Chapter 147

‘Once we enter the labyrinth, we probably won’t be able to come back up for a long time.’ #144. The Residents of the Mansion (2)

“As expected, it’s an absurdly huge mansion.”

“Even seeing it again, it’s massive. Right?”

Marin and Yuria couldn’t help but marvel in front of the mansion.

“You’ve arrived.”

“Logie, you found your way here well.”

“We got a little lost, but since the mansion is so large, we could see it from afar and got here quickly.”

“That’s a relief. This here is Erika, a member of Lady Leah’s party.”

“Ah, hello. I’m Erika, specializing in healing magic.”

“Nice to meet you. I’m Inquisitor Logie.”

“Wow..!”

Erika fidgeted nervously in front of Logie, lowering her gaze.

It wasn’t a matter of status difference, but you can’t ignore rank insignias.

Given Logie’s absurdly high rank, from Erika’s perspective, it was no different from meeting a figure on par with a saint.

To begin with, inquisitors are all a bit unhinged in one way or another, so they’re not the kind of people you see every day, which probably made her even more nervous.

“Well, since introductions are more or less done, shall we go inside?”

“Sure. But, what’s up with that golem?”

“Ah, this guy is an autonomous golem. His name is Roy.”

“Pleased to meet you.”

“It talks?! A golem?!”

Having only seen clay golems until now, Rika was amazed by Roy, realizing once again just how advanced the labyrinth city’s technology was.

In reality, it was just a soul stuffed inside, though.

“Manager-nim. Everyone’s here, so could you open the door?”

“Ah, yes. I’ll open it right away. And here-take these keys too.”

“There are quite a few keys.”

“Yes, yes. All the keys that can unlock any door in the mansion are on this keyring. With this, Shion-nim is now the official owner of the mansion.”

The land manager handed over the keys with a smile. He looked oddly relieved, as if he had happily offloaded a burdensome stock.

“Then let’s all go inside and take a proper look around. First, let’s open the windows and air the place out.”

There was a lot of accumulated dust inside, so it needed some ventilation.

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Perhaps because there were many people, the work was finished quickly. The party members each checked areas that needed repairs and removed the curtains to let sunlight into the house.

Proper ventilation and letting sunlight disinfect the house are very important. It helps eliminate pests and prevents mold in advance.

“It’s much bigger than I thought.”

“Right. It looks like even fifty people could live here with space to spare.”

The mansion was so large and spacious that you could even establish a mercenary group and use it as a communal building.

The mansion was divided into three main buildings.

First, there was the largest main building. Next to it was a three-story annex that could be used for various purposes.

It seemed the previous owners had used the annex as just a storage space.

“This is a greenhouse. We can grow flowers even in winter.”

“It’s really nice.”

Inside the greenhouse, untended grass and flowers had grown wildly.

There were also more bugs than expected, so I thought I’d call a cleaning crew later to clear it all out.

“Let’s start work properly tomorrow.”

“Understood. I’ll contact the people I know.”

We decided to get carpenters and cleaners through the land manager. He said he’d arrange the contacts himself, so tomorrow they’d come and clean up the mansion thoroughly.

Of course, since rumors of the mansion being cursed were rampant, not many people were willing to come, and we had to pay three times the usual rate. But the mansion was too large for us to clean up on our own.

“Then let’s call it a day for now. And since we’ll probably be able to move in by this weekend at the latest, please prepare in advance.”

“Sounds good. Hehe.”

“I should pack my belongings.”

Everyone seemed satisfied. Rien, who got the annex as her workshop, looked especially delighted.

Mages generally love having their own private space, and since this was practically Rien’s first workshop, her enthusiasm was immense.

Once her income stabilizes, she’ll probably make and research all sorts of things there.

Rien is smart, so she’ll produce results quickly, and as the landlord, I’ll get to enjoy the crumbs.

“Alright, then. I’ll be a bit busy tomorrow, so I’ll contact you all separately the day after.”

Tomorrow, I’ve been summoned to a high-level meeting with Rafnel regarding the underground city. So I’ll meet the party again the day after.

I sent Lady Leah and the rest of the party on their way.

Now comes the real issue.

“Marin. You can’t handle it alone, can you?”

“If we’re including the greenhouse and annex, it’ll be a bit tough for me alone.”

“Got it.”

I’ll probably need to buy at least three more slaves.

The main building can be managed by Marin and two new slaves. It’d also be good to have a slave to manage the greenhouse and annex.

‘Once we enter the labyrinth, we probably won’t be able to come back up for a long time.’

I should take proper measures before going down.

Once I descend this time, I probably won’t return until the underground city is conquered.

I might not come back up for over a month. So it’s better to take care of everything I can in advance.

Once inside the labyrinth, it’ll be hard to hear news from above.

“It’d be nice to have a chef too.”

“A chef, you say?”

“Yeah. If we have a chef, we won’t need to buy food from restaurants.”

To eat warm food in the labyrinth without lighting a fire, we’d need to buy ready-made meals from restaurants. But if I had a personal chef, I could get a lot of food prepared quickly, which would be convenient.

“In that case, would you consider hiring my mother?”

“Your mother?”

“Yes. My mother’s cooking skills are exceptional.”

