What could she possibly want? As I tilted my head internally and waited, Marion made her entrance after being brought in by Gaston.
「Yo, Snake. You look like you’re doing well」
After coming in, Marion laughed cheerfully and proffered the bouquet of roses in her hand.
「It's a congratulatory gift from me. Here, take it」
「A bouquet as a congratulatory gift to a Seeker? No matter how much of a dignified air I exude, all things considered, isn’t that far too refined?」
When I took the bouquet and shrugged my shoulders, Marion laughed as if amused.
「Ahahaha, I know how you feel. I would probably feel bewildered too, if I got a bouquet out of the blue. But something like this isn’t bad once in a while, right?」
「You may be right. I’ll accept it gratefully」
Certainly, it wasn’t a bad feeling. Something like this wasn’t bad once in a while. After bringing the bouquet to my nose and enjoying the smell of the roses, I handed the bouquet to Mary.
「Mary, display these in my room. For the ones left over after filling the vase, I don’t mind if you use them for the store」
「Got it~」
After watching Mary leave with the bouquet, I turned back to Marion.
「At any rate, what a complete about-face, huh? Even though you had denied us to that extent, to think that you would come and give us a gift as soon as we had succeeded in the subjugation」
「It smarts when you bring that up, you know? But I denied you guys not because I particularly hate you guys or anything, alright? I simply didn’t want to see talented people die」
Marion scratched her head and looked awkward as she spoke.
「Well, you know…… My bad. Sorry for making you guys go through something unpleasant……」
Seeing Marion apologizing meekly, I smiled.
「It seems that this kind of thing is called tsundere. Right?」
When I asked my allies if they agreed, everyone nodded.
Marion was flustered at being called a tsundere by everyone in unison. As I suppressed the urge to laugh out loud, I held out a mug of ale.
「Here, those that are late have to drink three in quick succession. Join us in the fun too」
「Ye, yeah!」
Looking bashful and nervous, Marion took the ale mug. Then, she downed the ale in one go......
「Hic—」
.......and dropped in a heap on the floor all of a sudden.
「Eehhhh!?」
I rushed over in a fluster to check her condition. Marion’s eyes were spinning, but I didn’t see any other anomalies. It seemed like she had a constitution that had an extremely low tolerance for alcohol and it appeared that, let alone three, one mug was enough to knock her out.
「She’s quite the interesting lady, isn’t she?」
Gaston, who was looking in from the side, laughed as if astounded.
「I'll bring her a blanket so just let her sleep there」
「…Ye, yeah, I’m counting on you……」
What a worrisome woman. Even though she's an adult, she doesn’t even know how to drink alcohol?
「Noel」
As I was feeling completely fed up, Alma called me from behind.
「What is it?」
For some reason, Alma had a frightened expression and her voice was trembling as she spoke.
「Why……did you kill her?」
「I didn’t kill her!!!」
What are you saying all of a sudden, you useless-boobies-idiot-woman.
「Look closely! She’s still breathing, right!?」
「But her breathing is so faint. I'm sure she’ll die soon……」
「She won't die! She’s just sleeping because she’s drunk!」
「You’re lying! Don't avert your eyes from your own sins!」
「Talking to you is getting me nowhere! You guys too, say something to this idiot!」
I asked the other three to back me up. But——
「No matter what, isn’t poisoning her going too far……」
「Were you holding that much of a grudge against her for saying that we lacked strength……」
「What a terrifying man who doesn’t even have a shred of mercy……」
Not only was there no one backing me up, it appeared that their intention was to go along with Alma and throw me to the wolves.
「......You guys, how dare you turn on me. If that’s what you guys have in mind, let’s find out who among us is the strongest. Using this」
I sat in a chair and raised my ale mug. In other words, I was proposing a drinking contest. My allies, who had grasped my intentions, smiled fiercely.
「If it’s a contest, big sister won’t go easy on you」
「It’s a good opportunity. I’ll get my revenge for losing the fight」
「I don’t want to sound boastful, but I can hold my liquor quite well. I'll take the liberty of winning」
「I swore my loyalty to you, but if it’s a contest, I’m not going to throw the match」
Showing their fighting spirit openly, my allies picked up their ale mugs. With perfect timing, Gaston returned with a blanket.
「Gaston, bring me all of the strongest liquor in the store. I have to show these guys their place」
「Oh, a drinking contest, is it!? Leave it to me, I'll bring it right away!」
Gaston covered Marion with a blanket, and then ran to fetch the liquor. Intense sparks were flying as we glared at one another.
