46: Carol of Misfortune / Spilled Water Returns to the Tray, Broken Cup Restores / Devil’s Gateau Magic 9

The haunted house they visited for the first time in a month had transformed beyond recognition.

“Oh… this is wonderful…!”

“It’s beautiful… so amazing…!”

The moment Jill and Carol stepped in, the scent of fresh lumber tickled their senses.

The entrance frame that Karappa had accidentally broken was neatly replaced, and the bright brown floorboards shone dazzlingly as they reflected the sunlight.

At the back of the room, a carefully polished walnut table stood in place.

Its imposing and aged presence radiated so much charm that it could be used as a café without any issue.

“Master, thank you so much!”

“Heh, now that I’ve rebuilt a haunted house, I’ve earned some prestige.”

The burly carpenter with a crew cut grinned proudly.

“No, Master… wasn’t it because you got drunk at Roland’s shop and boasted, ‘I’ll work on that haunted house for you!’? You were pretty low-spirited on the first day.”

“Besides, the ghosts had already been exorcised, so we didn’t really do anything major.”

The carpenter’s apprentices muttered with exasperated expressions.

“Sh-shut up! Most of the other carpenters were scared, weren’t they?!”

In fact, when they initially planned the renovation, they faced the problem of not being able to hire a carpenter. Many carpenters were surprisingly superstitious, and everyone they asked refused, saying, “I don’t want to touch a haunted house.”

That’s when Matthew came up with a plan. There were carpenters who regularly frequented Roland’s shop. So Matthew deliberately made sure to be overheard, lamenting, “These days, carpenters are too superstitious,” “No one dares to work on a haunted house,” and “There are so few brave craftsmen like the ones we had in the past.” As expected, the carpenters took the bait and boasted that they weren’t afraid of any ghosts.

The next day, when the carpenters had sobered up and were more level-headed, Jill, Carol, and Roland went to see them. Jill offered higher-than-usual compensation and explained that there were no evil spirits. Carol earnestly explained her predicament, and Roland added, “It’s a favor for someone who’s always helped me, so please, can you do it?” This left the carpenters with no choice but to agree.

“I felt a bit guilty, like we tricked them…”

Jill whispered softly to Carol, who smiled wryly in return.

“The kitchen stove and the counter table—well, I just fixed the noticeable damage. The rest I didn’t touch much. It was solid to begin with, and I figured it would last longer without unnecessary meddling. But other than that, we’ve pretty much worked on everything else.”

“Yes.”

“As for the stove, it’s an older type of magical tool. It has functions to maintain the ignition magic and adjust the firepower, but you’ll have to provide the fire source yourself.”

“Mhm, got it.”

“If you encounter any issues, feel free to call us anytime.”

“You’ve been a huge help. Thank you so much. Here, these are cakes. Please share them with everyone later.”

“Oh, we appreciate it, as always!”

Perhaps due to the physical labor of their job, many carpenters have a sweet tooth.

In addition to their payment, Jill would often bring sweets to the construction site.

Both the head carpenter and his apprentices, who looked forward to these treats, smiled happily as they took them home.

“Alright then. Carol, why don’t we take a break too?”

After the carpenters had left, Jill made the suggestion to Carol.

“Oh, is that okay?”

“Yes, there’s something I’d like to show you. I’ll make us some tea, so please sit down.”

With that, Jill swiftly began her preparations.

She unpacked the luggage they had brought from the mansion and started getting things ready.

“Oh, let me help you!”

“It’s alright, I’ve got it. I’ll brew some tea while I’m at it. Just wait a moment.”

Jill pulled a paper box out of the luggage.

She placed the contents onto a plate she had also brought.

It didn’t take long before Jill presented the sweets and tea on the counter table.

“Here you go.”

“T-this is…!”

What Jill had presented was a cake from Andromalius.

Its official name was *Gâteau Magique*.

However, the plate it was served on was strangely peculiar.

A pure white plate with golden streaks resembling lightning bolts ran through it.

The cup and saucer that held the tea also had similar golden streaks.

“These are the plate and cup you entrusted to me before. I’ve repaired them like this.”

