First of All, I’m Drinking - Chapter 18

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 18

“Count Gamillan!”

“It’s been so long! *sniffle*”

Kal greeted him while snot dripped from his nose.

Seria joyfully ran out like she was meeting her uncle after a long time and threw herself into Zeroph’s arms.

Zeroph gently stroked Seria’s head, then suddenly flicked her forehead with a thunk!

“Ow!”

“This is punishment, Princess Seria. Violence is bad behavior.”

“…Hiiing.”

Seria gently rubbed her head where Zeroph had hit her.

Her lips were pouting out as if she felt wronged.

Thunk!

“Aack!”

The next one to suffer was Mac, who had been sticking close to Zeroph’s side and sticking his tongue out at Seria.

“This is also punishment, Prince Max. Drinking someone else’s beverage without permission is no different from stealing. And I’ve told you repeatedly to refrain from tattling.”

“…I’m sorry.”

Mac bowed his head.

Zeroph stroked both children’s heads once more.

“You mustn’t do such things in the future.”

“Yes.”

“Yes…”

After hearing their responses, Zeroph nodded with satisfaction.

His deep voice echoed through the reception room.

“The reason I came today is to give you guidance regarding practical field training.”

With those words, the noisy reception room fell silent.

The days when attendants stayed right beside them managing everything were over.

According to the laws of the Argent Imperial Family, the children must complete their assigned missions with their own strength alone.

Though Imperial Knights would watch over them for surveillance and protection, they would not intervene in the missions.

“In my hands are your mission locations and mission objectives.”

Zeroph took out four sheets of paper from an envelope.

Seeing them, tension appeared on the children’s faces.

“The start date is one week from now. Until then, you must prepare the necessary supplies for your missions by yourselves. We will evaluate you thoroughly, not just on the mission content but also on the preparation process.”

And this evaluation would go straight to the Emperor’s ears.

Any member of the Imperial Family aiming for the next throne could never treat this lightly.

‘Well, it doesn’t really matter to me.’

Success or failure, it was all the same.

I had no intention of becoming some human king.

Since there were no direct disadvantages for failing, I decided to approach it with a relaxed mind.

“First, Prince Max.”

Zeroph unfolded the paper that was on top.

“Mission location: near Millenium in the Imperial Capital. Mission objective: hunt ten or more Iron Rats.”

“Hiiek!”

Mac made a shrill sound.

Iron Rats were the lowest-grade monsters, about a span larger than ordinary rats.

They caused damage by invading homes and stealing grain to eat.

I had heard news that damage from Iron Rats in the Imperial Capital had been increasing recently.

They were said to be quick and agile, making them hard to catch.

“I hate rats…”

Still, they were lowest-grade monsters that even ordinary people could beat to death, so it wouldn’t be too difficult.

I was getting a rough idea of what the practical training entailed.

Since they were still young and it was their first time, it seemed the emphasis was on the children making judgments and acting independently rather than on mission difficulty.

“Next is Prince Carno.”

Zeroph unfolded the second paper.

“Mission location: near Millenium in the Imperial Capital. Mission objective: hunt ten or more Iron Rats.”

Carno’s case was exactly the same.

Near Millenium. Hunt ten Iron Rats.

“Princess Seria.”

Zeroph unfolded the third paper.

“Mission location: near Millenium in the Imperial Capital. Mission objective: hunt ten or more Iron Rats.”

What? They’re all the same?

If this was the case, why didn’t he just write it on one paper instead of going through the trouble of dividing it into four sheets?

I learned the reason the moment Zeroph unfolded the last paper.

“Finally, Prince Cael.”

Zeroph read the text written on the remaining paper.

The children who heard the mission content were all shocked in unison.

“Mission location: deep within Gerpelt Forest. Mission objective: complete extermination of one or more goblin settlements.”

Goblins had strength similar to that of young children.

But they were dangerous monsters due to their pack behavior, agile speed, and cruel nature.

