Comment and Coupons: A Big Thanks! Episode 130
43. The Magical Beast and the Baronet’s Mansion 129 – The Magical Beast and the Baronet’s Mansion #2
【The Ancient Nest: The Paradise of Fanatics】
I stared at the words floating before my eyes in complete disbelief. Who would have thought I would see the words “Ancient Nest” in Gideon’s mansion?
‘Wherever I set foot, the Ancient Nest is everywhere.’
Thinking it over, it made total sense. Gideon, the Baronet, had a luxurious mansion with a garden housing ten silver-grade magical beasts. It was perfectly reasonable to call this place the Ancient Nest.
‘This house has reached the level of a dungeon; it could definitely be called a dungeon!’
I nodded to myself as I surveyed the vast interior of the mansion.
Candlelight and chandeliers illuminated the dark room, with gleaming armor and taxidermied curiosities that oddly resembled props from a horror movie, along with a painting of a woman with a peculiar expression.
‘What’s that smell?’
Sniff, sniff.
I caught a whiff of a strange aroma wafting through the mansion—faint floral notes mingled with a hint of sweetness that almost made my head spin.
‘So, the scent that wafted from the maid Symphony’s body must be the mansion’s scent.’
Gideon the Baronet enjoyed cultivating bizarre plants inside the mansion and in the garden, so it was likely the source of this puzzling fragrance.
━What a grand house.
It shone just as brightly as the palace of King Solomon in Jerusalem.
Unlike the palace festooned solely with sparkling jewels, Gideon’s mansion boasted a variety of exquisite artifacts: sculptures, exotic armors, and ancient tomes scattered throughout.
“Is that the Alpha? Looks just like a fluffy white ball…!”
“Alpha? Whoa, you need to show some respect! They say His Majesty directly bestowed the title upon them!”
“Where else can you find such an adorable knight…!”
Squeak. Squeak.
The maids approached me, showing interest. They reached out, petting my head and chin, a stark contrast to the terrified Symphony I had met before.
‘Yeah, this is more like it.’
I sashayed through the wide reception room and hall, soaking up the attention from the maids and attendants.
‘What kind of beast’s bone is that?’
My curious eyes darted to a strange beast’s skeleton placed in one corner of the mansion. With its long tail and horns on its head, it was hard to tell what kind of creature it was just from the bones.
It was probably something dinosaur-like, being upright on four legs.
“This is the remains of a Fire Dragon, specifically a young Curry Rex. The lingering negative energy of a spirit that couldn’t reach adulthood hangs heavily here.”
A young man’s melodious voice chimed in from behind me.
‘When did he sneak up?’
Gideon’s young butler, Harmony, stood behind me with a bright smile, eyes narrowed in a teasing squint.
Even though I was mesmerized by the beast’s bones, I never expected the attendants in this mansion to sneak up on me, which startled me like a cat shocked by a cucumber.
━Hey, kid, make some noise when you’re creeping up on someone. I don’t like anyone standing behind me!
“Welcome, Alpha, to the Mendel Mansion of Baronet Gideon! My name is Harmony Danvers. My main duty is training new attendants and maids, so let me give you some advice.”
Harmony gently patted the horn of the Curry Rex with his gloved hand.
“The training for newcomers is always the same: three major rules! First, never touch anything in Mendel Mansion without permission. Second, if it’s a foggy, rainy day, cover your face with a black cloth. And thirdly, if you’re in the dark mansion and someone calls your name from behind, NEVER look back!”
Boom, bang.
In that instant, a lightning bolt struck outside the darkened mansion. Soon after, a torrential downpour began, violently pelting the windows with wind and rain.
“As long as you stick to those rules, you’ll be fine, Alpha.”
Harmony flashed another smile at me. No matter how intelligent I was, to them, I was still just a beast.
For coming to me with such serious words, he must either be very polite or somewhat wacky.
━What a strange guy. Do you think I wouldn’t get it if you say it like that? Well, I do understand.
As I let out a soft growl, Harmony merely smiled at me.
“Dinner will be served soon. Follow me to the dining room.”
Dinner at Mendel Mansion was a feast with an astonishing array of exquisite dishes.
Sitting at the long table, with a white scarf draped around my neck, my eyes were glazed over by the dishes being served before me.
There was steaming meat stew, a salad with whole fruits or vegetables chopped up inside it, and a fragrant, clear soup wafting through the air.
‘How much would a human have to pay to eat something like this?’
The restaurant I once splurged at had dishes that easily cost over a hundred thousand won each—so, if these plates were at least a hundred thousand each, I could easily be over three million in the hole.
‘As they say, a beast’s luck is indeed remarkable. I was born a beast and am living this life of luxury. What should I taste first to savor this heavenly feast?’
I blinked in indecisiveness over which delicacy to start with.
The maids in black dresses, wearing veils over their faces, bustled around, making sure every inch of the long table was covered.
While looking at the food made my mouth water and my hunger pangs ache, seeing those grim-looking attendants gave me a peculiar vibe.
‘Feels like I’m at a funeral.’
The people covered in dark clothing, hiding their flesh, probably adhered to what Harmony mentioned about the second rule of Mendel Mansion.
‘So we’re supposed to cover our faces on rainy days?’
I couldn’t fathom the reason behind such a rule, but seeing it like this made it feel more serious than a simple joke.
“Everyone, please sit down to eat.”
A man draped in black cloth sat at the central position of the table.
With that, the maids and attendants bringing the food settled into their chairs, picking up their utensils.
“Then, I shall say the pre-meal prayer.”
The man in black cloth, presumably Baronet Gideon, pushed his chair back with a screech, raising both arms wide.
