Chapter 53: Mercenary and Saintess. (3)

It's been a week since the residents returned to Evernode. I could not have been more relaxed during that time. Archduke Quenor was kind enough to resume the interrupted Summer Solstice festivities, and our party enjoyed three days of pure fun without the pressures of war. And the event of the festival's final day was already set in stone.

It could only be one thing: a knights' drinking contest.

A large glass of wine was unceremoniously placed on the long wooden table. Ale trickled down the rim. Before I could ask whose glass it was, Georg placed his hands on the handle. 'This guy... had already gotten himself drunk before the contest had even begun. He hadn't even had a drink, and I could smell the alcohol on his breath.'

"Comrades! Today is the day to unwind!!!"

At the top of his lungs, Georg raised his glass to the day of alcohol's liberation. Due to the Fourth Disaster, no one on the walls was allowed a lick. A Templar that lead the frontlines with a shield now led with a mug that measures in liters. It is honestly a bit much staying next to him.

"Come on, Georg, are you abstaining from alcohol now?"

"Huh? Are you talking about me? What are you doing with your glasses unfilled? Stop drinking alone and bring another keg over here!"

"Chug! Chug! Chug!"

And the crazies calling for him to chug his colossal mug. Georg shrugged and cheered until everyone in the room looked at him and told him to get it down in one.

"Okay, okay. Since you all want me to empty this glass, I'll give you a demonstration. I want you all to raise your glasses after me, and when I empty it, you drink it too!"

"Oooooooh!!!"

I watched Georg's expression as he enjoyed the knights' response of half admiration, half disbelief. I swear, his eyebrows were just dancing. He smiled broadly, then slammed the ale into his mouth and drank. No, not his mouth, but straight down his throat and stomach.

"Georg! Georg!"

"Drink! Drink!"

Within seconds, Georg was twirling in place, showing off his empty glass, and the knights, perhaps spurred on by the insane suction of the liquor, cheered, picked up their own glasses, and began to do the same. Looking at the half-empty bar, I smirked.

"It's not so bad with all this noise."

Daphne was giggling, too, holding onto her glass with both hands. It wasn't a drunken grin, more like a smile of delight.

"It's a much nicer sound than the noise of war."

"You're right, though it does break my image of northern knights."

I looked down at my glass. I couldn't tell what color the liquor was in the wooden goblet. My face appeared on the surface, then shook and disappeared again.

"Shall we have a toast?"

Daphne held out her glass. I chuckled and raised my glass to meet hers.

"By the way, what are you drinking?"

"Medicine."

Daphne frowned as she looked at the bandages I had on my body. I shook my head and took a small sip of my drink. It was refreshing. A salty sweetness and a lingering bitterness at the end. It was nothing special, but it tasted good. It was a familiar taste.

Marianne didn't drink, but she was there, too. The wooden goblet in her hand probably contained water, and she sipped it like a drink. She kept her eyes closed, maintaining her pace in this noisy atmosphere, as always.

"What the hell, you're already drinking."

Archduke Quenor and Luke, who had come through the ballroom's doors, snickered at the scene. The knights greeted them with even more gusto.

"Here, let me make a toast. Have you all filled your glasses?"

Archduke Quenor casually picked up a glass. The knights began spinning the casks again. Empty glasses were refilled, and the mood grew sweeter. I shouted out.

"What will your toast be?!"

"Hmm... Well then, lets do this, Hero. Someone rhyme it."

Archduke Quenor looked at me as he did so. Ugh. I twisted the corners of my mouth in horror. 'Please, don't do that.' Of course, the Archduke saw my horrified expression and got even better, raising his glass even higher. Oh, I should have just kept a straight face.

(TN: There is nothing I can do about this. Rhymes are just terrible to translate. I'll just put the Korean words Romanized so you can see.)

""Dragon!!!" (yong)

"Hero!" (yongsanim)

Please.

"I love you!!!" (saranghae)

""We love you!!"" (saranghamnida)

Fuck.

I couldn't raise my head. How could they embarrass me with something so simple? I practically dropped my head on the table, and the assholes were laughing their heads off at my reaction. I wondered if it was a trait of the people here that they liked to make fun of others. I worried about the Ironblood Princess.

I looked up with a grimace and took a drink. Marianne still had her eyes closed, and Georg was busy laughing and chatting with the knights. I smiled faintly at the sight. The soldiers offered me toasts, their goblets clinking excitedly as they came into contact with mine. Knights telling tales and calculating who had slain more monsters.

And then.

"Hehehe. Elroy."

Daphne's face is flushed red, and she is grinning like an idiot. She scoots over to my side and leans her face into my arm. I could feel a few of the knights noticing the scene and turning their heads toward me, sipping their drinks with a sly smiles.

"Drink water; you're drunk."

"I know, hehe."

She rested her chin on my arm, locking eyes with me and lifting the corner of her mouth.

"I love you too."

Daphne's violet eyes sparkled in the ballroom lights. She's beautiful. I said, "Yeah, yeah, yeah," and brought her a glass of water, but she ignored me and took a drink, pulling her face away from my arm again.

"Tsk tsk."

"Is he a eunuch?"

