Chapter 14 …
It looks like I made a mistake while drawing the magic circle overnight, and since it’s winter of all times, it’s blown up into a big problem like this.
To fix it, I first need to stop the activation.
You know how when a game finds a bug, they shut down the servers to fix the code? It’s like that. If we’re making an analogy, I’m the developer.
“I told you, updating the magic circle will work.”
“No.”
“That won’t do. You said it takes quite a while.”
Zephy and Ellie rejected the idea the moment the words left my mouth.
Because these two had become people who couldn’t live without their sense of taste. Apparently, they refuse to eat another meal as taste-blind people even for a single day.
“Isn’t there another way? You’re supposed to be pretty amazing.”
Nishe, who used to be pessimistic about the food revolution, had completely forgotten his past self and was now more obsessed with gourmet food than anyone else.
Seeing them all gather every mealtime, waiting for Coco’s cooking… well, it made me a little proud…
‘…and kind of ticklish inside?’
Anyway, as someone who already felt responsible for the side-effect fiasco, I’d already found another solution.
“I’ve got a plan. Ta-da.”
With a grin, I pulled out a red-glowing stone from the cloth pouch rolling around on the table.
“Oh. A high-grade mana stone.”
Zephy recognized the quality at a glance and let out an impressed sound.
Over the past few days, the mana stones I produced through magical alchemy had piled up heavily inside this pouch.
“So. What kind of plan is this supposed to be?”
“You’re slow on the uptake. Can’t you tell just by looking?”
“Bull—ah-choo!”
Yikes. Even when he tries to swear true to his personality, he ends up sniffling—it’s starting to look pitiful.
I proudly declared to the three sniffle-nosed idiots:
“I’ll make you the latest temperature-control magic device.”
If warming body temperature is hard, then you just warm the air.
Radiators? Move aside. It’s the age of the boiler now.
* * *
The flower of magical alchemy is crafting magic devices, and the essential material that goes into those devices is, of course, the mana stone.
A raw crystal that contains—and can contain—mana, making it more valuable than most gemstones.
That’s why someone like me, whose innate mana capacity is a bit lacking, can’t just mass-produce mana stones like minting gold coins.
‘This much took me several days to gather.’
It was quite a lot, but still a bit short.
The device I planned to make had a wide operating range, so it would consume a lot of materials.
But who do you think I am?
Instead of spending more time making new ones, I came up with a faster, easier way to supplement them.
“Look at you. Even ghosts would hesitate to befriend you.”
Surprisingly, the Winter Castle library was actually maintained.
Though with the towering stacks of boxes, books, and miscellaneous junk of unknown purpose, it was hard to tell whether this place was an office, a warehouse, or a library.
‘At least it’s not a dust pit.’
Juanxi, who was working at the wide desk buried in paperwork, glanced at me with just his eyes.
“Is there something you need?”
Scratch. Scratch scratch.
The dark circles under his eyes had practically reached his jaw, yet his hands moved rapidly as if they didn’t know fatigue.
“If you mean the temperature-control magic device, it just arrived. Please open the wooden box at your one o’clock.”
“Oh, that is what I’m here about, but…”
He figured it out before I could even explain.
Aside from being terrible at baking, he really was a capable butler.
I’d recently learned that Juanxi spent the entire day holed up in this library wrestling with paperwork.
Since Giselle handled archducal proxy duties on the top floor, just as I suspected, these two were the only proper working officials in Winter Castle.
‘Tsk. The life of a civil servant who met the wrong master.’
Thinking of the leisurely lives of the castle’s master, the two knights in charge of combat, and the lone maid, I offered silent condolences.
“Is there another matter?”
“Well… Juanxi. Your superpower—was it that thing about daytime words being heard by birds?”
Apparently, thanks to his ability, everything that happened in Belmire reached Juanxi’s ears and Giselle’s eyes.
A terrifying ability that practically screamed invasion of privacy.
“It is the ability to hear the voices of lesser creatures.”
Without looking up from his paperwork, Juanxi answered in a rapid stream.
“The spider currently crawling above Lady Irenne’s head says that Ellie is looking for you.”
“You’re not just making that up because I can’t verify it, right? Ellie’s busy playing chess with Zephy right now.”
Ever since the dark day I passed out on the carpet, those two had tried to follow me everywhere.
Something about needing to take care of me if I collapsed again.
It was touching… but extremely annoying. Their personalities were oddly similar, so they fought often, and I was the one stuck in the middle.
Just now, I’d barely separated them by setting up the castle’s only entertainment—chess.
“It’s because of that chess game.”
“What?”
“They both insist they won and, right before drawing swords, reached a dramatic agreement to have Lady Irenne choose the winner.”
