“Honestly, I just don’t like you.”
“Well, I was just speaking the truth. Can’t provoke His anger, can we?”
Edmund replied softly, raising his eyebrows and calming Maria, no, Grandmother, with a hand on his hip.
“…Tsk.”
She certainly seemed fearful of His wrath. Thinking about it, it’s only natural since she’s the owner of this mansion.
Whether He’s a benevolent God or a harsh one, who knows.
“I’ll inform you of the membership time later, so see you then.”
“…Just go already. And grandson?”
“Yes?”
“Take this.”
Maria handed me a small box.
“Grandmother, what’s this?”
“These are cookies I baked myself, so eat them if you get hungry. They’ll comfort you when you’re unsettled. Plus, you could use some meat on those bones. You look too skinny.”
…Me?
I’m quite proud to say I have a body without an ounce of fat—
“Now, off you go.”
With Edmund’s hand on my shoulder snapping me back to focus, I turned and followed him. Exiting the lounge, we stepped into the corridor again. After entering the lounge for a bit, I decided to ask Edmund about Grandma.
“You mentioned it was a room full of troublemakers. What exactly did Grandma do?”
“Well, Maria has the ability to trap the souls of living beings in inanimate objects. Though she’s matured with age, you can imagine what she was like as a child…”
…Just hearing it sounds terrifying.
So, she was dangerous before mastering her abilities.
But how did she pass her coming-of-age ceremony?
“That skill seems rather useless for the initiation ceremony.”
“That’s all about perspective, my friend. When you think about where your skills came from… Hm. Looks like we’re headed this way. It seems she’s taken an interest in you. Maybe it’s because you two are artisans.”
This time, we approached a somewhat rusted door. I watched as he opened it without even knocking.
“It’s quite something that you want to see the successor who will inherit the legacy.”
“I heard he’s quite the talented craftsman! I was curious, so I called for him!”
A muscular man, laughing heartily, set aside his hammer and approached me. His four arms were impressive as he flashed a warm smile and extended one of his hands.
“This is how outsiders greet each other, right?”
I hesitated, looking at the four hands extended simultaneously, and finally grabbed one to shake.
“I’m Johann Quartz.”
“I’m Vulcanus Quartz! Named after a famous blacksmith!”
…No idea who that is.
“You look confused! It’s fine not to know! People generally don’t care about blacksmiths! Hahaha!”
“You’re much more cheerful than those I’ve met so far.”
“That’s because those folks want to get out, while I prefer staying here hammering away! Want to check out my kids?”
I nodded eagerly. I was curious about what kind of items were born in this forge.
“Here! This is my masterpiece number one!”
…Uh…
“Impressive.”
“Right? It took me a whole month to make this!”
What did he make again?
No matter how I see it, it looks just like a heap of scrap metal.
I couldn’t bring myself to tell the truth, so I had to dodge it somehow. Desperately wracking my brain, I came up with a somewhat acceptable answer and told him.
“It’s a new item that doesn’t exist in this world, so I have no clue what it could be used for. Could you enlighten me?”
“This is a kitchen knife!”
Since when did kitchen knives start looking like snakes?
Plus, the craftsmanship seems so shoddy it looks like it would bend while cutting food—
“I see. The wavy pattern should indeed come in handy for cutting food. There are many who like to make their meals visually appealing.”
“Haha! The world indeed recognizes my value!”
While the excited Vulcanus celebrated like a child, I quickly turned my head to glance at Edmund. We locked eyes, and he shrugged with a wry smile.
Is he asking me to play along?
That shouldn’t be hard.
“Seeing this masterpiece makes me curious about your other works as well. May I see more of what you’ve created?”
“Of course! This way!”
“Could you also explain what you’ve made? After all, a true masterpiece needs a craftsman’s intent to be understood, doesn’t it?”
“Absolutely!”
His two hands rested on my shoulders. I forced myself to maintain as neutral a smile as I could as we walked toward a place filled with who-knows-what items.
——————–
“Sure! If my nephew asks, I can oblige! Hahaha!”
“Thank you.”
“What for? Us artisans help each other out! Come by anytime!”
“I’ll see you next time.”
“Well then, we’re busy, so we should get going. Work hard!”
“Of course!”
We left, waving goodbye amidst his loud farewell. After the door closed and he vanished into the wall, I sighed and said,
“Every item he makes is so bizarre.”
“That’s just Quartz being Quartz.”
