I Am Living In Two Houses - Chapter 4

Translated by Wook

Edited by Wook

“I am not a person.”

Shapiro added quickly,

“Of course not a ghost either.”

“I get it already, so what are you exactly?”

Neither a human nor a ghost, so what the hell is he, able to talk, serve, and even subtly ignore people?

“In the past, there were people like Lady Renier.”

Shapiro looked into the distance and said as if recalling old memories.

“Humans who came to see Master’s face and flocked together, enough to establish a kingdom.”

Some were watching from a distance, while others were homeless, waiting in front of Veldemer’s door only to see his face.

Oh, who would have thought that he would miss such a day.

“Love letters piled up like a mountain every day.”

Buried in the letter, Veldemer could not even tell anymore which ones are the important letters, so he decided to make a familiar spirit.

“My master is a person who cannot make simple ordinary spirits.”

He intended to make a familiar spirit just for sorting letters, but as he was making it, it was made too well.

Shapiro was that ‘too well-made work’. So, he really was a talking doll in a sense.

“You know what a familiar spirit is, right?”

“I’ve seen it before.”

Of course, the build quality was not as good as Shapiro. They were usually in the shape of bugs or small animals such as birds or mice, although if you look closely, they looked like they were made of paper or wood.

“Then is Veldemer a magician?”

“Yes.

He’s a magician and he’s in great shape.

Even though he wore a shirt made to fit Edwin’s body, who had a large skeleton even among the knights, it was not too baggy on him and fit well.

“Lady Renier has a very great magician as her husband.”

After saying so, Shapiro continued with a disappointed tone,

“I thought it was a special person… But, in any case, I don’t think Lady Renier was playing tricks on me.”

“What do you mean, tricks?”

It’s sad enough to be ignored by a familiar spirit, but now I’m even falsely accused of playing tricks?

Renier looked at Shapiro and asked.

“I thought Lady Renier was the reason for Master’s inability to use magic, but it turned out to not be the case.”

Shapiro unbuttoned Veldemer’s shirt collar and took a step back.

“A person who can’t tell the difference between magic and ghosts won’t be able to do this.”

“Wait a second.”

Renier asked again, as if to confirm what Shapiro had said,

“You mean you can’t use magic?”

“It happened to be so.”

If he can’t use magic, he can’t harm me, right?

Renier almost breathed a sigh of relief for a moment.

However, she swallowed my saliva as she looked into the blue-flaming eyes of the magician who was staring at her.

Even though he couldn’t do it by magic, she thought he could still do it using his familiar spirit.

“Wait a second.”

“What else?”

“So, that was not a ghost, but magic?”

Isn’t that blurry thing I saw earlier a ghost? I saw it with my own eyes. A light of suspicion flashed across Renier’s face.

“But, I really saw it. A ghost.”

“There are no ghosts around here.”

“So, you mean that someone is hiding in this house and using magic?”

At Renier’s question, Veldemer sighed, and Shapiro frowned,

“Then, let’s go look outside…?”

Veldemer shook his head. He wouldn’t have given the details if it had been anyone else, but since Renier was his wife, Veldemer decided to be generous.

“There’s magic on the house itself. It was painted with magic stones everywhere.”

“I went to the basement and there was a lab.”

Renier shook her head in disbelief.

“But I checked the basement a few times.”

The people who were tasked to clean the house said there were ghosts, so she sent people several times to catch the ghost. Then she went down to the basement herself, but there was no such thing as a laboratory.

“It’s because of the transparency. I’ve erased it, so if you go down you will see it now.

Renier left the door as it was. Renier, who went down to the basement at once, rubbed her eyes several times in doubt of the scene unfolding in front of her.

“It’s a real laboratory.”

A device capable of making magic drugs was sitting in the middle of the basement.

There were recipes and random notes scattered all over the place, and there was an extra bed where one could rest.

Renier clenched her fists.

“What kind of bastard has trespassed?”

***

While Renier went down to the basement, Veldemer and Shapiro were in trouble again. Why was Veldemer unable to use magic?

Even when he was imprisoned in the statue, he still used magic to grant wishes.

“Master.”

Shapiro thought for a long time before opening his mouth,

“There’s something I’m suspicious of.”

“What is that?”

“Perhaps her wish didn’t come true?”

Veldemer had to grant ninety-nine wishes in order to break the curse that sealed him to the statue.

While granting a wish, he was able to use a power equivalent to that of a god, but when the wish was granted, he went back inside the statue and fell into a death-like sleep.

