The dwarf named Dain had perhaps noticed at a glance that the drink in Noah's bowl wasn't alcohol but lemonade, thanks to his race's keen senses.
"Hey, kid, why are you drinking something so bland, like an elf? A man ought to drink!"
Noah, who had always kept a straight face, let his gaze wander slightly for the first time.
"I think a competent adventurer should always stay alert and clear-headed, so I never touch alcohol."
Noah thought he'd made a flawless excuse, but the three across from him immediately looked suspicious.
"Hey, kid, you wouldn't happen to—"
"No way! You're a man in your teens!"
"And you can't even drink? Hahahaha!"
The three of them burst into even louder laughter, and the air was soon filled with merriment.
Loki and the others couldn't hold back anymore and hurried over to join in.
"What, what? What's so funny?"
"Hey, Loki, this kid can't drink!"
"No way!"
Watching Loki laugh like a jackhammer, Noah pressed his lips together, the corner of his eye twitching.
"Hey, kid, you've got to try everything at least once in life. Give it a shot? This is fine wine from the Dionysus Familia!"
Looking at the swaying crimson liquid in the cup the Amazon handed him, Noah took a deep breath and accepted it.
"All right, but keep an eye on me after I drink it."
"Oh?"
The laughter died down, and everyone watched Noah curiously.
"The last time I drank was five or six years ago. One of my companions secretly swapped my drink for alcohol, and then..."
"And then?"
"Then I blacked out. When I came to, it seemed like there'd been a battle around me. My companions were either passed out on the ground or hanging from trees."
As Noah finished speaking and prepared to down the wine in one gulp, everyone's expressions changed dramatically, as if they'd suddenly thought of something.
Loki in particular, whose face had been flushed red from drinking, turned pale in an instant. Moving with a speed that would have impressed any adventurer, she snatched the cup from Noah's hand.
"Wait! You'd better not drink that!"
"Hm?"
While Noah wondered if Loki was overreacting, she turned to look in the other direction along with everyone else.
There, a little blonde girl was valiantly winding noodles around her fork, sauce smeared across her fair little face.
When she noticed Loki looking at her, she turned away with flushed cheeks and pouted.
"Loki, mean..."
Chapter 23: I'll Give You a Reaaal Lesson
Though Noah had been curious whether his resistance to alcohol might have improved after receiving Falna and wanted to give it a try, Loki and Riveria seemed to have some lingering fears and ultimately refused to let him.
After all, a drunk person as strong as a level-five adventurer was a completely different matter from a drunk little girl.
Especially since, despite ranking among the two great factions, the Loki Familia wasn't actually wealthy.
They earned a lot, but they spent even more!
Not to mention the large quantities of potions, equipment, and other supplies they had to buy for every expedition, even the equipment of their high-level adventurers started at several hundred million Valis.
Most of the money they earned from exploring the Dungeon's deeper floors promptly flowed into production familias like those of Hephaestus, Dian Cecht, and Goibniu.
As a result, the Loki Familia had neither plans to renovate Twilight Manor nor the budget for it!
Thanks to adventurers' physiques, most of the members, led by Loki, spent the evening drinking from shortly after nightfall until the moon was high. Only then did the heavy drinkers finally pass out.
In the end, the ones left to clean up after the banquet were Noah and the members who hadn't been drinking, mostly the elves.
Under Riveria's direction, fewer than ten people cleaned the dining hall, carried the unconscious members back to their bedrooms, and assigned the night watch.
The women grumbled incessantly, and a few even kicked the men as if settling personal scores, but they still cleaned up diligently.
As the banquet's head chef, Noah had earned the elves' approval for his cooking. He wasn't asked—or rather, wasn't allowed—to do anything else. His main task was to carry the drunk men back to their rooms one by one.
Riveria led him around. Despite her tall, slender build, the elf could carry a person in each hand with the effortless grace of someone holding apples.
"Noah, after discussing it with Finn and the others, we've decided I'll teach you the knowledge you'll need to become an adventurer for a while."
In the pitch-black hallway, a little moonlight streamed in through the windows and reflected off the marble floor, tracing the delicate lines of the Elf Royalty member's face.
Below her high nose were soft, thin lips. The skin of her slender neck was exceptionally fair, so translucent that the faint blue of her veins could almost be seen.
Her emerald hair swayed gently as she walked. Like her cool voice echoing through the hall, it seemed to carry a feeling of ethereal grace.
"Tomorrow morning, you'll come with me to register at the Guild. After that, what are your plans?"
Noah didn't answer immediately, pausing to think.
But he wasn't considering Riveria's question. He was thinking about the strange flutter in his chest when he'd caught a glimpse of the Elf Royalty member's fair neck.
That's strange. Why does the urge to bite her neck and exchange bodily fluids feel stronger now?
Could Falna also awaken the bloodline within my body?
Am I actually a vampire or not?
He glanced at the moon and realized he felt perfectly calm and normal. He wasn't excited at all.
Noah liked the moon, but only because demons often attacked at night, and its bright light helped him guard against ambushes. It made him feel safe.
