CH 34

However, the atmosphere in the auditorium became more ripe after the speech was done. Before this, there was a bit of a raucous atmosphere, but that changed after the band started playing.

But my interest in the music they were playing and the instruments they were using was fleeting, and I was busy chatting excitedly with Edin.

“You’ve read a lot too, Mr. Isaac. That’s great.”

“No. Mr. Edin is more amazing. I have a lot of free time because I am a literature person, but you are not, by your own admission.”

“Thank you for the compliment. Have you read the autobiography of Alexis the Explorer?”

“Of course, I have read it. I especially enjoyed the part about eating caterpillars and them tasting like vomit.”

“Oh. I see you remember that part, so…”

As I talked to Edin, I learned a few things: he’s a bookworm, just like me. Moreover, his favorite genre was autobiography or stories of explorers, so we had an easy conversation.

Because of that, I didn’t notice the time passing as we chattered, so I naturally ended up drinking a few glasses of wine. I think I had about five while Edin finished only one.

“Mr. Edin, have you ever fought a monster?”

“Once upon a time, I went hunting with my father. I was a bit surprised when an orc suddenly appeared. But it wasn’t too difficult.”

“Oh… and what about ogres? I heard ogres are really strong?”

“Well? I’ve only met one, and at that time we cooperated with other knights to subdue him.”

Because of this, time passed and I was able to last to the end. Unlike Jackson, Edin had a firm grasp of the concepts and a cool personality that made me feel comfortable with him.

Edin, too, seemed to like my hesitant approach and broke out into a hearty laugh every now and then.

“Hahaha! That’s true… Ah, right. Mr. Isaac? I was wondering about something, if I may ask?”

“Sure. What is it?”

Was it because I had too much wine? Normally, I would have been a little wary, but the sweetness of the wine took over my brain and I didn’t think about it. The wine was not bitter, but sweeter, and I’d had too much.

Meanwhile, Edin looked around for a moment, then, realizing that no one was near us, leaned in close and asked me in a whisper, “A while ago, Lady Reqilis and Princess Cecily fought over you.”

“Uh…”

“Can you tell me why they fought then?”

It felt like my mind, which was a bit hazy, started clearing up. I shook my head vigorously after hearing the question, then checked his face. There was no malice in his expression, just pure curiosity. The expression on his face was so bland and cool that it was difficult to distinguish his expression, but I could tell this much.

In response, I pressed my finger firmly to the bridge of my nose and opened my mouth. It must have been because I’d had too much wine, and my head was spinning.

“It’s just… Cecily-noona was joking with me. Marie saw that and told her to take her hands off me. You know, linking arms is something lovers do, right? But demons are different. Marie was worried about that, too, so she told her, and me, to pull away.”

“Cecily-noona? Are you sure you can address Princess Cecily noona in such a friendly way?”

“Ah…” I was speechless again. I shook my head vigorously once more at Edin, who had asked this in surprise.

But words, once spoken, cannot be taken back. Still in a daze, I barely managed to answer. “Uh, yeah. We’ve talked a few times and become close. Maybe that’s why we play jokes well with each other.”

“Hmm… Really? Have you had a few glasses of wine, by the way? Because your face is the same color as your hair.”

“Well? Ah, maybe…” Hearing Edin’s question, I pondered.

Once at the very beginning. Once before the event started. After that… I just remembered that I drank every time the wine glass was empty.

“I don’t know?”

“You don’t know?”

“Yes. It was delicious, so I drank it every time my glass was empty.”

“……”

At my answer, Edin stared blankly at me. It’s like he’s trying to gauge how drunk I am.

But contrary to his thoughts, I was fine. Although I was a bit hazy and my tongue slurred a little, I was still capable of normal thoughts. At least, as far as I’m concerned.

“… Just drink that much for today. Otherwise, you will make a mistake later.”

“Stop drinking something so delicious? There’s no way.”

“Mr. Isaac. You don’t drink wine because it’s delicious. It’s for the palate.”

“Then I’ll just have one last drink.”

“If it’s just one glass…”

Edin heard my last offer and reluctantly agreed. Still, it was an expression that implied it wasn’t very trustworthy.

Regardless, I poured the last quarter of the wine into my mouth. At first, I felt the bitter taste, but then the subtle sweet and sour taste dominated my mouth. It was ideal for me, who had refused to drink beer due to its bitterness in my previous life. Since this is the case, I believe I could easily consume several bottles.

“Whoa! As expected, it’s delicious. What did you say the name of this wine was?”

“Alchione. It is one of the most well-known wines in the world. The taste varies greatly depending on how long it has been aged. As far as I’m aware, the wine served at gatherings like this has to be at least ten years old.”

“It must be very expensive.”

“It’s not that expensive. It’s as simple to brew as it is well-known. That is why it is a wine that is easily accessible to the common people.”

Edin tried to explain it to me, but I couldn’t hear him. My head was spinning even more than before, most likely as a result of the wine I had just drank. Alcohol is still alcohol, no matter how sweet it is. I struggled to come to my senses, but my foggy mind remained.

Edin approached me with concern as if he had noticed that I was not feeling well.

“…You must be really drunk. Stop drinking now.”

“I’ll just have one more drink.”

“When you’re drunk, one drink turns into two, then three. Enough…”

It was when Edin was holding me back…

“Isaac?” A familiar voice pierced my ears through my dizzy mind. I blinked at the sweet woman’s voice and then turned my head.

Cecily, with a wine glass in one hand, was looking this way with her eyes wide open. Why is she here when she should be by Rina’s side? It seems that her business was almost over.

