabbermouth. Merlin drew it out of him with only a few questions.
Tilafa was the eldest son of the Wengulite Family. Like Merlin, he was the undisputed heir to a barony. In truth, the conflict between Merlin and Tilafa was not simply between the two of them, but between their families. The whole matter was rather absurd.
Baron Wengulit had once fallen for a woman. As it happened, Old Wilson had also fallen for the same woman. The two had even secretly dueled over her. In the end, Old Wilson proved more skilled and won the woman's hand. She was now Old Wilson's eighth wife and Macy's mother.
Merlin was speechless. He had never expected that the well-endowed lady had possessed such charm in her youth that two nobles had fought a duel over her.
But the conflict between the Wengulite Family and the Wilson Family had not ended there. The feud between their families had carried on to Merlin and Tilafa.
Tilafa liked Avril, and the Wengulite Family had once proposed marriage to the Barman Family. However, Baron Barman later had Avril become engaged to Merlin. Thus, the conflict between the Wengulite Family and the Wilson Family became completely irreconcilable.
"Merlin, Tilafa hates you to the bone. He'll look for trouble with you over everything, so be careful. Don't get too close to him, and definitely don't clash with him. That guy may be conceited, but he really does have some ability. He has an affinity for earth elements and might become an Earth Swordsman in the future. If we fought him, even the three of us together wouldn't be his match."
Anson warned him solemnly, clearly very wary of Tilafa.
"Another Elemental Swordsman?"
Merlin nodded. He had already witnessed the power of those with elemental affinity, so he would not be foolish enough to provoke Tilafa.
Before long, the sound of leather boots came from outside. A woman entered the room, and the room instantly fell silent.
The woman had long legs clad in flesh-colored stockings. She wore a fur coat over her upper body, but it could not conceal the generous curves of her chest. Her figure was exquisitely curvaceous, and she radiated mature, seductive charm.
Though her face was alluring and her figure fiery, every movement she made carried an air of elegance. Two utterly different qualities—seductiveness and elegance—seemed to blend perfectly within her.
"Perfect!"
Anson and Gute stared fixedly at the new woman, clearly stunned.
The woman seemed unconcerned by everyone's gaze. She smiled faintly and said, "I am your new history teacher. You may call me Jia."
"Perfect, absolutely perfect! I actually ran into such a perfect woman. No, Merlin, Gute, you two have to promise me first—you're not allowed to compete with me for Jia. She's mine."
Anson was so excited that he was practically incoherent.
Gute said unhappily, "Hmph, Anson, have you seen how many people are watching her? But if you really want to get her, it's not entirely impossible. Everyone knows why women come here to teach. Aren't they just here to seduce noble children? They want to rise to the top in a single step. I'll investigate Jia's background for you later. That'll make it easier for you to make your move."
Merlin neither agreed nor disagreed with Gute's words. He had no memory whatsoever of this place, so naturally he did not know what was going on. However, from Gute and Anson's earlier conversation, he had learned that more than ninety-nine percent of the female teachers who came here were trying to seduce noble children. If they succeeded, they could rise to the top in a single step.
The previous history teacher had, in fact, stopped coming to teach after getting involved with a baron's son. Therefore, the teachers who came here generally did not have particularly pure intentions.
Jia, however, remained very composed. Indifferently, she said, "All right, class officially begins now. Today, I will explain antiquities to you!"
As soon as she finished speaking, Jia took a small ring from her pocket and raised it high. Sunlight streamed in through the window and fell upon the ring, giving it a porcelain-white sheen.
Before you continue