When I asked a question I was curious about to break the quarrel between Cheon Sa-yeon and Ha Tae-heon, Woo Seo-hyuk answered instead of Cheon Sa-yeon.

“I was informed that he was on the way. The attendant will guide him here as soon as he arrives.”

“Then we can leave immediately when Edward-ssi comes.”

Edward, who received my offer through Cheon Sa-yeon, said he liked it and replied that he would definitely attend. I heard he postponed his other schedule… I felt a bit embarrassed since it wasn’t a proper meeting that required his presence.

“Wow, Woo-jin-ssi. Are all these ingredients for cooking?”

“Yes.”

“I’m really looking forward to eating the dishes that Woo-jin-ssi has made.”

A conversation between Min Ah-rin and Kim Woo-jin could be heard from the kitchen. Kim Woo-jin, who had learned that Min Ah-rin had healed him even in difficult times, treated her with a much gentler attitude than before.

Watching Min Ah-rin and Kim Woo-jin, along with the other people talking in the living room, filled me with warmth from deep inside my heart.

As I stood at the end of the living room and looked at the team members with satisfaction, a white light suddenly appeared next to me.

“……?”

The white light, as small as a snowflake, soon transformed into a large, round oval passage. Shortly after, Elohim appeared from beyond the passage, surrounded by bright light.

“El?”

“Hello, Se-hyun-ah.”

Surprised by his sudden appearance, I saw Elohim smile slightly and release Fox, whom he was holding in his arms. Piiik! The sadly crying Fox flew out immediately and fell into my arms.

“Fox!”

Piiik! Pik! Piiik!

Fox, whom I had been very worried about, had finally returned.

He kept crying and hugging me while I carefully checked to see if there was any pain or if he was alright after being exposed to the veil energy.

“The child misses you so much, so I brought him here a little early. His body is all better, but he needs a bit more rest, so please let him rest by your side.”

“Thank you. How about you, El?”

“Well… I’m similar to that kid. It’s not bad.”

His explanation of Fox’s condition was overly simple. It really wasn’t that bad, right?

Even though I looked at him suspiciously, Elohim maintained a smile. Honestly, it was pointless to doubt someone who could clearly see what I was thinking.

“You appeared deliberately.”

Cheon Sa-yeon, who was watching us with his arms crossed, interjected with a stiff voice.

“I can’t do that?”

“Your intention is clear, but you’re not ashamed of it.”

“There’s nothing to be ashamed of.”

Elohim, who gently responded to Cheon Sa-yeon’s quarrel while walking, looked straight at me and spoke.

“Se-hyun-ah.”

“Yes?”

“As you well know, I have many abilities.”

“Pardon? Ah, yes. That’s right.”

“One of them is to open a passage that leads directly to Cheon Sa-yeon’s house.”

“…what?”

Leaving me bewildered, Elohim touched his lips and continued.

“Let’s see. Hm… for the price to open the passage, it will be enough for me to join you in this party. How does that sound?”

Gasp. I just came to my senses at the mention of “price.” I never imagined that Elohim would want to join this gathering, so I didn’t know how to respond.

“Well, of course you can come, but… is that the only price I should pay?”

“The weight of the price varies depending on the situation. The distance is close now and it’s not urgent, and there are enough means and ways to get to Cheon Sa-yeon’s house even without me. An invitation to a party is a sufficient price for opening a passage.”

If that was the case… it seemed good to use the passage that Elohim opened.

Even if it wasn’t for the price, I was willing to invite Elohim if he wanted, and I didn’t have to let Ha Tae-heon and Park Geon-ho drive.

“Then please take care of us.”

“I’ll open it when the boy named Edward arrives.”

After Elohim answered, he smiled brightly at Cheon Sa-yeon, who returned the smile with mild annoyance.

‘Now the two of them are fighting.’

It had been less than 10 minutes since he last argued with Ha Tae-heon.

It was then that I sighed quietly. The news came that the waiting guest had arrived.

Not long after the attendant reported to Woo Seo-hyuk, Edward finally entered the room.

“Han Yi-gyeol-ssi!”

Edward, who entered the living room with a bow to Woo Seo-hyuk, who opened the front door, smiled brightly and ran to me when his eyes met mine.

“Welcome, Edward-ssi.”

As I opened my arms just in time, Edward hugged me without hesitation. This felt oddly similar to the moment when Fox had been handed to me earlier.

“Thank you for inviting me to the party!”

“……”

This meeting was intended to help the team members, who tended to growl at each other whenever they made eye contact, get to know each other a bit better, but with everyone reacting this way, I didn’t know how to respond.

“Haha… you helped us, so of course we should invite you.”

When I gave the easiest answer with an awkward smile, Edward’s big eyes began to twinkle as if he were moved.

Um, I’m in trouble.

* * *

We arrived directly into the living room of Cheon Sa-yeon’s house through the passage opened by Elohim and immediately started preparing for the party.

Two tables were set up in the spacious living room, showcasing the wine bottles that Park Geon-ho had brought. Kim Woo-jin began cooking in the kitchen.

It was difficult for Kim Woo-jin to prepare food for several people alone, and considering there was also young Edward, we ordered additional chicken and pizza. I planned to give Edward a normal drink instead of alcohol.

