The alcohol stimulated the taste buds and numbed the nerves. It could unleash one's nature and vent emotions.
After a few drinks, Yinsen felt a burning sensation in his throat.
"This damn bar, are they serving us pure alcohol? The alcohol is so strong."
The drinks here had no so-called richness or elegant appearance. They were simple, monotonous, yet terrifyingly strong.
Those who came here to drink were a group of desperados, living life on the edge every day. They came to drink for the sole purpose of getting drunk. Moreover, these guys had exceptional physical constitutions, so low-alcohol drinks were useless to them. Hence, the bar served only strong alcohol.
Raiden was relatively better off. After a few days in the sun, he had recharged, and the strength in his body had increased significantly. Ordinary alcohol could only slightly stimulate his taste buds.
Getting drunk? Difficult, at least not with the drinks here. Raiden suddenly missed the drinks from the world of The Elder Scrolls. Even an ordinary bottle of ale, brewed with ancient methods and magical ingredients, tasted so sweet.
Thinking about it, Raiden actually felt a bit itchy. 'This must be what they call 'the drink does intoxicate, but the person intoxicates themselves.'
Under the influence of alcohol, Raiden kept questioning himself, What was his purpose in this world?
To this world, Raiden was just a traveler. He didn't belong here. He was feeling homesick, missing the long-blurred memory of his home, a lonely home, a little nest that belonged only to him.
Could he ever return? Across who knows how many worlds...
Raiden had witnessed too much death in the worlds of The Elder Scrolls and Marvel. His heart was lonely, having been alone for countless years in the endless passage of time. When he was in prison, he hadn't thought about this question. All he needed was strength—the strength to escape, the strength to seek revenge.
But after leaving that hell, he began to ponder: Where should his future lie?
"Your friend doesn't seem to handle alcohol well," the bartender remarked.
Raiden looked up at the bartender, then turned to Yinsen. That guy had been drinking for a while, but the level of alcohol in his glass hadn't decreased much. He was busy eating salad.
Noticing Raiden gaze, Yinsen picked up the salad and said, "Raiden, their salad is pretty good. Why don't you try some... Their beer is too strong. I can't handle it..."
Raiden smiled and said to the bartender, "Get me a salad too."
What a strange pair. The bartender shook his head with a smile. If it weren't for Yinsen, they would have already taken action.
Because of Yinsen, who wore glasses and clearly didn't look like he belonged here, he seemed more like a scholar, a scientist... Which organization hadn't kidnapped a few scientists to work for them?
So when Raiden and Yinsen walked in with guns, they didn't act immediately. The bartender had been trying to figure out their identities.
After all, Raiden... with his fierce, bearded appearance, it was hard to be sure. But thankfully, their act of trading guns for drinks dispelled the bartender's suspicions.
However, the bartender looked at Raiden. This guy was really something.
The boss scrutinized Raiden carefully, and she suddenly felt that beneath the messy beard, Raiden face might actually look quite handsome if properly groomed. The boss grew curious about Raiden.
"My name is Michelle March, you can call me Michelle," the boss suddenly said to Raiden.
"My name is Raiden... Raiden Akatosh..." Raiden hesitated as he spoke. He had no surname; this body had no surname. Raiden was just Raiden, but in the end, he found a surname for himself.
His body carried the blood of the Time Dragon God Akatosh, so his surname should naturally be named after the Time Dragon God.
"Akatosh... that's an interesting surname," Michelle said with a hint of hesitation. It sounded like a very peculiar surname, one that carried an ancient aura.
"The clothes you two are wearing look familiar, and those weapons aren't common around here. That car outside... it's from the Ten Rings, isn't it? I'm curious about what you are really up to. I don't believe anyone from the Ten Rings would dare to trade guns for drinks," Michelle said, lightly tapping her fingers on the table.
"You know the Ten Rings?" Raiden paused mid-motion as he spoke.
Could it be that they had just escaped the tiger's den only to fall into the wolf's lair? Is this really necessary? Am I going to have to go on a killing spree? Raiden cautiously surveyed the surroundings, mainly because he needed to ensure Yinsen's safety.
"I'm... quite familiar with the Ten Rings" Michelle chuckled.
Yinsen, who was eating salad beside them, immediately tensed up and tugged at Raiden clothes.
Raiden eyes locked onto Michelle. 'Quite familiar? Skrull?'
Suddenly, Raiden tense muscles relaxed, and he patted Yinsen hand, which was gripping his sleeve.
"It's fine, Yinsen. Keep eating," Raiden said to Yinsen with a relaxed expression.
"What? Aren't you afraid that I might be allied with the Ten Rings?" Michelle raised her eyebrows.
Raiden picked up the glass of wine in front of him and downed it in one gulp.
"I've never seen anyone form an alliance with the dead."
"The dead... huh," Michelle refilled Raiden glass. From Raiden words, she heard the answer she had guessed but hadn't dared to confirm. These two had indeed wiped out the Ten Rings stronghold here.
"Cheers!" Raiden raised his glass to Michelle.
Michelle was momentarily stunned, then she poured herself a full glass and said to Raiden,
"Thank you for helping us deal with that Ten Rings problem."
"No need to thank me."
In this place, 'allies' might be the most unreliable relationship of all. It's even less stable than being enemies. At least your enemies will always, and resolutely, want to kill you.
Moreover, Raiden didn't think Michelle acted like an ally of the Ten Rings Gang. At least, from her initial reaction, it didn't seem that way at all.
After finishing the wine in her glass, Michelle said to Raiden, "It seems like the two of you have quite a story to tell."
"Someone who dares to do business in a place like this... and is so beautiful, you must have a story of your own too," Raiden replied.
The two of them exchanged a smile.
Listening to the laughter beside him, Yinsen shook his head. This sudden turn of events left him completely baffled. But as long as he knew there was no danger, that was enough.
Yinsen was naturally a reserved and somewhat rigid scientist. His time in prison had taught him the art of flexibility in human interactions, but he still struggled with handling relationships.
In the cave, it was just the three of them, all in the same predicament, making their interactions straightforward.
But outside of that, when dealing with the outside world, Yinsen still couldn't see things clearly.
However, Yinsen trusted Raiden. No matter the situation, no matter what might happen, Yinsen believed in Raiden. The trust they had built over three months was enough to last a lifetime.
So, even though Yinsen didn't fully understand or grasp the situation earlier—whether the boss had any connection to the Ten Rings—as long as Raiden assured him, Yinsen felt completely at ease.
They were like family.
Thinking of this, Yinsen suddenly felt the urge to drink; the stronger liquor available.
Filled with deep emotion and a whirlwind of thoughts, he picked up the glass in front of him, ready to share a toast with Raiden. But when he turned his head... where was he? The person who had been sitting there just moments ago was gone! And that boss was gone too!
Yinsen quickly asked the bartender nearby, who was wiping a glass rod pointed in a certain direction.
In a dimly lit corner behind the bar, in front of a shadowy door, a man and a woman were locked in a passionate embrace, their hands fumbling with the door handle.
Finally, the door opened, and the two tumbled inside.
What the hell?
Yinsen felt like he'd been screwed over.
Forget whether that woman had any connection to the Ten Rings or whether this place was safe—you just left me here without a word! Without even saying goodbye!
What happened to being family? What happened to being each other's angels?
Fuming, Yinsen picked up his glass and downed the drink in one gulp.
"Bring me twenty more!"
"Wait, do you have any other food here? Fried chicken or something? Bring me a plate of everything!"