Nope. (Elmeria POV)

"Oh, please, do tell me more." Elmeria said, continuing to humor the new hero of the axe as he regaled his tale of fighting an ogre. Considering his stats, that was quite the accomplishment, and positive reinforcement never hurt. As she continued talking with him, she could feel several pinpricks on her neck, the telltale sign of appraisal skills being used on her. It was quite embarrassing to have somebody pry into your personal details without permission, but directly confronting them would be a faux pas in such a refined setting. Nearby, she could see Tomoko speaking with the other female heroes, happily discussing the differences between their own respective home worlds. It seemed Tomoko was the odd one out yet again, hailing from a world of technology devoid of monsters unlike every other hero. Meanwhile, Alka was busy standing in the corner, blushing profusely while trying and failing to look small, hoping Mathias didn't pop up to ogle her gown for the night.

It was a tasteful dress befitting of someone from the heartland, being a long crimson gown that exposed her shoulders and flowed like water down her body. It was fashioned with the finest tailors in the land and used silks of the most lavish variety imported from the northern archipelago. To smuggle such fine cloth would have costed enough for a farm, yet Mathias happily paid for such a lavish gift without a second thought. Elmeria sipped at her drink watching the Amazonian, debating whether or not she should tell Alka that Mathias wasn't coming. He might be a lovestruck fool, but he had a strict sense of honor. Hero companion or not, he wasn't attending the banquet without the hero of the hearth, regardless of the hero's current status.

Elmeria continued to walk around, chatting with the other companions and heroes, taking mental notes of their actions and progress since their summoning. While their companions were far more reserved and concealed their true abilities, the male summoned heroes were all too eager to boast about their great triumphs when she gently flirted with them. It was almost funny for her to listen to these stories as she thought about their predecessors' accomplishments by this time. Of the new batch of heroes, she could count on one hand the heroes that had the potential to at least reach the level of their predecessors. She'd have been happy to know there was some hope for their world had she not known all of the heroes with the greatest potential were problem children. Almost on cue, she spotted one of the problem children return, the hero of the hunt scowling as she stood in the corner of the room to glare at the floor.

According to the temple's informants, the hero of the hunt had the highest combat potential among the heroes, growing even faster than her predecessor by leaps and bounds. She was still a far cry from the previous hero of the hunt, but there was no doubt she would surpass her within the next 3 years. Her only flaw was the fact that she refused to take companions, hunting alone and risking her life over nothing. Luckily, Varrick was around to solve that issue, joining her party against her will and keeping up with her despite her agility. Putting on her warmest smile, Elmeria walked over to Fenri and extended her hand to the gruff hero.

"Hello. I don't think we've properly met." She said as Fenri glanced down at the dark elf's hand, after a second of thinking, she grabbed it. "My name is Elmeria. I'm serving as the healer for the Hero of Bonds, Tomoko." She introduced as the hero of the hunt nodded, the two exchanging a hand shake. She refused to tell just what patrons favored her for the obvious reason that revealing one's talents was lethal. You never knew who was listening, who was a spy, or even if there were monsters hidden within the area. Of course, no monster would dare intrude on a banquet with Mathias, Varrick, and Harvin in the area. There were many, many, MANY words to describe the hero of the hearth's companions, but weak was not one of them.

"Fenri. Hero of the hunt." She answered flatly, her tone neither rude nor friendly as she stared deeply at Elmeria, studying her closely.

"Something wrong?" She asked, maintaining her false smile as Fenri's eyes went from caution to respect.

"Apologies. I can smell a powerful dragonkin on your clothes." She says before clicking her tongue, as though she were remembering a particularly nasty memory. "Is that damned alchemist part of your team?" She asks as Elmeria's smile cracked. The banquet started less than an hour ago. How did Verdi manage to piss her off in that span of time!?

