The rooms for living purposes are concentrated in the center of the mansion.
On the west side, leisure facilities are clustered, while on the east side, training facilities are located.
Each basement is filled with various facilities as well.
Most of the first floor in the center is made up of multipurpose spaces like living rooms and dining rooms.
The rooms to choose from were on the second and third floors of the central area.
At first, I considered a secluded room on the second floor.
It was close to the stairs leading down to the first floor, and above all, I liked that it was tucked away.
– Hmm… Isn’t the third floor better than the second? I mean, I saw a room that looks just like the master’s space.
But someone else suggested that since I’m technically the landlord, wouldn’t it be better to take the top floor, the third floor?
– Secluded? Then the adjacent room would be… um, wouldn’t it be better to choose something more central?
Someone else remarked that it felt a bit off for the landlord to claim a secluded spot, and it went on like that…
Though no one said anything outright, it was clear that everyone was not thrilled about me choosing the corner room.
I found it puzzling, but eventually, I chose the nice room in the middle of the third floor.
The room in the center of the third floor was… much larger than the others.
I figured this must be what’s commonly referred to as the master’s room.
Once my room was decided, all the speculation and whispering was for naught as they quickly made their choices.
To my left was Seo-yul’s room.
Though technically, he was actually living in my room.
He’s growing quickly, but it seems he doesn’t want to be separated from his guardian quite yet.
Still, someday he might want his own space, so I assigned him the room next to mine.
To the right was Hong Yeon-hwa.
Opposite me was Elia.
And the others… they all huddled close around me to make their choices.
…Even though the mansion is this big, was it really necessary to be so cramped together? Still, it felt cozy, so I had no complaints.
– Hayul, wait and don’t sleep on my bed.
I had no complaints.
Hong Yeon-hwa, however, appeared to have quite a few complaints…
.
.
.
Hong Yeon-hwa was furious.
Sitting somewhat heavily on her bed, deliberating, she reached a conclusion without much thought.
Hong Yeon-hwa was really furious…
[Fear]
[Anxiety]
[Chill]
The rough grip that harshly seized my wrist and the terrifying words that rang in my ear made my body shudder in fear.
As I grasped the blanket in dread, I thought maybe I should cover myself with it, but realizing it would mess up my bed before the room owner arrived, I let it go.
‘Hoo…’
I made some effort to calm Hong Yeon-hwa’s anger, trying various things.
I’d try to be cute beside her.
Especially during dinner, I put effort into making all kinds of side dishes she likes…
I even tried to feed it to her directly…
– Oh, hold still!
But in the end, I couldn’t achieve it.
I grimaced widely or twirled my body, but fundamentally, I wasn’t able to calm her down.
The result was as it is now.
Thanks to this, despite having chosen my room, I was now in Hong Yeon-hwa’s room…
– Rustle
‘…!’
Suddenly, a presence loomed large from behind the bathroom door.
It felt like thunder crashing down.
My heart raced in time with it.
– Clatter
As the bathroom door opened, thick white steam rushed out.
It was whiter than the fog that obscured my vision, but at least it shared the common trait of being smoky.
Cutting through that smoke was Hong Yeon-hwa, wrapped in a bathrobe.
[!]
I gasped.
The upper part of her pristine white bathrobe wasn’t fully closed.
It left a valley revealed between her flesh.
“…….”
As I slowly lifted my gaze from the fixed position, I met Hong Yeon-hwa’s eyes.
With cheeks flushed and dreamy eyes, she stared at me, then proceeded to stomp over and plop down beside me without saying a word.
The bed shifted slightly, and I shivered at the sensation of her warmth right next to me.
– Pat pat pat
Hong Yeon-hwa dried her hair with a towel draped around her neck.
It seemed she had dried it just enough, as water wasn’t completely drenching her, and her touch was gentle without splattering drops.
I briefly rolled my eyes.
I looked away in awkwardness, but there was nothing else to see but Hong Yeon-hwa.
In the end, after much deliberation, I reached out my hand.
‘Activation.’
Whoosh— Warm wind poured from my fingers.
The gentle, basic magic breeze struck her damp hair.
“……”
Her bright red eyes glinted at me.
I gulped down the nervousness.
After what felt like an eternity of gazing into each other’s eyes.
Hong Yeon-hwa closed her eyes and presented the back of her head to me.
Delighted, I promptly moved my hands.
While drying her hair, I also neatly arranged her strands with both hands.
