CHAPTER 19: LIFE

Weakly awakening, Julian opened his eyes wide. The familiar ceiling greeted him, and beside him lingered a mature and sweet body scent. A sensation of silky smoothness and soothing comfort washed over his body, stirring his emotions.

He touched himself and realized he was lying on the bed completely naked.

Instinctively gripping the quilt tightly, Julian pulled the edge of the blanket forward to cover half his face.

Turning over and hiding under the covers, he still looked bewildered and lost in thought.

Was that just now... some kind of spring dream?

Julian pondered calmly.

Could this be what Losiya referred to as "rebirth and transformation"?

Even now, it all felt unreal to him. His entire body was limp and exhausted, completely drained of strength. Even that part of him ached with fatigue.

In that dreamlike state, he had been thoroughly overwhelmed by the seductive phoenix, unable to muster any resistance at all. In the end, he even...

The more he thought about it, the more tightly he pulled the quilt over himself, burying his whole head under the covers.

"Julian, you’re awake?" A soft and gentle voice came from outside the blanket.

Julian instantly snapped awake and poked his head out. Not far away, seated on a chair, Lady Catherine slowly stood up, her beautiful eyes looking at him in surprise.

"The ritual went smoothly?" Julian asked weakly in a soft, breathy voice that made it hard not to feel a twinge in the heart.

Lady Catherine’s expression remained calm, but guilt and a strange restlessness flickered in her heart... Seeing Julian’s eyes staring straight at her, she suddenly felt a bit afraid.

This kind of thing—especially the first time—typically left a strong reaction afterward. Recalling that powerful and intense presence from the night before, Julian clearly had no doubt it had been his first time.

This made Lady Catherine involuntarily think of her husband, a prince of the Sakura Roland Empire, who on their wedding day didn’t even want to touch her hand.

After a few attempts at intimacy, she discovered he had lost that ability long ago, and his personality was rather eccentric.

As a result, she never had children of her own, instead pouring her unfulfilled maternal affection onto her niece Losiya, her elder sister’s daughter.

Over the years, the relationship between the two had been respectfully distant. To be blunt, they simply tolerated each other as unrelated strangers.

After what had happened last night, she had appeared calm on the surface, but inside she was deeply uneasy, worried that Julian had discovered what she had done.

However, Julian was staring at her because he suddenly felt that the woman in his dream had the exact same figure as Lady Catherine—full curves, a slim waist... in that kind of scene, she had been the perfect partner in bed.

Experiencing something like that and then waking up, it was like being wrapped in sweet, soft candy—he wanted more, wanted to dig deeper, to fully explore every inch.

In the dream, he had never seen the woman’s face clearly, but now looking at Lady Catherine—her large, charming, and innocent eyes, her sensually contoured face, her high nose, and full red lips—he almost completely merged the dream woman and Catherine into one.

"Of course the ritual ended smoothly. You can get up and take a look," Lady Catherine replied, quickly shifting the topic.

Julian recalled that before falling asleep, Catherine had drawn numerous sigil-like symbols on his body. He slowly sat up and pulled the blanket away.

Just like before, his skin was smooth and flawless. Aside from his previously frail physique seeming slightly more toned, nothing else appeared to have changed.

He looked down in confusion and suddenly realized that his vision had unexpectedly improved.

Raising his head and looking around the room, everything became perfectly clear. The right eye, which had once been his weakness, now seemed like a genuine part of his body.

Lady Catherine moved closer silently, gently sitting on the edge of the bed, and spoke warmly.

"Try to channel your magic."

"Channel magic?"

"Let me help you get used to it first."

As she spoke, Catherine placed her hand on Julian’s shoulder.

A miraculous scene unfolded—countless threads of light slowly lit up across Julian’s skin, connecting into intricate lines like electrical circuits.

It felt as if some sealed knowledge in his mind was being unlocked, revealing information that helped him comprehend the mysteries hidden within the Holy Mark.

From Catherine’s point of view, a platinum flower-like sigil bloomed on Julian’s back, harmonizing with his long silver-white hair. She suddenly recalled a rumor within the Church.

She shook her head, dismissing it. She didn’t believe in such fantastical tales, not one bit.

Julian’s magic capacity was still minimal and couldn’t sustain itself. In less than five minutes, the lines across his body faded. When he opened his eyes, he felt like he had just run a ten-kilometer marathon—his whole body ached, and he collapsed directly onto Lady Catherine.

The feeling was just like in his dream, falling onto something soft and fluffy—yet firm and warm. Catherine supported Julian’s head on her shoulder and lifted her full bosom to cradle him.

"Do you know what your Holy Mark is?" she asked tenderly.

"It’s ’Life’," Julian replied weakly.

The Holy Mark Codex includes a little-known but interesting rule: the broader the concept embodied by a Holy Mark, the higher its rank.

Losiya’s ’Mental Structure’ was a rare exception. Mental-type Holy Marks were crucially complex—greater depth brought greater power.

"A priest’s Holy Mark?" Catherine mused aloud.

Each Holy Mark forms the foundation of a superhuman’s future path. Losiya was walking the road of a ’Sword Dancer’ aimed at divine blade mastery, while Catherine’s ’Stone Seal’ marked her path as a ’Star Mage.’

Julian’s near-perfect foundational Holy Mark gave him far more options than most—truly endless possibilities.

"Let’s not rush into study just yet. You need a midnight meal. Awakening rituals are very taxing. Come, let me help you," Catherine offered, supporting him.

Julian quietly tugged at the edge of the blanket to cover his lower body and hesitated before saying, "Could you bring me some clothes first?"

Only then did Catherine realize that Julian was still completely unclothed. Blushing, she went to the wardrobe. Thankfully, Losiya had left many spare clothes in the room.

Of course, they were all girls’ clothes. Catherine selected a modest nightgown and, after some hesitation, also grabbed a soft, lace-trimmed slip.

Then she ran into another problem—Julian was too drained of magic to perform even slightly demanding movements...

Lifting the bedsheet quietly, she suddenly found herself face-to-face with something that nearly poked her right in the nose.

That burning, innocent scent hit her nostrils, mixed with a faint body fragrance.

It left Lady Catherine, this mature beauty, momentarily dazed. Hadn’t he just released everything?

She blankly wondered if she had underestimated young men’s energy.

Julian awkwardly pulled the blanket back down.

"During the ritual... I had a strange dream, so my body’s a bit sensitive right now. Could you please step out for a bit? I’ll get dressed myself."