The Extra Villain: I Made a Contract With The Dragon Empress!

"M-mmm~"

In the kitchen, Maya hummed happily as she arranged food on the plates.

She placed vegetables, stir-fried meat, a few pieces of grilled chicken, and some fruits.

Once finished, she set everything on the trolley and began to push it out.

But just as she was about to head toward Merlin's room, an exceptionally beautiful woman appeared before her, blocking her way.

"Is all that food for Merlin?"

Maya looked up and saw it was Linda.

Quickly bowing her head, she answered respectfully, "Yes, Madam Linda. Do you need anything from me?"

Although she tried to sound calm, a hint of panic lingered in her voice. That was only natural—she knew who Linda really was, the Headmistress of Saint Freya Academy.

Her status was incomparably high and honorable. To someone like Maya, who was just an ordinary person, Linda was like a star shining in the sky.

"Pfft!" Linda let out a small chuckle, sensing her nervousness. "No need to worry so much, Maya. Didn't I tell you to be casual with me? Well, I don't need anything from you. But could you let me deliver this food trolley to Merlin's room myself?"

Faced with such a request, how could Maya refuse?

Without hesitation, she gently pushed the trolley toward Linda and said, "Of course, Madam Linda. Please go ahead."

Linda smiled warmly. "Thank you, Maya."

Without another word, she pushed the trolley down the hall toward Merlin's room.

Watching her back fade into the distance, Maya sighed softly with a wry smile.

"Young Master is really lucky to have a master like her. I can't help but feel… a little envious…"

***

"[So, you said you met a faceless man, and he told you to look after Lyserra?]" the system repeated doubtfully.

"Yes, I did, System," Merlin replied with a small nod and a sigh. "I don't know who that man was, but from his demeanor, he didn't seem evil at all. Do you know who he is, System?"

The faceless man was indeed mysterious, but to Merlin, the system was even more so. He suspected his reincarnation into this world most likely had something to do with it.

"[Sorry, Master. I really don't know the faceless man you're referring to. But speaking of him… It reminds me of that painting on the wall. Do you still remember it?]"

The system's words startled Merlin, and the memory of the faceless man's painting on the wall during his awakening suddenly resurfaced.

His eyes widened in horror. "Wait! Now that I think about it, they really are the same!"

If not for the system's reminder, he would never have realized it. The faceless man did resemble the one in the painting.

"System, are you sure you don't know him?" Merlin asked with suspicion.

"[Ahem! I don't know, Master,]" the system replied, pretending to whistle.

Merlin rolled his eyes. He could tell the system was lying but chose not to press the matter.

As he had said before, knowing too much wasn't always a good thing—especially while his condition was still so weak.

"Well, I believe you," Merlin said lightly, then quickly changed the subject. "By the way, there's something that confuses me, System."

He opened the system shop and glanced at his 30,000 points.

Let's not ask where he got so many system points from—they all came from daily missions. The tasks ranged from helping servants and planting flowers to perfectly completing daily training.

"Why is Catrine's affection stuck at 89? Why won't it reach 90?" Merlin asked with doubt.

For the past twelve days, he had not only trained but also used his nights to grow closer to Catrine.

Admittedly, the girl had forgiven him before the awakening happened. Even so, Merlin was sure there was still some lingering trauma.

So, he continued to accompany her and play with her until the little girl's affection grew to 89 points.

Still, that number felt insufficient. Twelve days was not a short time. Logically, Catrine's affection should have reached its maximum—100 points.

"[Hmmm…]" The system pondered for a moment. "[Actually, that's natural, Master. I forgot to tell you that 90-point affection is like a long stretch you have to cross. To get past it, you must find—or create—a bridge. Do you understand what I mean?]"

Merlin was taken aback by those words. He frowned and asked, "So, does that mean there has to be something special to raise someone's affection to 90 points?"

"[Yes, something like that,]" the system replied solemnly. "[You have to make someone's heart completely open to you. Take your sister as an example—if you want her affection to reach 90 points, you'll have to give her something truly precious.]"

Merlin fell into deep thought. If what the system said was true, then it made sense that his efforts over the past twelve days hadn't been completely successful.

Letting out a small sigh, he rubbed his temples and complained, "System, you're really annoying. Why didn't you tell me this earlier? If I had known, I wouldn't have been so confused just now."

At his accusation, the system coughed awkwardly and feigned innocence. "[That's because you didn't ask, Master. If you had, I would have explained it.]"

The corners of Merlin's mouth twitched, but he didn't bother arguing further.

Just as he was about to ask something else, the door to his room suddenly opened, and Linda entered, pushing a food trolley.

Both of them froze and looked at each other in surprise.

"Are you awake?" Linda asked with a gentle smile.

She flicked on the light switch and walked toward him.

Merlin quickly cut off his connection with the system and gave a small nod.

"Yes, Master. I just woke up," he replied politely, moving to the edge of the bed. His eyes fell on the food trolley, and a glimmer of surprise flashed in his violet gaze.

"Wow! That's a lot of food!" he exclaimed in awe. "Is this all for me?"

Linda nodded softly. "Yes. Maya prepared everything for you."

"Maya?" Merlin blinked innocently. "Then why are you the one delivering it?"

Linda was the Headmistress of Saint Freya Academy. Her status was naturally very high. He couldn't imagine how Maya had dared to ask her to bring him food.

Noticing his misunderstanding, Linda let out a small chuckle and explained, "Don't get it wrong. It wasn't Maya who asked me—I wanted to bring it myself."

With that, she began arranging the plates of food on the table in the middle of the room.

"So that's how it is," Merlin muttered softly, as if he understood.

But the moment he saw Linda doing what a servant usually did, he quickly got out of bed to help her—only to be stopped by Linda.

"Just sit down. Let me handle it," she said casually.

"But—"

"It's fine," Linda insisted.

Merlin pursed his lips and gave a small nod. He sat on the sofa to the right, his expression uneasy.

Linda couldn't help but smile at the sight.

"That kid is really considerate," she whispered to herself.

"[Ding! Linda's affection has increased by 10 points! Current affection: 80 points!]"