Chapter 1: Before Work

In order to maintain and defend the mansion I’d bought in Karelina, I had to buy some slaves.

I was surprised when Lambert said that, “Buying slaves is best,” but it seemed that the law regarding slaves in this country was solidly-written, and provided a much safer work environment than I imagined it would.

So, I formed a contract with the Tony and Alban families, as well as five adventurers.

I’d procured alarm clocks and taught everyone how to use them, so the next morning everyone gathered at eight o’clock, just like I’d told them.

Good, good. I like that they’re adhering to my schedule.

“All right then, let’s have breakfast.”

I’d already cooked. On the menu was vegetable consommé soup, sunny-side-up eggs, as well as lightly toasted white bread, 100% orange juice, and yogurt. I really couldn’t go along with Fel and the others and have meat right from the start of the day, so my breakfasts were always like this.

When it was just me, a lot of the time I’d just use instant soup, but today I made everything from scratch. All of it was still just really simple stuff, though.

Cut the bacon, cabbage, carrots, and onions into 1cm squares and cook them in an oiled pot. Then, add in water and set to boil before adding in some consommé bouillon cubes and simmering until the vegetables are soft. Lastly, just adjust the taste with salt and pepper to finish the vegetable consommé soup.

It was simple — a perfect soup for breakfast.

I gave it a taste test, and the flavor of the vegetables came through clearly. It was delicious.

I had everyone help me bring the food out to the dining room table. Both the Tony and Alban families seemed very excited to have eggs in the morning. The five adventurers seemed like they couldn’t wait to eat, either.

Eggs might be expensive in this world, but they were cheap through my Online Supermarket. They’d probably be really surprised if they knew that I could buy a pack of ten for only 2 copper.

I was going to have them prepare their own meals in a day or two, once they had everything they needed to get by, so I wanted to make sure to hand over lots of eggs along with all the other food I would give them.

“All right, let’s dig in.”

I’d already served my familiars their breakfast. It was meat as usual, of course.

This morning, I served them orc meat and vegetables with sweet-and-salty-miso stir fry rice bowls. They were chowing down heartily and looked like they really enjoyed them.

Now then, I should dig in myself.

I thought that, because we were having bread for breakfast, we’d need sunny-side-up eggs and sauce...... but none of the slaves were bothering to put anything on their eggs, even though I’d made sure to put out salt and pepper and Worcestershire sauce.

“There’s pepper and Worcestershire sauce there, so put as much as you like on your eggs.”

“P-Pepper?! Having eggs for breakfast is already the height of luxury, but we can even use pepper as well......? Is this really all right, just for breakfast?”

Barthel was surprised, hearing that I’d brought out pepper, and the other adventurers all seemed to react the same way.

The former adventurers had probably all made enough money to spare some for luxuries, and unlike the Tony’s and Alban’s, they would have had some opportunities to taste pepper before. So they would know just how valuable it was.

“Oh. It’s worth a lot here, but I can buy it for cheap with my skill.”

When I said that, the idiot twins put a lot of pepper on their eggs.

Hey, that’s totally too much, right? That’s just going to ruin the egg’s taste...

Well, that’s what I thought, but the idiot twins were still scarfing down the eggs while clamoring about how good it was.

“Hey, hey, big bro Mukohda, can Lotte use it too?”

“Of course you can. This is salt and pepper, and this is Worcestershire sauce. I recommend the sauce, but you’ve probably never tasted it before, so if you’re going to try it, you should just use a little at first.”

“Okayyy!”

Lotte poured just a little bit of Worcestershire sauce on her eggs. Then, she used her fork to cut off a piece from the fried eggs and ate it.

“De-wif-shuss!!” Lotte said, trying to talk and chew with her tiny mouth at the same time.

Looks like she enjoys the Worcestershire sauce.

After seeing Lotte’s reaction, the other children — Kosti, Selja, Oliver, and Erik — all did the same thing and put Worcestershire sauce on their eggs.

