The Ghost in the Ducal Mansion
The First Gate of Arpen, capital of the Arnel Empire, was packed shoulder-to-shoulder with travelers from every corner of the realm hoping to enter the city. I could have flashed my noble title and shoved my way to the front, but I had zero interest in drawing that kind of attention. Better to wait quietly like everyone else.
“Young Master? Imperial law grants anyone with a noble peerage priority passage. No one would dare complain if you simply stepped forward.”
“I said no.”
The gate captain kept approaching with a nervous expression, clearly worried about making a count’s son wait. Each time he urged me to use my privilege, I refused without hesitation. The classic cliché of a noble abusing his authority only to get brutally lectured by the protagonist was something I had already experienced the hard way. I had no intention of stepping on that landmine again.
The gossip floating around from the nearby merchants is actually pretty useful, too.
The captain gave a weak, gloomy nod.
“Understood. I’ll inform the guards. Please let us know if you need anything at all.”
“Got it.”
Once the captain left, Cani—who had been standing there holding her hands up in punishment—finally spoke.
“Can’t you just use your rights?”
She was whining, clearly convinced that entering the capital would get her punishment lifted. I looked at her and let out a small snort of laughter.
“Even after we enter the capital, you’re keeping those hands up.”
“Hiiing, my arms really hurt, Young Master.”
“It’s a punishment. It’s supposed to hurt.”
“Hmph! Mean Young Master. You’re going to get punished later!”
“Is that how a servant talks to her master?”
A maid scolding her own master—it felt like the world was upside down. Truly the end times.
After sleeping and eating inside the carriage for about two days, our turn finally arrived. The gate captain appeared at the perfect moment, as if he had been waiting for the news. He greeted us with a bright smile.
“Cani.”
“Yes, Young Master.”
“We haven’t caused any trouble, right?”
“We’ve been extremely quiet.”
“Then why does the captain look so happy that I’m finally moving?”
Cani gave me a look that said how do you not know?
“Obviously because of the bribes. Everyone knows that merchants who slip him money get to cut in line.”
“Right.”
“But if a noble from a count’s house is standing in line waiting, would he really dare take money from merchants and let them go ahead of you?”
“Ah.”
It seemed I had unintentionally interfered with the captain’s side hustle. Not that I felt particularly sorry about it.
The captain approached our carriage with a huge grin, bringing two of his soldiers along.
“Young Master, you’ve endured so much. Please, go right in.”
“Yeah. Thanks for looking after us all this time. Vice-captain!”
“Yes, Young Master.”
“Let’s go.”
“Understood.”
Now that I knew about the captain’s shady little business, I gave the order to depart with a somewhat sour feeling. The captain kept bowing deeply toward our moving carriage with a blissful smile on his face. If he kept living off bribes, karma would eventually bite him hard. Well, that’s his problem.
I decided to stop thinking about the captain and instead enjoy the splendid streets of the capital unfolding before me. Unlike our territory, which was packed with single-story buildings, the capital was full of multi-level structures.
“Ooooh!”
Cani’s eyes sparkled as she looked around at the unfamiliar capital scenery, constantly turning her head this way and that. Since I had learned that hitting her only made her happy, I stopped doing that and simply poked her in the back.
“Gek.”
She let out a bizarre shriek, apparently weak in the back. I clicked my tongue.
“Stop acting like such a country bumpkin.”
Quite a few passersby were chuckling at the sight of Cani’s sparkling eyes. I was the one who felt embarrassed.
“But… we really are country bumpkins, aren’t we…?”
“…”
The Edgar lands were the empire’s largest granary region. No matter where you looked, there really were nothing but fields and paddies. I couldn’t exactly argue, so I kept my mouth shut.
“Whoa, Young Master! They’re selling cola over there!”
Oh! I had been slightly annoyed at not being able to refute the “country bumpkin” comment, but the word “cola” made me stick my head out of the carriage window.
“Cola~! Fresh from the Carde Magic Tower with new lemon flavor! Cool and refreshing cola, only thirty silvers!”
A merchant was waving bottles of cola that had the Carde Magic Tower’s emblem plastered across them in huge letters.
“What? They released a new flavor?”
“Perfect timing. I was starting to get a little tired of the original.”
A crowd gathered around the merchant like a cloud. Although we had slowly increased supply over the years and lowered the price considerably, it was still expensive enough to be a burden for ordinary citizens. Yet it looked like cola had successfully established itself in the capital.
Cani watched the surging crowd with her mouth hanging open.
