Chapter 127 - Drinks

The last time Wain was in this bar was quite some time ago. Then he entered his first Dungeon and immediately found himself in the World of Darkness test room. Moreover, he was lucky enough to meet a monster like Mimic, but unfortunately, he couldn't get any reward for it.

Wain was not upset by this coincidence, for it was thanks to this that he could get into this bar and meet Sven.

Wain did not know Sven's true identity, but he assumed that this man was something like Agnes.

Agnes' role was that she was a watcher of one of Purgatory's zones. So she had a certain power in that area, but it was limited by her unique abilities. Without them, she would not have been able to open the portal leading back to Wain's world. It would have been impossible.

In Wain's opinion, Sven also received certain advantages as the sole owner of the small neutral zone of the World of Darkness. But, Wain assumed that Sven was a more mysterious character than Agnes.

Unlike Agnes, this man's influence extended far beyond his small, cozy bar. This is evidenced by his vast knowledge, rare cocktail ingredients, and the unique things he sells.

Somehow it all comes to him or was already there originally. However, in that case, Sven must have procured information and gear in huge quantities before opening the bar.

...

Wain paced on the silk, red carpet covering part of the bar. As Wain approached the bar and sat down at a chair, Sven put aside crystal glass and smiled.

"Welcome back."

Wain nodded, "It's been a long time since I've been here. It's impossible to find such a cozy and authentic place in the outside world right now."

"That's true. I thought you didn't like my cocktail, and you decided not to come back here again. It hurt my heart." With a slight irony in his voice, Sven said.

"Huh, I'm not sure your heart can hurt anything." Proclaimed Wain and slipped his hand under his cloak.

He took a cigarette out of the pack and blew out a puff of smoke after a few seconds.

"Smoking is bad for you, don't you know that?" Sven said with a slight smile on his face.

"I doubt with my regeneration that cigarettes can harm me in any way. Now cigarettes don't do any damage. They're like a psychological trap, a particular addiction you don't want to get rid of, even though you know all the pros and cons." Wain muttered, blowing out a puff of smoke.

Sven shrugged and said, "Would you like a cocktail? Last time, as far as I know, you weren't disappointed."

"Sure, your skills are really excellent." Wain accepted Sven's offer.

"Is there any particular preference?"

"Yes, but I want to leave the task to you. Surprise me."

"The customer's wish is law," Sven said with a smile and leaned over.

He took a small jar from the shelf, which contained several red peppers like flames. The shape of these peppers was rather unusual. They looked like a lightning bolt, like a zigzag line.

Then he took a sharp knife with a blue blade from the back shelf and quickly chopped three small peppers. 

Sven's hand speed was on the level of a professional chef. He moved so quickly that only a blur was visible instead of the knife and his hands.

Wain, however, could easily see all of Sven's movements.

'Hmm, this knife is special. At first, I thought it strange that the knife had an unnatural blue blade, but now everything is falling into place. There's a cold aura coming from it that gradually lowers the temperature of the pepper but doesn't freeze it...' thought Wain.

He was a bit surprised since, in that case, this knife was specifically designed to cool food while slicing. It took a significantly skilled blacksmith, the right approach, and materials to create such a specific item.

"I thought I asked you to make a cocktail, but it looks like you decided to make a whole dish." Proclaimed Wain was blowing out a puff of smoke.

"Huh, you asked me to surprise you. I could have just mixed some alcohol and squeezed a few drops of lemon or another citrus into that mixture. But would that have surprised you?" Sven muttered as he finished slicing the peppers.

He turned the peppers practically into a powder. It took thousands of motions to chop something so finely.

Then Sven took another jar that contained some rather large berries. He took one berry in his hands and swapped his knife for another one with a red, almost red-hot blade.

The berry was round with a thick black rind, more like a shell. Sven tossed the berry up and promptly made one cut.

A second later, the peeled berry and its peel fell into his hand. Sven tossed the peel into the trash, but he kept the berry and carefully placed it at the bottom of the crystal glass.