"Oh, that would be Verdi. He's a refugee we found. We're trying to get him settled back in civilization." Elmeria explained as Fenri nodded, content to hear that Verdi was not a member of their party. Technically speaking, he wasn't a member of the party, he was Citrinas' friend. Nobody expected him to actually fight, and they didn't want him fighting considering how low his stats were. For all intents and purposes, he was just dragged along to help Citrinas' development. She was an adept alchemist and an adept mage, but she still had room to grow as a human and Verdi may be a useful tool for that. That was the report she gave to the Temple to keep them sated. She just knew that Citrinas rarely connected with other people, and the two of them got along quite well despite the vile words they exchanged.

"So, tell me about the lizard you took down. I can tell it was a tough one." Fenri asked as Elmeria nodded, readying a story for the hero of the hunt. She was surrounded by others who had the patronage of the god of deceit, so detecting lies was a simple task for them.

"The dragonkin you're talking about is quite powerful. You'd be hard pressed to find a stronger one in the world. Of course, she's not a threat to anyone now." Elmeria said, continuing to avoid outright answering the question. Regardless of her redemption, Ruya was a monster, and one of the universal constants in every world was that monsters were bloodthirsty and savage. She could understand why Fenri was talking this way, but that did little to calm the fury she felt for someone insulting her friend. Regardless, she maintained her smile and made small talk with the hero of the hunt, unwilling to burn any bridges over minor words. She had been trained far too well to give her true thoughts on any situation or take insults personally.

"By the way, you should keep an eye out." Fenri said while looking out at the room, scanning it for something.

"For what?" Elmeria asked, maintaining her carefree smile to avoid attracting attention.

"I can smell monsters in the city. It's a weird smell though." Fenri said, wrinkling her nose while crossing her arms. Though such a warning from anyone else would have been dismissed as mere paranoia, every hero of the hunt was known for holding sensitive noses. If they smelled monsters in the city, there were monsters in the city.

"Weird how?" Elmeria asked.

"Like they're concealing themselves with a human scent. I can't track them or even tell how many there are, but I know they're here." Fenri said, her words doing nothing but confuse Elmeria. A monster pretending to be human in Kolderia? Other cities might be worth infiltrating, but Kolderia was a **** sentence for any monster not given express approval by the city guard like Ruya. Furthermore, this was the heroes summit. Every major deity had sent their most elite fighters to defend the heroes and ensure nothing terrible transpired. Entering this city was suicide, plain and simple.

"Rest assured, the Kolderia knights are the strongest in the country. I have faith they can deal with anything that would arise." Elmeria said as she felt a familiar hand gently grasp her shoulder as she spoke.

"Ah! Lady Elmeria, a word?" Harvin asked as he appeared behind Elmeria. Fenri jolted upright before taking a step back, the butler somehow coalescing behind Elmeria without so much as a sound. Everyone else in the room seemed to also flinch at Harvin's sudden appearance It was as though he were always standing in the room and he decided make himself known rather than entering the room and sneaking up behind Elmeria. As she looked up at his face, she almost mistook him for another man, the fear and panic out of place on a servant as dignified as him.

Something was wrong.

"Excuse me Hero of the hunt. I must end this conversation prematurely." She apologized before leaving the banquet with Harvin.

"Something wrong Harvin?" Elmeria asked cautiously, glancing around for unwanted guests as she spoke.

"Master Verdi. There's been an incident." Harvin said, Elmeria's heart sinking as she thought over Fenri's words. Could a monster other than Ruya snuck into the city to sabotage the summit?

"What happened!?" Elmeria asked in disbelief as Alka and Tomoko ran over, noticing the pair leave the banquet prematurely.

"Something wrong Harvin?" Alka asked.

"Lady Alka, Lady Tomoko, you may wish to join us. Master Mathias and Master Verdi are having troubles. I will require your aid." Harvin said as all three of them grit their teeth. Mathias? How could he of all people be in danger? Something was terribly wrong.

"What happened?" Elmeria asked in a low voice as Harvin shook his head in shame. He took a moment to gather his composure, swallowing deeply before speaking. His voice shook with fear, a fear Elmeria had heard almost half a decade ago.

"The young master and Master Verdi decided to drink together." He said as the Tomoko and Elmeria let out sighs of relief. False alarm. As for Alka, her face looked even grimmer as she clenched her fist, the prospect of the two of them spending time far more terrifying than a monster attack.