Though I never took a special beauty class, a combination of observational powers and being a Jack of All Trades meant I could manage just fine.
[Hair]
[Softness]
The hair curling around my fingers felt impossibly soft.
Even a masterpiece crafted by a skilled artisan wouldn’t compare to this sensation.
As I reveled in it, Hong Yeon-hwa, who was enjoying my touch with her eyes closed, suddenly spoke up.
“Is it softer than my chest?”
[No]
“Hmm? Oh, no…”
Oh.
I accidentally answered without any filter.
“Hehehe, oh really…”
I realized my mistake and stopped, but fortunately, Hong Yeon-hwa chuckled softly.
With that laughter finally breaking out, my mood brightened.
Shaking her head, Hong Yeon-hwa played with her own hair.
Her hair quickly dried.
Seeing that, she suddenly spun her body around.
I flinched at her sudden move.
Before I could react, her hand slipped under my side and lifted me up.
Floating in the air, I found myself sitting comfortably on Hong Yeon-hwa’s thigh.
[Soft]
[Warmth]
[Heat]
At the same time, all the things I had been trying to ignore jumped into my mind.
The soft sensation of her thighs cradling my backside.
The warmth and dampness of our skins pressed together.
The giant mounds filling my view were hardly hidden by the bathrobe.
In front of me, the valley was steaming like freshly steamed rice cakes.
As that steam brushed my nose, the sweet, nutty aroma sent my mind into a whirl.
I found my mouth watering, feeling parched.
[Huh? Yu]
“Puhuh…”
In the midst of that, her laughter tickled my ear, making me jump.
I found my focus slipping from the serious situation.
Looking up, I caught sight of Hong Yeon-hwa giggling.
“Wow… even if I wanted to get mad, your behavior is just so baby-like that it’s hard to stay mad. Actually, there’s nothing to be mad about…”
Shaking her head with disbelief, Hong Yeon-hwa softly brushed my hair.
“Actually, you’re not twenty, right? Since you’re a fairy, perhaps you’re hiding your age? Maybe you’re really like ten or eleven?”
[No, I’m not…]
“Not really…”
“Nope… Not at all…”
“Hayul, you secretly enjoy being treated like a baby, huh? Shall I prepare some milk for our baby later?”
[Sure…]
“No…! No way! I’m really not…”
“Then you like the necklace, right?”
[Yes… chop]
“Nope…”
Her teasing made my face burn as I shook my head vigorously.
I cut off the necklace that kept dragging out my true feelings with a snap.
“Hehe, what would I say to a baby like you?”
Hong Yeon-hwa chuckled lightly.
Then she softly patted my behind as if to say sorry, stretched out on the bed, and gave me her arm to lay my head on.
Hong Yeon-hwa and I overlapped our bodies. I felt her warm temperature on me.
“Sniff, sniff…”
Above all, the rich scent of milk wafting through my nostrils came strong from the valley buried between us.
With relief that Hong Yeon-hwa’s anger had subsided and the milky aroma that naturally lulled my mind, I felt blissfully dazed.
A soft kiss landed on my forehead.
I trembled, burying my face deep into her warmth.
[Like]
“Mm… I like it.”
“I like it too, really…”
Hong Yeon-hwa, while propping me up with her arm, gazed at me with a somewhat maternal expression, adorably.
“…So, is it dangerous?”
As I indulged in Hong Yeon-hwa’s scent and warmth for a while, she suddenly nudged my back with her other hand while asking.
The correspondence from her question snapped my mind back, and I pulled up the prepared answer.
“No, it’s not dangerous at all. It’s just a place like a library for studying magic.”
“That’s why you can’t come out for a while?”
“Yes… probably…”
When entering the Tower of Knowledge in the original story, you always had to be unable to go out for a certain period.
Strictly speaking, going out was possible, but re-entry was not.
There could be different possibilities than the original, but I had no certainty.
“Wow, the Tower of Knowledge… giving you a mansion and teaching you magic at the tower, they’re very generous with their support.”
Hong Yeon-hwa mumbled incredulously.
The Tower of Knowledge. It was indeed too serious a place to mention lightly.
For a while, while she was gently patting my back, Hong Yeon-hwa buried her nose in my hair and murmured.
“I trust you. But remember, you mustn’t get hurt, okay?”
“Yes, I’ll keep that in mind.”
“Alright. Travel safely. But if you come back hurt, you know what will happen… right?”
“…Yes…”
I trembled under her piercing gaze, burying my face deeper into Hong Yeon-hwa’s embrace.
