The inside of the tavern was overflowing.
In their corner, the musicians played without stopping — a drum, a stringed instrument, and a wind instrument. They weren't exactly following the melody with each other, but that wasn't a problem for this tavern. The tempo was high, people spoke by shouting, and at one table, someone had collapsed from laughter. On the other side, a fierce card game was underway. There was no empty space along the long counter of the bar. In the air mixed the smells of alcohol, roasted meat, and joy — the latter being the heaviest scent.
Milena took a deep sip from her tall beer. She set the glass on the table and smirked. She exhaled a breath that reeked intensely of alcohol.
"Another one," she said without looking at the bartender; even before he heard her, the man had already started preparing the beer.
Evra looked at his glass. A goblet stood in front of him, but he hadn't touched it. His father and older brother had always admonished him not to drink before he turned 18.
"Is it right for you to drink?" he said.
Milena turned her head. "What?"
"Is your age... sufficient to drink?"
Milena looked at him for a moment. Then she laughed — wholeheartedly, her voice blending into the noise of the tavern. Yet Evra could see her clearly, and this girl's mocking attitude irritated him a bit.
"My age is sufficient." She leaned her elbow on the table and leaned in. Through her drunk, suggestive smile, she sent a wave of alcohol-scented breath toward Evra. "It's sufficient for a lot of things, actually."
The innuendo wasn't hard to understand. Evra's ears flushed red, and he turned his head away. Was Milena always this direct, or was her attitude so... blatant because of her drunkenness?
Milena laughed again.
In reality, their ages were close to each other. Therefore, Milena's competence in drinking or the other matters she implied was also debatable, but saying this would only make Evra's conversation with Milena even more difficult. Evra preferred to keep his mouth shut.
In the Yellow City, too, this girl had been straightforward — she was outspoken, stating her mind directly. But her outspokenness back then was something else. Back then, she still had boundaries and exhibited the attitude of a more rebellious teenage girl rather than acting like an adult. Since leaving the Yellow City, something had changed; a door had been cracked open, and standing beyond it was a much different Milena.
"I'm going to ask you something." Milena set down her glass. Her voice was still playful, but its tone had changed; a line had been crossed. She tossed a piece of chip from the table into her mouth and spoke while licking her finger.
"When are you going to kill me?"
Evra froze.
The music continued. Someone at the next table laughed, a glass tipped over. The tavern remained the same — only this table had changed instantly.
Milena was looking at him. Her face was red, there was a haze of alcohol in her eyes, but her gaze was steady. This look made one forget that she was drunk.
Evra tried to calm himself for a moment, but he could see that despite all her drunkenness, Milena was as tense and solid as a rock. She was incredibly wound up. It was as if she was ready to fight at any second. Evra frowned.
Milena's father, Wuma, had killed Evra's father, Yahut. He also had a hand in Malehit's death. He had torn off his leg, mortally wounding him, and only in this way had Evra been able to get his older brother into the inheritance grounds. If Malehit hadn't been wounded by Wuma, he would have been one of those who obtained the False Dragon's inheritance; they both knew this. Evra knew that his older brother could have killed both Gomez and Ulam. He wouldn't have hesitated as much as Evra did, either. At that moment, Evra realized that Milena was still waiting for him. Perhaps she had been waiting for a long time.
Evra didn't answer for a while.
"I don't want to kill you," he said at last. He didn't know if saying this was fair to his family, but Wuma was dead, and Evra did not want to hunt down his childhood friend. "I didn't come for this. Nor do I blame you."
A suspicious expression crossed Milena's face. Her eyes looked at Evra with uncertainty. It wasn't exactly surprise either — it was the expression of someone seeing something anew.
"It seems your cultivation isn't the only thing that's changed about you, then."
Evra used to place great importance on being honorable. Being respectful toward people and valuing life. Despite knowing he was different from the common folk, he had learned not to treat them badly and to show kindness. He was a well-bred noble child. Evra knew this too. But his understanding of honor back then was childish. He had grown up within a mold that was taught to him, and he was still within that mold. Evra felt no regret for this. However, with the death of his family, he had understood that life was not all that fair. With Jalal's death, he had become kinder toward the common folk. Not just a taught kindness, but a genuine one. As a result, the values he carried now were different. They were more intense. More his own.
He looked at Milena. Reading her aura wasn't difficult — she couldn't hide it. More precisely, the faint aura leaking from her body was too distinct to escape Evra's perception. It seemed to be around the mid-Core Realm.
"What stage of the Core Realm are you in?"
Milena raised her glass. "No."
"No?"
"I'm not answering that question." She spun her glass on the table. Then she called out to the next table, slapping someone on the shoulder. She shouted something.
It wasn't hard to understand her. At least, what she was trying to do. As for understanding why she did it... Evra shook his head.
"Drink! Drink! Drink!"
The scene expanded. The shouting grew, and amidst the laughter of the people, the clamor mounted. From the next table, then the other table, then the counter — those who cheered along and those who didn't. Even the bartender laughed. Milena lifted the liter glass, slammed it finished in one go, and set it down hard on the table.
Then she stood up and grabbed Evra's arm.
"Get up."
"What—"
"You're going to dance."
The musicians had caught the transition — the tempo had risen, the rhythm hitting harder. With every beat, the drum faintly resonated in the chest, while the stringed instrument locked into the tempo. Various partners on the floor laughed and danced wildly, arms intertwined or facing each other without contact. All thirty-two of their teeth could be counted. Feet already wanted to move, bodies already wanted to sway to the rhythm — no one showed any reluctance. Evra didn't resist either.
Everyone around was moving. Freely, irregularly, but together. Milena was already in the thick of it — her steps aligned with the music, sometimes she looked at her feet and laughed. She would blend in with the people around her and emerge into view once more. The redness on her face was no longer just from the drink.
Evra took a step. Then another. He wasn't very good at it, but the music rendered his clumsiness trivial.
"Why Magnolia City?" Milena shouted over the rhythm. As they danced face-to-face, the young girl would sometimes pull him along, and they would weave through the crowd.
"I want to join the army."
Milena stopped. Then she laughed — longer and deeper this time. Her face had truly turned as red as a tomato. Evra felt there was something in her laughter that locked his gaze, but he didn't understand what it was. At the same time, he doubted whether Milena was actually laughing at what he said. The girl had become so drunk that Evra wasn't even sure if he was being listened to anymore.
"There's a caravan tomorrow." She spun past Evra. She continued to step to the music, but she was looking at Evra. "I'm coming too."
"What?"
"I want to see Magnolia City." She shrugged, as if this explained everything. "I've never seen the western border of the Forgotten Kingdom."
Evra didn't answer. The music hit, and the people around shouted 'ha!' Just to accompany the music. Milena had already turned away, entering the crowd. Though hesitant, Evra finally took a step forward and became one with this crowd along with the music.