The Yellow-Haired Villain in Soaring Phoenix’s Novels Also Desires Happiness

Chapter 58、Precise Positioning

“How do you feel?”

“I feel…”

Mu En awoke from his stupor, briefly adjusting to the blinding light, and then, at Teacher Meila’s urging, moved his body.

“My body feels light, as if reborn, and…”

Mu En looked at his arms, surprised:

“Why do I feel like I’ve become much paler?”

“Not as if, but reborn.”

Meila said:

“Under the erosion of mercury and the restoration of the red flame, almost all the flesh and blood in your body has been replaced; naturally, your skin is newly grown, being pale is normal.”

“But I feel like this pale face doesn’t quite match my temperament.”

Mu En stroked his chin and said seriously:

“I should be more suited to that kind of bronzed, rugged male complexion.”

“Oh, come on.”

Meila rolled her eyes: “A pampered duke’s son shouldn’t say such things. Now, get up and bounce around a bit.”

Mu En obediently got up and bounced a few times as instructed.

However, during the jump, he almost lost his balance and fell due to not controlling his strength well.

“What is this…”

Feeling the unprecedented surge of power within him, Mu En couldn’t help but shine with excitement.

“It seems my realm has improved.”

After entering the academy, due to being engrossed in studying and unable to extricate himself, his martial artist realm, which had been stagnant, seemed to have welcomed another explosive growth.

He had now reached the late stage of the second tier.

“After being tempered in the mercury well for so long, it’s normal to see this kind of improvement. After all, your previous constitution was too weak; it was easy to pull you up a notch.”

Mela was jotting down notes and sketches, saying, “But there won’t be this kind of effect later on. The purpose of the mercury well’s tempering is still to enhance your body’s resilience and resistance, not its strength. Becoming stronger is something you have to achieve step by step on your own.”

“Oh, I see…”

Mu En looked at his hands and couldn’t help but clench his fists again.

Although he didn’t quite understand the usefulness of resilience and resistance, he could still feel a tangible improvement.

For Mu En, this was certainly something to be happy about.

“Hey, wait, you just said… later on?” Mu En suddenly realized, panic-stricken:

“Doesn’t that mean this kind of thing isn’t just a one-time deal?”

“One time? How could that be? You think after waking up without any little ones, your constitution can handle the Eternal Bell after just one soak in the silver well?”

Teacher Mela continued her writing and sketching, as if calculating something, then said:

“With your constitution, you probably need to soak at least a hundred times to meet the minimum standard.”

“A hundred times?”

Mu En’s face instantly turned pale.

Just one time almost took his life; if he had to do it a hundred times…

Even the strongest man would have weak legs.

“Calm down, calm down. The first step is always the hardest. Since you’ve made it through the first time, it won’t be as exaggerated as you think later on.”

Teacher Mela comforted him:

“There’s a saying, you have to learn to find joy in suffering. Who knows, you might really find this suffering quite enjoyable as you search for it?”

“I’m not a masochist!”

Mu En shouted angrily, and then he felt that his once bright life was once again filled with darkness.

Just thinking about that dangerous and painful experience, knowing he would have to go through it at least a hundred more times in the future, made Mu En feel like he should just write his will first.

Hmm, one for his parents, one for An, one for Celicia, and one for the senior. As for that annoying, youthful-looking old midget teacher, he might as well just give her a piece of candy paper and let her cry and lick it!

Wait, hold on.

Speaking of the senior…

Mu En suddenly came to his senses and looked at Teacher Mela beside him:

“What time is it now?”

“About nine o’clock.”

“What’s the date today?”

“The date? Do you think I would remember that?”

Teacher Mela shrugged, indicating that she didn’t know.

After all, having lived too long, he had long since become insensitive to the passage of time.

Not to mention the date, Meila didn’t even understand what year it was now, nor did she care to comprehend.

“How long have I been soaking in the Silver Well?”

“Well…”

An illusory clock appeared before Meila, and she casually adjusted the hands, saying:

“About thirty hours, I suppose.”

“Thirty hours?”

That means…

It was already nine o’clock on the second day of the open day!

And the time he had agreed upon with the senior was ten o’clock!

Only one hour left!

“I’m done for, I’m going to be late!”

Being late for the first date would get him teased to death by the senior!

Mu En hurriedly got up, grabbing Teacher Meila’s shoulders and shaking her vigorously:

“No matter how much you want to torment me in the future, Teacher Meila, please let me out first!”

“Huh? You want to go out?”

“That’s right, I need to leave the school for something very important.”

“Then just right, prepare your materials for Phase Two.”

“Materials for Phase Two? What materials?”

“The Blood of the Ancient Dragon.”

Teacher Meila said:

“The academy’s stock is depleted; you’ll have to collect it yourself. With this thing, I can proceed to the next step; otherwise, you’ll have to stay soaking in the Silver Well for the time being.”

“Okay, okay, I understand, the Blood of the Ancient Dragon, right? I’ll definitely get it.” Mu En appeared extremely impatient.

“Good, then go.”

Suddenly, Teacher Meila waved her hand, and accompanied by a violent sense of dizziness, Mu En felt the scenery before him change in an instant.

The sun was shining brightly, and the air still retained the moisture from last night; everything in the world seemed to have been washed, sparkling in the sunlight.