I got it, though. Kids would naturally be interested in new flavors they had never tried before. The flavor of the Worcestershire sauce went over very well with the kids, and they all happily scarfed down their eggs with the sauce.

“That looks good, doesn’t it?”

“Yeah.”

The twins were interested in the sauce, but they’d already put salt and pepper on their eggs.

......Wow, they eat fast. You already finished your eggs?!

“I’ll try the sauce.” Tabatha poured some Worcestershire sauce on her eggs.

“Yeah, this is delicious. It’s a perfect blend of saltiness, sourness, and sweetness.”

“Looks delicious. Big sis, give me a bite.”

“Me too.”

“What? You already ate your guys’ share.”

Tabatha paid no heed to the idiotic twins’ demands.

“Grrr...”

“Tch!”

............Hey, don’t look at me, you idiots. I don’t have any extra eggs for you.

Though it wasn’t just those two idiots — both Barthel and Peter had already finished their food and still looked like they wanted more.

I did prepare five slices of bread for each of them, though.

There was no other choice, so I brought out another three bags of ham and white bread. Those who hadn’t had enough quickly went for it.

“All right, you’re all done eating, right? We’re all going to go out now.”

We have the “food” and “roof” part of the three things a person needs to live. Next is clothing.

Both the Tony and Alban families basically came to me with just the clothes on their backs; the five former adventurers had weapons and armor since they needed that for their job, but other than that, they were no better off than the two families. I wouldn’t say that their clothing was worn to tatters, but they were coming apart in places, and their shoes were practically worn through. Nothing they had on could be called pretty, even as pure flattery.

Their current situation was only natural, but since they’d be working at my house from now on, I needed them to look more presentable than they currently did.

“Where are we going, big bro Mukohda~?”

“We’re going to buy clothes and shoes.”

“Clothes and shoes?! You’ll buy us new ones?”

“That’s right. Since all your clothes are so dirty.”

“Yayyy!”

Hearing that she would be getting new clothes, Lotte was bouncing up and down in happiness.

“C-Clothes are expensive, Mukohda. Are you sure?”

“You’re going to be working at my house, so I want you all to present a little better than you do right now. Of course, that applies to you adventurers too, Tabatha,” I said. Tabatha could not find any words to object, since she knew that the way they looked was a far cry from neat and tidy. “Now then, let’s go.”

With my three familiars as guards and with fourteen people in tow, we went shopping.

◇　◇　◇　◇　◇

“Hello, Lambert.”

I had taken my fourteen slaves to Lambert’s store.

“Well, if it isn’t Mukohda? Oh? So you’ve bought slaves already, I see.”

“Yes. Thank you for your advice back then. Sorry for imposing on you with so many people even though you’re busy.”

I wasn’t sure what to do since there were some shady people lurking around Lambert’s business, but I couldn’t think of a better place to buy shoes from than Lambert’s.

“Oh no, don’t worry about it. It looks like you did buy some slaves that can fight after all. They look quite reliable.”

“Yes. I had your letter of invitation, so I was introduced to some good slaves who were former adventurers.”

I mean, both Tabatha and Barthel were B-ranked, and no matter how foolish they were, the idiot twins were C-ranked. Even Peter was said to have potential even though he was only D-ranked.

“That’s good to hear. It seems those people have already found out about you, so showing them your slaves like this might be a good idea. If they know you have combat-capable slaves, then they’ll have to be more careful, too.”

That’s true. Even more so for skilled adventurers like Tabatha, probably.

“So, what do you need today?”

“About that — I’d like to order shoes for these fourteen people.”

If they’re going to keep working, I really can’t let them stay as they are...

Lambert, seeing the state of their shoes, seemed to understand.

“Certainly, I understand why you would be hesitant to let them into the house wearing those.”

Thus, Lambert picked out shoes for everyone.

“These ones here are made from red boar pelts. They’re a little bit pricey, but they’re tough and water-resistant, so they’ll last a long while. They’ve also been given a glossy treatment, as you can see, so they’ll match beautifully with any outfit.”