"Did they get in a fight?" She asked, faint amounts of hope in her voice.

"Worse." Harvin says, his face grim as he led them to the main dining hall. He didn't walk slowly like he usually did, instead speed walking at the maximum pace that allowed him some manner of decorum. "They became friends." He says as they reached the main dining room, loud shouts resonating through the marble halls as Harvin threw the wooden doors open.

"And then, then, Mathias, they laughed at me! I said I was a serial killing **** and they laughed!" Verdi wailed while resting his head on a wooden table, an empty glass cup clenched in his right hand as Mathias refilled his glass with a strange blue liquid, patiently listening to the alchemist's story of discovery. Lying next to the pair were a dozen empty bottles that lay haphazardly scattered about, the duo going through an almost absurd amount of **** in their brief time together.

"I would have killed you at that moment!" Mathias declares firmly as Verdi sat upright at the threat, his eyes dead serious.

"H-hold on, he's just kidding Verdi." Elmeria said quickly, not wanting to stress the alchemist. She was genuinely worried to hear Mathias wasn't lying in the slightest at his **** threat. True, Verdi was blatantly lying when he said he was a violent mass murdering **** monster, he still threatened to **** and **** Alka on day one of their meeting. If Mathias found that out...

"Really?" Verdi asked, his voice not one of a man fearing his life, but one of a man given a compliment of a lifetime as Mathis patted him on the shoulder, giving him the smile of a brother in arms.

"Of course! A virile, able bodied man like yourself declaring himself a violator of women and a killer? You would be dead within the second!" Mathias confirmed as Verdi rested his head on the table and groaned.

"You're just saying that. Nobody respects me or fears me. I'm a big scary **** monster damn it!" The alchemist yelled drunkenly, speaking nothing but the truth as Elmeria and Tomoko stifled a chuckle at his outburst. It seemed they were worried over nothing. It was almost like looking at a small puppy barking. Sure, it thought it was threatening, but that just made you want to pat it on the head and give it a treat when it barked at you. The fact that Verdi didn't actually mean it when he threatened to **** and **** them in their sleep only made it funnier for them. He was by far, the most harmless thing in the city despite his protests.

"Worry not friend, for I too, have suffered such humiliation." Mathias reassured while patting Verdi on the back.

"Really?" Verdi asked as Mathias nodded.

"I was hunting the Vampire Lord Belpan. I entered his throne room, blade raised, and declared I was there to enact justice. He would pay for the innocent blood he had drained. I would avenge the fallen. You know what he said to me?" Mathias asked, a tear forming in his eye as he relived his trauma.

"He threatened to kill you!" Verdi drunkenly bellowed as Mathias looked into his drink, his tear falling into his glass as he spoke.

"... He asked who left the cages to the sacrificial virgins open again."

There was no further inquiries into the subject as the two of them downed their glasses in a single gulp.

"I thought he stopped drinking years ago." Alka said as Harvin sighed at his drunken master.

"It seems he's found his stomach for it once more. Your friend is more compatible with him than I anticipated." He explains as Alka stared at the bottle of blue fluid, here eyes going wide with recognition as she looked to Harvin.

"How many glasses did they drink?" She asked as Mathias poured another glass for the two of them. Harvin disappeared for a second, grabbing Mathias glass and replacing it with a glass of antidote mixed with concentrated acid in the split second he was focused on filling Verdi's glass. He tried to replace Verdi's glass as well, but was **** back as Mathias looked in his direction, the swordsman's intuition far exceeding his butler's speed. Even drunk, his senses were still sharper than a razor's edge.

"The young master has had 2... No, 3 glasses of Colchik and 5 bottles of our finest antidotes. Master Verdi has drank 6 bottles." Harvin answered wearily.

"That's it? 3 cups?" Elmeria asked, unfamiliar with the drink. Colchik was renowned for its destructive power, but she had no real idea how terrible it was. Judging by how dead serious Alka looked, that was a lot for a person to drink.

