Chapter 315: Dinner [1]

"Whistle~ Whistle~"

Noah whistled happily as he got dressed.

Tonight, a small feast was being held at the Thornveil household to celebrate the happy occasion. Well... at least it was a happy occasion for Noah, his family, Akari, and her father.

The same certainly couldn’t be said for the Thornveil family. Still, as hosts, it was their responsibility to arrange a proper feast and take care of their guests.

Noah slipped into a simple, full-sleeved white shirt and tucked it neatly into a pair of beige trousers. It was nothing fancy. After all, he wasn’t trying to impress anyone tonight.

Once he finished dressing, he picked up his phone, the same phone he hadn’t used in quite some time.

The phone was switched off. he opened it. The moment the screen came to life, Noah was greeted by a flood of missed calls and messages.

"Wow..."

He stared at the screen for a moment.

"I should inform Lyria and Arisha. They must be worried."

He quickly sent a message to both of them, assuring them that he was safe and no longer in danger.

Afterward, he noticed several messages from Damien.

Damien had already returned to his village. According to Morgana, he had been extremely worried and even blamed himself for what had happened to Noah.

Fortunately, Morgana had already informed him that Noah had safely returned.

Noah opened the messages.

[Noah!! Are you okay?! What happened to you?!]

[Where have you been?!]

[Thank God you’re safe!! I was so worried! Why is your phone still switched off?! Call me back!!]

[Actually, forget it. I’ll just come visit you!]

[...]

There were several more long messages from Damien. It was obvious that he had been genuinely worried about him.

A smile spread across Noah’s face. "This bastard is as kind as ever."

He shook his head with a helpless smile before putting the phone away. Then he left the chamber. It was already late evening, around 7:30. Noah walked through the corridor toward the dining hall.

As he walked, his thoughts naturally turned toward his current situation.

’My parents are treating me well... Even the animosity between Ophelia and me has finally been resolved.’

He paused internally.

’I could say that everything is going well for me now.’

Yet, strangely enough, that thought made him uncomfortable.

He had barely survived that realm.

He and Akari had faced danger unlike anything he had ever imagined. There had been countless moments when he had genuinely believed they were going to die.

When he had first arrived in this world, he had been exiled from his family. Back then, he had believed they didn’t care much about him.

And, truthfully, he hadn’t cared much about them either. He had been alone. And because he had been alone, there had been no one to worry about.

But now things were different. He had people he cared about. People whose safety mattered to him. People he was afraid of losing.

Noah’s previously cheerful expression slowly became tense.

’What dangers will I have to face in the future? And now that I have people to worry about...’

His hand unconsciously curled into a fist.

’I just hope I won’t lose anyone.’

Everything had returned to normal. His family was reunited.

Akari had returned. Ophelia had apologized. His friends knew he was safe. For once, everything seemed peaceful. And somehow, that peace made Noah even more uneasy.

’Something is bound to happen again.’

He couldn’t shake the feeling. Still, Noah quickly pushed those thoughts aside.

There was no point ruining the evening by worrying about dangers that hadn’t even arrived yet. By the time he reached the dining hall, he had regained his usual expression.

Just then he felt something, he turned around. The huge widow near was opened, cold wind came through it.

He blinked few times, something felt weird. ’Was that my imagination? sigh... my senses are not that strong to sense small movements or dangers... so it must be my imagination.’

He turned back and pushed open the doors and entered.

The dining hall was spacious and elegantly decorated.

At its center stood a long dining table covered with pristine white fabric. Numerous dishes had already been arranged across it, accompanied by various drinks.

The people seated around the table were engaged in casual conversation.

At the head of the table sat Lionel Thornveil. To his left sat his wife, Sofia. Beside her was their son, Liam. Liam was only ten years old.

The young boy had inherited his mother’s brown hair and his father’s emerald-green eyes.

Although he was still too young to form a mana core, he already possessed considerable talent in swordsmanship.

Noah had witnessed his talent himself. And Liam wasn’t only talented with a sword. He also possessed an unusually sharp mind when it came to theoretical studies.

Even at ten years old, he remained remarkably calm and composed for his age.

’Is this what a prodigy looks like at such a young age?’

Noah sighed inwardly.

’He’s already better than Ophelia and me when we were ten. No wonder everyone considers him the future Duke of Thornveil.’

Noah continued toward the table.

On Lionel’s right sat his mother, Lady Elize.

She was around seventy years old, yet she looked closer to fifty, with only a few wrinkles betraying her actual age.

Even in her later years, she still retained traces of the beauty she had possessed in her youth.

Beside Lady Elize sat Noah’s mother, Catelyn.

The Eldritch and Thornveil families had been close friends for generations, so Catelyn and Lady Elize were naturally quite familiar with each other.

Beside Catelyn sat Julian. Nathan sat next to him.

Across the table, beside Liam, sat Ophelia. Next to her was Akari. And at the very end sat Duke Reiji Narukami.

Noah gave everyone a polite bow.

"Sorry for being late."

He then walked toward the only remaining seat and sat beside Nathan.

Unfortunately his seat was directly opposite Duke Reiji.

Noah’s expression twitched.

’Damn. Couldn’t he have taken a seat beside my father or Lady Elize? Why do I have to sit directly across from him?’

He glanced at the imposing Duke. Reiji was calmly sitting there, his presence alone making Noah feel slightly tense.

Noah sighed inwardly.

’Well... there’s no escaping it now.’

He looked down at so many dishes. Not noticing that Duke Reiji was looking at him with observing eyes, before looking away.