CHAPTER 170: SOONER OR LATER

She lunged. He side-stepped.

She tried again.

And again.

Nathan came from the side, both hands locked on his blade now, pressing harder.

Merlin felt the shift, pressure building. Nathan was using more mana.

’He’s trying to push me back. Good.’

He caught Nathan’s wrist mid-swing. Not with effort. Just speed.

Nathan’s eyes widened.

"I’ve got more control now," Merlin said quietly.

"Since when?"

"Since a while ago."

He let go, stepped back as Elara launched another bolt of flame. Merlin swiped his hand across it. Mana folded. The fire vanished with a pop.

Elara’s eyes narrowed. "Did you just—"

"Redirected it," Merlin said. "Barely took anything."

Nathan stepped back, breathing hard. "Okay. That’s new."

"Not really," Merlin said, exhaling slowly. ’Just new to you.’

[Skill Activation: Arcane Threading – Passive Efficiency Boost Applied]

The system’s message blinked across his vision. He ignored it.

Elara threw her hair back over her shoulder. "Alright. Enough dancing."

Merlin tilted his head. "You sure?"

She didn’t answer.

She stepped in.

Fast.

Merlin blocked the first two strikes, barely. The third came too close, grazed his cheek.

He moved with it, absorbing the momentum, spinning low and sweeping her legs out from under her. She hit the dirt hard, rolled, came up swearing.

Nathan came from behind.

Merlin turned. Stopped the blade with his forearm.

It didn’t cut.

Didn’t even scratch.

Nathan froze.

Merlin looked down. "Not gonna lie. I expected more."

"Shut up," Nathan muttered.

They went again.

Ten minutes passed.

Then twenty.

Nathan’s shirt clung to his back. Elara’s braid had come undone, strands sticking to her face. Both of them were breathing like they’d run laps.

Merlin still hadn’t broken a sweat.

’They’re good. Better than before. But I’ve pulled too far ahead.’

He didn’t say it out loud.

Didn’t need to.

Nathan dropped into a crouch, one hand on the ground, gasping.

Elara straightened slowly, wiping her forehead.

"You’re not human," she said.

Merlin shrugged. "You say that like it’s new."

"Seriously," Nathan muttered. "What the hell happened to you?"

Merlin just smiled. A small one. The kind that didn’t answer anything.

"You wanna go again?" he asked.

They groaned in unison.

Elara fell back into the dirt. "No. Absolutely not."

Nathan joined her a second later. "You win. You’re the monster now."

Merlin stood over them, watching the stars blink into the twilight sky.

’They don’t get it. And I can’t explain it. Not yet.’

The wind pushed through the trees. Elara sat up, tossing a rock toward him.

"You’ve got that face again."

"What face?"

"The one where you’re thinking too much."

"I always think too much."

Nathan rolled his eyes. "That’s the problem."

Merlin looked down at them. His friends. His past, present, and future. Still breathing.

’Not everyone stays alive. But maybe this time, I can keep these ones standing.’

[System Alert: Passive Strength Increase Applied – Conditioning Threshold Met]

[No one else can see these messages.]

He rubbed the back of his neck.

"Let’s get food."

Nathan blinked. "Just like that?"

Merlin nodded. "I’m starving."

Elara groaned. "I’m too tired to walk."

Merlin offered her a hand. "You fought well."

She took it, reluctantly.

"You’re buying."

"Deal."

They limped off toward the dorms, the dirt still warm under their feet.

Merlin didn’t look back.

He didn’t need to.

—

The food court was quieter than usual, late enough that most people were gone, early enough that the staff didn’t care how long they stayed.

Nathan had his feet up on the opposite bench, halfway through a sandwich the size of his head. Elara was nursing something green and probably awful, but her glare dared anyone to comment on it.

Merlin just stirred his bowl, not really eating. His appetite was still there, burning bright, but his focus wasn’t.

’System said I hit another threshold. That’s three in the last two days. Either I’m adapting faster than I should be... or I’m not supposed to be adapting at all.’

He forced down another bite.

Elara noticed first. "You’re being weird again."

"I’m always weird."

"Not like this. This is worse."

Nathan grunted. "He’s just mad he can’t show off any more new skills without breaking the ceiling."

Merlin snorted. "I’m not that bad."

"You broke a rock in half by blinking yesterday."

"That was the wind."

"That was your wind," Elara muttered.

He didn’t argue. Just let the banter keep rolling. It grounded him.

Still, that old feeling crawled up the back of his neck. The itch. Like something bigger was circling, something just out of sight.

