Changes in the Body

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The maids in the ancient castle quickly cleared the dining table. Merlin rose to his feet, preparing to go upstairs and rest.

"Merlin, I have some news to tell you."

"What news?" Merlin turned around and looked at Mei Xue in confusion.

"Tomorrow, Swordsman Pero will take us to the Church in Gran City to meet with young people from other cities."

Merlin frowned slightly. He knew that the "us" Mei Xue mentioned certainly did not include him. It should refer to those with elemental affinity. Those people had the greatest potential and were worthy of the Church's vigorous cultivation.

"How many days will it take?"

"Probably four or five days."

Merlin nodded. "I understand. With Swordsman Pero leading you, it should be safe. That puts me at ease too."

With that, Merlin headed upstairs.

Mei Xue watched Merlin's retreating figure, her eyes filled with confusion as she murmured softly, "Merlin seems a little different from before."

Merlin's tone and manner just now had changed greatly from the past. Before, Merlin would never have said something like, "That puts me at ease too."

After returning to his room, Merlin still did not feel sleepy. So he sat on the bed and once again assumed the strange posture from the relief.

Merlin was already very familiar with that strange posture, so he did not feel awkward at all. While on the bed, he unconsciously toppled onto the soft bedding and fell into a deep sleep.

*****

Early the next morning, Merlin woke from his dream. A heavy snow had fallen throughout the night. A thin layer of ice crystals had even formed by the window, and the room was very cold.

Merlin could not help shivering. Only after waking did he realize that he was sprawled crookedly across the bed. He had somehow fallen asleep last night.

"I sweated again..."

Merlin wiped his arm with his hand and found it covered in greasy sweat. He felt sticky all over and extremely uncomfortable.

"Lucija, bring me some hot water."

Merlin opened the door and called for the maid Lucija. Although Lucija found it strange that Merlin wanted to bathe in such cold weather, she did not dare ask. She could only follow Merlin's instructions and fill the bathtub with hot water.

Merlin jumped into the bathtub and quickly washed the sweat from his body.

Although he had been frozen all night, Merlin did not feel the slightest discomfort. On the contrary, he was full of energy, his complexion rosy, and his entire body seemed brimming with strength.

"Lucija, Young Master Merlin is bathing again?" A somewhat aged voice reached Merlin's ears.

Merlin quickly recognized the butler's voice. Clearly, the butler was asking Lucija.

Lucija replied softly, "Yes, Butler. The young master began bathing as soon as he got up this morning."

"Mm. From now on, prepare more hot water every morning."

The butler gave his instructions quietly, and then the sound of footsteps gradually faded away. The two of them had presumably left.

"The butler is quite thoughtful."

Merlin smiled faintly. He knew the butler must have come to call him down for breakfast, so he reached out and opened the bedroom door.

"Hmm? Why is no one here?"

Merlin was somewhat startled. He had clearly heard the butler and Lucija speaking just outside the door. Their voices had been very clear. How could no one be there?

Something was strange. He walked directly into the corridor and looked downstairs, only to discover that the butler and Lucija were actually in the corridor below.

"Downstairs? How could they be downstairs? Their voices just now were so clear..."

Merlin raised his brows as he thought of a possibility. Could it be that he could hear even people talking downstairs?

When he came downstairs, Merlin paid no attention to the lavish breakfast on the table. He merely picked up a piece of bread and ate it absentmindedly.

"This year's weather is truly strange. It's already this cold before winter has even arrived."

"Nopu, get to work. If the butler catches you slacking off again, don't even think about working for the baron anymore."

As Merlin ate the bread, he carefully listened to all kinds of distant sounds. Those people had all been at least dozens of meters away from him just now, and some had even been over a hundred meters away. Yet Merlin could still vaguely hear them. This showed that his hearing had improved tremendously.

This change had come very suddenly. Merlin was certain that he had not possessed this ability before falling asleep last night. Now, his hearing had greatly improved, and he could hear everyone's footsteps within dozens of meters with perfect clarity.

"Young Master Merlin, do you need anything else?"

The butler's words interrupted Merlin's thoughts. Only then did he turn around and discover that, at some point, he had already finished the bread in his hand.

"I'm done eating."

After saying that, Merlin wiped his mouth and hurried back upstairs to his room.

In his room, Merlin took out the relief he had hidden beside his bed. He knew that these changes must have been caused by the strange posture depicted on the relief.

Moreover, the improvement in his hearing might only be one aspect of it. Aside from his hearing, Merlin could also feel that his strength, agility, and other abilities seemed to have improved greatly.

As long as he continued practicing the posture from the relief, his physical condition would certainly become better and better.

Merlin stayed upstairs for a while, then put on a thick overcoat, wrapped a gray scarf around his neck, and wore leather gloves on his hands. After bundling himself up tightly, he got up and went downstairs.

After a night of heavy snow, a thick layer had accumulated in front of the castle. The bare trees were also covered in snow, and everywhere he looked was a sheet of white.

Moss had been waiting outside for some time. His face was red from the cold wind, and he kept rubbing his hands together. Merlin had no mood to admire the snowy scenery and hurried into the carriage. "Let's go," he said to Moss.

The carriage began moving gently. Leaning back inside it, Merlin suddenly felt that the carriage seemed somewhat empty today.

"Wait, where is Mei Xue?"

Merlin hurriedly asked Moss.

"Miss Mei Xue left the ancient castle very early."

Hearing Moss's answer, Merlin shook his head slightly. Only then did he remember that Mei Xue had gone to Gran City with Swordsman Pero and would stay there for several days. The Church would not be needed during those days either.

The etiquette lesson would not begin until the afternoon, so Merlin could arrange his morning freely. He thought about it for a while. He had only arrived in this world a few days ago, and there were very few places he had visited. Only Nathan's antiques had made Merlin feel some novelty.

In particular, that magical relief had given Merlin a great interest in antiques from the Molta Empire period.

"Moss, stop. We're not going to the Church. Go to Mr. Nathan's place."

Merlin shouted loudly to Moss.