An Unacceptable Bedfellow

“Then, although he is a bit lacking, how about our Bent, hmm?”

“…Pardon?”

“He doesn’t quite measure up to that knight commander, but wouldn’t he be worth marrying into the family for?”

“Ah, seriously. Even if I marry, I’d be taking a wife. Why on earth would I be the one marrying into a family?”

“Then shall we have Bent marry yours instead?”

“Ugh……”

When she pushed the matter this far, he was utterly left with nothing to say. Feeling like an absolute idiot if he kept responding, he merely let out a deep sigh, while Suzanne smiled brightly, thoroughly enjoying teasing someone young enough to be her own son.

“If Lien becomes a part of our family, I don’t care whether it’s taking a wife or marrying into yours.”

“Why would I even……”

“That will not do.”

Lien froze at the familiar yet flatly firm voice that suddenly pierced the air. Suzanne was also startled by the pleasant, low voice and quickly covered her mouth with an ‘Oh my,’ upon realizing its source. It was Calix.

“Commander?”

Derek called out to him in surprise, but Calix kept his gaze fixed intently on Lien as he spoke.

“If someone must marry into a family, I will be the one to do it.”

“Oh my goodness! Is that a proposal?!”

“Something of the sort.”

At the conversation between Calix and Suzanne, not only Lien but Derek as well stared at him in utter bewilderment. They had assumed he was slightly unhinged, but it seemed he was actually profoundly insane. Derek felt he had to rescue this civilian from the commander’s clutches immediately.

“I refuse.”

At this exact moment, Lien shared the exact same thought as Derek. Rather than having to face those deep blue eyes staring at him like an abandoned puppy, he felt it would be a hundred times better to wander through the forest with the knights.

The knights, who had gone up to their rooms after finishing dinner, descended yet again while Lien was clearing the hall. Fortunately, Calix was not among them.

Are they having a drinking party?

Then again, it wasn’t the kind of atmosphere Calix would ever enjoy. The fact that his absence made Lien feel significantly more at ease was glaringly obvious on his face.

The knights hesitated briefly upon seeing Lien. Bayrus asked in a leisurely manner.

“Lien, do you perhaps enjoy alcohol?”

“I love it immensely.”

“That’s perfect then. Since we’ll be seeing each other’s faces for a while, would you care to join us for a drink?”

The knight who had been dozing off continuously up until dinner time now urged Lien to join them for a drink, looking like an entirely different person brimming with vitality as night fell.

“Is it really alright for me to join?”

“Everyone you meet during a journey is a friend. Come, come. Sit right over here.”

Since Calix was nowhere to be seen, Lien sat among them without any hesitation. Whether they had informed Alfon in advance, he soon emerged carrying snacks to accompany the liquor. The moment Alfon spotted Lien sitting amidst the knights, he instantly checked the individuals at the table. Confirming Calix’s absence, he felt set at ease internally as he served the snacks. Seeing the nearly identical reactions of the father and son, several knights let out a bitter smile.

“Would the innkeeper care to join us as well? It is quite a fine liquor.”

“I cannot drink alcohol very well. Please enjoy yourselves.”

Once Alfon vanished back inside, Derek spoke with an air of regret.

“What a pity. It’s a rare liquor sourced directly from a distillery, you see. I’m glad that Lien at least enjoys it.”

“I should be the one thanking you.”

The liquors the knights had brought along were all uniformly famous for their exceptional taste. Intending to properly enjoy a drink for the first time in a long while, Lien raised his glass.

If there was a common misconception people harbored upon encountering Lien’s appearance, it was assuming that he was exceedingly gentle, calm, and entirely untouched by the world’s harsh realities. Upon discovering the fact that he was actually a literal sponge for alcohol, ninety-nine out of a hundred people would be left completely astounded.

“To think you can drink this well!”

“Do I look like someone who can’t handle a single glass of alcohol?”

“Is there even such a thing as a face that can’t drink? Does that mean a face that drinks well exists too? Hahaha!”

“Haha. That’s an unexpectedly sensible answer. Then why did you even ask?”

“Because the barrels of alcohol we’ve consumed up until now are bound to be larger than you, Lien!”

Derek burst into a hearty laugh at the words of Petrick, who had already become thoroughly hammered.

“Really, you are far stronger than I expected.”

“Well. Running an inn in a place like this naturally makes one this way.”

“Even so, it is truly impressive.”

Laughing heartily, dropping their heads gloomily, and slamming their foreheads onto the table—watching the men exhibit their drunken habits according to their personal styles, the only ones maintaining a perfectly fine conversation were Petrick and Lien. Shoving aside the wine bottles that had long since been emptied, Lien had Petrick bring over a fresh glass directly drawn from the entire barrel they had brought.

Just then, Alfon walked out carrying another dish. Looking at the heavily drained glasses, Alfon spoke quietly.

“You do not need to calculate the cost of my son’s drinks.”

“Pffft-hahaha! We were the ones who invited him, so please do not worry about the cost of the alcohol!”

“You really ought to worry, though……”

Since Lien drank as though an entire sub-space existed beneath his throat, Alfon delivered the warning purely out of a father’s heart. Since one had to experience it firsthand to know exactly how thoroughly their pockets would be picked, there was no other way for him to save them.