“Impressive…”

In a moment of daze, Mu En was directly sent by Teacher Meila to the bottom of his dormitory.

“Damn it, there’s no time to marvel at this.”

With a clenched jaw, Mu En rushed back to his dormitory while he still had a little time.

……

Bathing.

Changing clothes.

Arranging my hairstyle.

I even spritzed on a few sprays of expensive men’s cologne, just to be a bit flashy.

After checking myself in the full-length mirror and confirming that I was flawless, Mu En hurriedly jogged to the meeting spot agreed upon with his senior, in front of the college’s grand entrance.

It was an open day, and with ninety percent of the students out enjoying themselves, the campus felt quite empty. I didn’t encounter anyone along the way, so Mu En quickly spotted his senior waiting by the large stone engraved with the words “St. Maria College.”

“Senior.”

Anna was dressed in a pale yellow long dress, her feet adorned with white leather boots, and she held a simple woven bag in her arm. It didn’t seem to be made of anything expensive, yet it was striking.

Her long hair was tied back with a simple hair tie, cascading down to her chest, and her delicate face was adorned with elegant light makeup. Upon seeing Mu En, her eyes curved into a smile, accentuating the charming beauty mark at the corner of her eye.

“Mu En, you’re late.”

“Am I?”

Mu En felt a rush of panic and quickly pulled out his gold-plated pocket watch for a glance.

The slender hands still had a little distance to cover before reaching the top position.

“Wait? I’m not late at all.”

“Really?”

Anna touched her cheek, feigning seriousness as she said:

“But isn’t it customary for a boy to arrive half an hour early when asking a girl out? I even came half an hour early so you wouldn’t have to wait in vain.

Sigh, as a girl, standing alone in the cold wind for half an hour, I was worried about catching a cold, what if someone flirted with me, what if a rogue passing by kidnapped me, and, what if someone stood me up…”

“Stop, stop, stop! Hold on! Senior, please stop!”

Mu En quickly interrupted Anna, fearing that if she continued, he would be labeled a despicable scoundrel before the date even began.

Retracting her words, even if he hadn’t been late, he would still be teased.

“I was wrong, I’m sorry, Senior.”

Mu En pleaded:

“Please forgive me.”

“Well, since you’re so sincere, I’ll forgive you this time. After all, you are my adorable junior.”

Anna chuckled, her eyes sparkling with charm, causing Mu En to momentarily lose his train of thought.

“But from now on, you have to make me a bit happier, okay?”

“Of course! I’ll make sure this date… this act of gratitude leaves you a thousand percent satisfied.”

Mu En puffed out his chest and raised his head, as if making a solemn vow.

……

On the carriage, while the senior sister rested her chin on her hand, gazing at the scenery outside, Mu En secretly opened the long-prepared “Bailande Dating Guide.”

At that moment, the turmoil in his heart spilled out like a toppled cup of water.

Originally, according to his plan, he was supposed to spend the whole day yesterday reviewing the guide, formulating a plan, and even personally scouting the location.

However, due to being suddenly summoned by Teacher Meila and then soaking for thirty hours in the Silver Well, he found himself unable to even pinpoint the next destination, let alone make a plan. When he got on the carriage, he hadn’t even told the driver a specific location, just asked him to head towards the city center and stop when he was told.

“Ah, has it really changed this much? It’s only been two years since I last saw it.” Senior Sister Anna suddenly exclaimed softly.

Mu En followed her gaze outside the window, where a street, seemingly renovated and rebuilt, appeared bright and tidy, looking quite prosperous, yet contrasting sharply with the overall atmosphere of the lower district.

“This is…”

Mu En felt it was somewhat familiar and quickly flipped through the guide.

“Exactly, this is the new commercial street in the lower district.”

“It seems to be part of an initiative to revitalize the lower district’s economy, with quite a few businesses and interesting shops popping up along the street, and the foot traffic is pretty decent.”

“Recently, there’s also a special event, with a recommendation rating… four stars, which is quite good.”

“The most important thing is, it seems like senior sister really likes this place!”

Mu En’s eyes lit up, and he firmly decided—this was the place!

……

……

“Ah, Head Maid, I’m so tired.”

Little maid Noel, holding a large pile of ingredients, wobbled along the bustling street.

“By the way, why did we have to cross half the city to come to a place like this to buy things?”

Exhausted, Noel looked at the figure in front of her, dressed in a black-and-white maid outfit, who was constantly being watched by passersby yet remained dignified and graceful, her eyes filled with confusion.

The Duke’s residence was in the western outskirts of the city, but the head maid seemed to have a whim today, insisting on dragging her to the eastern part of the city to purchase supplies, without even bringing a guard. The lower district was a mixed bag; what if they encountered bad people?

“Sometimes, it’s necessary to understand the products from other places, isn’t it?”

An was selecting fruits at a stall in front, but it was clear she was somewhat distracted.

Suddenly, she lifted her head, looking towards a certain direction.

Her nose twitched, as if confirming something.

After a few breaths, the corners of her mouth slowly curled up, revealing a strange smile that made Noel shiver involuntarily.

“Wh-what? What’s happening, Head Maid?”

“Master.”

“Eh?”

“I can sense it, Master’s presence.”

In An’s eyes, a captivating brilliance flickered:

“The young master is within a ten-mile radius!”