Chapter 30

"Is this the master's house?"

The day after the garden party, I was officially transferred the master's house, which had been seized by the Brighrader Margrave family, and came to check it out after school.

Though it was called a house, it was actually as large as a noble's villa, with a spacious garden and a high stone wall surrounding it for security purposes.

The main gate was quite impressive, and indeed, excellent adventurers seem to earn quite a lot.

It was also a mansion befitting the Brighrader Margrave family's resident mage.

"There's a small magic crystal here. This must be to recognize the master."

If I tried to open the gate as it was, the magical gate wouldn't budge.

If I used a powerful magic spell, it would break, but doing so would cause the small golems placed in the garden to gather.

Moreover, the Brighrader Margrave had told me this:

"This gate costs 500,000 cents as a magical device. It would be a waste to break it."

It would be meaningless to destroy such an expensive magical device just to enter.

This was also the main reason why the Brighrader Margrave family had left this mansion untouched for over ten years.

For the first year or so, many people claiming to be the master's relatives appeared, demanding his inheritance.

Though it was clearly a lie, the Brighrader Margrave family, which prided itself on fair governance, had no choice but to conduct a thorough investigation and announce the results, which took some time.

Those so-called relatives were found to be lying by the Brighrader Margrave family's investigation and were sent to the frontier for several years on suspicion of attempted fraud.

People should indeed work and earn their own living.

Ill-gotten gains do not last.

"Um... I remember the master's note said..."

The master had left a note explaining how to change the designated user of a magical device if I found one that only he could use.

The method itself wasn't particularly difficult.

I had heard a password or phrase from the master, and by touching the magic crystal and concentrating on it, the lock would be released. Then, I would set a new password by concentrating on it again.

Following the instructions in the note, the main gate opened immediately.

"Well, next is..."

Entering the grounds through the open gate, four small golems appeared to guard the mansion.

These golems, though small, were about two meters tall and surrounded me, issuing a warning.

"Warning to intruders: All humans except Master Alfred must leave immediately. Otherwise, you will be forcibly removed."

(A talking golem. It has an artificial personality formed by magic technology.)

Incidentally, this technology was commonplace during the ancient magical civilization era but is now a lost art.

Research is ongoing, but no results have been achieved yet.

Currently, only those brought back from ruins by adventurers are operational.

Modern golems cannot perform such precise movements.

They require the operator to be nearby, and even a simple command like "plow the field" would be difficult for them to execute.

At best, they might dig into the ground with a shovel and break its handle.

However, during wartime, they were quite useful.

By swinging their arms and weapons, they could defeat enemies and destroy fortifications.

In other words, modern golem magic is only useful in combat.

"I am the one who has been transferred the rights to this mansion by Master Alfred."

I declared this to the small golems and then, infusing my voice with magic, spoke the password to stop them.

The four golems immediately ceased their movements.

"Stopping was successful. Next is..."

Just like the gate, I touched the magic crystal embedded in the golems, infused it with magic, and sent a new password. A few seconds later, they successfully restarted.

"Recognized Vendelin as the new master in place of Master Alfred."

"Then, continue your duties."

"Understood."

After the golems dispersed back into the garden, I opened the front door using the same method.

Inside, the mansion looked as new as if it hadn't been abandoned for over ten years, with not a speck of dust.

"Indeed, the preservation magic is working well."

Feeling relieved that I wouldn't have to clean, I began searching the mansion.

On the first floor, there was a living room, study, kitchen, bathroom, and toilet.

In the basement, there was a locked warehouse containing a wine cellar with vintage wines and brandies.

Moreover, all the plumbing and cooking appliances were integrated with magical devices, including the bathtub and toilet.

Thinking back, I had struggled a lot with the rural conditions and the lack of civilization when I first transferred to this world as a child.

The toilet was a pit, and water had to be drawn from a well. Bathing was a hassle, so I could only manage it twice a week.

Especially the bath, I remember my body being itchy until I learned the magic to boil water.

In this mansion, I could freely use the bath and cook by occasionally replenishing the magic crystal's power.

"Indeed, Master. What a nice mansion you lived in."

This is such a good property.

Since it is now officially in my name, it would be a waste not to live here.

I immediately thought about processing the dormitory withdrawal and moving notice at the preparatory school.

The dormitory is for student support and should be given to others if someone like me has secured a place to live.

"Then, let's move in..."

Since I didn't have much luggage, I planned to move in alone, but it seemed impossible to keep it a secret.

"How did you get such a mansion?"

"By chance?"

"By chance, a mansion more luxurious than my and Louise's homes?"

They, being the children of vassals of the Brighrader Margrave family, couldn't be unaware of the poverty of my family.

Moreover, as rumored, their homes were more impressive than mine.

"Besides, you have a magical stove, a magical oven, a flush toilet, and automatic plumbing. We can't afford all that at home."

