Chapter 2.5

We rolled up to a steel box carriage parked outside the Blithis mall, emblazoned with the name "Donerreich." A queue snaked around its perimeter, eager customers waiting for their orders from the bustling workers behind a long, flat-topped counter. Even under the dim streetlights, laughter filtered from a group of men in shadowy clothing, huddled around a table on one side. Alone on the other side stood Ayako, head tilted back as she drained another metallic can. Ale, perhaps. But these were not your average beer containers. The surface bore intricate etchings, runes swirling across the metal like slender brushstrokes.

Ana's piercing whistle froze Ayako in her tracks. A flush crawled up her cheeks, stark against the paleness of her face. Her eyelids drooped, heavy with intoxication, and a comical frown etched itself across her lips. Her head wobbled precariously, betraying the brew of bane and solace swirling within her.

But… Ana asked, "Oh, Aya gal… not your usual hobby again."

"Ara," moaned Ayako, sauntering to Ana with her gesture, thirsting for a hug. "Finally, my emotional fodders. My c-charming princes."

"Now now, 'my damsel-in-distress princess'," Ana gently pushed Ayako to sit on the chair and rubbed her upper back. "What got you so wrong all of the sudden?"

And I, myself, left alone in a quiet gape, wondering over her abrupt debauchery on ale.

"Is she drunk?" I asked.

"Uhh… yeah. Kinda. But I tell you, this is quite like…. Level one kind of tipsiness of her."

"Level one tipsiness? How much higher will she go?"

"Trust me, gal. You wouldn't want to see her level three or higher."

I sighed, "From the glowing slate… and now her 'level three or higher' thing. Curiosity within me has broadened my horizons."

"Hey," cried Ayako, suddenly calling to me. "W-Why don't you stay curious then?"

Ayako's carefully-crafted mask had slipped. Gone was the stern poise, replaced by a mischievous glint in her eyes. Her movements, usually controlled and precise, now wobbled like windy dough. She was not the stern agent I knew; this was a new… or rather loose-minded Ayako, perhaps a glimpse into a hidden chamber of her personality, unlocked by the spell of intoxication.

Or at least, should the famous saying of our time was true.

Twice a quaff of ale opens a bark of sooth.

"Why shouldn't I?" I replied.

"Y-You don't belong to this world. Even if you were from a different time, you'll end up getting spoiled once you come back to yours… and say, 'Teee… tooh… art… ama-shing! Ahhmosherland wit no empire… but a fedewashun!'. Neh?"

Ayako cackled, barking out of her drunk breath.

"Okay, now you're acting ridiculous here in public," Ana roughed her massaging hands, to which Ayako groaned like a dying bitch.

Since her massage remained fruitless to a cure, I stepped closer to Ayako and patted my hand onto her brow, whispering my chant to do the spell.

"O Sorrowed One, may your ceaseless pain be no more and your common breath be returned."

With that, Ayako slowly closed her eyes, then reopened as soon as my hand went away from her brow.

"Huh… was I drunk again?" asked Ayako, gasping from relief.

"Yeah, you were… you beer addict!" Ana smacked Ayako on her head. "I told you many times that you gotta control your drinking habit. But instead, you just make yourself loose. And now, look at you… being a bloody embarrassment around here."

"Bloody hell… seems like my 'beer is life' shit never goes away," Ayako chuckled, rubbing her head.

"And we'll totally find a cure for that sooner or later. Right now, you're back to normal… all thanks to this blondie gal," sighed Ana, then looked at me. "Speaking of cure, how did you do it?"

"Me?"

Ana nodded.

"I cast a Cure spell on her. You know, cleansing away any unwanted substance."

"You can cast a 'Cure'?"

"Aye…. Why? Never heard of it before?"

"If you literally mean 'cleansing away any unwanted substance', does it also include poison, alcohol, virus, bacteria… some shit like that?"

"Virus? Bacteria?"