Lambert showed me a pair of glossy, laced, dark brown leather shoes made from red boar hide. They looked good.

I like these. It’s way better to buy something a little pricier that’ll last a while than something cheap that’ll get ruined quickly.

“All right, I’ll take them.”

“Understood. And how about these boots for the former adventurers? They’re made from the same red boar hide as the pair I just showed you, and there’s an iron plate over the toes, so not only are they tough, but they can also be used to attack even if the wearer is disarmed.” Lambert knocked on the toes of the boots as he spoke, producing a hollow metallic sound.

The five former adventurers listened to Lambert with rapt attention, their eyes on the boots.

They certainly do look tough. And that iron plate means kicks will hurt a lot.

“I’ll take those boots for all five of these ex-adventurers here.”

I bought a pair for everyone in their respective sizes. For the kids, I bought slightly too-large shoes to account for their growth.

It seemed that buying new shoes was a rare thing, so they were all really grateful.

The laced leather shoes were 1 gold and 6 silver per pair, while the boots with the iron toes were 2 gold and 4 silver per pair. In total, the shoes cost me 26 gold and 4 silver.

Though Lambert let me off with a flat 26 gold, since we’re friends. All my gratitude, my savior.

“I think I’m going to be asking them to help with the soap and shampoo and stuff, so they’ll be in your care as well.”

“All right. Understood.”

Lambert said that he would send a carriage from his shop to our house to pick up the goods when it was time to restock.

I worried about whether or not those men would attack, but the path from Lambert’s store to my house passed through the middle of town along roads that were fairly populated, so I was told that they probably wouldn’t try anything like that with so many potential witnesses around.

“If anything happens, Lambert......” I asked Lambert to shelter my fourteen slaves, and he gladly agreed.

Lambert’s been taking care of me so much on so many fronts... Let’s give him something next time as thanks.

“Alright then, thanks for taking care of me. Ah, I do have something I want to ask you. Are there any stores you recommend for buying clothes?”

“If that’s what you want, then just go straight from here and take a left on the first corner. You’ll find Martin’s Boutique there. His selection is large, so that’s my recommendation.”

Thus, we left Lambert’s shop to buy clothes.

◇　◇　◇　◇　◇

“If that’s what you’re looking for, then this would be it.”

The owner of the store showed me a black dress with a long skirt that went down to the ankles, covered by a white apron. In other words, it was a maid uniform, in what I thought was called the Victorian style.

Martin’s Boutique, which Lambert recommended to me, did indeed have a large selection, as he said. The owner of the store apparently hailed from the town of Krehl, a place I’d visited before, and he used that connection to get good clothing.

The owner attended to us as soon as we entered the store. I asked what kind of clothes would be appropriate for each group, explaining that the women of the Tony and Alban families would manage the house, the men would work outside maintaining the grounds, and the five former adventurers would be in charge of security.

So, the maid clothes he showed me were for the women who’d be working in the house.

“This is definitely it for slaves who work in a mansion. Not only does this give off a dignified appearance, but stains won’t stand out on a black dress. And even if the apron is dirty, it can just be switched out.”

I see. So that’s why maid clothes are practical.

I bought three dresses for each of the women so they’d have extras to change into (I figured they’d be changing aprons more frequently, so I got six for each of them).

I thought that regular clothes would be better for Lotte, who was only five, but she herself said, “Lotte wants this too!” So, respecting her wishes, I got her the same maid uniform. Though this store was well-stocked in terms of variety and size, it was still surprising that they had a child’s size set of maid clothes as well.

“As for the men, this is definitely what you want.”

The owner recommended a set of olive-colored overalls for the men. The cloth looked thick and tough. I asked Tony, who used to be a gardener, about it, and apparently that was what he used to wear on the job as well.

If that’s the case, then these should be fine.

I bought each of them three sets of overalls, and six shirts since they’d probably change a lot due to sweating.

“And these should be good for the former adventurers.”

