WeTried Translations
Translator: Coughing Baby
Editor: Coughing Baby
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
Chapter 114: Drunken Antics
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It all started with Lua.
While we were in the middle of a board game, the girl came toddling over.
She held a bottle nearly as large as her arm in her tiny hands.
She must have picked it up during dinner earlier. Proudly, she told us she'd brought a drink.
“Dad!”
“Lua brought it from the restaurant!”
As I’d said before, the academy had rented out the entire hotel.
Bringing over a few bottles wasn't much of a nuisance, so I simply patted her head instead of stopping her.
Besides, the way she looked up at me and asked if she could drink it was adorable.
“Hehe.”
Once I gave her permission, Lua sat at one end of the sofa.
Then, as though she intended to share it with everyone, she handed out glasses one by one.
What a good girl.
The others watched Lua with fond smiles.
The problem began after she took a sip.
“Wow...! It’s super yummy!”
“It smells like apples and grapes! Really, like this and this...”
After taking a few sips, Lua’s eyes grew round.
She enthusiastically described the flavor with her hands.
Nothing about her seemed out of place.
She simply beamed as though she genuinely loved the drink.
So when their glasses were filled, everyone drank without a second thought.
“Oh... What an impressive flavor.”
“The fruit aroma is incredibly rich.”
“Mmm! It tastes even better because Miss Lua shared it with us!”
“It’s not bad.”
They all seemed to think it was just a drink.
Apparently, none of them had noticed.
‘Who would’ve thought it was alcohol?’
Of course Lua was fine.
An Ego Weapon wouldn't get drunk from alcohol.
Seeing her happily sip away, nobody had any reason to be suspicious.
‘The flavor was deceptive too.’
It didn't taste like alcohol.
There was none of that cloying sensation, only the rich flavor of fruit juice.
Even I only noticed the faint scent of alcohol creeping up after I'd swallowed a few mouthfuls.
‘Right.’
It was fortunate that I'd noticed eventually.
At least I could hurriedly set my glass down.
When I examined the bottle more closely afterward, I found a label that read [30-Year-Old Sernin].
It turned out to be a strong fruit wine specially carried by the hotel.
‘The problem was...’
The others had already drunk several glasses.
Sure enough, they gradually started feeling the effects of the alcohol, until they were completely drunk.
Their reason slowly melted away.
That was how this current mess came about.
“Sooo... Didn’t I tell you Viktor belongs to me...?!”
“N-No, no... Sir Viktor shouldn't be... hic... monopolized. Monopolizing is bad...”
“You fucking little shit... You always make only me work like a dog, asshole... Why do you do this to me? You like me?”
My body swayed helplessly wherever they pulled me.
The girls were beyond drunk and bickering among themselves.
‘How am I supposed to clean this up?’
Honestly, I had no idea.
This felt more hopeless than when I'd faced Leviathan at the Deep Sea Branch.
The girls mumbled through tangled tongues, then began taking turns poking my cheeks.
“Viktooor...”
“Sir Viktor...”
“You bastard...”
Was it because of the alcohol?
Their emotions all seemed to be bubbling to the surface.
No, just how strong was this stuff if only a few glasses had left them this wrecked?
“Everyone? Let’s, let’s calm down for a moment...?”
I tried not to provoke them.
But an emotional outburst fueled by alcohol wasn't something I could avoid just by trying.
“Bad retainer!”
Carmilla was the first to seize my sleeve.
Her distinctive silver hair hung loose as she looked up at me with sorrowful eyes.
Tears welled in those red eyes.
“Viktor... You’re all I have now... There’s no one, no one else... Sniff.”
“Your Highness.”
“Liar... You lied, got, got caught... Then you shamelessly said you were on my side... I was crying, and you hugged me...”
“The others can hear you. I think you should calm down first.”
“The others? The ooothers? I’m talking right now...! Yet you’re looking elsewhere! Am I not enough for you?!”
“That isn’t what I meant...”
“You’re always... being nice to other girls, flirting with them... You’re my retainer. My retainer alone... And now you’re all I have...”
“...”
“Do you like women that much? Bad retainer...”
“...I deserve to die.”
“Don’t die!”
“Yes...”
The princess's endless scolding.
Her sniffling voice.
All I could do was lower my head before her.
Part of me felt wronged, but I decided to listen obediently.
“Bad retainer... But I still cherish you...”
You had to let drunk people win.
Especially when they were precious to you.
After I patted her back for a while, Alice clung to me next.
“Big Sis Allie...”
“Miss Alice?”
“I miss her...”
“...”
“Sir Viktor, you won’t leave, right? You can’t leave... You promised...”
“Of course. I’ll always be here. So you don’t have to hug me quite so tightly...”
“No... If I let go, I feel like you’ll run away...”