The difficulty suddenly jumped up compared to Iron Rats.

It seemed I was assigned a mission befitting my higher level compared to the other children.

But what I was focusing on was something else.

‘Mission location: deep within Gerpelt Forest.’

How lucky.

To think that exact location would be assigned to me.

The traces of the Baal Sect that were reportedly sighted in Gerpelt Forest.

I should look for them during this opportunity.

* * *

The week passed in an instant.

Zeroph said the preparation process was included in the evaluation criteria, but since I had no interest in the next throne, I didn’t need to pretend to work hard.

I just went to the Imperial armory and picked out one real sword of appropriate size that fit my hand.

The warehouse manager asked me as I was leaving with the sword.

“Aren’t you taking any armor?”

“I don’t need it.”

As a 3-star who could protect my body by wrapping it in aura, I didn’t particularly need armor.

Of course, wearing armor would greatly increase safety, but if I don’t get hit, that’s that.

The warehouse manager must have thought my attitude was a beginner’s recklessness, as he stopped me and gave a long speech about the necessity of armor and protective gear.

In the end, I couldn’t resist his nagging and had to take chain mail and full plate armor that fit my height.

‘Children’s full plate armor, really.’

How much does it cost to make just one of these?

The quality was even top-grade.

The Imperial Capital certainly seemed to have money rotting away.

On departure day, I prepared for a potentially long schedule by getting sufficient money, food, and water from the kitchen and packing them in my bag.

An Imperial carriage took me to the castle gate.

“Be careful, Your Highness!”

“Safety always comes first! You must return without getting hurt!”

After the farewell from the attendants and my dedicated knights, the castle gate closed.

What I could see before me were the castle walls rising majestically as if they wouldn’t allow a single intruder, and the broad avenue of Millenium in the Imperial Capital spreading out widely.

From here, I had to move alone.

The process of getting to the mission location was also strictly one of the evaluation factors.

Rustle.

I had hidden my presence as much as possible, but I could still sense people positioning themselves around me.

Four in total.

They seemed to be Imperial knights assigned to monitor and evaluate me.

The purpose of this outing was to find traces of the Baal Sect in Gerpelt Forest.

They would normally be clear allies, but in this situation, they were just bothersome obstacles.

‘Should I go take a look?’

Just as I was about to step forward while thinking of ways to shake off the knights.

Gulp.

I heard the sound of people swallowing saliva from here and there.

The castle gate suddenly opened, and out popped a young boy wearing the finest full plate armor.

What would the citizens assume about who I was?

Information about Imperial children conducting practical training had already spread far and wide.

“Don’t mind me and go about your business.”

Only then did the citizens begin doing their own tasks.

But the tension still hadn’t been relieved.

Just standing still seemed like it would interfere with their lives, so I quickly moved along.

Had I walked along the main road for about 10 minutes?

I heard the sound of horse hooves from behind.

Clop-clop- Clop-clop-

A crude carriage passed by me.

Glancing inside, I saw there were no passengers besides the coachman.

It seemed like he had dropped off a passenger and was heading to the coach station.

‘I should follow that.’

The horse pulling the carriage was a low-grade breed.

I could catch and ride it right here, but its speed was on the slow side.

I planned to follow the carriage to the station as a way to warm up, then pick the finest carriage docked there to ride.

I activated my aura.

The 3-star aura quickly circulated through my body, boosting my vitality.

Dash-

I kicked off the ground and ran following the carriage.

The advantage of low-level aura is that it focuses more on stamina enhancement than physical ability augmentation.

Following a carriage slowly moving through the city was simple.

Before long, the carriage arrived at the station.

About ten carriages were lined up in a row, and people presumed to be mercenaries were haggling with coachmen here and there.

‘Let me take a look.’

I calmly surveyed the horses.

Most were ordinary low-grade breeds, but there was one that particularly caught my eye.

