The Spirit of Music bestowed three blessings on Dason.
[The Spirit of Music bestows its blessings.]
[Your body is strengthened for smooth playing and nimble movement.]
[Your sense of hearing is strengthened so that you hear musical notes more keenly.]
[Your stamina is strengthened for long hours of playing.]
Ordinarily, a spirit bestowed only a single blessing.
'It's giving me this many blessings?'
But the Spirit of Music was generous, and it granted Dason no fewer than three blessings all at once.
[The Spirit of Music shows a deep interest in your talent.]
[The effects of the blessings are strengthened.]
It also meant that the spirit rated Dason's musical talent and passion that highly.
-Hummmm!
A golden radiance coiled around Dason's body. As the blessings of the Spirit of Music seeped into his flesh, a visible change appeared in his outward form as well.
The needless fat built up by drink vanished as if melting away, and lean, hard muscle took its place. His muscle fibers drew powerfully tight, and Dason's body filled with the health of a wild beast.
His body, now as firm as a statue carved from marble, was ready to support smooth playing, just as the Spirit of Music had promised.
As the light of the blessings slowly subsided, Dason came into view. He had been transformed into a completely different person.
"Good heavens......."
"Young Master, is it really you?"
Kemen and Alphen stared at Dason with their eyes wide, as if they could not believe it.
The dissolute young master of a noble house who had lived pickled in drink was nowhere to be found, and in his place stood a healthy, lean young man.
Blond hair glinting in the sunlight, blue eyes, a muscular body. Dason's change was so dramatic that for a while the two men could not close their mouths.
"Just as I expected."
Only one person.
Sorakan alone remained unmoved.
She had seen many people changed by a spirit's blessing, so she was unimpressed.
But Kemen and Alphen were different.
'The Young Master has turned into a proper human being.'
'Is this the power of a spirit?!'
In their eyes, the Young Master now appeared as a 'chosen one' under contract with the Spirit of Music. As if in token of the blessings, a faint golden light still lingered around him.
***
After receiving the spirit's blessings, Dason left the antique shop.
Sorakan took her leave, saying she would call again once she had made the piano. The delivery date she promised was one week from today.
'One week, huh...... Isn't that awfully fast?'
Dason could not hide his puzzlement. Even in 21st-century South Korea, making a piano took at least a week.
And that was on the premise that the materials and the machines needed to build it were all on hand.
But things were different in this world.
The people put to work on a piano numbered one, or two at the very most, and with no machines at all, every task demanding precision had to pass through human hands.
'It would've been impossible for me.'
In such poor conditions, Sorakan had landed herself the fate of working practically through the nights.
'Magic really is great...... Is that what this is?'
Dason marveled inwardly. It was a deadline that would have been utterly unimaginable if not for the skill and passion of Sorakan, armed with a craftsman's spirit.
Clunk!
Dason, who had been lost in thought, came to himself at the sound of the carriage stopping. Before he knew it, he had arrived at the estate.
Creak.
Kemen, who had been sitting on the driver's seat, opened the door of the guest compartment Dason was riding in.
"Young Master! We have arrived."
His face wore a far brighter and more satisfied expression than when they had gone to the shop.
'That's quite a swing from one extreme to the other?'
Dason's changed appearance and the contract with the Spirit of Music seemed to have made a great impression on him.
'It's a little much, too.......'
Kemen looked at Dason with eyes full of expectation, and there was even a faint smile on his lips.
"Please step down, Young Master."
Kemen urged him in a kindly voice.
"Uh...... sure."
Dason answered lightly and got down from the carriage.
Tap!
His movements were quite different from when he had climbed in. His muscles, strengthened by the blessings, responded quickly and nimbly, and he could feel that every motion had become much faster.
'Aah......! To think the Young Master would step down from a carriage so lightly!'
As if gliding over ice, Dason set foot from the carriage onto the ground in an elegant, controlled motion. Watching him, Kemen marveled without a sound.
Tap-tap...... tap.
When Dason got down from the carriage and entered the estate, the eyes of those around who recognized him converged on him.
"Good heavens, is that really the Young Master?"
"That makes no sense...... He looks like a completely different person!"
The maids whispered, unable to hide their astonishment. But to Dason's hearing, made keener by the spirit's blessing, their conversation came through in full.
'My ears have gotten really sharp.'
The maids, staring at Dason with round eyes and open mouths, looked comical.
They were as shocked as if they had witnessed an ordinary eel turn into a dragon.
Her face gone white, one maid even pinched the arm of the colleague beside her. As if she could not tell whether it was a dream or reality.
"Ahem."