"Okay. How much Colchik did Verdi drink?" Alka asked as she saw the butler swallow nervously.

"You misunderstand. I mean he drank 6 bottles of colchik." Harvin answered as Alka made a **** noise, looking at the table full of empty bottles before grabbing Harvin by the shirt and shaking him.

"Are you trying to kill him!?" She asked as Harvin looked sadly to the ground, the butler showing more emotion in this evening than he had in his entire life. Elmeria genuinely wanted to applaud Verdi at this point, his ability to cause trouble exceeding that of the demon army's most elite saboteurs. She had seen Harvin face down entire armies, endure suffering that would drive a man to madness, and face down the demon king himself without shifting his expression once, yet Verdi had somehow put the fear of the gods into the aged butler's soul.

"His tolerance for that poison is beyond human, and Master Mathias is holding the bottle and pouring him the drink each time. I don't have the opportunity to replace the glasses." He explained as Alka continued to shake him violently.

"6 bottles Harvin! That's beyond the realm of mortals or monsters and into the realm of polluting mountain ranges! We'll have to freeze his corpse and store it in a pocket dimension to avoid polluting the city if he dies right now!" She said as Tomoko stared at one of the bottles, spotting movement within it. Elmeria joined her, curious as to just what was inside the supposed liquid **** Amazonians were known for concocting. Both of them screamed and leapt backwards as an undead snake head bit at them, nibbling at the glass as the two of them hugged each other for comfort.

"You drink this stuff!?" Tomoko asked as the snake head began slamming itself against the bottle, slowly inching itself towards them as she continued to hug Elmeria, the pair trembling in terror at just what was mixed into that bottle.

"Are you people insane!? Why would you eat an undead snake!?" Elmeria asked as Alka frantically shook her head at the accusation.

"We don't drink this, we use it to poison weapons! We tell outsiders that we drink it as a post battle tradition as a joke! Mathias just thought we were looking down on him when we explained the joke after he drank it!" She explained as Mathias finished his drink and refilled their glasses. Yet again, Mathias' glass was replaced by Harvin while Verdi's was left intact.

"I should give up my love. I can never reach her status or match her rugged beauty with a face like this. I'm not worthy of her." Mathias mumbled suddenly slumping onto the table as the poison took its toll on his body. He looked haggard and on the verge of ****, his usual vigor now replaced with a deep malaise. Suddenly, Verdi popped to his feet and slammed his hand on the table, startling Mathias as he shouts to him in a hyperactive voice.

"A true man doesn't let status, strength, or wealth get in his way! Mathias, you are strong! You are wealthy! What right do you have to merely be stopped by status?" He asks as Alka froze, the little alchemist drawing upon the wisdom she gave to him for courting Citrinas.

"Seems he took your advice to heart." Elmeria said as she saw Mathias perk up slightly at Verdi's words.

"Okay, enough for you two." Alka says, walking forward to separate them before Verdi could cause any more havoc. Rather than let her stop his rampage, Elmeria grinned evilly while grabbing Alka's arm. Mathias was starting to lose hope for his love, and where was the fun if he gave up?

"Hold on. Let him finish." She said as Alka snorted at her.

"Do you really think I'd just let that little goblin toy around with me?" She asks as Elmeria mutters a quick prayer. Holy light shines down on Tomoko as she grabs Alka's other arm, her enhanced strength and defense ensuring even a juggernaut like Alka was pinned in place.

"We shouldn't interrupt. We should let them have their fun." Tomoko says, her intentions far purer than Elmeria's as Verdi and Mathias continued talking, the two of them too poisoned to even notice their new guests. Alka yelped and tried to break free of Tomoko's grip, but the buffs Elmeria stacked on her ensure that the Amazonian could only watch as Mathias began to sob.

"But why won't she love me back?" He wailed, sobbing as Alka guiltily looked away from him. "Am I just not good enough for her? Am I still just as worthless as the day I met her?" He cried out, his words causing Alka to wince.

