Chapter 97
Even as he stepped out of the exhibition, Simon’s mind was filled with thoughts of the “Overlord” he had seen at the end.
The tentacled undead had left such a fresh impact on him. He felt like he could easily write several pages of a report just on the Overlord alone.
“You worked hard today, Simon brother!”
On the way back to the mansion in a carriage, Shun spoke up.
“Tomorrow’s escort duty starts at the exhibition dinner.”
“Dinner?”
“Yeah! A meal with our Oldwen family members and the esteemed guests attending the exhibition. And the day after tomorrow, the exhibition opens to the public.”
Simon nodded.
“I was planning to head out early in the morning.”
“No need! There’s nothing to prepare ahead of time. Just arrive two hours before the dinner.”
For a 1,000-gold job, the benefits were better than expected.
Soon the carriage arrived at the mansion, and Shun waved goodbye as he entered with the butlers.
During the escort assignment, all lodging costs were covered by the count’s household. The head butler had said it was fine to stay at the mansion, but Simon declined. There was something he wanted to practice alone in a quiet place.
The place Simon chose was a small cabin a bit away from the central district of Blue Harbor.
A small one-story house overlooking the night sea. It was cheap, and since there were few people around at night, it didn’t matter if undead came and went.
[Here you go, Commander! Cheers!]
To match Erzebet’s mood, he had dinner with her and a glass of wine in the evening. For the first time in a while, the Corpse Spiders were also let loose on the sandy beach to freely suck the blood of insects and small animals.
As soon as the meal ended, Simon went into the room alone.
‘Not a single second to waste.’
Simon’s goal for this mission was to raise the level of Bone Armor even further.
He took a deep breath, emptied his mind, gathered enough Darkness into his body, and stood up. Then he pulled out two skeletons from subspace and set them on either side of him.
‘Bone Armor!’
Chwarururuk!
The skeletons’ bodies disassembled and began attaching themselves to Simon’s body.
He didn’t expect to reach the level Aron had once shown him, where the body was completely covered. The most important thing was whether or not the armor could connect to the limbs and produce full-body strength amplification.
‘Focus. Focus.’
Building the main frame with large bones wasn’t too difficult, but once the smaller bones were placed, the balance became unstable.
To successfully execute Bone Armor, Simon had to not only reverse but twist the “bone connection sequence” he had acquired through both theory and instinct. Spine bones had to fit into arm joints, leg bones fused with neck bones. And since he was using two skeletons, bones from one often tangled with those of the other.
To push past this creepy mismatch, he had to place each bone deliberately for the sake of forming “armor”.
Waaaarurururuk!
He lost concentration. While aligning the arm, the rib bones he had neglected collapsed, causing the rest to fall apart like dominoes.
Simon dropped to his knees, panting.
“Haaah! Hah!”
As expected, it was difficult. Even preparing for the Mud Golem hadn’t been this hard.
He couldn’t remember the last time he’d felt such an overwhelming wall in the field of Summonology.
‘Again!’
Simon jumped up and attempted Bone Armor again and again until it worked.
[Commander. Your belly should be nice and empty now, right? I brought a late-night snack!]
Erzebet, holding a plate of food in one hand, stopped in her tracks. Then she turned to the Corpse Spiders following her and let out a “Shhh”.
The spiders, carrying juice and pudding on their abdomens, also came to a halt.
[As expected, our Commander is a relentless training maniac.]
-Kiririri!
[Don’t get excited. That’s not food for you, dummies.]
Erzebet quietly closed the door behind her.
* * *
“Simon brother! You made it?”
Shun, dressed in a sharp formal uniform, welcomed Simon as he entered the banquet hall.
“What’s this? We gave you a break and you look even more tired?”
“No, I’m fine.”
Simon forced a smile.
Truthfully, he had spent most of his break training Bone Armor, and it had worn him out a bit. Still, he’d taken naps here and there and was in good enough shape to carry out the mission.
“Do I need to change clothes too?”
“What are you talking about? You’re already wearing the perfect outfit.”
Shun pointed to Simon’s stylish Keyzen uniform.
“Just need to fix your hair a bit.”
As Shun snapped his fingers, a rough hand grabbed Simon’s wrist from behind. Before he knew it, he was seated in a chair in the next room.
“W-What’s going on?”
“Time for styling. Close your eyes, this’ll sting.”
Ssshhk! Ssshhk!
A middle-aged woman in a maid uniform began spraying something onto his hair.
Simon quickly shut his eyes as they started to sting for real. Shun, following behind, chuckled mischievously.
“Wow! Your scalp stretches like dough!”
“...Shut up.”
Once his hair was done, Simon moved to the banquet hall with Shun.
Before the elegant tables, freshly cooked food was laid out in a dazzling buffet. Even the smallest utensils looked expensive.
“Our spot is here.”
In front of the indoor fountain not far from the main entrance. Shun sat on the edge of the fountain and continued.
“When the guests arrive, we greet them here, say hello, and send them inside.”
“Got it. Understood.”
“The guests will probably see your Keyzen uniform and say a few things. Just go along with it! You can handle that, right?”
“I’ll give it a shot.”