Unlike the other brown horses, this one had a mottled light green body.

It was a monster called a Hisan, a subspecies of horse.

Though it’s a monster, it has no aggression and doesn’t avoid humans, so it’s favored as a mount.

Naturally, the price is beyond imagination.

‘To think there’d be a carriage pulled by a Hisan.’

If I rode that, I could reach my destination of Gerpelt Forest in less than an hour.

I immediately approached and greeted the coachman.

“Hello.”

“Hm?”

The half-bald coachman looked at me and flinched.

Well.

I’d be surprised too if I saw a young boy wearing the finest full plate armor made for children.

“Where are you headed?”

“I’d like to go to Gerpelt Forest.”

“Gerpelt Forest? Looking at your outfit, you’re not heading to the outskirts, so don’t tell me you’re going into the depths?”

I nodded my head.

The helmet on my head made a clanking noise.

“Hmm, Gerpelt Forest.”

The coachman seemed to be pondering while stroking his chin.

Of course, that was just a show of bravado to raise the price.

He had probably already finished calculating in his head.

“The depths are monster territory, so there’s a danger surcharge. Is that okay?”

“Of course.”

I had brought plenty of money anyway.

I didn’t have time to waste haggling.

I decided to just let it slide if he raised the price reasonably.

“2 gold.”

…That bastard.

Now this changes things.

There’s a limit to trying to rip someone off.

I glared coldly at the coachman with flashing eyes.

“Hey, you.”

“Hm?”

The coachman’s brow furrowed as the kid who had been speaking politely suddenly switched to informal speech.

I took off my helmet and revealed my face.

“Actually, I’m royalty.”

The ocean-blue eyes symbolizing the Argent Imperial Family gleamed with light.

“2 gold is too expensive. Call out the correct price before I drag you away for fraud.”

There was no problem with revealing my royal status during practical training.

My evaluation score might get docked a little, but I didn’t care about that.

If I could travel comfortably, it was best to go comfortably without hiding.

But there was one thing I hadn’t considered.

“Hahahaha!”

The coachman suddenly started laughing uproariously, clutching his belly.

He laughed so hard that tears formed in his eyes.

He looked down at me unpleasantly, as if looking at a clown.

“What? Royalty? Royaltyyyy? Just because you picked up some shiny armor somewhere, you think you’re untouchable? Don’t you know impersonating royalty gets you life imprisonment at minimum?”

Most residents don’t know the faces of royalty.

Because they have no opportunity to see them.

I pointed to my blue eyes that symbolize royalty.

“Don’t you see my eyes? This is the eye color that symbolizes the Argent Imperial Family.”

“Oh, I can see them fine. Those blue things. But if you’re going to scam someone, at least do it properly, kid. Are all people with blue eyes royalty? What a ridiculous fellow.”

“…Didn’t you see me at the baptism ceremony? Five years ago?”

“Ah, enough, enough. If you’re not riding, get lost. Before I report you for impersonating royalty. This kid doesn’t know how scary the world is.”

It seems like the mistake was on my side.

It looked like he wouldn’t believe me even if I took him directly to the Imperial Capital to show him.

“…Sigh, fine.”

In the end, I took a step back.

I tucked my helmet under my arm and pulled out my money pouch from my bag.

With no one knowing my face and no attendants to assist me, I couldn’t think of a proper way to prove my identity.

I couldn’t waste any more time in a place like this.

‘Let’s just pay 2 gold and go.’

It’s a fortune that would make commoners’ jaws drop, but for a prince like me, it’s pocket change.

I pulled out two golden coins from my pouch and held them out.

“Here’s 2 gold. To the depths of Gerpelt Forest.”

“…!”

The coachman stared blankly at the gold in my hand.

He apparently hadn’t expected me to actually offer up 2 gold so readily.

For a moment, his gaze lingered on my money pouch.

A sinister smile spread across the coachman’s lips.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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