First of All, I’m Drinking - Chapter 90

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

Episode 90

I turned my head to observe my companions’ reactions.

Merry, Kise, and Diago were looking down at Grace’s corpse with faces mixed with various emotions.

“Are you sad about your old colleague’s death?”

When I asked casually, Diago answered as their representative.

“That’s not it. It’s just… we feel sorry about how things turned out.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“There could have been a happier future. For our sect, and for this guy too.”

Grace’s severed head was smiling brightly.

As if he had no worries or concerns at all.

Since he died believing he could be saved at the end of his life, his final journey probably wasn’t sad.

“Killing him gently without pain was my last mercy. Do you know what this guy did to the students?”

“…Did many die?”

“Quite a few.”

“Then that’s enough.”

Diago shook his head firmly.

“If he did something worthy of death, then he should die. The fact that Pluton doesn’t favor human sacrifice is clearly written in the scriptures… For him to make such a choice, he must have been quite mentally cornered.”

The other two seemed to feel much the same as Diago.

Though it was the death of a long-time colleague, they were accepting it with composure.

Well, if they’d been apart for nearly 20 years, their bond as colleagues would have weakened.

Still, they didn’t seem completely unaffected.

“Your Majesty.”

Merry spoke up.

“If Your Majesty permits, we would like to take Grace’s body to Harten and hold a funeral for him.”

“Do as you wish.”

I don’t know what kind of relationship these people had with Grace in the past.

Separate from the atrocities he committed.

I didn’t want to stop even their desire to hold a funeral for him.

“Anyway, thank you for coming. And sorry, but you can probably head back now.”

Kise pouted as if something bothered him.

“Coming all this way only to suffer without any achievements feels frustrating…”

“What do you mean no achievements?”

If they hadn’t arrived at the end to draw attention, Seria would have nearly died.

Even thinking about it now, it was a heart-stopping moment.

Kise clapped his hands as if remembering something.

“Ah, Prince. I have something to tell you before we go.”

“What is it?”

“Nothing major, but Deront says a gift will arrive for you soon.”

“A gift? What does that mean?”

“I don’t really know either. He just asked me to tell you that.”

“I understand for now.”

A gift.

Since it’s a message from Deront, who has future sight abilities, I can’t dismiss it as nonsense.

I suppose I can take it to mean something good will happen to me soon.

“We’ll be going first then. We’re glad you’re safe, Your Majesty.”

“Thank you. See you during the break.”

The group exchanged farewells with me, then took Grace’s body and returned to Harten.

I approached the altar.

Seria, lying in the coffin, was sleeping peacefully, unaware of what had happened to her.

Suddenly, I remembered the moment I met Seria at the consecration ceremony.

Back then too, if not for me, she might have died at the hands of Zagan’s priests.

To think life-threatening situations have come twice in just a few months.

“…Do you carry bad luck around with you?”

Of course, during the consecration ceremony, she seemed to have stubbornly ignored the knights’ restraints and charged into the battlefield.

In such cases, would the expression “walking into danger with your own feet” be appropriate?

In any case.

“I’m glad.”

I gently stroked Seria’s cheek.

“I’m glad you’re alive.”

If not now, I wouldn’t even be able to touch you.

The warmth of family that seeped in after so long warmed my heart.

Just like when you first taught me the warmth of family.

Even if everything changes, that warmth remains the same.

* * *

I carried the unconscious Seria on my back and returned to where the students were.

Professors dispatched by the Academy after noticing the incident had arrived at the scene.

Seeing how they appeared after a full day had passed, it seemed they couldn’t locate the students due to the barrier, and only found them after I dealt with Grace.

“This can’t be…”

An elderly professor, presumably a mage, covered his face with his hands in despair.

“To think such a thing would happen at Millennium Academy… and there were even casualties?”

Beside him, another professor was repeatedly bowing his head in apology to the students.

“I’m sorry. We relied too much on the magic installed on the walls and were too lax with security. I don’t know how to apologize.”

The students’ reactions were varied.

Those who were relieved that they had finally survived.

Those who were sad about the death of close friends.

Those who seemed to have no particular thoughts.

Those who seemed quite angry at the Academy.

The last group was mostly noble students.

This incident had exposed the security flaws of Millennium Academy.

They must have enrolled believing it was a prestigious academy, so their disappointment must be indescribable.

And there’s no guarantee the same thing won’t happen again.

“Hmm?”

A middle-aged male professor turned his gaze to me.

It was Garcia Greyven.

“It’s student Asel. Are you hurt anywhere?”

He too seemed to have visited the scene as part of the dispatched professors.

“I’m fine. Please look at this one instead.”

“Oh my. Isn’t this student Seria?”

Garcia spread a blanket on the snow, laid Seria down, and checked her pulse.

“Fortunately, her life isn’t in danger. But her vitality is greatly weakened. She’ll be fine after resting for a few days.”

Actually, I had checked earlier too.

There were no health problems, but it seemed we’d have to wait longer for her to regain consciousness.