In the meantime, Edin opened his eyes slightly wide when Cecily appeared and asked so quietly.

“…Princess Cecily?”

“Ah.” It was only then that Cecily noticed Edin’s presence and began to formally greet him. “Hello. My name is Cecily Drat Aicilia Bean, the princess of Helium. Please call me Cecily if you feel comfortable with it.”

“I-I am the eldest son of Count Signer’s family, Edin Mavi Signer. It is an honor to meet the heir of Helium.”

Edin’s gaze dropped momentarily at her polite greeting, then he bowed according to protocol. That must have been his gaze going to her chest. When you see him stuttering to the end, it’s obvious.

So you’re a man, too. To be honest, if you saw Cecily now, you would have been drawn to her regardless of gender.

“Nice to meet you too. By the way…” Cecily, who spoke, looked at me and then asked Edin, “May I ask what happened to Isaac?”

“Oh, well… He had a little too much of the wine.”

“I didn’t drink much, so that’s…” My pronunciation was a little slurred. Don’t worry though. My head is a little dizzy, but I’m fine. Maybe.

“Hmph.”

Cecily examined my condition and raised the corners of her mouth, making a faint nasal sound. My vision was blurry, but I could make out the smile that came out whenever her playfulness was triggered. It made me feel a little uneasy.

As soon as I saw it, I reflexively took a step back. Cecily quickly grabbed my wrist before I could do so and turned to Edin.

“If you’ll excuse me, do you mind if I take Isaac with me?”

“Huh?”

“Is that okay?”

Say it’s not okay. Hey. But Edin betrayed my expectations.

He looked back and forth between me and Cecily, then accepted with a shy expression.

“I don’t mind… But instead, please don’t let him drink any more wine. I’m afraid this will get him into trouble.”

“Sure. Let’s go, Isaac.”

“Ugh…” In the end, I had no choice but to move my feet, guided by Cecily’s hand. I focused my remaining nerves on the wine glass, lest I accidentally drop it.

Of course, I didn’t forget to say goodbye to Edin before I left. My pronunciation was a bit slurred, but my intentions were conveyed and Edin, worried about me, told me to drink in moderation. I told you I’m not drunk.

The next place we arrived at, led by Cecily, was a table with various foods. As soon as Cecily arrived at the table, she softly asked the waiter who was waiting with the wine.

“Can you get us some more wine, please?”

“Of course, my beautiful lady.”

“Then Isaac, you take a drink first.”

“Ah, sure…”

Following Cecily’s words, the waiter brought out clean wine glasses and poured the wine neatly. It was not a purple wine, but a deep red wine.

I noticed that it was different from the wine I had drunk so far and asked the waiter. My pronunciation was so twisted that I slurred like a mollusk. “Is this mousse wine?”

“It’s Red Kali. Unlike Alcione, it’s more sour.”

“Try it once. It’s delicious. Before that…” Cecily sipped the last of the wine and handed the glass to the waiter. Without saying anything, the waiter poured more wine into an empty glass.

The color of the wine and Cecily’s dress were similar, now that I think about it. A dazzling beauty holding a glass of wine similar to the color of her dress in one hand. When viewed in this light, it appeared to be a painting.

As I stared blankly at her figure, Cecily smiled. An alluring voice dug into my ears as she said to me, “I heard that in the human world, there is a culture of clinking glasses before drinking. Is it called a toast?”

“Originally, the dwarves did it first…”

In my previous life, it was a culture that happened by chance, but here it was a culture that was created by humans after following the dwarves. That’s a fact that I learned by accident while reading various history books.

However, many people mistake toasting for human culture, because the number of humans is overwhelming and the dwarves don’t care.

“Huh? I had no idea.”

“As for the demons… do you have a toast that you do?”

“There’s something similar. We raise the glass slightly. It’s like a tribute to honor a kindred who met a sad fate. That’s why we don’t do it often on such a joyous day.”

“I see…” I nodded and lowered my head slightly.

Conversing with Cecily like this, I learned new characteristics of the demons that I could not find in the books.

Last time, I learned what stroking a demon’s horn meant, and I also learned that a demon’s ‘inner evil’ grows stronger with each cycle. So these little details…

“…that would be nice…” Could it be because I was drunk? The words slipped out of my mouth.

Fortunately, I had my head lowered and murmured softly, so all Cecily could hear was…

“…write it down… Isaac?”

No. Even though I was embarrassed, I raised my head for a moment and faced her. “…Huh?”

“Shall we make a toast?” Cecily smiled brightly and held out her glass of wine, inviting me to join her. I could see the red liquid swirling in the glass.

In my mind, I knew I shouldn’t drink anymore, but my body was already moving. I’m not sure if it was because I hadn’t had a drink in a while, but despite Edin’s warning, I wanted to drink more.

Clink-

As we clinked our glasses, a clear and pleasant sound was heard. Cecily grinned and raised her glass to her lips as soon as she made the toast.

I also brought it to my mouth to drink the wine. Then, a reddish liquid gradually flowed into my mouth.

“Ugh…” I trembled. Just like the waiter explained, unlike Alcione, it was more sour than sweet. A less sour lemon flavor, I judged.

“Isaac.”

While I was still reeling from the sour taste in my mouth, Cecily called my name. I managed to open my mouth, despite feeling like I was about to snap. “Yes…noona…”

“There’s something I’ve been wondering about, do you mind if I ask?”

“What is it…?”

My vision now was more than blurry, it was hazy. In addition, the voices of the murmuring people and the music of the band was deafening, echoing in my ears. But strangely enough, I could hear Cecily’s question clearly.

“Do you like to write?”

(End of chapter………… Thank you for reading……………)