The owner showed me a pair of thick grey pants with the threads of a monster called a steel spider woven in, so they were extremely durable. They seemed like they’d be able to defend against blades around the size of a knife. Not only that, but the material was very breathable, so they were very popular with adventurers.

Huh? I kinda want some of these too. They are a little expensive, but since they’re all going to be putting their lives on the line to defend my place, it should be worth it.

I bought three pairs of pants for each of them, as well as six shirts each (and three pairs of pants for myself, of course).

As for their undergarments, I really didn’t want to impose my opinions there (especially for the women), so I had each of them choose five for themselves.

“All right then, that will be 77 gold in total.”

Clothes really do cost quite a bit, don’t they?

I paid for the clothes and left Martin’s Boutique.

The adults all seemed slightly troubled over the extremely generous treatment they were receiving, considering I just bought all of them several sets of clothes. However, I’d much prefer that they looked clean and neat, even if it cost a bit of money.

“I bought you all extra sets, so make sure you are always clean.”

Everyone nodded quietly when I said that. Still, it seemed that clothes were the same as shoes, in that it was rare to buy new ones, so they were all moved, seeing all their new clothes.

As for the men’s underwear and socks, I planned to hand over some sets of my favorite brand from my skill later, since the underwear from my Online Supermarket was cheaper and much more comfortable.

Now then, this should do it for all their daily necessities. With all this, I think I can finally start having them work and cook for themselves tomorrow.

I should hand over food to them too. For the meat, I’ll share a portion of what I have, but I’ll need to get the vegetables from the market. If that’s the case, then I guess the market’s the next stop.

I took everyone’s purchases and stored them all in my Item Box for the moment before leading our grand procession to the market.

◇　◇　◇　◇　◇

“I think that’s all you need for your daily activities, so I’ll be having you all work starting tomorrow. Is that fine?” I asked — to no objections.

“All right then. Also, I think that from tomorrow on you all should be responsible for cooking for yourselves......”

There shouldn’t be any problems with both the Tony and Alban families. The only uncertainty is......

“Tabatha and the rest of you, will you be all right?” I asked.

The five former adventurers looked at each other.

“I’m useless at cooking.”

“Me too......”

“As if I’d be able to.”

“Same here.”

Barthel, Peter, Luke, and Irvine all spoke one after the other.

Well, it’s not as if I expected anything out of those four anyway.

“Uhhh, what about you, Tabatha?”

“Does our sis look like she can cook, Mukohda?”

“Yeah, yeah. You shouldn’t expect anything on that front from our big sis.”

Luke and Irvine continued on, excitedly saying, “That soup big sis made before was just awful, wasn’t it?” But there was a shadow sneaking up on the idiot twins......

*Gong!* *Bonk!*

The idiot twins were met with Tabatha’s fist.

These guys never learn, do they?

“If that’s the case, then you’ll all just have to rely on Aija and Thereza for your meals. Can you two do that?”

““Yes.””

Luckily the two of them had been housewives for a long time and were reliable cooks. Hence, it was decided that Aija and Thereza would work together to cook for all of them, the five former adventurers included.

With Aija’s and Thereza’s input, I bought mostly vegetables that would keep for a long time from the market — cabbages, carrots, onions, and potatoes. I bought three large bags of each.

Then, I bought some tomato-like vegetables, broccoli-like vegetables, and several types of mushrooms, though they wouldn’t last as long.

I told the two of them that they didn’t have to worry about shelf life, but they were housewives to the end. They said that it would be a waste if they went bad, so we ended up buying a lot of things that would stay fresh for a long time.

They really didn’t need to worry about that though — I was considering lending them one of my magic bags. After all, I had gotten a magic bag (extra-large) from Aveling’s dungeon as well as a magic bag (large) from my second time in Dolan’s dungeon.

Fel and the others needed the larger one for when they went hunting, but I could give the women my magic bag (large). It could fit quite a lot inside, and it also stopped time for whatever was inside it, so they wouldn’t have to worry about meat and vegetables and stuff going bad, and I wouldn’t have to worry about them going hungry while I was out traveling.

