The Extra Villain: I Made a Contract With The Dragon Empress!-Chapter 289: Watching the Test (2)

Merlin sighed softly. He really didn’t understand how rich people like Luna thought.

"I see... By the way, you said my sister is taking this test, right? But why didn’t I know about it beforehand?" he asked hesitantly.

If Catrine was coming to the academy, there should have been a letter from his mother or father a few days ago. But there wasn’t.

"About that, you should ask Academy Head Linda. I don’t know," Margaret said, shrugging. "But I suspect she deliberately kept it from you. Maybe... you could consider it a surprise?"

Merlin fell silent at the word "surprise."

Now he remembered—Linda had mentioned that word before.

When he had asked what the surprise was, Linda had only smiled mysteriously, called it a secret, and told him to discover it for himself.

He realized that the "surprise" she meant was likely his sister’s participation in the test.

"What a clever master," Merlin chuckled, rubbing his temples.

Luna watched the exchange, feeling oddly annoyed at being ignored.

"All right, let’s start monitoring. I want to see the test," she said coldly.

Margaret gave her a meaningful glance but said nothing.

She placed her right palm on the desk, and instantly the holographic screen lit up brightly.

The scene on the screen shifted, revealing the maze where the test was taking place.

It was spacious but dim, lit only by torches affixed to the walls.

Merlin couldn’t help but recall the maze inside the ancient Egyptian pyramid—they were remarkably similar.

Margaret operated the monitoring room, shifting the screen from one view to another.

The students had already begun their tests. Some struggled but still laughed casually, as if enjoying the challenge, while others battled monsters ranging from level one to three.

The scene was tense, even through the monitor screen.

"Tsk! This test is far more interesting than I expected. If some of the first wave of students were dropped in here, I’m not sure they’d make it out as champions," Merlin remarked with a chuckle.

Although the students taking this test were far weaker than the first wave, that didn’t mean the originals would necessarily survive.

After all, the difficulty of this test was obvious to anyone who saw it.

Merlin, having experienced the prototype version, knew exactly how terrifying it could be.

"You’re right. That’s why those who went in with the first wave are the lucky ones," Margaret said with a faint smile.

Luna nodded, agreeing with her words. Subconsciously, her gaze shifted to Merlin, filled with gratitude and affection.

If it weren’t for him, she might not be where she is today.

Feeling her gaze, Merlin turned to her and smiled.

"Found it!"

Margaret’s excited voice came from the front. Merlin and Luna instinctively turned to the holographic monitor and saw a striking girl fighting three wolf monsters.

She wasn’t very tall, but her presence was impossible to ignore. Her long, silver hair cascaded down her back, shimmering in the light.

Braids framed the sides of her head, enhancing her youthful charm.

Her eyes were a piercing blue, like snowflakes falling from the sky.

Her face was cold and distant, like frost, yet her sharp gaze radiated the aura of a hero.

The sword in her right hand sliced through the monster before her with effortless precision, as if cutting through tofu.

"She really came!" Merlin exclaimed, eyes wide with amazement.

His violet eyes sparkled, and his breathing grew slightly heavy. His little sister, missing for two years, had finally appeared in this test.

Even though he trusted that Margaret wouldn’t lie, seeing Catrine in person was thrilling beyond expectation.

’So, she’s Catrine, huh?’ Luna whispered, narrowing her eyes.

Admittedly, Catrine was breathtakingly beautiful—even rivaling Luna herself.

She radiated a unique, cold aura, as if an invisible wall of ice separated her from the world.

Luna recognized it as a barrier—one that would make anyone hesitant to approach her.

Even from a glance, she could sense Catrine’s cold, decisive, and potentially ruthless nature.

Glancing at Merlin with a worried look, Luna felt something new: fear.

If Merlin and Catrine were to meet, would his feelings for her weaken?

She hoped not—but if they did... she couldn’t bear to imagine it.

"[Ding! The system has detected turmoil within the heroine Luna Tharot! An emergency mission has been issued! Increase Luna Tharot’s mood! Status: 0/100. Reward: 40,000 system points and a Northern Blue Grass (Legendary)]"

Merlin froze at the sudden system alert. When he read the reward, his surprise only deepened.

’Northern Blue Grass? Damn! System, are you serious? You’re giving this away for free?’ he asked in surprise, swallowing hard.

Northern Blue Grass was one of the three main ingredients for brewing the Seven-Color Potion—a potion capable of reviving the dead.

At first, he had assumed collecting them would take a long time.

He already had the Feather of Life—only two ingredients remained: Northern Blue Grass and Spirit Water Lotus.

What he never expected was for the system to suddenly assign a mission with Northern Blue Grass as the reward.

"[Master, you’re really out of line! I already issued the mission, and it has to be correct. Why would I mess with you?]" the system replied in an annoyed tone.

Merlin was silent for a moment, then let out a long sigh.

’I... I’m sorry. It all feels like a dream,’ he said sheepishly.

At the same time, he glanced at Luna beside him, whose expression had darkened.

’But why is she in a bad mood?’ he wondered.

Suddenly, his gaze landed on Catrine on the screen. A meaningful smile curved her lips.

’So... jealousy, huh?’

Everything clicked. Luna and Catrine had never met before.

His mother, Livia, must have mentioned Catrine often to Luna—whether intentionally or not.

And now, seeing Catrine in person, Luna felt threatened, afraid the girl might take Merlin away from her.

Despite knowing this, Merlin had no intention of starting the mission right away.

After all, the system hadn’t set a specific time limit for completing it.

Besides, his attention was entirely on Catrine. He wanted to see how much she had grown after training with the Master of Illusions.

...

Slash!

Catrine swung her sword, wiped the blood from the blade, and sheathed it with practiced ease.

In the next instant, the last wolf was split cleanly in two, tumbling backward.

Her expression remained calm and indifferent, as if nothing could shake her.

"I got five food supplies for the next three days," she murmured, picking up five cloth bundles from the floor and storing them in her bracelet.

She looked forward, about to move on, when a playful voice called from behind.

"Wait a minute, beautiful girl. Are you just going to run away?"