Translator: “Kell” Editor: ”Weasalopes”

Laylsan was a foreign exchange student so it was strange to see her in the party . As I was thinking that, she found me and came over .

「Noir-kun, what are you doing here?」

「I’m here as Emma’s escort . I’m technically, though barely, a n.o.ble . 」

「Is that so? That’s a nice dress, Emmsan . 」

「Muuu…」

「I think she doesn’t like me . 」

Emma regarded Laylsan with moist eyes for a while, then shook her hand .

「I’m Emma . Noir’s childhood friend and partner . 」

「I-I see . So you two are close . 」

「You should let me know too before you do anything to Noir, Laylsan . 」

「I-I get it . So please just let go of my hand . 」

Apparently Emma had quite a grip . But that was neither here nor there . I moved the conversation along . She clearly wasn’t here to attend the party since she was wearing casual clothing . It was also evident from the fact that she stayed in the corner inconspicuously .

「You don’t know? We’re here for security . The people you see over there are all members of Ramuh . 」

「Did Count Bourne ask for you?」

「Yeah . The Phantom is after his treasure apparently . 」

「Phantom?!」

Emma and her parents’ reaction was over-the-top . Were they really that interested in the Phantom? Then again, it made sense . The fellow has been causing trouble in town recently and was known for targeting only n.o.bles and stealing valuable treasures like it was nothing . His thieving and combat skills were reputedly top-notch .

「I can’t disclose any details, but suffice to say that we’re here to protect that treasure . 」

「I see . 」

「I heard the Phantom were actually a pair . But with all these competent Ramuh guild members, we’ll surely catch the thieves . You can all dance in peace . 」

Laylsan gave me a lovely wink as she returned to her post . She said they were here to protect a treasure . There was only an old clock as tall as a full-grown adult near them . It didn’t look valuable . It was then that I noticed Emma and her parents’ pale expressions .

「Are you all okay?」

「Actually, Noir-kun… it’s not just the count’s treasure that the Phantom’s after . 」

「Dad, stop! You don’t have to tell Noir . 」

「You know we can’t do that . 」

「Then at least wait until the dance is over . I want to dance with Noir first . 」

「All right . Later then . 」

I could tell it was a serious matter . But Emma just smiled as if saying that everything was fine .

「There’s nothing to worry about . I swear . 」

「You’re trying too hard, Emma . I can tell between a forced and a genuine smile . 」

「Uhh… I guess I can’t hide it from you . I’ll tell you after we dance, so just bear with me for now . 」

「Okay, I understand . 」

The thief always struck late at night . It was still early in the evening there was still plenty of time . We’ll just have fun till then .

「Thank you all for coming here . I’m Bourne Rislet . 」

Count Bourne stood in the middle of the hall and greeted everyone with a bow . He started with a normal speech then a stir swept through the entire hall . Why? Because the name Phantom came out of his mouth .

「A few days ago, I received a notice . The sender was the fellow who’s caused a stir in our society recently, the Phantom . 」

「N-No way…」

「The Phantom is after the Count Bourne?」

「I ask you to remain quiet . Please rest a.s.sured . He’s after the Mermaid’s Tear that I own, but we’re not going to let him steal it . I have here the kingdom’s number one guild and their very competent adventurers as guards . 」

Laylsan and the others bowed slightly at the Count’s introduction . Emma was quietly complaining, saying “Odin’s number one” and I nodded in agreement about five times .

「We have elite troops that I’ve hired for a huge sum stationed in the vicinity and the other rooms . Intrusion is impossible . Even if they did somehow manage to get in, they would have no idea where to go since they don’t know where the Mermaid’s Tear is . Hahaha . 」

His confidence eased the worries of the partygoers somewhat . The Mermaid’s Tear was a precious jewel, small enough to hide in one’s palm . There were a lot of rooms in the hall so finding it would require a lot of effort .

The party was formally opened with the Count’s call and I started working on the exquisite cuisine . They were mostly of high grade and while my mouth enjoyed the food, I didn’t get much LP . If only there were some rare delicacies… Wait, what’s that?

「Hey, Emma . Are my eyes deceiving me or is that a monster’s head?」

「Oh, apparently it’s the head of a monster called Yummy Bull . It shows up occasionally in the neighboring country . It’s also quite the gourmet as it would only eat expensive corn . 」

「So, you eat its brain?」

「Go forth, third son of the Stalgia family!」

She’s enjoying this for sure . She pushed me from behind and I made my way to the monster head . It was supposed to be dead but its eyes were firm and I could feel some kind of pressure . Its skull was removed, its brains exposed . I had some served onto my plate . It was white and had plenty of wrinkles . Are Yummy Bulls smart? My heart was pounding as I dug in .

It had smooth texture like soft roe . It was soft and fluffy, but not too much; just a bit firm with pretty even consistency . Above all, it was delectable . A bit sweet, like a golden slime’s jelly . What set it apart was how it got sweeter the more you chew . I finished my plate in no time .

「You look happy . 」 Emma pointed out .

I grinned as I checked my LP . It increased by 500 . Coming to n.o.ble parties might not be too bad if I could have this kind of food . The problem was talking to the other n.o.bles and dancing . I wasn’t really good at either .

Well, I got some LP so time to learn the skill【Dancing】to make me a better dancer!

It only cost 200 LP so I created the skill without hesitation . Now there’s no need to fear dancing . I think!