Completion

The dead of night.

Sneaking out of the room while the attendants were unaware, I tended the garden with the pygmies.

Tree trunks wound all the way to the top, just like a fairy village from a movie.

Using immortal trees, I created house-shaped spaces and furnished their interiors with all sorts of furniture.

The pygmies worked well.

They began lavishly decorating the artificial forest, using up the piles of materials at an insane speed.

Even without detailed instructions, they had enough sense to unify the design.

They looked as though they'd been born for construction.

Thus, the artificial forest where metasequoias had stood in neat rows was transformed into a fairy village in just a few hours.

'Lastly...'

Spot-

[Divine Beast Summoning Mana Stone]

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Summons the divine beasts in the inventory.

The total amount that can be summoned

varies according to size.

If a divine beast leaves a certain

range, it disappears and is

resummoned from the mana stone.

------------------------------------

......An item for waterfalls and streams.

I bought several, dividing them between plumbing and decoration.

They cost the enormous sum of 1.5 million in total, and installing them consumed a great deal of mana as well, since I had to make separate tools for the job.

Still, I didn't consider it a waste.

After buying and installing one as a trial, I realized that the divine beast wasn't ordinary water but a perfectly pure cleansing agent.

No matter how foul-smelling or dirty something was, it vanished the instant it came into contact with it, and even being nearby made it easier to breathe and cleared my mind. It was truly remarkable.

However, the divine beast used for purification vanished instantly, as though evaporating,

and although as much divine beast as had been consumed seeped out of the mana stone again, it did so very slowly.

"April said I only had to clean up the pond, so..."

And so, a beautiful mini-waterfall that required no maintenance at all was created in the fairy village.

By the time dawn began to break, I recalled the pygmies and returned to my room.

"Lady Raebi. You need to wake up. It's mealtime."

"......Five more minutes."

It had been about two hours since I fell asleep.

Kim Sooyoung and Han Jihye took turns coming to wake me, but I couldn't get up.

Even though I'd reduced my sleeping hours as much as possible, two hours was simply too short.

In the end, I skipped breakfast and didn't open my eyes until around ten.

"Are you feeling unwell?"

Thinking I wasn't feeling well, Han Jihye asked worriedly.

I'd tried to hide it as much as possible, but I felt bad deceiving her, so I finally confessed that I'd decorated the garden the previous night.

Her expression darkened.

"......Is this because of your promise to Lady Jennifer?"

......I only did it because I was excited.

I felt I'd be scolded terribly if I answered honestly, so I mumbled evasively.

"I wanted to finish early and rest. I'd like to secure as much free time as possible before the social season."

"……Lady Raebi."

"Yes?"

"Why on earth did you accept? Lady Jennifer likely only wanted to put you in your place a little."

Han Jihye gently chided me for ignoring her advice not to take the bait.

She added that gardening was a commoner's profession, not something a noble should be doing.

"Besides, from what I saw yesterday, Lady Jennifer has already figured you out to some extent. She knows you're different from ordinary adopted nobles, and she knows you're busy."

"Huh...? Then why did she do that to me?"

Han Jihye gave me a bitter smile.

"Even so, prejudices don't disappear easily."

"Ah..."

"In any case, let's put the garden work on hold for now. I'll speak to Lady Jennifer."

Han Jihye rose as if she were about to leave. Afraid the construction might be halted, I hurriedly grabbed her hand.

"M-Ms. Jihye!"

As she looked over at me with a puzzled tilt of her head, I told her the whole story.

As expected, once she learned that I'd chosen to do it voluntarily because I enjoyed tending the garden, Han Jihye launched into an explosive lecture.

She wanted to know how I could have taken on even more work when I already had the social season, requests for meetings from the Thebes nobles, and an academic presentation ahead of me.

Seeing the coldest expression she'd ever worn, I impulsively hugged her.

"I-I'm sorry!! I won't do it again! Please don't be angry..."

"I'm not angry. I only wish you would learn to take better care of yourself."

"......Understood."

I obediently agreed.

Vincent had told me once, but apparently it was rare for Han Jihye to speak this directly.

She only departed from her set manual when the other person truly needed to be reformed or when her heart had genuinely been moved.

Hoping it was the latter, I promised not to let it happen again.

After an early lunch, we headed back to the forest.

As we walked side by side, Han Jihye spoke while the island's attendants bustled about more than usual that day.

"Lady Raebi. About the social season... It seems it will be postponed."

"Why?"

"There's news of an S-rank Gate appearing. It seems a massive one has emerged in Britain's Cairngorms National Park. The family head has also been called up under the mobilization order."

“What? All of a sudden?”

'.....S-rank.'

An S-rank Gate was already on a scale that the forces of most countries would struggle to handle on their own.

Britain could of course resolve it with its own strength, but even so, casualties among the A-ranks would be unavoidable.

It was an incredibly dangerous rank—dangerous enough that news occasionally came out of an S-rank dying.

Accordingly, when an S-rank Gate appeared, the World Nobles' Council sealed off access to everyone else and assembled a powerful strike force to dispatch.

They put a party made up entirely of S-ranks at the front,

then sent in more than a hundred top-tier A-rank Hunters behind them in formation.

It was certainly a way to minimize casualties as much as possible.

But naturally, since this required a great many high-ranking Hunters, Douglas, as the family head, had to go as well.

"Given where it appeared, I suppose the response was quick."

"It seems so. They say the number of people called up is more than twice that of the previous 'Palawan Gate.'"

"Oh..."

……Wait.

"Ms. Jihye."

"Yes."

