The Kingdom of Ranoa, Magic City Sharia.
It's a city with many students, and in one of its corners was a house that has a certain problem. Built 100 years ago, the Rudeus Mansion. The problem that it had was that it was...
『A haunted mansion』
Though its appearance was simply that of an aged Western-styled mansion[1], it was overrun with moss and withered vines, and to describe it in one word, it was 'unsettling'.
The one who thought to live in this house was a client by the name of Rudeus Greyrat. He was a former A ranked adventurer, and was now a student at the Magic University. Although he bought the house because he was getting married, he was dissatisfied with the appearance.
What kind of problems did this house have?
The moment you took a step into the premises, you'd see a garden that lacked maintenance. An entrance that was broken. A ceiling and walls with various stains left about. A leaking roof. A fireplace whose functionality was questionable... It was something that brought to mind the word 'abandoned'.
"Because of some magical components it's been aging well, but as expected there's still a feeling of aging to it. As a home for newlyweds, the atmosphere is a bit much, huh?"
He wanted a nice clean home[2] suitable for a pair of newlyweds. A single man accepted this client's request.
He was a craftsman who did renovations, 『Balda of the Great Cave』. A first class architect belonging to the Basherant Dukedom's Magic Guild. He could take care of things from the planning, all the way to the construction and was a veteran of 30 years.
With the construction techniques he learned in the Holy Kingdom of Milis as a base, he had many accomplishments, such as the Magic University's school buildings.
Though he had a few stubborn parts, he was an agreeable person and his skill was assured. He always had a hammer hanging at his waist, and if strangers had something they didn't like about their houses, he'd fix it for them; he held the spirit of a true artisan. Whether it was his disciples or buildings, he'd fix it with a strike of his hammer. Because of this, he was called 『Balda of the Hammer』.
"Yo, you've come. So you're 『Quagmire』, huh, boy?[3] I heard you were getting married!"
The person who had come to meet the craftsman was the client this time. He was known as 『Rudeus of the Quagmire』 on the streets, and was received sociably by the craftsman.
"Yes. I'll be in your care, Balda-san."
Balda knew of the name 'Rudeus'. He had an old friend named Talhand. He had heard about Rudeus from Talhand's companion, Elinalise.
"I was fine with buying a house for marriage, but the state of it is as you see."
"For now, can I have a look around the house and inside it?"
"Please go ahead."
When he made to enter the house, the craftsman immediately frowned.
"Oi, the hell happened? The door is in horrible shape. It looks like you tried to bloody tear it off."
"Because the door didn't fit well, there was no choice but to break it."
"Honestly, kids these days freaking breaking things without a thought, don't have enough respect for items."
"Yeah, they're horrible, huh?"
The client warded off the indignant craftsman's complaints in an unaffected attitude. His attitude was almost like he wasn't the one who had broken it.
The craftsman couldn't accept this attitude. However, he endured it. After all, he had heard that 『Rudeus of the Quagmire』 was a frightening person when angered.
"What are you gonna do about the door?"
"Um, what do you mean?"
"Like the materials, or the design. If you don't give me any specifics, I'll be going with what I judge best."
"Though I don't really mind about the materials, I'd like for you to make it firm. Also, please leave a doorknocker on it as well."
"Since it's the entrance, that much is obvious."
When the craftsman entered the house, he concealed a difficult expression.
"It's pretty worn out, huh."
"I-, is that so?"
"Though the floors were done very well, at least compared to the walls and ceiling. It's almost as if the basement was the most important part, and everything else was just made as a bonus."
"Can you tell such a thing?"
"Obviously."
The craftsman's eyes could immediately tell what parts were good, and what parts were bad. The floor, the stairs, upstairs, the dining room, the kitchen, the fireplace. These places were extremely well done. You could tell that a genius craftsman had spent 100 years using construction and magical techniques to create them. However, the walls and the roof were done by hand, which was strange.
"Still, I'll fix something like this in no time."
The craftsman spoke reassuring words. Having been reassured, the client entered the large dining room.
"It's a large room, huh? The lighting isn't bad either, huh."
"How is the fireplace?"
"Show me."
It was a fireplace with questionable functionality. The craftsman's eyes lit up.
"This is a good fireplace. It's a tad old, but it'd be better not to mess around with it."
"Is that okay?"
"Look, there's a signature carved here."