I saw their accusatory glances and heard their whispering. I glared at the knights, and they looked away, reaching for their drinks as if nothing happened. I glanced back and forth between Daphne and the knights in disbelief, then laughed weakly and refilled my glass with my medicine.

Drinks and stories were thrown around. I watched the knights get drunk, and I drank with them. Archduke, Luke, Rhys, Hedwig, Serene, Hans, Adrian.... I closed my eyes, taking in the smiling faces of each knight.

***

"I must thank you again, Elroy, and I'm sure it will never be enough."

The Archduke said, squeezing my hand vigorously. It was mid-August, and we were now returning to the Capital. The northern winds were beginning to cool, and the nights grew longer. It was time to go, but I wanted to stay another day.

"You have been a member of the Evernode family since the day you slayed the Giant, nay, since the day you patrolled with our knights. And you will always be."

With that, Archduke Quenor patted me on the shoulder with a rueful look. Behind him, Evernode's top brass had come out to see us off while others stood on the ramparts looking down at our party.

"Remember, you will always have the full support of Evernode behind you."

I looked over the Archduke's shoulder. The mood was different than when we first entered the castle.

"I will always remember Evernode, just as Evernode remembers me."

"You can always visit us. There will always be a place for you."

I nodded. As I turned to leave, a sulky Karin walked out in front of me. I cocked my head, wondering what was going on, and she looked up and locked eyes with me.

"Do you think I'll ever see you again?"

I smiled sheepishly and nodded. This will definitely not be my last time with Evernode. There would be many more opportunities to meet again.

"...Can you promise me this time also?"

Karin cautiously held out her hand, and I gladly reached out mine and hooked my pinky. Karin smiled at me with the biggest smile on her face.

"Let's go, Elroy!"

Georg called for me. I mounted my horse and looked ahead. The wind was picking up as we made our way to the Capital.

***

The Hero had slain the Fourth Disaster.

The news spread across the continent faster than the winds could blow. The announcement came only a few months after the fall of the Third Disaster, and the entire continent rejoiced. The surprise was doubled by the fact that it was without the help of the Saintess. The cities in the north, especially those that supported Evernode, had been anxiously awaiting the end of the war, and when they heard the news of victory, celebrations were all you could listen to.

And the news didn't take long to reach Bactins, a city quite some distance from Evernode.

"Many of our critically ill patients have improved thanks to the Saintess. We can never thank you enough...."

Bactin's magistrate was overwhelmed with gratitude. She had just finished setting the leg of a patient with a fracture and sent him out of the tent. However, the words "improved" were no consolation to the Saintess. Iris shook her head as heavily as if an extra weight was on her neck.

"No. If anyone else needs healing, please bring them here. I can stay for however long it takes."

As she tended to patients, her healing magic and mana pool grew. She went from being able to heal five people on her first day to recovering fifteen in hours. But she could never be happy about the growth, for the more her healing magic grew, the more she saw the injured.

"...That's the thing, Saintess."

The magistrate spoke hesitantly. It wasn't that he was worried about being a nuisance to Iris, but a hesitation that was tinged with anguish.

"There is nothing more you can do here, Saintess."

Iris' face hardened.

"The inhabitants of Bactin will now disperse and go to other cities, for we cannot allow so many people to live in this makeshift settlement forever. We are wasting manpower by having people idly sit here."

He let out a very long sigh.

"We'll build a new city on top of the ruins, but as you can see, it's in no condition to serve as a place to live right now. Once the city is more or less rebuilt, we'll bring people back."

The magistrate's words cut deep into Iris' gut.

"Then... I'm...."

She stuttered, looking as dazed as a lost person. Behind her, a priest approached and spoke.

"Regardless, we have been told to leave Bactins."

Iris turned to look at the priest, her expression twisted.

"So, you're saying we're to return to the Holy Land without helping in the recovery...?"

The priest shook his head. His eyes met Iris with a pitying look.

"No, Saintess. We received some news not long ago."

"What is it?"

The priest's brow narrowed slightly, and he spoke cautiously.

"News that Hero's Party has defeated the Fourth Disaster."

Her pupils dilated, and she trembled. 'Defeated... The Fourth Disaster...' Without the Saintess and Mercenary? When she'd heard that the Fourth Disaster's campaign had begun, she'd thought they were being reckless. They were only asking for defeat... and somehow... By what means...?

"You... did they really defeat the Fourth Disaster? The Hero?"

The priest nodded silently.

"Yes. The Holy Land sent the message that there is nothing more you can do here and that you should pack up to leave for Evernode."

Iris shook her head involuntarily. There were still many people to heal. Many needed help. She couldn't leave now...

"Iris, the patients here can survive and be treated without your help. You've already taken care of the most critical ones."

Arjen, who had been watching the scene from behind, spoke in a low voice. Then he looked at the priest and asked.

"Has the Fourth Disaster really fallen?"

"Yes. The news that the Hero has defeated it is now spreading to the entire continent."

Arjen frowned, then fell silent. The priest looked at Iris, who still sat in a daze, and sighed.

"You should go, Saintess. I'm sure others in the Evernode desperately need your help."

Iris bit her lip and nodded.

Elroy's words were coming back to her, one by one.