In the residential district of Eseriel, stone cottages were arranged in a staggered pattern along the terrain.
Most of the walls were covered with dark moss.
Apartments, shops, low-rent houses—all kinds of buildings stood close together, but they were mostly kept tidy.
Occasionally, a homeowner with a taste for life would place a few pots of flowers on the windowsill, giving the entire community a more vibrant atmosphere.
This was the Second Squad’s daily patrol area.
At that moment, Fen and his team members were walking in formation along the alleyways.
The patrol process was always boring and tedious.
The similar stone buildings in the residential area and the crisscrossing alleys everywhere gave him the illusion of being lost in a maze.
Under the repetitive visual fatigue, Fen unconsciously started daydreaming.
‘After finding Elena, the following week, everything had been developing as usual…’
During the day, Fen still went to the Knight Order for duty—as usual, he first led the patrol, then returned to the Knight Order for training, and still stayed behind after everyone left to write the day’s summary report.
Days passed by uneventfully, but for Fen, in this rare calm, his life had gained an extra bit of interest.
In the past, after work, Fen would eat dinner, take a bath, relieve the fatigue of work, and then fall into a deep sleep—exactly the same as his previous life as a corporate slave.
But now it was different.
When he wasn’t at home, the girl named Elena had already taken over the household chores.
Having been used to being served by servants, at first, this noble child couldn’t even sweep the floor without clumsiness.
But Elena was willing to learn and learned quickly—after she pestered Fen to practice cooking with her God knows how many times, Elena finally managed to cook a decent meal.
When he finished a day’s work, pushed open the door, and approached the kitchen, the first thing to welcome him was the aroma of delicious food, and then the silver-haired girl’s head would peek out as well.
She would smile and greet Fen, pull out a chair for him.
When both were seated and enjoying the meal, one of them would always start a conversation first, and then they would chat idly.
After the meal, without giving Fen a break, Elena would bring a big pile of magic books that gave Fen a headache from the study.
She would really act like Fen’s little sister, pestering this brother to teach her magic.
Since she now had magical talent, Elena’s enthusiasm for learning was very high, and Fen didn’t want to dampen her spirits.
In short… compared to the boring duty, Fen now deeply missed the time he spent at home with Elena.
…
“This potion distillation set cost me five gold coins. I’ll use it to offset this month’s rent——”
“Huh!? Are you crazy?——”
A quarrel seemed to break out from the alley in the distance.
Fen snapped back to reality and signaled to his team.
Everyone lined up and walked toward the depths of the alley.
“Kelly, don’t try to fool me—do you think everyone is like you, hugging this pile of scrap metal all day? How much is this thing worth?”
A nearly forty-year-old woman was standing at the entrance of a house at the end of the alley, scolding a purple-haired little girl.
“What—scrap metal!? You’re blind as a bat! This is my most precious purification device——”
The little girl hugged a brass instrument and muttered discontentedly.
“Hello? Knight Order patrol. What’s going on here?”
Although he recognized Kelly, the proper procedures still had to be followed.
Seeing that the knights had come, the landlady’s voice clearly softened.
“Ah—gentlemen, nothing much… I’m just urging this deadbeat to pay this month’s rent…”
The woman glared viciously at Kelly.
“That can be arranged.”
Fen noticed Kelly’s predicament.
“This young lady is an acquaintance of mine… I’ll advance her rent for this month…”
He casually tossed a few gold coins to the landlady.
Seeing the landlady take the coins and nod, Kelly felt as if she had been pardoned.
But before leaving, the woman coldly said in her ear: “You got lucky this time, Kelly——”
“Next time you try to pay debts with that junk… you can pack your bags and get out.”
The Great Magician’s face turned pale.
“You guys go wait outside for now. I’ll say a few words to the Great Magician——”
The team members nodded at the captain, made a gesture in the distance, and then walked away, signaling that they would wait at the alley entrance.
“Y-you… you’re that Tin Can from the library last time… W-why did you help me…”
Kelly stared at him warily.
