“Noemi’s residence”

———————–

“Base camp, spaceship, infants… Infants? No, the plan was to move once our business was done.”

“Why did you go through the trouble of building such a sturdy house then?”

“There is no water source nearby.”

“Ah, I see. That does make sense.”

Noemi nodded in agreement.

“Also, I need to get accustomed to living on this planet. So, I will stay as a homestay guest at master’s house.”

“But, as I mentioned yesterday, there are no vacant rooms in my house.”

“In that case, we should build a new base camp near master’s house.”

“Wait. Visitors also come to my house. If such a conspicuous house is built, it will raise suspicions.”

“Build the base camp underground. It will be all right.”

“Underground?!”

Noemi’s eyes widened at the idea of such an impressive house being underground.

“The stars in the universe, lack of air, dangers on the surface—there are plenty of such places. That’s why it is common to build underground.”

“Why would you want to live on a planet like that?”

“Because there are resources there, which can be turned into money.”

“Even aliens are greedy.”

Listening to the conversation so far, Noemi crossed her arms and contemplated.

I did say I would take him as my disciple… The room issue seems to be fine, and I have been observing him since yesterday, and his personality seems fine. Above all, the food he cooks is delicious!

If I can have that every day, any noble would pay a fortune to hire him. And since he says he will do it for free, I cannot deny it.

Though I cannot help but feel slightly taken advantage of because of the food, Noemi decided to let Rudy live in her house.

“Alright, I understand. If you really want to come to my house that much, then come. However, since you have become my disciple, I will leave the cooking and laundry to you.”

“Thank you. Then, I will get to work.”

Rudy bowed his head and then quickly covered his mouth, rushing to the bathroom.

When Rudy returned from the bathroom, he had a pale face and murmured, “Don’t let the stomach acid reflux,” while clutching his stomach. In front of him, Noemi was eating the breakfast prepared by the drone.

Today’s breakfast was an omelet with salad. It came with bread and onion soup.

Everything was delicious, and Noemi finished her meal.

“Are you really sure about the spaceship investigation?”

“Leave it to the drone.”

After breakfast, Noemi nodded in agreement when Rudy assured her that there were no issues.

The two of them were planning to visit Noemi’s house for a reconnaissance.

“Well, if he says so, then I guess it’s fine…”

Saying that, Noemi cast a spell on herself and Rudy.

“What was that just now?”

“It’s a magic spell for concealing our presence. If we shout loudly, we’ll be exposed, but it will make it harder for enemies to find us with minor disturbances.”

“Magic is convenient. I can’t wait to use it.”

“I’ll teach you once you can use magic.”

“Sounds enjoyable.”

Rudy nodded happily, but Noemi, on the other hand, doubted whether he could really use magic, as she couldn’t sense a trace of magical power within him.

“Make sure you stick close to me so you don’t get lost.”

“Understood.”

With Rudy following closely behind her, Noemi entered the forest.

They walked for about an hour since entering the forest. During that time, they encountered large tiger-like creatures and gigantic snakes, but they passed by unnoticed thanks to Noemi’s concealment magic.

“The forest has been quite noisy since two nights ago.”

“Is that so?”

As Noemi muttered to herself, Rudy, who was unfamiliar with the forest, asked a question.

“Most likely, it’s because of the flying ship you came on. When such a large ship descends from the sky, any creature would be on high alert. Now, we’ve arrived at the house.”

Noemi said they had arrived at the house, but all Rudy could see in front of him were dense trees.

“There’s nothing here.”

“I’ve placed an illusion magic spell in this area. You can only see it with my permission.”

“Even without science, optical camouflage is amazing.”

With surprise in his eyes, Noemi placed her hand on Rudy’s head and recited an incantation. Suddenly, the trees in front of Rudy vanished, revealing an open clearing.

The square was about the size of a baseball field. In the center, there was a small garden and a large tree, under which stood a dilapidated wooden shed.

“Master, where is your house?”

No matter where he looked, Rudy couldn’t find any building that resembled a house, so he looked around and tilted his head in confusion.

“Is it possible that you live in that rundown shed over there?”

Looking at it from any angle, it appeared to be nothing more than a storage shed, and Rudy couldn’t help but ask again.

“I’m sorry it’s in such a sorry state. The living conditions… well, they’re not great.”

“Can’t you use magic to build a house?”

“Magic isn’t all-powerful. When a woman alone tries to build a house from scratch in the middle of the forest, that’s the best she can do.”

For some reason, Rudy found the explanation oddly realistic and accepted it.

“For now, come inside the house. I’ll make you some hot water.”

Noemi walked briskly, and Rudy followed behind her.

When Rudy entered the house, the interior was just as bad as he expected based on the exterior. The walls had gaps, allowing cold drafts to enter during the winter. There was only one room, and it had a rickety straw mattress and a large worktable. The table was cluttered with various leaves, nuts, and a mortar and pestle.

“I’ll boil some water. Just sit there and wait.”

Upon hearing Noemi’s instructions, Rudy sat on a chair near the table. In the meantime, Noemi fetched water from a bottle and went outside.

Confused as to why Noemi went outside, Rudy left the house. He found her near the house, gathering firewood and starting a fire to boil the water.

“…Don’t you have a kitchen inside the house?”

“As you can see, I don’t.”

“…Are there any other rooms?”

“There’s a small storage room.”

“…And the bathroom?”

“I do it outside.”

Rudy recalled Noemi’s behavior at the base camp.

When she was at the base camp, she never went to the bathroom once. However, she occasionally mentioned going outside to pick flowers, but she never brought any back, which puzzled Rudy.

He realized it now after their conversation. She had never seen a flush toilet before and probably didn’t even know of its existence. That’s why she took care of her needs outside.

“Master, why do you live alone in the forest like this?”

When he saw the satellite images before landing on the planet, humanity seemed to have a somewhat better standard of living.

Rudy found it strange why Noemi chose to live in a roofed but still meager house and lead such a secluded life.

“Because I dislike humans.”

“…?”

“I’ll tell you when the time comes.”

Noemi smiled sadly, but Rudy was lost in thought and didn’t notice. He had made up his mind to improve her living conditions.

“Master, let’s renovate the house!”

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