"Wain, here you go." Reto said as he tossed a bottle of red wine to Wain.
The bottle was open, so some of the wine spilled and got on the food, but Reto didn't care as he wasn't going to stick to etiquette today.
"What is it?" Wain muttered while inhaling the aroma of the wine, "It's definitely not from a stone barrel. Where did you get it?"
"Nowhere. I made it myself from Royal Grapes and some other ingredients. I may not be an experienced winemaker yet, but it's my best batch, so consider it a gift." Reto said before taking a bunch of grapes from the center of the table.
Wain nodded and took a sip straight from the bottle. A wave of heat went through his body as a sweet and slightly sour aftertaste was left in his mouth.
"Good. I can't say I'm a big fan of wine, but it's definitely not bad as I want more." Wain said with a slight smile on his face.
"You're welcome." Reto waved his hand, "A lot of different plants and resources have come up during your absence here, but you'd better ask Elegan about that. I'm only interested in what you can use to make wine."
Wain looked at Elegan with a curious look.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇt"Yeah. There are now more than ten different kinds of resources in each zone. From roots and fruits to metals. By the way, we could use a blacksmith, then we can use all our resources to become much stronger!" Elegan said in a proud manner.
"I'm looking for a blacksmith right now, too. If I can, I'll be sure to bring someone here, but I can't promise." Wain mouthed with a nod.
"Got it. Luck is very important here, but I'm sure you'll do well." Elegan muttered as he cut himself a piece of chocolate cake.
Everyone had different food preferences, but Sarras was the oddest. Even though he was a Lich, he ate exclusively the candies Reto was talking about, and with each bite, he had a heavenly delight.
"Sarras, you clearly weren't happy to be distracted. Were you doing something important?" Wain asked while bringing a forkful of meat to his mouth.
"Well, it's just another experiment. I'm a Lich, my main strength is undead, so I've been trying to make them stronger, stronger, and better in every other aspect. I've been doing this for some time, but I've only had success recently. I have these two, in particular, to thank for that, their potions have been extremely useful." Sarras pointed to Lui Bu and Edena as he popped some candy into his mouth.
"Is this true?" Wain turned to them.
"Well... Honestly, we were standing in the same spot for months. We were able to improve our potions gradually, but it wasn't until new resources became available that we leaped forward." Lui Bu muttered in an awkward manner while scratching the back of his head.
"I agree. The new resources helped a lot. Right after the feast, you should get busy improving the area. It's not okay that everyone here is already in Third Chronicle while the zone is in Second Chronicle." Edena said with a serious look.
"Of course. I'm glad you're doing well." Wain muttered as a smile appeared on his face.
The feast lasted until deep into the night. Everyone was excited about it, as there was so much food for everyone to feast on, as well as wine.
The monsters were usually bloodthirsty creatures, but the stronger they became, the more their minds were awakened, so they became more like humans. Frigus and Elegan could hardly be called monsters at all.
"Huh, wimps!" Reto exclaimed as he jumped onto the table while holding a bottle of wine in his hand.
There were hundreds of monsters lying next to the table, all of them asleep because they had drunk too much. Only Wain, Frigus, and Elegan were able to withstand the competition with Reto, though they drank far less than he did.
"Okay. That was actually delicious, but it's time to get back to work. Reto, if any more candy like that shows up, call me. I'll come as fast as I can." Sarras muttered, flapped his cloak, and headed for his territory.
Sarras, Lui Bu, and Edena were still sitting at the table as they were one of the few who hadn't touched alcohol.
"Sure, but next time don't come without a present. Today is just a special day." Reto said, took a sip, and took a step back which caused him to lose his balance, so he fell back in his chair.
"Pfft, greedy." Sarras mumbled before walking away.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏm"Damn... I need to rest." Elegan muttered as he took a deep breath.
"I agree. It was great, but it's just as hard to make it through a feast like this as it is to win a war." Frigus said in a slow voice.
"Lui Bu, Edena, are you all right?" Wain asked.
"Yeah." They both nodded.
"Do you have some business with us?" Edena asked.
"I told you I have a gift for you. It's pretty specific, but I'm sure you'll like it." Wain said, getting up and heading for the waterfall, there was the main alchemy lab.
Lui Bu and Edena looked at each other, nodded, and followed him with curious looks. They wanted to know what Wain had in store for them, as they were sure it was something unusual.
"Damn... Where have I come? This is my alchemists' base or a top-secret military laboratory?" Wain muttered while standing in front of the entrance to the cave that was behind the waterfall.
The entrance was a massive, round, iron gate that was strong enough that no one could force their way through it.
"Hmm? I just wish no one would get in my way. Sometimes it gets so damn noisy here, and it's annoying." Edena said in a careless manner as she approached the gate.