NOVEL NEXT Chapter 20: A Dragon?
"A human? How dare you enter my territory...!?"
That soul-shaking voice froze Merlin in place. A moment later, goosebumps spread across his body, forcing him to stumble back in haste.
"What is that!?" He cried in panic, pointing at the two enormous eyes. "System! System! What is that thing!?"
Cold sweat ran down his back as his legs kept retreating in fear.
"[Master, don't be afraid! That's the spirit you're going to awaken!]"
The system's voice jolted Merlin out of his terror.
"What did you just say? That's the spirit I'm going to awaken?" he shouted in disbelief. "Are you kidding me? How is that even possible?"
He was sure the system had altered the spirit he was meant to awaken, but that creature with enormous eyes looked like a nightmare.
How could the system turn something like that into his spirit?
Sensing his confusion and panic, the system hurried to calm him. "[Master, take a deep breath and let it out. Calm yourself first.]"
Merlin obeyed, inhaling deeply before releasing it slowly. But as his gaze met those enormous eyes, the fear clawed its way back.
"System! Can we go back? I think… I don't need to awaken a spirit," he stammered.
The system rolled its eyes and retorted, "[Master, how can you be such a coward? Don't you want to change your destiny? If you can't awaken the spirit that belongs to you, how will you ever achieve it?]"
The words instantly jolted Merlin. He opened and closed his mouth as if trying to speak, but no words came out.
What the system said was completely true—Merlin Clay's fate in the novel was nothing but misery.
If he didn't change it soon, he would meet the same fate.
Once he forced himself to calm down, his fear lessened, but not completely.
"System, is there a wide-range lighting tool? I… I can't tell what that thing is," Merlin asked in a shaky voice.
"[Of course, Master. I'll find it, and you can buy it,]" the system replied eagerly.
Moments later, a blue panel appeared in front of Merlin, displaying an image of five white crystals.
"[Ding! Five Light Crystals can be purchased for 5 PS! Do you want to buy them? Yes/No]"
Without hesitation, Merlin clicked "Yes." In an instant, five crystals materialized in the air.
But before he could reach for them, the crystals shot off, scattering in all directions. A brilliant light burst forth, flooding the entire hall.
Only then did Merlin finally see the figure behind those two massive red eyes.
"A… a dragon!?" His jaw dropped wide.
The dragon loomed nearly fifty meters tall, its crimson scales gleaming as two massive horns jutted from its head.
Four wings spread wide—two large ones at the front and two smaller ones behind.
Its eyes burned a fierce red, and razor-sharp teeth jutted from its massive, sturdy jaws.
What made Merlin tremble wasn't just that it was a dragon—it was the exact same dragon he saw in the wall painting a few minutes ago!
"System, are you kidding me? How could my spirit be this dragon?" He cried in panic.
Earlier, a joke had crossed his mind—the dragon in the painting was the spirit he was meant to awaken.
What he never expected was that the joke would actually come true!
How could he not be stunned?
"[Ahem! Master, you've misunderstood. I didn't know about this either. Everything happened naturally. In fact, I'm just as surprised as you. Didn't you see my expression?]"
System: "ヽ(°〇°)ﾉ"
Merlin: "..."
"You think you can fool me?" The corners of his mouth twitched.
He wanted to scold the system but quickly swallowed the words that were about to slip out.
Whether the system was lying or not, what mattered now was figuring out how to deal with this problem.
"You filthy human! How dare you ignore this Empress' question!?"
The dragon's furious voice, accompanied by a deafening roar, shook the entire hall.
Caught off guard, Merlin was blasted off his feet. His small body slammed hard against one of the hall's massive pillars.
Bang!
The impact was brutal, forcing a groan from his lips.
"Damn it, system! Are you trying to kill me?" Merlin cursed through clenched teeth. "My back's killing me! I think one of my ribs is broken. Ouch! System, help me!"
The system panicked, and a healing potion suddenly appeared before him.
"[Hurry and drink it, Master! This is a Level A healing potion. Your wounds should heal if you drink it,]" the system urged anxiously.
But Merlin didn't grab it right away. Instead, he looked at the system and asked weakly, "Will this be deducted from my points? Because if so…"
Before he could finish, the system quickly interrupted.
"[Don't worry! It's free! Just drink it and heal your wounds!]"
"Perfect!" Merlin beamed. The pain etched on his face vanished, replaced by relief and happiness. "Thanks for the treat, system! You're the best!"
He uncorked the potion and downed it in a single gulp.
"Ahh…" Merlin sighed in relief. "Sweet and refreshing! The pain's completely gone. Thank you again, system!"
But the system stayed silent. Its eyes widened, as if it had just realized something too late.
'[Did Master… trick me?]'