“Once again, we thank you for providing us with our daily bread…”
Continuing with his solemn prayer akin to a priest’s invocation, I tilted my head. Gideon’s voice deepened as he declared:
“On this night, under the deep darkness and rain, may the soul of a woman descends upon this place with the creeping mist.”
“Aooo.”
“Aooo.”
“Aooo.”
As Gideon finished his prayer, the maids and attendants mimicked strange beast noises. I scratched my head in mild confusion.
The bizarre sounds they made seemed so natural to them, and they soon resumed eating as if nothing was out of the ordinary.
Even with the black cloth covering their faces, they managed to eat deftly. For them, this must be a typical occurrence.
‘What a strange dinner. Is this cultural differences?’
The peculiar attire, the odd prayer, and the booming thunder with the eerie sound of rain drumming against the windows created a slightly chaotic atmosphere, but the food itself was delicious.
【Experience points gained.】
‘But wow, none of these people even said a word during dinner.’
The maids in black cloth efficiently cleared off all the dishes after the meal, and not a single word passed their lips.
It was hard to believe these were the very same maids who had shown interest in me just a moment ago, now completely silent and solemn.
━What’s going on here?
“!?”
“!”
Letting out a small growl startled nearby maids, who flinched slightly. I felt their gazes through the black cloth, followed by a tiny sigh.
“Phew…”
‘What’s got them so jumpy? They seem scared or something.’
The heavy air in the mansion was laced with a blend of fear and trembling sighs, and I grew curious about what exactly these inhabitants of the mansion feared.
As I wandered about the dining room like a lost scarecrow, the man in black cloth, Baronet Gideon, approached me.
“Alpha, I wanted to introduce you to my friends in the expansive garden, but it’s raining today. I’ll prepare a room for you, so you can stay there tonight, even if it’s a bit cramped.”
The room prepared for me by Baronet Gideon was located on the third floor, at the end of the corridor in the farthest corner. It was spacious and comfortable, comparable to a large studio.
‘So cramped is a noble’s perspective, I guess.’
I flopped onto the huge bed and rolled around. The fluffy and wide bed felt particularly spacious, but it couldn’t just be my imagination.
‘It’s been a while since I’ve spent a night alone.’
With no raccoon Leaf chattering away, no Batus, and plenty of other beasts around, I cherished this rare moment of solitude.
Whoosh.
The feeling of being in a safe mansion while torrential rain poured down outside was oddly exciting.
I stood up on my two legs, flung open the curtains over the window. The moonlight was obscured by fog and rain clouds, rendering the outside view completely invisible.
Thud, patter.
The sound of rain beating against the window was the only thing providing hints about the weather and scenery outside.
‘This should be the back of the mansion, the grand garden, but because it’s night, it’s pitch-black.’
Flash.
In that moment, a brilliant flash cut through the dark world. For a brief instant, the dense grand garden—or perhaps the forest—behind the mansion came into view.
There were densely draped leaves and thick strands of rain, and behind that, something resembling a lake was fleetingly visible.
Boom.
Thunder rolled like the sky was falling. I shut the curtains, trembling as a chill ran down my spine.
‘There’s a lake out back.’
Having a lake in a private garden. How extravagantly bourgeois!
Baronet Gideon’s wealth was beyond my wildest imagination; I couldn’t even begin to grasp how much fortune he must possess.
‘So far, I hadn’t thought much of treasures like gold or jewels, but now that I’m in the human world, they seem pretty significant and useful.’
Of course, gold itself held no real value for me. However, gold could buy beasts and food, which were excellent means of gaining experience for me.
‘But having gold wouldn’t mean much. I’d better hope that dimwitted Leaf becomes a proper princess soon.’
With that thought, I smirked in the darkness. From what I’d overheard during my stay at the palace, it sounded like the aging king, Solomon, was quite worried, being heirless, inside and outside the kingdom.
With Leaf—who everyone thought was dead—now back, it seemed likely she would succeed Solomon after his passing.
The picture of me working behind the scenes while leading Leaf to the throne and harboring my own ambitions formed in my mind.
‘The place where humans live truly is nice. No worries about food and no beasts rushing at me to fight.’
I stepped out, leaving my enjoyable fantasies as I headed out the door. I wanted to sneak off to the bathroom before laying down to sleep with peace of mind.
The wide, endless corridors, lit by faint lanterns, had shadows that danced as I moved. As I ventured into the dimly lit corridor, an unusual chill crept down my back.
‘What’s going on?’
An uncomfortable feeling lingered, as if a thin cobweb had caught on the back of my head. The knights’ armors nearby and those bizarre portraits seemed like they were about to glare back at me.
A gigantic mansion. Torrential rain. Thunder and fog.
And that peculiar religious ceremony with the black garments at dinner.
The tales I had heard from the palace guards and maids about the cursed Mendel Mansion and ghosts flickered in memory.
‘Ugh, suddenly this feels kinda creepy.’
I struggled to shake off the unsettling feelings. I had confronted all sorts of foes, but the tension lingering in the mansion’s corridor radiated a different kind of anxiety altogether.
━I swear a ghost is about to show up. Who believes in ghosts, anyway?
I muttered to myself, trying to keep a calm exterior. The large door at the far end of the corridor led to the bathroom, if I remembered correctly.
Alpha…
‘Huh?’
I thought I heard someone call my name softly from behind.
Alpha…
I wondered if I was imagining things, but there it was—someone was definitely calling my name with an eerie, faint voice from behind.
‘Thirdly, if you hear your name being called from the shadows of the dark mansion, NEVER look back.’
Just as I was about to turn around, I suddenly recalled that rule and froze in place.
Most importantly, my room was at the end of the corridor on the third floor; it was a guest space that neither attendants nor maids frequented, meaning nobody should be behind me calling my name.
That meant it was impossible for anyone to be behind me.