"The family head isn't going to steal Albert Cavendish's item, is he?"

"......"

There was no answer.

At first, the corners of her lips lifted slightly as though she found it amusing, but then her gaze grew serious and she began to look genuinely worried.

Thinking I'd said something unnecessary, I changed the subject and asked in detail about the revised schedule.

Apparently, with even the academy's teachers all mobilized, all classes would be postponed by about a week.

They also mentioned the Inwangsan Gate incident in Korea, and the Cavendish family announced that it would extend this academy period by another four weeks.

***

"Lady Raebi, this is..."

Han Jihye's eyes widened when she saw the fairy village.

The exterior was already more than 80% complete. The forest had changed so drastically that it was difficult to find any trace of its former appearance.

She exclaimed,

"This is incredible. How did you transform it so much in just one day...?"

"There are ways."

"You had those dolls do it."

"Yes, that's ri... Huh?"

A doll's voice came out so naturally that I turned my head.

Han Jihye lifted the corners of her lips slightly.

"......I work directly under the family head, Lady Raebi."

"Ah. ...S-sorry for hiding it."

"No, you did very well. The family head was quite worried, wondering whether you might 'go around blabbing it everywhere.'"

Han Jihye asked me to keep things this way from now on, then opened up about what she knew and told me to relax a little.

I felt as though my heart had grown considerably lighter.

I didn't know why she'd suddenly changed like this... but I guessed that the pitying look in her eyes as she watched me overwork myself reflected some change of heart.

'She did start speaking a little differently after Namsan Tower...'

I thought she must have enjoyed the trip. I decided I needed to make another opportunity before the social season began.

"Ms. Jihye, come over here."

Han Jihye and I climbed onto a palm-shaped tree trunk.

When I supplied it with mana, it lifted us straight up and carried us to the treehouse above. Han Jihye kept smiling throughout, but her eyes clearly revealed her bewilderment and surprise.

I stepped off the wooden hand and opened the door of the house in front of us.

"What's this...?"

"It's a lounge for the attendants. Since we'll be spending a lot of time over here from now on, I thought we'd need one."

"......I see. However, although the design is truly beautiful, I think outfitting it with the necessary facilities will require a little money."

Han Jihye was indirectly saying, 'It'll be difficult to use this as a lounge.' Her face wore an expression of perplexity that seemed to ask, 'How am I supposed to stop her?'

I gave a chuckle and led her to the washbasin.

When I turned on the tap, cool water poured out, and Han Jihye's mouth fell open at the sight.

She cautiously touched the stream and said,

"How can there be running water...?"

"You saw the mini-waterfall on the way here, right? I used the same item. And I'm going to install lights today too, so could you help with the rest?"

"......That should be possible. At this level."

She said installing the essential appliances wouldn't be difficult.

Since the tables, chairs, and shelves had already been made, she judged that the place would be livable immediately as long as we had a bedding set.

She asked whether I intended to go beyond simple garden maintenance, and I told her about the grand plan I had in mind.

"You said you needed a workshop."

"Yep. I needed a separate place to make things and display the products. If I ran a business out of my room, all the attendants would wither away and die from the constant visits by nobles."

"Hehe, that's certainly true."

After that, work proceeded swiftly with Han Jihye's support.

I added the details that had been lacking outside, while she requested personnel from the family and began bringing in various necessities, including appliances. Of course, she had electricity connected as well.

And so, on the third day—two days earlier than originally expected—the island's small artificial forest received a complete makeover.

"Ms. Jihye, please request a meeting with Lady Jennifer. We need to secure official approval before the Thebes nobles notice this."

There was no telling what schemes they might devise or what objections they might raise.

There were already many adopted nobles who regarded me as a thorn in their side because I was favored by the mainstream faction. If they saw this, they would definitely do something.

But...

I soon realized something.

I'd overlooked the most important person fixated on me.

A familiar Asian man appeared at the entrance to the forest.

"Mr. Gangdu...? What brings you here?"

"I was just taking a walk when I saw something interesting. Did Lady Raebi do all this? Wow—your growth skill is impressive."

'......He came all the way here just for a walk.'

"Haha... Thank you."

"Hmm, I'll take a look around."

"What? No, I...!"

I stepped in front of him. Wang Gangdu looked at me with a smile.

"What is it?"

"Y-you can't go in..."

"......This belongs to the family. You know that, Lady Raebi?"

"......"

What should I do?

Wang Gangdu's arrival meant that the other Thebes nobles would soon come as well.

Every one of them hated me, and ruining this place with a few words would be no trouble at all for Wang Gangdu.

He had seemed to harbor a subtle murderous intent ever since the Athens harmony incident... I felt as though he was finally making his move.

If he went inside and saw the divine beasts and various items, things could become troublesome.

I hurriedly grabbed his arm.

"Th-this place is being renovated under the family head's orders! You can't go in."

"When there's a restricted area, the barons are notified first. Saying I can't enter because construction is underway is absurd."

......!

I was in a bind.

I'd never given Douglas the details of my plan. I intended to decorate the place first, then ask him to recognize it as my workshop.

The promise I'd made to Jennifer about 'noble visits' had also been made with this workshop idea in mind.

"If you have nothing else to say, will you let go? This seems like a suitable place for a gathering of the Thebes nobles."

'N-no...!'

Since it was technically a public place, I had no grounds to stop him.

I wondered whether I should fight Wang Gangdu here and seize the baron's position.

But then a vicious voice rang out.

"What is this supposed to be? Wasn't the preparation finished?"

A woman with a face pale as ice. Han Jihye stood beside her.