“Flawed, you say?” Merlin’s eyes widened in surprise. “What do you mean?”

“In short, Nysera is an imperfect dragon. Do you know why her nature changed after you defeated her?”

Merlin pondered the question, then shook his head.

“No, I don’t know. Do you?”

“It’s because her soul isn’t complete. There are two souls inside her,” Lyserra explained casually.

“Two souls?” Merlin froze. He stared at Nysera in astonishment. “Wait a minute! The two souls you’re talking about… it’s exactly what I’m thinking, right?”

Lyserra, who dwelled within his consciousness, rolled her eyes.

“Do you think there’s any other interpretation of what I just said?”

Her words made Merlin feel embarrassed, but he quickly regained his composure and thought it over.

“Two souls, huh? One is her current self, and the other is her previous self. Is that what you mean?”

“Something like that. That’s why I said she isn’t a perfect dragon,” Lyserra replied with resignation.

This was the first time she had seen a dragon with two souls in one body. Worse, the two had different personalities—one was fiery, while the other seemed calm and indifferent.

Merlin sank into deep thought. He didn’t know how to respond to this situation. It was truly beyond him.

“Since they’re connected, do they know about each other’s existence?” he asked.

“Judging by her behavior, it seems the girl isn’t aware at all. But it’s not impossible for her to discover the other soul. And when that happens…”

Lyserra suddenly stopped, then let out a long sigh.

“A battle will erupt between them, and they’ll try to erase each other. And the outcome is obvious—she will die.”

Merlin flinched. “Die?”

“Merlin, matters involving the soul are profound and dangerous. Take yourself as an example. If your soul is even slightly damaged, you could become an idiot—or even be paralyzed for life. You’d still be alive, but you wouldn’t truly be living. Do you understand what I mean?”

Lyserra’s voice turned serious.

If the body were a cup, then the soul would be the water within it.

A cup was only useful if it could hold water. After all, that was its purpose from the very beginning.

The same applied to the bodies of living creatures in this world. The soul needed a body to live, and the body needed a soul to function properly.

That was why some people had resorted to evil practices in the past. They searched for suitable, gifted bodies so they could transfer their souls into them.

Meanwhile, the original soul of the person whose body was stolen would be erased from this world.

Merlin fell silent for a moment before letting out a long sigh.

“Do you have a solution for this? And could the bloodline be awakened if those two souls were united?” he asked.

Lyserra chuckled softly, then scoffed. “Do you think it’s that easy? Those two souls have their own wills and personalities. If you want to unite them… frankly, it’s impossible. But Merlin, I’ve been with you for over four years. I know you’re not an ordinary person. Otherwise, how could Isthar have chosen you as his successor? So I’m sure you can do it. But you’ll have to find your own way.”

Hearing that, a sense of comfort and relief washed over Merlin.

Sometimes, help didn’t come through actions alone. Words like those were more than enough.

Perhaps Lyserra couldn’t help him much, but Merlin’s real trump card wasn’t her.

It was the system.

“Ahem! System—”

Before he could finish, the system’s voice suddenly echoed in his mind.

“[Ding! The Master has uncovered a deeply hidden secret! The main mission has been launched! Please save the heroine, Nysera Zakriel, from death! Reward: 300,000 system points, 1x Mythic Item, and 1x S-Rank Bloodline Awakening Potion!]”

Seeing the mission appear, Merlin was stunned—then burst out laughing.

“Hahaha! System, you’re amazing! I haven’t even said anything, but you already launched the mission! This is awesome!”

“[Ding! Since this is a main mission, the difficulty will increase by several levels. The affection of Heroine Nysera will be split into two parts!]”

“[Affection of Heroine Nysera (fiery side): 25.]”

“[Affection of Heroine Nysera (indifferent and quiet side): 45.]”

Merlin wasn’t surprised by the split in affection. It would’ve been strange if the system hadn’t separated them.

After all, two souls existed inside Nysera’s body, each with its own traits and personality.

“Why are you laughing like that? Have you gone crazy just from eating bread?”

Nysera’s cold voice came from beside him.

Merlin’s smile froze instantly. He turned stiffly toward her and saw the look of disgust on her face.