"Well… just poison and alcohol is enough to make sense of it. Again, are they included?"

"Aye."

"Sweet, that's convenient," Ana smiled.

"Why?"

"To—"

"To sober me up," Ayako interrupted. "I know… I know it's hard to cope up with my beer addiction, but at least I've grown to be picky around those nowadays. For instance, I prefer the frothy ones rather than the opposite… but holy damnation, those pints had bits of alcoholic content in there."

"Bits of alcohol?" I repeated. "You mean, even a small sip of alcohol made you drunk?"

"Few couple, to be precise"

Ana smacked Ayako again, twice, and said, "And you still aren't aware of such dire consequences."

"I know. I know…"

Ayako rubbed once again. Judging by Ana's bitter look, her drinking habit could be worth a bad omen. Freedom, as some spoke, could grant one to live with no control from the highness, yet it could offer menace to die without control from the highness of one—the mind. Back when I had visited Stergatan City, no ale and wenches were forbidden to do so, and Her Holiness had seen to it that no sins would dare to stretch across the people's curiosity. But even then, stepping outside the borders would be the only choice for some to amuse.

Nevertheless, since Ayako, by her looks, came from the Fareast, her habit might be worth telling how the people there lived. Though, she was only the one I had known for now.

"Beer aside," continued Ayako. "What kind of doner do you want to order?"

"Well, I'll take the usual chicken one," Ana said, then faced me. "How about you, gal?"

"What's a doner?" I asked.

Answering my question, Ayako pointed her eyes at the poster, which bore an image of a dough-stacked meat with a brew of crisp greens, sliced tomatoes, and white sauce. Approaching near the steel box carriage, the whiff of unfamiliar spices wafted across as the meat was cooking, leaving a delectable scent in the air. The meat seemed tender, worth drooling over its glorious parade. Passion grew more, as more people occupied the table.

What kind of flavours do they amuse others?

How would it please my tongue?

"Here," Ayako handed some cash over Ana. "Now hurry up before more people show up."

Two steaming delights graced our hands: Ana's, a golden cradle of chicken, mine a symphony of sizzling beef. The wait had been agonising, but now, the warmth radiated through the paper, and the aroma—a tantalising whisper of freshly roasted flatbread and succulent meat—was an undeniable summons to our rumbling stomachs.

Back at the table, I recited my pre-meal prayer with a distinctive purr before plunging into the dish with zeal. My teeth dug into the food, spraying creamy white sauce onto my lips and down my chest. It was a delicious blast of flavours, both sharp and soothing but the ensuing mess kept my tongue from fully embracing it. The thought of myself, the ruler of this fledgling nation, stained and dishevelled, pierced my conscience. A glance down might only sour my mood further.

And so I did, and lo and behold, their brew of smile and grimace damned my very eyes.

"Pfft," Ayako giggled, then scoffed. "Would you look at 'Her Majesty'… spewing her lovely, scrumptious juice?"

"For goodness sake, gal, you could, at least, take a small bite if you doubt about it," sighed Ana, her hand patting onto Ayako's shoulder while facing me. "Can you stick your tongue out for a sec?"

I followed, "Like this?"

Soon after, Ayako took out her glowing slate and faced its rear before me. And briefly, both of them turned their back and moved their eyes toward the slate.

Then a faint bark of laughter shared between them.

"Gotta post this into space."

"Space?" I repeated, left tilting in curiosity.

"The Space, gal," said Ana, handing me a wipe and winking. "You'll have our thousand thanks."

"Huh?"

Ayako swiftly tucked her slate back into the coat pocket and laid her elbow over the edge of the table, leaning her side like a yearning knight in shining armour.

"Now," said Ayako, changing the subject. ".... What question should I want to ask of you?"

"Well, if you could care to answer my q—"

"Ah, I know," Ayako interrupted, ignoring my spoken words. "Do you know wh—"

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What?

Huh?

