The Three Ds

I woke up feeling depressed.

There were plenty of reasons, like how distant everyone was toward me and how the food wasn’t particularly good, but what depressed me most was the fortress itself.

As a place to live, it was absolutely terrible.

The fortress was dark, dirty, and, on top of that, downright disgusting in its smell…

The three dreadful Ds—dark, dirty, and disgusting—that was Gaurea Fortress.

The toilets were particularly awful. Calling them hell… or even purgatory wouldn’t have been an exaggeration.

The communal toilets were so filthy that I couldn’t even bring myself to enter them.

The toilets reserved for high-ranking officers were somewhat better, but the stench was still unbelievable.

Was it because they used a waste collection system?

I’d just gotten up and gone to relieve myself, and that alone had nearly made me throw up.

Vomiting first thing in the morning was the absolute worst.

Even after leaving the bathroom and stepping into the corridor, I still felt sick. I was struggling to breathe properly and had to lean against the wall, gasping for air.

“Um, are you all right?”

While I was wheezing, one of the fortress’s maids noticed me and became concerned.

“Sorry, I just can’t seem to get over this nausea.”

“Oh, dear. Hang in there.”

She seemed like a kind person, gently rubbing the back of a complete stranger.

She looked a little younger than me.

Her silky, straight, light-blue hair was cut neatly at shoulder length.

She had large eyes and looked like an exceptionally gentle person.

“Sorry you had to see me in such a pathetic state…”

“Heehee. You know, I don’t dislike helpless people. I just can’t seem to leave them alone.”

Wait, was she subtly insulting me?

Well, considering the state I was in, I supposed I couldn’t blame her.

The maid continued gently rubbing my back as she asked me a question.

“I haven’t seen you around before. You’re not wearing a uniform, either… Are you a soldier who just arrived as a reinforcement?”

Oh, so she didn’t know who I was yet.

And since I was wearing pajamas, she’d probably mistaken me for a soldier.

“Actually, I’m the newly appointed fortress lord.”

“Fortress… lord? Fortress… lord… The… the new fortress lord!?”

The maid practically jumped in surprise.

“Please forgive me! My name is Aine Rurudora, and I serve as a maid here. I had no idea you were our new lord and behaved terribly disrespectfully. Please accept my apologies!”

She apologized so profusely that she looked ready to throw herself to the floor in submission.

Just watching her made it hard for me to breathe again.

“It’s fine. I’m the one who showed you such an embarrassing side of myself. Aine, was it? Thanks for rubbing my back. I feel much better now.”

When I thanked her, Aine stared at me with a puzzled expression.

“What’s wrong?”

“Oh, it’s just that I thought people summoned from another world would be much more frightening.”

“I’m just an ordinary person. But I guess that’s really what everyone thinks, huh?”

After all, every servant I’d met so far had been trembling with fear.

“Um, but I don’t think that anymore!”

“Huh?”

“I understand now. You’re not scary at all, my lord.”

“I’m not sure that’s a good thing, either. Makes me sound like I have no authority.”

I couldn’t help laughing, but Aine shook her head vigorously.

“That’s not true! I absolutely adore people who seem a little helpless, so…”

“Huh?”

“N-No, it’s nothing!”

Despite her gentle appearance, could Aine actually be a rather dangerous maid…?

“My lord, there is something I would like to propose.”

“A proposal? If it’s something good, I’m all ears.”

“Would you consider appointing me as your personal maid?”

Being suddenly asked to appoint her as my personal maid left me rather confused.

“What exactly would that involve?”

“I hope you won’t take this the wrong way, but the other servants are frightened of you, my lord. They’re terrified of accidentally angering someone from another world who possesses tremendous power.”

That much I understood.

It was depressing, but I could clearly feel how everyone was avoiding me.

“That’s why I would like you to keep me by your side. I won’t be frightened of you, and I believe I can serve you with all my heart.”

Other than Karan-san, there wasn’t anyone here who would even have a proper conversation with me.

Having someone as cheerful as Aine around might be reassuring.

“All right, then. I think I’ll take you up on that offer.”

“Thank you very much! I’ll go take care of the necessary arrangements right away.”

Aine hurried off energetically.

Had I made the right decision?

I still felt vaguely uneasy, but for someone like me, who didn’t have a single friend here, a person willing to approach me and strike up a conversation was precious.

For now, I decided that was good enough.

I returned to my chilly private quarters.

I’d been given a spacious suite consisting of two adjoining rooms, one serving as my bedroom and the other as my office.

The furniture had already been provided, and the rooms were reasonably luxurious.

But frankly, they weren’t particularly comfortable.

They were cold and dimly lit.

The only sources of light were a small window and an oil lamp.

At this rate, I felt like my eyesight would deteriorate.

And since the window didn’t even have glass fitted into it, the room was freezing.

Perhaps the stone walls contributed to the cold as well?

Apparently, they used a fireplace during winter, but that had left the entire room stained with soot.

It seemed that my Construction Company Job was finally going to come in handy.

I hadn’t managed to make much of an impression during my meeting with General Paimon, but I believed in my own potential.

It was only a hunch, but I thought I could probably construct any kind of building as long as I had enough time.

So, it was time to put my Construction Company abilities to the test.

There were plenty of things I wanted to improve, such as the lighting and windows, but I decided to start by building a toilet.

After all, every visit to the existing toilets made me feel like throwing up, and if things continued like this, I was going to end up terribly constipated.

I hadn’t even managed to have a bowel movement once since arriving at the fortress.

If I sat on one of those toilets for more than a minute, I would definitely throw up.

I might have ended up in a place like this, but I was determined to reclaim a comfortable life through my own abilities!

With that resolution firmly in my heart, I decided to get to work.