Don't Burn Them! Even Witches Have Value!

Under Lynn’s offensive of coaxing and deceiving, Theodore, attracted by that black stone emitting the aura of the fire element, ultimately signed the slave— employee contract.

Lynn would provide support and protection for Theodore’s research, but the patents for the latter’s research and development belonged to the ”Blackstone Heavy Industries” currently in preparation.

The patents were shared by all employees along with him. He merely held the right to control the profits.

However, even if Theodore could read and understand the contract, he wouldn’t care about this point.

For him, having his research proven to be a viable path was the most important detail.

Furthermore, Elysia, who had finished charcoal production, was assigned the task of cleaning the castle by him.

”It’s absolutely impossible for me to finish it all on my own!”

Under her strong protests and terrifying wails, Lynn and Theodore were forced to join her in the grand cleaning task.

Facts proved that she was right, because even with three people and ample light, they couldn’t finish cleaning the whole castle.

And this wasn’t even mentioning the fact that a certain someone would rather fall repeatedly due to unfamiliarity with the terrain than light extra lamps in the evening.

Lynn proposed that the three of them sleep in one room to save on today’s cleaning work, but unfortunately, it was vetoed by Elysia’s sonic wails.

By the time three rooms were cleaned, it was already midnight.

Since the production process was still in the exploratory stage, Lynn didn’t insist on making the witch implement a twenty-two-hour work system.

However, there was a small problem now, which was that they seemed to have not eaten all day.

So, while Elysia prepared the dining table for dinner — alright, it could already be considered a late-night snack — Lynn went to the kitchen to fetch food for the three of them.

When everything was ready, Lynn sat at one end of the long table, looked at the employees sitting on both sides, and smiled gently.

”First of all, on this very day, due to fate or perhaps other reasons, we’ve gathered here...”

Elysia’s slender silver eyebrows twitched.

She looked at the things on the plate, then she looked at Lynn, who was just about to say something:

”Are you sure we’re just eating…?”

Ignoring her, Lynn continued speaking:

”This is the beginning of a long journey. We’ll inevitably experience some twists and turns before we can reach the destination we thirst for.”

Theodore tapped the object on his plate with his knife and fork. Listening to the sound of clashing metal, he clicked his tongue in wonder.

”My colleagues who study materials really should see this.”

After raising his hand to signal his chief researcher to stay quiet, Lynn smiled and said:

”Let us substitute water for wine and wish our future path smooth sailing. Come, let us toast.”

The water cup he raised high drew no response whatsoever.

After drinking the water in one gulp with slight confusion, Lynn looked at Elysia, around whom the air had distorted slightly for some unknown reason.

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【Favorability: -10 (Working all day just to eat this stuff?)】

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”What’s wrong? Black bread’s very nutritious.”

As he spoke, he forcefully stabbed his fork into the bread on his plate, then put it into his mouth before chewing with difficulty.

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【Favorability: +5 (He’s actually eating this stuff?)】

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Feeling the two gazes of awe, Lynn became even more confused.

”Why aren’t you eating? Eat.”

After painfully swallowing the coarse fragments fighting in his throat with the help of two cups of water, he suddenly realized—

Today was a day of commemorative significance. He shouldn’t be so frugal.

So he went to the kitchen and found half a ham.

A long while later, looking at the things on their plates, Elysia and Theodore’s expressions became even more strange.

”Are you serious?”

Listening to the young woman’s voice, Lynn, who was currently fighting a difficult battle with his black bread, spread his hands.

”Didn’t I give you extra food?”

Elysia raised a slender hand and supported her smooth forehead.

This guy was hopeless.

Lynn had indeed given her and the other guy extra food, but he had only added one paper-thin slice of ham for each of them.

She could even see the texture of the bread through that ham.

But the most crucial point was that he didn’t give himself any extra!

This had already surpassed stinginess and miserliness, and stepped into another realm.

”Food only needs to make you full.

When funds intended for production and research investment are insufficient, enjoyment is a tremendous luxury.”

