As Simon stepped out of the Necromancer Academy's exhibition, his mind was filled with thoughts of the 'Overlord' he had seen last.
The undead creatures had left a fresh shock in his heart.
He felt he could easily write several pages on the topic of the Overlord alone.
"Great job today, Simon!" Shun said as they rode back to the mansion in the carriage.
"Tomorrow, the security mission will start at the evening exhibition banquet."
"Banquet?"
"Yes! It’s a meal with our Old One family and the distinguished guests who came for the exhibition. And from the day after tomorrow, the exhibition will be open to the public."
Simon nodded.
"I was thinking of coming in early."
"No need! There’s nothing to prepare in advance. Just arrive two hours before the banquet."
For a job that paid 1,000 gold, the benefits were better than expected.
The carriage soon arrived at the mansion, and Shun waved goodbye as he entered with the butlers.
During the security mission, all accommodation costs would be covered by the Count's family.
The head butler had said it was fine for Simon to stay at the mansion, but he declined.
He wanted a quiet place to practice alone.
Thus, Simon chose a cabin located a bit away from the core area of Blue Harbor.
It was a small one-story house with a view of the night sea.
The price was cheap, and at night, there were few people around, so it was fine even if undead creatures wandered about.
"Alright, Commander! Cheers!" To match Erzevet's mood, he had dinner with her over a glass of wine.
For the first time in a while, he let the corpse spiders roam freely on the sandy beach to suck the blood of insects and small beasts.
As soon as dinner was over, Simon entered his room alone. 'I can't waste a single second.' His goal for this mission was to elevate the level of his 'Bone Armor' even further.
Taking a deep breath, he cleared his mind and secured enough darkness around him before standing up.
He then took out two skeletons from the void and positioned them on either side.
"Bone Armor!"
With a whoosh, the skeletons began to disassemble and attach themselves to Simon's body.
He didn't expect to cover himself completely like Aaron had shown him before.
The most important thing was whether he could connect them to his limbs to enhance his overall strength.
"Focus. Focus."
It wasn't difficult to set up the large bones, but as the smaller bones took their place, the balance quickly wavered.
To succeed in the Bone Armor, Simon had to completely reverse and twist the 'bone connection order' he had learned, whether theoretically or instinctively.
The vertebrae had to fit into the joints of the arm bones, and the leg bones had to merge with the neck bones.
Moreover, since he was using two skeletons, the bones from different skeletons would interlock chaotically.
He had to escape that chilling sense of dissonance and strategically align the bones to form the 'armor.'
Suddenly, his concentration broke.
The ribs, which he had neglected while aligning the arms, collapsed, and the connected parts scattered like dominoes.
Simon knelt on the floor, panting.
"Haah! Hah!" It was indeed difficult.
Even when preparing the mud golem, it hadn't been this hard.
When had he realized the high wall of summoning magic?
"Again!" Simon sprang up and attempted the Bone Armor until it worked.
[Commander~ Are you hungry? I brought a late-night snack!]
Erzevet, holding a plate of food in one hand, paused.
She then shushed the corpse spiders following her.
The spiders, who had been approaching with plates of juice and pudding on their bodies, also stopped.
[As expected, the Commander is a great practice bug.]
-Kiririri!
[Don't get excited; it's not the kind of bug you eat, you fools.]
Erzevet quietly closed the door behind her.
"Simon! You’re here?" Shun welcomed Simon, who entered the banquet hall in a neat formal outfit.
"What’s wrong? I gave you a break, but why do you look more tired?"
"No, I’m fine."
Simon forced a smile.
In truth, he had spent most of his break training for the Bone Armor, which had drained him a bit.
Still, he had managed to take short naps to prepare himself for the mission.
"By the way, do I need to change clothes too?"
"What are you talking about? You’re wearing the perfect outfit!" Shun pointed at Simon's stylish Kizen uniform.
"You just need to tidy up your hair."
With a snap of his fingers, a rough hand suddenly grabbed Simon's wrist from behind.
In an instant, Simon found himself seated in a chair in the next room, stammering, "W-What are you doing?"
"We're setting you up. Your eyes will hurt."
Sizzle! Sizzle!
A middle-aged woman in a maid outfit began to spray something on his head.
Simon quickly closed his eyes as it really did sting.
Shun, following behind, chuckled playfully.
"Wow! Your scalp is stretching like dough!"
"...... Be quiet."
Once Simon's hair was set, he moved into the banquet hall with Shun.
In front of an antique table, freshly cooked dishes were lavishly displayed buffet-style.
Even the smallest piece of cutlery looked expensive.
"This is our spot."
Shun perched on the edge of the indoor fountain not far from the main entrance of the banquet hall.
"When guests arrive, greet them, say hello, and send them inside."
"Okay. I understand."
"Guests will probably say a word or two about your Kizen uniform. Just respond appropriately! You can do that, right?"
