She stared at the cup
Xiaohong
hesitated.
Maomao
looked at Xiaohong and gave a small nod.
"I'll drink, then."
Xiaohong drained the cup in one go.
"Pufu."
She seemed to have a surprisingly strong tolerance. The cup held kumis — even calling it
alcohol
was a stretch, but it was true what they said about the Western Xushi region, that even infants drank it.
"I'll have some too, just to be safe."
Maomao poured herself a cup and drank as well.
(The alcohol really is watered down.)
She couldn't help wishing it were a little stronger.
"..."
Whether the One-Eyed Dragon was satisfied or not, he began eating and drinking. Maomao kept his cup filled while scanning the room.
It was more of a drinking party than an evening meal, so the pace of eating was leisurely. They spilled wine, hurled bread — doing as they pleased.
(Here we've been scrimping on ingredients.)
She felt it was a waste seeing the meat and potatoes that had fallen to the floor, but she certainly couldn't pick them up and eat them. The residents' meals included these leftovers too.
Amid the revelry, one person stood up.
"I need the latrine."
He left the church.
Maomao picked up an empty wine bottle.
"I'll bring a refill."
She called over Xiaohong to bring more wine.
"Hold it."
The one-eyed dragon stopped her.
"No need for two of you."
"...Understood."
Maomao handed the wine bottle to Xiaohong. In exchange, she filled the empty plate in front of the one-eyed dragon with side dishes. Almost everything except the meat was untouched. The one-eyed dragon had been chewing on the right side the whole time — it seemed he had a canker sore on the left.
Xiaohong must have found the wine bottle too heavy, because she stumbled. There was a clattering sound.
"I'm sorry! I'll clean it up right away!"
The one-eyed dragon was just drinking away.
"I need the head too."
"Oh, me too."
Watching his subordinates leave their seats one after another, the one-eyed dragon raised an eyebrow.
(A little longer... just a little longer...)
Then one more man started to rise, only to clutch his mouth. His face was deathly pale. He staggered along the wall and collapsed into a crouch.
"Bwuh—I'm gonna—"
He vomited all over the floor. Those nearby tried to dodge the mess in disgust, but every one of them looked queasy. And then their eyes fell on the food they had been happily devouring just moments ago.
Maomao noticed a murderous glare locked on her.
"You drugged us."
"It might be food poisoning."
Maomao put on an expression that said this was entirely an act of God.
But that excuse wasn't going to fly. The one-eyed dragon looked like steam was about to pour out of his head. Maomao immediately ducked behind a shelf in the church.
"You little—"
Just as he was about to stand, the one-eyed dragon's body crumpled. His hands were shaking.
"You drugged me too, you little..."
"We properly tasted the poison."
The results of the taste test, and why Maomao was unscathed while the bandits writhed in agony.
To put it simply, the amount consumed was different.
The amount Maomao tasted was nowhere near enough to upset her stomach.
Potato sprouts and skin contain toxins that cause vomiting and diarrhea. While she had nothing to do back in the Western Capital, she had sampled them several times to test how much was needed to cause stomach pain. Naturally, everyone around her thought she was crazy, but she couldn't help that.
Potato sprouts were the most toxic part, and the green skin was also highly poisonous. The less mature the potato, the greener the skin, and exposure to sunlight made the green even deeper.
This was the first thing she had asked Xiaohong to do.
Collect small potatoes and leave them in a spot where sunlight could reach them.
Of course, even then some people might eat the potatoes and others might not. So she had also tucked potato sprouts into the soup and the meat.
"You damn woman!"
The one-eyed dragon bared his gums, trembling. In his hand he gripped his weapon—an axe. Maomao moved to keep from being consumed by fear. The one-eyed dragon, stumbling and swaying, couldn't catch up to Maomao, and dropped the axe he tried to swing over and over again.
When Xiaohong had tripped earlier, Maomao had pretended to tidy up while smearing oil on the axe handle. He should have wrapped the haft in cloth or something, but since it was bare wood, it slid easily.
"W-why? I didn't eat... that much..."
(But he sure drank a lot.)
From the past few days of meals, Maomao had figured out the one-eyed dragon was a picky eater who consumed nothing but meat and liquor. Even stuffing potato sprouts into the meat was nowhere near a sufficient dose.
So Maomao had spiked his alcohol.
"S-so, the liquor? No... even the goblin drank that, and there was no problem..."
Both Maomao and Xiaohong were perfectly fine.
(Good, it took effect.)
Maomao had mixed snake venom—received from the female bodyguard—into the alcohol. And as for why Maomao and Xiaohong were unaffected—.
(Thank heavens he happened to have injured his own mouth.)
She had heard he bit his own tongue and killed his subordinate.
Snake venom could serve as a tonic when ingested orally—it was simply broken down by stomach acid. She had warned Xiaohong about the possibility of being made to taste-test beverages, which was why she had offered mare's milk wine instead of strong spirits.
She had already confirmed in advance that Xiaohong's mouth was thoroughly checked—no cavities, no canker sores. That was the second thing she had asked Xiaohong to do.
However, if the mouth was injured, that changed everything. The toxin would enter through the wound. The venom she had administered hadn't worn off yet, and mare's milk wine had such a distinctive taste that it masked the mixture. In theory, the venom should have taken effect faster than the potato poison, but the alcohol had diluted it, so that couldn't be helped.
"Just what I needed..."
Staggering, the One-Eyed Dragon raised his hand.
"Hey... A-arrest that woman."
Even if his tongue wouldn't cooperate, he still had enough energy to issue orders to his subordinates. The relatively unaffected ones among them began closing in on Maomao. Not every single one of them would be affected by the poison she had planned for. The potency would also vary depending on their build.
But Maomao had planned for this too.
(I only take fights I can win.)
With a tremendous crash, the church doors were kicked wide open.
"Wh-who is it?"
Could the staggering One-Eyed Dragon even make them out?
(You're so late.)
Maomao looked at the people who had burst in and thought, you bastards.
"It's been a while, Bear."
"Th-that voice—"
The One-Eyed Dragon staggered and leaned against a pillar. And who did his remaining single eye see reflected there—
"You've been having your fun, haven't you? Should've gouged both your eyes out when I had the chance."
What a loathsome thing to say. The man had a well-structured face, yet one brimming with wildness.
"
Chishō
, you—!"
Chishō had brought the escort guards along. Among them, Maomao could make out the female guard from before.
"Now then—let's start the cleanup!"
The escort guards raised their arms in accord with Chishō.
(You're seriously so slow!)
Maomao exhaled and sank down onto the floor.