"You're not worthless. You were never worthless..." She mumbled under her breath as Verdi stared blankly at him for a moment, unable to answer for once. Considering he had enough poison in his body to kill several hundred thousand men, it was justified for his mind to slow down. Thinking quickly, Elmeria muttered a quick antidote prayer under her breath, focusing it on Verdi before buffing his constitution to help sober him up slightly. As the prayers take effect, his dilated pupils refocus as his brain function returned. She had no idea what he was going to say, but it seemed he had a great idea as he slammed his palms on the table once more.

"It's all a test! She's weeding out lesser men!" He declares in a flurry of brilliance and ****, causing Elmeria to burst out laughing at the insane theory. The fact that Verdi genuinely believed in his stupid theory rather than making it up to mess with Alka made it all the funnier to her.

"What do you mean a test!? I'm just saying no!" Alka shouts, her words falling on deaf ears as Mathias stopped sobbing and looked up at Verdi, hope in his eyes as he spoke.

"She is?" Mathias asked as Verdi nodded vigorously, his own narcissism and self assurance bolstering his argument as he slammed on the table once more, some of the colchik in his glass spilling out and hitting the table. Tomoko and Elmeria watched as the blue liquid began eating through the wooden table, and continued to eat through the marble floor. Even as they lost sight of the blue fluid, they could hear it sizzling underneath them, corroding the very land itself with no signs of halting its advance.

"Um... Elmeria, I can get Mathias not dying from this stuff, but how is Verdi not dead 10 times over?" Tomoko asked as they heard someone scream downstairs at something eating through the roof and the floor.

"I... I have no idea." Elmeria answered, her years of work in the Temple giving her no greater insight into their odd alchemist's constitution. The fact that Harvin looked shocked meant he was probably something new to the world.

"Mathias, she's 6 foot 8, 250 pounds of chocolate muscle, and beautiful beyond compare! Am I right?" Verdi asked as Tomoko and Elmeria wince at his last remark, the little alchemist lying about the beautiful beyond compare remark. Considering his relationship with Citrinas, Elmeria opted to avert her eyes to his white lie while Tomoko smiled at the sight of his loyalty to the mage.

"Very right! She's the most beautiful woman in the world!" Mathias declared, his words nothing but the truth.

"Every man would want her, right?" Verdi asked.

"Right! She is perfection! Any man would love her! Her eyes smolder like the volcanoes! Her smile could warm the arctic! Her-" Mathias continues, stating the many virtues of Alka as the person in question blushed and struggled even harder against Tomoko.

"Aw, look, Verdi likes you too!" Elmeria says while elbowing Alka, the Amazonian's olive skin now beet red as she received compliment after compliment from Mathias.

"Shut up and cast antidote on them! They seriously will die if you don't!" Alka demands as Elmeria began another prayer. Of course, she made sure to pray slowly so she could listen in on the drunken alchemist's rant.

"Then for the good of our species, she must be picky for her mate! The lesser men of this world should be dissuaded! No, they MUST be dissuaded! Those who cannot pass her tribulations do not deserve her time." He leans forward, staring Mathias in the eye, his voice now laden with fire and brimstone. "Lesser men should not have access to her GLORY!" Elmeria's prayer is broken as she bursts out into laughter at the mention of Alka's "glory", unable to make another request to her patron as she clutched her stomach to stifle her laughter. He wasn't even lying either!

"I fear your friend is a negative influence upon the young master." Harvin mumbled while shaking his head in disapproval. "He's almost worse than that damnable drunkard." He says, a soft smile on his face while speaking of the lost hero. Despite his protests, Elmeria knew that the butler missed them almost as much as Mathias did and enjoyed seeing scenes like these despite how much destruction the two of them caused alongside Varrick during their time adventuring.

"Right! The perfect woman deserves the perfect man! Lesser men do not deserve her glory!" Mathias confirms as Verdi stands up and grabs both of his shoulders, looking Mathias in the eye as he spoke.

"Mathias, friend, you are that perfect man!" He bellows, his words being the pure truth. Elmeria began coughing as she laughed even harder. It seems that while Mathias was a sad drunk who demeaned himself, Verdi was a happy drunk who gave out compliments like water. Colchik was truly a magical drink if it could invert their personalities like this.

