Chapter 14, Exploring The Fortress, Then Renovation

Translator: Lizz

 

“Edward, please make something with this.”

 

When the two turned towards Sylvia’s voice, they saw that she had created another piece of mysterious meat.

 

Edward smiled at Sylvia with a scary grin, making Sylvia flinch.

 

“Lady Sylvia, what are you doing? I asked you to prepare the feed for the livestock because I couldn’t do it myself… but I didn’t ask you to produce meat, did I?”

 

Edward said this with exaggerated politeness.

 

“Uh, ah, um.”

 

“Lady Sylvia, your magic is extremely useful. Therefore, you don’t need to use magic to prepare things that Gina and I can handle. Your magical power is limited, so it would be problematic if you ran out of it when it’s really needed. Do you understand?”

 

“Yes.”

 

Sylvia shrank back.

 

Gina hurriedly intervened.

 

“I wanted to eat meat! Let’s grill some meat for lunch! Alright? Lady Sylvia, I’ll take this.”

 

She took the meat from Sylvia with a smile.

 

Edward sighed and muttered to himself.

 

“Looks like we’ll be weeding again today.”

 

The livestock made peaceful sounds, as if they were motivated for Sylvia’s sake.

 

The mysterious meat was stored in the cold storage in the kitchen, and then the three of them set out to explore the first floor.

 

In addition to the kitchen, there were barracks and an armory, and towards the middle, on the seaside, there was a forge. On the opposite side, there were stables and a barn. Nearby, there seemed to be a place that looked like a field.

 

The three of them stopped there, and Edward crossed his arms as he looked over the courtyard with the stables.

 

“The livestock would be better off here. It gets good sunlight, it’s wider than the back gate, and if we fix it up, they will have dedicated sleeping places.’

 

Edward murmured, and Sylvia nodded,

 

“<Prepare a comfortable dwelling for the servants – [Renovation].>”

 

She chanted.

 

Weeds and obstructive shrubs were swiftly removed. At the same time, the dilapidated stables and barn were transformed into new structures.

 

There were not only paddocks for horses, but also proper coops for chickens, and pens for cows, pigs, and sheep were also built.

 

Watching this, Edward reflected, thinking ‘Oh no’. He had been muttering to himself, but to Sylvia, it might have sounded like a prompt to use magic. Concerned about her remaining magical power, he glanced at Sylvia.

 

“…Since they’re weeding at the same time, is your magic power okay?”

 

“It’s okay.”

 

Sylvia replied to Edward’s question.

 

Soon, the livestock came trotting along.

 

Sylvia had summoned them using the magic of [Domination], which made them hear her voice from anywhere.

 

The livestock made sounds of joy (?) and ran off in all directions.

 

“It was too cramped, so they lacked exercise.”

 

Sylvia said.

 

“Was that why they worked so hard on weeding?”

 

Edward recalled the mess from this morning.

 

They decided to plant seeds in the field if they could get some from somewhere. (When Sylvia tried to use some magic, Edward asked with a smile, ‘Lady Sylvia? Were you about to do something?’, causing Sylvia to flinch. Gina quickly intervened, saying, ‘Shall we plant vegetable seeds in the field? When we go to town, let’s ask if we can get some seeds!’) Leaving the livestock behind, the three of them headed towards the front gate.

 

They climbed the stairs along the way and reached a landing. Below them was a wide entrance hall with a large door.

 

The three of them frowned at the state of disarray in the entrance hall, and Sylvia looked at Edward as if pleading.

 

Understanding Sylvia’s intention, Edward gave a wry smile.

 

“…Given the state and size of this place, it’s impossible for just Gina and me to clean it. Can you help us?”

 

Sylvia nodded and chanted,

 

“<Renovate this room to befit its master – [Renovation].>”

 

It became clean as if a page had been turned. Upon closer inspection, various parts were different from before the magic was cast.

 

Thinking it was a rather mysterious magic, Edward praised Sylvia, saying, ‘Thank you. As expected of you.’

 

Gina praised Sylvia without reservation. Edward thought it might be too much pampering, but considering Sylvia seemed like a child who had never been pampered, he decided not to stop it. He thought of himself as the strict one and Gina as the one who pampered.

 

They descended the central staircase of the now-clean entrance hall and stood before the front door, which opened automatically. Gina and Edward, having grown used to Sylvia’s magic, were no longer surprised.

 

As the three of them stepped outside, they were amazed by the scene that unfolded beyond the opened door.

 

While the back gate led to a thicket and a cliff, this side opened up to a peaceful meadow.

 

The path to the front gate might have once been a stylish garden, but it was now covered in grass. Nevertheless, it was still quite beautiful.

 

Beyond the front gate, the path sloped downwards, leading to a moat and another gate. Beyond the moat, there was a town, and further in the distance, there seemed to be fields and pastures.

 

“…It’s a beautiful place.”

 

Gina said in admiration.

 

“The outer wall of the back gate was quite high, but this side isn’t as high. The outer wall of the courtyard was also high… It’s almost as if it was built with the assumption of being attacked by the Duke.”

 

Edward tilted his head, puzzled by the construction of the outer walls.

 

It was his first time seeing this part of the ‘fortress town’… As a former knight, he wished the outer wall of the castle was higher. This way, it was weak in defense.

 

Anyway, the three of them started walking towards the town.