The berry looked like a tiny star without the peel, incredibly bright and warm. Wain thought he was looking at the little sun.

Then Sven poured the crushed pepper into the glass right on top of the berry and covered the glass with the lid.

Booom.

Even though the pepper was chilled, the berry exploded. The sound was deafening, but no destruction was caused by the explosion of the berry. The crystal glass was completely intact.

The yellow liquid lingering inside the berry mixed with the red pepper and turned into an orange liquid that emanated cold and heated at the same time. It was strange and should have been impossible, but it was.

"Half of the cocktail is ready, I need some more ingredients, but I'll have to step back for that. Don't get bored." Said Sven and headed for the door behind the bar.

'Yeah, the World of Darkness is a unique place indeed. In one space, you fight to the death, but in another, they make you a cocktail and make a real show.' Thought Wain was waiting for Sven.

After a while, Sven returned. In his hands were two small crates, a chill coming from one of them.

Click.

Sven opened one of the drawers and pulled out a rainbow snake, a small size. Wain was surprised. He didn't think Sven would bring a living creature here.

Whooosh.

The snake tried to attack Sven, but it lacked length as he held it tightly by its tail. Sven then grabbed the snake by the head and squeezed a few rainbow drops of venom from its fangs into a crystal glass.

Sven returned the snake to the box and opened another. To Wain's surprise, there were several frozen eyes. They were huge, resembling coconuts in size.

Sven picked up the knife again, but this time with the most common steel blade. He brought the ice-covered eye to the crystal glass and tapped the eye several times with the back of the blade.

The ice cracked in several places, and a white liquid gushed out of the ice-covered eye. It filled the glass to 70%, and the last ingredient was left for the cocktail to be ready.

Unlike the previous ones, the last ingredient was elementary and commonplace. It was whiskey.

Sven poured the whiskey, filled the crystal glass almost to the brim, then took the lighter and lit the liquid. The fire was an unusual green color that slowly turned blue and red.

"Cocktail - Glowing Ice, ready," Sven said and bowed slightly.

Wain grinned and put his cigarette aside. The last time he had tasted a cocktail prepared by Sven, he had had an unforgettable experience. Now, he expected nothing less.

Wain was a great lover and connoisseur of spirits. He liked the burning sensation in his throat. Also, in his world, Wain tried a lot of all kinds of cocktails, but Sven's skills were on a completely different level. He used amazing ingredients and techniques.

Wain brought the crystal glass to his mouth and took a sip. At that moment, he felt as if he were in the midst of a massive volcano, in the very center of the vent. However, a second later, he felt a chill as if from the glaciers.

The aftertaste was strange, almost tasteless, but with a unique tone. At that moment, Wain felt as if there were endless clouds in front of him. The aftertaste was like boundless freedom.

Wain could also feel the blood rushing through his body and the energy overwhelming him. Each cocktail made by Sven was like a new revelation.

When Wain had finished, he put the crystal glass aside and said smiling, "It was excellent, just like the last time. What's the price of this cocktail?"

"I'd tell you the price, but you've already paid it," Sven said.

"What? When?" Wain was puzzled.

"The last time you traded the Demon Ants' souls for one Void Soul, I also counted the price for the previous cocktail and for this one. I knew you'd come back and ask me to make you another one." Sven said with a slight smile on his face.

"And you said the first cocktail was free."

"It was until you asked. I didn't want to ruin the atmosphere."

"Okay, it's not a big deal. I wanted to ask you something, but I need to know something else before I do. I forgot to mention it last time. How much is one Void Soul? What's the price? And what kind of things can I buy for Void Souls?" Wain asked.

Different souls contained different amounts of Soul Essence, so depending on which souls Wain passed on, the number of Void Souls he could get would vary. 

He had to know the exact values to know how many souls he would have to spend if necessary.

Unfortunately, he could only get to this bar when he finds a spatial rift.