"I am?" Mathias slurred out, surprised by the compliment.

"Mathias, you are drunk!" Verdi declared as Tomoko and Elmeria were startled to hear that out of all things, this was a lie.

"I am not drunk!" Mathias lied as Verdi glared at him.

"Then don't say "I am" as a question, give it to me as a declaration!" Verdi shouted with gusto before patting him on the shoulder to sober Mathias up. "Now, let's try again. Mathias, friend, you are that perfect man!" He reiterates while shaking Mathias to rouse him. Though with the stat difference it would have been impossible to move Mathias, Elmeria sees the captain move along with Verdi's hands due to the poison coursing through his veins. At Verdi's words, Mathias' eyes gain a fire like no other as he jolts up to his feet and raises a clenched fist.

"I am! I am the perfect man!" He declares with a triumphant voice, his voice the truth as Verdi cheered him on.

"Who is worthy!?" Verdi asked.

"I am worthy!" Mathias declared, his voice booming through the entire estate.

"Who will attain glory!?" Verdi shouts as even Tomoko began to chuckle at their antics.

"I will attain glory!" Mathis shouts, the poison in his system still blinding him to Alka's presence. By now, Alka was cringing on the floor as everyone in the room was either intent on attaining glory, describing how to attain glory, or laughing at the glory.

"Hear that perfect woman? Perfect man is right here and ready to attain glory." Elmeria joked between gasps of air, still laughing at the two drunks hype each other up.

"He's really sincere about his love. Can't you at least hear him out? I know you feel the same way." Tomoko chimed in as Alka shook her head.

"Sh-shut up! Why are you on Verdi's side now?" She asked as the alchemist grabbed Mathias shoulder and gestured broadly, still blind to the guests surrounding their table.

"Weather the tides! Hold fast against her storm! Glory lies across the next wave!" Verdi shouts, his word nothing but truth as Elmeria started gasping for air. She couldn't breathe, let alone cast a prayer at this point.

"We should get them to drink together more often!" Elmeria said, still laughing as Mathias looks to Verdi. Despite appearing older than the alchemist, he looks to Verdi as though he were a mentor.

"Brother, they say you are an alchemist, but all I see is a SAGE!" Mathias declares, yet again speaking the truth.

"Mathias, stop listening to him! He's filling your head with stupid thoughts!" Alka shouts as Verdi looks to Mathias with a shocked look on his face, the proclamation startling even him.

"You mean it?" He asks in disbelief, as though Mathias had misspoke.

"Your wisdom is as vast as the oceans!" Mathias says as Verdi shook his head.

"No, am I really your brother?" Verdi asked as Mathias grabbed his shoulders and looked him in the eye, the intensity in his gaze matched only by the eyes of affection he reserved for Alka.

"We share our drinks and our hearts! From this day forward, we share our blood!" He declares as Verdi suddenly broke out into tears.

"BROTHER!" He shouts while extending his arms out and giving Mathias a hug.

"BROTHER!" Mathias repeats, reciprocating the hug as the two break into sobs, as though they were truly brothers reuniting for the first time in years. Elmeria and Tomoko finally break down, laughing uncontrollably at their embrace. To see the stoic knight of the north and the cold mountain alchemist sobbing while hugging tightly was beyond what they could handle as they fell to the ground laughing. With both of them out of the picture, Alka quickly grabbed Mathias by the arm and dragged him away, embarrassed beyond all belief.

"Come on Mathias. We're going to bed." She grumbles as the swordsman looks down at his arm then up at Alka, his love appearing out of nowhere from his point of view. A dopey smile appears on his face as he waves to Verdi.

"Brother! Look! Your advice worked! She is bedding me! I weathered the tides!" He shouts triumphantly as Verdi raised his fist.

"Claim your glory, brother! Claim it!" He orders.

"GLORY!" Mathias shouts drunkenly.

"GLORY!" Verdi shouted in turn.

