A Drinking Party

"Cadet Zeto, we've been waiting for you! As expected, you found your way here perfectly. Come, sit over here!"

Following Edward's voice, I approached the table. Edward promptly grabbed Kaliman, who had been face-down on the table, and tossed him into a corner of the tavern. Kaliman was completely limp and unresponsive, looking exactly like Amon after inhaling paralyzing powder. Slumped against the wall with his head hanging low, Kaliman began to snore loudly, fast asleep.

"...Now, please, have a seat," Edward said, turning away from Kaliman to look at me with a bright smile.

"Don't mind him. He's the type who can sleep anywhere," Priscilla said from my left, casually draping her arm over my shoulder.

Sitting on my right, Eisel was quietly munching on a long, cracker-like snack. *Crunch, crunch.*

Once I settled into a seat, Edward was the first to speak.

"Since Cadet Zeto has arrived, I should introduce you first. My wife and I dropped by briefly on our way back from a trip."

"I am Vanessa Klaus," Edward's wife, Vanessa, introduced herself in an elegant voice, placing a hand over her chest.

"I am Zeto, a Class A cadet under Instructor Edward's supervision," I replied, bowing politely to Vanessa.

Right then, Eisel nudged me from the side, holding out a snack identical to the one she was eating.

"...Would you like some?"

"Miss Eisel, how did you end up here...?" I accepted the snack and immediately asked her.

"Miss Eisel happened to be at the tavern alone, so I suggested she join us for a chat. Since you were already on your way, Cadet Zeto, I thought it would make for a nice gathering. Haha!" Edward answered from across the table, the corners of his mouth twitching upward as if he were practically begging for praise.

I had no intention of praising him. My plan was to leave as quickly as possible, but thanks to him, slipping away early was going to be difficult.

"Eisel, you drink surprisingly well, you know?" Priscilla remarked, lightly tapping my shoulder with the hand she still had draped over me.

"..."

Eisel, who was still nibbling on her snack, had a slight flush on her cheeks. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠It seemed she had already had a few drinks.

Anyway, let's just finish our business quickly and get out of here.

I only needed to receive my reward money. I glanced over at Reina, who was sitting next to Vanessa. However, Reina—the very person who was supposed to give me the reward—already had half-lidded, glassy eyes.

...She's gone. Completely gone.

Confirming that Reina was thoroughly intoxicated, I felt a faint headache coming on.

"Drink! Drink!"

"When it comes to alcohol... *hic*... I won't lose...!"

"Hey, stop babbling and just drink!"

"Chug! Chug!"

Hearing a sudden, rowdy commotion behind us, I turned my head slightly. A group of burly men seemed to be holding some sort of drinking contest.

Sierra was right there with them, enthusiastically waving her arms and egging them on. She seemed to be having the time of her life. The unfortunate ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠part was that her cheers for them were echoing directly inside my head.

I guess it ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠can't be helped...

Sometimes, sitting down and sharing a drink with people wasn't such a bad thing.

"You're drinking too, right, Zeto?" Priscilla asked, looking at me.

I need to keep my distance from Priscilla, but our physical distance is way too close...

Perhaps because she had her arm around my shoulder, she was practically pressed against me.

"By any chance, do they have any non-alcoholic drinks?"

"Nope."

"There are none."

Priscilla and Edward answered simultaneously with flat, decisive rejections.

This is bad.

I wanted to stand up right then and there, but I couldn't exactly slap away Priscilla's arm.

"Then... please give me the weakest drink possible."

"Excellent choice, Cadet Zeto. A wise decision, keeping my class tomorrow in mind."

"What an exemplary cadet you are, Cadet Zeto... Hehe."

Vanessa and Edward were perfectly in sync, proving they were indeed a married couple.

"A butterbeer here, please," Priscilla ordered, waving her hand toward the server.

"I heard the stories on my way back. You were incredibly active both inside and outside the Labyrinth during the training period, Cadet Zeto... Thanks to you, I just gave the Principal a piece of my mind. Hahaha!" Edward laughed heartily, clapping his hands.

