Chapter 51
Chapter 51
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 51
Chapter Title: I Possessed a Heavily Modded Game
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“If there’s anything you need, please call for us at any time.”
The two maids who had escorted me here, sandwiching me between them, bowed in unison before heading to the edge of the banquet hall. They clasped their hands in front of their lower abdomens and stood perfectly straight.
Left all alone, I glanced around.
Against one wall, a quintet played leisurely music on instruments of unusual shapes. They were unfamiliar to me, but the sounds resembled those of a piano or violin.
‘That damn air conditioning is here too.’
No wonder the inside felt much cooler than outside. Beyond the chandeliers in the banquet hall, I spotted air conditioners diligently doing their job from the ceiling. The place was so vast that there were five of them.
I didn’t mind the existence of such modern amenities. They certainly made things more comfortable. It was just the stark disconnect that I still couldn’t get used to.
In the center of the banquet hall stood three long rows of massive tables, rivaling or even surpassing the monstrous lengths of those in the knights’ order underground dining hall.
The tables groaned under an abundance of food: a whole roast resembling a turkey, cakes stacked as tall as a person, enormous slabs of fish.
All the dishes you’d expect at a banquet or party were laid out in staggering quantities.
‘Just sampling a bite or two of each would probably fill me up.’
Better too much food than too little. But the sheer volume before my eyes made me doubt whether even the five of us could polish off a tenth of it.
From what I’d observed, the knight captains—all except Lize—weren’t big eaters, and even Lize wasn’t the type to gorge herself deliberately.
‘Huh, there’s that too.’
At the center of the tables, a fountain bubbled with a clear liquid spraying high. Curious, I approached, and a maid instantly appeared at my side.
“Would you care to try some?”
“Before that, what kind of alcohol is this—”
“Please wait just a moment.”
Taking my response as assent rather than refusal, the maid snatched up a glass with her gloved hand and twisted the faucet beside the fountain.
Clear liquid gushed out, filling the glass halfway before she shut it off and offered it to me.
“Here you are.”
“......”
Caught off guard by this hands-on tasting method, I accepted the glass with a blank expression. The maid bowed politely and glided back to the wall, resuming her rigid stance.
Dazed, I took a sip from the glass.
‘It’s fruit wine.’
The moment it touched my tongue, alcohol’s bite mingled with fruity notes flooded my sinuses. I couldn’t pinpoint the fruit, but it was definitely fruit wine.
“Ta-da, newbie! We’re here!”
As I drained nearly the whole glass, the banquet hall doors burst open, and Lize strode in. Her outfit still left nowhere safe to look, her chest wielding magnetic allure.
The knight captains followed in her wake: Erika, then Iris, then Claudia, with Aurora bringing up the rear.
“What took you so long?”
“What do you think?”
“How should I know?”
I shot Lize an incredulous look at her question-for-a-question response. She met my gaze nonchalantly and sauntered to the table, popping a pastry into her mouth.
Her tongue flicked out seductively between her lips, licking crumbs from her fingers.
“You’ll find out later.”
“That just makes me more anxious. Find out how, exactly?”
“Come on, come on! No need to overthink now that we’re here. Let’s just let loose and have fun!”
Claudia had appeared out of nowhere, slinging an arm around my shoulders. The scent of wine wafted heavily from her.
“Then explain what you were doing outside so I don’t have to overthink it, yeah?”
“Hey now, newbie. Some things lose their fun if you know in advance.”
“No, seriously, what the hell did you all get up to that even the knight captains are acting like this—”
“Drink first! Think later!”
Claudia grabbed a bottle from the table and popped the cork with her thumb alone. The cheerful pop echoed.
‘Popping the cork by hand, huh.’
I slipped away from Claudia as she raised the bottle to her lips like a trumpet. Erika and Iris watched the scene with subtle expressions from nearby.
“You two won’t tell me either, will you?”
“Afraid not, newbie.”
“As Lize and Claudia said, you’ll learn in time, so no need to worry. Just know there’s no reason to rush.”
‘What kind of scheme did they hatch?’
At this point, stubborn curiosity was kicking in—I wanted to know what they’d discussed.
But Erika and Iris sashayed off toward the others, hips swaying emphatically. Only Aurora remained, standing with a triumphant smile as if daring me to ask.
Her expression screamed she’d never spill.
“You’re not gonna ask me?”
How long had we locked eyes when Aurora muttered petulantly.
“You wouldn’t tell me anyway. No point wasting energy.”
“Still, manners exist, you know. Manners. You asked all the knight captains but skip the lord of this place? That’s rude.”
