TMH Ch#06

“As expected, time really has worn this place down.”

<If you do not respond, you will be deemed an intruder and dealt with accordingly.>

“Ah… this part is broken too. How upsetting.”

Next, what caught her eye was a worn and damaged body. Well, after hundreds of years, even a body made of stone would have been worn down by rain and wind.

She gently caressed the cracked fingers of Andeon. Then she raised her hand toward him.

Sensing that she was about to use magic, Andeon immediately prepared to enter attack mode.

But what quickly enveloped his entire body wasn’t an attack meant to harm him, nor a restraining spell.

<This golden mist…?>

The moment he saw golden mana bloom like mist from her fingertips, Andeon froze.

His fundamental mission to eliminate intruders was overridden by overwhelming emotion for something he had long missed, erasing all his protocols.

“Yes. Can you see who I am now?”

<-Master?>

“You’ve done well, Andeon.”

As her magic gently caressed his body, healing his wounds and restoring damaged parts, Andeon finally let go of all hostility.

The only one who could change him—crafted by the great mage Asmoph—was his master.

Thus, Andeon, who had developed his own ego over the long time since his master’s departure, acknowledged the woman before him, whose face and voice were completely different from his former master, as his master once again.

<Welcome back, Master.>

Her returning smile was beautiful. A confident, commanding face that inspired reverence. The way she smiled was no different from the old master.

Andeon felt a strange sensation, as if everything that had been clogged within him was melting away. Whether it was dust or longing, he couldn’t tell.

Andeon stood there for a long while, unable to take his eyes off the returned master.

—

—

<Since your departure, many alchemists have come. Those not pre-registered as guests were not allowed inside and left flowers at the gate.>

“I see.”

<The Empress also came, dressed in black. She spoke into the air, saying that since your ‘passing,’ the alchemists have shut themselves away and no longer support the empire.>

As they walked from the main gate toward the castle, Karia listened to Andeon recount what had happened during her absence.

She had wondered why all the alchemists had vanished without a trace. It seemed that after her ‘death,’ they had holed up in their rooms, diving into research until they died.

Well, alchemists had never been interested in worldly things like politics or economics—they only cared about their own pursuits.

Before, they had reluctantly participated in state affairs because of the influence of Duke Asmoph. But they had always looked for a chance to escape.

She casually asked about Gilford and Eddie, but unfortunately, Andeon said he hadn’t seen them since.

<Master, where had you gone?>

“Hmm?”

<Do you have another residence besides Rubaltverich Castle? Have you been there all this time?>

“Oh, that’s… ah!”

Andeon seemed not to understand what “gone” meant for a human. Whether that was fortunate or unfortunate, Karia didn’t know.

She smiled bitterly and carefully chose her words. While distracted, a weed growing wildly in the garden scratched a red line across her arm.

Karia winced at the sting, and Andeon, more alarmed than her, knelt with a loud thud.

<I’m sorry, Master. There were no orders to maintain the garden, so I left it as it was. Please wait a moment, and I will clear it immediately.>

“It’s alright, take your time. I just need to rest inside the castle.”

Such small wounds meant nothing to her—someone who had spent nearly 20 years on the battlefield. She simply wanted to rest somewhere comfortable.

Too much had happened since she rose from her sickbed. Determined to confirm her past life, she had traveled a rough road and used mana almost the entire day, exhausting her mental strength.

Behind that castle gate lay her true home. Familiar, peaceful, and entirely her own.

“Ah.”

But what she had overlooked was that just as time had passed outside, time had stood still inside the castle.

The once golden-shining entrance hall was now covered in cobwebs, and a musty moldy smell hit her face along with the dust.

Seeing the dreadful state of her home, Karia frowned deeply, and Andeon shrank in anxiety.

<I-I’ll clean it up right away!>

“Don’t bother. If you go in, things will only get worse.”

Let alone cleaning, Andeon wasn’t even small enough to pass through the entrance.

He was originally designed as a castle guardian golem, made large and threatening to scare off intruders. He was never meant to go inside.

Karia sighed and turned around. If Andeon couldn’t clean, she’d just make someone who could. Yawning, she reached out toward the air.

“I want someone small, light, but strong.”

Golden mana mist bloomed again, and she gathered the surrounding stones into one place. She had made golems hundreds, even thousands of times—nothing hard about it now.

But for a moment, her gaze fell on Andeon, quietly kneeling beside the castle, watching her.

‘Yes, I never considered it before, but it would be nice if it had a personality too.’

To her, Andeon was quite lovable. How he recognized his master on his own, followed her with unconditional fondness—it all felt endearing.

She had never thought of golems, alchemical puppets, as likable or unlikable, so she was surprised at her own thoughts.

So if she was going to make a new one, it might as well be like Andeon.

Karia thought this, and gave the new golem the power of independent thought.

“—That should do it.”

The mana vortex slowly scattered in the air, and before her stood a small golem, barely reaching her waist.

Its appearance was similar to Andeon—rough stones pieced together—but its limbs were well-crafted.

The golem stared blankly at her for a moment, then curiously moved its arms and legs, turning its head this way and that to examine its surroundings. It was clearly reacting differently than golems she had created before.

<Master, are you alright?>

<-Master?>

At Andeon’s worried voice, the mini golem ran up to Karia.

Its voice was higher, lighter, and less resonant than Andeon’s. If Andeon’s voice was like a church organ, this one was like a clarinet.

Karia leaned against the castle’s entrance, breathing heavily. She really needed to rest.

“Alright, my newly born golem. First, go inside the castle, clear the cobwebs, and open the windows for ventilation. Then go up the central staircase to the second floor. The first room on the left is my bedroom. Start cleaning there.”

<Cleaning? What’s cleaning?>

The golem tilted its round stone head and asked. Karia groaned inwardly.

This was her first time giving a golem independent thought, and she had forgotten to instill basic knowledge. Making golems had once been second nature to her, and she had made a fundamental mistake.

With a deep sigh full of exhaustion, she began to explain slowly.

“Cleaning means making a dirty place clean.”

<Why is it dirty?>

“Because I left the castle empty for a long time.”

The golem had many questions, and Karia patiently answered them.

In the past, she would have scrapped such a “failed” golem immediately and recalculated a new one. But now, she was simply too tired.

However, the golem’s next words erased any trace of patience.

<But why do I have to clean it? I didn’t make it dirty.>

<Because Master created you for that purpose.>Andeon answered in her place, unable to tolerate the mini golem’s insolence. He had stayed quiet until now, but this was too much.

Golems are created for the needs of their master. Their existence is to fulfill the master’s desires. Obeying the master’s orders is both duty and honor. How dare this arrogant one question that?

<I was made to clean?>

<That is correct.><What if I don’t want to?>

Even with Andeon’s persuasion, the mini golem didn’t obediently nod and agree. Karia, growing more annoyed by the never-ending back and forth, finally stood up and interrupted.

“Fine. If you don’t want to, then you don’t have to.”

<Don’t have to?>

“Your will is your own. I can’t change it against your wishes.”

Trying

more would only waste time. Admitting her failure, Karia reached her hand out toward the mini golem.