This was Lillis’s second visit to Seraphine’s guest lounge.

Of course, the grandiose building of the royal dormitory was not something one could become accustomed to after just two visits. The enormous floor-to-ceiling glass windows, which must have cost dozens of gold coins to manufacture, the chandeliers hanging every ten steps, and the various decorations adorned with all kinds of jewels—all of it was overwhelming.

It was a place that didn’t quite match Seraphine’s usual frugality, as she was someone who rarely indulged in luxury, except for maintaining her dignity as a royal. However, this was a space used by the entire royal family, so Seraphine's personal modesty didn't have much to do with it.

“This guest lounge is… just as impressive as I’ve heard…”

“I’m not sure if someone of my status should even be visiting a place like this. I hope I’m not intruding on a noble’s banquet where I don’t belong…”

“What are you saying, Gwyn? You were all invited here by me, a member of the royal family. Who could possibly question your right to be here?”

“You’re right. That was a foolish remark.”

“…Indeed, the royal family’s accommodations are something else.”

Even for the child of a ducal family, whose dorm room included a private bathroom at best, the guest lounge, reserved for the exclusive use of only two members of the royal family, was a structure that inevitably piqued curiosity upon first sight. The fact that even Lizzy and Ethan, who were not easily impressed, were expressing their admiration, showed just how grand the place was.

“Welcome, everyone. There are seats prepared inside. Please feel free to enjoy your time here, and if there’s anything uncomfortable, do not hesitate to let me know.”

As they entered the inner part of the guest lounge, Luke, dressed in a traditional maid uniform rather than her usual attire, greeted and guided the guests.

Even though it wasn’t my intention, I couldn’t help but think that assigning Luke as the personal maid had been an excellent choice. She looked quite beautiful in her maid uniform, which befits a heroine.

“Please think of today as a simple gathering to socialize and relax, everyone.”

“Thank you for arranging this, President Seraphine.”

“No need to flatter me. I organized this event to thank all of you for your hard work throughout the semester.”

…It was a nice sentiment. Everyone had indeed gone through various hardships while managing the student council for a semester.

But… why did Seraphine’s words feel increasingly artificial today? And why did she insist on organizing this vague event at such an ambiguous time? It was natural to have suspicions.

It might seem ridiculous to question something as simple as hosting a get-together, but that’s only something people who don’t know Seraphine’s character well would say.

As I mentioned earlier, Seraphine was a character who didn’t indulge in luxury. There was no way she would throw an extravagant party unless there was a significant reason behind it. If she had extra money, she’d likely donate it to some charity or orphanage.

If there was a reason to hold a party like this, it was probably related to the Hero.

“Please take this as well, Miss Lillis. It’s a Blue Curaçao cocktail.”

“…Ah, yes. Thank you, Luke.”

I carefully accepted the cocktail glass that Luke had suddenly brought to me.

Once everyone, including myself, was holding a glass, Seraphine immediately gave her toast.

“Thank you for your hard work this semester, student council members. I look forward to your continued efforts next semester, and perhaps even in the student council of next year or the year after that. …Cheers!”

“Cheers!”

The clinking of glasses was followed by a slightly noisy atmosphere, with the sound of several glass clinks echoing in succession.

The atmosphere was peaceful, so much so that it was hard to imagine anything going wrong.

⁎ ⁎ ⁎

…And that peaceful atmosphere was shattered in less than thirty minutes.

It turned out that one person, whose drinking habits had never been mentioned in the original game, had a very unexpected and troublesome reaction to alcohol.

“Lillis… I’m sooooorrrryyyy…”

“…Miss Auguste, you should maintain your composure.”

“I… didn’t even know Lillis was such a cool lady… hic!”

“Please…”

Lizzy, clinging to my arm after becoming completely incoherent by her second cocktail.

She seemed a bit off even after the first drink, and by the second, she was completely out of it.

‘…If I had known this would happen, I would’ve stopped her after the first drink.’

I never imagined she would get this drunk on just two cocktails, not whiskey or cognac. It made no sense, no matter how low her alcohol tolerance was. This isn’t a novel or a game… Well, actually, it is a game, isn’t it?

But honestly, this was my first time drinking with Lizzy, so expecting me to predict her drinking habits was a bit harsh.

“Miss Lizzy, I think it would be best if you took a short rest. There’s a room for the staff in the next room where you could lie down…”

“Shut up…! Leave me alooooone…!! No one can get between me and Lillis…!”

“Miss Lizzy…”

Lizzy Linn Auguste, refusing Luke’s help and clinging even more to me. Her tears slowly dampened my uniform.

‘…I kind of just want to drop her on the floor.’

No, wait. Should I just hit her in the solar plexus and knock her out? If I time it right, no one might even notice.

There’s no Karahem here, so why not just do it? Should I just go for it?

‘…No, I should restrain myself. There’s no need to ruin the atmosphere on a good day.’

