"Yes — I don't normally drink because I have practice, but I thought I
should at least drink freely today. The alcohol of this village sure is high
quality." Rio said, raising his cup to his mouth.
This wasn't exactly flattery, but a compliment from the depths of his
heart. There were several types of alcohol offered at the banquet, but even the
cheapest bulk-produced alcohol of the spirit folk exceeded the quality of what
the highest nobility and royalty in Strahl drank. Of course, it went without
saying that the progression of drinking was also faster.
"Well, duh! Our village only brews real sake! 'S not like them human-
made drinks that they only drink to get drunk!" Hearing the village's alcohol
being commended made Dominic laugh merrily.
"It's exactly as you say. Now that I've had this sake, I can never go back
to Strahl's alcohol."
"Good riddance! This isn't even the top tier of the alcohol we make. Just
wait 'til you try our spirit folk specialty, Soul Sake!" With a grin, Dominic
took out a mythril carafe and glass. He poured its contents into the glass and
offered it to Rio.
"This..."
"Shh, just drink."
The instant Rio peered into the glass, a mesmerizing, mellow scent
tickled his nose. A thick liquid filled the cup, drawing Rio's mouth towards it
almost involuntarily. The moment the sake touched his tongue —
"Wuh?!"
The taste was so exquisite, it almost made Rio's jaw drop. He pressed his
mouth closed in a panic, but the intense flavor of the alcohol was already
seeping throughout every inch of him.
It was so good, it felt like his soul was slipping out of his body. The sake
was probably dubbed Soul Sake for this very reason: because drinking it
caused a near out-of-body experience, Rio mused.
Unable to resist the temptation, Rio brought his cup to his mouth for a
second sip. Before he knew it, the sake in his mouth had disappeared, as
though it evaporated into thin air.
No, the sake definitely passed through Rio's throat... The taste was just
too much for him to process, making it seem as though it had disappeared in
an instant. For such a high potency, it was terrifyingly easy to drink.
This was first-rate drink, most worthy of being called Soul Sake. He
couldn't even consider Strahl's alcohol to be alcohol anymore. Lost for
words, Rio's body shook with the emotions running through him. That was
when Dryas appeared, a glass held in one hand.
"What do you think? My sap is in that," she said.
"Hrrrk!" Upon hearing Dryas mention her sap, Rio choked.
"Kya! Eww, geez. What are you doing?"
"I-I'm sorry. I was just surprised. This is the sap of Your Greatness?"
"That's right. It's called Soul Sake, isn't it? As the spirit of the giant tree,
I'm the soul that resides in the sap used — hence the name. My sap is even
used in elixirs," Dryas said proudly.
"I-I see..." If the sap produced sake of this quality, then it could certainly
be used as a miracle component for medicines too.
"I'm impressed, though. Only dwarves can drink that sake properly. You
must be a heavy drinker, Rio," Dryas said with wide eyes.
"You got that right, Your Greatness! It's almost a shame a guy like this is
a human. Now drink up, drink up!" Dominic agreed cheerfully as he refilled
Rio's glass. The dwarf elder had already consumed a fair amount of alcohol
himself, but his face still appeared just fine.
"It really is a potent alcohol. It's almost scary how easily it goes down
despite that." Rio looked at his Soul Sake-filled glass with reverence.
"Right? Normally they end up like that." With a pleasant smile, Dryas
directed her gaze behind Rio, who turned around and followed her gaze.
There he saw —
"O-Orphia?!" Orphia was stumbling over her own feet, heading towards
Rio. Her face was so red, it was evident she was drunk with just one glance.
"Mashter Riooo, are you... drinkin'...?" Orphia asked with a slurred lisp,
flopping down in the seat next to Rio. The difference between her usual
gentle self was so great, Rio was dumbfounded.
"U-Umm, Orphia, haven't you had too much to drink?" Rio asked with a
twitching smile, sending her words of concern.
"Ah! I'm... I'm fiiiine. This... ish barely nothin'..."
You're clearly not fine at all! — Rio wanted to yell. Suddenly, Orphia
sidled up right against Rio.
"Mooore importantly, Rioooo! When will you shtop shpeaking sho
shtiffly?!"
"...Umm, I speak stiffly?"
"Yesh! You shpeak like yer tryin' to dishtance yourshelf." Orphia held
her eye contact with an oddly steady gaze. She spoke so insistently, Rio
couldn't help but shrink back.
"I've gotten sho closhe with Latifa, yet it baaaarely feelsh like I'm
fwiends with Rio. Ish been half a year shince you came here. Thish can't be
right..."
At a loss for how to deal with a drunk Orphia, Rio looked to Dominic
and Dryas for help. But the two of them had disappeared from where they
were drinking mere moments ago, standing far in the distance and laughing at
Rio instead.
They abandoned me! — Ah, it's Sara! Just as despair overcame Rio, he
noticed Sara coming his way and heaved a sigh of relief.
"Good grief! Orphia, you're causing trouble for Rio!" Sara said, holding
her glass with both hands as she sat down and glued herself to Rio's hip.
Judging by her appearance, Sara still seemed to be clear-headed and
sober, but Rio could feel that something was terribly wrong. In all the time
they had spent living together, he knew that Orphia and Sara weren't the type
to touch him so proactively.
"Erm... Are you drunk too, Sara? Haha..." Rio asked, looking into Sara's
eyes.
"Y-Yes. Umm, I may be a little drunk." Perhaps she really was, as her
cheeks reddened when she nodded. Her eyes darted about the place, and her
tail also twitched restlessly. She pressed herself even closer.
"Right... Shall I cast a sobering spirit art on you?" Feeling his body being
squished in from both sides made Rio pull himself together and ask.
"N-No! I'd get even more embarrassed if you did that!" Sara shook her
head in a fluster.
"Thash right. Lishen to Shara," Orphia spoke up in agreement.
Even more embarrassed... That implied she was feeling a certain level of
embarrassment at the moment. And yet, she still chose to stick to him this
closely. Rio calmly tried to discern what the reason for that could be.
However, the girls clinging on each side of him made it very difficult to
think.
How did it end up like this? Rio lamented to himself.
Both Sara and Orphia were both of such high status, they could be
considered the village's princesses... and they were extremely beautiful as
well. Rio couldn't stand being in this situation, but it was the type of circumstance where it wouldn't be strange if all the men around him glared
daggers in his direction.