I Reincarnated Into A Single-Celled Organism! - I Reincarnated into a Single-celled Organism! - Chapter 142

After cleaning up and getting dressed, I had to admit that the material the nobles had access to was much superior to the cheap and sturdy fabrics that the commoner mortals wore. I felt much more comfortable in the stylized pants and tunic that Sammuel provided me. The tunic was tied with a cloth belt, and the pants were tied by string but were otherwise baggy. It reminded me of the karate Gi, except it was baggy and made of silk. The colors were also bright blues, although Sammuel’s outfit was orange.

After getting dressed, Sammuel glanced at me over and then reached out and handed me a scabbard with a sword in it. This was the same sword he had tossed me during the battle.

“This will complete the look, strap it to your belt. A martial paragon must always have a weapon on him.”

“I can’t take this,” I spoke awkwardly.

This sword had even held up to my attacks. I knew that it was made of extremely fine material. It had to be a weapon of some wealth. I was already borrowing his clothing, so how could I take his weapon too?

“It’s fine. Keep it. That sword was once my father’s. He left it to me for my date of adulthood. I ended up being handed it by a servant who had kept it hidden. It never fit my style, which is why I rarely drew it, but I think it might fit you quite nicely.”

I wanted to continue to reject it, if for no other reason than I didn’t want to feel like I owed him anything. However, he continued to insist and I eventually conceded and strapped it to my hip.

“Are we ready to go?” I asked. “Will you need me to carry you?”

I had to carry him back to his place, which felt a bit awkward, but thankfully there were few people out after the tournament at night to notice.

He let out a chuckle. “A paragon body is not like a mortal body. I’ve already healed enough to walk, although I might be a bit slow if you’re willing to bear with me.

I gave a nod and helped him leave the inn, but once we were on the street he insisted on walking on his own. The pair of us headed off toward a large mansion near the center of town. This could be considered the safest area of town, or at least the area least controlled by the families. Everyone who patrolled the streets was guarded by the magistrate, and thus they only followed the law.

By the time we arrived, it looked like the banquet was already underway. Carriages were lining up and dropping off various guests. Most of them were from the major families of Stormberg as well as their subsidiaries. When the two of us reached the front doors, a steward was there to greet us. He took our names and then led us into the banquet hall.

“Guests Spirit and Sammuel Edison have arrived.” He announced loudly.

Very few guests turned our way. They were already discussing things with each other. I started listening to the crowds, trying to get an idea of the current temperament.

“You reach 12^th place, one of the highest contestants outside of one of the major families. I’d love to know your story.”

“Ah, I’ve been training hard. I was friends for a while with the young lord of Blanch before he went to the capital and any moves he learned he’d show me. I studied hard and learned from his example.”

“You speak of Tyler Blanche? He’s one of the youngest knights under Lord Nikola. His sister is also quite talented and part of the Academy. Some say the Blanche family is on the rise.”

“Ah! I haven’t spoken to him in years though, not since he left for the capital. Rumors have it he stopped by a few weeks ago, but he didn’t bother to come see me…”

“Well, that’s understandable. As people rise, they often lose sight of those under them. That’s why you need to join a family. If you join the Lou family, we can help you reach your true potential, and you won’t be forgotten about.”

“What about my parents? I also have a little sister?”

“Of course, you may share some of your stipend with your family. You will also be in a position to protect them. We won’t let your family suffer if you join us.”

“Hmph, don’t listen to this old man.” A woman approached the pair. “You should join my family instead.”

“Your family?” The older man looked at her mockingly. “Your family has half the assets of mine. We have much more status.”

“I don’t deny that their family has a more impressive pedigree, but you heard it yourself. He’d only bring you into the family as a glorified bodyguard. Your prospects for growth will be slim. Your family’s success would be completely dependent on you. If you died, they’d surely plunge to hell. If you join my family, we will adopt your entire family. Your sister will be educated and your parents will be given comfortable jobs. Furthermore, based on your performance, and with hard work, you may even be able to marry and become one of the central figures of our family in time.”

“Hmph, I wasn’t aware you were selling off your daughters now. “The old man gave a dark look.

She glared back. “You old fool, I said no such thing! I said with hard work it was possible. Would you ever give someone of his status a chance? I think not!”

The pair continued to argue right in front of the flustered youth, but he wasn’t the only one. Although there were four major families in Stormberg, there were closer to a dozen paragon families in all, and they were all busy either complementing those who had scored in the top ten or trying to recruit the ones who weren’t already in a party.

However, as Sammuel and I entered the room, we seemed to be the black sheep. No groups approached us, and we ended up finding an empty table to sit at. Soon, there was food placed in front of us. During my life in purgatory, food had no taste. Although I could develop taste buds, my taste hadn’t returned. As a result, I didn’t feel much pleasure from food. I got most of my energy through photosynthesis or chemosynthesis anyway. I could make any nutrients my body was lacking, so food just didn’t hold much appeal to me.

“Not hungry?” Sammuel noticed me picking at the food. “The paragon families are a lot of things, but they follow a strict set of rules. They wouldn’t poison you here. They live and die by honor, and if someone died while at their banquet, it would be a stain upon their family image. So, there is no reason to hold back.”

“Is that so…” It appeared as if Sammuel had come to his conclusions about why I wasn’t eating.

Before I could come up with a response, another person approached our table. “When I encountered you outside of town, I never would have guessed you’d be winning the upcoming tournament a short time later.”

The person who approached was the same woman I encountered on the way back from recovering the abandoned carriage from Mara’s farm. She was also the one who seemed to be plotting against the Capala household. At the least, she was working with the thugs and Grandmaster Bai. I had been obscuring my face since I returned to town, so she didn’t recognize me as the one who infiltrated her mansion, but I hadn’t been hiding my face when I encountered her out in the wild, so she recognized me from then.

Naturally, the Stride family was one of the major local houses, and the young Lady Stride was a beauty capable of drawing countless eyes, so when she came to our table, it instantly resulted in various nobles whispering to each other.

“Why is Tiffany speaking to them? Does she have some business with the Edison boy?”

“No, it seems like she’s greeting that black sheep Spirit. Do those two have some kind of past?”

I shut out the conversations at the other tables and gave her a polite smile. “You’re doing well. You looked quite ravishing in armor, but I’d admit I prefer something like this.”

Sammuel glanced between the pair of us. “You two know each other?”

“We’ve met once,” I spoke awkwardly.

“The last time I saw you, you were riding around on a tamed infernal world. I had to admit I was shocked. I’m a bit of a beast trainer, and even I have never managed to properly train an infernal wolf. It also appeared larger than normal. It had to be at least an alpha wolf.”

“Was it?” I coughed, “I have no clue.”

“Riding an alpha sage beast? Ridiculous.” Someone muttered.

“It’s coming from the Lady Stride, why would she lie?”

“She’s young. She probably must have mistaken what she saw…”

“I’ve heard about Lady Stride, she’s quite knowledgeable when it comes to sage beasts. It doesn’t seem to be a mistake she would make.

“Why has the young lady Stride graced our table tonight?” Sammuel asked, taking the initiative.

She gave him a nod before turning to me. “I’ll keep it simple then. I would like to offer you a chance to join the Stride family!”