"Neither can we. We're from a rural lord's family."

The scale and appearance of a house are often made luxurious to avoid being looked down upon by the surrounding nobles and vassals.

As a result, they struggle to maintain a mansion that doesn't fit their status, and lower nobles or middle-class vassals like Louise and El's families can't afford magical devices.

"Same here. A magical stove is a luxury. We have a fireplace that burns wood, and even that is quite expensive."

"Is it because Ina's family provides meals to their disciples who learn spear techniques?"

"Likely the same for Louise's family."

"Probably."

Because of this, these two were surprisingly good at cooking.

During holidays, they would quickly prepare meals using the meat of animals they hunted.

"I can cook too."

"El, cooking is forbidden!"

"Indeed, that stew was inedible."

"Ina, it's not good to gloss over the facts. It was worse than animal feed."

Despite saying he used to make his own meals when he went hunting as a child, when I tried to make him cook, he produced terrible food.

However, he wasn't taste-blind.

He could tell when a restaurant was bad after a hunt.

In other words, his tolerance for edible food was quite low.

"Alright, let's make this our party's headquarters."

"That's a way of putting it. A public reason to hang around?"

"Vell, you got it."

"Well, even if you say I got it..."

Immediately after being found by El and the others, they started hanging around the mansion.

Since living alone would be boring, I told them to clean up and then let them do as they pleased.

"Well, as a fifth son of a noble, I have to be shameless to survive. I'll heat up the bath."

"Same here. As a third daughter of a vassal, I'll prepare dinner. I'm quite capable, you know."

"Vell, I'll make tea for you."

Thus, I successfully obtained my new home and was drinking tea with El and the others.

"Now that the semester exams are over, it's time to decide what to do during the summer break."

It had been about three months since I entered the adventurer preparatory school, and during that time, various events had occurred.

At the age of six, I awakened in this world and made my first friend.

His name was Elwin von Arnim, and like me, he planned to become an adventurer since he couldn't inherit his family's estate.

Despite being only twelve, he was already known as the best swordsman in the preparatory school, and his archery skills were also excellent due to his hunting experience.

Next, I saved two girls who were surrounded by a pack of wolves while hunting.

They were my classmates at the preparatory school: Ina Zuzane Hirenbrandt, a slender red-haired spear user, and her family were vassals of the Brighrader Margrave family, teaching spear techniques to soldiers.

The other girl, Louise Yolande Aurelia Opherville, was a water-blue-haired user of magic combat techniques, and her family were also vassals of the Brighrader Margrave family, teaching magic combat techniques to soldiers.

It made sense that they were skilled for their age.

Their initial encounter with the wolf pack was likely due to bad luck and lack of experience.

After that, without much ado, the two girls joined our party, and we started hunting together as a group of four.

It might be fate, though it feels a bit unsettling.

The highlight was when, for some reason, I received an invitation to the garden party hosted by the Brighrader Margrave family, where I met Brantark, the master of the master who taught me magic.

He used his ability to detect the magical signature of people he had met, even from a distance, and discovered that I had inherited a bag of magic from my deceased master, which contained supplies and food that the Brighrader Margrave army had entrusted to my master twelve years ago.

Given that he knew so much, I had no choice but to return the items.

If I caused a conflict, it could involve my family.

While I wanted to cut ties and become independent as soon as possible, my age made that impossible, so it was better to avoid trouble.

It turned out that my decision was correct.

I returned the vast amount of food and supplies and received 20% of their value as a reward. Additionally, I was recognized as the legal heir to my master's estate and inherited his mansion and assets in Brighburg.

Thanks to this, my total assets became enormous.

While I could live without working for the rest of my life, that would be a boring existence, as this world lacks games, manga, and the internet, which would make it extremely dull.

To cut a long story short, I was drinking tea with El and the others in my new home.

The adventurer preparatory school is a school, so there are exams.

While the education level is not as high as in my previous life, knowledge of history, geography, magic, and monsters is tested in written exams, so studying is necessary.

It's rare to fail, but forgetting this knowledge could be fatal, so everyone performs well in the written exams.

The practical exams carry significant weight.

Since a certain level of skill is required, everyone practices diligently before the exams.

For us special students, the practical exams were manageable, but we couldn't afford to be complacent, as failing in real combat would be meaningless, as our teacher, a former adventurer, often reminded us.

The summer break was approaching, lasting from July 7th to September 7th, nearly two months long.

This was due to the vast size of the Lingaia continent.

While most students come from relatively nearby, some take a month for the round trip.

Thus, the long summer break also served as training.

Since returning home was a form of training, the length of the break wasn't a problem.

"I won't be returning home, and neither will Louise."

"Right. You both commute from your homes here in Brighburg."

Ina and Louise, whose families are in Brighburg, don't need to return home.

They want to go hunting to earn money.

"I want to save up for new equipment."

