Chapter 158

Chapter 158
Chapter 158: Never Mind The Heir, I’ll Focus On Healing
Shriek!

“Kieeeek!”

An arrow drove deep into the cranial center of the beast.

With its critical spot precisely breached, the creature crumpled to the ground.

‘Goodness….’

The staff member observing the scene dropped his jaw.

Even though they only unleashed large yet fragile targets to accommodate the patrons’ preferences, penetrating that dense hide and bone was no simple task.

And on top of that, it was the dead of night, leaving them with only the pale illumination of the moon!

The employee swallowed hard.

He had endured all manner of trials throughout his tenure at this particular preserve.

He had even managed countless visitors who boasted of being elite bladesmen.

Yet, none of those individuals had ever managed to dispatch that specific specimen with a solitary projectile.

This is a totally different tier!

‘This isn’t just someone hunting for recreation.’

And the astonishing part was…….

It was merciful.

Having served numerous patrons, the worker understood intimately just how gracious an instantaneous death truly was.

Weren’t many visitors, completely absorbed in their sport, deliberately maiming beasts and keeping them lingering on the brink of life, only to finish them off once cornered?

Encountering someone like this after witnessing such cruelty stirred within him a profound sense of reverence.

‘Who on earth could they possibly be.’

They had maintained a heavy disguise from the moment they entered the grounds, rendering their true identity entirely obscure.

‘……No, better not to dig into it.’

There existed an unwritten law among the long-serving staff at Easter: never pry into the personal affairs of the clientele.

This rule applied doubly to guests who purposefully arrived heavily concealed.

Should anyone dare to investigate, they risked losing their livelihood, or worse.

The attendant handed over the Egg Coin and dipped his head.

“My congratulations. I present these Egg Coins to you as your performance within the hunting grounds has surpassed all others.”

The visitor accepted the currency in silence.

“Ah, and this as well……”

The midnight hour was fast approaching.

The employee drew an invitation from his tunic, recognizing that the window for acquiring further Egg Coins had closed for the day.

“…….”

Swish.

The man appeared to inspect the missive briefly before instantly expending the Egg Coin and vanishing from sight.

“Phew……!”

The worker released a long, held-in breath.

For reasons beyond articulation, their mere presence had made breathing difficult.

They hadn’t displayed even a flicker of hostility toward him.

“Well, apprehension is only natural.”

The employee pivoted his gaze back toward the trail the guest had arrived from.

Amidst the shadows, the carcasses of slain creatures littered the pathway.

“It was all finished in one stroke……”

The attendant muttered to himself while plucking the embedded arrow free from the beast.

Yet, initially, he hadn’t seemed particularly adept with a bow at all…….

“Hah. It must have been an illusion.”

For someone possessing such terrifying proficiency.

He reasoned they must be a legendary knight.

—

“…….”

Lion felt genuinely startled by the grotesque substance set before him.

Shwooo-

As the mixologist twisted off the stopper of the bottle, a cloud resembling the spores of a troll’s belch burst outward.

‘……The aesthetic is staggering.’

It was a spectacle so overwhelming that even Lion, typically unfazed by most horrors, conceded defeat.

Lion glanced furtively around the room.

This presented a predicament.

It wasn’t the act of using the ingredients that troubled him, but if he handled such a monstrosity without hesitation, wouldn’t his disguise be compromised?

‘I’ll definitely be exposed. For sure.’

Picture it. Anyone witnessing a patron joyfully mixing and agitating such a nauseating concoction would instantly think, “Ah, that individual is thoroughly deranged,” wouldn’t they?

Particularly among the clientele present, vanishingly few would remain unperturbed by this liquor, let alone contemplate crafting a beverage from it…….

At the very least, inside the establishment, only the two of them occupied the space: the server and himself.

At all costs, being discovered merely to secure an additional Egg Coin was an undesirable outcome.

The sheer volume of gossip that would inevitably spread.

‘What to do.’

As he weighed his options and surveyed his surroundings, a curious detail caught his attention.

Astonishingly, no one else seemed to be paying the slightest heed to the unfolding scene!

As if reading his internal query, the barkeep spoke up.

“You needn’t fret over the scrutiny of others. To them, it will merely appear as though you are enjoying a standard cocktail.”

“I see.”

A few patrons cast glancing looks, but even those glances conveyed nothing more than, “Ah, they must be mixing a drink~.”

He suspected some form of concealment magic had been woven over the ingredients.

‘truly peerless in terms of discretion.’

That being the case, all pressure evaporated.

“What a relief. I was slightly concerned about drawing eyes.”

“…….”

The mixologist shifted his gaze, looking from the strange components to the patron standing across the counter.

He was already aware that this guest was no ordinary person, but to remain this indifferent to such materials…

‘What a remarkably audacious individual.’

Still, crafting a cocktail required more than merely possessing a stout heart.

Naturally, it would be ideal if the guest enjoyed the final product…

‘If it’s botched, I won’t intervene.’

He harbored no doubts that anyone who had ventured this far was a deeply adventurous soul.

“Then, I kindly ask that you replicate the blending procedure precisely as I demonstrate.”

“Very well. Understood.”

The barkeep immediately set about preparing the beverage.

He delicately poured the fluid, which resembled poisonous fungi releasing spores, into a tumbler packed with pre-chilled ice.

Shwoooosh-

……The liquid, far more viscous than anticipated, poured forth from the vessel accompanied by an eerie sound.

‘I believe Freya once concocted something similar.’

It reminded him of a sentient slime born from an atrocious alchemy assignment.

At best, it possessed a mysterious aura, but honestly, its hue and consistency stirred a mild sense of nausea at the prospect of ingestion.

It was an unmistakably unsettling dark violet fluid interspersed with drifting white particulates.

