After parting ways with Yumina, I returned home. As I stepped through the entrance, I felt at ease. It’s great. It’s not just the warmth; it’s more the feeling of mental comfort.
It wasn’t a particularly nerve-wracking outing, but being outside, even just walking around, is exhausting. Actually, even if I just sit indoors without moving, I still feel tired. I don’t really know why, but it’s impossible to fully relax outside. I’m just tired.
People like Mom and Yumina seem to enjoy going out, but I prefer being at home. I don’t understand why someone would leave this comfortable place to go outside. Now that school is about to start, I’ll have to go practically every day, so why can’t I just stay home during the break? To begin with, I’m so busy leveling up that I can’t even stay home completely. Hmm…
I changed into some casual clothes. I want to lie down on the sofa or the bed and relax for a while, but there’s still something I need to do.
I went downstairs. There are a few bookshelves and, in one corner, unopened boxes of purchased items are stacked. They’re all books.
Since buying this house, I’ve been using it as a secondary space. In my previous life, I struggled because the inherited house was too small to expand the study, like disposing of some books among other things. Ugh. But this life is different—if space is lacking, you can just buy more. It’s simple and I like it.
When I glanced at the floor, I saw the robot vacuum cleaner. That’s my job for the day.
Mom said this morning:
“From now on, this lower floor belongs to our daughter, so she should clean it. Can you do that?”
“No.”
I brazenly refused but was still denied. I thought about hiring someone to clean, but the idea of a stranger rummaging through my bookshelves didn’t sit well with me, so I let it go.
I turned on one of the two robot vacuum cleaners. It started cleaning with a mechanical hum. When I swept my fingers across the area it had already cleaned, there wasn’t a speck of dust. You guys are competent. At this rate, I can probably leave the floor alone without sweeping it.
Still, why do I have two of these things? I checked, and one has a wet mop function, while the other doesn’t. They’re separate. Why isn’t all the functionality combined into one? Can’t technology in an era full of magic solve these kinds of problems? Although commercial magic hasn’t even reached the starting point yet.
I stretched after standing up from a crouched position. Whew. I was worried about cleaning this entire spacious place, but now that’s one less thing to worry about. Not that I would have hired someone anyway if I actually had to.
Even if I leave more of the floor cleaning to the robot vacuums, I’ll leave that for future me, Cha Haneul. More importantly, I need to figure out how to clean the bookshelves. With the air purifier, there’s less dust accumulation, but it’s still necessary to dust them occasionally. They’re not dirty enough that I need to do it today, though.
Approaching the bookshelf, I wiped the edge of one of the shelves with my finger, and dust came off. What’s going on? Why is this happening? Could it be Mom left it this way intending for me to take responsibility? That’s probably not it, but I’d like to believe that this much dust didn’t accumulate from a mere lapse in cleaning. It’s been so long since I’ve cleaned a room in this life that I can’t even estimate.
Do I really have to dust the bookshelves every time? It’s so troublesome. Out of curiosity, I checked the capabilities of the competent robot vacuum, and as expected, it seems like it can’t clean the bookshelves. It does seem odd that such functionality doesn’t exist in this world full of fantasy, making life unsatisfying.
Still, if I’m going to clean, shouldn’t I also clean the kitchen and the bathrooms? This doesn’t seem like it’s really about the bookshelves anymore.
Regrettably, there are three bathrooms here. We only really use one near the living room and the kitchen, so it’s quite a waste of space. With the extended cleaning areas, I’m troubled. Who bought this place without thinking ahead? There’s no plan.
I wiped the bookshelf again with my finger, and dust came off, as expected. On second thought, maybe I don’t need to clean it. It’s fine at this level. Yeah, I’m right. It’s fine.
Books can have dust on them, after all. When you go to secondhand bookstores, they smell dusty, and it’s part of the experience. Even the books themselves sometimes smell dusty, but that doesn’t detract from their value or readability. Dust is a companion of old books and the romantic charm of long-standing bookstores. Yeah, that’s it. Dust serves a purpose.
Then again, if I’m going to clean, I should also clean the kitchen and the bathrooms. Hmm… Hmm… Ah, yeah. The bathroom is a bathroom, so I’ll clean it next time instead of now. Alright, problem solved.
Is there anything else to clean? No? Nope.
This is somewhat strange, but there doesn’t seem to be.
Cleaning is done for the day.
*
After finishing the cleaning, I looked around the living room. What should I do now? Clearly, the next logical step would be to go home, but if I head back now, Mom might give me a subtle look. Maybe I’ll read a book.