Besides, I owed Lizzy a lot, so it was hard to just push her away despite her annoying drunken behavior.

In the first semester, she helped me get a book on understanding mana flow, which was hard to obtain on my own, and she bought me several cups of coffee. In the second semester’s hunting festival, I managed to achieve a decent score with Ethan by using a potion I got from Lizzy.

Given that we were in the same year and would have to see each other for the next four years, it wouldn’t be wise to make enemies. Being at odds with her could make the remaining three years quite difficult.

And honestly, in my previous life, I had seen much worse drunken behavior. Clinging and whining wasn’t exactly causing physical harm.

Of course, if this were between the opposite genders, it would be a problem, but hugging and rubbing faces between the same gender was something I could tolerate.

In this world, there were only two characters who absolutely shouldn’t be given alcohol.

Natalie from the Swordsmanship Department and Agnes from the Magic Department.

Natalie had a “dueling drunkenness,” while Agnes had a “rage drunkenness.”

Natalie, despite being a commoner swordswoman with a good reputation due to her amiable personality, would turn into a crazy duel maniac, demanding duels with anyone while waving her sword around as soon as she got a sip of alcohol.

Agnes, on the other hand, would scream hysterically, cursing her family and household for hours until she sobered up.

Compared to those two, Lizzy’s drunken behavior was nothing. …Not that I would ever have to deal with those two’s drinking habits in this life.

…Wait a minute, now that I think about it, this is infuriating. Even though I’m Ethan’s personal maid, I’m still here as Seraphine’s guest, just like Lizzy. Should I really have to keep doing maid duties by dealing with someone else’s drunken behavior at a party like this?

If I don’t punch her in the solar plexus, should I at least pinch her side?

“Princess Seraphine, the guests have arrived.”

“Oh, yes. I’ll introduce them, so please escort them in, Luke.”

‘…What?’

…Guests? Now?

They spoke softly, but I clearly heard that some guests had arrived.

Naturally, I was puzzled at the mention of guests arriving at a gathering that was supposed to be just for the student council’s get-together.

For a moment, I wondered if Orion had decided to join in late, but with his personality, if he were going to participate, he would already be lurking around the party in the shadows.

If it’s not Orion, then who would suddenly join this get-together?

“Lillis~! Call me by my name… You can drop the title and everything~!”

As I tried to think of something else, Lizzy clung to me even tighter, loudly disrupting my thoughts.

I barely restrained myself from letting my fist fly and calmed myself before responding.

“…That would be inappropriate, Miss Auguste.”

“You still hold a grudge, don’t you, Lillis?! You said you forgave me, but you’re still mad about when I dirtied your clothes, aren’t you?!”

“No, that’s not what I meant…”

…I take back what I said earlier. This woman’s drunken behavior is just as bad as Natalie’s or Agnes’s.

Now that I think about it, I’ve never had to deal with Natalie or Agnes’s drunkenness in this world, so does that mean this woman is now the worst drunken mess I’ve ever encountered?

Realizing this, I could feel my fist trembling with frustration. Just as I was about to start crying internally, Ethan, who had been trying to avoid interfering in a matter between women, carefully began to restrain Lizzy.

“Lizzy Linn Auguste. I’ve been patient with you so far because you are the daughter of the Auguste family, but I can no longer tolerate you bothering Lillis like this…”

“Lillis, take this. Splash it on me, just like you did back then!”

“…What?”

“I’ll let you pour the cocktail all over me like you did before! Go ahead, pour it on me, Lillis!”

…What kind of insane nonsense is this?

Does she seriously think that’s something I can do?

Me, a viscount’s daughter, pouring a cocktail on a marquess’s daughter?

Could it be that this woman is the one still holding a grudge over what happened back then and is just pretending to be drunk to provoke me into making a mistake, only to demand compensation later?

I had been trying to tolerate her behavior out of gratitude, but the more I thought about it, the more impossible it seemed to befriend this crazy woman.

-Clench.

“Ugh… ugh…”

In the meantime, Ethan calmly pinned Lizzy’s arms behind her back, preventing her from causing any more trouble.

As this somewhat chaotic situation unfolded and the party atmosphere continued, Seraphine, who had just spoken with Luke, turned her attention toward us and gave an impromptu speech that seemed slightly rushed.

“Everyone, the truth is, today’s get-together isn’t just to wrap up the semester with the student council members.”

‘…What?’

“In fact, I’ve invited some special guests to this gathering. They’re the ones who made the most significant contribution during the final hunting festival.”

‘…Oh no, don’t tell me…’

“Please welcome Hero Bolt and his party members, who played a crucial role in the festival! Please come in!”

With Seraphine’s somewhat exaggerated welcome, the Hero’s party began entering from outside.

As I saw the Hero and his companions entering the room, I couldn’t help but sense an ominous feeling in my heart.

…This get-together is definitely not going to end well.