Chapter 183 – Debut

Hmm. The neutralized Evil Weed might actually be quite charming and suitable as a houseplant. Through cultivation with Water Magic, the Evil Weed has become accustomed to humans—so much so that it’s almost too obedient, straying far from its original purpose of serving as a guard dog substitute.

Well, since thieves wouldn’t know whether it’s harmless or harmful, one option would be to conspicuously place large quantities of them… but that might be a bit much…

As I carried the potted Evil Weed to the back of the storage shed, I noticed clusters of spring flowers blooming densely around the pot.

“Hmm… Did someone make a flower bed here?”

“No, not particularly. It just seemed to happen naturally after placing the Evil Weed here.”

Ashley tilted her head slightly.

“Perhaps the area around Evil Weed makes it easier for plants to grow.”

“I wonder. It’s true that wild Evil Weeds tend to prefer dense thickets…”

Come to think of it, these things can’t move on their own. Since they scatter seeds, you could say they intentionally choose such locations… or maybe they somehow maintain their surroundings?

“There could be other factors… Let’s try a little experiment.”

“What will you do?”

“Plant them with other plants. I want to see if there’s any difference in growth between plants grown with Evil Weed and those grown alone.”

I selected some plants from the garden that hadn’t yet sprouted, transplanted them into pots, and created groups with Evil Weed and groups without. Then I placed them slightly apart.

The sunlight should be about the same… Well, this grouping should be adequate.

The transplanted Evil Weeds seemed to be directing their “faces” toward their still-unblooming roommates.

If this works well, placing them together with other plants on windowsills might extend the life of the flowers.

Although they’ve long been treated as the gardener’s enemy, if tamed by humans, perhaps they could become allies in gardening.

Taking it further… if they could handle pest control for crops that damage plants or deal with pathogens… then they’d truly be friends to agriculture. I might be expecting too much, but it’s worth investigating.

For now, I’ll bring just one pot inside the house to observe.

“Are you taking that one inside?”

“Yes. The Evil Weeds in the garden will remain as before. For this pot, I’ll grow it using only regular water, without any magic from here on.”

“I see. You want to see if my Water Magic has any effect.”

“Exactly. Plus, I want to keep it close for observation.”

Ashley’s quick understanding is helpful. What to watch for are the growth rate and any personality changes. That said, judging from Claudia’s explanation, once they’ve grown to a certain extent, their personality direction becomes fixed. Probably no personality changes will occur.

“Since we have the chance, I’d like to give it a name.”

A name… When I name things, I inevitably end up making all sorts of unnecessary associations based on appearance.

“Since Ashley’s the one raising it, why don’t you give it a name?”

“Is that alright? Then… Harvesta.”

Ashley showed a slightly embarrassed, bashful smile.

Well then. With the Evil Weed named and new research topics emerging, the house renovation has reached a point where the necessary tatami mats are finished, finally bringing my part to a temporary conclusion. With that in mind, I’m letting everyone relax on the tatami, partly to introduce them to the Japanese-style room. I’ve also prepared specially ordered cushions from town and low tables for the tatami room.

“I really like this room.”

“It’s quite calming once you get used to it.”

Seraphina was rolling around on the tatami, while Irmhild, smiling wryly at her, was sitting on a cushion and sipping from a teacup. As for Sheila with her sharp sense of smell—she seems to be relaxing too.

I thought there might be some resistance to sitting directly on the floor, but they seem to have adapted surprisingly quickly, which is good.

Though it might be a bit premature, I’d like to prepare a Magic Tool for using a kotatsu during winter.

“They’re unexpectedly cute when they’re calm.”

Grace was gently stroking Harvesta, who was placed on the low table.

Throughout this, Harvesta remained calm. Or rather, judging by this behavior, it almost seems to welcome being petted.

“Would you like to try, Marlene-sama?”

Marlene had been watching intently, and when Grace offered, she nodded slightly. With a somewhat solemn expression and slight caution, she touched Harvesta. Once she understood it was harmless, Marlene smiled.

Being bitten by an Evil Weed is something almost every child experiences. Both Grace and I were bitten when we were young. But royalty too? That’s a bit hard to imagine.

“Marlene. Have you ever been bitten?”

Curious, I asked, and Marlene shook her head. Then that means…

“Albert?”

Marlene gave a small nod. I see… Probably reached out out of curiosity.

“Master, we’ve finished moving and arranging the furniture.”

Cecilia and Mihaela appeared at the entrance to the Japanese-style room.

The furnishings brought by the furniture store—beds, dressing tables, chests, and other household items—were quite substantial. The pile of furniture brought into the entrance hall would have been insufficiently manned if done normally. So I operated Golems and used Caduceus to ensure visibility during the moving process.

Even then, covering the entire mansion was too much even for Caduceus. I calculated from room positions and had the Golems automatically transport and arrange furniture from the entrance hall to individual rooms.

