Meixue entered, her cheeks flushed red from the cold. She brushed the snow off her coat before rushing to the fireplace, rubbing her hands to warm up.
"Meixue, back so early today?" Merlin asked casually, joining her by the fire.
Meixue glanced at him in surprise. "Perot the swordsman said it's too cold, so he told us to come back early these days."
Merlin nodded, sitting down beside her. Though he appeared to be warming himself, he was actually focusing on the fire element around Meixue.
Since constructing the fireball spell model in his mind, Merlin had become more attuned to the fire element. He could sense that the surrounding fire element was gradually entering Meixue's body, a trait unique to her fire attribute physique.
But something unusual caught Merlin's attention—while many fire elements were indeed entering her, just as many seemed to be escaping. Meixue was unable to retain the fire element within her, which was precisely what distinguished elemental swordsmen from spellcasters.
Once a spellcaster built a spell model, the model forcefully absorbed and retained the surrounding elements as magic power. For an elemental swordsman, however, there was no way to contain the element forcefully; they could only gather it naturally through their physique. The gap between the two methods was vast, with spellcasters enjoying a clear advantage.
Merlin had initially hoped he could help Meixue accumulate fire elements to become a true elemental swordsman. However, he quickly realized that his spell model was inadvertently drawing the nearby fire element away from her, even pulling some of the fire element already inside her body.
Unable to offer assistance, Merlin could only sigh, stand, and say, "Meixue, it's best you rest early with this cold weather." With that, he turned and went upstairs to his room.
---
Inside Mos's carriage, Merlin sat with his eyes closed, meditating. His mental strength had significantly improved over the past few days, though he still wasn't quite ready to build a second spell model.
"Master Merlin, we're here," Mos announced, lifting the curtain as the carriage came to a stop.
Mental meditation could be practiced anywhere, anytime, without a dedicated room. So, upon hearing Mos's voice, Merlin opened his eyes and hopped out of the carriage.
Today, Merlin was attending his etiquette class. Practicing fireball spells in the castle no longer offered much benefit—he could now control fireballs with precision and no longer needed extensive practice.
As Merlin entered the building and ascended to the second floor, he saw Gut and Anson watching Tirafer from a distance. Tirafer was holding several invitations, passing them to people attending the etiquette class.
Merlin approached, tapping Gut on the shoulder. "What's Tirafer doing?"
Gut jumped but relaxed when he saw Merlin. "What else? Today's his birthday, so he's handing out invitations to his birthday ball."
"A birthday ball?" Merlin's interest faded instantly. Given their relationship, he knew he wouldn't be invited.
"Ha! You don't know the best part," Gut chuckled. "He's planning to invite Teacher Jia!"
As he finished, Jia appeared, ascending the stairs. Merlin's eyes narrowed; Jia still looked pale from her injury yesterday, though the mark on her forehead had vanished, indicating she had some fast-acting remedy.
Seeing Jia, Tirafer quickly approached, respectfully offering her an invitation. "Teacher Jia, it's my birthday today, and I've organized a ball. I'd be honored if you would attend!"
Jia glanced at him, her expression turning cold. "Apologies, I have other plans and won't be able to attend."
Without waiting for Tirafer's response, Jia turned and walked straight toward Merlin.
"Merlin, come with me. I have something important to discuss with you," she whispered in his ear.
Merlin's expression momentarily shifted but quickly returned to normal. He noted the surprised and curious stares around them; Jia's quiet words to him, after her rejection of Tirafer, seemed to spark certain... misunderstandings.
"Let's go." Merlin remained calm, following her out of the building.
Tirafer, watching them disappear, stood frozen, his face darkening, and the invitation fell from his hand. He had never expected Merlin to become close to Jia so quietly.
"Ha! Tirafer's been humiliated," Gut snickered. "Who would've thought Merlin would get close to Jia so easily? Looks like their relationship runs deep."
Anson's expression flickered. After a long pause, he sighed, shaking his head slightly. "I don't know. Merlin's only been here a handful of times."
Still, Anson felt a pang of disappointment. Ever since he had first seen Jia, he had been captivated by her. Now, seeing Merlin and Jia's apparent closeness left him conflicted.
Outside, Merlin followed Jia to a wide, open courtyard. Here, one could see if anyone was nearby, allowing them to speak without fear of being overheard.
Merlin stopped, looking at her calmly. "Alright, Jia. What is it you wanted to tell me?"