Chapter 1009 – 1009. The Plum Blossom Swordsman Reincarnated Into The Baek Family
Following Seong Yu-jin’s orders, Melissa guided Elena.
“This is the dining hall that the master uses.”
Melissa used formal language. Although she spoke casually, even disrespectfully, to Seong Yu-jin and the maids in the mansion, she hadn’t forgotten her place.
“You can speak comfortably,” Elena said. She had just seen Melissa speaking without reserve to Seong Yu-jin. Unlike Melissa, who was wary of her, Elena was neither wary nor disliked Melissa. Though she wore a maid’s uniform, the habits ingrained in her were those of a noble. She immediately guessed that Melissa was from a high-ranking noble family.
“No. I cannot do that to the master’s guest.”
“A guest… I see.”
Elena looked around the dining hall. The decorations on the walls, the fluorescent lights on the ceiling, the carvings on the dining table. Overall, it was luxurious. One could believe it was a royal dining hall. Looking closely, one would be impressed by the details. Some of the decorations and sculptures were so exquisite that they would be more suitable for an art museum.
‘It could be the work of humans… but it’s highly likely to be the work of dwarves.’
In Elena’s world, most masterpieces were made by dwarves, so she naturally thought so.
Inside the dining hall was a kitchen. Seven kitchen maids wearing sanitary caps and masks were working there. Each one was skilled. Each one was an excellent cook.
“This kitchen is solely for the master. There are all sorts of ingredients, and the maids here are the best cooks in the mansion. Guest, please have a taste.”
Melissa brought a plate. There were shrimp on it. The shrimp, prepared for easy eating, had a faint garlic and savory butter aroma. Elena was about to refuse, but the smell drew her in, and she picked up a shrimp with her fork and put it in her mouth.
The firm shrimp meat broke in her teeth, and its taste and flavor spread throughout her mouth. Elena decided to fire all the chefs in her mansion and hire new ones.
“…I feel like having some wine.”
“I’ll bring it right away.”
“No, it’s fine.”
Elena was already holding a wine glass. She took a sip of the wine and smiled contentedly. She filled her stomach and left the dining hall.
“Guest, I know it’s rude, but may I ask about you?”
“About me? Are you curious?”
“Yes. I’m curious about the guest who suddenly appeared. It’s the first time I’ve guided a guest through the mansion like this, so my curiosity keeps rising.”
“I am Elena Valdert. I’m a noble, but not in this world, so you can treat me comfortably.”
“…Not in this world?”
“What? Don’t you know to some extent? About your master, Yu-jin’s abilities. The knowledge, items, and ingredients he has. There are many things that don’t exist in this world.”
“…So that’s how it is. Did you come from another world? Wow… that’s amazing. Perhaps it’s because of the master’s…”
Melissa wiggled her pinky finger. Elena wasn’t offended by her sudden change in attitude. She wasn’t a noble in this world. The Valdert family didn’t exist. No matter what she did, the reputation of the Valdert family wouldn’t be tarnished. Her sense of duty as the head of the Valdert family didn’t exist for her now.
“It’s hard to say no, considering a few things.”
Melissa nodded vaguely. She was about to ask more but stopped. Melissa had done her job. Elena looked around the mansion, impressed. It was more luxurious and convenient than the Valdert family’s main residence.
“…All the servants working in this mansion are women, maids.”
“Ah, that’s…”
“You don’t have to say it. I already have a guess. It’s because of the mansion’s master, Yu-jin. I thought he was fond of women, but it’s to this extent.”
Melissa looked at Elena’s face. Elena was calm. Usually, if a woman’s favorite man was known to be fond of women, she would be annoyed, wouldn’t she?
‘Was she acting when she was annoyed at seeing the head maid in the master’s arms? It didn’t look like acting at all?’
Thud.
Elena stopped walking. Naturally, Melissa also stopped. Elena was looking at the garden outside the window. The garden, managed by the elf maids, was perfect as always.
“My reaction seems strange to you.”
“Yes. You seem to have a lot of pride, but you don’t criticize the master much. By the way, all the maids in this mansion have been in the master’s arms. I’m also in his arms two or three times a week.”
“So?”
“Aren’t you angry?”
“I am. But at the same time, I understand. Yu-jin deserves it.”
“…What?”
Melissa’s eyes widened at the unexpected words. Elena was clearly a proud noble. Just from talking to her, one could guess her high status. Moreover, the magical abilities she showed made it clear that she was also powerful. Frankly, Melissa didn’t think she could handle Elena.
And yet, such a person understood Seong Yu-jin? Was she deeply blinded by love?
“Yu-jin is the center of this world. It’s not much different in my world. Yu-jin’s existence alone denies God itself. It’s a delightful thing. If those countless gods knew this truth… haha.”
“……”
Melissa’s eyebrows furrowed. She didn’t understand what Elena was saying at all. However, one thing was certain: Elena highly valued Seong Yu-jin. Judging by her talk about gods, she might even value Seong Yu-jin more than a god.
“That’s enough of the mansion tour. I’ve seen enough of the mansion’s atmosphere.”
“You haven’t seen the underground bathhouse yet.”
