SIDE:
Of Druid and Drink
DRUID’S POV
“Good evening.”
“Good evening. Here’s the wine. It’s the infamous dry wine from the capital everyone’s been talking about. Oh, are you okay with that kind of wine?”
“Of course.”
“Would two bottles work for you, or would you rather have three?”
I haven’t had wine in a while, so I’d better go easy on myself. “I’m fine with just one bottle. It’s high-proof, isn’t it?”
“Are you sure? Well, if you want more, let me know.”
“Thanks.”
We took our wine into the farthest corner of the lounge and set it on the table. Since this was a secluded area, it was well suited to drinking alone.
“Dola! Mind your manners! You need to speak politely with our guests, remember?”
Just as we were about to sit at the table, Salifa’s voice boomed out from behind us. It made me chuckle a little. She often scolded him for being too familiar with the inn’s guests, but it never seemed to work. The fact that Dola insisted on being on first-name terms with the guests probably played a big part in that.
I removed the cork from my wine and enjoyed its aroma before pouring it into a cup and taking a sip. The familiar fiery sensation of the alcohol washed down my throat.
“Phew.” This stuff’s good. Dola knows his wine.
“Here, Druid. Try this with it.” Dola set some chopped fruit and a sauce onto the table. I glanced at Salifa, and she gently smiled back at me.
“Ivy made you boys a snack to go with your wine.”
“Did she? Well, thank you for bringing it to us.”
“She really is a sweet girl. She said having wine on its own after a meal was bad for your health, so she thought some tree fruits you could eat with your hands would be just the thing.”
I’d been planning to just have wine after dinner, but Ivy understood that I would be even happier if I had a snack to go with it. She really is a great travel companion. I don’t deserve her.
“Have a good time, boys.”
“Thanks.” I took a bite of the sauced fruit. It really packed a punch, which paired it really well with the wine. Had Ivy asked what kind of wine we’d be drinking so she could make something to go with it? Now I really needed to be sure to thank her.
I really need to do better… Why didn’t I realize we needed to think of a countermeasure when we found out about Rose’s shadow skill? I absentmindedly took another bite of fruit, and the tangy sensation in my mouth was quickly washed down with another sip of wine.
“I hope I’m not a burden on Ivy…” No matter how hard I tried to make up for it, I still only had one arm. I was definitely holding her back more than other people would. But in spite of this, I still wanted to travel with her. “When it comes down to it, I’m selfish.”
Ahh, but if Ivy knew I felt that way, she’d probably yell at me. She really is too kind.
I got hurt once on the way to Hatow. I was frustrated that I couldn’t tend to it myself because of my missing arm, and I took it out on Ivy. I calmed down right away and apologized to her over and over, and she forgave me then and there. But I felt wretched. A negative seed took root in my heart that day.
A few days later, I suggested to Ivy that she find a new travel companion because I couldn’t protect her with just one arm. The next thing I knew, my cheeks were being pinched hard. So hard, in fact, that it hurt a lot. I looked at Ivy in shock—she was angry. I’d never seen her that mad before. As I stared at her in amazement, she said, “I didn’t bring you along on my journey to protect me. I brought you because you make me feel all warm inside and you make me smile! I never even thought about replacing you! If you’re quitting this journey, Mr. Druid, then I’ll just go on by myself!”
Oh no. I’m starting to grin like an idiot. Well, I can’t help it. Nobody’s ever said anything like that to me before. Oh, right…that’s because I’ve spent my life avoiding people. I gulped down all the wine in my cup.
“What’s wrong with being selfish?” When I told Ivy I was selfish to want to travel with her when I only had one arm, that was what she said back to me. “Everyone is selfish. That’s what it means to be human, so just accept it. Problem solved!” And she was right.
Okay. I’d better cheer myself up. If Ivy finds out I’ve gone into another emotional spiral, she’ll pinch my cheeks again. That was really painful. Ivy seemed to hurt herself pinching me, too. She leapt back and rubbed her fingers together afterward. Okay, I’ll stop spiraling!
I started to pour another cup of wine…but nothing came out of the bottle. I guess I drank it all up when I was in that spiral. What should I do? Should I go back to my room or have another bottle?
“Here ya go!” Dola set another bottle of wine on the table in front of me.
“Ha ha! Thanks.” I took another sip.
“So, you have a visitor. What do you wanna do?”
“I have a visitor?”
“Yeah…Captain Tableau of all people. That’s quite a surprise.”
Captain Tableau?
“It seems he wants to talk to you, but it’s late. Should I tell him to come back tomorrow?”
Is it about the magic stones? Then maybe I should get it taken care of sooner than later.
“It’s fine, I’ll see him.” But right after I said that, I looked around and noticed the room was filled with guests, laughing and drinking. Will we be able to talk here? Or should I borrow another room?
“You can talk in the dining hall if you’d like,” Dola said. “It’s closed to the public right now.”
“Thank you. I’ll go in there, then.” I picked the wine and my cup up off the table and headed to the dining hall. The clock on the wall said it was already past eleven. Maybe I should tell Ivy Captain Tableau is here? No, I’d better not. He might have sad news. Ivy’s probably asleep by now anyway.
I sat far away from the door to the dining hall so that nobody would overhear our conversation. Oh, I should’ve brought another cup with me. Should I go get one now?
“Sorry to bother you so late.”
Before I could make up my mind, Captain Tableau arrived in the dining hall. Guess I’m staying, then.
“Have a seat.” Dola set a bottle of wine and a cup in front of Tableau and left the dining hall. He’s always the perfect host.
“Sorry to show up unannounced.”
“It’s quite all right.”
There were clear lines of fatigue on Captain Tableau’s face, but his expression was completely different than it had been when I first met him. He looked one-hundred-percent calm. I took the cork out of his wine and poured him a cup.
“I hear you’ve decided which direction to take. Congratulations.”
“Thank you very much. Well, the real work lies ahead.”
We lightly tapped our cups together and sipped our wine. Oh no! I forgot to bring the wine-friendly snack Ivy made. No, wait…I ate it all up. Too bad.
“I came here to thank you, Mr. Druid. Both you and Miss Ivy.”
To thank us? About the magic stones? This late at night?
“Um, I think you had a talk with Priya a few days ago…”
“Oh, so that’s what this is about.”
Ivy telling Priya about the power of a smile. That surprised me, too. She’d suddenly brought up Gotos’s smile, of all things.
“My predecessor was also a man of endless smiles,” Captain Tableau said, gulping the rest of his wine down quickly.
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