Shocking ideas abound. What kind of logical leap makes you want to stick spikes in gloves? And what’s with sounds like ‘pop’ coming from a steel sword?
“Who’s next?”
“Next… Hmm. That one should work.”
Who is that?
I guess I’ll find out if I just follow. I trailed behind Edmund as we walked the corridor again, now including stairs. After climbing about two levels, Edmund suddenly stopped midway and turned to look at me.
“Stop. And step back three stairs.”
“What are you talking about all of a sudden?”
“Just do as I say.”
There was no harm in listening to him, so I obediently stepped back three stairs as he instructed. Once I did, Edmund had me continue stepping up and down the stairs.
Though it wasn’t a question of stamina, I found it strange until he finally explained his actions.
“The last person to become a member really loves puzzles, you see. So to enter their room, you have to solve a puzzle. Just like this.”
Following the direction he pointed, I saw a door.
Not just any door, but one that demanded “Push to Unlock.”
We approached the door and looked at the puzzle.
“Do I need to solve this?”
“That’s right.”
Fitting pieces together isn’t too hard. Just push them to match. I casually nudged the puzzle pieces into place and opened the door.
“Maybe I should’ve made it a bit harder.”
“Just a heads up for today. If I can’t get in, the successor won’t have a face to show.”
…The person standing in front of me was dressed more complexly than the puzzle itself. The square-shaped glasses she wore and the cube-shaped earrings on both ears, not to mention her outfit patterned like some undefined puzzle, made for a dizzying fashion sense.
Her hairstyle was so avant-garde that it wouldn’t be surprising if she wore a pyramid-shaped puzzle as a necklace.
As she talked with Edmund, she slowly turned her gaze to me, showing an interest.
“Do you like puzzles?”
“…I’m somewhat fond of the puzzle that is life.”
“Interesting answer. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha.”
Her laughter was mechanical, almost synchronized, sending shivers down my spine. She seemed to have the same kind of eccentricity as those I’d met before.
But what degree of acquaintance is this lady?
“Rumi. Could you become the third member?”
“Who are the other members?”
“Maria and Vulcanus.”
“That’s peculiar. It’s rare for those two to engage with others.”
“She’s Maria’s grandson. Vulcanus felt camaraderie since he’s also an artisan.”
Ah, so that’s why she chose to be the third member. It’s easier to establish friendships with some common ground.
“Fascinating.”
She scanned me from head to toe and tossed me something she was holding. I caught it mid-air and checked what it was.
A cube.
Somewhat familiar.
A Rubik’s Cube?
“If you can match the colors in five minutes, you’ll become a member.”
Five minutes. I stared at the puzzle in my hand. A cube, huh. It’s been a while.
But how do I solve this again?
Without hesitation, I started twisting the cube. It’s been so long that I barely remembered how to handle it, but I figured if I just keep at it…
“4 minutes and 53 seconds. You barely passed. You’ll be a member.”
I secured the third member relatively easily.
We said our farewells and exited the room. Rumi sent me off without even looking back, her voice flat as she waved goodbye.
“Now we have three members assembled. Congratulations. Since the members are here, we can hold the test tonight. Do you want to go now, or rest and come back tomorrow?”
“Can it be done right away?”
There’s no need to delay what can be done today.
Anyway, unless they tell me the details, there’s no real difference between today and tomorrow.
“I’ll do it today.”
“Good choice. It’s better to be quick about these things. The test starts after dinner, so you can rest in the reception room for a bit. You can wander around, but… don’t provoke too many people.”
“Understood.”
“Then I’ll go notify Lord about your decision and take my leave. Oh, and you can rest in this room.”
After he tapped the wall a few times, he vanished into the corridor. After briefly watching his back, I opened the door and stepped inside.
Ah, this is the reception room from earlier.
I walked over to the fluffy sofa, sat down, and stared blankly at the fireplace.
Should I take a quick nap?
No, before that…
I pulled out the box I had tucked away.
The box containing cookies. I carefully opened the palm-sized box.
“…Just an ordinary cookie.”
From the outside, it looked perfectly fine. I picked up the cookie sitting on top and placed it in my mouth.
“…It’s a bit sweet.”
It’s a flavor that calls for coffee.
I closed the box and shut my eyes.
To relieve the mental fatigue that built up while wandering the mansion.
After all, they’ll come to fetch me when dinner is ready, so I can rest a little.
That was the last memory I had before I fell asleep.
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