Of course, I’ll still make sure to hand over some provisions whenever I plan to leave.

Having bought mainly vegetables at the market, on the way back I bought red boar skewers at a stall for lunch. I had to buy some for Fel and the others as well, so it turned into quite the amount, but the old man who owned the cart seemed happy for the sudden windfall.

◇　◇　◇　◇　◇

I was taking a coffee break after having a lunch consisting of the red boar skewers and white bread bought with my skill, when I had a sudden thought.

“Oh right — if you guys are gonna be working the grounds, won’t you need tools?”

I’d served everyone apple juice, so Tony put aside his apple juice and nodded. “Yes. If it’s tools you need, I think the place I always use should have them.”

I see, then maybe I should just go buy them at this store. No, wait a second. Maybe......

I opened up my Online Supermarket.

Uhhh... Gardening tools, gardening tools...... There they are.

“Can I get you to look at this, Tony?”

I had Tony look at the menu and learned that the gardening tools sold through my Online Supermarket were basically the same as the ones people used in this world. At Tony’s suggestion, I bought pruning shears, gardening shears, gardening trowels, and small sickles. I also thought they’d need scythes to cut the lawn, and stepladders (though, as I expected, the Online Supermarket didn’t sell those, so I had Tony go and buy them).

According to Tony, the shop would deliver the items to you if you asked, so there was no need for me to go with him. He told me that 4 gold would be enough to get tools for everybody, but I handed him 5 gold just in case.

“Ok then. Luke, Irvine, go with him as escorts.”

I gave the idiot twins an order, causing them to start complaining, “Why us?”

“You would have been able to buy something to eat on the way home if you had change though... If that’s the case, I’ll pick someone else......”

“Wait just a second! I’ll go! Let me go!”

“I’ll do this job as best as I can!”

You guys... Just say that from the beginning. “Right then... Tony, can you take them with you?”

“Yes.”

After I saw the three of them off, I asked those who stayed behind if they needed any other daily necessities.

“If that’s the case, then if I could get a larger pot......” Thereza spoke up, though she still sounded hesitant.

Now that I think about it, I guess the pot I gave them is a bit too small if they’re cooking for fourteen people. I only gave them small- and medium-sized pots, didn’t I? The frying pan I gave them was also only about medium-sized, so maybe I should give them a larger one, too?

Though the buildings were old, the servant’s houses did come equipped with magic stoves with two burners. So, I quickly opened up my Online Supermarket and bought larger cookware — two sets of each for Thereza and Aija, who would be in charge of the cooking.

With these, they should be able to cook for everyone.

Nobody could think of anything else, so I just told them to let me know if they found that they needed anything.

Also, that stuff about the magic stoves reminded me of something I needed to buy. The magic stoves already came with magic stones installed, but there were things that didn’t — namely, the baths.

I needed to buy magic stones for the bath tanks. I didn’t have any extra-small stones on hand, after all. But where would I buy them?

I guess I should just go ask about it at the Adventurer’s guild for now. I have something I want to ask the guildmaster for, too.

◇　◇　◇　◇　◇

I took Fel and the others with me to the Adventurer’s guild.

The staff member who spotted me jumped up out of his seat — and the guildmaster appeared quickly after that.

“Yo, didn’t we say you’d be coming back tomorrow to pick up everything? Or did you come to take on a request?”

“No no, that’s not it. It’s something different from the sale of monsters......”

“I see. Then I’ll hear it out upstairs. All right?”

We climbed up to the guildmaster’s room on the 2nd floor.

◇　◇　◇　◇　◇

“......Well, I came to report that I bought a house here.”

I shared my real estate dealings with the guildmaster, as well as how I had bought slaves to manage said house, and I told him about the trading company of ill-repute that was watching Lambert’s business.

“ALLLL RIGHT! YES! YES YES! NICE! Now this town has its own S-ranked adventurer!”

Hey, come on, don’t get so excited.

“Excuse me, guildmaster. I may have bought a house here, but that doesn’t mean I’ve decided to settle......”