A series of questions drifted through his mind, and Noah pushed them aside.
"Um, I don't have any plans to explore the Dungeon just yet. I'd like to get used to the strength I gained from Falna first."
Riveria glanced at Noah from the corner of her eye, a hint of approval passing through her gaze. He seemed like a younger member who wouldn't give her much trouble.
"In that case, how about I first explain the Dungeon and the distribution of its monsters? Oh, I remember you learned magic. How much do you know about it?"
"Um, I can only say I know how to use it."
They reached a room, and Noah tossed the two men he was carrying onto the bed.
Then, in the room next door, he tossed the two people Riveria was carrying onto the bed.
The difference was that Riveria was much rougher than Noah. She practically threw them onto the bed.
Clearly, she had plenty of grievances against the drunk members of her Familia, despite her usual demeanor.
"Then that works out. Come along for a lesson."
"A lesson?"
At the mention of it, Noah couldn't help imagining Riveria wearing gold-rimmed glasses, holding a pointer, and looking down at him with a stern gaze.
It fit Riveria's strict role in the Familia perfectly, yet Noah still felt the image somehow undermined her.
"Mm. I'm very curious about your magic and your skill. Wasting talent is a grave sin!"
Though she was an elf, Riveria wasn't conservative or stubborn, and she didn't insist that the secrets of elvenkind must never be shared.
On the contrary, as Orario's foremost mage and the Loki Familia's main source of firepower, she had always wanted to pass her knowledge on to someone.
Ideally, she'd find someone who could explore the mysteries of magic alongside her. If not, she at least wanted to train a successor who could take her place in a critical moment.
Unfortunately, she hadn't found a suitable candidate before.
The only mage in the city who could rival her was Hedin Selland, the White Elf Wand of the Freya Familia.
That elf's total Mind, control over magic, and spell range were no less than hers—indeed, they were probably greater.
Even Riveria had to admit that, aside from the power of their spells, there wasn't anything else in which she surpassed him.
If they fought one-on-one, she'd probably lose badly.
But quite apart from the semi-hostile relationship between their familias, Riveria didn't think she and Hedin would have anything to discuss even if they could cooperate—except for the fact that they were both overworked members of their respective familias.
As for the Familia's promising youngsters, there were quite a few, but their limits were more or less obvious at a glance.
Her only student, Ais, had powerful magic but was clearly headed down the path of the swordsman.
Now that they'd finally gained a talent like Noah, Riveria wasn't about to let him slip by.
Even though Noah was clearly a swordsman too, just the fact that his lightning magic could be "activated at will and developed independently," along with the rare skill "Magic Creation," was enough to excite her.
At the thought, Riveria's annoyance at Finn and Loki for dumping yet another junior on her to look after vanished completely, replaced by excitement.
I'll teach this child even more thoroughly—and strictly—than I taught Ais!
Nearby, Noah was thinking about taking a bath before resting when he suddenly felt a chill run through him.
The strong intuition granted by the skill [Ode to Spring] sounded an alarm, as if something very bad was about to happen.
Could Valetta have come for revenge?
But he looked around and didn't see any danger.
The moon was beautiful, the breeze was gentle, and everything was lovely.
"Then tomorrow morning, I'll show you around the Familia and its surroundings. We'll start the lessons in the afternoon. Does that work for you?"
Hearing Riveria's question, Noah nodded without thinking, still caught up in his thoughts.
"Sure, no problem."
It's just magic lessons. How hard could they be?
That was what Noah thought at the time.
Chapter 24: Morning
Noah woke up to the sound of snoring. When he saw the unfamiliar ceiling, he was momentarily dazed.
Oh, right. I joined the Loki Familia.
I've got a gang—no, a team—now!
Twilight Manor wasn't huge, but it certainly wasn't small either. There was more than enough room to give each of the forty-odd members their own room.
However, in the Loki Familia, members below executive rank were paired up and given one room between them.
Although Noah felt that with Falna, and the strength it had given him, he'd be able to defeat Valetta easily if they met again, he was still assigned to share a room with someone else.
His roommate was a thirteen-year-old human boy named Raul Nord, who had joined the Loki Familia two years earlier and was still level one.
Though he was only thirteen, Noah remembered seeing him drinking alongside Loki yesterday.
He'd seemed a little awkward at first, but after a few glasses, he'd let loose, slung his arms over the dwarves' shoulders, and started singing at the top of his lungs.
It seemed warriors had no age limits. Perhaps all adventurers were like that.
Noah quietly climbed down from the upper bunk, got dressed, picked up his weapon, and slipped out of the bedroom.
After washing up, he went outside Twilight Manor.
The sun hadn't risen yet, and Orario was still shrouded in silence.
The season seemed to be on the cusp of winter, at the end of autumn. The sky was exceptionally clear, but that also made the morning exceptionally cold.
A biting wind blew across him, scattering the white mist of his breath.
After feeling the chill through his thin clothes, Noah didn't start his morning exercises right away. Instead, he took a walk around the courtyard. The courtyard seemed to encircle the Central Tower, forming a ring.
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