"Ed... what exactly did you say to Father?" Vanessa's cold glare pierced right through him.

"Well... I put it nicely. I said that thanks to you taking such good care of me, I was able to provide excellent instruction to the cadets."

"Liar. I'm sure you took the opportunity to brag to Father as much as you could."

"Ahem..."

Having taken a direct hit from Vanessa, Edward cleared his throat awkwardly.

Whenever Edward was with Vanessa, he was completely whipped. That was why I never skipped the scenes involving Vanessa when playing the game. How could I miss such a refreshing sight?

"Excellent instruction, my foot! It's all thanks to my bracelet, buhahaha!" Reina, who had been swaying back and forth while listening to their conversation, suddenly laughed loudly and tapped her wrist boastfully.

"Well, isn't it actually thanks to me teaching him acupuncture so 'diligently'?" Priscilla chimed in, casting a lingering gaze at me.

Diligently, indeed...

The memory of Priscilla in her underwear while passionately teaching me acupuncture flashed through my mind. Judging by her smile, she didn't seem to care about it at all, but it was impossible for me not to be affected. My eyes involuntarily drifted toward her slightly unbuttoned collar.

Before I knew it, Sierra had returned and chimed into their conversation. Of course, her claims were completely inaudible to them. Besides, her 'raising me since childhood' was merely a backstory I had set up. After boasting grandly, Sierra went right back to watching the drinking contest. She seemed to find it incredibly entertaining.

"Um... Instructor Reina?" I called out to Reina before my drink arrived, just in case.

"...Hmm? Cadet Zeto..." Reina blinked blearily at my voice.

"You called for me..."

"...Did I?" Reina frowned, her brow furrowing deeply.

I began to seriously doubt whether I would be able to get my reward money tonight. Seeing this, Priscilla spoke up on her behalf to explain.

"She called you because of the reward money for the Lycanthrope incident."

"...I see."

"Since Reina is in that state, I kept the reward money with me. I'll make sure to give it to you later, so... don't worry and enjoy yourself for now. I have a high tolerance, you see."

Hearing Priscilla's gentle voice, the words 'That's not what I'm worried about' almost slipped out of my mouth, but I barely managed to swallow them down.

"This might be an intrusive question... but is it not difficult for you to distinguish people, Cadet Zeto? The others seem quite used to it," Vanessa asked, her eyes wide with curiosity as she watched my interaction with Priscilla.

And so, just as I was about to give the routine explanation I always gave to people I met for the first time, Eisel spoke up.

"By their waves, voices, and heartbeats... right?"

Eisel answered for me, gave me a quick glare, and then took a sip of her drink.

"Oh, heartbeats... Hehe, that sounds incredibly romantic," Vanessa said, clasping her hands together, seemingly satisfied with Eisel's answer.

Soon, Vanessa began whispering to Edward. I wondered what kind of intimate conversation the married couple was having. Reina was face-down on the table, counting imaginary stars in the air, while Priscilla drank her alcohol in silence.

...And Eisel was resting her chin on the table, staring intently at me.

The mention of heartbeats reminded me of the 'prank' Eisel and Sierra had pulled on me. Trying to clear my head, I took a sip of the drink that had just been served. As I drank, I glanced at Eisel and noticed her ears were bright red.

Is she actually drunk?

Despite her red ears, Eisel maintained a completely nonchalant expression. I put my glass down after drinking just enough to avoid getting tipsy. The butterbeer Priscilla ordered was indeed very weak; a single sip didn't make me feel lightheaded at all. In fact, it made me wonder about the alcohol content of the coffee I had shared with Eisel at the cafe previously.

I absolutely could not pass out here.

Reina and Kaliman are completely wasted, so they don't count...

The regressor, Eisel. Priscilla, with her hidden past. Excluding them, the only ones left were the Klaus couple.

To think Edward is the safest person here...

Thud!

Edward set his empty glass down on the table and took the lead in the conversation.

"Looking at the two of you brings back old memories. Doesn't it, Miss Priscilla?"

"From when we attended the Academy?"