"Same here as Ina."

"Me too."

"Huh? El, aren't you going home?"

I thought El, who comes from the west, would return home.

"Even if I go back, I'll just be in the way, so it's pointless."

I, being the eighth son of a minor noble, am treated as expendable, and El is in a similar situation.

Moreover, he has the best sword skills among his siblings, making it difficult for him to get along with his older brothers.

"Some of the vassals even suggest I should be the next head of the family because of my sword skills."

It's a familiar story, but as a head of a knight family, they often have to lead a small army in battle.

Thus, the vassals and soldiers who fight alongside them often desire a skilled successor.

Even in an era without war for over two centuries, this is a survival instinct of soldiers.

Occasionally, there are bandit hunts, and conflicts with neighboring lords are common.

Thus, skilled lower nobles are highly valued.

For major nobles, they can rely on multiple vassals, so it's not as necessary.

"I've been suggested the same."

"In your case, it's more serious."

Dealing with a skilled younger brother is manageable.

He could be married into a vassal family or recommended to the capital's guard.

However, it's different for a mage.

The more powerful magic they can use, the more the family tries to keep them.

In my case, my family never asked about my magical abilities.

Even if they did, I might not have told them, as my magical prowess could spark a succession dispute.

They probably didn't want to know, considering I was going to leave anyway.

"I have no intention of returning to my family."

I received a house in Brighburg and planned to use it as a base after graduating from the preparatory school.

The rich unexplored lands are easily accessible by teleportation.

"Then, will you do hunting part-time work, Vell?"

"I plan to increase my magic training frequency during the summer break."

My magic power hadn't reached its limit yet, and Brantark, my master's master, offered to teach me magic in his free time, so I wanted to prioritize that.

"Direct training from the Brighrader Margrave family's chief mage... Vell, are you a magic elite?"

My magic power is already several times that of Brantark.

However, he is a skilled and talented mage.

He has many useful original spells, including the ability to individually identify and detect magical signatures, and is also skilled in magic conservation techniques.

Learning magic conservation is difficult and time-consuming.

Even with extensive training, complete mastery is rare.

For example, if a regular fireball consumes 100 magic points, an inexperienced young mage might use 150, while a well-trained older mage might use only 10.

Swordsmen, despite their physical decline with age, can use their magic to enhance their physical abilities and extend their prime.

Some people with slightly more magic than average use it instinctively to enhance their physical functions.

Incidentally, we seem to have the potential for this.

Whether we can actually learn it depends on our future efforts.

Some mages with vast magic power never learn it and age normally, while others with less magic power learn it and remain agile despite their appearance.

It truly depends on talent and effort.

Additionally, some mages become stronger in old age due to magic conservation, even if their magic power decreases.

While many mages decline with age, this varies individually.

Recognizing and developing talent is key.

Moreover, the reason experienced mages are valued as retainers is due to these aspects.

"Two months of hunting and magic training with Brantark..."

After making these plans, I received an unexpected invitation from my brother Ehrich, with whom I regularly correspond.

"Ehrich is getting married. The ceremony is in the capital, and he invited me to come if I can."

Stattburg, the capital of the Helmut Kingdom, located slightly south of the center of the Lingaia continent, is a major city with a population of one million.

People from all over the kingdom and the northern Arkart Holy Empire visit, making it a center of economy, trade, and culture.

While the capital is far, I didn't want to miss this opportunity.

(Once I go to the capital, I can easily visit again using teleportation.) So, I decided to go to the capital.

"What about Brantark's training?"

"He said it's fine to wait a bit."

The capital is far, but as the capital of this country, there are ways to travel without taking too long.

"There's a magic airship that leaves from Brighburg once a week."

Brighburg is a semi-capital city representing the southern border region of the Helmut Kingdom.

Thus, it has a magic airship port.

"Ehrich probably thinks I'll travel by long-distance carriage. But I'll use the magic airship."

Comparing the two, a long-distance carriage takes about a month round trip and costs one silver plate, which is affordable for commoners.

On the other hand, the magic airship takes about five days round trip and two and a half days one way to the capital.

However, the fare is at least one gold coin, equivalent to about one million yen in Japanese currency.

It's similar to taking a plane for an overseas trip.

"Alright, I'm going to the capital too."

"Me too."

"Me too."

"Really? Is that okay?"

The fare for the magic airship is one gold coin, which I can easily afford.

However, I didn't think El and the others could afford it.

"I can pay for it, but it might make things awkward."

Additionally, if they don't repay it, it's because I couldn't see through it.

Considering this, I decided to lend them the fare for the magic airship.

My father in my previous life told me, "When lending money to friends, assume it won't be returned."

"Ehrich also wrote in his letter that if we have friends, they should come too."

In his imagination, we would travel together in a long-distance carriage for a month.

However, we planned to travel by the expensive magic airship.

"By the way