Drinking Contest

At this moment, the center of Edward's living room had been cleared of the original sofa and coffee table, replaced instead by a massive round table.

Around the table, high-backed chairs were arranged according to the number of guests present. This world followed the same dining customs as the West in his previous life—individual servings. So Edward didn't place a giant pot in the middle like he would have for hot pot in his past life. Instead, each seat had its own small pot, with knives, forks, plates, and wine glasses neatly arranged beside it, along with a pair of chopsticks resembling tweezers—an invention Edward recalled from online videos of Chinese restaurants abroad in his previous life.

At the center of the table sat a large glass lazy Susan, laden with various sliced beef and mutton, along with fish fillets, shrimp paste, beef balls, and vegetables. The reds and greens made for a pleasing sight.

Now came the problem of seating. He had no knowledge of courtly etiquette in this life, and the rules from his previous life might not apply here. Monica, noticing his awkwardness, naturally led the princess and Alice to sit on either side of the middle seats. She had the maid Lulu sit beside the princess, but Lulu hesitated until Princess Andrea nodded, then nervously took her seat.

Monica then gestured for Harry's girlfriend to sit next to Alice, directing Edward to have the captain of the knights and the Baby-faced Pastor sit opposite the princess and the young mage respectively. She had Harry sit between Yini and Elvin. With the "guests" seated, she pulled out the chair facing the fireplace, the host's seat, and sat between the princess and Alice, motioning Edward to sit across from her.

Edward realized this was just like the drinking table etiquette from his previous life. Western customs seemed similar too, only replacing the long table with a round one. But now he had become the "deputy host," while Monica had taken the role of "main host."

Princess Andrea cast a deep glance at Monica, who was acting like the "hostess," as she laid a napkin across her lap. Her expression carried a hint of meaning.

Edward suddenly remembered that "a meal without wine is incomplete." He asked, "What would you all like to drink? I have other beverages too."

"Wine will do! Lulu will have juice," said the princess.

"Juice!" Alice called out.

"Beer!" said the captain of the knights.

"Clear water is fine. Tea works too," said the Baby-faced Pastor.

"Then I'll join the princess with wine," Monica said.

"I'll have beer too, and Yini can just have juice," Harry said.

Edward took out a bottle of wine he'd brought from Ayrland and handed it to Monica. He then produced a large metal cylinder, placing it on a nearby table—a keg like those for draught beer in his previous life—and asked Harry to help pour. He himself headed to the Open Kitchen to prepare fresh juice.

Monica took the bottle, examined its label, and said to Edward, "A wine from the lowland estates of the Franz Empire. Edward, your taste has improved."

Then she turned to the princess and said, "Your Highness, there's no decanter here. Please forgive the humble conditions."

With that, she used no tools—just her thumb to twist the cork, which popped out with a soft sound. She poured a shallow amount into the princess's stemmed glass, then filled her own.

Once everyone had their drinks, Monica raised her glass for a toast: "To celebrate the founding of the Alchemist Branch, and to thank the princess and all of you for coming—please, drink up!"

After she spoke, everyone drained their glasses or cups.

Edward had never liked drinking in his previous life, sitting like a mute at banquets. Watching Monica, in the "main host" seat, handle things with such ease, he couldn't help but think inwardly, If only this girl could "calm down a bit," she'd make a great wife to manage the household...

Just then, the captain of the knights drained his large mug of draught beer, let out a breath, and said, "Mr. Smith, this drink is really satisfying, but why are there so many bubbles?" In his traditional view, a knight should drink heartily and eat heartily. He'd never had such good beer before.

"Ah, this beer uses a new recipe from the Dwarf Guild. A few years ago, the Rainforest Country discovered a plant called hops. Adding it to beer makes it bitter, but it greatly extends the shelf life and improves the sour, astringent taste of old beer. Sailors on ships love to stock up on it, and now it's sold everywhere through the Dwarf Guild. It's already available at White Eagle Port. As for the bubbles, I added them when I bottled it after buying. Don't worry—the bubbles' composition is the same as the original ones. They won't harm you, just make it taste better, especially when chilled," Edward explained.

"Burp—" The captain of the knights let out a belch, glanced at Edward drinking clear water, and said with a sly grin, "Hey, Mr. Smith, why are you only drinking water? You're not some ascetic like Elvin. Come on, let's us young folks drink beer together!"