「I’ll sink every single one of you into the depths of the abyss」
†
†
「Hmpt, you bunch of small fry」
Naturally, I was the one who won the drinking contest. I had inherited the constitution of my grandfather, who was also famous for being a heavyweight, so most liquor was as good as water to me. There was no way I was going to lose. Just as I had declared, my allies had all sunk to the bottom of the abyss. They had passed out and were currently in a happy dream.
After rolling my eyes and covering my snoring allies with the additional blankets that Gaston had brought, I continued to drink by myself. Knowing that you would never pass out was a lonely thing at a drinking party.
Feeling unexpectedly sentimental, I looked at the nails of my right hand and sighed.
「As expected, it appears to be impossible……」
「Uuurrgh.... My head hurts……」
When I muttered to myself, Marion stirred and woke up.
「Damn, I feel like crap. Or rather, why am I sleeping on the floor……」
「You got drunk. That’s why you were sleeping on the floor」
I explained the situation to Marion, who wasn’t able to think clearly because she had just woke up.
「……That’s right. I drank too much……」
「Huhh? Don’t give me such nonsense. What you drank was only one mug of ale」
「Huh, was that what happened?」
「That's right. You shouldn't drink anymore. You’ve got zero tolerance」
It was dangerous to drink something that disagreed with your body. It was fine since it was us that were around, but if she did it around people with bad intentions, who knew what they would do to her.
「At any rate, drink some water. You’ll sober up a little」
「Ye, yeah……Got it……」
At my urging, Marion reluctantly stood up, took a seat, and drank some water slowly. Thanks to that, she seemed to feel a little better.
「Haaa~, I feel alive again~」
「That’s good. Once you’ve calmed down, go back to sleep. I'll wake you up in the morning」
「I'm sorry, I'll do just that」
Marion nodded and gave a big yawn. However, she didn't budge an inch and stared at me intently. At the questioning gaze that was peeking out from behind her long eyelashes, I tilted my head.
「What? Is there something that you want to ask me?」
「Yes. ......You’ve realized, right?」
Without needing to ask her what she was referring to, I had an idea of what Marion was trying to say.
「I'm also an A Rank, and I've seen a lot of Seekers, so I can tell. You……most likely cannot become A Rank…… I can’t feel that possibility inside you……」
「You’re probably right」
At the words that I had expected, I nodded.
I probably——no, unmistakably couldn’t become A Rank. This B Rank was my limit. It wasn’t as if I had absolute proof, but I was confident that I was right.
In order to rank up from C Rank to B Rank, 10,000 experience points was required. You earned one point for each battle with an opponent of the same level. The number of points went up exponentially according to the strength and the number of enemies. It was a steep path, but if you could achieve it, there was a very high chance that you would be able to rank up.
On the other hand, it was said that 100,000 experience points was the requirement for ranking up from B Rank to A Rank. However, even if you managed to earn that amount of experience points, it didn’t necessarily mean you would definitely become A Rank. Ranking up to A Rank depended much more on the individual's talent than ranking up to B Rank did.
With that in mind, I should have already accumulated nearly 60,000 experience points from the desperate battles that I had fought up to this day and the battle against the Lord. However, I couldn’t feel the reality of that at all. There wasn’t a sense that I had the potential for further growth. If anything, I felt an oppressive feeling, almost like I was confined inside a small room.
Unlike me, Alma and Kouga seemed to have felt a strong response. Even if I looked at them as an outsider, I believed that they would definitely become A Rank. In other words, the only one who would grind to a halt and remain a B Rank was me.
「Noel, you're a great man. Even though you were born with the weakest Job, you did well being able to rise this far in the world」
But, Marion said as she continued with a mysterious expression.
「So long as you can’t become A Rank, it's impossible for Wild Tempest to become one of the Regalia. All of the current clan masters of the Regalia are A Rank or above. No matter how many strong allies you gather, if the most important clan master stays a B Rank, you can’t compete with them. That’s something that you, of all people, must have realized」
「I won't deny that」
I had been able to defeat Noble Blood, who was a Lord, but I had acted pretty recklessly in that battle. The strain on my brain brought about by the continuous use of my prediction ability had caused damage that still hadn’t healed. It would be impossible to use the same way of fighting again. And, obtaining the power of A Rank was the only way to solve this problem.
