CH 9 Undeserved luxury

Piled up in the room were dozens of clothes, jewelry, and everything else she needed to live. The issue was that each item seemed so luxurious that one might easily consider them indulgences.

“Here’s the list. Please sign here so we can confirm that you’ve received these,” the maid said politely, bowing slightly as she handed over a paper listing the items.

Unable to close her mouth, Irene scanned the list from top to bottom. As her gaze traveled downward, the more shocked Irene’s face became. The clothes made of lavish and soft fabric were one thing, but the list became even more extravagant from the middle down, including even perfumes for a restful night’s sleep.

‘Isn’t this something Grade 1 purifiers use?’

It was more than just a simple fragrance. The perfume, crafted from herbs found within the dungeon, was a precious treat. Placing it by one’s pillow and drifting off to sleep would quickly restore purification power, making it highly valued.

Naturally, it came with a hefty price tag, and due to its rarity, only the top-tier purifiers used it on very rare occasions.

So why was it in her room?

Some of the items were gorgeous, but other things were just baffling — from the abundance of food on the table to the maids wearing the room number they were assigned to on their chest.

‘What in the world is going on?’

Nothing was simply given away in the wall of this fortress. Although managed by the Alliance of Kingdoms, the provided amenities were strictly minimal. If one desired more than the basics, the Alliance would, of course, demand payment.

This wasn’t a significant issue for princesses or noble ladies. For the sake of their pride, the royal family or noble house generously supported them, ensuring they always had spacious rooms and numerous maids.

Even the pair of a formidable knight might be a little shabby at first, but after a few dungeon runs, the rewards they earned would allow them to upgrade their quarters.

‘So, in the past, it was always a struggle…’

Even if Irene received the smallest room, there was still always a lot of cleaning and laundry to do. With no money to spare for a maid, Irene had to handle everything herself.

Many purifiers like Irene would personally handle these tasks at first. However, once they shared the rewards, the first thing they would do was hire a maid, change rooms, and indulge in better food. However, Irene continued to stay in the most secluded corner room she was initially provided.

She had to save money to repay the cost of her body.

‘So I never even dreamed of having nice things…;’

But these weren’t just nice things—they were extravagant luxuries, high-end items that could make one marvel at the existence of such lavish goods.

The problem was, she never asked for any of these things.

Keeping her voice as steady as possible, Irene turned to the maid.

“Um, it seems like there might be a misunderstanding here.”

“Misunderstanding? What do you mean?”

“I’ve never requested anything like this. Since I haven’t touched anything yet, I’d like everything to be returned.”

“That’s not possible. The payment has already been settled.”

Irene became even more bewildered at the maid’s response.

“What? Who on earth paid for all of this?”

“If you look at the end of the list…”

Following the maid’s words, Irene hastily examined the bottom of the long list. There, Michael’s name was clearly written.

Beside her, Wilhelmina’s face contorted into a grimace as she glanced at the name.

****

“Phew…”

Irene let out a long sigh after dismissing Wilhelmina, who was making a fuss, demanding an explanation about why Michael sent all this. Irene gave her the excuse that she was feeling tired. Truthfully, she did feel dizzy looking at all the accumulated extravagance around the room.

Looking around for a place to sit, she found a maid’s chair in the corner and sat down. She didn’t dare sit in any of the fancy ornate chairs.

‘What in the world is going on?’

Certainly, as the maid had said, all these items had already been paid for.

‘The money-grubbing Alliance wouldn’t just give me these.’

Even without the maid’s explanation, she was well aware of that fact.

‘I went through a lot just to get a thick blanket in the past.’

Although winter blankets were supposed to be provided as a basic necessity, even those had to be purchased with money.

Normally, Irene could have bought one with the money she had saved. However, the Count had insisted on repaying the ransom just then, and she had to send him all of her savings.

Initially, she tried to endure, but this place was located in the northeastern part of the continent. Bitter winds blew in before winter even arrived.

On top of that, Michael happened to be away from the fortress as he was summoned to the temple at that time. Without a penny to her name, Irene had no choice but to shiver until he returned and re-entered a dungeon.

So, as soon as Michael came back, she begged to accompany him to the dungeon. It was better than staying huddled alone in a cold room. And when he opened the treasure chest in the reward room at the end of the dungeon, Irene instinctively reached out without realizing it.

‘Why are you doing this?’

By the time his chilly voice brought her back to her senses, Irene’s hand was already clutching a small gem inside the chest. As a rule, all dungeon loot is checked, collected, and then auctioned off. Moreover, this dungeon was conquered solely by Michael without any assistance from Irene for purification.

But to snatch the biggest reward like that, how awkward must it have been?

“S-sorry…”

Even as she apologized, Irene couldn’t let go of the clenched gem. Michael watched her in silence. Feeling uneasy, apologetic, and sorrowful, Irene couldn’t bring herself to lift her head and look at him.

After a prolonged silence, he spoke.

“Take it.”

As much as she appreciated his thoughtfulness, Irene couldn’t help the tears welling up in her eyes. She knew what he must have thought of her.

‘He must think I’m a woman obsessed with money with no skills.’

The thought of his pitying gaze on me made Irene unable to look up until they were out of the dungeon. Predictably, Michael didn’t seem to want to talk about it and disappeared as soon as they were back in the fortress.

Despite registering the received rewards for auction and obtaining money to buy a winter quilt, Irene couldn’t shake off the memory of Michael’s cold gaze. So she left the blanket on the bed and curled up in a corner, wearing an extra layer of clothes, and fell asleep.

“…”

Irene smiled bitterly as she remembered.

“I’m fortunate not to be stuck here until winter.”

She didn’t want to experience such a situation again. It was a sad event for her and it would only cause trouble for Michael.

Irene stared blankly at the pile of things.

Michael was a man who donated all his earnings to the temple. So, he wouldn’t have any reason to spend money on things like these.

‘There must be some mistake.’

If that were the case, she made sure not to touch anything, certain that she would have to return everything later anyway.

But then, her attention was drawn to the plates on the table. The plates were filled with an abundance of fruits. In her past life, she had never tasted anything like this inside the fortress. She had only glanced at them when summoned by Princess Cecilia.

They looked so fresh and sweet, Irene couldn’t take her eyes off them, even though she thought they were over-indulgent.

Gulp.

She found herself swallowing hard seeing the juicy fruits, appearing as though they had just been freshly picked. She hadn’t eaten properly since waking up yesterday. Her tired body hadn’t realized it was hungry and only now began to grumble.

At first glance, it looked like a large fruit plate, but upon closer inspection, she realized it was filled with fruits that were hard to come by in this season.

Irene had always had a particular fondness for fruits. So even though her jaw was aching, her mouth watered, and she felt the strong desire to eat them, itching to touch them. However, Irene refrained from touching even a single piece.

She didn’t touch anything because this situation still didn’t feel real to her. She couldn’t quite believe that all this splendor and comfort were given to her. So, Irene stared blankly at the fruits in front of her, as if they were someone else’s.

How long had she been like that?

“Why are you just staring at it like that?”

Suddenly, Michael’s voice came from beside her. Irene froze, unable to even scream in response to his unexpected question.

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