Edward smiled bitterly inside. This captain's intention to get him drunk was obvious, but after the "drinking to level up" incident last time, he dared not touch alcohol. Still, an idea struck him. He got up, poured himself a glass of the same "beer" as the captain, and started drinking with him.

On the other side, Monica was already enthusiastically explaining how to eat hot pot and use the "chopsticks" to the two "main guests" beside her. She even earnestly taught them to dip meat and fish slices into boiling water for a few seconds for the best taste. Alice had already mastered the trick and was eating heartily. Meanwhile, Princess Andrea, while eating cooked mutton, asked casually, "Miss Monica, where do you make your fortune?"

"You're asking about my profession? I'm an adventurer—specifically, a 'treasure hunter,'" Monica replied naturally.

"Oh? I've never heard of the profession 'treasure hunter.' Can you tell me more?" The princess seemed intrigued.

"Edward came up with the name 'treasure hunter,' and I liked it, so I adopted it. My job is to find clues in ancient books and folklore, explore ruins, and sell any treasures or antiques I find to the wealthy," Monica answered.

"So you're an explorer. Being able to roam the world freely, exploring—what an enviable profession. Female explorers are rare, so you must be exceptionally skilled. Otherwise, it'd be hard to find treasure in such dangerous wilderness!" the Knight Princess complimented, her look of envy seeming genuine.

"I'm just lucky to come back alive every time. I haven't found any real treasure yet! Otherwise, I'd be rich and wouldn't have to keep traveling," Monica said, half-truthfully.

"Actually, it depends on what you consider treasure. Sometimes, you might find that treasure is right beside you without realizing it," the princess said, her words seemingly loaded, her eyes drifting toward Edward, who was drinking with the captain.

"Is that so? Then I'll have to look more carefully," Monica said, raising her glass for a sip of wine, her eyes also drifting to the opposite side of the round table. Unfortunately, the steam rising from the hot pot made it hard to see clearly.

Princess Andrea caught a glimpse of a ring on Monica's left middle finger—an old-looking one, with its face deliberately turned toward her palm. But from the princess's angle, as Monica loosely held her wine glass, the emblem on the ring hidden in her palm was magnified and clear through the glass... She seemed to snap back to attention and continued, "So, Monica, where are you headed next? The Rainforest Country?"

"Yes. I heard recently that an adventurer team found what might be a temple in a new rainforest. An old gentleman from the Ayrland Empire hired my team to investigate. Word has it there might be a Fountain of Immortality that grants eternal life!"

"Then I wish you success in finding that ruin! Cheers!"

"Cheers!"

On the other side, Edward was fending off the captain of the knights while eavesdropping on the two women's conversation. When he noticed someone looking his way, he quickly turned his head in guilt and urged the captain to drink more.

The captain had already downed seven or eight glasses of beer. Reinhardt had no idea that there was a way to distinguish drinks by alcohol content. The beer before him was Edward's spiked version, with an alcohol content of 13%. His face was flushed, and he was starting to feel dizzy. He considered using his Battle Qi to sober up, but then thought, I'm a dignified Great Knight, using Battle Qi to outdrink a frail alchemist—that would be too embarrassing. Let's see how long you can hold out, kid.

Soon, the keg of draught beer was drained by the captain, who had drunk more than he ate. Reinhardt began to slide under the table. Meanwhile, the sly alchemist, aside from two trips to the bathroom, was perfectly fine.

Pastor Elvin, sipping tea nearby, noticed something was off. While the captain was slumped over the table burping and Edward was off to the bathroom, he quietly picked up a spoon, scooped a bit of the "beer" from Edward's glass, and tasted it. Hmm, strange flavor—looked like beer, had a bit of beer taste, but why no alcohol?

When Edward returned from the bathroom and saw the Slit-eyed pastor staring at him in confusion, he poured Elvin a glass and said, "Come, have a taste. This is a drink I made called Kvas. It's a lot like beer, but without the alcohol—even kids can drink it, and it's quite nutritious."

The baby-faced pastor took a tentative sip, and to his surprise, it was actually quite good. He casually asked, "What's this made from?"

"Bread fermented and brewed."

"Is this the same as the 'jiang' in the ancient text 'Dan Shi Hu Jiang'?" the pastor asked as he drank.

"Close enough in meaning, but that one was sour."

"You're such a scoundrel!" the slit-eyed pastor said, nodding toward Reinhardt, who had already slid under the table.

