Chapter 40

The next morning, I was eating breakfast at the handyman shop’s table. Today’s menu was grilled fish. I didn’t know the species; it was likely something unique to this world. I brought a piece skewered on my fork to my mouth and was instantly taken aback.

“—This is delicious.”

The moment it hit my tongue, the white meat melted away. A rich sweetness spread through my mouth. There wasn’t a hint of fishiness. It was like marbled beef, yet it lacked any heavy greasiness. It wasn’t exactly “light” either; it simply had a refined flavor without any unpleasant aftertaste. The salt sprinkled over it was excellent too, tightening the flavor profile perfectly. Every time I chewed, savory umami overflowed. I’d never been particularly fond of fish, but I was going to have to reconsider my stance.

“How is it? Does it taste good?”

Alice, wearing an apron, checked in on me. She had woken up early to prepare this meal. While she maintained her poker face, she looked somewhat proud of herself. She clearly had confidence in her handiwork. I gave her an appreciative nod.

“Yeah, it’s the best.”

“Hey, hey, hey! This is no time to be enjoying a calm meal!”

Just as I was admiring the taste of the fish, the front door burst open and Letona tumbled inside. We were right in the middle of a pleasant meal, yet she insisted on being boorish. However, the atmosphere suggested that if I didn’t listen to her, she wouldn’t leave us alone. Judging by how flustered she was, some sort of trouble must have occurred.

I spoke to her with a hint of reproach.

“You’re noisy so early in the morning. What on earth happened?”

“What do you mean ‘what happened’?! The whole city is buzzing about the Hanvielud Family incident!”

“Ah… the what Family? That’s a complicated name.”

“The Hanvielud Family! The organization you and Alice destroyed! It’s a massive ordeal, so please at least remember the name…”

Letona sighed with an exasperated look. I grumbled while bringing more fish to my mouth.

“Even if you say that, I’m just not interested, unfortunately.”

“You really are insane… Aren’t you worried about people coming for your life or anything like that?”

“I’ll just kill whoever shows up.”

I replied instantly with a smirk. It was a simple, clear-cut matter. If there were fools who tried to use force, I would simply suppress them with superior violence. It was a solution I’d been well-acquainted with for many years. It remained useful regardless of what world I was in.

Letona took a seat, accepted a glass of water from Alice, and gulped it down. Then she let out a long sigh.

“I can’t say anything back when you’re that confident… Oh, right. Changing the subject, I’ve successfully purchased that property. Since ownership became ambiguous after the organization collapsed, I snatched it up.”

“Now that’s a topic I’m interested in.”

“Believe it or not, I got it for ninety percent off the original price! Aren’t I amazing!?”

“I can’t deny that. You did well.”

That was something I never could have accomplished myself. It was likely thanks to the handyman shop’s connections and Letona’s negotiation skills. She was a woman with a difficult personality, but when it came to her professional abilities, she was an undeniable pro. She was someone I could trust to get a job done.

“I used some aggressive methods, but I doubt anyone will complain. I made it public knowledge that the owner of the property is you, Mr. Jack. I think everyone is terrified.”

“I bet. That’s exactly why I blew up their headquarters.”

The destruction of the building was my message. It had clearly reached those it needed to reach. If rumors were spreading that it was my handiwork, then things were going perfectly. Letona leaned her chin on her hand and smiled with interest.

“My, how terrifying. To annihilate the organization ruling this city in a single night. It’s a perfect fit for meritocratic Eurea. Eventually, just mentioning your name might grant you special treatment.”

“That would be convenient. It seems I’ll be able to live comfortably in this town.”

I planned to stay in this fortress city for a while. Anything that made life more pleasant was more than welcome. After finishing the meal and settling the bill, we decided to head straight to the newly purchased property. We took Letona and Hack along with us.

“Hm?”

As we moved in the golem car as usual, the gazes from the surroundings were different from yesterday. Among the townspeople, there were those who showed awe or fear. More than a few people scurried away to avoid the golem car. It seemed my reputation had indeed spread.

While being so blatantly shunned left a bit of a sour taste in my mouth, I figured it was better than being dragged into some strange trouble. Noting the change in the atmosphere, we eventually arrived at the property in question.

Before us stood a two-story house enclosed by a fence. At first glance, it just looked like a building on a large plot of land, but it supposedly possessed an underground space. Since it was originally a building used by a criminal organization, my expectations for the facilities were high.

After finishing the final verification tasks, Letona straightened her posture in front of us.

“Well then, we shall take our leave. If you need anything else, please feel free to drop by anytime.”

“Thanks for the help. If you ever find yourself in a bind, let me know. Depending on the price, I’ll blow up anything you want.”

“Ah, haha… Thank you very much… My, having Mr. Jack’s strength to rely on is truly a delight.”

“I’m here too,” Alice said, raising her hand to make her presence known.

Hearing that, Letona bowed slightly as she responded.

“Of course, I’m counting on you as well, Miss Alice… Also, I beg of you, please don’t blow up the handyman shop, okay?”

“As long as you keep playing the ally,” I replied, weaving a warning into my words.

Letona nodded vigorously and beat a hasty retreat, looking genuinely flustered. Her assistant, Hack, gave us a single glance before walking away in silence. They were quite a unique pair, but I was sure our paths would cross again. This base and the handyman shop were close to each other, and we both understood the balance of profit and loss. They were among the few acquaintances I had in Eurea. I hoped our favorable relationship would continue.

“Now then, shall we check out our new base?”

I unlocked the main gate with the key I’d been given and stepped onto the grounds. As I thought, it looked like an ordinary wooden house. You’d never imagine it was a structure once used by a criminal organization. I headed inside to check the state of the interior.

The house was furnished with the bare minimum. There were no cobwebs or dust; it was kept quite tidy. It looked like Letona had seen to the cleaning beforehand. With a few daily necessities, we could start living here immediately. However, the main attraction wasn’t here. If this were all it had to offer, I could have found plenty of other properties.

I walked around the living room, testing the sound of my footsteps and the feel of the floorboards. Before long, I found a spot that felt slightly off.

“Found it.”

When I removed an aged floorboard, a circular iron hatch was revealed. It looked much like a manhole cover. I pulled up a few more boards and yanked the hatch open. Inside was a ladder leading down into the darkness below.

“A secret base. Not bad.”

Gimmicks like this always got my heart racing. I slid down the ladder in one go, hitting the floor after a few seconds. The material felt like concrete. I fumbled along the nearby wall until I found a switch and pressed it. After a few flickers, the ceiling lights hummed to life.

A vast space opened up before me. It was large enough to hold a soccer match, and the ceiling was easily twenty yards high. It was a scale unimaginable from the modest house above. With this much space, there were countless ways to use it. Testing my creations or storing supplies would be no problem at all. According to Letona’s explanation, the walls were sturdy and boasted excellent soundproofing. As a base, its performance was flawless.

“This is a good place. It’s well-suited for a magic workshop too,” Alice remarked as she climbed down the ladder. She seemed to like it as well.

And just like that, we had obtained our base of operations in Eurea.