(Hime side)
I was still not interested in those sakes, so I didn't want to drink them right now, and the same went for Yuu-chan.
While the people around us, including those two, were drinking them, the two of us could only watch without doing anything.
They looked like they were having fun, and this was the first time I had ever seen Yukito-san drinking sake.
Well, at first Luke was the one who forced him to drink it, but it turned out he ended up drinking several more cups.
"You two are the same as me, huh?" someone beside us asked.
Yuu-chan and I immediately turned our heads to see who said that.
"Ah, Anggie-san," I said.
"Could it be that only the three of us aren't drinking?" Anggie-san asked me.
"You're not drinking it? I thought you were enjoying the sake too," I said.
"No, no. Only Marcen is drinking among the two of us. So, what's your reason? As for me, I just don't want to get drunk," she replied.
"I'm just lazy. Besides, there are drinks that taste better than sake," Yuu-chan said.
"Actually, the sake being served this time is three times more dangerous than the sake sold on the market," Anggie-san said.
"The alcohol content is very high, so it makes people get drunk more easily," she continued.
"Good thing I didn't drink it…" I muttered.
——
After that, the three of us kept chatting until all the sake in every barrel was gone, and the sake party came to an end.
I saw many people's faces flushed red from being drunk—well, that's how it's supposed to be.
Anggie-san suddenly stood up from her chair and prepared to leave us.
"Alright, I have to take Marcen to his room. He can't walk on his own right after drinking sake. You two should also help your friends; they might need assistance," she said as she walked away while waving her hand.
I also stood up from my chair and called out to Yuu-chan.
"Let's go, Yuu-chan," I said.
"I'm starting to get bored too, let's head back," she replied.
The two of us approached Yukito-san and Luke—ah, their faces were both extremely red now.
Yukito-san was sitting on a chair with his eyes already closed; maybe he had fallen asleep from being drunk.
Meanwhile, Luke was still awake, staring blankly. I didn't know whether he was still conscious or not.
Yuu-chan and I looked at each other, then nodded, meaning we both knew what we had to do.
I patted Yukito-san's shoulder a little harder to wake him up. Ah, it worked.
He slowly opened his eyes, and I could tell that he was awake and looking at me now.
Meanwhile, Yuu-chan asked Luke, and it turned out that Luke was still strong enough to walk back on his own, but we decided to go back together anyway.
There was no way we were going to let drunk people like them walk alone on the streets; that would be quite dangerous.
——
(Yukito side)
Ugh… my head feels a bit better than before. Honestly, this was my first time having such an unpleasant experience.
But maybe I'll still drink it again next time—well, I've already drunk it once, and it did taste good.
I've heard that most people in this world drink sake as a companion drink while eating.
Especially adventurers, who often drink it after finishing a mission, or simply to enjoy the night atmosphere.
Huh… my body… is walking down the street. I feel someone helping me walk by looping my right arm over their shoulder.
I turn my head to the side to see who it is.
"H-Hime…!" I say.
"Oh, you're awake? How are you feeling?" Hime asks.
"I'm fine, so let go of me. I can walk on my own already," I say while trying to pull my arm away from her.
But before it fully comes loose, she forces me to stay supported by her like this.
"No. You're not fully recovered yet; your face is still very red," she says in a tone that sounds like she's scolding me.
Eh, my face is still red? Did I really drink that much sake?
Ugh… my thoughts are too messy to think about anything properly, and I still feel a little dizzy.
Still, I can stay somewhat conscious and make my body less of a burden by trying to walk on my own while being supported by her.
"L-Luke… where is he?" I ask.
"Ah, Luke is behind us. He can walk on his own; Yuu-chan is just walking beside him. We can't just let the two of you wander around," she says.
After hearing that, I immediately forget everything that happened on the way back.
My memory only goes that far; after that, I don't know what happened. But I'm sure nothing strange happened afterward.
Luke and I must have been helped back to the inn. I also don't know how Sikiyomi-san reacted when she saw me come back with my face all flushed like this.
—
When I suddenly wake up, I feel my body lying on a soft, comfortable cushion—ah, I'm sleeping on a bed.
I open my eyes and realize that I'm no longer dizzy, and my mind feels much clearer.
I try moving my right hand, and I can do it very easily.
Phew… that means I'm no longer drunk.
I get up from my sleep and sit on the bed to relax my head. I glance toward the window, whose curtains are still closed, but I'm sure it's already daytime outside.
I can see a bit of sunlight being blocked by the curtains.
I also see Luke lying down, sleeping soundly on his bed. I think he's going to oversleep.
He's sleeping face down, his head turned toward me, with his mouth opening and closing repeatedly.
Wow… I'm sure he's having a pleasant dream right now.
But honestly… I want to know what happened last night… for some reason, I feel very curious.
——
(Hime side)
The four of us finally arrived in front of the inn, and since I was supporting Yukito-san's body, I could only knock on the door repeatedly to get Sato-san to open it.
She noticed someone knocking and opened the door.
I could see her shocked reaction when she saw Yukito-san and Luke with their faces flushed red.
"Quickly take them to their room; I'll help," she said.
She helped me carry Yukito-san's body. To be honest, I wasn't strong enough anymore to support his weight on my own.
We brought Luke and Yukito-san to their room and laid their bodies down on the bed.
After he was lying down, I removed Yukito-san's footwear so the bed wouldn't get dirty or dusty.
As for Luke, still walking on his own with consciousness that might or might not still be there, he went to his own bed and immediately dropped his body onto it.
He fell asleep face down; well, I suppose both of them should be sleeping after drinking sake.
I closed their room door slowly so as not to make any noise that might wake them up.
Hah… I let out a light sigh before returning to the dining table and sitting with the three of them.
We chatted with Sato-san about what we had done all day.
"In short, I'm very thankful and grateful. Thanks to your help, both cities are still safe from the Abyss invasion. You two should rest; you must be tired, right?" Sato-san asked.
"I'm fine…" I replied, my voice probably too soft to be clearly heard.
"Look at you two—you're already exhausted. Do you need me to help you to your room as well?" Sato-san asked again.
I'm sure she was very worried about us, since we had just fought and returned late at night.
Well, even though it was only half past nine, I could feel that the mana inside my body had already been completely drained.
Yuu-chan had said the same thing earlier, and it was only natural that our mana was exhausted.
We used high-level magic that required a lot of mana, so we needed to rest to recover the mana we had lost.
"It's fine, I can still manage," I said.
Yuu-chan and I went into our room, changed into our sleeping clothes, then lay down and began to close our eyes, ready to see beautiful dreams.