Simon adjusted his tie, bracing himself. At that moment, the head butler by the entrance called out.
“My lord, the guests are arriving.”
“Alright! Let’s begin.”
As the door opened, a gentleman in formal wear and a lady in a dress entered hand in hand. The butler called out loudly.
“Sir Kinola Oldwen and Lady Sophie Oldwen are entering!”
Oldwen, same family as Shun.
Simon quickly gathered the information and read the room. The Kinola couple stopped in front of Shun.
“Welcome, Uncle!”
“Hoho! Greetings, Count Shun.”
The two exchanged brief pleasantries. Perhaps because of his position as a count, Shun did not bow first.
‘Alright, focus.’
The Dark Alliance’s customs and etiquette differ from country to country.
Currently, the Alliance consists of four kingdoms:
The Dresden Kingdom, with Langerstine as its capital, closest to Keyzen.
The Baldwin Kingdom, which includes Leshill, Simon’s hometown.
The Carlos Kingdom, which includes Arnish, where Simon had his first mission.
And the isolated northern Shahed Kingdom, technically part of the Alliance, but with a strong sense of separation.
Blue Harbor belongs to the Baldwin Kingdom, so Simon was well-versed in this region’s formalities.
After finishing their conversation, the Kinola couple turned toward Simon and approached.
“Uncle! This is the number one special-admission student from Keyzen!”
“Ahh, so this is the one…!”
“My name is Simon Follentia.”
Simon said, giving a gentle smile and bowing his head before shaking hands. To the lady, he offered a light kiss on the back of her hand.
“It’s an honor that a student from Keyzen would grace our family’s exhibition.”
“It’s all thanks to being summoned by the Count. The honor is mine.”
After exchanging a few words, Simon straightened his posture and bowed again.
After all, Simon was here in an escort role, and it was only because the Count personally introduced him that he greeted them. Carrying on too long would be discourteous. The Kinola couple, understanding this, proceeded into the banquet hall.
“Baron Ryan Darby, Lord of the Galan Fiefdom, is entering!”
Simon’s mind spun. Galan belonged to the Dresden Kingdom.
This time, Simon greeted them according to Dresden etiquette.
Roughly ten guests arrived in quick succession, but Simon handled them smoothly. His responses, tailored to the guest’s nationality, status, and gender, went beyond polished, he was dazzlingly adept.
Even Shun was so surprised he tapped his legs in amazement.
“What the heck, brother? How do you know all this stuff so well?”
“My father drilled etiquette into me hard.”
He learned while getting beaten every time he made a mistake. Back then, he couldn’t understand why such training was necessary in a rural fiefdom. But now he knew, no learning is ever wasted. Simon kept a steady smile as he responded to guests.
“My apologies, I’m currently on escort duty for the Count.”
“I am here today thanks to the Count’s gracious favor.”
“Yes, it’s all thanks to the Count.”
“I believe Count Shun would be far more knowledgeable than me.”
The Keyzen uniform drew attention wherever it went. Sometimes, people showed more interest in Simon than in Shun himself. Whenever that happened, Simon would gracefully engage the guests and then step back, thoroughly emphasizing Shun’s presence.
‘The reason the Oldwen family hired me for this mission, even paying 1,000 gold.’
He understood it well.
A dazzling trophy to elevate this event, carrying the fame of Keyzen’s number one special-admission student.
And a kind of security, a guarantee for the young, unstable Shun who had just inherited the family name. That Keyzen’s top student vouched for his countship.
‘I’ll prove myself worth the 1,000 gold, just as you expected.’
In this place, no one could dare look down on Shun.
Simon fully embraced his supporting role, focusing on elevating Shun. The household members and butlers of the family watched Simon’s conduct with beaming smiles.
“That young man’s got a maturity rare for someone his age.”
“Mhm. He knows his role to a tee.”
“Polite, well-mannered to elders… No wonder people fight to recruit Keyzen students.”
“Shh, shh. Sir Finch might hear you.”
At that moment, the head butler glanced around.
“By the way, where is Sir Finch?”
* * *
At that same time.
Finch, who had discreetly slipped out of the banquet hall, looked around to ensure no one was nearby. Then, he pulled a communication crystal from his coat and spoke in a calm voice.
“It’s me.”
– We've launched as planned. We should arrive at Blue Harbor the day after tomorrow.
A rough male voice came through the communication crystal.
“Got it. No problems here either. All the key members of the family have gathered in the banquet hall.”
– No problems? Our intel suggests there’s a concerning rumor.
The man’s voice turned cold.
– The rumor that a Keyzen student is in Blue Harbor.
“Ah, nothing to worry about. Even if he’s from Keyzen, he’s just a first-year chick. He’s not even a variable. If it really bothers you, I’ll take care of him myself, so don’t worry.”
– A first-year, huh…
Finch let out a snort.
“What, getting cold feet now?”
– Don’t provoke me, necromancer. No matter who the opponent is, we’ll wipe out everything without leaving even a blade of grass. As long as the payment is certain.
“Of course. Finch guarantees it.”
The corners of his mouth curled up.
“Everything on this island will be yours.”
Superb.