“A-amazing…!”

Jill had set herself the goal of restoring the plates and cups in a way that matched the culture of the town’s residents and the island. However, she believed that simple *kintsugi* (golden joinery) alone wouldn’t be easily accepted.

The appreciation for the beauty of imperfection hadn’t deeply taken root on this island. So, Jill came up with the idea of combining the imperfect patterns with the dish itself to create a unified “landscape.”

“A cake with no visible layers, paired with a plate that clearly shows its repairs—I thought that contrast would be interesting.”

Carol stared intently at the cake on the plate.

It had been cut to reveal the cross-section, showing three layers: pudding, custard, and sponge.

However, unlike a typical cake, the boundaries between the layers were somewhat indistinct.

A mysterious cake placed on a mysterious plate.

Together, they formed a sight that delighted the eye of the beholder.

At the same time, this cake symbolized revival.

A cake that had been forgotten.

The broken plate.

Now, united as one, it had reappeared before Carol’s eyes.

“Oh… I see… That’s why I forgot…”

“Carol?”

Before Jill knew it, tears were streaming down Carol’s face.

“I mentioned that I was left here when I was younger, didn’t I?”

“Yes.”

“I said it was because my parents were busy, but that was only half the truth… they got divorced.”

Carol began to slowly share the story of her childhood.

When Carol was three years old, her father made a big mistake at work, which led him to spiral into heavy drinking. Carol’s mother had a fierce personality and would relentlessly berate him, often leading to physical fights. When her mother decided to divorce and started job hunting, the café owner and his wife, concerned for Carol, took her in temporarily.

“Compared to the constant fighting at home, this place was like heaven. Even after my mother took me back, she didn’t have much room in her life… I understand she couldn’t help it, but it was still hard. It became painful to remember the happy times here, so I tried to forget that I had grown up in this café.”

“I see…”

“Then the owner passed away… and this place became a haunted house… By that time, I had left home, living on my own while working, but I was terrible at it. I kept getting scolded, and I was barely managing to protect my own life. I always thought I was born under a bad star and resigned myself to that.

I had completely turned away from my memories of this place—how much I loved it and what a wonderful shop it was. I’d even forgotten that I was turning away. I thought that once something was lost or broken, it could never be recovered. That living in the present while forgetting the past was the happiest way to live. I never imagined something like this could be revived.”

“…Carol.”

“But, there are things in this world, aren’t there? Things that can be recovered. Things that can come back to life.”

“Yes. Even though the dead can’t return… I believe that the traces they leave behind never disappear.”

“Am I really worthy of eating this?”

“You’ve inherited this place, so if you can’t eat it, then no one can.”

“Haha, you’re right… Well then, I’ll have a taste.”

Carol wiped her tears and took a bite.

Her eyes widened.

Then, silently, she took a second, and then a third bite.

Before she knew it, the plate was empty.

“Oh… that was delicious… No doubt, it’s the owner’s cake.”

“We recreated it with the help of the people from the restaurant *Rocinante*. Everyone praised the owner, Roger, saying how amazing he was for making this.”

“I’m sorry, I don’t know the recipe at all… As a child, I was always clumsy, falling over or breaking plates, so I only watched the kitchen from outside…”

Tears welled up in Carol’s eyes again as she reminisced about the past.

But once more, she wiped her teary eyes with a handkerchief and looked Jill straight in the face.

“Jill, good luck with your shop! I’ll be cheering for you too!”

“Yes, thank you.”

“By the way, um… if you’re going to put the plates in the shop, I’d be really happy if you could save one for me.”

“Oh, of course. I wouldn’t dare take any of the cups with the crest on them. Just a few would be more than enough for me.”

Jill and Carol giggled together.

And so, the preparations for the opening of the new branch of the shop, *Witch Hand Craft*, were finally completed.

However, in truth, not all the troubles had been resolved yet.

◆

Today was an especially hot day, and Garda and Matthew had come by while working, seeking to escape the heat.

The mansion in the Enchanted Forest was enchanted. The dining room was always filled with cool air, offering refuge from the oppressive heat.

