Chapter 18
“How did you know I’m the kind of person who seeks fun?”
How would I know? In the original story, Knox was always described as someone who pursued excitement and amusement.
But instead of saying that outright, I simply gave him a small smile.
“It’s written all over your face, Mr. Rudfisher.”
“Well, I’ve been found out.”
“Found out? It didn’t look like you were trying to hide it in the first place.”
“Hahaha.”
Knox laughed easily. He genuinely seemed to be enjoying himself.
But I knew that Knox was even harder to read than Eden.
‘They say the people who smile the most are often the darkest inside.’
For now, I managed to get Knox to promise that he’d come to Happy House tomorrow to help catch insects with me.
Honestly, if the Elpinus herb problem could just be solved, it would feel like eighty percent of the apocalypse preparation was already complete.
‘It’s basically a vaccine.’
After sending Knox off, I returned to my room and collapsed onto the old bed.
‘Ugh. I’m exhausted.’
For the first time, I caught myself thinking it might actually be easier if the world just ended already.
Preparing for the end is way harder than the end itself…!
Sinclair Townhouse, Capital City.
Harrison sat quietly in his office, reading a letter. The sender was Cherry Sinclair. The recipient, Harrison Howard.
A missing mailman had recently been found dead, and the letters he had been carrying were delivered belatedly from his belongings.
Beneath a short greeting, the urgent message read:
[Harrison, when I asked you to send weapons, you didn’t actually prepare something like firearms, did you?]
Harrison stared at the letter with a troubled expression. The weapons he had prepared were indeed firearms—illegally smuggled in from the Kingdom of Briwood.
‘I thought she’d be happy since she said there was someone she wanted to shoot.’
In the past, she would have been thrilled without a second thought. But for some reason, Cherry’s reaction now felt unusual.
And it wasn’t just this time. Lately, she had changed a lot.
After the Sinclair couple died in a car accident, Cherry had lived listlessly, as though she had no purpose in life.
The only things she cared about were parties and spending the fortune she inherited. That was all.
But recently, she had become different.
Her eyes sparkled as if she had found a goal. She was full of energy. And she kept asking Harrison for things she never would have before. It wasn’t like her at all.
Almost as if she had become a completely different person.
Her behavior had gone far beyond anything predictable, making him deeply suspicious. But for now, Harrison had decided to simply observe her quietly.
At least it was fortunate that he hadn’t yet sent the firearms to Brunel.
‘Has that guy Jose not arrived yet?’
He had dispatched an instructor to Brunel to teach Cherry how to use weapons, but her letter made no mention of him at all.
[If that’s really the case, I think it would be better if Harrison came personally instead of sending someone.]
He continued reading.
[Eden Duncan Lancaster is here. He was assigned to the Brunel Police Station. He seems to know something about the firearm smuggling and appears to suspect me. It looks like he wants to dig up some kind of Sinclair family corruption. Is there any way to send this man back to the capital?]
Eden Duncan Lancaster? Harrison’s sharp brows furrowed slightly.
‘Benton’s mad dog?’
Now that he thought about it, he had recently heard rumors that Eden was investigating him.
He didn’t care much if someone tailed him—but if that attention turned toward Cherry, that was a different matter.
Cherry was precious family to him.
When Harrison was fifteen, despite his brilliant mind, he couldn’t apply to the Royal School because he had no money.
The ones who supported and raised him were none other than the Sinclair couple.
On the day they decided to sponsor him, Harrison met Cherry for the first time.
A tiny, adorable child hiding behind Mrs. Sinclair’s legs, peeking out at him like a little candy star.
“So are we family now?”
The five-year-old girl asked him in a sweet voice.
Family. It was a word he had never heard before.
“Cherry needs an older brother.”
Her golden eyes, as she clung to his pant leg and looked up at him, were filled with loneliness.
He remembered then that the Sinclair couple were always busy with their business.
“Oppa is handsome, so you’re qualified to be Cherry’s family.”
“Oh my, Cherry. Mommy told you not to judge people only by their faces. What’s inside is more important.”
“But Mommy said she married Daddy because he was handsome. So for men, faces are important.”
“Well… that’s… true, but…”
Mrs. Sinclair blushed in embarrassment, glancing nervously at Harrison as she tried to soothe Cherry.
The Sinclair couple had sponsored him, but they had not adopted him. And there were many other children receiving support under the Sinclair name.