At first, I intended to check for placement errors myself, but Cecilia asked me to leave the verification to her and rest, so I took her up on her offer.

Cecilia said she wanted to quickly familiarize herself with the mansion’s layout.

“No mistakes?”

“Your Golem operation is amazing, Master.”

When I asked, Cecilia smiled. Seems there were no problems. Well, even without direct supervision, I should be able to manage automatic Golem operation inside buildings I created myself.

“Seems good.”

“Then… shall we go to the basement?”

Claudia, who had been smiling while watching Marlene and Harvesta’s interaction, now showed signs of slight tension as preparations were finally complete.

We all moved to the basement hall, in front of the stone monument. After waiting briefly for Claudia to return from the Labyrinth Village, a large Magic Array expanded, and from the pillar of light, Claudia appeared along with the Labyrinth Village residents.

Irmhild’s parents, Delphilo and Flagia, were also here.

Centaurs, Sirens, Arachne, etc… quite a variety. And many Carbuncles too. Fortok, the Carbuncle leader, is also present.

There are children too. Some with guardians, some without. The races vary, but basically the children seem to get along well with each other.

Considering the Labyrinth Village’s population ratio, the proportion of children seems high, but perhaps they want the children to gain experience with an eye to the future.

“We thank you for your invitation. On behalf of the village residents, we offer our gratitude.”

As Fortok spoke, the residents bowed their heads.

“Thank you for accepting our sudden proposal. I understand this is the first time for everyone and there may be concerns, but as Verdgar’s ambassador, I intend to do my utmost.”

I returned the greeting in kind. Well, the formalities should be sufficient here.

“Please relax as if this were your own home. First, I’d like to give you a tour of the building.”

First, Magic Tools for the Humanization Spell were distributed. Those who could use the spell and those who couldn’t all gradually took on appearances no different from humans.

But some, like the Naga Delphilo and the Arachne girl, retained some of their monster characteristics. Similar to Justia and Dominique’s fins and feathers. Those two can erase their monster features using Magic Tools… but since Delphilo originally couldn’t use the Humanization Spell, this is probably a compatibility issue rather than a matter of spell precision.

When leaving the basement hall, we changed into indoor slippers and moved to the entrance hall. A chandelier and wide staircase. It feels like a textbook Western mansion hall. The interior and furnishings fit quite well too.

“This is the entrance. Exiting through the front door leads through the garden to the main gate. The door behind the staircase on the opposite side leads to the courtyard with the fountain. That corridor leads to the passage connecting to our living quarters. The grand staircase leads to the second and third floors. The upper floors have individual rooms where you can stay overnight—but first, I’d like to explain the various facilities on the first floor.”

We moved along the corridor. First, I introduced the essential facilities for daily life: the large dining hall, kitchen, toilets, large bath, etc.

“And this is the recreation room… exiting from here leads to the courtyard.”

The recreation room connects directly to the courtyard. You can go out to the sunny courtyard and spend time there as if on a terrace. There’s a fountain, a gazebo, hammocks hung between trees—various thoughtful touches.

“The items placed here… they’re all things I’ve never seen before.”

Flagia tilted her head.

“They’re similar to the card games we played at the theater before. Please feel free to enjoy them when you have time. Now, let’s head to the second floor.”

We went up to the second floor using the staircase at the end of the corridor.

The individual rooms are of reasonable size. Each room can comfortably accommodate three to four people, and there are lofts too.

The loft structure seems to have hit right at the children’s interests. Their eyes are shining.

“And this is an important point. The wall at the end of the corridor—this is a Revolving Concealment with a staircase directly connecting to the basement.”

In other words, it’s an evacuation route to the Labyrinth in case of emergency.

The third floor is also similar to the second—individual rooms for accommodation and evacuation routes, plus attic rooms. The children’s excitement seems to have increased further.

Lofts with hammocks, attic rooms with secret passages… I added various things children would enjoy.

“I expected it to be a fine mansion, but not to this extent.”

Delphilo’s eyes were wide with surprise.

“I believe you’ve heard the details, but I’d like you to handle your own affairs yourselves, so please don’t be too reserved. While future matters can be considered at leisure, first I’d like to introduce Miss Cecilia.”

Cecilia stepped forward and bowed.

Though she looked nervous, she spoke in a clear, resonant voice.

“Pleased to meet you all. My name is Cecilia, and I’ve been assigned as your instructor. Though I’m an inexperienced youth of little talent, I intend to give my all, so I sincerely ask for your cooperation.”

Mihaela, watching Cecilia’s introduction, quietly closed her eyes as if nodding.

Loud applause broke out from everyone, and Cecilia bowed her head once more.

The unveiling, tour, and introductions seem to have gone reasonably well. The general direction is set, so now it’s just a matter of watching how things develop.

When my eyes met Claudia’s, she gave me a smile like a blooming flower.