Days passed until they finally arrived at the noble’s home. The place was located on top of a mountain, and everything around it was covered in snow. It was exactly as the noble had described.

William felt like he was back at the Snowpeak Mountain magic academy. Not because of the structure itself—they were very different—but because of the snow. It made him think of his old companions and how much simpler life had been back then.

‘I need to focus on the present and stop dwelling on the past!’ he thought.

“This is my family’s mansion,” the noble said as they stepped out of the carriage. “We are the Black Pine family, and this is Black Pine Manor.”

The noble’s family had lived in the region for a very, very long time. The forest surrounding the mansion was filled with black trees, which was why the family had changed their name over the years.

William found the place quite beautiful. It reminded him of the resorts he used to see online back on Earth. But the size itself didn’t impress him much, as he had seen many grand things in his life.

The woman with him, however, seemed more impressed by the place.

‘She probably hasn’t traveled much in her life,’ William thought.

The noble who had bought them was named Jonas, and he wasn’t the current head of the family. That was his father. Jonas would take over when his father was no longer able to lead, but that would still take a few years.

However, even without being in charge, he was already learning a lot from his father and was seen as more important since everyone knew he would eventually take over. This extended to the other families living nearby. Everyone wanted to please Jonas, as it could mean receiving “blessings” when he became the leader.

“Come with me. I’ll show you where you’ll be staying,” Jonas said.

William was already expecting the worst. They entered through the main gate, where a guard greeted them with a smile and kind words—well, he greeted Jonas. The guard simply looked at William and the woman without saying a word.

They passed through the mansion’s garden. The garden had seen better days. Due to the snow, most of the flowers were dead, and only a few managed to survive. This didn’t last all year. During spring and summer, it was common to see more flowers in the area.

Jonas led them inside the mansion, where William saw the other staff members working there, as well as other members of Jonas’s family. Just like with the guard, no one spoke to them—only to Jonas.

“Master,” one of the maids said, “we’ve been eagerly awaiting your return.”

“I’m back now,” Jonas said with a smile.

All the people working at the mansion for the Black Pine family seemed to like them a lot. William could tell. However, William and the beautiful woman with him weren’t there to be employees. No. They were there because they had been bought as slaves!

This meant they wouldn’t receive the same treatment as the others. But, surprisingly, things were better than William had expected. Jonas took them to their rooms. Each had their own room, and although small, the rooms were tidy and clean.

After what William had endured in the slave traders’ cell, he had expected something similar, but that wasn’t the case. Things were a bit better.

“You can stay in your rooms today to rest, but tomorrow the work begins,” Jonas said before leaving.

The woman with William was named Wendy. “This seems too good to be true,” she said. “I have a feeling the work we’ll start tomorrow is going to be terrible.”

“I think it’s going to suck too, but we can’t be too negative,” William replied. “Let’s hope this noble Jonas is a good person.”

Wendy didn’t seem convinced, as she went to her room without saying another word, her face still somewhat sad. William didn’t believe his own words either. He always expected the worst.

William also went to his room. Inside, there was a bed, a fireplace, and a small table with a chair. The room was so small that everything seemed cramped. It was even hard to walk around without bumping into something.

The fireplace wasn’t there because Jonas wanted to give luxuries to his new slaves. It was necessary—otherwise, William would freeze to death, and Jonas wouldn’t want to waste his money.

William lay down on his bed, staring at the ceiling and thinking about life.

‘What am I going to do now?’ he wondered.

He didn’t know what would happen to him the next day, and that thought was somewhat terrifying. For him, training so hard in life to become a mage, only to be unable to use mana because of the seal placed on him, was simply awful.

William eventually fell asleep after tossing and turning for a while. The warmth of the blankets in the freezing cold was impossible to resist.

He woke up in the middle of the night to someone knocking on his door. It was one of Jonas’s maids, bringing him new clothes.

“These clothes are warmer for you,” she said, then added with a look of disdain, “I don’t know why Master Jonas is treating slaves so well. It’s like he’s treating you better than the staff.”

She then threw the clothes onto William’s bed. “And there’s food for you in the kitchen. Go get it, or you’ll sleep on an empty stomach.”

Everything happened so fast that William barely had time to process it. In the end, he tried to forget the hatred the maid had shown him.

He changed into the new clothes, which were lined with animal fur to ensure he wouldn’t freeze. After that, William headed to the kitchen to get something to eat before going back to sleep.

The problem was that the mansion was enormous, and he had no idea where the kitchen was. Before leaving, he knocked on Wendy’s door, which was next to his. When she answered, William noticed she was also wearing new clothes, likely given to her just like him.

“Did they call you to the kitchen too?” Wendy asked. “From what I understood, there’s something for us to eat there.”

“Yeah, that’s right. Want to come with me to find the kitchen? I have no idea where it is.”

“Of course!”

Wendy seemed a bit more cheerful than the last time William had spoken to her—a few hours earlier—and that was a good sign. Maybe the new clothes and food had won her over.

The two walked together through the mansion’s wide corridors, admiring the paintings, sculptures, and flowers that adorned the place. The walls were made of excellent materials.

They encountered some of the staff, but when they asked about the kitchen, no one answered them. They didn’t even say hello. It was as if William and Wendy didn’t exist.

This made them feel sad, but neither of them confronted the staff. They searched for the kitchen on their own and eventually found it.

The kitchen was quite large, with multiple ovens, pots for making soup, and a well-stocked pantry. Many people lived in the mansion, so they needed a lot of food daily to keep everyone well-fed.

One of the cooks saw William and Wendy and said, “Here’s your food.”

She handed them two bowls of soup. The soup wasn’t watery—it was hearty, filled with vegetables and meat. It was better than William had expected.

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The two sat at one of the wooden tables in the kitchen and ate their dinner.

“Why does it feel like they hate us?” Wendy asked.

William looked around and noticed some hostile glances, but when he confronted those people, they turned away, unable to meet his gaze.

“I have no idea, but I feel like we’ll find out soon. Maybe it’s just because they don’t like slaves.”

After eating, they placed their bowls in the sink and left. No one forced them to clean up, so they didn’t. If the kitchen staff had treated them well, William might have considered helping, but after all that hostility? No way.

Wendy went straight to her room after eating, while William wanted to find a bathroom and took the opportunity to explore the mansion. It was nighttime, which meant most of the staff and Jonas’s family were asleep.

It was the perfect time to walk around the mansion and try to learn more about its layout. William wandered through the now darker corridors. The silence was deafening, and the only people he saw moving around were the guards.

“What are you doing walking around so late at night? You know that’s forbidden,” a guard said.

“I’m just looking for the bathroom. None of the staff would tell me where it is.”

William had already found the bathroom—he was just using it as an excuse.

“Come with me,” the guard said, “I’ll show you where it is.”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep