CHAPTER 104……………………………………..
After Minerva left, Lloyd sat blankly staring into space, pen still in hand.
Drink together at night?
“Why?”
Maybe… he liked Minerva as a woman.
But Minerva clearly did not feel that way.
Once he accepted that, it wasn’t hard to guess why she suddenly wanted to drink together.
She must be really troubled.
Minerva wasn’t someone who drank often.
Right after reaching adulthood, she had been confined, and afterward, she’d been too busy raising a child to enjoy a drink.
So if she was seeking alcohol because she was “troubled,” there could only be one reason.
I’d better prepare something good.
He decided on drinks that wouldn’t cause a bad hangover—pleasant ones even for people who rarely drank.
He could have asked Pablo to handle it, but Lloyd wanted to choose the drink himself—something that could truly comfort her.
So he stood up from his seat.
After putting Aslan and Ayla to bed early, Lloyd and Minerva met in the annex.
As they walked in, Lloyd voiced a concern that had been nagging him.
“Do you think the children will wake up?”
“I played with them like crazy so they’d sleep soundly.”
Minerva, whose stamina had almost fully returned, had enough energy left to drink even after tiring Aslan out.
Still—
“Did you bring all that to drink tonight?”
It was impossible to finish all the alcohol Lloyd had brought in on the trolley in one night.
He knew it was excessive, but he couldn’t help it.
“I didn’t know what kind of drink Your Highness prefers…”
He couldn’t just bring a single bottle when there were so many varieties of alcohol—especially since he didn’t even know Minerva’s tastes.
Awkwardly, Lloyd brushed his hair back behind his ear.
“I thought you could sample a few.”
He had even pulled the trolley all the way there himself instead of using a carriage, afraid the sound might wake Aslan.
Remembering the sight of him carefully pushing that trolley earlier, Minerva couldn’t help but laugh.
“I’ll enjoy it. Let’s go in.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
They headed to the sitting room.
Since the children were asleep on the opposite end of the second floor, they wouldn’t wake unless there was a real commotion.
Lloyd began unloading the bottles onto the table.
Minerva thought the trolley was full of only alcohol, but there were also snack baskets and a variety of glasses.
A very well-prepared man, indeed.
While he was setting the table, Minerva curiously asked about each bottle.
“What’s this one?”
“A rum infused with orange peel. It’s quite sweet and easy to drink.”
“And that?”
“A maple-scented brandy.”
“This?”
“An apple wine aged in oak barrels. And that next to it is a chocolate-flavored liqueur.”
At first, she’d wanted to drink just to chase away her gloom, but Lloyd’s detailed explanations made it feel like she was sitting in a cocktail bar.
“All of these are sweet types, huh?”
“I heard you don’t drink often.”
Usually, nobles had at least a glass or two of wine with dinner.
But as far as Lloyd had observed, not once had there been alcohol on Minerva’s table.
Of course, that was just his misconception.
Minerva hadn’t been able to get the fine liquor she used to have at the imperial palace—and after Aslan became human, she’d cleared out the remaining bottles for fear he might cause trouble with them.
Now, facing good alcohol again after so long, her eyes sparkled just like Aslan’s.
“Well, that’s different. Let’s start with this one.”
Minerva chose the maple-scented brandy first.
As the drink was poured over a large, round ice sphere, a sweet aroma filled the room.
“Shall we toast?”
“Yes.”
Clink.
The clear chime of glass on glass rang out beautifully.
Minerva brought the glass to her lips, and Lloyd nervously watched her reaction.
Thankfully, she smiled after taking a sip.
“This is really good.”
The phrase ‘it wraps around the tongue’ was made for a drink like this.
Seeing her smile, Lloyd silently felt relieved.
“I chose carefully.”
“Thank you, Duke.”
She had only asked for a casual drink together, yet he’d gone to such lengths—she couldn’t help but feel grateful.
But she couldn’t just be grateful—because she remembered the original story.
Minerva took another drink to drown out the unpleasant thoughts.
“Your Highness, that’s a strong drink. You should go slowly—”
Before he could finish, she downed the whole glass, even though it was the kind meant to be sipped slowly as the ice melted.
Yet Minerva looked perfectly fine, as if she’d just had a sip of water.
“I want to try another one.”
She asked clearly, her eyes bright.
Normally, etiquette dictated one matched one’s partner’s pace—but that had flown out the window.
“Just a moment, please.”
Lloyd quickly poured her next choice into a fresh glass, though unease prickled at him as he saw her expectant eyes.
“Oh, this one’s good too.”
“This one’s kind of tropical.”
“This one—if you warm it up with milk, it would taste amazing.”
…And his bad feeling proved right.
Minerva was an incredibly strong drinker.
After sampling everything, she started finishing full bottles one by one like she was collecting stamps.
“Ah, I haven’t had such good liquor in ages.”
She even mumbled to herself now and then—clearly tipsy, yet still looking completely fine.
The problem was Lloyd.
If he tried to match her pace, he’d be the first to collapse, so he pretended to drink whenever he could.
Until Minerva caught him.
“Oh ho, Duke, you’re cheating, huh? Fooled me about who you are and now you’re fooling me about your glass too?”
“Pffft—cough cough!”
Caught mid-act, Lloyd choked, the alcohol fumes burning his nose and eyes.
“That’s… that’s different!” he protested, watery-eyed.
Minerva shook her head, eyes half-lidded but mischievous.
“Nope. I’ll forgive you for sipping slow, but no cheating.”
What on earth did “sipping slow” versus “cheating” even mean at this point?
Anyway, she clearly meant drink it properly, even if slowly.
“Alright, if you understand—cheers again~!”
“C-cheers…”
Under Minerva’s relentless energy, Lloyd had no choice but to keep drinking drop by drop.
When will this drinking session end?
He wanted to escape.
But even in Korea, escaping a company dinner wasn’t easy.
In this feudal society, the only polite way to leave early was to drink until you passed out.
Just when he thought he might die of acute alcohol poisoning—
Minerva suddenly slammed her glass down with a loud thud.
“Your Highness?”
Her head drooped low.
Had she finally reached her limit? Lloyd spoke anxiously.
“Are you all right?”
Her answer came out of nowhere.
“…I hate it. I hate it so much.”
“Pardon?”
Hate it? Hate me?
Lloyd’s heart plummeted.
He already knew she resented him—for hiding his identity, among other reasons.
He knew. But hearing it aloud struck him like a cruel blow.
He lowered his head, suddenly afraid to even look at her.
What should I do so she won’t hate me any more than this?
As his hands grew cold, he noticed something—
The bottle that had been on the table moments ago was gone.
He looked up in alarm—Minerva was already pouring herself another glass.
Before he could stop her, she downed it in one gulp.
“Y-Your Highness!”
Just as Lloyd was wondering what on earth was happening—
Minerva slammed the glass down and cried toward the ceiling:
“I don’t want to go back to the palace!!”
