The Possessor Mistook the Genre for 20 Years

117 – The Drunken Saintess

While Franz was being hounded by the other nobles, four women were watching him from a little distance away.

Arian spoke.

“That Mage Tower Lord, he looks like he’s having too much fun, doesn’t he?”

Her voice was full of pique. She didn’t like the fact that Franz was surrounded by other nobles, especially the young women.

But how could it be Franz’s fault? It was all the fault of those nobles, swarming him like that.

Of course, the nobles’ hearts were understandable. The Archmage who defeated the Demon Lord, the Tower Master, then the Saint, finally bestowed with a Duke’s title, of course they wanted to forge a good relationship with him.

Even considering that, it was still the same feeling of dislike.

And she wasn’t the only one harboring that thought.

“It seems the day has come when we actually agree on something.”

Yustia said, releasing a short sigh.

A supposed clergyman laughing amongst the women, how could a sigh *not* escape her? It seemed the upcoming education would have to be even more thorough.

However, not everyone shared their dissatisfaction with Franz.

Yuna, carefully gauging the mood of the two who spoke before, cautiously said,

“I, I don’t know…? He doesn’t seem that well-liked to me… Hera, what do you think?”

“I don’t particularly care. After all, those here are amongst the highest-ranking humans. It’s unlikely they would ever become Franz’s slaves.”

Hera’s matter-of-fact words caused the three to wear blank expressions, as if on cue. It was such an unexpected reaction.

“Well, that’s enough about that, how about we drink some wine among ourselves? It’s a shame to have come all this way and not enjoy it, right?”

Arian spoke, picking up a glass from the table. Red wine sloshed within.

Following her lead, Yuna and Hera each took a glass. But only one, Yustia, remained empty-handed. She hesitated, as though in doubt.

Arian said,

“Will the Saint not be drinking?”

“Well, the excessive consumption of alcohol is, shall we say, forbidden by our doctrine…”

“Then wouldn’t it be fine as long as you don’t drink excessively?”

“That, that is true, but…”

As Arian pointed out, drinking in itself was not a problem. Indeed, even clerics often enjoyed a glass of wine with dinner.

Right, in terms of doctrine, there’s no problem.

It’s just that Eustia, in her whole life, hasn’t ever touched alcohol.

Not that she had any particular interest, and the act of drinking itself felt like frivolous pleasure, prompting a feeling of aversion.

“Then it’s settled. Just try one glass, and if it’s okay, we can have more.”

Arian pushed the glass into Eustia’s hand.

Taken aback, Eustia accepted the glass, gazing at the red liquid swaying inside, she thought,

‘It’s a day to celebrate Franz…’

Arian is going so far as to urge her; refusing would be a bit much. Everyone’s drinking, and if she alone doesn’t, she’ll probably feel left out.

Right, everyone else is having a glass too. There definitely won’t be any major problems.

Just as Eustia was making her great resolve, Arian said,

“Well then, shall we make a toast to the Mage Tower Master? Even though he isn’t here.”

Arian started, then Yuna and Hera, and finally, Eustia held out their glasses.

Soon, *clink*—the glasses lightly touched, and a clear, lovely sound echoed.

Now that they’d toasted, all that was left was to drink.

Everyone started naturally savoring the wine, and Eustia, glancing at their faces, very carefully brought the glass to her lips.

‘It’s…good?’

Sweet and tangy, it wasn’t bad at all, no, it was quite delicious. It was almost regrettable that she had rejected it for so long, just because it was alcohol.

But, that was the start of trouble. If it had just tasted bad, nothing would have happened, but it was too good, and that became the problem.

From that moment, Eustia began to drink the wine as if it was another beverage. And this was her first time drinking, wasn’t it? She had no idea of her tolerance.

As a result, by the time Franz managed to break away from the other nobles and join the four of them, she was already quite drunk.

“Yustia?”

“Hiccup?”

A hiccup answered, not words. What it meant was clear, Franz didn’t need to ask, he understood the situation.

His gaze then landed on the three, looking like they’d been caught in a sin, fidgeting.

