☣ Chapter 8 ☣
The finance officer looked at Penelope and said,
“We’ll risk our lives to repay this debt.”
“Within one year, we’ll definitely find a way to survive.”
He was simply grateful that they had been given a full year.
Just a week later, they would have run out of food.
When people’s lives were hanging by a thread, this was no time to be picky.
These retainers of the lord don’t even understand what’s right in front of them. They’re only saying useless things.
The finance officer clicked his tongue inwardly.
Penelope was the legal acting lord.
She was also the rightful owner of the land granted by His Majesty the Emperor.
That meant she had every legal right to manage the estate as she wished.
Using the lord’s castle as collateral for a loan was included in those rights.
At least everyone is alive now.
We’ll just have to find a way forward somehow.
Just as the finance officer began thinking of practical plans, Penelope quietly spoke.
“…Then I suppose we should call the merchants first.”
The heated argument among the retainers had honestly frightened her.
She had only borrowed money because everyone was about to starve.
She hadn’t expected such strong opposition.
Of course…
Penelope had something she trusted completely.
The heroine’s plot armor.
If she simply waited, money would come on its own.
She firmly believed she would make a fortune from her stock investment.
But there was no way she could explain that to the retainers.
The finance officer calmly said,
“First, we’ll call the merchant guild.”
“The food we bought in Pellar isn’t nearly enough to feed everyone through the winter.”
“Good.”
After organizing her thoughts, Penelope continued.
“I’ll allocate one hundred thousand gold.”
“Use it to buy food for the people of the estate for the entire winter.”
“I’ll also provide another two hundred thousand gold.”
“Use that to pay the soldiers and servants, and buy all the materials needed to repair and maintain both the outer and inner walls of the castle.”
“We can discuss the rest later.”
“It will be done.”
The finance officer’s face brightened immediately.
They had secured a total budget of 300,000 gold.
With only 200,000 gold, they could store enough food and daily necessities to last through the winter and even into next spring.
If everyone lived carefully…
They could probably survive until summer.
On top of that, Lady Penelope had also brought back plenty of storage stones and purification stones.
The finance officer felt completely satisfied.
The chief steward felt the same.
“Now all we need is enough firewood for the winter.”
The estate manager, Worcester, who was responsible for maintaining the estate, spoke up.
“How about buying timber this year instead of cutting down our own trees?”
He explained that excessive logging could cause landslides.
Now that food was no longer an immediate problem…
Everyone finally had enough peace of mind to think about other issues.
While quietly listening to the conversation, Penelope suddenly said,
“Ah…”
All the retainers immediately looked at her.
She quickly shook her head.
“It’s nothing.”
“I mean…”
“Most people in the estate still use fireplaces for heating, right?”
“That’s correct, my lady.”
The chief steward answered.
Penelope absentmindedly muttered,
“Underfloor heating would be much better than fireplaces.”
“…Underfloor heating?”
The chief steward looked confused.
He had never even heard the word.
Penelope’s face turned slightly red.
She had become excited after suddenly remembering an idea.
“You can forget what I just said.”
“No… actually…”
“I have an idea for a business that the estate could start.”
“I’m just not sure whether it’s actually possible.”
“I’ll discuss it with the mage first and let everyone know.”
“I understand.”
“We’ll also think about businesses the estate can start.”
“We need ways to repay the debt.”
“And we can’t let the people spend the entire winter doing nothing.”
“Good.”
Penelope nodded in agreement.
Now that I think about it… it might actually be possible.
She understood how Korea’s traditional underfloor heating system worked.
She could probably draw a basic design.
The mage was also skilled in alchemy.
Maybe he could help improve it.
Why didn’t I think of this sooner?
If there was one thing she hated most about this world…
It was the freezing winter.
Not only was the lord’s castle built entirely from cold stone…
The villagers’ wooden houses also let icy wind blow in through the gaps between the logs.