As I stood there blankly, the robot vacuum made a sound near my feet and moved in another direction. Oops.
I stepped to the corner to avoid getting in its way. I clearly finished cleaning, but I don’t feel accomplished. Is cleaning just not my thing? Maybe I’ll hire someone.
The robot vacuum was working hard, even though I couldn’t see any dust. While watching it, it seemed like the room was getting cleaner as it moved around. It’s a bit strange just watching it. My body is relaxed, but my mind feels uneasy.
Still, I don’t feel like cleaning, so I went over to the pile of unopened delivery boxes in the corner of the living room. All the boxes are books. Are there dozens of them? Surely not a hundred.
Ever since I turned this house into a library, I stopped hesitating to buy books. The original barrier to reading was real estate prices.
With no limits now, I impulsively buy anything that catches my fancy. At first, I would unpack and organize the books every time they arrived.
But eventually, it felt too troublesome, so I decided to do it all at once later, but it got piled up too much and became overly complicated to sort out. This is how they accumulated. Thinking about it, it feels a little pitiful, but it’s unavoidable.
Books are usually limited editions. They don’t always stay available in bookstores or online to be ordered whenever. Once they’re out of stock, they’re gone, and sometimes they don’t show up in secondhand shops either. Anyway, I don’t really like reading books others have already read.
These days, with lower printing costs, print runs for small editions have increased, often starting with 500 or 1,000 copies for the first edition.
I’m not sure, but print runs of 200 might exist as well.
So, if a book is popular but too niche or academic or specialized, it quickly goes out of print. Even if it’s popular enough for a reprint, the demand might be too ambiguous, and then it’s permanently out of stock. It gets even worse with translated books.
If I order a book and find that the order has been cancelled because it’s out of stock, that feels really, really bad. If it’s a book I bought on a whim, I may just feel a bit of regret, but if it’s something I felt compelled to read right away and ordered for same-day delivery, it’s incredibly frustrating. I have the money, so why can’t I read it? Why can’t I buy it? Ugh, just thinking about it gives me chills.
It’s unimaginable and deeply unpleasant finding a book I can’t locate in every online bookstore and small physical store.
I’ve experienced that, so I really, really don’t want to go through it again. Now, if I have the opportunity, I immediately order it, even if it’s a book I know I need to prioritize but haven’t yet read, regardless of whether it’s already filling up the bookshelves.
So, it’s not my problem that the books have piled up so much without being unpacked; it’s because the publication speed exceeds the reading speed. It’s an age-old issue ever since books started being printed in bulk long ago. Right, correct. It’s unavoidable.
Still, it doesn’t look good to have the delivery boxes sitting there, so it’s about time to put the books on the shelves. Since I have nothing else to do now, it’s probably best to do it now.
I grabbed a cutter and started opening the boxes, pulling out the books and stacking them by theme. It’s not the Dewey Decimal System, but I organize the bookshelves by personal criteria, so this feels more efficient. They are many, but since magic exists, moving them around isn’t difficult. That’s fortunate.
As I was pulling books out, I heard the sound of the front door opening. It must be Mom. But the cleaning wasn’t done yet.
“Didn’t you check the messages?”
It was Doyugeon.
I checked the messages and noticed they were on silent. I must have set it to silent while I was with Yumina and forgot.
“I forgot to turn off the mute setting. Anyway, isn’t it your tutoring time right now?”
The boy said nothing but looked over the accumulated books. He must have skipped class.
“What’s this book about?”
He glanced at one title.
Life, Cities, Businesses: The Eternal Golden Weave and the Magic of Complex Systems
Good question, what is this book about?
“I haven’t read it yet.”
Well, it’s a book I just unboxed, so it makes sense, but I think I bought it as a management book. Or was it because the title was intriguing? Yeah, the latter. The total order amount wasn’t right, so I got it to match.
“What about this one?”
That one I haven’t read either.
“I haven’t read that one either.”
“All of them?”
“Yeah, there’s also the unopened deliveries over there.”
“Oh, but there weren’t this many when I visited last time.”
“I’ve been shopping during the break. Anyway, why are you here? We didn’t have plans.”
“There’s an update with PVP in the system.”
“PVP? You mean a duel.”
“Same thing. Looks like you’re not particularly interested.”
“Yeah.”
Previously, when updates were announced, I would diligently browse the internet and carefully check the update information, but this time I didn’t bother. The reason I did that before was due to some bewilderment and anxiety, but as I’ve settled in, I realized that no matter how odd the updates seem, they don’t significantly impact me. It doesn’t seem like a cosmic horror scenario will randomly pop up either.
