Death March — Fixed

“Tek here, basements appear a lot in movies and TV shows, but where I lived, I have never seen one. I wonder if it’s because of some law, or if it’s just customs?”

 

I don’t know the exact location of this Mansion of Ivy, but it’s easy to look for it. When I used the Spirit Seer Skill as instructed by Mia, I can see that there is one section of Labyrinth City where a lot of Spirits have gathered.

 

After that, it was simple as marking it on the map, and going there via the shortest route.

 

The Mansion of Ivy is located in the northern side of Labyrinth City. It’s west of the north gate, at the end of the wealthy area and just before the red-light district. There’s a lush, green, park not far off from the rampart of the city wall, the Mansion of Ivy is there.

 

Just like the name implies, it’s covered with Ivy. The mansion is less than half the size of the other mansions in the wealthy area, but the land is approximately the same size.

 

Transparent water is flowing around a two-meter wide moat outside the mansion’s hedges. Since there are low hedges outside the moat, it seems that the moat is also part of the Mansion of Ivy. The clear water flowing within also flows out to the park via a small canal.

 

The area is slightly elevated several meters above the rest of the neighbourhood. The water that has flown to the pond seems to also continue onwards to the rest of the town through small waterways.

 

Just before the Mansion of Ivy, the carriage suddenly changes course.

 

“What’s wrong Lulu?”

“I’m sorry, I don’t know why, but I feel that I have to change the carriage’s course, no matter what.”

 

I take a quick look at the log, which displays: ‘Forest of Hesitation (Return Home) has been successfully resisted.’ -- it seems to be some kind of Crowd Control Magic.

 

“It seems that there is a Magic here, so I will take only Mia along from here. Everyone, wait here for a bit.”

 

I go with Mia to the Mansion of Ivy, she is acting normally, so I think the Magic probably doesn’t work on Elves.

 

Just in case, I pass the medallion, I got from Giril, to her.

 

There’s an archway arbor, with waist-height white trees that act as the front gate. However, there’s the moat that’s full of water just beyond that gate, yet there is no bridge to cross it.

 

When I check with Magic Perception, it seems that the low moat is under the effect of some Spacial Magic. According to Giril, the owner of this Mansion is Trazayuya, I wonder if he wanted to make a fortress? Or maybe the security in this area is really bad?

 

‘Gate, open, I am Misanalia of Bornean Forest. Gatekeeper, come here quickly.’ Mia read the phrase that had been written on the back of the medallion. Even though she, usually, rarely talks--she’s surprisingly good at reciting lines.

 

A miniature girl was peeking out from the opposite side of the main gate, and when our eyes met, she hid back behind the gate. She’s a House Fairy (Brownie). Her green hair, that’s so dark that it’s almost black, is tied back in a ponytail.

 

‘Gatekeeper, come here quickly.’

 

Yielding to the repeated words from Mia, a bridge appears between the gates, a transparent bridge that looks like glass.

 

“Nn.” Mia presents her hand to me, which I grasp and we cross the bridge together.

 

“Misanalia, I am the guard of this Mansion of Ivy, Leriril, Giril’s granddaughter.”

 

“Just call me Mia.”

 

“I cannot do such a thing…to call an Elf by their nickname! Please call me Leriril.”

 

“Nn, Leriril.”

 

Leriril looks like she is a miniature woman in her early twenties, standing at only a meter tall. Unlike humans with dwarfism, the small people on this world are anatomically normal. She is actually 60 years old.

 

Her level is quite high, at 34, and she has the Hiding Skill, and the Innate and Racial Skills of normal Brownies. She also seems to be good at scouting.

 

“By the way, Misanalia, who is that Human brat over there? A mere Human holding hands with an Honourable Elf, how rude. Let me teach him his position.”

 

I got suddenly dissed during our first meeting.

 

The people in the Elven hometown didn’t discriminate against Humans, but I wonder if she has come to hate Humans after being surrounded by them?

 

Well, it would definitely make sense--I wouldn’t even bother trying to defend my species.

 

“Rude. Tek is my fiance.”

“Eh? Eeh? That’s a joke, right?”

“Mwu, officially approved by parents.”

“Hahaha, that…that cannot be.”

 

Leriril waved her hands around, as if to deny Mia’s fiance remark, as it seemed to be overly shocking for her. She passed her limit when she heard about the approval of Mia’s parents, she fainted.

 

Well, it’s not exactly untrue.

 

Mia suggested we get married, and her mother agreed.

 

Her father glared at me, and let out what sounded like a growl--before Lia elbowed him in the ribs and then pulled one of his ears.

 

She pulled him quite a distance away and began to talk rapid-fire…he seems to have acquiesced, coming back, muttering “Nn”, and stalking off.

 

***

We can’t exactly let here sleep here, just like this, so I picked her up and carried her to the nearby shade of a tree and laid her on a sheet. Sometimes, a refreshingly cool breeze blows through the greenery that grow well because of the moat. In the dusty Labyrinth City, here and the park surrounding us, it feels like another world.

 

“Ha, I saw a bad dream.”

“Nn, dream?”

“Yes, an Elf was seduced by a Human brat.”

 

What a rude thing to say towards the youngster who carried you to the shade of a tree.

 

She gets up unsteadily, and looks towards Mia in surprise. And then, seeming to have sensed my presence, she turned towards me in an awkward robot-like movement.

