"Mr. Kap, thank you for your help, even if it was just for a short time."

"Sure, if you need a carriage next time, feel free to ask."

After about a week of traveling, we finally reached the City of Dramon.

This place guards one of the borders of the Lillias Kingdom, and we must cross this border to reach our destination, the Tower of Tarlos.

"Finally, we can sleep in a bed instead of camping out..."

"You did well. Let's rest at the inn today and look for a carriage tomorrow."

The group was exhausted from a week of camping.

For seasoned adventurers, this might not be a big deal, but these were students who had always attended classes at the Academy.

Even though they used a carriage, it must have been tough.

Emily looked the happiest as she booked the lodging.

"There seem to be a lot of rough-looking people here?"

Raphne said as she looked around.

Adrian answered her query.

"Most of them are probably adventurers. This is a border area, so there are many requests."

As expected of a prince, he was well informed about such details.

"Does having a lot of requests have to do with it being a border area?"

"To prepare for possible attacks from outside, they gather as much strength as possible. That's why they lure adventurers here with requests."

Indeed, even the smallest details were influenced by political considerations.

I learned something new that wasn't mentioned in the game. No wonder there were so many quests clustered here.

"Wow! A bed!"

"Emily, I get that you're excited, but that's rather unrefined."

"So, what! We're adventurers right now!"

We rented two rooms. The two adjacent rooms were available, so we could hear Mary and Emily chatting from the next room.

"Isn't the soundproofing in this place really bad?"

Creak.

At that moment, our door opened slightly.

A head with red hair poked through and waved gently.

"Uh, Ken."

"Hmm? What's up?"

Raphne looked hesitant and cautious. It seemed like she had something to say but was finding it difficult.

After hesitating for a moment, Raphne finally spoke.

"I'm feeling uneasy. Can I share a room with you, Ken?”

“Do you really think that's okay?"

"Whyyy!"

Raphne made a tearful face, like a little child throwing a tantrum. Then, a resolver appeared from the next room.

"I knew it! How could you just barge into the other room like that!"

"Emily, you always scold me!"

"That's because you're always causing trouble!"

Raphne, with her collar grabbed by Emily, reached out her hand towards Ken, shouting "Keeeeen!" like a kidnapped heroine.

Even though she could have probably used her strength to get away, the fact that she meekly let herself be dragged off showed that she understood she was in the wrong.

That must be why she hesitated.

Oh well, this isn't the Academy's tower where Raphne can simply decide who she wants to share a room with.

With just Siegfried, Adrian and I left we discussed the rooms.

"I don't mind sharing a room."

"Hmm, if Ken's okay with it, then so am I."

Adrian and Siegfried, both with expressions that they really didn't mind either way.

Just like with the carriage, Siegfried showed no interest, while Adrian looked on with curiosity.

As long as it's not too much trouble, I guess it's fine. After unpacking their belongings and taking a short rest in their rooms, they gathered in the inn's restaurant as dusk fell.

"Cheers!"

"Emily looks really excited."

"Well, I've always yearned for moments like this!"

Emily, energetically holding up a glass full of mead, answered my question with a smile.

While camping out seemed tough, Emily appeared to be the one enjoying it the most.

As someone of commoner origin, she might have found the Academy stifling. Maybe she's feeling a sense of freedom right now.

"...By the way, are we even allowed to drink?"

"Hmm? Is there a problem?"

"Oh?"

At my mumbled question, Raphne tilted her head in confusion.

The others didn't seem to think it was strange either. When we ordered food and requested mead, the waiter didn't say anything.

Maybe this world doesn't have age restrictions for drinking.

Of course, before I found myself in this body, I drank quite often.

But this is my first time drinking with Ken's body. I wonder how well it handles alcohol...

"Cheers!"

Everyone clinked their glasses together, centred around the jubilant Emily.

Adrian and Siegfried, as expected, drank without any issues.

"Wow, this tastes good."

"Is it your first time, Raphne?"

"Yeah, it's my first-time trying alcohol."

"Ugh, it's a bit bitter for me."

Mary, like Raphne, seemed to be trying alcohol for the first time, and she grimaced at the characteristic bitterness.

"Come on, Ken, what are you doing? Hurry and try it."

"Okay."

Prompted by Emily, I carefully raised my glass to my lips.

The bitterness of the alcohol mixed with the sweet and fragrant taste of honey was surprisingly not bad.

And then…

[System: The Effect of Mental Enhancement Lv2 reduces the 'Intoxication' trait.]

Along with the message from the status window that appeared before me, I felt my mind become clearer.

To be precise, I could still feel the hazy sensation unique to alcohol, but oddly enough, my mind felt sharp.

It seemed like I wouldn't be making any mistakes.

Thanks to the skill I learned with Emily's help.

We had a pleasant meal to rest our bodies tired from a week of camping.

Initially, it felt like Siegfried and Adrian being together would be awkward.

But as expected, traveling together made everyone quickly become close.

And after some time passed,

"Ken's arm feels strangely soft yet firm."

Mary, with her face flushed from the alcohol, mumbled as she stroked my arm.

"Hehe, it oddly makes me want to keep touching it."

From her condition, it seemed that Mary couldn't handle alcohol well.

"Is it because you exercise a lot that it feels like this?"

"Well, I do exercise, but I'm not sure if that's the reason."

"Hmph, Mary, you've never seen Ken when he's really fit, have you? You'd be really surprised."