“Are you passing over this content I sent you with no interest?”
He rummaged through his smartphone and showed me the chat history. It was when Doyugeon challenged me to a duel and was confident he’d win.
“—You?”
Hmm. In my attempt to send this quickly due to coldness, it turned out to be rather provocative.
“Based on the content, yeah, it seems like I’ll win anyway. Why bother testing it in a duel?”
“Heh, how do you know when we haven’t fought before?”
“Throwing magic from a distance will overwhelm you. You’d take damage until you die.”
“Well, I can block it with my sword.”
“Can you?”
“Haven’t tested it, but shouldn’t I be able to?”
What am I supposed to do asking me this?
“Even if you can block it, you’ll still get hurt, and swords don’t leave much room to escape unscathed.”
“You really didn’t check the update. They added a non-lethal option this time.”
What’s that? How is that possible? I thought it was a system based on death and resurrection, but a non-lethal option? While that’s more common-sense, the very notion of it existing still baffles me. My sense of normalcy is shaken.
“So, should we try it out?”
“Sure! That’s the spirit. A match once in a while is necessary. It’s part of the charm of any game, isn’t it? I’ll let you know the option settings.”
“Hold on, let’s confirm one thing first.”
“What’s that?”
So far, the opponents using attack magic have been mobs. I never carefully controlled my power output. Moreover, I’ve never used an attack spell against someone like Doyugeon, so I haven’t gauged how much control I need.
Absolutely, failure in power control cannot happen.
“I’m stronger, so fighting me is meaningless. First, let’s confirm if you’re a worthy opponent.”
“That’s pretty self-absorbed of you.”
I shrugged.
“Let’s log in.”
We logged in. It’s been a while since entering here without shoes.
“What are you trying to check?”
“Just something simple. I’ll press down with my magic power from above, and you’ll stand and bear it.”
“That sounds easy enough.”
Doyugeon stretched and stood in place.
“Alright, go ahead.”
“If it hurts, let me know.”
“Eh, it heals anyway.”
Is this the same?
I used magic to press down on him slightly.
“Well?”
“There’s some pressure, but it’s manageable.”
Looks like he can handle it. He’s stronger than I thought. Leveling up must be making a significant difference. How about trying a little more pressure?
I increased the pressure slightly. This is roughly the force that would make a split Flame Slime thrash around.
His posture faltered, and he put a hand on his knee.
“Wow, it’s heavy…”
“Can you hold it?”
“Yeah, but is this it?”
Even though he says he can handle it, his expression says otherwise, so I find it hard to gauge. Should I push a bit more?
I pressed even harder. This much force will kill the split Flame Slime—not enough to burst, but it’s my regularly used power.
“Ughh…”
Doyugeon knelt, then fell forward. Oops. I canceled the magic and approached him.
“Are you alright?”
“I’m fine, I’m fine. Can you do that again?”
“Again? Are you serious? Doesn’t it hurt?”
“Nope.”
Though I hesitated, I reapplied the magical pressure.
He lay down and used his hands to push himself up from the ground, struggling to stand up. Given that he’s making unnecessary effort, it seems he’s not actually in pain.
“Maybe if I get the hang of it, I can endure.”
That’s not really enduring if you’re lying down.
Still, it seems like he might withstand it if he gets the knack of it. As he adjusted the position of his hands and exerted himself until his face turned red, my magic was gradually pushed back.
“I can do it!”
His joyful expression. Though I can’t see his face because he’s on the ground, his joy is evident.
I subtly pressed my foot onto his back.
“Ughh!”
The magic that was being pushed back returned to normal.
“Not quite.”
“Hold on! You’re using your foot!”
“Me? That’s not it—I think you’re just imagining it from trying so hard.”
“I clearly saw your foot on my back.”
You have great vision.
“That’s irrelevant. In the end, you couldn’t withstand it.”
“Irrelevant? You’re using your foot!”
Hey, stop nitpicking. I pressed down with my foot even harder.
“Mr. Doyugeon is way too weak. The gap is too much.”
“That’s cheating.”
When there are no rules set, what is cheating even?
“Besides, it’s not fair to expect a knight to withstand it without a sword.”
Who cares?
Anyway, I am the stronger one. Do we really need to fight to figure that out? Whether lethal or non-lethal, it doesn’t matter either way.
![[TS] The Protagonist is Conquered](https://i3.wp.com/novelhitam.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/1743806812-5548-TS-The-Protagonist-is-Conquered.png?resize=151,215 "[TS] The Protagonist is Conquered")
