"Young Master, wake up. It's already noon. Do you want Viscount Ardhis to scold you? Hurry and get up."
A soft voice came from beside Merlin. His eyelids fluttered slightly before he slowly opened them fully.
"Ugh…" He groaned softly while rubbing his eyes. "What time is it? Did I oversleep the alarm I set?"
"Alarm? What do you mean, Young Master? Did you have another nightmare?"
The voice came again, instantly jolting Merlin from his daze. He quickly turned his head to the right and saw an extraordinarily beautiful woman.
She had a tall, slender figure with graceful curves. Her bosom and hips were full, and she wore a black maid outfit with a white apron, just like the ones from the anime and comics he used to watch.
Her hair was purple, tied in a loose braid, and gathered into a bun over her right shoulder. Her eyes were also purple, with a small mole just beneath one of them.
She was so captivating that Merlin froze for a moment before regaining his senses.
"Umm…" He frowned slightly and asked carefully, "Who are you? Why are you in my office? Are you… a cosplayer?"
The woman looked completely puzzled by his words. She leaned closer and pressed her left palm against his forehead.
"Young Master, are you sick? Why are you acting so foolish?"
Her question left Merlin stunned. But as he felt the warmth of her palm and caught the faint lavender-like scent she carried, his face flushed slightly.
"Wait!" He quickly pulled back, eyeing her warily. "Please behave yourself. I don't know you, and you don't know me either. Can you at least introduce yourself?"
For the first time in his life, a woman other than his mother had touched him.
And that woman was… stunningly beautiful, with an almost flawless appearance—just like the ideal woman imagined by the otaku back in his country!
Still, Merlin wasn't the type to be easily swayed by lust. He had no idea who she was or why she had appeared here.
"Wait a minute…" His brows furrowed as he took a careful look around.
The room was spacious and luxurious. On the far side was a door; to the right stood a large wardrobe with elegant white patterns. Near the bed were two sofas with a table between them, and to the left, two tall windows.
Beside the windows was another brown wardrobe, placed just a short distance away. Looking down, Merlin realized he was lying on an incredibly soft, wide bed!
His eyes widened in shock as the truth struck him—this wasn't his office at all, but some strange place!
'How is this possible? How did I end up here? Didn't I fall asleep in my office?' he panicked inwardly.
Meanwhile, the woman, noticing his strange behavior, looked both confused and suspicious. She narrowed her eyes and crossed her arms over her ample chest. ᴛhis chapter is ᴜpdated by novel~fire~net
"Young Master, I don't know how you could forget my name. But fine, I won't ask. Let me introduce myself, dear Young Master—my name is Maya, and I am your personal maid. Have you had enough fun now?" She asked in a dissatisfied tone.
She climbed onto the bed, picked up the blanket, and carefully folded it.
"Viscount Ardhis, Lady Livia, and Young Lady Catrine are already waiting for you in the dining room. So hurry and go, or you'll face another harsh punishment like yesterday. I can't bear to see you suffer like that, you know? So please, just this once, don't make Viscount Ardhis angry. I'm sure he doesn't want to either."
Merlin fell silent at her words. The four names she mentioned stirred something deep in his memory.
'Maya, Ardhis, Livia, and Catrine? Aren't those the names of characters from the novel The Lost Hero?' he thought.
Suddenly, a sharp, excruciating pain pierced his head.
"Argh!" Merlin cried out, clutching his temples.
His body writhed like a worm thrown into fire, startling Maya.
"Young Master? What's happening to you?" She exclaimed in alarm, hurrying to his side and shaking him in panic.
But Merlin kept writhing in pain, only deepening Maya's panic.
A moment later, his body finally calmed down, drenched in cold sweat.
His eyes stared blankly at the ornate ceiling above.
'I was reincarnated into the world of The Lost Hero?' he muttered in disbelief.
The pain he had just felt was the transfer of memories from the owner of this body into his soul.
From those memories, he realized he wasn't in his own body at all but in the body of one of the most pathetic characters in The Lost Hero—Merlin Clay.
Merlin Clay was a minor villain, a character with little importance in the main storyline. At best, he was an extra who ended up clashing with the protagonist.
And all of it stemmed from one thing—the broken engagement.
In the novel's plot, Merlin was engaged to one of the heroines, Luna Tharot.
The Tharot family held a duke's title, giving Luna an incredibly high status.
Merlin, on the other hand, was born into the Viscount Clay family—still noble, still prestigious, but nowhere near Luna's rank.
He was handsome and tall for his age, with a respectable position as a viscount's son.
Unfortunately, Merlin possessed one fatal flaw: he was unbearably arrogant and loved to bully those weaker than him.
That was the very reason Luna despised him—despised him to the point of utter disgust.
She had requested to break off their engagement, but Merlin refused. After all, he was in love with Luna.
Nonetheless, the breakup still happened, and in the later chapters, Luna began to grow close to the main character—Abel.
That was when everything spiraled out of control. Merlin kept picking fights, and in the end, he met a terrible death.
'Huh…' Merlin let out a small sigh and shook his head. 'What misfortune, to be reincarnated as Merlin Clay.'
He had always held a special interest in the character Merlin Clay from The Lost Hero. Their names were the same, and of course, that was no coincidence.
The author, Michiku-sensei, had intentionally named the character after him as a prank.
What he never expected was to actually die and be reincarnated as Merlin inside the novel.
Accepting that reality, he slowly calmed down. With a faint smile, he clenched his right fist and muttered, 'Fortunately, I was reincarnated as Merlin at eight years old. I still have plenty of time—and I will change the destiny set for me!'
His eyes gleamed with burning determination. At that moment, Maya's hoarse voice came from beside him.
"Young Master, are you alright? Are you hurt?"