“Ahem!” Merlin coughed awkwardly, then quickly gobbled up the rest of the bread. “Sorry. I was just thinking about something good. By the way, we have our first class this morning. Let’s go together.”

As it turned out, he and Nysera were in Class 1-A, since they were considered the best of the best.

Nysera narrowed her eyes suspiciously but she didn’t say anything. She only nodded slowly.

“Alright. Let’s go together.”

…

The academy’s buildings were divided into three sections: first-year, second-year, and third-year.

However, they were located close to one another, so students from different years could still run into each other.

Classes at the academy were divided into seven groups, from A to G, each with its own purpose.

Class A was filled with students who had achieved the best results on the previous test. They came not only from the first intake but also from the second.

Their numbers were also small—only thirty students. Meanwhile, Classes B through G each had fifty students.

The classes were also divided into two types: offensive and academic. Academic classes were for those who weren’t particularly gifted in combat.

Students in these classes focused on journals, research, and similar work.

The alchemy department was included in the academic classes. Although it might not seem important at first, in reality, the academic classes were absolutely crucial.

They served as the backbone of the academy, researching and discovering new things such as magic, magic stones, and more.

“Class 1-A is ours. If I’m not mistaken, it’s at the end of that hallway,” Nysera said, pointing ahead.

Walking beside her, Merlin lowered his head in embarrassment.

He occasionally glanced at the other students, who were staring at him with wide, astonished eyes.

“Hey, is that girl Nysera?” a student pointed at Nysera walking beside Merlin.

“That’s her! Wait a minute… what on earth is she wearing!? A maid uniform!?”

“I don’t get it either! And look at the guy next to her—that’s Merlin Clay! Are they playing some kind of weird game? Since when were they that close?”

Whispers spread among the students as they watched the two of them walking side by side.

They clearly remembered that the two didn’t get along, especially Nysera, who had even challenged Merlin in the battle arena.

And now, strangely enough, the girl seemed attached to Merlin, and her outfit was completely out of place.

Merlin could hear every word, and it made him terribly embarrassed.

He took a deep breath, then pulled Nysera into a quiet corridor to their right.

Then he pressed her against the wall and stared into her eyes.

His sudden action left Nysera frozen in shock. Her usually cold, indifferent face flushed slightly.

“Y-You… what do you want?” she asked, both shy and wary.

Merlin ignored her question and asked instead, “Do you have your uniform with you?”

Nysera was taken aback, then nodded weakly.

“I do. It’s in my storage bracelet.”

She raised her right arm, showing a silver bracelet hanging from her wrist.

Merlin nodded, then took two steps back.

“Put on your uniform. Right now,” he ordered.

“But I’m—”

Before she could finish, Merlin narrowed his eyes and raised his voice.

“That is my order!”

Badump!

Nysera’s heart pounded wildly, and her eyes widened in shock.

An indescribable embarrassment rose inside her. She wanted to say something, but Merlin had already stepped out of the hallway.

Nysera pressed a hand against her still-racing chest and whispered softly, “That feeling just now… what was that?”

“[Ding! The affection of the heroine Nysera (indifferent and quiet side) has increased by 5 points! Current affection: 50 points!]”

“Huh?” Merlin was stunned. “It went up by five points? How is that possible?”

He didn’t feel like he’d done anything impressive. So why did her affection increase?

No matter how much he thought about it, Merlin still couldn’t find a reasonable answer.

A few minutes later, Nysera finally stepped out with a new look.

She was wearing a white academy uniform, along with a gold blazer embroidered with a pair of wings—the academy’s official emblem.

The blazer was short, only reaching her waist, and slightly tight, making her figure stand out.

Her white skirt fell just above her knees, while her long legs were covered in white stockings.

“Tsk… Now that’s better. You look so much prettier,” Merlin said, admiring her.

Perhaps because of her fiery, tomboyish side, Nysera used to look messy—almost like a guy.

But now, with her other soul in control, her feminine charm had fully blossomed. She looked far better than before.

“Thanks, but could you stop looking at me like that?” Nysera pouted in annoyance.

“Ahem!” Merlin smiled awkwardly and turned away. “Let’s go. We’ll be late if we stay here any longer.”

He walked ahead, and Nysera followed behind him.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep