The Gilliast Castle is usually very quiet late at night, even the guards and maids on night patrol will be extra careful to avoid disturbing the already resting masters.

This is the basic etiquette when working in a royal castle—whether it's the maids who specialize in serving daily life or the guards responsible for protecting the castle, they are all carefully selected.

At least for the majority of people whose mindset is still stuck in the era of feudal kingdoms, serving the royals is still something to be proud of.

Of course, there are always exceptions.

"Haha! This is great! Haven't had such good wine in a long time. Speaking of which, is there any special event in the castle recently? They actually bought wine from the Mudies Winery in Ophelin? Let me see...Mudies Winery? That's a rare find outside."

In the castle military camp set up specifically for the Snow Wolf Mercenary Group, a few small campfires were flickering.

Beinrich downed the amber liquid in his cup, then leaned in to sniff the empty cup gently. The refreshing aroma of rose and grape seeped into his lungs, circled around, and slowly exhaled.

Although mercenaries often prefer practical spirits that can warm and disinfect while on adventures, Beinrich didn't mind occasionally enjoying a less throat-cutting fine wine. Especially when it's a grape wine produced in the legendary Ophelin Mountains, well-known among alcohol enthusiasts.

The Ophelin Mountains, located in the relatively warmer south of the kingdom, maintain perennial snow due to the extreme altitude of its peaks. The climate around the mid-mountain rose town is perfect for grape cultivation, adjacent to a stream formed by melted snow, eventually developing a dozen or so scattered estates.

"Overthinking it, just replenishing the castle's wine cellar."

Across from him, a Dark Knight in dark metal armor treated with special coating was sitting on the ground, looking somewhat helpless at Beinrich.

"After you finish that bottle, get back to your duty promptly, or next time, I'll report it to the guards."

"Eh, come on, we've fought together, hasn't it been a while since we sat down, Miss Shuma?"

The mercenary captain felt a little flustered. After accepting Tiran's employment, the Snow Wolf Mercenary Group was incorporated into the castle guard. Whether it was the material supplies or the substantial commission, they all came from the guard's funding. Being caught drinking on duty would mean a deduction of at least a month's pay.

"Cut the crap, we're not comrades."

Shuma crossed her arms. "You're the one who insisted on dragging me over here."

"But you didn't refuse, did you? You even brought me such good wine."

Beinrich patted the bottle beside him and grinned.

Shuma rubbed her temples with a hint of a headache. It had been over a month since they last met, and this guy was still as annoying as ever.

Upon returning from the east, Shuma was immediately recalled as a Dark Knight to bolster the forces lost in the New Year's coup to join the war against Maston, though not on the front lines at Kent Mountain, she fought several tough battles on the flanks against Maston's invading forces.

"Stop dreaming, this isn't for you specifically. It's a personal token of appreciation from Princess Vivianne to the mercenary group."

Shuma rolled her eyes, splashing cold water on the mercenary leader unceremoniously.

Running her hands over the storage bracelet on her wrist, a silver light flashed, and a large oak barrel appeared in the empty space nearby, its shadow swaying in the firelight.

Apart from the Dark Knight's oath of allegiance to the royals, Shuma, being one of the few female knights in the Dark Division, had once served as Vivianne's personal guard for a considerable time. Their private relationship was good, so occasionally she did favors for Vivianne, like running errands to the Ophelin Mountains to fetch a batch of wine.

Protecting the Gilliast Castle during the landing of the Gluis Federation troops and coordinating with the castle guards in the subsequent retreat ensured the safe evacuation of non-combatants from the castle grounds.

Although the mercenaries initially performed poorly in direct combat with the Gluis army, during the pursuit in the retreat, the mercenaries demonstrated their professionalism honed in escort missions, resulting in delaying the pursuers significantly with layers of blockades, misleading false clues, and imaginative traps that regular soldiers could hardly imagine. They more than earned the pay given to them by the castle.

"That's enough chatter. Enjoy your wine, I need to deliver the portion to the guards. Can you handle the barrel by yourself?"

"It's a piece of cake, but... *cough* but why not stay a bit? This wine tastes pretty good." The mercenary leader coughed twice, his rugged face obscured in the shadows of the firelight.

"...Of course it's good."

Shuma suddenly found it amusing in her mind. Beinrich's bottle of wine was a ten-year-old masterpiece from Mudie's Winery, costing him a whopping five hundred gold coins for a bottle. It was considered top-tier in the category that did not require special channels or reservations for public sale.

As for the oak barrel next to it and the batch inside the storage bracelet, meticulous observation would reveal no metal plaque or wine label on them. That's because they did not belong to any public winery but were from a royal industry established by the Elysian family in the Ophelin Mountains.

In terms of quality, the wine in the oak barrel was of the highest standard, but it was different from what the mercenary leader held. It was just a gesture of gratitude for saving me in the Magitech City, nothing more.

After repeating this in her mind, Shuma stood up, dusted off her clothes, and turned to walk towards the guard barracks on the other side.

"Just skip resting here, I don't want you to be idle." Shuma waved her hand without facing Beinrich.

After finishing the task assigned by Princess Vivianne, she planned to greet the Princess tomorrow before leaving. But it was already too late to disturb her at this hour. She hoped she could find Mimi or Justice to arrange a room for herself...

Yawning, after such a long journey, tiredness inevitably crept up on her.

"Is the camp gate over here... Huh?"

While circling outside the guard outpost looking for the main gate of the camp, the sky suddenly emitted a dazzling light without warning, radiating from a single point. The concentric halo of light that spread out resembled a bright little sun, completely overshadowing the moon and stars in the night sky.

"Huh, could that be..."

Shuma felt a sense of familiarity.

"Hehehe, my return shines like the first light of day, rejoice, and welcome..."

"Don't be a nuisance with that light this late at night, Angel!"

A long, rod-shaped object shot out from the top of the highest tower in the castle and accurately shot down the small sun in the sky.