“What’re you talking about? You not only bought a house, but you bought slaves too, right?”

“Yeah, well... That’s true, but......”

“So, like, you’ll still be traveling a lot as an adventurer, but you’ll be coming back to this town, or something?”

“Well of course, since I have a house.”

“Then doesn’t that mean you’ve decided which town to make your base?”

............Is that how it is?

“At any rate, it’s still great that an S-ranked adventurer has decided to make this place his base!”

I guess this is a really welcome turn of events for a guildmaster. Well, if that’s the case, then I guess it’ll be easier to ask for what I want.

“So, continuing the topic, if something were to happen, I’d appreciate it if you’d shelter my slaves at the Adventurer’s guild.”

I had asked Lambert for the same thing, but it’s best to have options.

“Of course. Easily done. Still, it seems like you’re mixed up in some troublesome stuff.” It seemed that the guildmaster knew of the people in question, the Staas trading company. He put on a grim expression.

“I hear that their backer is Baron Krbec, and both he and the company are real sly. Basically, it’s hard to catch on to their trails.”

From what the guildmaster said, even though Baron Krbec was just a low-ranked baron, he was still a noble, so unless one had hard evidence, there was no way to arrest him. According to the guildmaster,The people up top had been racking their brains over this too.

“Also, this is just my opinion, but the lower-ranked nobility is full of the worst kinds of people. This whole thing is just evidence of that. They should have been told about you by the king, but......”

The guildmaster surmised that they weren’t taking it seriously because, for someone as lowly ranked as a baron, he’d mostly be hearing about me through several layers of relayed messages. Also, the lower-ranked nobles, who were closest to commoners, tended to be much prouder of their noble status, the guildmaster explained with a touch of irony. Given that, they didn’t really care what happened to lowly commoners, and probably wouldn’t really care about what the Staas trading company did, since they produced a lot of profit.

“But if that’s the case, then doesn’t that mean that even if they attack me or my place, unless I have hard evidence, it’ll be impossible to punish either the Staas trading company or Baron Krbec?”

“Well, yeah.”

“It seems like the Staas trading company is slippery as all hell, so if they do attack me or my place, then they probably won’t leave any evidence that leads back to them, would they......?”

“Probably not. Even if they paid someone from the underworld to do it, they’re unlikely to hire them in a way that could be traced back to the company.”

What the hell... doesn’t that mean they’re free to attack as they like?

“Well, the best thing is to not get attacked in the first place, right? The fastest way to make sure of that is to get a backer or some sort of connection that’ll force Baron Krbec and the Staas trading company to stay their hand.”

So, it’s come to this......

I did hear that they probably wouldn’t touch Lambert’s shop directly, since he had Earl Langridge’s favor, after all.

I might have to consider something like that, too.

I considered nobles more trouble than they were worth, so I had avoided them as much as possible until now.

But considering everyone’s safety, I might have to build a connection with a noble, won’t I...... If it was just me, I have Fel and the others, so I wouldn’t be worried, but I can’t afford to shrug this off now. Especially when I’m off traveling. I’d be worried about leaving things as they are. Even if Tabatha and the other ex-adventurers are skilled, I have no idea what those guys will try.

“Do you think I’ll be able to build a connection to Earl Langridge, guildmaster?”

“I thought you’d say that. I’ll have to report that you bought a house here anyway, and you also found that mithril mine before, so it should be fine.”

Oh, things might be easier than I thought. But......

“Should I bring a gift or something, since I’m meeting him?”

“Well, of course. Presenting a gift will leave a much better impression than showing up empty-handed.”

Makes sense, huh~? But if I were to just bring soap or shampoo, it would lack impact, wouldn’t it? They’re already being sold in Lambert’s shop, so the earl probably already has some, after all.

“I wonder what would be good for a present to the earl?”

“Hmmm, when you get to be an earl you can get most things yourself...”

Right? He’s probably rich, after all.

“Would you happen to know of any rumors or anything that would tell me what he would like?”

