Himmel and Menno sat at the counter and calmly enjoyed their beer after their well-deserved victory over the impostor and his companions.

— Very interesting beer—said Menno, who was calmly drinking a mug of Dark Paladin this time, which intrigued him immensely.

— I am impressed, though, because you still have the strength to drink.—The innkeeper replied with a hint of admiration in his voice.—It's as if you were a dwarf.

— I don't know if I had any dwarves in my family, but I used to drink much worse beer than this and maybe that's why I'm still standing, you know, if something tastes good, you can drink more of it.—Menno replied, ignoring the fact that even if he wanted to, he couldn't get drunk, which doesn't mean he couldn't appreciate the taste of a good drink, and the one they were drinking was extraordinary.

— My cousin on my father's side is a brewer and he sent me some of it. Two barrels for tasting and 20 cases for sale. However, it's not a beer for everyone. It's strong, almost black as tar. Very intense in taste, but if you can stand the first sip, each subsequent one will be a pleasure for you. — The innkeeper smoothly moved on to advertising the drink he sells.

— The holy truth. — Menno agreed. — And once again, we apologize for this demolition.

— I had no idea that this conman Otto paid my employee to dilute the beer and promised half of the winning bets. Well... I'll have to talk to him as soon as he recovers. He and Otto will pay for the damage or work it off, no matter what, cheating deserves punishment.

— We don't hold a grudge. — Himmel said and took a few slow sips of Dark Paladin. — An extraordinary beer indeed, Heiter would definitely like it.

— You mean Heiter? The Heiter who participated in the destruction of the Demon King?

— The same one.

— You would have to know him personally, and then you would be at least 100 years old, and you don't look that old.

— True, but take a closer look at him, doesn't he remind you of someone? — Menno spoke up, deciding to use Himmel's reputation.

The innkeeper looked at Himmel closely and instantly turned pale.— Am I hallucinating? I haven't had anything to drink today, and if not then...

— Everything is fine with you, and yes, you have before you the same Himmel, the hero of people, who came back to life to once again protect humanity from demons. — Menno pointed at Himmel.

— You're not very good at keeping secrets. — Himmel sighed jokingly. — Well, he's right. The hero Himmel is me. — He nodded and took a sip of beer.

The innkeeper sat up in disbelief, reached for the bottle of beer and took a few sips, then said: 

— I heard a lot about you and your companions when I was a child. Apparently you came here a few times when my grandfather ran the inn. I just hope you're not demons or some other such riffraff? - He looked at them and swallowed nervously.

— If we were demons, then one, we wouldn't have entered the city, because if I noticed correctly, it is protected by a barrier that drives away demons, and two, instead of a fight, you would have a bloodbath here, so we are who we say we are. — Menno explained.

— Easy to say. I'm just a simple innkeeper and I'm not used to someone with such a reputation visiting me. I've always liked listening to the stories of adventurers, but I've never had the opportunity to meet someone who did as much as Himmel the hero — The innkeeper wiped his sweaty forehead, for whom this was too much excitement for one day. — And by the way, I'm Sukrus.

(His appearance)

— I'm Menno, and you've already met Himmel.

When the emotions subsided, a quite interesting discussion ensued, which lasted until the door to the inn opened and two women entered.

— Oh!— Menno muttered, knowing perfectly well who it was, and turned towards the door, nudging Himmel in the process. —I guess we've been sitting here a bit too long. — He saw that their two companions didn't look thrilled that they had taken a longer break than planned.

— More than a little. Punctuality probably isn't your strong point. — Flamme replied, crossing her arms over her chest and looking around the tavern with a searching gaze. —I see you had a good time.

— You must have had too, because you've got a bit of chocolate on your cheek. —Menno noticed, who smiled subtly.

Flamme muttered something under her breath and immediately wiped a trace of chocolate from her cheek, then turned towards her companions.

—Can you walk or do I need to send you a special invitation? Or maybe I need to carry you?