Lynn’s ”this is perfectly justified” look made her completely unable to refute him.

Just like that, under his influence, the two successfully ate their black bread.

And then they thoroughly vomited it back up.

”I can’t take it anymore! I can’t even scold you when you’re like this.”

Elysia wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes while dry-heaving in disgust.

She had never eaten wood, but she swore that the thing she just ate tasted worse than wood.

”Truly, a memorable foreign experience.”

Theodore collapsed weakly onto the dining table.

Just like that, although Lynn was extremely reluctant, in the end, he could only go to the kitchen to prepare a new dinner.

As for why it was him—

Elysia said that her magic was prone to losing control when she saw fire.

While Theodore was from Britannia... The reputation of his hometown cuisine in this world was the same as that of a certain island nation on the blue planet.

So, in the end, only he could cook among the three.

”...Am I really the lord? Am I really the boss?”

Lynn fell into self-doubt while tying on an apron.

Just as he sighed and prepared to look for food…

A bizarre thing happened.

By the stove, the half a ham he had cut earlier had disappeared.

”Elysia! Have you already taken the ham? Hurry up and return it! We’re eating five slices at most today!”

”What do you mean ’five slices at most’? Also, why are you doubting me?! I didn’t take it!”

This was truly strange. His memory couldn’t be wrong.

Then, what exactly was going on?

He suspiciously scrutinized every corner of the kitchen.

Apart from his two employees who only knew how to eat, there shouldn’t be anyone else in the castle.

Could it be rats?

No, half a ham weighed a full two catties*, and this was the north. There were no rats that big here.

”Whoosh—”

A gust of cold wind mixed with tiny snowflakes suddenly blew onto the back of his neck, raising a layer of goosebumps.

Lynn whipped his head around, his pupils contracting slightly.

The high window of the kitchen, which had originally been tightly shut, was actually half-open at this moment, still emitting soft creaking sounds in the cold wind.

He swallowed his saliva, then he quickly stepped forward.

Because the kitchen didn’t have its lights turned on to save lamp oil, only the moonlight shining down from outside illuminated the windowsill.

Then, he saw a few hair strands caught in the cracks of the wood fluttering in the wind, gleaming with a silvery luster under the moonlight.

‘This is bad.’

Lynn’s heart skipped a beat.

One of the important causes of Blackstone Fief’s ”favorable” geographical environment was that it bordered the neighboring Frost Kingdom, thus the area around it was overrun with monsters.

”Ely...”

Just as Lynn prepared to shout for protection, his voice abruptly halted.

Crunch

He shockingly heard a crisp chewing sound coming from above his head.

That sound echoed in the kitchen where only the wind howled, like the grinding teeth of the Grim Reaper.

The hair all over Lynn’s body stood on end, and he tightly gripped the kitchen knife in his hand.

After painfully raising his stiff neck, his breathing suddenly stopped.

The pale moonlight spilled down through the gap in the window, illuminating the pitch-black roof beam brightly.

And at that boundary between light and shadow, a figure was crouching there.

It was a being with a human outline, but beastly fur could clearly be seen on its body surface.

Seemingly having noticed Lynn’s gaze, the dark figure stopped its eating motions.

In the darkness, a pair of golden vertical pupils lit up.

Just as Lynn began to ponder what posture he should use to transmigrate for his next restart so that he could go enjoy himself in a Cyberpunk world, suddenly, the prompt sound representing a system pop-up window abruptly rang out.

‘Ding.’

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*A traditional East and Southeast Asian unit of mass. 1 catty is about 500 to 600 grams.

T/N - FYI, so we’ll be doing a 14 week straight 1 chapter release a day. I hope you enjoy! ♥️ (5/18/26)

Well now. It seems like the MC’s about to get another employee. After all, the system didn’t react to a talent like Theodore, so only those with supernatural powers like Elysia are worthy of the system’s recognition.

Also, I think I now get what kind of comedy the author is going for. It’s a hit and a miss for me so far, so I honestly hope that the author can tone down the unscrupulous merchant comedy he has going on later on.