I was happy.
To protect this happiness, I would gather many things from the Tower of Knowledge.
Resolutely, I reaffirmed my determination, and my consciousness slipped into slumber.
.
.
.
The weekend passed, and it became a weekday.
With most people out, silence fell over the once-bustling mansion.
“Ah, Ariel! I firmly believe you will succeed, Young Master.”
That silence was soon shattered.
Ariel had arrived at the mansion, looking around before speaking up.
[Good to see you again, Lady Ariel.]
“Yes, it’s been a while since I’ve seen you, Young Master.”
Ariel bowed with a soft yet sharp demeanor as usual.
She stood out in her neatly arranged maid-like outfit.
[Have you finished your duties now?]
It had been a while since I’d seen Ariel.
She’d disappeared after briefly saying she had other matters to attend to, and I hadn’t found her in Shio-ram since.
“Yes, I reported the progress of the last mission to the head of the house and had some other tasks to deal with within the family.”
I had no idea why Ariel chose to hang back.
[But weren’t you supposed to be guarding Yeon-hwa?]
As I tilted my head, noticing her separate activities, she shrugged dismissively.
“This is Shio-ram, after all. It’s a bit ridiculous to be on guard here.”
[Ah, indeed…]
“Actually, the guard role is just for show; the reality is that I just help Miss Hong Yeon-hwa.”
It was indeed a foolish question.
Guarding in Shio-ram?
If there was bloodshed happening here, outside world would’ve turned into a freaky nightmare by now.
“Then I will serve Lady Seo-yul instead.”
[Yes, please take care of her.]
“Hum…!”
[…] Seo-yul, I’ll be back soon, alright?
I’d already informed the others.
When I mentioned entering the Tower of Knowledge, they were shocked, and about not being able to come out for a while made them jump, but I received their permission, in the end.
…I had quite the task on my hands trying to soothe the irritated Seo-yul.
Honestly, I didn’t have much to counter it either…
Well, with that, Ariel entered the mansion, leading Seo-yul who still looked sulky.
My heart ached at Seo-yul’s forlorn appearance.
‘But this time, there really isn’t anything I can do…’
I thought excuses in my head as I surveyed my observation range.
The Tower of Knowledge is on a floating island.
A floating island. Just as the name implies, it’s a location that floats in the sky, and it’s said that nobody knows its whereabouts.
It’s incredibly well guarded, and its location is a strictly kept secret.
‘There it is…’
I had been sensing the floating island since long ago.
With knowledge from the original story, I knew its location.
From the moment I recognized my power, my range and level had vastly increased, and I could feel the floating island.
The floating island was right above my head.
It was lazily drifting above Shio-ram.
‘Something that small is floating in the sky, it’s just absurd on every level.’
While it was much smaller than the man-made island where Shio-ram lay, it was still large enough to be categorized as an island.
Even with observation, I could only catch glimpses of its outline, as penetrating the inner workings was extremely difficult due to its incredible security.
‘Is the entrance over there?’
One side of that security had a gaping hole.
To be precise, it was accurate to say it was open for me, who held the key.
Without this key… Without entry authorization, I’d have to break through that colossal barrier to enter.
It would be almost impossible considering the counterattack function, but in the 11th loop, I just smashed right in without any hesitation…
In the original, the vice-captain typically accompanied you.
While she would normally teleport me there, I could use my spatial powers to move directly.
That was probably why the vice-captain didn’t come out to greet me.
‘Hoo… huh?’
As I sighed deeply, trying to ease my tension.
A scent flooded my senses, instantly relaxing my rigid thoughts.
Barely standing still, I checked around to ensure no one was watching and then sneakily sniffed.
The sweet, nutty aroma wafted in the air…
‘Yeon-hwa’s scent…’
It was Yeon-hwa’s scent.
That fragrance seemed to cling to me heavily.
Thanks to piling on top of each other all night yesterday, I was practically soaked in her scent.
Thinking back, it was the same with my master in the past.
‘Nice.’
With that scent enveloping me, it felt like Yeon-hwa was hugging me tightly.
It helped ease my tension significantly.
‘Let’s go.’
The Tower of Knowledge.
Aside from improving my magical skills.
It might also be a place to uncover many parts of my countless secrets.
With a breath filled with anticipation, I activated my spatial powers and triggered dimensional leap to the designated entrance of the floating island.
– BOOM!
A massive golem’s fist came crashing down.
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