Fauna just stood back and giggled, Flamme now adopted the attitude of a mother who scolds naughty children, while her favorite just laughs at it.

— I'll manage on my own, thank you. — Menno, he stood up as if nothing had happened and turned to Sukrus. — Thanks again for the nice time. — He nodded and joined Flamme.

Himmel did the same, but not before leaving a generous tip for the nice service and good beer.

— Come back here sometime.— Sukrus said in farewell, hiding the money left by Himmel.

— Fauna, take them outside and I'll join you in a moment. I have one more thing to take care of here.

Fauna left without asking questions, and Menno and Himmel followed right after her, and when they left the inn, Flamme went to the counter and looked at Sukrus, who was afraid that something bad would happen to him, especially since Flamme had a really menacing expression on her face, which changed in an instant to an exceptionally friendly one.

— Pour me the same as mine.

Sukrus did as he was told without question, and a moment later a bottle of Dark Paladin stood in front of Flamme.— The bottle is colder, which will make the beer taste even better. — He added in case she didn't like the fact that she didn't get a mug, but a bottle.

Flamme took the first sip and savored it for a moment, only to open her eyes wide with astonishment a moment later.— Something incredible... I don't even know how to describe what I just drank — After these words she emptied the contents of the bottle in one gulp, licking her lips afterwards. — I've never tried anything so extraordinary. I'm not surprised that my companions have been sitting here for so long, so if you'd be so kind as to tell me if you have any rooms available? — She asked, placing two pieces of silver on the counter.

— The words of the famous Flamme are a great honor for me, and that's why I would like to accept this bottle as a gift. And as for the question, there are a few rooms available, and even if there weren't, something would have been organized. — He replied in an exceptionally ingratiating tone.

— Oh, so they told you who we are? — Flamme narrowed her eyes suspiciously. — What did they say? Only honestly.

— What the legends say about your power and also a lot about your beauty. And I have to say that reality surpasses the stories. — He replied, trying to please Flamme as much as possible.

— Guys will always start talking about a woman's beauty sooner or later when they're drinking. Charming. — Flamme laughed, trying to imagine them both talking about her, especially Menno, who had so far seemed cold and uninterested in such discussions, especially since these words hadn't been uttered while drunk. — Guys are always the same, regardless of the era. — She added, amused. — Be so kind as to prepare two double rooms for us. We'll be staying here for a while.

— Of course. — Sukrus nodded with almost reverence.

— In that case, take care of yourself, my friend, and we'll be back soon. — Flamme turned on her heel and joined her companions outside. — We've sorted out the accommodations, now let's go see Milten.

The others just looked at each other and shrugged, after all, you don't argue with people like Flamme.

When they reached the monument of heroes the sun was slowly setting, but fortunately Milten was not there yet, he appeared after a few minutes without the wagon, but clearly happy.

— Sorry it took so long, but there are some things that can't be rushed.

— Did it work out?— Himmel asked.

— Of course, but the matter of buying back our estate will take some time, but I managed to sign you up for the tournament.— Milten replied proudly.

— That's great.— Himmel looked pleased with the fact that they helped someone improve their fate and not only that.— I hope you didn't pay too much.

— Only the entry fee, but it's pennies, because I promised that Miss Fauna would act as a healer during the tournament.

— Just call me Fauna.— She groaned slightly embarrassed, she wasn't used to being called that, because it made her feel old, which was funny because she was 889 years old, but she looked like she was 20 at most.

— Erm...well. Good. — Milten nodded slightly embarrassed. — I told you about how you healed my new and old wounds and suggested that someone like you would be very useful, especially since you can lose your health permanently at tournaments, and they would rather avoid that at a tournament like this, so the best healers will be there, and you. You're welcome. — The last words were filled with obvious pride in their initiative.

— I'm really impressed. — Flamme nodded in appreciation.

— So what will it look like? — Menno spoke up, asking a fairly reasonable question.

— First, the opening in which the king's son will perform, then archery, horseback riding and a group duel, and the next day the finale, a fight with the winners of last year's tournament, the brothers Goliath and Talos.