「As far as the situation goes, you’re completely in checkmate, aren’t you? Good grief, it makes you feel disgusted about how unfair talent is, doesn’t it? Because it’ll remain out of reach no matter how much effort you put in」
「You’re one to talk. Aren’t you also one of those with talent?」
Marion laughed merrily and leaned over the table.
「For normal guys, that’s the limit and also where it ends. But you have a disparate talent that the other guys don’t. The talent to make the impossible possible」
「You’re giving me too much credit. I'm not such an impressive man」
「Liar. Your eyes aren’t those of someone who has given up. No, they’re eyes that are filled with the confidence that you’ll definitely come out on top. Tell me. What kind of method are you going to use to break through this situation?」
Marion’s eyes shone with anticipation. It felt almost like a little child was begging me. It made me want to tell her in spite of myself. But there was no way I could do that.
「Trade secret. In the first place, aren’t you in-charge of Hundred Demon Parade? As if I could tell you」
「Muu…… Th, that’s true……」
This woman had forgotten her position until just now, hadn’t she? The way she leaned forward when she got excited was also very similar to old man Harold.
「At any rate, you’ll know the answer soon. I’ll become A Rank. I’ll surpass the limits of my talent. Rather than prying into other people’s affairs, be prepared to be enrolled in a bride's school」
「Wha—!? Whawawa, why do you know that!?」
Marion was visibly flustered. She looked so funny that I laughed out loud.
「Hahaha, it’s your grandpa. It’s tough when you have a talkative relative, isn’t it?」
「Th, that grandpa……」
Marion’s face was dyed bright red with anger and shame as she ground her teeth.
「It’ll be nice if you find a wonderful husband. I’m rooting for you」
「Be quiet, shut up! It’s none of your business!!!」
「Ohh, scary. I pray that your ferocious personality will be reformed at the bride’s school」
I got up from my chair and walked over to the exit of the store.
「Where are you going?」
「I’m going out for a bit. I want to get some air」
When I went outside the store, the cool night breeze soothed my skin, which was flushed from the alcohol. The air was fresh and not humid. A moderate wind was blowing, and there wasn’t a cloud in sight. The star-studded sky sparkled brilliantly.
「What a nice night……」
When I muttered inadvertently, I heard footsteps. Someone was coming from across the street. When the shadow stepped towards me, it raised one hand in greeting. When I saw the face that was revealed by a street light, I smiled.
「Are you taking a midnight stroll as well, Loki?」
When I called out to him, Loki laughed and shook his head.
「That’s not it. I came to see you, boss. Here, for you」
Loki handed me a bottle of wine. Moreover, it was one of the finest wines.
「Congratulations on subjugating the Lord. It’s a congratulatory gift from me」
「Oh, you provide such services as well? In that case, I’m looking forward to my birthday. Properly put 17 candles on the cake, alright?」
Loki shrugged his shoulders at my joke.
「Don't poke fun at me. It’s merely a gift」
「I know. Thank you. I'll drink it with great care」
「Yeah, please do. It’s the first time I’ve given a gift to someone other than my family, you know? If you don’t drink it with great care, even God will get angry」
「I’ve no doubt」
We shared a laugh. It had been a while since I had met Loki. Of late, I hadn’t sent him any requests for collecting information. Nevertheless, he went out of his way to come here and congratulate me, so I was sincerely happy.
「And, I’ve got one more gift for you」
「One more? What is it?」
When I asked, an audacious smile came to Loki’s lips.
「It’s information that you’ll absolutely love, boss」
†
†
Author note: Alma has resistance to poisons, but she turned it off during the drinking contest as there won’t be any meaning to the contest otherwise.
Arghh….. the setting! Actually, “throw me to the wolves” isn’t perfect. The nuance of “throw me under the bus” is more accurate to the meaning but no buses in the Middle Ages and doing something like replacing bus with carriage will just confuse people, so wolves it is.
Oh ho, Noel can’t rank up any more? Bet you didn’t see that coming. He is starting to feel his limits quite a bit in this Part. How will he overcome this adversity? Of course, it’s just what he and Marion feel, and Noel himself says that he will overcome it, but I do hope that the author doesn’t make this something that he overcomes easily. *fingers crossed* Nevertheless, the damage to his brain, you know, the one that had him bleeding from every orifice, looks to have remained……how will that affect him?
Are the fun and games over? What information does Loki have for Noel? Will it be on the King of Flies? Or Lorelei? Stay tuned!
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