Chapter 207
That night, the day the house was completed.
After everyone had left, I walked through the house alone.
Thanks to the chandelier on the ceiling, the interior was bathed in a soft golden glow.
There was a table in the center of the living room, and when I lifted my head, I could see the railing of the second floor stretching out long above me.
‘It looks like the home of a fairly well-off commoner somewhere in medieval Europe…….’
The staircase ran along the wall to the upper floor.
I climbed the stairs. From the second floor, I could look down over the entire first floor beyond the railing.
There were four rooms on the second floor. The doors were arranged at regular intervals along the corridor.
Among the closed doors, I entered the only one that was slightly open.
Inside, a small chandelier shone brightly, and beneath it……
……Rafin was lying flat on her stomach, quietly.
Was she seriously sleeping like that……?
I walked over and lightly tapped her back.
“Hey.”
“No.”
“I just called you?”
“I’m not leaving.”
“…….”
I withdrew my hand and watched her silently for a moment.
It was rare to see Rafin this stubborn.
“You want to use this as your room?”
“Yeah.”
“Hmm…….”
I stood up and looked around.
It was a spacious room, roughly about twenty pyeong.
It came with a restroom and a bathroom, and there was even a small balcony.
If you opened the window and stepped out onto the balcony, the surrounding scenery would probably be worth seeing.
But since it had just been completed, it was completely empty.
It wasn’t just this room—all the other rooms had the same layout.
“If that’s what you want, then fine. But.”
I stared into the air for a moment before speaking.
“You’ll have to go through an interview.”
“……An interview?”
Rafin slowly raised her body and tilted her head at me.
“You need an interview to stay here?”
“Yeah.”
“Why?”
The way she blinked made it seem like she was asking, ‘Do we really need an interview between us?’
“Well, it’s necessary as a formality.”
……That’s what I said, but it wasn’t like I actively wanted to do this.
I looked up at the empty air again.
The Farm Owner’s Wonderful House has been completed! Let’s gather resident friends who will live in the house!
Current Residents 0/6
That was what the system, visible only to me, displayed.
Please conduct interviews and select residents!
……An interview, huh.
Was that really necessary?
In the end, I was only going to let in people I wanted anyway.
Perhaps the system read my thoughts, because new text immediately appeared.
Everything has its order and procedure! Stop complaining and proceed obediently!
The system even threatened me.
……It felt like I’d run into a nagging boss.
I let out a sigh.
I didn’t know why, but there had to be a reason the system insisted.
“So, let’s do the interview now.”
“Okay.”
As soon as Rafin obediently nodded, a ‘Ding!’ sound rang out and additional system text appeared.
Interview Start!
Select the applicant’s lifestyle tendency!
▷ Morning Type (Day)
▷ Owl Type (Night)
▷ Doesn’t Matter
“We’re students, so we’ll sleep at night and wake up early in the morning like we always have, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Okay, Morning Type…….”
When I pressed ‘Morning Type (Day)’ on the system window, it dissolved away and displayed the next question.
Confirm cooperation level with the employer.
Select tasks the applicant can perform while residing here!
Confirm the applicant’s hobbies.
And so on…….
After proceeding through several more questions, a final message appeared.
Resident Interview Result
Rafin’s Residency Recommendation: Very Positive
Recommended Role for Rafin: Chore Assistant
This resident shows a highly friendly disposition toward the Farm Owner and animal friends, and actively cooperates! She is expected to greatly contribute to the Farm Owner’s point acquisition. We strongly recommend Rafin’s residency. Stamp stamp, Goddess Guarantee~!
Would you like to sign a residency contract for the Wonderful House with Rafin?
Only after seeing that result did I fully understand.
When someone wished to move in, I would conduct an interview and decide on their residency based on the result.
Through the interview, the system recommended a position for the resident and seemed to filter out individuals who might pose a risk to me.
……Right.
I might know the future of this world, but that didn’t mean I completely understood the hearts of every individual.
‘Anyway, assigning roles like this is something I quite like.’
To put it simply, the system seemed to view residents as human resources who would help with my work.
‘It’s basically like getting part-timers…… This is great.’
I would provide lodging and meals, and they would help me with my work.
Moreover, if they helped me, I could even gain additional Merit Points.
‘I definitely need to fill all the resident slots.’
Thinking that, I held out my hand.
“Congratulations on becoming a resident, Rafin.”
“Yeah.”
When Rafin took my hand, the system flashed pink.
Pa-ram-pa-ram-bam! The first resident has been registered in the Wonderful House!
Current Resident – Rafin
After confirming her name on the registered list, I turned my gaze to her.
“But Rafin. The room’s completely empty. If you lie down like that, the floor’s hard. Won’t it hurt?”
“It’s fine.”
“It’s not fine, you brat.”
I opened my Subspace and pulled out a mattress I had prepared in advance.
‘It’s my first time making a bed…… but thanks to the system’s help, it wasn’t difficult.’
It was rectangular—not overly large, but modest in size.
I had made it by mixing wool sheared from the sheep in the Upgraded Livestock Shed and feathers collected from molting geese, so it would be very soft to lie on.
“Try it.”
At my words, Rafin climbed on top and lay down.
It was late at night, and she must have been tired after lying there quietly and then going through the interview.
But—
Sparkle!
Her eyes suddenly came alive.
“Tiyong, tiyong…….”