“I have no intention of doing that.”
“But... Sir Viktor always feels... distant. From everyone. Like you’re doing it on purpose...”
“...”
The black-haired girl was crying too.
At Alice's words, I stopped breathing for a moment.
Then I took a deep breath and wrapped an arm around her slender shoulders.
“Don't worry. I've always thought of all of you as special.”
“Sniff... R-Really?”
“Of course. Really.”
Pat, pat.
Her unfocused eyes stared blankly ahead as I stroked her head.
I seated the two of them on the sofa and set about sorting out the chaos around me.
“Heeey...”
“Miss Caitlin.”
There was one last person.
I looked after the girl with bronze skin and yellow eyes as well.
Perhaps Caitlin had the lowest tolerance of the three, because her tongue was especially tangled.
“You fucking bastard... Son of a bitch... Always... dog this, dog that... always pulling this shit... Little shit...”
“Miss Caitlin.”
Such foul language, paired with an oddly cute way of speaking.
It didn't suit her usual prickly self at all.
Caitlin’s limp fists thumped against my chest.
“You always... pick on only me... What even are you...?”
“I think you should get some sleep now.”
“Fuck... Shit... Stop picking on me... Why do you do this to me... Do you really like me or something...?”
“Miss Caitlin.”
She'd definitely cringe under her blankets tomorrow morning.
Thinking that, I reached for her.
“I hate you.”
“Oh, that hurts a little.”
“You’re too perfect, I hate you... When I’m next to you, I... feel pathetic...”
“...”
“I hate it, hate it, hate it so much... Die... All talented people, die...”
“You’re definitely drunk. I’ll move you to a bed in an empty room.”
“You always... say you trust me when you don’t even believe me...”
“I’ve always trusted you, Miss Caitlin.”
I meant it.
Otherwise, I wouldn't have brought her into our group.
But the girl's distrust was rooted even deeper than her drunkenness.
“Liar... Nobody trusts me... They said nobody would trust me...”
“Then that person clearly knew nothing about you. Who dared say something like that?”
“...Me.”
“...”
“Me... I’m such an idiot... Right, that’s why I hate myself too...”
“That isn’t true. Don't think about it for now. Just sleep.”
“Mhm...”
The girl soon went limp, all the strength leaving her body.
I carried Caitlin into a room.
‘These girls...’
How could every one of them be so battered inside?
I couldn't bring myself to brush them off after hearing those things.
So I did my best to hear out all their drunken complaints.
They poked my cheeks, tugged at my arms, hugged me tightly, and even had me hold them.
Only after an hour that felt like a storm did they finally begin to nod off and collapse.
‘It'll be funny if they remember all of this once they sober up.’
With a bitter smile, I tidied the room.
Lua was asleep among the girls too, breathing softly.
Careful not to wake anyone, I quietly cleaned up.
“Sir Viktor.”
“Ah... Miss Ranne.”
“I’ll help.”
The girl quietly approached.
Despite having drunk several glasses herself, she somehow looked perfectly fine.
Ranne lifted the sleeping Alice into her arms, then answered my question with a bright smile.
“Mhm! I have a blessing placed on me. It immediately purifies toxins in my body, anytime and anywhere. I suppose it broke down the alcohol in the same way.”
“I see.”
“Let’s clean up together!”
“I’m really glad you’re here, Miss Ranne.”
“I’m happy to hear you say that, Sir Viktor.”
Was this the power of a protagonist?
In theory, that meant she had the highest alcohol tolerance among the original work's characters.
Leaving those pointless thoughts behind, Ranne and I cleaned up what remained.
* * *
The next day.
Once the girls came to their senses, they all said the same thing with serious faces.
“Please forget it.”
“Forget it.”
“Forget it.”
Yes.
I'd have to tease them about this for a while.
* * *
And so, the school trip came to an end.
The week spent at sea became a special memory for everyone.
Afterward, the students boarded the cruise ship, took the tram, and finally returned to the academy.
It was a strange feeling.
It almost felt like returning home.
I was sick of the place, yet glad to see it at the same time.
[An announcement from the faculty office.]
[First-year Class E student Viktor, please visit the headmaster’s office immediately upon your return.]
But I had no time to dwell on that homecoming.
I'd been summoned to the headmaster's office as soon as I arrived.
The announcement made it seem as though they had been waiting for my return.
I wondered if something had happened again, but the news waiting for me was unexpectedly good.
“Student Viktor.”
“Yes, Headmaster.”
“The preparations are complete. The Purgatory Raid Force.”
The Purgatory Raid Force.
The activities that had been suspended until now were ready to begin again.
“You can be deployed to the seventy-first floor as early as tomorrow.”
In other words, the high-rank item mine was opening.
Footnotes:
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