“Yeah, right.”
Aurora covered her mouth with her fan and let out a soft chuckle. Then she approached with demure steps, her black high heels clicking on the red-carpeted floor.
“Anyway, enough of that. So, what’s your impression?”
“Huh?”
“This dress. I put real thought into picking it. There’s a body in here that drove countless men to scheme just for a taste. I packaged it up nice and shoved it in your face, so shouldn’t you at least share your thoughts?”
“Could you pick your words a little more carefully for once?”
Aurora, now right in front of me, tapped my lips with her fan. A faint lipstick mark lingered there, fresh as if just applied—matching her lip color exactly.
“I’m not the careful type. How about sharing those impressions quick?”
“Fine, fine. You look beautiful. It suits you perfectly. Happy?”
“No sincerity. Fail.”
Tap. This time, the fan prodded my forehead.
“What happens if I fail?”
“You get punished.”
Her golden eyes curved with a sly smile.
“Have your fill of fun here. That’s the punishment. If you don’t enjoy it properly... I won’t hold back for real.”
Aurora flashed a grin and strode off, hips swaying like the other knight captains. With all the guests of honor assembled, the orchestra’s music grew even livelier.
A maid—fully covered in conservative attire rare by local standards—approached with a silver tray of glasses.
The pale purple liquid inside bubbled faintly. It looked like alcohol, but what kind was unclear.
Aurora took a glass and ascended a slightly raised dais.
Iris, Lize, and Erika each claimed one. Claudia was too busy chugging straight from a bottle to bother; an empty one rolled across the floor.
The maid offered me the tray, and I took the last glass. Aurora, glancing my way, confirmed my participation and raised her arm high.
“Alright, no long speeches—we’re here to party. You all suffered under that piece of shit, listening to that piece of shit, guarding your purity under that piece of shit.”
Pfft. I choked on Aurora’s sudden vulgarity, coughing alone. What the hell was this madwoman on about?
Her smirking at me confirmed it was deliberate—testing my reaction. The other knight captains eyed me similarly; no doubt about it.
“We’re here to celebrate that. Enjoy it twice—no, ten times—as hard as it was. So—”
Aurora downed her glass in one go. She tossed the empty aside carelessly and met our eyes one by one with a wicked grin.
“—Have fun. That’s an order from your lord.”
The banquet dragged on for quite a while. Eventually, the orchestra’s music faded from my ears entirely. Blinking hazily around, I saw the hall was empty.
We’d consumed a ridiculous amount of alcohol in that time. Aurora was surprisingly a heavyweight drinker, and the knight captains matched her.
Claudia especially was inhuman. Later, she hoisted an oak barrel of wine and drank straight from it—a thing weighing nearly 50kg empty, pushing 300kg full.
‘...Ugh. I’m gonna die.’
Me too.
With the knight captains and even Aurora laughing and chatting away, I couldn’t exactly pace myself or refuse drinks pushed my way.
Even if I had, Claudia and Lize would’ve pinned me down and forced it. No way they’d let me bow out alone.
Thanks to that, I’d lost count of my glasses, memory fuzzy from the booze.
‘At least I don’t feel like puking. Small mercies.’
Nearly blackout drunk, I slumped in a chair at the hall’s edge, head drooping.
The world spun wildly. Even sitting still, fruit wine’s aroma refluxed through my nose and mouth. My limbs wouldn’t obey; staying in the chair was all I could manage.
My mood kept floating away, restraint slipping. My body reacted to casual touches I’d normally ignore.
That’s why I’d tucked myself in this corner. It was the last shred of my rationality. If Lize so much as tempted me now, I’d pounce.
“Newbie, what’re you doing?”
‘Seriously?’
A familiar voice. Lize. Why did she appear right after I thought I couldn’t resist her if she tried?
“......Just resting a bit. Drank too much.”
“Hmm, is that so?”
Lize dragged over a chair and plopped down right beside me. Sweet alcoholic fruit wine mingled with her scent.
Blame the booze, but every sensation felt hypersensitive.
“How drunk are you?”
“......Pretty drunk?”
“Hmmmmm... I see......”
Lize’s voice trailed off suggestively. Bad vibes.
“Newbie.”
“......Yeah?”
“You wondered why we came in late from outside, right?”
“......Yeah. So?”
“I said you’d find out later. Remember that?”
I nodded. Instantly, a shadow loomed overhead. I looked up. The knight captains and Aurora surrounded me.
They showed no signs of intoxication. Booze reeked from them, yet unlike me, they looked unchanged from the start.
Lize grinned wickedly.
“Now’s that later.”