I was wondering where to hire a chef, and Roy suggested his own mother.

“Come to think of it, I haven’t met your mother yet.”

“Haha. That’s right. You might as well make an offer while visiting her.”

“Alright, I’ll keep that in mind.”

Maybe I’ll hire Roy’s mother as the chef.

It’d be easier for Roy that way too.

“Yuria, do you want to go home first?”

“Why? Are you going somewhere?”

“I’m going to visit Roy’s house for a bit.”

“Ah.”

I thought it might not be good to go in a big group.

It could create an awkward atmosphere. Roy’s mother still doesn’t know about his current state, and having Yuria and Marin standing around awkwardly wouldn’t be ideal.

“I’ll go home first. Good luck.”

“Got it.”

So Roy and I headed to the densely populated residential area in the western part of the labyrinth city.

It was better off than the eastern red-light district or the northern slums, but it still didn’t seem like a particularly wealthy neighborhood.

Being quite far from the affluent districts, the houses looked very old and worn.

“Is this it?”

“Yes. This is the house. But…”

“It seems like no one’s home.”

Roy and I entered his house.

The interior was dark and gloomy, with little sunlight and not a single candle lit.

“I sense a presence in that room.”

If someone didn’t come out even after hearing people enter the house, it probably meant they weren’t in good condition.

Roy and I hurried into the bedroom.

“Wh-Who are you…?”

“……”

A middle-aged woman, barely managing to sit up in bed. That must be Roy’s mother.

She looked utterly drained, as if she had given up on life. Probably because Roy hadn’t returned.

Nearly two months had passed since the cataclysm, and with no word from her son, she seemed broken.

Roy staggered toward the bed where his broken mother lay.

He couldn’t shed tears in his golem body. But just because he couldn’t cry doesn’t mean he wasn’t grieving.

Roy must be weeping inside right now.

“Mom. It’s me.”

“Wh-What?! Hey..! You can’t just barge into someone’s house like this…”

“It’s Roy. Roy.”

“What…? Hey.. this hunk of metal is talking…”

“I’m not sure how to explain this, but. Hmm.”

I carefully explained the situation.

Roy had died in the labyrinth, I discovered his soul with my ability, and after rescuing him, I placed his soul into a golem’s body.

“Is.. is that true…?”

“Yes. It must be hard to believe and shocking, but it’s the truth. Hey, Roy. Isn’t there something only the two of you would know?”

“Uh… that time when I tried to elope with the girl next door as a kid?”

“You damn brat! It really is Roy!”

This guy had quite the colorful past.

At Roy’s words, his mother immediately got out of bed.

“So, you really died? Seriously? Oh, you foolish child… Look at what you’ve become!”

“Aah! It hurts! Well, not really, but! Mom, stop!”

“You damn brat. I told you to just learn a trade and live quietly. But no, you had to go into the labyrinth. You idiot. Stupid brat. I told you you’d die! And now you’re dead? What about resurrection? Can’t you be resurrected?”

“Well… there’s no body.”

“Oh no… Oh no… You fool. You stupid, stupid child… Oh no…”

And so, the wailing began.

This is why I didn’t bring Yuria and Marin. There’s no good in outsiders witnessing this. They’d just feel awkward.

“Um, ma’am. Please calm down first…”

“Do I look like I can calm down right now?! Oh no… you brat… You can’t even be resurrected…”

Roy’s only options now were to live forever as a golem or steal someone else’s body.

“Steal a body?! No! Just live like this. Be content with your metal body. No. You can’t just take someone else’s body for your own sake.”

“Got it. But then I won’t be able to get married. Is that okay?”

“Just the fact that you’re alive is enough for me. I’m… I’m fine with this.”

It’s good that the conversation ended well.

Afterward, I decided to hire Roy’s mother.

Since Roy would be going into the labyrinth with me, she readily agreed, knowing she could see her son often if she came to our mansion.

“Spend some time alone with your mom today. I’ll go to the slave market.”

“Are you sure you don’t need an escort?”

“It’ll be fine.”

The heretics have mostly been wiped out.

No one would dare target me. The labyrinth city’s security isn’t great, but there aren’t many bold enough to commit crimes against adventurers.

“It’s been a while since I’ve been to this neighborhood.”

I headed to the black market. Human slaves are fine, but after using Marin, I think slaves cursed with transformation might be better.

Just look at Marin. Top-tier at dust removal and doesn’t even need food. Isn’t she the cream of the crop among slaves?

“Long time no see.”

“Gah! You bastard! You’re back?!”

This was the same shop where I bought Olivia and Marin.

I haggled both down to absurdly low prices. Maybe that’s why the shopkeeper trembled with rage the moment he saw me.

“Really. Isn’t it rude to react like that to a customer?”

“Damn it! No! No discounts today.”

“We’ll see about that.”

“You little-!”

“Honestly, this is my third visit already. At this point, I’m a regular. You should treat me better.”

“You pervert…”

“I’m not buying sex slaves! Ah, whatever. Just show me the goods. I think I’ll buy a lot today.”

“What? A lot?”

“Yeah. At least three.”

“…Follow me.”

When I said I’d buy at least three, his tone softened slightly.

I followed the slave trader underground.