"A Caster can't drink alcohol—that's a Caster's precept! How could I, an honest Caster, break the rules?" The two of them looked at each other and burst out laughing.

By afternoon, the young and handsome captain of the knights had been dragged onto the sofa by Edward and was snoring away. Pastor Elvin had already taken his leave; his purpose today was purely to improve his meals. It had suited his wishes perfectly, and he'd even witnessed a few good shows, adding no small amount of amusement to his otherwise calm and monotonous life as an ascetic. Miss Alice followed him out the door, likely curious to see the pastor's afternoon work at the hospital. Lulu had been arranged by Princess Andrea to "attend to" Miss Alice.

Harry and his girlfriend were getting a bit restless but felt too awkward to leave. Edward let them go first, staying behind to attend to things himself. The table was a mess of scattered dishes and cups, and the scene across from him began to take a strange turn.

At first, the two beauties at the head of the table seemed to be chatting amiably. Then, seeing that the bottle of red wine had been drained, they asked Edward for beer. Edward had no choice—he didn't dare fob them off with his homemade Kvas. So he brought out a keg of beer and swapped their glasses for large mugs. The two beauties started a drinking contest. Every time the glass was raised, it was emptied. Before long, a keg of draught beer was finished.

By then, the two beauties' postures had shifted from elegant to a very "manly" wide-legged stance. They thumped the table loudly with their large beer mugs and barked orders at the new president to hurry up and pour more. Their faces, necks, and arms had turned a rosy pink—perhaps because the room was too hot—and they were glistening with sweat. The scene had become irresistibly alluring.

Edward felt like he was hallucinating both visually and audibly. Was this Saber from Type-Moon drinking with Tifa from Final Fantasy? Or was it a female version of Natsu from Fairy Tail going head-to-head with Gray? Either way, the vibe had gotten really weird! Just as he stepped forward to say, "You two, no more drinking," they both glared at him fiercely. The new president could only tremble as he went to pour more beer. Even though Edward tried to slow things down by taking his time filling the glasses, the second keg was soon empty too.

The two beauties finally slowed their drinking. Reeking of alcohol, they sat there staring at each other. Almost at the same time, a faint golden light shimmered over their bodies, and steam rose from their skin—they had started using Battle Qi to dispel the alcohol. It was like something out of the martial arts novels from Edward's previous life, where two great masters compete in inner strength. And Edward had become the waiter standing by, pouring drinks.

That's how a drinking contest works, especially with beer—whoever "sprays" first or goes to the bathroom first loses. The two were evenly matched.

Edward couldn't help but grumble inwardly: Wow—now it's turned into that scene where Brother Qiao and Duan Yu are drinking. But Duan Yu's Six Meridians Divine Sword wasn't this flashy. Is this 'Brother Qiao vs. Brother Qiao'? And why do I have so many inner monologues? Can't you just write about what the beauties are feeling right now? He looked up at the sky in speechless exasperation...

Finally, as dusk approached, Lulu and Miss Alice returned. The battle had reached its final moment. The two beauties' faces grew paler and paler, but their eyes shone brighter and brighter. Just as Edward went to open the door for Miss Alice, Monica suddenly slumped weakly onto the table. Princess Andrea smiled and flashed a victory sign, then tilted her head and passed out in her chair.

In the end, the princess was helped onto the waiting carriage by her maid Lulu and Miss Alice, who was cursing, "Edward, you bastard, making my sister drink so much..." The captain of the knights, woken by Edward, first rushed frantically to the bathroom to relieve himself, then jogged to catch up with the three women already heading out. He still had time to turn back and point at Edward, making a face that said, "You dared to set me up—just you wait."

Once the carriage had driven off a ways, the "unconscious" princess suddenly sat up, looking perfectly clear-headed.

"Andrea, you were faking being drunk?" Miss Alice asked.

"Yes, this was a 'knightly' duel!" the princess said.

"With who? That Monica? How does a drinking contest like that become a knightly duel? Didn't you say she definitely wasn't a knight?" Miss Alice asked, puzzled.

"No, this time I'm sure—she's a knight! A genuine Great Knight. But I won!" The princess's lips curled into a smug smile...

Work wasn't busy today, so I wrote a bit more. Here's a four-thousand-word chapter. Also, I'm asking for some investments—just a few more people and we can get a small-scale promotion. Don't you want more people to join in on the fun?