That was why nobody ever took off their shoes indoors.
But if they could build underfloor heating…
Winter would become much easier to survive.
Just then, the chief steward carefully asked,
“When you mentioned the mage…”
“You meant the gentleman who arrived with you this morning, correct?”
“That’s right.”
“Is he still sleeping?”
“I believe so.”
“We’ll prepare his meal as soon as he wakes up.”
When the retainers learned that the strange man Penelope had brought back was actually a mage…
They all looked worried.
At first glance…
He looked more like a starving beggar than a respected mage.
Only after Penelope showed them the Magic Tower’s written guarantee did they finally relax.
“Once he’s finished eating, bring him to my office.”
“I’ll have him install the magic stone barrier.”
“I’ve already paid him with the money from selling the herbs.”
“A magic stone barrier?”
“Then we won’t need to hire mercenaries this winter.”
The finance officer’s gloomy face brightened once again.
The other retainers smiled as well.
No one in the castle liked dealing with mercenaries.
Many of them caused trouble throughout the estate.
Some harassed women.
Others were criminals hiding from the law.
It was nearly impossible to investigate every mercenary before hiring them.
Mages, on the other hand, usually graduated from the Academy or received higher education.
They were much easier to trust.
“I’m planning to have him do more than just install the barrier.”
“I want him to help the estate in other ways as well—including developing a new heating system.”
“His payment has already been made.”
“So please only make sure he’s well fed and has a place to sleep.”
“The contract lasts until the end of this winter.”
“Leave it to us.”
“We’ll take excellent care of him.”
The chief steward answered confidently.
I hope everything continues peacefully like this.
Penelope watched the hopeful faces of the retainers.
Unfortunately…
Things never went as smoothly as she hoped.
Later That Evening
Penelope’s worries quickly became reality.
Around sunset…
The mage finally woke up, threw off his blanket, sat down at the dining table…
And immediately started complaining about the food.
“The meat smells fishy.”
“How am I supposed to eat this?”
“We’ll prepare another dish immediately.”
The maid answered nervously.
“The vegetables are all wilted.”
“And the bread is dry.”
“We’ll replace those as well.”
“The sauce is too greasy.”
“And far too salty.”
“We’ll…”
Before long…
The castle’s head chef finally exploded.
“So what if he’s a mage?!”
“I’m done!”
“Tell him to come down here and cook his own food!”
The head chef, famous for his hot temper and strict standards, stood there angrily holding a kitchen knife.
The maid, almost in tears, reported everything to the chief steward.
“The ingredients we have simply aren’t good enough to satisfy the mage.”
“You’ve worked hard.”
“I’ll go speak with him myself.”
The chief steward patiently tried to persuade the mage.
“We’re calling merchants tomorrow.”
“We’ll buy special ingredients just for you.”
“Until then…”
“Could you please eat what the chef has prepared?”
“I’d rather starve.”
The mage was an unbelievably difficult guest.
Most mages were troublesome.
But this young mage was especially impossible.
The chief steward already had a headache thinking about the future.
After hearing the report…
Penelope quietly sighed.
“Please bring the mage to my office.”
“Prepare some high-quality herbal tea.”
“And if we have any scones, serve those as well.”
“It will be done.”
A short while later…
The chief steward brought the mage into her office.
Penelope had spent the entire afternoon reviewing the blueprints she had drawn herself.
She finally looked up.
Then she froze.
It almost looked as though a dark cloud was hanging over the mage’s head.
He had stayed awake until dawn…
And clearly hadn’t slept well.
He looks completely exhausted.
Can he even use magic in this condition?
An uneasy feeling slowly crept into her heart.
Even so…
Penelope forced herself to smile.
“Welcome.”
“Did you sleep well?”
Instead of answering…
The mage suddenly frowned.
“This estate is so hopelessly poor.”
“Wouldn’t it be better to let it go bankrupt instead of trying so hard to save it?”