As she muttered, her body gently bounced. The mattress’s elasticity seemed better than expected.
“So? Is it good?”
When I asked, Rafin’s eyes trembled.
“My body and my heart are both ‘tiyongtiyong’…….”
Hmm.
As expected of Rafin, her expression remained blank, but just by looking at her emotional eyes, I could roughly guess how she felt.
“……Well, I’ll take that as you like it. And take this too.”
I handed her a wool blanket and a pillow as well.
That completed the full set of natural-material bedding.
“Oooh…….”
Rafin received them with both hands and hugged them tightly to her chest.
She rubbed her face against the fluffy blanket and closed her eyes as if she had reached paradise.
“Villed, this is heaven…….”
“I’m glad you like it. I’ll make the frame tomorrow. For today, make do with this.”
“Okay.”
Rafin buried her face in the pillow.
“It’s soft and warm and fluffy…….”
Then she wrapped herself entirely in the blanket.
“……I’m heading out, then.”
Just as I was about to step away—
“Villed.”
Rafin quietly called my name.
“What.”
I turned back to look at her.
Our eyes met—hers trembling slightly.
Perhaps because of the chandelier, her eyes sparkled like jewels.
And from her lips came—
“Turn off the lights when you leave.”
“…….”
I closed my mouth.
The chandelier hung from the ceiling.
It had a structure where you lowered a height-adjustment chain to turn it on or off…….
But with my height, there was no need to lower it.
I stood on my toes and blew out the candles on the chandelier.
“Thanks. Good night.”
“…….”
Hearing her gratitude, I silently left the room.
The next day.
Around the time I finished the remaining work at the Upgraded Livestock Shed, visitors arrived.
MacGrim, dressed in her school uniform, and the Elderly Gentleman, Wisdom.
Wisdom was living while hiding his true identity.
If I recognized him immediately, he might become wary.
……No, perhaps he was already wary.
Like MacGrim, Wisdom also hated injustice.
Meanwhile, I had quite the reputation in society as a delinquent.
There was a high probability he would refuse residency, saying he couldn’t live with someone like me.
……But not only did I need residents, it was important to build a friendly relationship with someone as capable as Wisdom.
Despite his considerable abilities, Wisdom did not play a major role in the main episode.
……Which, ironically, was a significant advantage.
Even if we had a lot of interaction—enough to live under the same roof—it wouldn’t affect the main storyline.
I stabbed the shovel I was holding into the ground and spoke.
“MacGrim, who is the person you brought?”
“Yes, he’s my manager.”
“Ah. The one you mentioned.”
I nodded as if I understood.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
Wisdom bowed politely. I returned the greeting with a silent nod.
‘……But something bothers me.’
MacGrim had referred to him as her ‘manager’ before.
However, she had never clearly revealed to me her identity as “Songstress MacGrim.”
‘Yet she’s introducing her manager to me…….’
It almost felt like…… she didn’t mind if her identity as Songstress MacGrim was exposed.
There had to be a clear reason she was acting this way toward me.
“I’ll confirm in advance—what kind of work does your manager do? And what exactly is it that you do?”
“…….”
MacGrim blinked.
According to the main storyline, she didn’t reveal her identity as Songstress MacGrim to anyone until around the first or second semester.
Only a very small number of survivors from the past ‘Succession War Incident’ knew her identity.
Among main-level characters, only Ren and the Imperial Princess knew.
……Yet for some reason, MacGrim seemed unconcerned about me finding out.
“You already knew what I do, didn’t you? I thought you obviously knew.”
“I would’ve known if you told me.”
“At that point, you’re supposed to catch on. Or do you really not know?”
“Yeah.”
For the sake of the main storyline, I played dumb to the end.
MacGrim puffed out her cheeks slightly, seemingly dissatisfied that I hadn’t caught on. ……But eventually, she nodded willingly.
“I like singing and composing songs. My manager is someone who stays by my side and takes good care of things so I can focus on that.”
MacGrim clung more tightly to Wisdom’s arm.
“So my manager needs to stay with me. But I can’t let him live in a truck…….”
“I see. I roughly understand the situation.”
I turned my head toward Wisdom.
“I think I should know what kind of person the manager is. ……So, let’s conduct an interview.”
“……An interview, you say?”
Wisdom blinked.
“It’s not ideal to talk standing like this. Please come inside first.”
I led MacGrim and Wisdom into the house and opened one of the rooms on the first floor.
“If you end up staying here, I’m thinking of giving you this room.”
“Wow……. It’s a single room, but it’s huge. If we decorate it well, it’ll look pretty, Manager.”
“…….”
MacGrim let out exclamations while looking around the interior, and Wisdom silently surveyed the space.
“Please sit here and wait a moment.”
After guiding them to the table in the living room, I went to the kitchen. From my Subspace, I took out the leftover wild boar steak from yesterday.
I sliced it into manageable portions on plates and handed them to Wisdom and MacGrim.
“It’s nothing special, but since it’s lunchtime, please eat.”
“Wow, thank you!”
“Thank you for the hospitality.”
“Nom nom, Manager. This is really delicious……!”
“Mmm!”
After cutting and tasting a piece of meat, MacGrim looked almost on the verge of tears, and Wisdom’s eyes widened.
The two of them let out small exclamations as they ate.
I watched them for a moment, then shifted my gaze to the system floating in the air.
When I pointed at it, it sparkled and regenerated new text.
The interview will now begin!