In the end, Harrison had no choice but to keep his distance from Cherry, mindful of their status.
But listening to Cherry that day, he made a vow. Even if they weren’t related by blood, Cherry was his little sister—bound to him by something stronger than blood.
Recalling those memories, Harrison let out a tired sigh.
‘I’ll have to deliver the firearms myself.’
He had originally planned to head to Brunel tomorrow as she requested, but judging by Cherry’s letter, things had changed.
If he was to move the weapons personally, he needed to prepare much more carefully.
‘It looks like I’ll have to delay it a few more days.’
Time remaining until destruction: 16 days.
‘Susanna said she’d arrive tomorrow.’
I marked the date on the calendar and fell into worry again.
Harrison still hadn’t told me exactly when he would be coming to Brunel.
‘He needs to hurry.’
I set the calendar down on the desk and glanced out the window.
A man carrying logs on his shoulder was walking into the garden.
It was Eden, having tossed aside his uniform jacket.
He had rolled up the sleeves of his white shirt while doing manual labor, exposing his strong forearms. His navy uniform trousers fit him perfectly, and a revolver was holstered at his thigh.
After lightly setting down the log, Eden brushed back his neatly styled blond hair. I found myself staring, mesmerized, at his sharp jawline and visible Adam’s apple.
‘His looks really are my type.’
I tidied myself up and went outside.
“You’re here.”
When I greeted him, he pointed at the logs.
“Where would you like these moved?”
“It would be better to split them into firewood first. Some can be stored inside, and the rest left outside.”
At my words, Eden glanced toward one side of the garden, where a large pile of firewood was already stacked.
He let out a small laugh, put a hand on his hip, and asked:
“Just how much firewood are you planning to make? With this amount, you could set the whole village on fire.”
“Hey now, that’s going too far.”
I nudged his side with my elbow. He stared at me silently, his expression practically swearing at me without words, so I quickly took a step back.
Eden crossed his arms, clearly uncooperative.
“Ah. Are you trying to see me collapse from exhaustion, Miss Cherry?”
“Excuse me?”
“Otherwise, there’s no way all this makes sense.”
“Why not?”
“This isn’t nearly enough to tire me out. I don’t get exhausted easily.”
Huh? What is he even talking about? It seemed Eden thought I was making him do pointless labor as punishment.
I looked at him quietly and said:
“Just hurry up and chop the firewood.”
Undeterred, Eden swung the axe skillfully and grabbed it with confidence.
Crack.
Watching the log split cleanly in half, I couldn’t help but admire him. Wow, look at those muscles.
I clapped a few times while watching him work, then suddenly snapped back to reality.
‘This isn’t the time to be distracted. There’s still so much to do to turn this mansion into a fortress.’
Right then, the workers who were supposed to repair the walls arrived through the front gate. After greeting them, I headed up to the second floor.
‘There should be a way to get up to the roof somewhere around here…’
Then I spotted a rope dangling from the ceiling in the left hallway near the nursery.
‘That’s it!’
I jumped lightly, grabbed the rope, and pulled.
Clatter—
A ladder unfolded from the ceiling. I climbed it and stepped out onto the mansion roof.
The slanted roof was a bit dangerous, but the view was excellent. Since Happy House stood on a hill, the entire town was visible.
‘This will be perfect for monitoring monster movement.’
I asked the repair workers to install railings on the roof so I could safely keep watch.
‘And I need to build a catapult.’
It was better to make weapons in advance before the apocalypse. I couldn’t build something like that alone.
The catapult would also be installed on the roof.
There were many types of catapults. The more complex the design, the safer it would be—but that also meant more time.
Everyone made a wooden stick catapult at least once in elementary school science class, right?
Of course, this one would be larger, requiring sturdier supports and tighter rubber bands to maintain balance.
In truth, it was closer to a lever mechanism than a real catapult.
I sketched out a simple design based on lever principles and handed it to the contractor.
“You want me to install a catapult here? I don’t handle weapons.”
The contractor asked again, puzzled.
“But you can make it, right?”
At my question, he frowned and looked over the drawing once more.
“Well, I could make it, but…”
“I’ll pay you four times the original repair fee.”
“Please give me a moment. I’ll have it built in no time.”
The man thumped his chest confidently, telling me to leave it to him.
Right. I’d taken out a loan of one hundred million gold—if not for moments like this, what was all that money even for?