"Glory!" Elmeria and Tomoko shouted between bouts of laughter, causing Alka to throw a **** glare at the 4 of them.

"I'm gonna kill you guys!" She lies as Mathias suddenly goes limp, falling to the ground as the poison finally knocked him out. Scooping him up in a princess carry, Alka carries him away while Verdi sat back in his chair, still conscious despite drinking more than Mathias.

"... Lady Elmeria. Lady Tomoko. I would humbly request you treat his poison before he dies." Harvin advised as Verdi grabbed his glass of Colchik and prepared to down one final drink, his constitution exceeding that of even a dragon. Perhaps he had a point when he said he was a monster. Then again, even a monster would drop dead with this much poison according to Alka.

"Ah, ah, no more! You had enough!" Tomoko says, grabbing his right arm to stop him from bringing it to his lips. As she touched his arm, the formerly happy drunk's eyes turned to abject terror and pain as he let out a scream.

"GET AWAY FROM ME!" Verdi suddenly yelled, his entire body stiffening like a board. Elmeria thought Tomoko had put in too much power in her grip, only to see that she was only gently holding his arm in place. A crack resounded through the hall as he clenched his fists, shattering the glass cup in his right hand and slicing his hand open. As the glass penetrated his skin, the blue toxin stored within it poured down his bloody hand and found their way directly into his veins, finally knocking him out as he fell from his chair. Before he could land on the ground, Harvin caught him midair in a princess carry. At the same time, the blue fluid disappears from sight in the blink of an eye as the stained sleeve on Verdi's shirt was neatly cut away to expose his bare arm. The only proof left of the incident are the glass shards piercing Verdi's hand and the blood gushing out of it. Despite passing out from the poison, his grip is unaffected, his hand like a vice as the glass shards penetrated his hand and exited on the other side. Rather than feeling pain at the cut, he seemed more focused on Tomoko grabbing his arm before he passed out.

"Sorry for the mess Harvin. It was my fault." Tomoko apologized while staying away from Verdi, ashamed at the thoughtless action. "He really doesn't like having people touch him." She said with a sad voice, looking at the **** alchemist cradled in Harvin's arms. Of the party, he only seemed comfortable touching Citrinas. Whenever Elmeria or Tomoko so much as grazed him, he would flinch and recoil at their touch like a beaten dog. He was very good at hiding it, but they both could tell he was terrified of them. Even the mere act of talking to them made him cower. Even if he denied it, whatever happened to him traumatized him to people in general.

"It's fine. This was ultimately my fault. Master Verdi seemed quite apprehensive to join us this eve." Harvin said with a self deprecating sigh as he pried Verdi's hand open and removed the glass shards embedded within his palm. As the shards were removed, his eyes seem to focus on the wounds before quickly covering it with a handkerchief to hide them, preventing Elmeria from getting a good look at the extent of his injuries. Even with the wound covered, he was fixated on Verdi's hand, as though he had seen something he shouldn't have. "Have either of you found out about Master Verdi's past?" Harvin asked casually as Elmeria muttered a quick prayer to heal his hand.

"No. He's **** to talk about it." Elmeria said after finishing her prayer, Verdi's hand completely healing as Harvin removed his handkerchief and inspected his hand closely, as though he were looking for something.

"I see. So you know nothing about him. What has the Temple said?" Harvin asked idly.

"No records of him exist. All the major gods also say they and their worshippers have never met him. He's probably some random peasant." Elmeria answered as Harvin stood up with Verdi in tow.

"Well, I'll be taking Master Verdi to bed. Please, do not concern yourselves and enjoy the rest of the banquet." Harvin said, quietly walking away with his usual blank expression returning to his face. As Elmeria watched the aged butler leave, she couldn't help but notice how clean the his handkerchief was. Verdi had a **** grip on that glass shard and nearly severed his own fingers off. He should have made a massive pool of blood when they removed the glass shards, but the cloth was still relatively clean. She soon dismissed the thought, chalking it up to Harvin's competence. He probably replaced the handkerchief and cleaned the excess blood without her noticing.