“Wouldn’t it be interesting to repair this decorative plate with *kintsugi*? I bet collectors would be all over it. It might even fetch a higher price than the original.”

“Hmm, it’s a picture of the hero defeating the Demon Lord? Do you think a rough design like this is suited for *kintsugi*?”

Jill held the broken plate, inspecting it closely, and voiced her doubts.

But Matthew responded confidently.

“Precisely because it’s rough. The act of repairing a break adds meaning to the piece. The hero depicted here is famous for his legend of never giving up, no matter how many times he was defeated. Repairing it with *kintsugi* makes it a story in itself.”

“Oh, I see… When you put it that way, it does sound interesting.”

“That’s great and all, but how about something more for everyday folk? People like us, the commoners, buy white porcelain for special occasions, like weddings or baby showers. Isn’t that its own kind of story too?”

“Oh, I’d love to do that kind of work as well!”

Before Jill lay an array of broken dishes, all brought in by Matthew and Garda. Both of them had been deeply impressed by Jill’s *kintsugi* skills and were convinced it would become a big business. At the same time, they were personally fascinated by this “amazing technique” beyond just business. Whenever Jill displayed a repaired plate with food on it, they got so excited, even more than Carol had, that it was a challenge to calm them down.

As a result, despite not being the ones doing the work, they would enthusiastically discuss the possibilities of *kintsugi*, turning it into the subject of their tea-time conversations.

“Now, now, you two aren’t the ones who will be doing it, so let the master decide. It’s not polite to meddle too much.”

“My apologies. Got a bit carried away.”

“Sorry about that.”

Matthew and Garda chuckled as they apologized after being scolded by Maureen.

“But, the master here, well… you’re pretty bold, aren’t you?”

“B-bold!?”

Jill choked on the unexpected compliment.

“Oh, sorry, I didn’t mean it in a bad way.”

“No, that’s clearly a strange word choice.”

“I mean, solving the issue of a haunted mansion that even the real estate agents and the knights had given up on, without flinching—that’s not something just anyone can do.”

“Well, when you put it like that, I guess so…”

“Are you not afraid of ghosts?”

Maureen’s question made Jill tilt her head in thought.

“Ah, well… I might be scared if I ever encountered one… But despite living in places that seemed like prime ghost territory, I’ve never actually seen one.”

“Oh, now that you mention it, you’ve said something like that before,” Matthew nodded as if recalling.

“Yes… Whether it was a ghost I wanted to meet or one I didn’t, I never came across any in those places.”

Jill had developed an odd habit after hearing about her uncle Conrad’s death.

She would visit cemeteries in the middle of the night or explore basements rumored to be haunted by ghosts.

This started when she overheard the maids in the royal castle sharing ghost stories. Tales of voices of resentment from a noble wrongly sent to the guillotine thirty years ago could be heard from that cemetery. Or how, in that basement, the prince poisoned a hundred years ago had risen and was conducting dark rituals.

If such vengeful ghosts truly existed—

If the dead with lingering thoughts or regrets could stay in this world—

Then surely, one day, she would be able to meet her uncle again.

But Jill’s hopes were dashed.

Most of the eerie rumors were caused by mice or bats. Or relics left behind by ancient humans, such as ‘demons’ or enchanted tools. Some were even false rumors spread to cover up secret trysts.

And never once did Jill encounter the dead.

By the age of ten, Jill had realized:

There are no such things as ghosts.

And even if they did exist, you couldn’t touch them or speak with them.

“So, if anything holds the heart of the deceased, I think it’s things like their wills or inheritances… their words or possessions. That’s why I want to cherish such things. I believe they’re important. Oh?”

As Jill mused aloud, a voice echoed only in her mind: *’An alert has been triggered in the security system.’* It was the security function of the *Acacia Book* mansion. And then, only in Jill’s field of vision, a scene from the forest appeared.

“It seems Carol is coming…?”

Jill tilted her head in puzzlement.

The renovation had been completed successfully, and now they were just in the process of arranging furniture.

There shouldn’t be any more issues, Jill thought as she curiously went to welcome Carol.