My eyes cracked open, the weight of my head a dull ache that receded to a feather's touch as I lifted it. Ayako and Ana stared down at me, their expressions unreadable.

The echoes of a question lingered in my mind—"Do you know..."—but the rest was lost in a foggy abyss. A disorienting emptiness filled me. Like time had skipped a beat, a blink I'd somehow slept through. Bewilderment gnawed at me, leaving behind the nagging sense of something missing.

"Good morning, sunshine," Ana's voice rang to my ears. "The doner must've been so delectable… it sent you to a dreamland."

"Well, after all, this place has always been my go-to ever since the first day of living here," replied Ayako. "But I don't think this is the best spot for dozing."

"H-Huh," I moaned. "What was I ever doing?"

"You suddenly just… napped," said Ana.

"Napping? While I was eating?"

"Yeah."

"But… I don't remember having such an urge to nap. Plus, it would've been quite unholy of me to leave my meal unfinished."

"I dunno, gal, but as what we've witnessed, you just suddenly shut your eyes and lay your head on the table like some overworked accountants."

".... Well, it'll be unproductive to question such unnecessary trivial matters," said Ayako. "Let's move on to some interesting ones."

Unnecessary? Why do I feel like I want to object to this one?

Tittle-tattle, I scoffed. She droned on about the men's room and the tale of the 'culprit', fuming over someone who had seemingly mirrored her story in the past. Ana and I played the crowd, mouths agape, nodding warmly out of obligation. Impressive hawkshaw work, perhaps, with her crimson-black Kusengan peering into deepest secrets. Yet, all thanks to a mere slip of the tongue 'spilling his guts', she launched into 'gaslighting' him, as she termed it. Her 'gifted power' finished her day's 'brief duty'. Rushed, I knew, but other details escaped me, devoured whole like the mountains of doner I ate before the "cleaning robots," those noble steel creatures, whisked away our waste, leaving not a crumb astray.

Then, amidst the after-dinner lull, Ayako's words snagged my attention: "The Raiser...he said something..." Her voice trailed off, hinting at secrets he held close. Now, that was enthralling.

"Then why didn't you give him some kind of threat? Y' know… giving him more terrifying punishment or something like that," said Ana.

"Or perhaps even a blade on his throat will do," I added.

"Look… like I said," Ayako heaved an exasperated sigh. "He's an old man who provokes us to even kill him for good. Do you think we, as someone who's responsible for clearing mysteries around the world, have the audacity to threaten someone with 'more terrifying punishment'?.... No, we don't have any truth pills left for us to unseal his lips," she glared at me. "And don't get me started with a 'blade on his throat'. That shit's old-school as fuck. You think painting us as their villain will do the work while his death may play a role in being the coolest martyr around the world? Heh, no thanks to that."

"Why do you think so?" I asked.

"Gah, I've no time to lecture about some deep philosophical shit," replied Ayako, grunting over my question. "Besides, I'm just asking Ana here if she has any idea about it."

"Oh," Ana gasped in surprise. "The eraser?"

"The Raiser."

"Well… Had heard of it from my colleagues at the club before, but I wasn't able to lend an ear to it completely."

"But do you have any details that you've heard from them? Even the tiniest?"

"Not sure if it's helpful, but they said that the reason for peak hiring of club dancers and strippers was all because of… the Raiser."

"I'm guessing that your boss had said that."

"Bitch, yeah," Ana rolled her eyes and sighed. "And now our access bill's gonna skyrocket because of more bitches coming in."

"So that's why you decided to do camwork."

"Yeah. Ever since the beginning of my bloody debut… just in case I suck at hanging over."

"Well… change of plans, then," Ayako snapped a finger and put her arm around my shoulders. "We'll hang out in Club Mia… tonight."

"With me?" I asked.

"Yes," Ayako whispered. "Even though you're quite unneeded, exploration will be your sole duty here… for now."

I rolled my eyes and sighed, glaring over how the heavens awaited my fate.

"Guess… the adventure awaits."