Chapter 324: Plenty of Booze and Spirits

After Lise delivered the final report of her tense mission in the south, Ryan ordered her to return home immediately. She obeyed the order without hesitating for a single second. The dragon flew at top speed through the night sky, driven only by the immense desire to see her beloved master soon.

That same night, Ryan and all his followers held a large gathering in the main courtyard to celebrate. They joyfully celebrated the official establishment of their new home in the cold north. The elves had discovered that the houses in the town at the foot of the mountain had a large cellar of aged wine and liquor.

Thanks to that fortunate discovery, everyone ate a massive banquet and drank to their hearts' content. Music and laughter filled the cold walls of Kowarre in a way that had never been seen before.

Despite her rough and confrontational personality, Helen put on quite a pitiful show for everyone present. After boasting so much during dinner about being an invincible SS-rank heroine capable of withstanding any poison, she was the first to get completely drunk.

The loud human swordswoman ended up passing out a few hours later. She fell fast asleep on the hard stone floor of the first-floor hall, letting out very heavy snores.

Alicia and her younger sister Alisa also succumbed quickly to their accumulated exhaustion and the sweet drink. The two dedicated beastwomen fell fast asleep together. They ended up curled up very comfortably on a large piece of furniture in the castle.

Karol and Lise, on the other hand, took the party to a much more competitive and destructive level. In some way incomprehensible to the rest, both ended up falling asleep in the hay of the outer stable.

They passed out there completely exhausted after having an absurd and loud competition in the air above the snowy courtyard. The human and the dragon tried desperately to prove who could last the longest flying while drinking in mid-air.

The loser would be whoever fell to the ground from running out of mana or fell from the sky from being too drunk to maintain a simple flight. And as was to be expected in that ridiculous situation, both got completely drunk and tied in their pathetic defeat.

Chloe and Irina were among the few women who controlled themselves during the scandalous festive banquet. The disciplined holy knight and the elegant elven princess only drank a little wine to accompany the good roast meat, keeping their sanity intact.

The uncontrollable chaos of alcohol also reached the youngest in the castle. Beatrice's little brother stole a bottle of red wine from the main reserve and fled the room.

In total complicity with Demon King Rohan's young son, both tried to drink the bottle secretly in a dark hallway. But the two mischievous children were discovered and severely scolded by Beatrice before they could take a single sip.

The young infernal had absolutely no mercy or patience with them. She tied both children with very tight ropes and left them grounded in the dark service rooms on the first floor.

Mirian, always competitive and proud, had an intense drinking duel at one of the largest wooden tables. The human archer faced off directly against Runa and Mika, lifting massive mugs of cold beer one after another without resting.

But neither the human archer nor the skilled alchemist managed to withstand the monstrous and fast pace at which Runa drank. The strong dwarven blacksmith demonstrated the true and terrifying endurance of her robust race, winning the competition without breaking a sweat.

The whole immense place was a fun chaos of partying, incomprehensible singing, and a lot of friendly commotion among people who barely knew each other. But for Ryan, observing all that peaceful and genuine interaction from a distance was something very pleasant and satisfying.

He, of course, drank enough to match the pace of his most animated guests of the night. But Ryan simply couldn't get drunk at all, no matter how much liquor he consumed.

In some strange way, it seemed his body had acquired a great resistance to alcohol. His new physical resistance reached such an absurd point that even Runa and Irina's old grandfather lost a bet against him.

The undefeated dwarf and the wise old elf ended up completely surrendering at the drinking table to the unwavering human leader.

The huge celebration party happily extended until the arrival of the cold dawn. It was in that quiet moment when almost everyone fell fast asleep in the hallways, chairs, and courtyards.

The vast majority of the elves and the peaceful beastmen stumbled back to their new houses so they could rest in real beds.

Ryan decided to step away from the mess a bit and walked toward the steep boundaries of the outer castle. He sat on the cold edge of the mountain, resting his back right next to a large and robust tree.

From that great height, the sun was slowly beginning to illuminate the entire immense snowy territory of Kowarre. He watched in total silence the beautiful orange sunrise cutting through the darkness of the night.

Ryan also noticed how, in such a short time of hard work, the skilled elves had managed to drastically change the entire natural environment. Ancient elven magic had purified and transformed the forest around the town and the castle, filling it with vibrant new life.

"Haven't you slept at all?"

Ryan said in a very calm tone of voice, without even bothering to look back to see who was approaching. He continued staring at the small town at the foot of the great mountain and the entire vast landscape of his new territory in the distance.

"Your Majesty. It may not seem like it at first glance, but I can easily last several nights without sleeping,"

Chloe replied, as she slowly approached Ryan's position on the edge of the cliff.

"Besides, I didn't drink as much liquor as the rest of the people who are still passed out inside the castle,"

The young brown-haired woman added, standing right next to Ryan with a very firm posture.

Ryan turned his head slightly to look at her out of the corner of his eye. He immediately noticed that she had a large and heavy dark leather bag hanging from her right hand.

"Were you feeding the wyverns this early?"

Ryan asked, knowing full well that large chunks of raw meat for the beasts were kept in that specific bag.

"Yes,"

She replied with a very slight and sincere smile on her face.

"Unlike the savage dire wolves, the wyverns in the stables actually want to be peaceful with me."

'Now that I remember clearly, one of those wyverns was originally Chloe's mount back at the church.'

Ryan thought, finally understanding the strong magical and emotional connection the religious girl had with those winged creatures.

'And about the wolves, I understand it quite well. From birth, they've surely been strictly trained by demons to hunt and tear apart humans. Though, it is rather strange. When they see me walking through the courtyard, those massive monsters behave like simple spoiled puppies looking for pets.'

With that peculiar and contradictory thought hovering in his mind, Ryan frowned. Realizing something else.

'Wait a second, does that mean those stupid giant wolves don't perceive me as a real human being? That is highly insulting.'

Ryan thought, feeling a little insulted and worried by the strange survival instinct of the wolves that didn't recognize him as human prey.

"Your Majesty, you know what?"

Chloe asked suddenly, breaking the long silence and pulling Ryan from his strange morning thoughts.

"Huh?"

Ryan let out a slight sound of question, indicating that she had his full attention right at that moment.

"I was incredibly surprised by the huge party last night. Never in my entire life did I think I would see absolutely every race sharing so happily in one single place,"

Chloe answered, feeling a deep peace within at witnessing such a miracle of coexistence in a world torn apart by war. She looked at the beautiful houses of the elves and beastmen shining in the warm sunlight.

"And they are all genuinely happy to serve you, Your Majesty,"

Chloe said with utter conviction in her sincere words. And before Ryan could respond to that grand and unexpected compliment about his leadership, she added one more thing.

"I believe that, after gathering so many talented people of different races under your direct command, all you need now is to get a spirit to serve you."

Chloe looked directly into his eyes, looking very sure of her sudden and strange suggestion for the kingdom's growth.

"Don't you think, Your Majesty?"

"Spirits?"