“Wow, Young Master, I can hear the sound of you getting richer all the way from here.”
I reached over and pinched her nose.
“Mmph.”
“I’m already rich.”
“Ah…”
The Edgar Count family had always been wealthy thanks to the empire’s most fertile farmland, but after adding in my royalty income we had become the undisputed richest house on the continent. The flood of marriage proposals that arrived because of those rumors was honestly exhausting. When I brushed my hair back and bragged about our wealth, Cani gave me an icy stare.
“Then why is my salary still the same?”
“…”
Sorry. I’ll raise it.
Arnel Empire noble district.
“Wooooow.”
Cani’s mouth stretched so wide it looked like it might tear when we arrived at the mansion where we would temporarily stay while attending the academy. The capital branch manager of the Carde Magic Tower, who had arranged to provide us with this residence during our time at the academy, smiled proudly at her exaggerated reaction.
“Haha, this is a mansion our tower purchased with great consideration. It used to belong to the Fredict Ducal House before they were wiped out.”
“Whoa, a ducal mansion! Young Master, we’ve really made it big!”
“To be precise, I made it big. Not you.”
“How cold.”
Ignoring Cani, I asked the branch manager with a serious expression.
“Are there any bad rumors about this mansion? For example… does it have ghosts?”
In this other world where black mages existed openly, ghosts were only natural. They occasionally appeared even in ordinary homes and made the local papers, so what about a mansion that once belonged to a destroyed ducal house? It was far more logical to assume it was haunted than to assume it wasn’t.
Seeming to understand my concern, the manager showed me an official document stamped with the church’s seal.
Church Safety Certification
This property has undergone a complete exorcism and purification by authorized priests. No malevolent spirits, curses, or residual dark energy detected. The residence is certified safe for immediate occupancy.
— Temple of the Goddess —
“Hahaha, the seller commissioned the church and obtained a safety guarantee certificate. It really is a perfectly normal property with no issues whatsoever!”
The greatest natural enemy of ghosts was the clergy. With the church’s own guarantee, it was certainly trustworthy. Only then did I relax and extend my hand to the manager.
“I gratefully accept the Carde Magic Tower’s goodwill.”
The branch manager, who was easily old enough to be my father, bowed politely and took my hand with both of his.
“Haha, considering how much money you’ve earned for our tower, Young Master, this is only natural.”
I had been taught never to accept favors lightly, but the tower and I were bound together by money as a community of fate. This much should be fine.
“Then I’ll head inside now.”
“Yes, have a wonderful stay!”
Leaving the manager—who gave a crisp ninety-degree bow—behind, we entered the mansion.
“Change the oil there, and hang curtains on that window over there.”
“Yes!”
The mischievous Cani who had dashed ahead to claim the best room had vanished. In her place was Cani in full Maid Chief mode, directing the knights with practiced skill.
She really is competent when she puts her mind to it.
I walked over to praise her for working hard.
“Oh, Young Master, you’re here?”
“Yeah, you’ve been working ha—”
“I’ve already claimed the largest room in the mansion, so don’t even think about coming in!”
“…”
“Ah, but if you really want to sleep with cute little me, I’ll allow you to sneak in at night!”
The moment she saw my face, the competent maid-chief mode switched off and the mischievous mode turned back on. A vein bulged on my forehead and I unconsciously ground my teeth. I had no idea why that grinning face of hers was so infuriating. This maid had an overwhelming talent for making people angry.
Watching the knights busily moving about and doing their jobs despite whatever nonsense Cani was up to, I decided she was no longer necessary. I grabbed her by the ear and headed for the rooms.
“Right, let’s go to your room. You’re dead today.”
“Hiiik, it was a joke! A joke!”
Cani must have realized I wasn’t going to let it slide this time; she began flailing wildly. Even with my weak body, dragging one delicate maid was more than manageable. I found the largest room in the mansion and tossed her onto the bed.
“Kyaaaak!”
Cani let out an adorable scream. Her cheeks flushed red, perhaps from fear of the punishment she was about to receive. The moment I raised my hand of justice—
“Ahem.”
An unfamiliar voice came from the ceiling. I froze with my palm still raised at the strange sound, and Cani’s face turned deathly pale.
“G-ghost…?”
“Yes, it’s a ghost, you little brats.”
How long had it been since I saw the certificate guaranteeing there were no ghosts? And now one had appeared. It seemed this mansion really had been an accident property. The church must have taken money for a false guarantee.
Those rotten bastards. After all the donations I’ve given them.
From now on, I wouldn’t give the church a single copper until the day I died.