However.

‘This… is actually quite remarkable?’

Lion’s eyes, attuned to recognizing the true worth of rare elixirs, gleamed softly.

『Mushberry Liqueur (★★)』

-This is a specialty brew formulated at Easter. It bears a bizarre resemblance to an extract of toxic toadstools, but is actually derived from select berries rather than fungi.

-Rest assured regarding the suspended particles. It is a sweet, aromatic orange-scented dust designed to induce a pleasant sensation upon consumption.

-Immoderate intake is detrimental to physical health.

-Partaking in this beverage instills a subtle touch of good fortune.

Its exterior was grotesque… no, uniquely striking, but the liquor itself was composed of substances entirely safe for human consumption.

Furthermore, it was fruit-based, not mushroom-based.

And true to description.

“The fragrance is exquisite.”

To his genuine astonishment, it released a sophisticated sweet-and-sour bouquet.

It bore little resemblance to typical alcohol; it carried the crisp scent encountered when grasping freshly harvested orchard fruits with bare hands.

The barkeep’s mustache twitched appreciatively at his remark.

“Indeed. Appearance is far from everything.”

He appeared gratified that the true caliber of the liqueur had been acknowledged.

The mixologist then halved a lemon and a lime, extracted their juices, and poured measured syrup into a secondary glass with fluid grace.

“The defining trait of this particular liqueur is that its flavor reaches absolute perfection when married with velvety milk.”

Pronouncing this, the bartender produced a sealed container of dairy.

“This is Snow Ox Milk, harvested straight from the Baidantis Territory. It yields an unparalleled creamy and decadent profile.”

“Oh.”

Lion was genuinely impressed.

He was already well-acquainted with the taste of Snow Ox Milk!

The Byrdentis household utilized this very dairy to prepare rich hot chocolate.

Yet this particular application…

‘I understand it commands a steep price.’

Fitting for a ultra-luxurious establishment.

The attendant did not pause there, scraping the precious seeds from a vanilla pod and casting them directly into the shaker.

“Now, shall we attempt to follow this initial phase?”

“Agreed.”

Up to this juncture, the steps remained straightforward.

Lion selected ice cubes to fill his glass, measured out the liqueur following the exact proportions the bartender had utilized, and added generous squeezes of lime and lemon.

He made sure not to omit the syrup and vanilla seeds.

“You are executing the steps admirably.”

“The subsequent phase poses the actual challenge, does it not?”

“……! You catch on quickly. Indeed, that is correct.”

The barkeep responded with equanimity, entirely devoid of surprise.

The guest had hit the mark.

In truth, while adhering strictly to a recipe holds importance during mixology, the physical agitation process remains vastly more critical.

Depending entirely on how the tumbler is gripped and the cadence of the blending, the flavor profile shifts subtly from person to person.

“Allow me to demonstrate.”

The attendant capped the mixing vessel and began rocking it rhythmically upward and downward.

It appeared to be standard technique, but…

‘This mixologist’s proficiency is no laughing matter?’

There lay a distinct difference.

Upon closer observation, while the motion projected a vertical oscillation, the vessel was actually experiencing a much higher frequency of lateral shifts.

‘Fascinating.’

Not a single motion was squandered.

He had presumed the attendant merely possessed seniority due to his age, but he hadn’t foreseen this tier of mastery.

It was a movement as pristine as the arcs traced by blades wielded by veteran swordsmen.

‘It deceptively looks effortless.’

He understood this principle well: whenever an action appears simple under another’s execution, it invariably indicates that the individual commands immense expertise.

‘What an extraordinary virtuoso.’

He had initially treated the outing as a lighthearted diversion, but he now recognized he was receiving tutelage from an authentic maestro.

‘This doubles the value of the experience.’

Lion maintained his vigil, his eyes shining brightly as he absorbed every single motion without missing a beat.

Following a designated interval, the barkeep strained out the ice cubes and continued vigorous agitation of the container in the absence of ice for an extended duration.

The objective evidently centered on whipping the incorporated milk to its absolute maximum creaminess.

Once the amalgamation concluded, the attendant slowly decanted the cocktail from the shaker into a freshly frosted glass containing a base layer of the initial mushberry liqueur.

Instantly, the previously dreadful color dissipated, replaced by a radiant purple foam radiating a luscious blueberry-like scent—a truly magnificent creation.

And moments later.

Pop!

“……!”

Bubbles erupted from the foundational mushberry liqueur, surging upward right through the creamy cap!

It bore an uncanny likeness to… sprouting mushrooms!

The bartender finally crowned the creation with a mushroom-shaped meringue confection and presented it across the counter to Lion.

『Mushberry Fizz (★★★)』

-The froth expanding at the summit mimics the cap of a toadstool within this signature cocktail!

-With every single draught, a revitalizing fruit essence floods the palate… Ah, sheer perfection!

-Exercise caution, as the alcoholic potency exceeds its innocent appearance!

It stood as a genuine piece of culinary artistry.

To forge such a breathtaking aesthetic from a suspect and uninviting mushroom spirit.

“Appearance is indeed not everything.”

“I am profoundly pleased that message came across.”

The mixologist offered a courteous bow and began tidying the glassware.

And then…

Glance.

He directed his attention toward Lion.

His expression communicated something far beyond a mere, “Drink it swiftly.”

“……Might I sample this first and receive further instruction afterward?”

“Yes, by all means.”

It unfolded precisely as Lion had anticipated.

After all, the perspective of the creator remained universal.

The innate urge to witness someone taste a creation immediately following its completion.

More importantly, leaving a beverage crafted with such meticulous dedication untouched would constitute poor manners.

‘……I came here to indulge, so let us partake!’