— The names sound scary. — Fauna stated.

— These are nicknames. They're both huge, armored, and damn strong, so you have to be careful.

— The names sound scary. — Fauna stated.

— They're nicknames. They're both huge, armored, and damn strong, so you have to be careful.

— What about the equipment? Can we use ours? — Menno continued.

— If this were a normal tournament, then you'd have to have the standard armor and swords, all to give everyone an equal chance, but in the first two competitions, the organizer provides the equipment, and the horses are drawn, and from what I understand, in terms of speed, they achieve similar results, you know, to keep it fair, although you know that a lot depends on the rider too.

—Better for us.— Menno stated, but he didn't look overly happy.—And these two brothers, what do you know about them?

— Besides being big and strong? Rumor has it that they have magical armor that can't be penetrated, I wouldn't be surprised if their weapons are magical too, so watch out.

— Great. It's like fate is constantly throwing obstacles in our way. — Menno muttered, who had no idea if his Red Flash would be able to handle their armor.

— At least it'll be a challenge. — Himmel replied, trying to approach the matter positively.

— Normally I'd be happy, but I don't like to put everything on one card, because as you know our victory is not certain, and a lot depends on participating in this ball, and we don't have that much time for alternatives.

— You sound like Frieren with every word, if you were a woman and someone attached elven ears to you and dyed your hair white, you would be indistinguishable. — Himmel joked, which made everyone except Menno chuckle.

— Very funny, but since we have no other choice, we should prepare ourselves, at least one day is not that much.

— I can help, actually.— Milten suggested.— I'll get a horse, and the rest is in place so the competitors can train.

— You're saving our skins again.— Flame stated, impressed by Milten's willingness to help.

— That's what friends are for.— He replied.— After all, nothing brings people closer together than a shared misfortune or saving someone's life.

— In that case, let's meet here tomorrow morning.— Menno suggested.

— Best before noon, why? Because it might be a bit crowded in the morning and a little longer sleep will do you good, so sleep well.— Milten bowed slightly and after a moment disappeared behind one of the alleys.

— He's right. We should rest.— Menno announced.

— In that case, it's good that I organized a place for us to stay. The inn you were at is quite cozy and has a certain charm to it, so it will be perfect.

Tired from an intense day, they returned to the inn and went to their rooms.

— Double rooms? — asked Menno, surprised.

— Does that bother you? — Himmel replied, taking the bed closest to the entrance.

— No, but it's new to me. I usually slept alone, and then under the open sky or in some cave or makeshift tent.

— Or maybe you prefer to share a room with one of our companions? — Himmel asked, grinning maliciously.

— We don't know each other well enough. — Menno concluded indifferently. — One of them would probably kill me in my sleep if I let her, and the other? Well... I don't know. I have no opinion on her.

— Do you like her? — Himmel continued.

— She's not ugly, she has her own personality, but she's not really in my league, besides, she behaves as if she were our mother.

— Right, so maybe Fauna? If it weren't for the fact that you killed her, you would make a nice couple in the future.

— Elf and human, and on top of that me and her?! — Menno seemed amused. — Tell me the truth, you're asking me this because your old companions said the same about you and Frieren, right?

— Astute as always. — Himmel sighed. — I never quite knew what was going on in her head like you, you have a great way with words and you make sure that no one gets too close just like she does.

— It's no secret. — Menno shrugged. — Attachment can be troublesome, especially when you're an elf, but if she's like you describe her, then she'll certainly never forget you.

— If you want, you can say something nice. — Himmel laughed, moved by the words of his cold and opposed companion.

— Always at your service. — Menno bowed theatrically. — And now we should rest, we have a lot to do tomorrow.

— That's true. — Himmel replied, not even noticing when his eyes closed.

Menno thought for a moment about Himmel's behavior. He regretted that he had not known someone like him before, because then his story might have taken a different, better turn. *Such is fate.* He thought and fell asleep.