“Student Asel.”

Garcia called me.

“When we return to school, come to my private research room.”

I chuckled and replied.

“I was planning to do that anyway.”

I had much to tell Garcia.

We also needed to discuss future countermeasures.

‘Things are going to get busier from now on.’

* * *

We returned to the Academy through the Warp Point installed in the Kingdom of Alps.

I expected to be called in for investigations here and there as soon as we arrived, but surprisingly, they didn’t ask us anything.

Perhaps they were being considerate in case we had developed psychological trauma.

To handle the aftermath of the incident, Millennium Academy exceptionally announced a week-long school closure.

Finally, a week later.

Students finally set out on their way to school again.

However, the classroom that was always noisy and blooming with laughter was now filled only with sadness, anxiety, and tension.

“The school atmosphere has been pretty unsettled lately, hasn’t it?”

On the way to the lecture hall for our major class.

Fail lowered his voice and spoke in a whisper.

“It seems the Parent Association is really furious. A major overhaul seems inevitable.”

It was an incident where a professor kidnapped students and committed mass murder.

Naturally, it became an even bigger topic worldwide than the Order of the Sword’s consecration ceremony incident, and the Parent Association was in complete chaos.

Especially the parents who lost their children were said to be ready to set the school on fire.

‘How unfortunate.’

Raeseya Welton was treated as missing.

Because Merry had taken away her body, no one could find any trace of her.

On one hand, I too was feeling some guilt about this incident.

Grace was my priest, and ultimately, she had caused all this to offer a sacrifice to me.

“So what exactly are they planning to overhaul and how?”

This incident was closer to a disaster when you think about it.

The Parent Association seemed to be demanding the dismissal or replacement of certain professors.

That kind of overhaul was meaningless.

It was nothing more than passing the buck.

“I don’t really know either.”

Fail shook his head.

“Even if changes happen, I don’t know if they’ll affect regular students like us. We should just attend school and study hard as usual.”

“Fail, you don’t study though.”

“I, I do when I do! I may not be good at fighting, but my written scores are pretty high up there!”

“Yeah right.”

Change.

I hoped there wouldn’t be too many things to worry about.

I was already quite troubled by the massive change that had happened to me.

“Is that him?”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

“He’s… handsome. He’s that handsome and brave and good with a sword too?”

“So cool.”

A few students looked at me, whispered among themselves, and passed by.

Again.

I don’t know how many times this has been.

After the incident, I had suddenly become a star among the students.

Brave, strong, handsome genius swordsman.

This title, which made me want to cut off my limbs from cringing just hearing it, was currently the nickname first-years used to call me.

I wasn’t even famous only among first-years.

After the major class ended, during break time.

Peek.

Someone glanced at me through the classroom window.

Judging by the necktie color, it was a second-year.

Two female upperclassmen looked at me and blushed.

“It’s true. I can’t believe our school had such a handsome underclassman.”

“I’m so jealous of the first-years~ I want to be a first-year too.”

It seemed rumors about me had spread even to the upperclassmen level.

What was really ridiculous was that I heard more talk about my appearance than my martial prowess.

Was my face more impressive to the children that day than my Aura Blade?

‘…Am I handsome?’

I looked at my face reflected in the window.

My features seemed to be quite distinct.

But so what?

I had no interest in appearance, and I didn’t know whether my face was handsome or ugly.

All this attention was just annoying.

“Looking in the mirror?”

Max sat on my desk with a playful smile.

“The kids keep saying I’m handsome so much that it’s absurd. Honestly, I don’t really know.”

“…You know being too modest can be annoying, right? You’re sufficiently, no, excessively handsome, so you don’t need to be humble.”

“Is that so. I don’t know, I’m not interested.”

If Max says so, then it must be true.

A member of the royal family has no reason to flatter me.

“Not interested in appearance, that’s not like our age group. Then shall I tell you some news that might interest you?”

Max smiled like a mischievous child.

It was that smile I used to see often when we were young.

“You need to go to the Imperial Capital.”

“…What?”

“I said you need to go to the Imperial Capital.”

What kind of nonsense is this?

I thought I misheard and asked again.

“Go to the Imperial Capital? Me? Why?”

“His Majesty the Emperor wants to give you an award. Not just you, but Ragnor von Grantuan and Meirei Estrada will go together too. Of course, you’re scheduled to receive the biggest award among them.”

“…Huh.”

Three Sword Experts who made great contributions to protecting students from monsters.

The Emperor wants to personally summon us and bestow awards.

He probably also intends to make note of us while he’s at it.

Talents who achieved 5-star at age 17 are very rare historically, and three such rare cases appeared in one grade.

“Are you nervous?”

Max was still smiling playfully.

“Nothing to be nervous about. The Imperial Capital is just a place where people live too. You just need to act slightly more politely than usual.”

“I know.”

I used to live there too, you know.

‘The Imperial Capital…’

Like a twist of fate, I was going back home again four years after running away.

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