But now, even after granting Renier’s wish, Veldemer was still awake as a human.

“Seeing that Master has not been sealed again, it makes sense.”

As Veldemer rolled his sleeves up to his elbow, the letter ‘L’ engraved like a tattoo on his wrist was clearly visible.

“What number was the last wish, Shapiro?”

“It was the fiftieth.”

“You were right.”

If Renier’s wish had come true, it would have been right if the letters ‘LI’, or 51, appeared on his arm.

“The wish didn’t come true.”

It seemed as if a clue was caught in the mystery.

“But how could I get out of the statue if her wish didn’t come true?”

“Perhaps to make the wish come true, Master?”

To make the wish come true. It makes sense. Unlike other wishes, Renier’s wish was abstract.

‘Please be my husband.’

When he heard the voice resounding through the temple, Veldemer was so dumbstruck, thinking it was so absurd.

He has granted wishes and granted all kinds of extraordinary wishes, but it was the first time someone had made such an absurd wish.

For the first time, Veldemer pondered whether to grant the wish or not. But the wish had to come true.

“What is a husband?”

Veldemer had a fundamental question. He said that he would become a husband, but what the hell is a ‘husband’?

“From a woman’s point of view, a man who marries her is called a husband.”

Shapiro patted his knee at the thought that ran through his mind,

“Is it because you weren’t married?”

If he had promised to be her husband without even getting married, then he would have been her prospective husband, not her husband.

“Is it not recognized because I didn’t make an oath at a wedding?”

It was a valid argument.

***

“It really was a lab.”

Renier entered the room with a vigor, and stopped at the strange atmosphere flowing in the room.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

Renier looked at Shapiro and Veldemer alternately.

“I’m going to have a banquet.”

“A banquet? What banquet?”

“Naturally a wedding banquet, isn’t it?”

Renier was speechless and coughed out loud for no reason.

You want to have a wedding? It’s hard enough to hide Veldemer, but, a wedding?

“Why do you look like that?”

When Veldemer’s cool gaze reached her, Renier curled her shoulders.

“I’m officially your husband, but why doesn’t it look like you like me?”

“I- It was too sudden.”

Renier let out an awkward laugh.

“Then let’s get married tomorrow. I will prepare everything.”

“No!”

Renier exclaimed. Shapiro frowned in annoyance at her face,

“Why not, Lady Renier?”

Is it just because of Renier’s mood or is his voice really filled with doubts?

“That…”

Renier squeezed her brain trying to think of something and wetted her dry lips with her tongue.

“In a wedding, the bride is the main character, and at least they have to wear a wedding dress. If it’s as soon as tomorrow, what am I going to wear to my own wedding?”

Renier vomited out her anger, pointing to the dress she was wearing. The resentment came from her heart, as she desperately wanted to keep her secret by delaying the wedding somehow.

“You have to make a reservation to buy the flowers you want too.”

Renier took a deep breath and continued.

“And if there’s a wedding, I want to do it at a beach. That’s my wish.”

Does such a romantic thing exist? No it doesn’t. However, a beach came to mind, so she just spoke about it.

“Even if it’s not the beach, you have to prepare a wedding venue, find guests to be witnesses, and hire a priest to officiate.”

What a relief that the wedding process is so complicated.

“At least, I should wear a new dress and carry a bouquet of flowers. And Veldemer, you should wear something like a tuxedo too.”

Renier said without breathing.

“That’s the way it is.”

This was Renier’s wish. He thought it would be better to give the person who made the wish what they want.

It would be a problem if he rushed ahead only to keep the wish unfulfilled.

He couldn’t use magic, but this moment being outside of the statue wasn’t too bad, so it’d be nice to give her some time to prepare for her favorite wedding.

“Follow your will.”

“Thank you.”

The raised corners of her lips trembled softly. Renier came out of the room and let out a long sigh,

“… Am I really going to be the one who weds twice?”

***

Meanwhile, Any went to the village where Priya and her family lived to find Priya, who disappeared, at Renier’s request.

According to Renier, Priya lived with her father and her two younger sisters here.

Her father owed a lot of gambling debt, and Priya almost signed a slave contract to pay off the debt.

So Any came to see if she had stopped by to see her sisters, but the house where Priya lived was empty.

Any asked the village chief, who must have lived in the village for a long time.

“Chief, the house at the entrance to the forest over there. Do you know where the people who lived there went?”

“That house? No family lived in that house. The old man lived alone, and he died last year.”

“And then?”

The village chief answered Any’s question as if it were strange.

“Then? There is no then. That house has been empty ever since.”