“M-Master Mage, it wasn’t on purpose. We were just having a good time drinking, and then it ended up like this…”

“Sorry, I should have stopped it…”

“I was right there, but I wasn’t paying attention. It’s my fault.”

Arian, Yuna, and Hera, in that order, offered their remorse.

Yet, Franz, who received the apologies, just felt awkward.

‘Is there a reason to apologize…?’

Yustia got this drunk because she drank too much herself, not because of anyone around her.

Of course, if they’d egged her on or forced her to drink, it’d be a different story, but the three in front of him weren’t the type to do that.

“It’s okay. It’s not your fault.”

Franz said that, but the three’s faces showed no sign of easing. They must have thought it was just a polite thing to say.

Well, there wasn’t much he could do about that, so he decided to just let it go. It would sort itself out with time.

“I’m going to take Yustia out for some air for a bit.”

Franz told the three that, and then led Yustia toward the balcony.

The one good thing was that, aside from a slightly flushed face, she didn’t really seem drunk.

If she had started staggering, she would have drawn attention, so that was a massive relief.

When they stepped out onto the balcony, the cool evening air pleasantly tickled his skin.

“F-Franz….”

Franz, startled by the voice that came from Yustia, turned his head.

She was staring at him intensely, like he had something on his face.

Her lips parted, and her voice tumbled out.

“Idiot, moron, grinning like that at a woman. Hic-! Ugh-! May you trip over a rock on the road and fall.”

Stunned by the sudden barrage, Franz just went blank.

But that was it. He wasn’t offended.

He was the type to not pay much mind to the words of a drunk person anyway.

It was exhausting to get worked up over it.

But the words that followed, they might linger a bit.

“You, you’re annoying… Just looking at you makes my chest feel so tight… Hic-, I even wore this outfit today to look good for you…”

Even a clueless Franz couldn’t ignore it when she went this far.

But understanding it was a world apart from sharing the feeling.

‘Is she the type to confess her love to the person next to her when drunk?’

When Franz was working at a company in the 21st century, there was someone like that. A woman who’d become a section chief at a young age, she’d always confess her love while drunk at company dinners.

Of course, that was fine. You could express your true feelings with the help of alcohol.

But the real problem was after she sobered up. She always insisted she didn’t remember a thing.

Yustia was probably in a similar state. She was blurting things out drunk and would clearly forget it by morning.

So, let’s not pay it any mind. The words of a drunk are no different from a dog barking.

‘That’s why drinking is bad… for parents…’

The thought, *One should learn to drink from their parents*— tried to surface, but Franz flinched, promptly erasing it from his mind.

Knowing the past sorrow of Yustia and Yuna, it was a thought he absolutely mustn’t entertain.

Feeling a needless guilt, Franz ruffled Yustia’s hair haphazardly.

There was a small meaning of reflecting on today’s event packed in it too.

“Ugh, ugh… my head… it’s swaying…”

*Is she gonna throw up, maybe…?*

That, he hoped, above all else, wouldn’t happen.

How much time passed on the balcony?

Yustia seemed to have regained a bit of her senses, so Franz went back inside the banquet hall.

“Is the Saintess alright…?”

Arian asked, a hint of worry in her tone. Despite their usual bickering, they weren’t exactly on bad terms, it seemed.

And not only her; Yuna and Hera were also sending worried glances.

“She seems better now, so don’t worry about it too much. You guys came all the way to the banquet, you should eat and have fun too.”

“I’m fine, but the Magic Tower Lord…”

“I’m okay. Besides, I’m not that fond of things like this.”

Franz answered calmly, but inwardly, he was bothered by their concern.

So, he decided to have a glass of wine with them—just one glass.

Yustia excluded, of course.

But who could have known that it would become a catastrophe?

*Wow, this is so damn good…*

I remember distinctly, thinking that as I sipped the wine.

But nothing after that, not a single thing.

Above all.

‘Why… why are they all sleeping in my bed…?’

The problem was, the entire sequence of events leading to this scene before my eyes, was utterly blank in my mind.