Chapter 174: If You Go Home, You’re Treated Like a Kid
“About the remaining two marquis territories… we want you to—”
“I don’t want to become a noble. Why don’t you just send someone from the royal family instead?”
“Do you think every child of the royal family has the qualities to become a competent ruler? If we force it, people will think the royal family is trying to purge the nobles and fill the positions only with its own bloodline. That would cause the nobility to turn against us. That’s why even House Barland can’t handle it.”
“Then why not appoint someone from the nobles who showed good results in this incident?”
“Unfortunately, most of them were only capable of following instructions. Many handled things poorly and let over half the targets escape. We considered Count Arkwright, but his achievements aren’t enough to justify a promotion. He’ll be rewarded appropriately, but that’s the limit.”
Being king sounds like a tough job.
“More importantly, please let me collect my meat.”
“You call becoming a noble ‘more important’? I think you’d make a fine lord, though.”
I just want a peaceful life with my family. I’ve got no interest in becoming some noble.
I collected half of the meat and moved to Chancellor Brighton’s office, where I received the document listing the payment breakdown.
- Contacting Count Arkwright and the royal palace: 7 times
20,000,000 dara × 7 = 140,000,000 dara - Appearing in clown costume: 10 times
20,000,000 dara × 10 = 200,000,000 dara - Additional dispatches to ducal and marquis houses: 3 times
= 300,000,000 dara - Payment for the snake: 50,000,000 dara
Total: 690,000,000 dara
All that money just for delivering messages and using a bit of magic… and they even included payment for the snake.
“Chancellor Brighton, you don’t need to pay for the snake.”
“You aren’t a vassal of His Majesty, so we can’t take it for free. It’s already been transferred, so please confirm it.”
Sure, I can check it—but every time I see my balance, it feels wrong. This isn’t adventurer money anymore. Honestly, I’d rather be out picking herbs and hunting birds.
I descended at Count Arkwright’s estate and reported that the mission had been completed successfully, then asked about home matters.
According to Eugen, the escort duty was no longer needed, but due to the aftermath of the incident and the hotel ownership changing hands, there was no more work. He was apparently complaining about it.
My mother didn’t seem like she wanted to just relax even after quitting work, so maybe she should open a restaurant next to my sister’s shop. That way, my brother Ralph could manage the floor.
I’d get proper home-cooked meals instead of whatever the servants make at home. The house is too big now, and even though there are more staff, their cooking just doesn’t taste like Mom’s.
I took a deep breath before leaving the attic room and headed to the living room.
“Oh, you’re back. So the job’s done?”
“How’s everything going?”
“The mistress keeps trying to get into the kitchen because she’s bored, and the women are all complaining.”
“Then it might be better to turn the empty space downstairs into a restaurant.”
“You should report back to your mother first.”
“I’m home!”
“You’re back. So that job of yours is finished?”
“Yeah. Being able to fly just means I get used as convenient labor. At least the pay is good. Where’s Mom?”
“She’s in the kitchen, cooking for us. About that idea we talked about—maybe we really should turn the downstairs into a restaurant.”
“Do it. That way I can get a job too.”
“If Mom agrees, we’ll need renovations… and staff too.”
“Yeah. I’m broke, so I’ll leave the funding to you. If you become the owner, both Mom and I can work freely.”
As expected, my family really are hard workers.
After handing over two baskets of souvenirs from the capital, I went to see my mother.
The servants’ dining hall had a kitchen at the back. Compared to the old house, this place was huge.
“Mom, I’m back. Sister wants you to make some Sham meat aspic.”
“You’re back from work?”
“Yeah. Once things settle down, I’ll also bring souvenirs to Granny Felica.”
“Then bring out the Sham meat. I’ll make something amazing—deliver it properly.”
“Should I bring some goat meat too?”
After Mom agreed to open the restaurant downstairs, I hired a carriage and went to the Merchant Guild.
The moment they saw me, the accountant girl stood up and bowed deeply.
She’s gotten very polite.
I handed over my membership card and asked to check my balance and request renovation work. A clerk was called.