’The white-haired guy knew. Morgana suspects. The system’s pushing harder. And the main event he warned me about... it’s not going to wait.’

His fingers drummed against the tray. Elara glanced at him again, but said nothing this time.

[Skill Node: Adaptive Flow – Unlocked]

[Rathan’s Memory Core: 11% Integrated]

He didn’t flinch. But the number made something tighten in his chest.

’Eleven percent, and I’m already this far ahead of them. What’s it going to look like at twenty? Fifty?’

He wasn’t scared of power. He wasn’t even scared of losing control.

He was scared of not knowing what came next.

Nathan threw his wrapper across the table and stretched out with a groan. "Alright, I’m tapping out. Don’t wake me till noon."

"Same," Elara said. "Except if you wake me, I punch you."

"Fair."

Merlin smiled faintly. "Go ahead. I’ll clean up."

They left with a wave, voices fading into the hallway beyond. He stayed, staring down at the tray like it had answers.

’They’re getting stronger. Just not fast enough.’

He stood, tossed the trash, and walked out under the campus lights.

The air outside had cooled. No more sparring. No more food.

Just stars again.

He looked up, searching the sky for something that didn’t exist anymore.

Then the system spoke again.

[Warning: Event Trigger Approaching – "Broken Gate – 42 Hours"]

[Location: East District – Sector C]

Merlin exhaled slowly.

’So that’s it.’

He turned back toward the dorms, hands in his pockets.

There was too much still left unsaid.

And too little time left to say it.

—

The sun was too bright. Not burning, just annoying. Merlin squinted up at the sky as he rolled his shoulders back, letting the tension ease out of his arms before exhaling through his nose.

Nathan stood a few meters across the training field, holding a wooden sword that looked like it had seen better days. He bounced on his heels, grinning like this was just another friendly match.

"Don’t hold back this time," Nathan called, spinning the hilt in one hand. "You went easy last round. I want to see what that fancy coma did to your reflexes."

Merlin didn’t answer right away. He tightened the wraps around his wrists, pulling the knot firm. No gloves today. No point.

’He has no idea.’

The system hovered just outside his peripheral vision. Not literal, but always present. It had gone quiet lately, only chiming in when absolutely necessary. But even when it wasn’t talking, Merlin could feel it—like an extra pair of lungs quietly breathing in the back of his head.

[Combat Sync: 92%]

[Rathan Legacy Suppressed – Phase I: Passive Boost Active]

[Skill Inheritance Unlocked: "Killing Intent Compression (LV1)"]

[Status Effect Applied: "Suppressed Aura" – Hiding true power output]

Merlin shook out his hands. His legs already knew what to do.

Nathan lunged.

Merlin barely had to shift. His body slid sideways, just enough to let the strike whistle past. The wooden blade scraped air.

Nathan spun on the balls of his feet and struck again, quicker this time, tighter form, good follow-up, but still slow.

Merlin caught the strike with the flat of his forearm, twisted his wrist, and tapped Nathan’s ribs with two fingers before stepping back.

"Point," he said.

Nathan exhaled sharply. "That’s not even a legal move."

"You didn’t say we were playing by rules."

"I figured ’don’t treat me like a toddler’ was implied."

Merlin cracked his neck to one side. "Then move faster."

Nathan grinned. "Alright."

They circled again. This time, Merlin let his muscles relax more, testing how slow he could go without actually getting hit. The answer was: very.

Nathan’s strikes weren’t weak, just predictable. They had rhythm. A beat you could count, read, and counter before the second note even dropped.

’This isn’t a spar. It’s a patience test.’

He stepped in, grabbed Nathan’s shoulder, and swept his leg out from under him in one clean motion. Nathan hit the dirt with a grunt.

"You’ve been working on your strength," Merlin said.

Nathan groaned, spitting grass. "And you’ve apparently turned into a cheat code."

Merlin offered a hand. Nathan took it.

"Again?" Nathan asked, already brushing himself off.

Merlin considered it.

There was no strain. His body was just cruising. Every movement felt easier now, lighter and more precise. Rathan’s training, the instincts left behind—he could feel them crawling into place. Not taking over. Just... layering over his own.

And the scary part?

It felt natural.

’It’s like I’ve done this a thousand times before. Like my body already knows the answers, and I’m just here to remember the questions.’

Nathan was already resetting his stance, waiting.

"Alright," Merlin said. "But this time? Don’t blink."

Nathan snorted. "You say that like you’re not the main character in some overpowered shonen fantasy."

Merlin didn’t answer. He just moved.