Just as Soma's thoughts were wandering, footsteps at the door attracted his attention.
Immediately after, the door to the Brewing Room was pushed open.
Soma looked at Zephyr standing at the door and was just about to say something but Lili quickened her pace and ran toward the figure at the door.
Then, she threw herself into Zephyr's arms. Her forehead hit his chest with quite some force, and Zephyr even took half a step back to steady himself.
Lili's hands gripped the front of Zephyr's shirt tightly, her shoulders trembling slightly. "Why... why do this for Lili?"
Zephyr looked down at the girl in his arms. He didn't know how to answer this question.
He recalled the answer he gave that night, and after a brief thought, he gave a serious answer again, "Because we are friends?"
Lili choked back sobs. She knew how much risk Zephyr had undertaken with his rescue mission tonight. She had thought that, even if she were abandoned, it would have been natural. She understood and even hoped Zephyr would do that. After all, she was just a burden to him. As a Supporter with no combat ability, she would even drag him down.
But who wouldn't want to be chosen?
Now, she finally recognized the feeling in her heart. She lifted her head, her tear-stained face looking at Zephyr.
"But... I don't want to be just ordinary friends with you."
"?"
That kind of thing shouldn't be said!
But Zephyr, looking at her serious, expectant expression, thought quickly and finally decided to lighten the mood.
"Then do you want to be my enemy?"
"?" Lili's expression froze.
She looked at Zephyr's serious, thinking expression, the corners of her lips twitching. Finally, she buried her face back into his chest without saying anything.
Is this guy even human?
After learning that Soma had intervened in this matter, Zephyr no longer worried about Lili's safety. He just hadn't expected that this god could actually do this much—protecting Lili, tacitly approving his actions, and even not stepping in to stop him from beginning to end.
He looked into the distance at the man standing in the corner of the Brewing Room.
He recalled what Lefiya called Loki. Considering the help Soma had provided him during this period, Zephyr felt it was only right and reasonable to express his gratitude.
"Thank you. Soma-sa... Soma-sama."
Soma looked at Zephyr's awkward expression and was silent for a moment. He couldn't even find the words to complain about his inner helplessness, and sighed, "If you feel awkward, you don't have to call me that."
"Then I won't." Zephyr decisively abandoned the honorific.
Although Gods were all old geezers who had lived for hundreds of millions of years, calling someone sama wasn't popular in the new era, and he felt awkward no matter how he said it.
Soma: "..."
He hadn't thought that Zephyr could, in such a short time, go from a Supporter to now defeating Zanis and creating such a miracle.
Perhaps compared to other Adventurers, this miracle wasn't particularly dazzling, but the talent Zephyr possessed was enough to support him in moving forward.
But Soma was very clear in his heart—a child with such talent should not be confined to his Familia.
He looked at Zephyr and said, "You did indeed do it. Zephyr, in such a short time, you have accomplished a feat that many adventurers could never do in their entire lives. How did you do it?"
Zephyr thought about it. He couldn't exactly say that he had made it this far entirely by relying on friends, the support of the Strongest Gourmet Hunter System, and his own stomach.
Besides, what he hated most was a sentimental atmosphere.
"Then let me ask you. Have you seen Orario at four in the morning?"
"..."
Soma fell into a long silence. Perhaps this hardship and the yearning for the future were the driving forces that kept Zephyr moving forward.
"I haven't seen it either." Zephyr shrugged his shoulders.
He recalled the events of the past and said, "If I really have to say how I made it this far, it's the help of friends, the sweat of hard work, and my inner goals. A bit of everything, right?"
"..."
Soma's lips twitched.
Lili did not choose to continue clinging to Zephyr. After all, Soma was present.
Her tone was resentful. "He's just that kind of person. You'll get used to it."
Now, the greatest threat, Zanis, had been dealt with. The next steps were simple.
Zephyr didn't want to keep his friends waiting, so he looked at Soma and asked, "Can you help me and Lili leave the Soma Familia?"
To this, Soma did not answer, but the action of taking a silver needle from his desk drawer spoke volumes.
...
After removing the Falna mark on Zephyr and Lili's back, Soma said, "I previously promised you a request. What do you want?"
Zephyr certainly hadn't forgotten that. But now that he was about to leave the Soma Familia, he didn't intend to fleece this god, who had left a good impression, for anything big before leaving.
He pondered for a moment, recalling the massive increase in his stats this time. He knew that relying solely on combat and Infant Dragon meat couldn't have achieved it, the Divine Wine definitely played a part.
"Divine Wine."
Soma looked at Zephyr, dumbfounded. "Are you sure?"
To other Adventurers, Divine Wine was certainly not a good thing. The chaos in the Soma Familia was caused by it.
However, for Zephyr, as a Gourmet Hunter, this thing was completely different.
After a few days of exploration, he had mastered the correct way to use the system.
The ordinary food sold in Orario didn't trigger any system notifications. No matter how much he ate, it wouldn't increase his stats.
Bread, roasted meat, stews—these things were fine for filling his stomach, but since Gourmet Cells didn't exist in them, eating more wouldn't increase his stats.
But then again, anything that could be certified by the system was definitely a good thing. The Needle Rabbit, the Dungeon Lizard, and the highly-rated Infant Dragon were all like that, and the Divine Wine brewed by Soma was the same.
In the latest update, the overall magnitude of the increase was something he hadn't expected. While his own hard work certainly contributed, the Divine Wine could be said to be the best "wool" he could fleece at this current stage.
Zephyr nodded. "That's right, I'm sure."
"But..." Soma's brows furrowed.
He recalled the trial in the Brewing Room that night. After Zephyr drank the Divine Wine, he didn't become addicted like other adventurers. He didn't even have any interest in looking at the bottle again.
At the time, he had reached the conclusion that relying on willpower, one could resist the temptation of the Divine Wine after repeated confirmation.
He couldn't understand Zephyr's thinking at all. Soma even felt a trace of doubt but Zephyr's previous frankness wasn't a lie. As a god, he could naturally tell.
"You said you weren't interested in the Divine Wine."
To this, Zephyr didn't intend to hide anything from Soma who knew about his skill.
"This Divine Wine of yours seem to help with increasing my stats."
"That's it?"
Soma's face was left with nothing but helplessness. If Zephyr's ultimate reason for wanting the Divine Wine was because it tasted good, he would probably feel better.
He hadn't imagined that Zephyr's reason would be so pure.
It can increase stats.
It wasn't because it tasted good, not because of desire, not because of enjoyment—it was purely treating the Divine Wine as some kind of nutritional supplement.
Soma didn't give up. "Suppose the Divine Wine couldn't increase your stats?"
"Then why would I drink this stuff?"
Zephyr recalled the classic cases of people ending up in the hospital or even having their families torn apart due to drinking.
He frowned. "Alcohol is bad for the body."
"..."
Soma was speechless.
In the years since he founded his Familia, he had seen many adventurers sell their dignity, betray their companions, and willingly become slaves for the sake of the Divine Wine.
Yet, this person before him was purely treating the Divine Wine as a tool.
He looked up at the last few bottles of finished Divine Wine in the display case, the amber liquid glistening with a warm luster under the light.
After a moment of silence, he said, "I agree to your request. However..."
He opened the display case and took out the well-preserved Divine Wine, placing it on the table. "There won't be any more Divine Wine in the future, I don't intend to continue brewing."
"Thank you." Zephyr picked up the Divine Wine.
He didn't feel any regret. There were many channels to increase stats, and relying solely on the various monsters encountered in the Dungeon was more than enough.