"Yes. Me, Kaliman, Reina, and even you, Miss Priscilla. Those were quite the good old days, weren't they?" Edward smiled warmly at Priscilla.

"Good old days... Yes, if only that war with the demons hadn't broken out halfway through... I suppose they would have been."

The moment Priscilla mentioned the word 'demons,' Eisel flinched. It was a brief reaction, but noticeable. Eisel was bound to be sensitive when it came to demons. Since the others didn't seem to notice, I decided to let it go.

Suddenly, Reina, who had been drooling face-down on the table, bolted upright, raised her arm, and shouted.

"...War? Trio! Of Black Blood!"

Her tongue was heavily slurred from the alcohol.

The Trio of Black Blood. It was the moniker given to Reina, Kaliman, and Edward when they fought in the war during their academy days. If I recalled correctly, Reina was particularly fond of that title, claiming it sounded incredibly cool. Of course, she only ever expressed this preference when she was completely wasted, like now.

"I can't say I miss the days of being drenched in black blood. ...Demon blood smells absolutely foul, after all," Edward added in response to Reina's shout.

"..."

Priscilla, who still had her arm draped over my shoulder, remained silent and took another sip of her drink.

Priscilla also had a ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠moniker from the war. *Priscilla of Fresh Blood*. It was a title given to her as a combat medic because she would treat her allies while completely drenched in their blood. However, she despised that name. It reminded her of her childhood as an assassin for the Holy Order, when she was constantly stained with the deep, red blood of humans.

The others had known Priscilla for a long time. Even if they didn't know the details of her past, they knew she hated that moniker, so no one ever brought it up. Eisel was the same. As a regressor, she likely already knew how much Priscilla detested that title.

By the time the smell of alcohol in the tavern became familiar, the drinking contest in the back still hadn't ended. Sierra's enthusiastic cheering continued to echo in my head.

Meanwhile, at our table, we casually chatted about trivial things, mostly revolving around the instructors' academy days.

"My, look at the time. We've only exchanged a few words, yet it's already so late. We must be heading out first," Edward said, rising from his seat.

"It was brief, but I had a wonderful time. Cadet Zeto, Cadet Eisel, you must visit our home sometime. I'll prepare a delicious meal for you," Vanessa added as she stood up beside him, her voice filled with elegance.

I smiled and stood up to see them off. To me, there was no better news than this. Checking to make sure I wasn't feeling lightheaded, I bid them farewell. Eisel followed my lead and helped see them off as well.

At the entrance of the tavern, I bowed to Edward and Vanessa, thinking to myself:

Now I can naturally wrap things up and leave.

That was how drinking gatherings usually went. Once one person left, another would follow, and as the group dwindled, everyone would eventually scatter.

But when we returned to the table, Reina, who should have been passed out, was sitting upright with wide, sparkling eyes, waiting for us.

"Cadet Zeto! Cadet Eisel! Raise your glasses...!"

"...Pardon?"

I was utterly bewildered by Reina's sudden, sober state.

"...I just cast *Divine Clear* on her," Priscilla said casually, sipping her drink as if it were nothing.

"Haha! This is exactly why I love coming to taverns with Priscilla!" Reina burst out laughing, clutching her stomach, completely ignoring my dumbfounded expression.

*Divine Clear*, a spell that purifies status conditions, was a fairly high-tier holy magic.

Is it really okay to waste high-tier magic just to cure a hangover...?

Only now did the mystery of how Reina, who had a low alcohol tolerance, could stay at a tavern for so long get resolved.

"Round two! Cadet Zeto! Tonight, you're paying!" Reina shouted loudly.

"What are you doing? Sit down already," Priscilla added, looking up at me and speaking in a quiet, intense voice.

"...Are you not going to drink anymore?" Eisel whispered, grabbing my arm and looking up at me with her large, pleading eyes.

Meanwhile, Kaliman was still snoring away in the corner.

Unable to withstand the overwhelming pressure of the three women's gazes, I slumped back down into my seat.

If I get drunk... should I ask her to cast Divine Clear on me too?