Chapter 27
The feast shared between humans and Dracoserpens began before sunset and lasted until the moon stood high above the sea.
The last crimson glow of dusk faded beyond the western horizon as a great silver moon slowly rose over the eastern hills. Waves rolled steadily upon the shore, and the warm sea wind carried the scent of salt through the night air.
Beneath the bright moonlight, the banquet spread across the beach seemed almost dreamlike.
As before, seats had been prepared not only for nobles and envoys, but even for guards, attendants, and servants alike. The Dracoserpens appeared to care very little for distinctions of rank.
Even so, Antonius and the accompanying nobles had been guided toward the place of honor nearest the Empress and her attendants, where conversation could flow easily between them.
Yet the food and drink served to the common attendants were no different in quality from those offered to royalty.
Ordinarily, Antonius and the nobles would have been attended by their own servants while visiting a foreign court. Here, however, everything—from the dishes to the serving vessels themselves—had been made to the scale of the Dracoserpens. No human servant could have managed them for long.
“We shall handle the serving tonight. Please, enjoy yourselves together.”
And with that, every last attendant, maid, and soldier from Imresia had been ushered into the feast as honored guests, leaving many of them visibly uncertain how to behave.
The only exception was the First Unit of the Royal Guard Heavy Infantry.
Having already survived this same confusion the previous year, they settled in with surprising ease.
Theodoros Megara, second-in-command of the First Unit, calmly raised his cup toward Andri.
“It is an honor to share a drink with you again, Captain.”
Andri accepted the cup with a crooked smile, though something restless still lingered beneath the expression.
Theodoros took a sip before chuckling softly.
“It is rather moving, in truth. Though I confess, I expected you to fare far worse with drink. Young men newly introduced to wine are usually terrible at judging their limits.” He glanced at the cup in Andri’s hand. “And this is no gentle vintage, either.”
Andri looked down into the crystal clear liquor.
“Perhaps it’s simply the kind of drink,” he said. “This is the only sort I’ve ever had. I suppose I still have a great deal left to compare.”
“A worthy pursuit,” Theodoros replied gravely. “My dream of drinking beside you has now been fulfilled… though someday, Captain, I still hope to see you properly dead drunk at least once.”
A loud voice suddenly burst in from the side.
“Ha! Begging your pardon, Vice-Captain, but if that’s the dream, then I’ll make it happen tonight!”
“What are you talking about, Tigo?”
Still holding their cups, both Theodoros and Andri turned toward him in bewilderment.
“What d’you mean what?!” Tigo protested, leaning forward with a bottle clutched proudly in hand. “I’ve been waiting forever to teach the Captain how to drink!”
He thrust the bottle skyward.
“To celebrate the Captain finally becoming a real man, I challenge him to a drinking match!”
“Tigo! Don’t think you’re getting ahead of the rest of us!”
One by one, the men of the First Unit drifted toward them until their corner of the feast became the loudest and liveliest gathering on the beach.
Even amid the relaxed mood of the banquet, however, there were limits. Antonius—the Crown Prince and Lord Commander of the Royal Guard—was present. More importantly, so was the Empress herself.
Theodoros hurriedly stepped in.
“That’s enough, you idiots. Don’t overdo it.”
But before anyone else could answer, Andri cut in.
Theodoros frowned slightly.
Andri was smiling.
Not the restrained smile of a knight standing at attention, but something looser—lighter. Almost boyish. Rare enough that several of the men blinked in surprise.
“You said young men often fail to judge their limits,” Andri said. “Then perhaps this is a good opportunity to learn mine. Tigo… teach me.”
“THAT’S what I’m talking about!” Tigo roared triumphantly. “Tonight I’ll make a real drinker outta you yet, Captain!”
“Like hell you will alone! Move over, Tigo!”
Within moments Andri found himself completely surrounded.
And yet, despite all the boasting confidence the men of the First Unit had placed in their drinking abilities, one after another they collapsed into the sand as the cups continued to flow—until eventually not a single soldier remained conscious.
“Damn it…” one groaned weakly from the ground. “What the hell are you made of, Captain…? Your face hasn’t even changed…”
Andri tilted his head slightly.
“No? I can definitely feel the alcohol taking effect.”
Then he calmly drained the final cup and let out a slow breath.
“Man… I really wanted to see the Captain drunk…”
With that final complaint, the last surviving soldier finally surrendered to unconsciousness and collapsed flat onto the sand, snoring loudly.
Theodoros looked over the scattered wreckage of the First Unit in disbelief.
“Well… that was unexpected. Shall I bring you some water?”
“No. I’m fine.”
“I see.”
Theodoros sighed, though a faint smile tugged briefly at the corner of his mouth.
“…What a pathetic lot they are. It seems seeing you dead drunk will have to wait for another day.”
Andri gave a soft laugh.
Yet even then, as he bent to haul another unconscious soldier over his shoulder, that faint unease had not entirely left his eyes.
Together, he and Theodoros began carrying the fallen men back toward the residence assigned to them. With drunken soldiers sprawled across the sand in every direction like the aftermath of a battlefield, the scene was hardly fit for a royal banquet.
As they walked side by side beneath the moonlight, each carrying another limp soldier over one shoulder, Andri suddenly spoke without taking his eyes from the path ahead.
“Theodoros. Until I return… take care of them for me.”
Theodoros instinctively looked up at his tall superior.
And there it was again—
that faint flicker of lightning in Andri’s eyes.
Not fear.
But the uneasy resolve of a man already staring toward some distant storm.
“…Understood, sir,” Theodoros answered at once. “We shall await your safe return.”