Emily said with a slightly smug smile, as if throwing down a challenge to Mary who was leaning against my arm.

Then, the red-faced Mary responded impassively.

"Actually, I saw him not too long ago."

"What? Really?"

"Oh, I've seen that form too. It was indeed impressive."

"You've seen it too, Siegfried?!"

For some reason, Emily seemed shocked.

"Ugh, I thought I was the only one who knew."

"When I first saw him, I was more surprised by the fact that he was alive than by his appearance.

It's rewarding to see him train so diligently. I look forward to seeing him fully transformed."

"Oh, that sounds quite interesting."

Adrian seemed intrigued, probably because he hadn't seen the Calorie burn transformation himself.

Siegfried, perhaps slightly tipsy, was smiling more often than his usual indifferent self.

Suddenly, Raphne, who had been sitting next to Siegfried, stood up energetically.

Bang.

"Ah! Now that I look at it, Ken's weight loss is because of you!"

Raphne, with her face flushed from the alcohol, was pointing at Siegfried, hiccupping with half-closed eyes.

"Because of you, hiccup, because of you, Ken is shrinking bit by bit in this world!"

"Although I am training him, it was Ken who came to me first. I'm merely helping him as he requested."

Despite being intoxicated, Siegfried skilfully deflected Raphne's sudden claim towards me.

Raphne, shocked, immediately clung to me.

"W-why? Sob, if you do that, Ken will completely disappear from the face of the earth!"

"No, losing weight doesn't mean I'll vanish, Raphne."

"Waah, I hate it, I don't want Ken to disappear!"

In the end, Raphne burst into tears, clinging to me and crying loudly.

It's a mess.

I started to resent the Mental Enhancement skill.

Being the only one sober at this drinking party is no fun at all, just exhausting.

Mary clung to one of my arms, stroking it, while Raphne hung onto the other side, sobbing.

"Handling multiple women always leads to disaster."

"Instead of enjoying yourself, could you give me a hand?"

"I don't have a hobby of messing with other people's women. If you need help, take them to their rooms yourself."

Adrian, seemingly indifferent, took another sip from his glass.

Hmm, it seems he has no intention of helping at all.

Can't be helped.

“Hehe, Ken smells so good. Ssshh, haaa, ssshh haaa.”

“Waaah… Keeen, don't disappear…”

This is very troublesome.

“K-Ken! I'll help too!”

“Oh, are you okay? Can you walk?”

“I-I can handle this much!”

Emily pulls Raphne who is clinging to one side and supports her herself.

Despite her slurred speech and flushed face, I am grateful that she's stepping up to help.

“Waaah! Emilyyy! Ken is going to disappeeaar!!”

“He's not disappearing, he's fine! Get a grip!”

And so, our first drinking party came to an end.

The next day, as planned, we visited a nearby trading firm to arrange for a carriage.

“...Excuse me? Do you need that much?”

“Yes, the lord of this area has increased the toll fees. If you're going out for the first time, you will need that much.”

But we encountered an unexpected obstacle.

This is strange. In the game, the toll fee was never this high.

Is there some reason behind this?

I looked at the most likely person who might understand the cause.

Adrian had a helpless smile.

He had a look of helplessness about him.

“What is going on exactly?”

“It seems that the high-ranking officials of the kingdom do not want Raphne to leave the country.”

When we stepped aside for a moment and I inquired about the situation, Adrian answered honestly.

“They barely allowed her to leave the Academy. Perhaps they assumed that if they couldn't outright refuse, they could try to block us through such means.”

“Is there nothing you can do?”

“Do you really understand who you're asking that to?”

He was smiling, but his eyes momentarily sharpened.

He hasn't revealed to anyone that he is the first in line to the throne of the kingdom.

For his own safety and to manage Raphne, it makes sense.

That's why I hadn't mentioned it either.

Adrian seemed to be gauging whether I knew his secret or not.

So, I didn't respond and just looked at Adrian.

Under my gaze, Adrian sighed and continued.

“The lord here is a conservative person. If he has raised the toll fee, he must have created a justifiable reason to present to the kingdom. There's nothing I can do about it.”

So, in the end, we have no choice but to pay the toll and pass through.

But there’s no way to come up with such a large sum of money so suddenly.

After finishing my conversation with Adrian, I approached the rest of the group and explained the situation.

“...We need to make money quickly somehow," I said, folding my arms and tapping my foot in frustration.

Should we take on a monster extermination request?

No, but it’s hard to earn such a large amount immediately through just that.

Adventurers usually make a big score not through extermination but by acquiring treasure from an unexplored labyrinth.

But there isn't any lucrative labyrinth around here...

"Hey, does anyone have any ideas?"

I looked up to ask for opinions, as I couldn't think of a solution by myself.

Everyone was staring at me blankly.

Then, Emily spoke up.

"We just need to make the money."

Following her, Mary and Raphne also chimed in.

"So, Emily thinks the same way?"

"It seems like fun."

What is this? It feels like they know something I don’t.

"Let's go quickly, Ken!"

Then, Raphne grabbed my hand and started to drag me along.

"Wait, can someone explain!"

A little while later.

"Step right up! It's not every day you get a chance like this! Ah, Mary! Could you guide the waiting customers?"

"Please wait over here. Yes, yes, we’re selling this master-crafted weapon at a special discount."

"What? You don't need it? Who are you to say you don't need Ken's weapon? Do you have a death wish?"

"Raphne! How can you grab a customer by the collar?!"

They decided to open a street vendor stand.

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