I had my Online Supermarket, so I could probably prepare something for him according to his preferences.

“Let’s see............ Ah! Oh yeah, I remember that the earl has the same worries as me.”

“The same worries as you, guildmaster?”

“You see......”

The guildmaster passionately talked about his hair troubles.

Apparently, the guildmaster had been at this job for almost 20 years, so given his long relationship with Earl Langridge, they were close enough to talk about personal subjects. And it seemed that one of the subjects that would come up was their hair.

Even though our worlds may be different, I guess this sort of thing always comes up once you get to a certain age.

The guildmaster said that the source of his worries was the hairs he was finding on his pillow and his gradually receding hairline.

Now that he mentions it, I can see it’s receded a fair bit already.

“I’ve tried a lot of medicines, but none of them worked,” he lamented, voice laden with profound grief.

So they’re worried about hair thinning and falling out, huh? There should be something for this in my Online Supermarket, if I remember correctly......

I think I might have seen something like that while I was looking through shampoos and hair treatments for Kisharle......

“If that’s the case, I might be able to do something about it.”

*Clatter*

“WHAT?!!”

The guildmaster stood up, the look in his eyes completely different.

“H-Hey! ‘Do something about it’? Does that mean you have something like that?!!”

Wai—! You’re too worked up, guildmaster!

“I mean, well, I just might have a lead on something......”

“*Ahem* So you’ll be giving that to the earl?”

“Yes, possibly.”

“However, I think you should confirm if it works before you hand it over to the earl.”

............You just want it, don’t you?

“If you give it to him and it doesn’t end up working, the earl’s joy will be short-lived. He could become very angry, you know?”

Well, he does have a point. The effects for stuff like this won’t show themselves that quickly, but at the very least it might be good to make sure it won’t cause a scalp rash or something.

And there’s someone here who totally wants to use it, too.

“All right then, guildmaster. Will you please try it out?”

“Indeed! I will take responsibility and test it.”

The conversation ended with the agreement that I would hand the medicine over tomorrow when I came by to pick up the proceeds from the sale I made last time.

“Tomorrow for sure. Make sure you bring it.”

“I know already. Ah, right. I want some very small Water and Fire magic stones. Do you know where to buy them?”

“Very small magic stones? We sell them here.”

Since the magic tools that adventurers used in their daily lives need very small magic stones, the Adventurer’s guild stocked that size specifically.

I learned I could just buy them at the receptionist counter.

I went and bought three each of the very small Water and Fire magic stones I needed (they still cost 2 gold each even at that size) and left the Adventurer’s guild.

Once I get back, I’m gonna need to use my skill to buy some hair tonic.

◇　◇　◇　◇　◇

Once I got home, I installed the Water and Fire magic stones in the bath tanks in the servants’ houses. I made sure to confirm that hot water would come out; it worked perfectly.

After that, I taught everyone how to use soap and shampoo. While I was doing that, I realized that they would need soap trays, water buckets, and body towels to wash themselves with, so I used my skill to buy enough for all of them.

Meanwhile, Tony and the idiot twins returned. They reported that the scythe for the lawn and the stepladder would be delivered tomorrow morning.

Dinner was a grand feast of pre-cooked foods. I had ginger-fried and miso-fried orc as well as blue bull and peppers stir fry left, so I made rice bowls out of them. I was worried about whether or not everyone would be okay with rice, but fortunately, they were all fine with it.

In that respect, I was just happy that they seemed more interested in how much Fel and the others were clearly enjoying the food. Especially the idiot twins......

“Ah! Hey! That’s Fel’s share! Your food’s over here!”

At some point, the idiot twins had started on one of the steak rice bowls I’d left aside for Fel’s extra helpings.

And of all things, they were eating steak rice bowls with Fel’s favorite steak sauce on it.

“Ah, really? Sorry, sorry. But this sure is good~.”

“My bad, my bad. But we already started, so we can finish it, right?”

*BONK* *THUNK*

As I predicted, Tabatha’s fist rained down upon them, a bit stronger than normal.

