Sion approached the man with a frown and first took away the knife in his hand.

Lionel also removed all spare knives, magic scrolls, and any possible possessions from the man’s body.

“To think he was carrying such things inside his clothes.”

Only after such a thorough body search was he moved inside.

“There’s only a study on the first floor, so move him to the guest room on the second floor. Oh, is anyone using it?”

“No one is using the guest room on the second floor, so I think it’s okay to move him there,” Irena suggested.

So he was moved to the end room on the second floor, and for my safety, Sion was to use the middle guest room.

“What a mess on the first day. Phew, I’m tired. Let’s unpack until the doctor arrives.”

“We’ll take care of it, Master.”

“Ah, thank you.”

Lionel approached and took the luggage from my hands. He was wearing his usual eye-smile.

“Irena and I will organize my things. You guys take care of these.”

“Yes, Master.”

“Yes.”

“Yes.”

I left the miscellaneous items to Lionel, Sion, and Aria to organize, while Irena and I entered my room to arrange the jewelry, dresses, and decorations.

“Wow- it’s beautiful. You’ve decorated it so brightly.”

“Hehe. I decorated it with yellow, like your hair, and light lavender!”

It was a combination I really liked.

The clean feeling when I first saw this house was pretty, but adding yellow and light purple as accent colors to the wood tone made it feel cozy and warm.

Seeing the beautifully decorated room made me feel like the stress that had been pouring out until now was disappearing.

“You must have been busy teaching others and adjusting. You’ve worked hard, Irena.”

“No, Miss. It wasn’t hard. Oh, the bathtub has arrived too!”

“Really?”

“Yes, but Miss, did you only bring this many dresses?”

Irena asked with a very disappointed expression as she unpacked.

“Yes. I exchanged everything else for money. I won’t have many occasions to wear them anyway, right?”

“Still…”

“If we need more, we can buy them here. Actually, I didn’t want to bring anything from the Count’s mansion.”

“Miss…”

Irena was one second away from crying. I needed to change the mood!

“By the way, Irena, have you been well? I felt strange when I first left the Count’s mansion, but now that I’m here, I really feel like I’ve come home.”

“Yes, Miss. Thank you for coming safely.”

She smiled warmly, rubbing her reddened eyes.

I smiled back, relieved that she didn’t cry.

“Anyway, it’s been a while. I missed you, Irena.”

Now, I finally felt at ease.

“When I saw you being held hostage, I was so shocked. Really, Miss…”

“That’s why I need you. Do you know how hard it was for me without you at the Count’s mansion?”

I continued to act spoiled with Irena after that.

Then suddenly, I remembered that because of the absurd hostage situation, I hadn’t even greeted the others.

The first thing the house owner showed upon returning for the New Year was having a knife at her throat.

I was worried about what they might think.

“Ah, how are the others? Are they adjusting well? I was so distracted I couldn’t even greet them.”

“Yes. I was worried, but everyone worked hard on their assigned tasks without needing to use command words even once. It seems you bought good slaves.”

“Could you gather everyone in the living room later? I think I should meet them now that I’m here.”

There are things to discuss too.

“Yes, Miss. I’ll do that.”

“Oh, and from now on, call me more comfortably. We’ve left Epine now.”

“Miss…”

“Irena, please don’t cry…”

“Sob.”

***

A little while later, we went down to the living room.

Irena wrapped me in a blanket, saying it was cold here.

The fireplace was blazing, and the room was warm due to temperature control magic, but I stayed still, enjoying the warmth that reached my heart.

Soon, the others that Irena called started gathering in the living room one by one.

Seeing me sitting buried in a blanket, the three people except Sion and Irena had strange expressions.

“Sit down. I just called you to say hello.”

“Yes, Master.”

They all answered in unison, as if rehearsed. They were very tense.

“Ahaha. No need to be so nervous. Were you very surprised earlier?”

“Not at all.”

“I heard from Irena. Everyone’s been working hard on their assigned tasks. You’ve all worked hard while I was away. Here, take one of these each.”

I handed each of the four people a small pouch.

“What is this?”

Everyone except Sion had curious expressions.

“It’s your salary. You worked hard organizing the mansion while I was away.”

“What?”

“What?”

“Huh?”

“……”

The three people were surprised, their eyes wide open as they looked up.

I couldn’t help but smile at their cute reactions.

“I put in as much as people usually get for working in a mansion. Sion already knows this, but I’ll pay you for the work you do. Save that money and pay me back for your own price. The day you clear your debt, you’ll be free.”

After I finished speaking, the living room fell into silence.

Irena was saying, “Wow, Miss, why are you really doing this…” unable to continue her words.

“It’ll take a long time for Lionel and Sion. You’ll be seeing me for a long time, so it’s not a loss. Isn’t that good?”

I showed a playful expression.

“Why are you doing this for us?”

In the silence of everyone, Lionel asked with a face full of doubt. It was the first time I saw his real expression, without the painted-on smile.

It was a good attitude. To doubt something means you’re thinking, and that ultimately means you’re living this life intensely.

“Because you are people. Just like Irena over there, and me here.”

“……”

“If you don’t understand, just think that you’re lucky to have met a good master.”

Lionel lowered his eyes with a complex expression. It reminded me of when I first offered to fix Sion’s leg, and a deflated laugh escaped me.

People like Lionel, who wear masks and know how to flatter, might be more difficult than straightforward ones like Sion, but I felt that he would surely open his heart to me someday.

“Yes, thank you. Master.”

While we were each lost in our own thoughts, Aria answered with a small smile on her lips.

“And, Soho.”

“Yes?!”

“Pfft, ah, how cute. It might be better for you to entrust your money to me and receive an allowance. You’re still young and might not have a good sense of money management.”

Soho nodded his little head vigorously. His cheeks had become so plump that I wanted to poke them, unlike his emaciated appearance at the slave market.

He must have been eating well since coming to the mansion.

“And lastly, from now on, address me as Lady Lora instead of Master.”

Perhaps because I had already said so many shocking things to them earlier, they all nodded obediently to this change in title.

Just as a warm atmosphere was being created…

Bang bang bang! Bang bang bang bang!

“I heard you called for a doctor!”

A tremendous shout was heard from outside.

“… Is there no magic bell here?”

“Ah, well, it seems not.”

“We have a lot to install. Go open it.”

We didn’t know because no one had ever come. Irena said quietly and approached the door.

Soon, the town doctor entered the living room, shaking the snow off his shoes.

“Where is the patient?”

“On the second floor. I’ll guide you.”

Irena led him upstairs, and we didn’t bother to follow. Irena came back down shortly after.

“Hm? You’re back already?”

“Well, the doctor will take care of it. Actually, even this much is a luxury for someone like him!”

“That’s true.”

“Indeed.”

“That’s right!”

She spoke boldly, and we all agreed.

Just as we were about to throw him out, he collapsed with such perfect timing.

In fact, we called a doctor instead of a priest because we didn’t want to spend too much money on him. Priests are very expensive.

A little while later, the doctor came down with a bewildered face after finishing his examination.

“Why didn’t anyone come up to check?”

“We thought you’d handle it well. How’s his condition?”

“Well, it seems he fainted due to accumulated fatigue. He should wake up soon.”

“That’s a relief. Irena, please compensate him.”

“Yes, Lady Lora.”

After sending the doctor away, we sat around and decided.

“Let’s throw him out as soon as he wakes up.”

“Yes, we’ll certainly do that.”

“That’s right!”

Everyone answered resolutely, and Soho clenched his small, chubby fist, steeling his resolve.

And then peaceful time flowed again.