“Ms. Kelly, I’m not a Tin Can. I’m the captain of the Holy City Second Knight Squad. Moreover… I am now technically your creditor—please show a little respect…”
“…”
“Are you really a Great Magician?”
“O-of course——”
The purple-haired little girl proudly pulled out a magically etched identification card from the pocket of her thick robe.
“Officially certified by the Magic Association! I am one of the few Great Magicians in the Holy Capital!”
“So… our great Great Magician—why can’t you even pay your rent?”
“Uh…”
Kelly was momentarily at a loss for words.
“Are you saying that the Magic Association is already living beyond its means, and can’t even afford to pay a Great Magician’s salary?”
“How much do you earn a month?”
Kelly raised her right hand and made a “three” gesture.
Fen frowned in confusion.
“Thirty gold coins? That’s about the same as me…”
“Th-three small bags of gold coins… about two hundred in total…”
“H-how much?”
“Then how can you not afford to pay rent? Give me back my money——”
“I… I really don’t have money now… This month I bought a few pieces of equipment for experiments… I didn’t expect to run out of money by the end of the month…”
Kelly muttered weakly for a few sentences and led Fen into the house.
Unlike his own tidy home, as soon as he entered, Fen smelled a strong, pungent herbal odor—somewhat similar to the smell of a chemistry lab from his previous life.
Then, Fen was dumbfounded.
There was no free space in the house.
On the desk, dining table, stools, kitchen stove—every empty spot was densely packed with experimental devices that Fen couldn’t even name.
Some of them were still running, with eerie purple light emanating from glass bottles, and some devices were making gurgle gurgle sounds that were unsettling.
Now Fen knew why Kelly couldn’t pay her rent—this person had absolutely no concept of money!
“You call this a few pieces of equipment?”
“J-just pick any device and take it away… C-consider it a bargain sale to you!”
Kelly said with considerable pain.
“I’m a paladin, not a witch. What would I do with that…”
Fen was a bit speechless seeing that she still clung to the same barter mindset as the landlady.
“Th-then what compensation do you want?”
Kelly sized up Fen’s tall figure.
“C-could it be… s-sexual compensation?”
Kelly blushed, instinctively protecting her body, and stared at Fen warily.
“What are you thinking… I’m not interested in your underdeveloped little girl body…”
“Mmm…”
The purple-haired little girl felt as if she had been pierced by a thousand arrows.
“As for compensation…”
‘Elena has been learning magic recently. I can ask Kelly if she’d be willing to be her teacher…’
Although Fen himself knew some Light Magic, he was, after all, just a paladin, and only a dabbler in other fields of magic.
Elena’s magical talent was very good.
If she had guidance from a Great Magician… she would surely be able to bring out her potential even more, right?
“Kelly… tired of being a Great Magician? Interested in becoming a private tutor—teach a student magic for me?”
“Tutor…? Teach who?”
“My little sister… She just started learning magic… She’s quite talented…”
“That’s boring… I think you’d be better off waiting until I get my salary next month—let me owe this money, and I’ll pay you back ten times, how about that?”
“Are you chickening out?”
Seeing that Kelly didn’t agree, Fen deliberately provoked her.
“?”
“A distinguished Great Magician… can’t even pay her rent, that’s one thing…”
“But is she also all talk when it comes to the magic she’s proud of? Can’t even teach a little girl with confidence?”
“If word gets out, you’ll become the laughingstock of the Holy Capital this week…”
Fen shook his head, pretended to turn around, and was about to leave.
“Y-you… wait——”
“Stop right there!”
Kelly’s magic hat was crooked from anger.
She tugged at Fen and shouted discontentedly.
“Where is that little sister of yours!?”
“Tell me the address! I’ll go teach her next week—no, tomorrow!”
“I will definitely make her the best magician in the Holy Capital, second only to me!”
Looking at the purple-haired loli jumping and shouting in front of him, it was hard to imagine that this was the most powerful Great Magician in the Holy Capital.
‘This Great Magician… so dumb… fell for it just like that…’
……