“Sorry, Mukohda. And I apologize to you, great Fel, as well. Hey! You two apologize also!!”

““Sorry...””

The idiot twins bowed to Fel in apology while rubbing the spot on their heads where they got hit.

But Fel the meat lover’s rage was not quelled......

*Rumble rumble rumble rumble*

Fel, who had his food stolen, stood in front of the two of them with an angry expression.

“Stealing my food is inexcusable. Insolent ones like you will meet their end in my jaws......”

“Wai—! Now, now, now, let’s just calm down. They both apologized, so just forgive them this time. Come on.” I hurried to stop Fel, who bared his teeth and started talking about some violent things.

And as one might expect, the two of them turned pale in fear after seeing Fel’s expression.

“You would defend these insolent fools?”

“N-No, I wouldn’t put it like that...... But they apologized, and they’re like, my slaves, right? M-More importantly, I’ll make you a more delicious steak rice bowl than the one they just ate. So just calm down, okay?”

I used telepathy to tell him, 《I’ll make you a steak rice bowl with dragon meat.》

Please, spare me from having someone die in the house I just bought.

《Fine. I will let them off for today in exchange. But these two who stole my meat will meet their comeuppance soon. Hmph!》 Fel replied ominously, giving the idiot twins a sharp glare.

Hey now. I’m just saying, but they’re my slaves, so don’t do anything too ridiculous, please.

Really. I’m begging you.

◇　◇　◇　◇　◇

The next morning, the fourteen gathered before me looked like completely different people after taking refreshing baths and wearing the new clothes and shoes I bought for them.

“Okay then. I said this yesterday, but the maintenance of the grounds will be led by Tony, while the maintenance of the main house will be headed by Aija and Thereza. The men will also be helping to repack the soaps and shampoos, and at that time you will also be led by Aija and Thereza. Tabatha will be leading security, and one person will be guarding the gates while the rest of you patrol the grounds. I’d like one of you to be on guard, or rather, on watch at night as well, so work that out among the five of you.”

After finishing dinner last night, we had had a meeting about their jobs.

For maintenance of the grounds, I had appointed Tony as the leader since he had experience.

I had Aija and Thereza lead the maintenance of the main house, as well as the repackaging of the soaps and shampoos, which would be done by all the members of the Tony and Alban families. For their part, the children would only work in the morning.

Everybody would work six days a week and rest on the seventh. The pay for the Tony and Alban families would be 1 gold a week for each family.

Their pay had been decided when we had formed the slave contract. I thought it might be too little, but Radoslav the slave merchant had said, “this much pay is already too extraordinary,” and stopped me from raising it any further.

I still think it’s far too little, but I’m paying for their food and other living expenses, so I’m coming around to thinking that it’s fine.

As for security, the men were all the type to do whatever they pleased, or go their own way on things, so I chose Tabatha, who seemed good at taking care of people, to be their leader. I had one of them guarding the gates at all times, and the rest patrolling the grounds. I wanted someone to be on watch at night too, so I needed them to work out a good system. I told them to set up a rotation, and to ensure that everyone had a day off at least every ten days.

Providing security was basically putting their health at risk, so the pay was 1 gold a week per person. I thought the pay was too little, just like with the Tony and Alban families, but according to Radoslav, “This is too much already.”

At any rate, that was how they began work.

Ah, and I also used my Online Supermarket to buy a lot of cleaning tools for Aija and Thereza. I got a set of five dust cloths, buckets, brooms, mops, handheld dusters, adhesive tape carpet cleaner, an environmentally-friendly multi-purpose detergent, and so on.

Of course, I gave them a lecture on how to use everything too.

Lotte was still really young, so I didn’t mind if she wanted to just go and play, but she took a liking to the tape, and she was having fun rolling it around.

I got multiple copies of these tools so that they could use them in their own houses as well.

After all, it feels much nicer to live in a clean house.

After I sent them all off to work, I took Fel and the others and left for the Adventurer’s guild.