"I'll try."
Simon adjusted his tie, steeling himself.
Just then, the head butler at the main entrance announced, "Count! Guests are entering."
"Okay! Let’s start."
As the main door opened, a gentleman in formal attire and a lady in a dress entered, holding hands.
The head butler announced loudly, "Lord Kinola Old One and Lady Sophie Old One are entering."
The Old Ones were from the same family as Shun.
Simon quickly processed the situation and read the atmosphere as the Kinola couple stood before Shun.
"Welcome, uncle!"
"Ah, Count Shun! It’s good to see you."
The two exchanged simple greetings.
Perhaps due to Shun's title as Count, he did not take precedence in the conversation.
'Now, let’s focus.'
The Dark Alliance had different customs and ceremonies in each country.
Currently, the alliance consisted of four kingdoms:
The 'Dresden' kingdom, with Rankustin as its capital, close to Kizen.
The 'Baldwin' kingdom, which included Simon's hometown of Reshill.
The 'Calros' kingdom, where Simon's first mission site, Arnis, was located.
And the 'Shahed' kingdom in the north, which felt isolated despite being part of the alliance.
Among them, Blue Harbor belonged to the Baldwin kingdom.
He was well aware of the customs here.
After finishing their conversation, the Kinola couple approached Simon.
"Young man! This is the special first student from Kizen!"
"Ah, so this is......!"
"I am Simon Polentia."
Simon smiled gently, bowed his head, and shook hands with them.
He lightly kissed the back of the lady's hand.
"Thank you for gracing our family's exhibition, Kizen student."
"Thanks to the Count's invitation, I am honored."
After exchanging a few words, Simon straightened his back and bowed again.
After all, he was here as a guard, and it was only polite to greet the Count, who introduced him.
The Kinola couple seemed to understand this and entered the banquet hall.
"Lord Ryan Davi of the Galan territory is entering!"
Simon's head spun.
Galan was a territory of the Dresden kingdom.
This time, Simon greeted him according to Dresden's customs.
Following that, about ten guests came in succession, but Simon handled it smoothly.
His ability to respond according to the nationality, status, and gender of the guests was not just skillful; it was almost dazzling.
Shun, witnessing this, was surprised and tapped his legs.
"What’s up, brother? How do you know so much?"
"I learned strict etiquette from my father."
He had been beaten whenever he made mistakes.
Back then, he wondered why he had to learn such etiquette in a rural territory, but he realized that no learning is meaningless.
Simon maintained a smile as he received the guests' words.
"I’m sorry, but I’m on a security mission for the Count."
"Thanks to the Count's grace, I was able to come here."
"Yes, it’s all thanks to the Count."
"Isn't Count Shun more knowledgeable than I am?"
The Kizen uniform stood out anywhere.
Thus, some people showed more interest in Simon than in Shun.
Each time that happened, Simon would step back while greeting people, thoroughly lifting Shun up.
'The reason why Shun's Old One family hired me for 1,000 gold for this mission.'
He understood well.
The reputation of being Kizen's special first student was a splendid trophy to brighten this occasion.
And for the unstable and young Shun, who had just inherited the family, having Kizen's special first student guaranteed his title as Count was a sort of safety net.
'I will make sure to deliver the value of 1,000 gold as you expected.'
In this place, no one could look down on Shun.
Simon focused on remaining a supporting character, lifting Shun up.
The family members and butlers watched Simon's handling with beaming smiles.
"Unlike the young folks these days, he’s quite thoughtful."
"Yes. He knows his position perfectly."
"His character is upright. He’s not just trying to impress the elders for no reason."
"Shh, shh. Lord Pinch will hear you."
At that moment, the head butler looked around.
"But where is Lord Pinch?"
At the same time, Lord Pinch, who had secretly slipped out of the banquet hall, looked around to ensure no one was nearby.
He then took out a communication crystal from his pocket and spoke in a calm voice.
"It’s me."
- We’ve set off as planned.
We should reach Blue Harbor the day after tomorrow.
A rough male voice came from the communication crystal.
"Understood. There are no issues on this side. All the key figures of the family have gathered at the banquet hall."
- No issues? According to our intelligence network, there have been some concerning rumors.
The man's voice turned cold.
- There are rumors that a Kizen student has entered Blue Harbor.
"Oh, there’s no need to worry. A Kizen first-year is just a chick; it’s not even a variable. If you’re that concerned, I’ll take care of him myself, so don’t worry."
- A first-year, huh.......
Pinch chuckled softly.
"Why, are you scared now?"
- Don’t provoke me, Necromancer.
No matter who the opponent is, we will sweep everything clean without leaving a blade of grass behind.
Of course, as long as the payment is secured.
"Of course. I, Pinch, guarantee it."
The corners of his mouth lifted.
"Everything on this island belongs to you."