# 85
“Oh, right.”
As Deyarin approached the source of the sounds, she noticed that the heel of her shoe had broken, which made her think about returning to her room. But she did not expect to encounter them at this moment.
Turns out it was near the end of the maze garden.
“Who's there?”
“Oh, isn’t this the new master, the powerful one!”
“Yes, yes, it is him!”
The people who spotted her immediately moved towards her.
“Good morning. You look like you were on a morning walk?”
“Ah, yes...”
Dearyn was hugging Sirius as she responded reservedly to the greeting.
Who would be interested in a man getting a woman pregnant? Today was not a good time to try to find a new partner for her puppy.
“I broke the heel of my shoe...”
However, she tried to justify the situation just to be on the safe side, even though no one asked her why.
“Oh, this road is a bit muddy!”
"Haha, what a pity. No one told you that?"
It turns out that life in the palace needs to know some small details just like anywhere else.
It was useful to know which roads get flooded when it rains, which roads are uneven and damage shoes, and which are steeper.
These small, seemingly insignificant details had a significant impact on quality of life when repeated daily. Human life seems to be the same wherever you go.
“Morning walk? You're really very active.”
“Didn't you go out for the tour too?”
Deyarin asked in astonishment, but she noticed that the people around her began to laugh loudly.
“Round, yes, but...”
“Maybe we should call it the ‘Morning Rounds Club’ starting today!”
“?”
Dayarin noticed that people's faces were a little red.
“This…have you been drinking?”
“Exactly! We are the morning drinking club.”
“Morning drink?”
You've never heard of a term like this before.
“Personally, I've been drinking since last night, so maybe it doesn't count as morning drinking?”
"But you're drinking now, aren't you? So it's morning drinking."
“In general, we either drink until the morning or we start drinking in the morning. One of the two options is always there.”
What a crowd of useless rebels.
“Sirius, let's go back.”
Deyarin ordered firmly. She saw no need to communicate with such people, even if the goal was to integrate into palace life.
“Oh, don't come back now that you're here.”
“I don't care for alcohol.”
“So, what about the master here? He seems strong and his physique indicates that he might drink well.”
When she noticed their insistence, Deyarin's eyebrows barely twitched.
'Sirius can't be a drinker since the morning!'
Dearyn was about to shout these words, but she stopped when Sirius spoke softly:
“I don't drink alcohol.”
Laughs of astonishment echoed among those present.
"What is this? Don't drink? This wonderful thing?"
“Exactly, whoever does not drink loses benefits such as improving the body and skin and not making mistakes, but nevertheless I love alcohol.”
"In upscale societies, drinking alcohol is part of the culture. If you don't know, you should learn."
The elegant words gently rolled off the tongues of those present as if they were professionals at convincing others. It looked like they were used to attracting newcomers to their drunken pit.
Despite the relaxed atmosphere, Dayarin felt increasingly anxious. It was clear that everyone was trying to break down Sirius' defenses and convince him to join them.
“I don’t drink alcohol, not because I can’t, but because it has no benefit to me.”
Those present were astonished, and one of them began to try to justify:
“Why do you say it's useless? It seems you haven't tried the good ones.”
Dearyn watched the situation carefully, and realized that things were heading towards pressuring Sirius to participate in the “drinking challenge.” She tried to intervene, arguing that it was still morning, and that Sirius was not in good health, but someone interrupted her:
"Oh, we know that. He's suffering from the pain of separation, isn't he?"
Dearyn felt confused. How did these rumors spread so quickly? Even though she was with Sirius, everyone seemed focused on supporting him and relieving his pain through alcohol.
“Does alcohol really help you forget the pain of separation?” Sirius asked.
"Of course! Just drink until you forget everything!" They responded enthusiastically.
But Sirius' response was firm:
“I don't think that's possible for me.”
This response sparked laughter from the audience, prompting them to propose a challenge:
"If you're that confident, let's have a drinking challenge. Whoever drinks the most, fastest, or mixes the alcohol the best, wins!"
“And what do I gain?” Sirius asked coldly.
Sirius's sudden reaction to the suggestion indicated his interest in the challenge, making Dearyn worry. Although she wanted to intervene to stop him, she decided to let things take their course. Perhaps this was a new lesson that Sirius would learn from his experience.
“In the end, when you meet people, you will find yourself encountering them one day.”
"How about you grant the winner's wish? The winner gets what they want!"
“A wish?”
“Yes, anything!”
“And if you don’t meet it?”
“Mm, what are you going to do?”
Sirius was serious the whole time, while the others continued to joke around. The purpose of attracting Sirius to this meeting was to get him to participate in drinking alcohol, so they did not care about any excuse or justification.
However, Ceres was not affected by their light atmosphere. He looked at them silently as if they were waiting for him to answer himself.
They thought for a while, then decided to give an answer:
“So, how about if your wish is not granted and you are forced to leave the royal palace?”
The other party seemed confident of their victory. Maybe they thought they would win easily, or maybe they thought they would ask something comical and laugh about it afterwards.
“OK.”
"Wow, great! No backing out now?"
“Let's go, let's go!”
When they heard Sirius' approval, they gathered around him excitedly.
During this time, the sun had risen in the sky. People started waking up and coming out of their rooms, and when they heard the noise, they started gathering around the place.
"What's going on? What's going on?"
“Looks like there's a challenge!”
“Oh, this person. Is he the one who experienced separation?”
Ceres has already become known as the “Symbol of Parting.”
Across the garden, there was a crowd of people gathered around a table filled with alcohol, and this was the environment they wanted to attract Sirius into.
“Wow, exciting events since early morning! Welcome, newcomer. My name is Hulian.”
Hulian smiled the whole time, his speech warm and gentle as if he was turning the situation to his advantage. He seemed like the leader of this group who was experienced in dealing with such situations.
"Come, come, sit here. The show's on!"
Holian had the whole place ready to put Sirius on the spot. The table he placed in the middle had chairs around it as if they were following a precise order, which made Dayaren realize that this was not the first time they had undertaken such challenges.
Dyaren's tension was constantly increasing.
It seems I've fallen into a trap... Will I have to watch the moment when the fresh being who just entered the royal palace turns into a person drenched in alcohol?
'Should I stop this now?'
Dearyn's heart was conflicted between "Let's trust Sirius" and "Maybe I should stop him now."
As long as there's alcohol around, I can probably start a fire at any time...
The situation was so difficult that Dayaren thought about using her power in front of these people, even though she usually tried to avoid showing her abilities.
“So, which challenge will you choose? Is it a drink of weak alcohol quickly, or a challenge of drinking more than strong alcohol?”
Hulian said with his eyes shining, as he forcefully placed two bottles of alcohol on the table.
For Sirius, who doesn't usually drink, it wasn't easy for him to choose something that could be to his advantage.
Sirius looked at the bottles in front of him silently.
“I want something so I can get back quickly.”
“So, the challenge will be to drink weak alcohol quickly.”
Sirius looked at the cup in front of him, which was filled with a bubbling liquid.
“When you have drunk all this, you must throw the cup towards the tree. If you make a mistake, you must go to the place where the cup fell and throw it again.”
The tree was very far away.
Even if the person was in good health, it was difficult to throw the cup to hit the tree from that distance.
Of course, if the person is drunk, it will be difficult for him to go to the place where the cup fell, and he will have to stumble along the way.
“Wow, that will be fun!”
“But is there anyone who can drink all this?”
The crowd began to gather around them, as the situation became more interesting.
Thus, the situation expanded larger and larger.
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