“Ah, damn it.”
I absolutely did not want to get involved.
I quickly pulled the magic device from the box. Being old-fashioned, it was quite large and heavy.
Then I dragged a chair to the least cluttered desk and sat down. Juanxi’s eyebrow twitched slightly.
“You’re staying here? You’re in the way.”
“I’ll be quiet. I’m working too.”
“You mean crafting that magic device. Lady Irenne seems to have a tendency to create her own work.”
“They said it’s cold. Since it’s the aftermath of my magic, I should take responsibility.”
Juanxi stopped his pen and looked at me.
He was wearing several layers of clothing and sitting close to the fireplace, which looked like a mini blast furnace.
“You’re cold too, right?”
“…Yes.”
“Then don’t probe—just think of it as a great deal. Can I use this blank paper? Lend me a pen too.”
I planned to supplement what I lacked using materials from dismantling the old magic device and immediately begin rapid production.
‘Besides, I was planning to install it eventually.’
Casting heating magic every time was quite a hassle.
Once installed, a magic device could maintain the proper temperature semi-permanently, making it far more efficient.
Improving this haunted-house-like place into a proper home was part of my plan anyway, so it fit the objective.
“You’re right. Thank you. Thanks to you, Lady Irenne, we can save the time previously wasted on meal preparation.”
Juanxi readily agreed and handed me the pen and ink. His tired face brightened subtly, like an office worker who’d just had coffee.
“It’s nothing. But you’re not going to use that saved time to work even more, right?”
“Of course. There is much to do.”
I knew it. This guy was a hardcore workaholic.
“…Right. Let’s work, then.”
Honestly, even I was better suited to a busy workaholic life than the idle life of a useless bum.
Scratch.
I dipped the pen nib into ink and swiftly wrote the spell formula to be engraved into the new magic device.
‘Doing this makes it feel like one of those territory-revival stories.’
* * *
The central lobby on the first floor of Winter Castle displayed the archducal family’s collection on both sides like a museum.
Some of the items looked like they should be kept in a secure vault, but apparently displaying them openly was the former archduke’s personal taste.
‘They must’ve had money to burn back then.’
Selling even one piece would probably make them rich overnight, but even if they lived poorly, selling family treasures would be a bit much.
Actually, these people probably lived without even realizing their household was poor…
In truth, Winter Castle was run-down not because the territory itself was in bad shape, but because its residents left themselves to gather dust.
Why else would the common folk seem to be living decently?
Now, the reason I’m suddenly talking about this—
I’d cleared out one of the lobby display cases and finished installing the brand-new magic device I’d whipped up in a single day.
“And just like that, goodbye to the cold.”
Nishe eyed it skeptically.
“This tiny thing really works?”
“You really don’t know anything. Haven’t you heard the saying ‘small peppers are spicy’?”
“I’ve never heard such a weird saying.”
I shot a glare at the non-reincarnator who clearly didn’t get it and infused mana into the compass-shaped device to activate it.
Woooong—
With a brief pulse, warm air spread from the device, embracing the space.
“Just as expected—success. See? Not cold anymore, right?”
I was puffing up proudly when suddenly something dripped from my nose.
“Irenne, you’re bleeding!”
“I’m fine.”
“Even though it’s a double nosebleed? It’s dripping!”
“Yeah. It’ll stop soon.”
Lately my mana circuits had been overworked, like they were warning me to stop living like this.
I waved Ellie off dismissively and moved to casually wipe it with my sleeve—
Tap.
“Seriously, you’re disgusting.”
Nishe grabbed my wrist and pulled out a white handkerchief, then tossed it at my face like he was issuing a duel.
“You… you’re the type of guy who carries a handkerchief?”
“Habit. What, got a problem? Says the one who can’t even take care of herself.”
“I’m just saying it’s unexpected.”
I pressed the handkerchief to my nose and replied, my voice stuffy.
“Anyway, Nishe, stop grumbling. I used magic just like you wanted.”
Instead of him—who had clamped his mouth shut with a frown—Ellie translated from Nishe-speak:
“He says he didn’t mean for you to push yourself until you got hurt.”
“Hey.”
“He says he’s worried because you’re too frail, Lady Irenne.”
“That’s not true. That’s what you want to say.”
…Even as a joke, I wasn’t that frail.
I might not have an aura core like the idiot trio, but for a mage, my stamina was actually quite good.
I did learn swordsmanship, after all. Though the reason—‘wanting to get even a little closer to Cheshire’—was a dark past best left buried.
As my eyes darted awkwardly, I met Zephy’s gaze.
He pointed at my chest.
“It’s beating 1.3 times faster than usual.”
