The Heavenly Slaughter Star Takes Its First Drink

The Heavenly Slaughter Star took its first drink. Preparing for the party was nothing special. The moment Rionne snapped her fingers, everything was ready in an instant. Tables and chairs flew into place, a bonfire roared to life, and a boar the size of a house was cleaned and set to roast over the flames. Simple side dishes were prepared in the blink of an eye and arranged neatly across the table. It was the wonder of magic.

When Enoch clapped his hands in delight, Rionne smiled with satisfaction and declared the party open.

In truth, they spent most days eating and playing comfortably, but no one bothered to point that out. In a rare show of unity, both Enoch and Undine thrust their hands into the air at the same time.

Seeing the pair so happy, Rionne checked on the roasting boar and slyly produced a bottle of liquor.

Undine’s eyes flew wide open the instant she recognized it.

Enoch merely tilted his head in confusion.

The excited Undine slapped Enoch’s shoulder repeatedly. Enoch answered with his power. Crackle—! The extremely worked-up Undine didn’t even flinch. Purple lightning flashing across her entire body, she darted over with a glass in hand.

Rionne let out a small laugh and pulled the cork. The artisans’ stubborn refusal to use magic preservation had left the cork nearly rotted and on the verge of crumbling, but Rionne’s simple spell made it pop out cleanly with a pleasant sound.

The moment the bottle opened, an intense aroma flooded the air. The enchanting, electrifying scent made Undine’s whole body tremble.

The spirit was already sucking greedily on the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠cork. Faced with her friend’s madness that refused to waste even a single drop, Rionne poured with a slightly awkward expression. Thick, honey-like golden whiskey filled the glass.

Rionne sliced off a piece from the perfectly rotating roast. The well-cooked meat dripped with savory juices and looked incredibly appetizing. Given how abnormally large the boar had been, it carried a considerable amount of mana, so the flavor would surely be outstanding.

Caught up in the atmosphere, Rionne’s head bobbed gently. The deepening crimson of the sky bled into her hair, making it glow like rose gold.

When the elf offered her glass, the spirit eagerly clinked hers against it.

At the elf’s invitation, the boy held out his glass filled with apple juice.

With the bright clink of glass, everyone tilted their ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠drinks.

Undine, the moment the liquor touched her lips, began making bizarre noises. Her eyes rolled back and her body shook violently. No matter how you looked at it, she did not seem normal.

Thick sherry, deep vanilla, alcohol that punched the nose, followed by an explosion of complex, delicate flavors…! Ignoring her friend who was babbling incoherently, Rionne offered her own simple verdict.

The alcohol was quite strong, but the flavor was so excellent that it went down smoothly. Drinking it while suppressing her mana left her pleasantly buzzed. Taking a bite of the roast while enjoying the cool breeze felt like pure paradise.

"Huu…"

She looked up at Enoch’s call. He was holding out his empty glass. It seemed he felt rather left out drinking apple juice by himself.

He nodded immediately. Well, a little bit wouldn’t hurt. Rionne smiled softly and began pouring whiskey into Enoch’s glass…

At Undine’s frantic fussing, Rionne had no choice but to fetch a fresh glass and pour again. Enoch stared at the whiskey inside with open curiosity.

Enoch carefully tilted the glass exactly as Rionne had instructed. The thick golden liquid slid into his mouth. And then—

"……!?!"

Enoch leapt straight up from where he sat. It felt like his tongue was on fire.

The Breath of the Flowing Dragon was an insane 240-proof liquor. A mad, super-high-proof drink created through magical processes for superhumans. It was ultra-concentrated alcohol that couldn’t normally be produced at all. Drinking alcohol-lamp fuel would have been several times gentler. Naturally, an ordinary person would die instantly.

Only after gulping down the water Rionne brought did Enoch finally calm down. Seeing him still wide-eyed with shock, Rionne couldn’t help but giggle.

A bottle of wine had appeared in her hand at some point. It wasn’t nearly as extraordinary as the Breath of the Flowing Dragon—just a light, sweet wine perfect for casual drinking. At twelve percent, it was roughly twenty times milder.

But Enoch shook his head. He wanted to drink the same thing as Rionne.

As if to say she shouldn’t worry, Enoch took a large gulp of the whiskey. Gulp. From his lips to his tongue, gums, throat, and all the way down to his stomach—the burning pain made every inch of the path vividly clear.

"Uwa…?"

Soon the whole world began to spin. The sky turned, the ground turned, Rionne turned. Even the blue flies spun round and round.

The voices buzzed and vibrated. Words entered one ear and immediately exited the other. Unable to comprehend the phenomenon, he hurled lightning at the blue flies.

But the lightning spun in circles and struck somewhere completely off target. Naughty flies. He waved his fingers, drawing magic in the air. Blue. Purple. Gold. Green. The colors connected to form a boar. The roast floated inside a liquor glass and crossed over a hill. Rionne plucked clouds from the sky and stuffed them into the fly’s mouth.

That was the last thing he remembered.

Rionne cleaned up the devastated yard. Enoch lay fast asleep, his face flushed bright red.

Undine giggled as she drank whiskey from a glass nearly as big as she was. Rionne sighed and snatched the bottle beside her.

Rionne ignored her and laid Enoch across her lap. The moon shone brightly in the darkened sky. Beneath it, she slowly savored barbecue with a glass of liquor…

Undine fled as if her tail were on fire.

The next day, Enoch sat up in bed with a dazed expression.

Dismissing the fly’s words with one ear, Enoch stretched languidly. He had no memory of the previous day. It ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠was unexpected, so he felt a little flustered, but since nothing serious seemed to have happened, he was relieved.

"……!"

He whipped his head toward Rionne. Her expression looked slightly sorrowful.

Sniff, sniff. Rionne playfully wiped away fake tears. Since she didn’t seem truly angry, Enoch felt a little relieved. Rionne smiled brightly and stroked his head.

Enoch nodded obediently. He had already encountered a boar the size of a house in the somewhat deeper parts. He was a little curious what even stranger creatures might live further in.

Three years passed in the blink of an eye.

Enoch still had not seen the deepest reaches of the forest. No exaggeration—this place was larger than most countries. There were also countless monsters he had never heard of or seen before.

"Yaaawn…"

Now significantly taller, Enoch lay sprawled across a massive tree branch, yawning lazily. Every living creature in the vicinity bowed its head in terror at the sight. Enoch paid them no mind, as if their fear was only natural.

- Enoch──!

But the moment the elf’s voice rang out,

The ruler of the shallow forest bolted toward her like an eager neighborhood dog. Only then did every creature around him breathe a collective sigh of relief. The tyrant would not be returning for a while.