Episode 11
Next, it was time to check the second floor. I went up via the stairs in the central lobby.
There were a total of nine rooms on the second floor. The one at the very end seemed to be a nursery, filled with cribs and baby supplies.
The rooms next to it also showed traces of people having lived there. It looked like quite a few people had resided in this mansion.
And it doesn’t seem as old as I thought.
Although dusty and scratched, there was actually a lot of usable furniture.
As I looked around the rooms and examined the sofas in the large second-floor lobby,
Squeak.
I heard the sound of rusty hinges moving behind me. I brushed the dust off the sofa and froze in place.
What… is that sound?
It was definitely coming from the nursery. Of all places, why the nursery?
I slowly turned my head. The dim hallway of the second floor came into view, and at the very end, I saw the nursery door, slightly ajar.
Was that door always half-closed?
I was certain I had checked inside the room and left the door wide open.
As I stood there, frozen for a long moment,
Squeak.
The strange sound came again. This time, I heard it clearly—it was definitely coming from the nursery.
I slowly took a step forward. After all, I needed to find the source of the sound. This was my home now.
Squeak. Squeak. The noise continued from the nursery. It sounded like something was moving. I swallowed hard and began walking.
Thump.
But I misjudged my strength, and my footsteps echoed down the hallway.
Creak—
Suddenly, the sound from the nursery stopped. I froze, unable to move.
Scared!
I’d seen this scene countless times in horror movies. I wanted to run, but I couldn’t. I had to somehow turn this house into a shelter.
Yeah. Compared to a virus monster, a ghost is nothing.
I gritted my teeth and walked briskly, then flung open the nursery door.
Curtains fluttered at the open windows. A warm breeze flowed in along with sunlight.
Squeak.
The rocking chair in front of the window moved slightly. It seemed to have been nudged by the wind.
“You really scared me.”
I wiped the cold sweat forming on my forehead and sighed.
Damn, how is this a romance novel? Isn’t this just a survival horror story?
Just me again—the genre is always different for me.
After calming down a bit, I took a careful look around the nursery. Then I noticed the word “Segrave” engraved on the rocking chair.
Since this family often appears in fairy tales as heroes or guardians, their name was frequently used on children’s products. Seeing the Segraves mentioned in today’s newspaper gave me a strange sense of familiarity.
Anyway, an empty nursery… just standing there felt really odd.
I have to clean this quickly, or nothing will work.
Shivering slightly, I hurried through the cleaning. Maybe if I threw out all the old furniture and cleaned thoroughly, it would feel a little better.
Should I just ask for help…?
One phone call, and Harrison could send people to this rural village. With countless hours of labor and money, he could instantly turn the mansion into a proper shelter.
But then, the mansion, optimized as a shelter, would draw attention. After all, I’m Cherry Sinclair—the center of attention.
If that happened, surviving quietly would become nearly impossible. After the world’s destruction, all sorts of people might come knocking on Happy House’s door, begging to be saved.
I’m busy just surviving myself—how could I possibly care for others?
I’m not the kind of person for that. I definitely don’t have the qualities of a leader.
That can’t happen.
Finally, I gave up on the idea of outside help and decided to clean myself. I grabbed a broom and swept diligently.
Cleanliness is directly tied to survival. And this mansion was seriously dirty.
Some rooms still had beds and furniture left. Once I discarded the bedding, dusted, and wiped everything, the furniture was quite usable.
Of course, I’d still need to buy a new bed for myself.
I dragged all the unnecessary furniture from the nursery outside and stacked it in the garden.
The good thing about having super strength is that I could move furniture by myself.
I shook my hands and looked proudly at the garden, where the furniture was piled.
Next, I would need to furnish the empty rooms again, which meant a trip to the neighboring town where there was a furniture store.
That can wait for now.
After emptying the furniture, I grabbed a rag and focused on wiping the marble floor, especially areas my hands would touch directly.
It was fortunate I had memories from my past life. Even in a crisis, past me would never have been the type to mop floors.
Is this what they call a self-inflicted disaster? Either way, it meant the road ahead was going to be grueling.
After one pass, the rag was covered in black dust. I ended up having to clean it with a bucket of water nearby.
But the water quickly became dirty, so trips to the well took longer.
Damn it.
The real problem was that even after cleaning all day, I’d only managed half of the mansion.
“Damn. It’s never-ending!”
Nothing!
Doesn’t exist!
…!
My scream echoed through the empty building.
XX. This isn’t right. This isn’t something a human should be doing.
I ordered an orange juice and collapsed at the only restaurant in Brunel Village.
A cold drop brushed my eye and ran down. Not tears—it was sweat.
Survival is so hard. I haven’t even really started surviving, and it’s already this difficult…!
Should I just tell Harrison everything? I thought about it dozens of times a day.
This time, I clutched my head, imagining myself trapped in a hospital during the apocalypse.
“That won’t do!”
“What’s wrong?”
Eden asked, sitting across from me, leisurely reading the newspaper. I let out a hollow laugh.
“No, over there. Aren’t you going home?”
Only then did Eden fold the newspaper neatly on the table and smile.
“This is home now. Isn’t the Brunel Police Station my workplace? I’m on official duty.”
Where’s the evidence of him actually being on duty? What kind of official duty is that? He seems to be neglecting his work.
“I suppose so. Yes, yes. Keep up the good work.”
I answered insincerely and avoided his gaze.
Eden was skilled at leading questions. I couldn’t let myself get drawn in and reveal anything, so it was best to pretend I knew nothing.
Should I try to recruit him to my side?
Eden was one of the top men you wouldn’t want as an enemy—he had exceptional survival and combat skills. That meant he was someone worth having on my side.
But that would just be too much trouble.
Ugh.
For now, I’ll put that aside—there’s still some time before the apocalypse.
Just then, my orange juice arrived. The woman who brought it looked familiar.
“Huh? Mr. Ruskin?”
Vanilla Eddie Ruskin. My former landlord.
By the way, in Graydon, a three-word name usually signified nobility, like Eden Duncan Lancaster.
“What are you doing here?”
Vanilla tucked the tray under her arm and replied efficiently,
“I’m working part-time.”
So, you’re not a noble?
I swallowed the question I wanted to ask. It might have been rude.
“Hey, cheer up.”
She nodded in response. But even after my greeting, she didn’t leave. Did she have more to say?
I looked up at Vanilla quietly. She rubbed her thumb and forefinger together and said:
“You didn’t give me a tip.”
Watching her gesture, I thought: Her name is Vanilla Ruskin… did I mishear it as Vanilla Eddie Ruskin? Besides, wasn’t tipping more common in the neighboring kingdom of Briwood?
I tilted my head and took some money from my pocket, handing it to her.
Vanilla accepted the tip and then looked at Eden. Eden also willingly handed her some money. Both of us had more than enough money.
Vanilla accepted it gratefully and looked between us.
“I like you guys so much.”
As Vanilla turned away after saying this cheerfully, I quickly grabbed her.
“Wait a moment, Mr. Ruskin.”
Now that I think about it, it was perfect timing.
I quickly unfolded the mansion blueprint I had brought, just in case.