“It’s obvious. A large bathhouse with lots of women. I’m not the type to enjoy bathing with others. I want to go to the study.”
“The master’s study?”
“It’s my principle to do things properly. The Bitrase Kingdom, the Beliak Elf Village, the Polengp Forest. I want to know all the information related to them. Is there any organized documentation?”
“For that purpose, it’s better to go to the administration department, not the study.”
“The one on the third floor? I thought it only handled matters within the mansion.”
“The administration department handles almost everything. The only matters that go up to the study are those that require the master’s final confirmation and approval.”
Elena’s mouth slightly opened. She realized that Seong Yu-jin delegated most of the work to his subordinates. There probably weren’t many significant documents in the study. It was the opposite of her, who handled all the affairs of the Valdert family.
‘It’s easier, but if even one person betrays him, it could be fatal? Does he trust the maids that much?’
Or perhaps the system was perfect, or it didn’t matter if they betrayed him.
Elena took a seat in the administration department. She looked at the documents. The forms were standardized, making the documents easy to read.
Tap, tap tap tap tap.
The sound of keyboards echoed. All the maids working in the administration department were doing their work on computers. Elena clicked her tongue.
‘If only the vassals of the Valdert family worked half as hard as these maids, I would be much more comfortable! Perhaps Yuria, that maid, laid the foundation and system and prepared for it several years ago.’
It wasn’t easy to imitate.
It wasn’t a matter of money; she didn’t have the time or the talent. It would take at least five years to reach this level.
Elena took a sip of wine and lowered her gaze to the documents. After looking at the documents for a while, she opened her mouth.
“Vanessa.”
“Yes, Elena-nim.”
The answer came from right next to her. It was a maid with golden hair. Melissa had disappeared on business, and instead, a maid named Vanessa had become Elena’s personal maid.
“This guy in this document. Wouldn’t it be better to use him rather than assassinate him? I’ll put a charm on him. He can be used as a puppet for life.”
“Uh… isn’t that a confidential document?”
“I already got Yu-jin’s permission.”
“I see. But I’m sorry, I don’t know much about it because it’s not my responsibility.”
“I see. Then tell the person in charge and bring me the documents related to the war.”
“Yes, I understand. …But Elena-nim, weren’t you a guest of the mansion? You don’t have to work…”
Thud.
Elena’s actions stopped.
As Vanessa said, she was a guest. She didn’t have to work. But when she came to her senses, she was working.
“…Let me work. It’s quite enjoyable to work in this environment. There are things to learn. And I also want to earn points from Yu-jin.”
“So that’s what you meant. I thought you were a workaholic.”
“……”
Elena couldn’t refute Vanessa’s words.
***
I looked around. Yuria, Elnoa, Elena. A total of four of us, including myself, had finished all the preparations and tore the space-time scroll.
We teleported to the west of the continent, near the Polengp Forest. It was a place with a lake nearby.
“It’s Lake Bayton.”
Elnoa said, looking at the lake. Her expression was stiff. It was natural, as her homeland was under attack and her fellow elves’ lives were in danger.
I turned my gaze to the lake. It was a lake that was easily over 3km in size. The unusual thing was that the lake was very black. Even near the shore, the inside of the lake was not visible, and the center of the lake was dark, as if there was an abyss.
I scooped up some water in my hand. The water itself was transparent. It meant that the problem was not with the water.
“What a strange lake. Is there a hole in the center of the lake?”
“It’s because of the Bayton fish. Bayton fish absorb light, so there is no light inside the lake.”
“Is it a monster?”
“No. It’s just a slightly unusual fish. I caught a few and grilled them a long time ago… they tasted terrible.”
Elnoa explained calmly, but she kept glancing at the Polengp Forest. In the distance. Black smoke was rising into the sky. The forest was burning. The Bitrase army was advancing, aiming for the ancient relics.
“Yu-jin. It’s impossible for me to eliminate that army at once with my current power. It would be possible if I used Limit Break… but do you want that?”
“You know my answer, so why are you saying it so seriously? Our goal is not to eliminate the Bitrase army. It’s to take the elves of Beliak Village and return. It’s best not to confront the Bitrase army.”
“I’m just letting you know that such a method exists in the worst case.”
We looked at Elnoa.
“Elnoa. Guide us to Beliak Village. But it’s not far away, is it?”
“…Well… Beliak Village is quite deep in the forest. It’s not a path that goes straight into the forest… it might take more than three days.”
“The important thing is to arrive faster than the Bitrase army. Other than that, it doesn’t matter.”
“Looking at the current location of the Bitrase army… we have a week to spare.”
Elnoa’s face brightened slightly. She led us towards the Polengp Forest.
A village appeared.
It was definitely not Beliak Elf Village. We hadn’t even entered the Polengp Forest yet.
“Randle Village. It’s a hunter village that we interact with. We pretended to be humans and interacted with the people of Randle Village.”
“You were secretly interacting with them.”
“Yes. If we are too isolated, we won’t be able to adapt to the world. Some elves, like me, want to go out into the world. Before I left the village, I learned about the human world through the hunter village.”
We entered Randle Village.
We immediately noticed the anomaly. There was no sign of life in the village.