Elohim, who had been pacing around the kitchen and watching Kim Woo-jin with interest, tilted his head slightly.

“You are making more diverse dishes than I expected.”

“Is that so?”

I could only see Kim Woo-jin, who was still refining the ingredients, but Elohim knew all the thoughts he was having, so it felt like watching a preview of the dish to be completed later.

“Hm, can I help you?”

“El?”

“Of course, it’s difficult to cook something with meat in it, but… salad or pasta is okay.”

“You can do it if you want to.”

It was amusing that Kim Woo-jin granted this permission with the ingredients he had brought to Cheon Sa-yeon’s kitchen, but neither of them seemed interested, so there was nothing I could do.

“I’m in a situation where I’m suddenly stepping in, so I’m not responsible for one or two dishes.”

Elohim, who was contemplating, eventually went into the kitchen. Kim Woo-jin, who was slicing the onion, glanced at Elohim for a moment but quickly lost interest and continued cutting. I knew this would happen.

After leaving the kitchen to the two of them, I returned to the living room, where the number of wine bottles on the table had increased. Why on earth did you buy so much alcohol? There was even vodka, whiskey, and liquor. Are you trying to kill someone?

Ha Tae-heon, who had gone into the room for a while to talk on the phone, came out after me, mesmerized by the unexpected number of bottles. I thought it was a call about guild work.

“Ha Tae-heon-ssi, are you okay?”

“What do you mean?”

“I didn’t mean to ask you to come over while you were busy.”

“There’s no reason for me to be busy when Master Requiem plays like that.”

That… that’s true.

Ha Tae-heon walked over to me, picking up a bottle of yellow wine.

“Come to think of it, I’m curious.”

“Yes?”

“How much can you drink?”

How much I could drink. Should I just base it on Han Yi-gyeol’s body?

“Probably less than one bottle of soju.”

Since becoming Han Yi-gyeol, I had only properly drunk once. I was drunk back then, but when I woke up, I could remember everything because I wasn’t completely wasted.

‘If I get drunk properly, my memory becomes vague…’

Although the amount of alcohol I could drink was weaker than when I was Kwon Se-hyun, my drinking habits remained the same. It was hard to be sure since I had so little experience in drinking to make a guess.

“What about the other body?”

“If it’s a different body… are you talking about my original body?”

“Yeah. Did the small things like how much you can drink change?”

“Yes. I probably drink better than Han Yi-gyeol. Because it was my job, too.”

In response, Ha Tae-heon nodded, seemingly recalling Kwon Se-hyun, whom he had met in another realm.

“Then it means you will get drunk with only a bottle of soju now.”

“That’s true, but I’m not really sure about that either. Since I came here, I haven’t had any experience of drinking properly. Maybe I will find out how much I can drink today.”

“Do you have any drinking habits?”

“Um…”

A guess about drinking habits. Of course, I do. The memory of me trying to take off my clothes because it was hot in front of Park Geon-ho and Woo Seo-hyuk was still vivid in my mind.

‘If I get drunk and do the same thing as back then…’

I might die of embarrassment. There were many eyes here, including Min Ah-rin, a woman, and Edward, a child. If I got drunk and took my clothes off in front of these two… what a scandal that would be.

Never get drunk. I’m in good shape today, so if I control myself while drinking beer, such a terrible accident wouldn’t happen.

With a firm resolve, I searched hard for a beer bottle among the densely lined wine bottles. However, no matter how much I searched, I couldn’t find the drink I was looking for.

‘What? Why is there no beer?’

Soju, soju, liquor, vodka, whiskey, liquor, vodka… Are you crazy?

“I couldn’t see any beer either.”

Ha Tae-heon, who had been silently watching me rummage through the bottles, commented in astonishment. If Ha Tae-heon was saying the same thing, it wasn’t that I couldn’t find it; it really wasn’t there.

“Team Leader Park Geon-ho, are you crazy?”

“Um?”

Just then, I asked Park Geon-ho, who was walking towards the living room with a swagger after receiving the delivered food, and he opened his eyes wide.

“Well, I can’t say for sure it’s normal.”

“Don’t talk nonsense. How could you bring alcohol like this? What about people who are weak in alcohol?”

“Um…?”

When I pointed at the table full of alcohol and protested, Park Geon-ho, with a strange expression, tilted his head.

“I did prepare for people who are weak in alcohol.”

“I beg your pardon?”

“Look, there’s soju here.”

“……”

Park Geon-ho’s behavior, proudly pointing at the soju bottle, left me speechless.

“No… how is soju a drink for people who are weak in alcohol? At least beer…”

“Beer? Is there anyone who wants to drink beer? Last time I saw at Kwon Se-hyun-ssi’s store, Healer Min Ah-rin only drank soju well. We can give Producer Edward a normal drink… ah.”

Park Geon-ho, who had been talking in confusion, soon met my eyes and bit his lip. Then he placed a large hand on my shoulder and smiled brightly.

“Then we can give our talented Han Yi-gyeol a special soju with cola. In a 5:5 ratio! Will that be okay?”

“…I’m giving up.”

He didn’t help at all.