When the statement was brought out, the girl’s hands were trembling.
The newest deposit alone was 690,000,000 dara from the Southern Rook Kingdom.
Before that were large deposits from auctions of Sham and Golden Goats, around 30,000,000 dara.
There were multiple transfers of 30–60 million dara from the Adventurer’s Guild during the beast incident.
Another entry labeled “Grandiz Trading Company, Royal Capital Branch” was probably Jaeger’s payment for the Sham meat.
Total: over 3,300,000,000 dara.
And on top of that, I still had over 1,500,000,000 dara in private funds taken from Count Fleming.
No wonder her hands are shaking.
Then Guild Master Raymond appeared, rubbing his hands together.
“Lord Leon, welcome. So you’re planning a renovation?”
“Mr. Raymond, I heard the Olivetan Hotel was sold much cheaper than the price I was told.”
His face instantly stiffened and broke into a cold sweat.
“N-no, where did you hear that? It was just… slightly reduced because there were no buyers…”
Liar. He basically admitted it.
They clearly thought they could overcharge me because they didn’t know my mother had worked there.
“I’d like to renovate the empty space downstairs into a restaurant. Please make sure the pricing is fair.”
“Of course! Leave everything to the guild!”
“Market price, right?”
His sweating got worse.
“Send someone responsible for the renovation to my house tomorrow.”
“Understood!”
He bowed so deeply it was obvious he just wanted the conversation to end.
When I returned home by carriage, I saw a new sign outside:
“Belinda’s Apothecary”
You could’ve told me you opened already.
When I entered, Lizette came out.
“Welcome home, young master.”
“Lizette, it’s Leon. Don’t call me ‘young master.’ When did you open the shop?”
“Right after the city blockade was lifted. Lady Belinda is in the back.”
So I’m still “young master,” but my sister isn’t?
I might need to correct that once.
My sister was staring at bottles of Magic Water and herb infusions. She was probably practicing Appraisal.
“You’re getting better at Appraisal.”
“I’ve been getting help from the spirit after Lizette leaves. But when I use Appraisal on mana, I get answers like ‘a lot’ or ‘not enough yet.’ With herbs, words like ‘a little more’ or ‘nothing else will come out’ appear in my head.”
What even is that…
“If you treat the spirits like children, they’ll answer like children. Be specific: ask Appraisal for the amount of mana or the quantity of active ingredients extracted from the herbs.”
“But they’re the ones you gave me, and they’re cuter than you.”
“Then stop treating me like a child!”
“Oh, you’re still small and cute. Morris and Ralph have grown as big as Dad, so they aren’t cute anymore.”
No good. In other words, there was no escaping my sister treating me like a child.
“You’ve opened the shop, but do you already have everything stocked?”
“Only up through intermediate-grade potions. Even at the Pharmacists’ Guild, high-grade potions rarely sell. A wealthy customer might occasionally buy an intermediate-grade potion, but that’s about it. This is an apothecary, so I can gradually build up the higher-grade stock.”
“Think about it. Why do you suppose Healing Magic users exist? Intermediate- and high-grade potions are truly needed only by adventurers or during wars, when a Healing Magic user can’t reach someone in time—or when…”
“A potion is sufficient and costs less than paying a Healing Magic user.”
“Exactly. That’s why the things that sell most are remedies for headaches, upset stomachs… and hangovers.”
“That really kills the dream.”
“Not necessarily. There are plenty of cases Healing Magic can’t cure. Apothecaries and Healing Magic users depend on one another.”
So customers ultimately went to whichever practitioner was more skilled.
At noon, a carpenter arrived, and I went downstairs with my mother to inspect the empty rooms.
“I’ll turn the long space next to the apothecary into a kitchen, with a prep/rest area at the back. Along the kitchen side will be a counter, and tables on the other side.”
“You’ll be able to see the cooking from the counter.”
“Yes, exactly. People can watch the food being made, and solo customers will feel comfortable too. We’ll need one or two more staff plus Ralph. This is the right balance for running it smoothly.”
“So that’s why you’re making the dining area so wide?”
“Yes. We can always add more tables if needed.”