Alfon, who had been watching Lien and the knights from the counter with a worried look, ultimately shook his head side to side and retired to his room. Lien occasionally stepped into the kitchen to bring out more snacks, but it seemed it was still insufficient.

“Lien, Lien.”

“Yes— Bent.”

“Is it truly, hoo— truly the truth that you share no relationship with our Com— Commander?”

Bent, who had been sprawled across the table for a while now, shook his head violently and spoke stutteringly.

He looked as though he had been practically unconscious until a moment ago, yet his immense curiosity made him painfully lift his heavy head, which was rather amusing. The alcohol had lifted his mood quite nicely, and mingling with the knights who treated him with an unexpectedly friendly atmosphere felt rather decent, so Lien answered with a bright smile.

“I completely do not know him!”

“So you completely don’t knoooow him—.”

Petrick snickered as he watched Bent instantly collapse back down while dragging out his words.

“I truly have no idea why on earth the commander said such things to you, Lien.”

“It seems he completely mistook my identityyy—.”

“Then again, he is a gentleman who occasionally possesses a loose, clumsy side.”

“Is that so?”

Hearing stories about Calix displaying a clumsy side was quite appealing. As he shifted his seat closer to ask if there were any interesting incidents, a massive shadow suddenly loomed over the two of them. Turning their heads back, Petrick and Lien were startled out of their wits.

“Commander!”

“……?!”

“…….”

“Oh? What brings you down? Would you care to join us as well, Commander?”

That almost snapped me entirely out of my intoxication. Lien barely managed to control his expression as he stared at Calix, who was suddenly standing right behind him.

Calix naturally seated himself precisely between Petrick and Lien, but judging by Petrick’s expression, it was anything but a natural situation.

As Calix wedged himself between the two, the physical distance between them became excessively close. Lien subtly shifted backward toward the opposite side. Calix’s gaze lingered on him for a brief moment before pulling away.

Ah, the pressure was immense.

“Do you enjoy alcohol?”

Not realizing the question was directed at him, Lien unintentionally ignored his words. However, Petrick, who had been conversing with him, was now desperately trying to signal something behind his shoulder with a face that looked as though his intense intoxication had instantly vanished. Perhaps due to his tipsy state, he wasn’t as utterly flustered as he had been a few hours ago.

“A little bit, perhaps……?”

Lien blinked his eyes rapidly in bewilderment at the expression that seemed subtly displeased. Wondering if the youth had grown frightened, Calix smoothed his frown and spoke slowly.

“It is not good for your health.”

While Lien failed to respond momentarily to the unexpected remark, he witnessed his own wine glass being subtly pushed away. As a hand clad in a black glove slid his glass out of reach, Lien arched an eyebrow.

To a drinker who was already thoroughly riding a high, there was no surer provocation than snatching away their glass.

“Why are you clearing away something so wasteful?”

“To me, your health is far more important.”

He had flatly denied knowing him, and had even admitted himself that he must have mistaken his identity. Uttering this kind of stuff now—no matter who looked at it, wasn’t it an absolute trick to hit on him?

Lien looked at Calix, who was staring back with a dead-serious face, and spoke with a scoff.

“Then why don’t you drink it yourself, Commander?”

“Yes.”

At Lien’s words, Calix emptied the contents of the glass without a single shred of hesitation. Unlike Lien, who merely thought ‘Wow, he actually drank it,’ the knights erupted into absolute horror as if they had witnessed something that should never be seen.

“Commander!”

“Ack! Have you lost your mind?!”

Lien was thoroughly puzzled by the violent reaction, but he discovered the reason an absolute fraction of a second later.

Thud.

With a dull, heavy sound, Calix slammed his forehead right onto the table and fell fast asleep. At first, thinking the man was playing a joke, Lien shook his shoulder, but he didn’t exhibit even a microscopic tremor.

As he would learn much later, the man was an absolute lightweight—the ultimate trash when it came to alcohol tolerance.

‘Survive, my child.’

The fragmented memories of his mother that surfaced rare and far between always ended with those exact words. The voice that manifested in his dreams from time to time was something he couldn’t forget even if he desperately tried to.

“Ughhhh. My head.”

This was exactly why he shouldn’t drink. The result of completely throwing himself into the party after getting hooked by the knights offering fine liquor was utterly atrocious. Exactly how much had he poured down his throat? His churning stomach made him feel like a total piece of trash for the first time in a long while.

Blinking his eyes at the ceiling, he slowly rolled his head to look out the window. It was still before the crack of dawn.

Even after drinking that much, I still wake up right on time. Finding it a relief that his eyes snapped open at his usual waking hour, Lien attempted to lift his body up, only to be slammed straight back onto the bed by a heavy pressure compressing his abdomen.

“Huh?”

What on earth was going on? Did he get entirely entangled in his blankets while tumbling around drunk?

However, this solid, heavy weight was absolutely not a blanket. Wondering just what on earth he had dragged into his bed, he lifted only his head to look down at his stomach.

“……What on earth is this?”