Chapter 43: Sirwine

Evan turned around.

The first thing he saw was a somewhat overweight man whose presence alone seemed to calm even the angriest of men into reason.

Phil was at the end of the hallway. A small cardboard box had fallen from his hands and lay dented on the floor.

“You what?” Phil asked.

He looked like he had just been completely blindsided.

Evan noticed and shifted his eyes.

“Oh, come on, Phil. Is it really that weird?” Evan asked.

“Considering how you usually kill or cripple someone who annoys you, yeah! That’s pretty damn weird!” Phil exclaimed.

“Tch. I’m not that bad. Your memory’s going, you old horse.” Evan whispered to himself.

He sighed.

“Anyway, what the heck is that thing? It’s….bleeding?” Evan asked, pointing to the box Phil had dropped.

“It’s wine. These guys appreciate fine wine because they’re rich and fancy.” Phil said, pretending to hold a teacup and sticking out his little finger in mockery.

“Okay, but why are you carrying it? Why not just get someone else to carry it?” Evan asked.

“Well, for some reason, wine from my personal collection was mixed in with the wine we prepared for the party,” Phil said, staring at lime.

Lime smirked, smugly.

“I knew it! It was you, wasn’t it!” Phil shouted, pointing.

“You drink too much, gramps. I’m just trying to help.” Lime said, shrugging her shoulders and looking away.

“Why you little-!” Phil shouted.

He took a deep breath.

“....Line. You aren’t four years old anymore. Isn’t it about time you stop these childish pranks?” Phil asked, through clenched teeth and a fake smile.

“I wouldn’t call curbing your alcoholism a prank. Besides, I’m not the one who dropped it. I’m innocent.” Lime said, holding up her hands in surrender.

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She stuck her tongue out at him.

“Line, if you don’t stop being childish, I’ll ground you in your room for an entire week,” Phil said sternly.

“Do it, then.” Lime said mockingly.

“Fine! Go to your room, and don’t come out!” Phil shouted.

Line smiled.

“Alright. If you say so. Bye, gramps! Evan, I’ll wait for you at home. But you should stay and enjoy the party. It’s actually pretty fun.” Lime said, turning to leave.

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Evan sighed.

“Phil, you realize she was just trying to get out of attending this thing, right?” Evan asked, jerking his thumb towards the door.

“Shut up. I was just a bit annoyed….still, it’s better if she doesn’t come. She probably would have just made some sort of racket or found an excuse to leave early anyway. Besides, I forgot to mention it, but tonight isn’t just for the normal residents of the tower. The people who oversee the other bases are having their yearly meeting. So some of their families have also come along to socialize.” Phil said.

“Oh, yeah. I always forget those dudes exist. You’re talking about the sketchy businessmen who bought their way into their positions, right?” Evan asked.

“Well….yeah. Some of them aren’t that bad, though. I was actually interested in introducing them to you. Sir Jax in particular is quite a nice man. As is his family.” Phil said, smiling.

“Family? Wait, Sir Jax? Who the hell is that?” Evan asked.

“Well, one of those “sketchy businessmen”...retired. He chose to make his position the inheritance of-“ Phil started.

“You mean it’s like nobility?” Evan asked, raising an eyebrow.

“........Yes. Exactly like that. Anyway, I’d like to introduce you to the mother and the eldest son. I assure you that they’re quite nice. I was actually coming to let you know while I went to hide my wine again. I guess I don’t really need to think about that anymore, though.” Phil said, staring at the red puddle with a forlorn look.

“I’ll just go with you to introduce them,” Phil said, sighing.

“No, you’re going to clean that wine up, first,” Evan said.

“...Really?” Phil asked, annoyed.

Evan crossed his arms.

“....Fine. But if you want to meet them, take this keycard. They’re on the guest floor. You can probably figure out the room, right?” Phil asked, taking out a gold card and handing it to Evan.

Evan looked it over.

“Yeah. I think I can read the large ass fucking three numbers on the card. I’m not stupid, Phil.” Evan said.

“I’m all too aware of that…..do you remember where we keep the cleaning supplies, by any chance?” Phil asked, staring at the red puddle with more of an aggravated look than a forlorn one, now.

Evan shrugged.

“Figure it out yourself. I wanna meet these nobles. Do they act like they’re in the Middle Ages?” Evan asked.

“Well, yeah. Kinda. Their entire base is currently built on a system of nobility and ranking.” Phil said.

“Considering it’s the apocalypse, it could be worse. But shouldn’t they be the royal family? What’s with the Sir thing?” Evan asked.

“I’m regarded as the king. So the Lionel family is just the highest rank of nobility that their base has. Otherwise, they pretty much have the influence of a king. Most of the other base commanders have a similar influence, so even I don’t want to have a bad relationship with them. At least, not publicly.” Phil said.

“...Interesting. Well, I’m off. If I hear anything about you slacking off on that, you’re going to hear from me.” Evan said, leaving as Phil clicked his tongue in annoyance.