Kemen cleared his throat meaningfully at the maids who were staring holes through Dason.
"Have you so much time on your hands that you can stand about chatting?"
It was a wordless warning not to stare.
"Go and see to your duties."
"Yes, understood......!"
At Kemen's words, the maids hurried away. When they had vanished in an instant, Kemen turned to Dason with a worried face.
"Young Master, please do not be too displeased. I will see that the maids are properly taught about their rude behavior."
The reason Kemen said such a thing was simple. He did not think Dason's character could have changed completely, so he was still worried that Dason might go on a rampage as he had before.
His outward appearance had changed dazzlingly, to be sure, but it was hard to believe that Dason had been transformed to the core as well.
'He has changed a great deal today, but...... the chance that it is a whim cannot be ignored.'
Kemen knew all too well the ways of the youngest young master, whom he had watched at close hand for so long. That was why he could not yet trust Dason completely.
"Sure...... Well. Got it. I'll stay out of it, so handle it as you see fit."
It went without saying, of course, but Dason had no intention of raising a hand to the maidservants.
'It's not like I'm some crazy bastard.'
His character was not so rotten that he would beat people for being startled at how he had changed.
Wriggle...... wriggle!
Just then, a small movement was caught in the pocket of Dason's jacket, and soon the Spirit of Music poked its curious face out a little.
Rustle!
Pushing aside the edge of the pocket with its small hands, the spirit quickly slipped out. It flew through the air with light movements and landed softly, straight on the floor.
"Kurung......."
Its eyes sparkling with curiosity, the spirit turned its head this way and that, eagerly taking in its surroundings. It was adorable, the way it marveled with its little mouth open, as if fascinated by sights it was seeing for the first time.
"The Spirit of Music just came out of my pocket."
Dason said.
"Is that so?"
Kemen asked back, as if puzzled.
"Yeah. It's looking around with eyes full of curiosity."
Dason described the spirit's adorable manner.
"Ho ho......."
Kemen gave an awkward laugh and scratched his head.
"I am sorry, Young Master. However wide I open my eyes and search, I cannot see the spirit."
Through its contract with Dason, the Spirit of Music was visible to him alone. However hard Kemen tried, finding the mysterious being was close to impossible.
"What about preparing a small bed for the spirit? I believe it would be useful to keep some baby things in your room, Young Master."
Kemen offered a thoughtful suggestion.
"Good. Do that for me."
"Understood. I will have it prepared at once."
Although he could not see the spirit, Kemen meant to do his very best for that small being.
With the mindset of a host receiving an unseen guest, he planned to set about the preparations with all his heart.
"Kuuung......."
The Spirit of Music stretched, overcome by drowsiness. It gently rubbed its eyes with its small hands, and soon burrowed its way into Dason's pocket.
Curling into a ball in the soft fabric, the spirit snuggled in, seeking a cozy nest. The inside of the pocket was warm and snug, so it soon fell into a deep sleep.
'No wonder it's tired.'
Listening to the spirit's cute breathing coming from inside his pocket, Dason smiled fondly. It seemed today's adventure had left his little friend quite worn out.
***
Dason carefully held the Spirit of Music in his arms and headed for his room. After gently laying the small being on the soft bed, he slipped out of the room to look around the estate.
'It's still fascinating.'
As Dason made his way, his eyes took in the many faces of the estate. Maids busily cleaning the buildings and folding laundry.
And, on top of that, the commanding faces of the knights who guarded the family's safety with a gallant bearing.
Slices of a fantasy world he had only ever encountered through novels and films were unfolding vividly before him.
'There's no time to be bored.'
Dason's heart was buoyant with the thrill of meeting a new sight at every moment.
That this excitement had not faded even though a fair amount of time had passed since he took over this body was surely proof of just how fascinating this world was.
"And...... the piano's here, too."
Swish.
Dason's gaze, which had been surveying the outside, turned to the right. There sat the piano he had asked Kemen for. Placed in an empty space on the 5th floor, the piano made its presence felt all alone, with nothing around it.
The surroundings were bare, but Dason did not mind.
If anything, he liked this space with nothing in it. That was because it seemed that sound would be able to ring out deeper and richer here.
Tap.
With that thought, Dason sat down on the bench. When he placed his hands on the piano keys, a cool, smooth touch came through at his fingertips.
As if meeting an old friend, he stroked the piano with a glad smile.
-Hummm.......
Just then, a soft light flowed from the piano.
[Rapport with the piano has been activated through the Musical Genius System.]
[The 'memory' lingering in the piano is played back.]
-Hummmmm!
And a scene flowed into Dason's head.