 

I’ll leave out the following uproar, and just say that she is a fairly difficult-to-deal-with girl, who seems to have some kind of trauma or dislike towards Human males.

 

“Now then, Misanalia, and Tek, please come here.” Leriril, who has finally conceded my existence, leads us into the mansion.

 

Arisa and the others who are waiting outside have been excluded from the effects of Forest Of Hesitation, and since I called them with Telephone, they will probably soon arrive.

 

It seems that the Medal of Proxy that Leriril carries can control the entrance bridge and the Isolation Magic. The Medal of the Manager that Mia carries has higher authority than Leriril’s medal.

 

“Am I wrong to assume that Misanalia is the new master of the Mansion of Ivy?”

“No. The Master is Tek.”

“Eh? That br-, Tek, is?”

 

She likes calling me a brat, and to a woman of 60--it’s probably accurate.

 

“Yeah, Giril told me to go ahead and use this mansion if I’m staying in Labyrinth City. That medal is also something that he has entrusted to me.”

 

“Che, that senile old man--. No, from esteemed grandfather, is it? I can’t believe it.”

“Mwu, fact.”

 

No no, Leriril. You’re too late for that retake. You called him senile old man.

 

“Err, maybe grandfather was being senile, no, his physical condition was bad at the time?”

 

This girl has a bad mouth.

 

“Tek is the benefactor of Bornean Forest. A friend of Aze.”

“By Aze, do you perhaps mean Aialize, the High Elf? For a High Elf to show herself to a Human! Moreover, friend is it? Even though the High Elf is the Heavenly Holy Priest, that can even be called a Demigod?”

 

Isn’t something like Demigod, or Heavenly Holy Priest, rather unsuitable names for the adorably clumsy High Elf?

 

“Yes, I get along quite well with her. I have been taught Spirit Magic, and the Spirit Seer Skill by her, I even went to the Observatory in the World Tree.” I couldn’t help but brag a little bit.

 

Leriril became shaken, falling to her knees and asking for forgiveness for her impoliteness. Moreover, she was much more respectful--she was even respectful to the other girls because they are also Aialize’s friends.

 

***

“Misanalia, and everyone else too, please enter.” Leriril guided us into the mansion.

 

There is a mirror at the end of a narrow passage that is located in one corner of the living room, and difficult to find. When she holds her medal out, waves of light appear on the surface of the mirror.

 

“Please follow me.” She pauses for a second, waiting until we nodded, before jumping into the mirror.

 

According to the map, Leriril is 10m below the ground, so this is probably some kind of Portal.

 

I quickly follow her.

 

The space is awfully bright, even though it’s underground. The ceiling is also more than 3m above us. This brightness is just like the outside. Most likely, there are those strange plants with glowing fibers that we have on the ceiling of the villa in the labyrinth.

 

It is around 5m in radius, a circular shape. Weeds are growing though, like a lawn. When I check on the map, it seems that the Mansion of Ivy occupies the same amount of space as the park above-ground, though it’s extended 30 - 50 meters underground.

 

There are also 100 rooms, as well as workshops and facilities that Trazayuya has used, I have to ask if I can use it, later.

 

“Here is the main building of the Mansion of Ivy--the mansion above us is a fake, for visitors.”

 

“He’s quite the careful one.”

 

“Trazayuya was called the Elf Sage. Esteemed grandfather has told me that the Sage had a lot of Magic Tools and Magic Engineering inventions, and when the Sage was inside the Labyrinth, there were always thieves or nations that aimed for his assets.”

 

I see, it’s not because of paranoia, but self-defense huh.

 

“Even now, every time the Viceroy is replaced, they always attack with armed groups, trying to make this Mansion their possession.”

 

“High-level Adventurers should be able to break through it though?”

 

“Anyone who lives in this city absolutely won’t attack the Mansion of Ivy” Leriril declared so, full of confidence, towards Arisa’s question, “After all, the Fake Core of this mansion is the thing that maintains the water source of this city.”

 

“Wow, taking hold of the City’s lifeline huh, Trazayuya is good. As expected of a Sage.”

 

Leriril doesn’t seem to know many details, but the thing about the Fake Core is written in the documents that he has left behind. According to the documents, it was a Magic Tool that preceded the Maze Core, and it was made using a massive number of Philosopher’s Stones. It seems to be a good system that can do various things like absorbing Magic Power from the Earth Vein nearby, or supplying Magic Power into the Magic Tools that are connected to it.

 

In this case, it uses one of the functions built into it to draw out the water from an underground lake.

 

“However, in that case, isn’t it bad if we live here?” Lulu asks with a nervous expression.

 

“That’s right, it’ll be fine if we’re inside the mansion, but if one of us wander outside--we could become a hostage and get involved in trouble.” Arisa glances over at me, before agreeing with her sister.

 

However, I’d love to use the facilities here.

 

“Then again, what about buying a house outside and enter from there? We can just use Master’s, or my Space Magic, to go in and out.”

 

“You’re right, let’s go with that.” I nodded to her. I didn’t think they would cause trouble if we lived here. But if an idiot did try…it would be very troublesome, so this way it would just be simpler.

 

Let’s ask the Marchioness, or General, if there are any good houses for sale.

 

After having a quick lunch, we chose a good room in the mansion--and I transported Mara up, along with the smithing and armouring tools, and into one of the rooms.

 

We placed a Carved Seal Board in the living room, and left towards the inn.