The next day.

After finishing a whirlwind of paperwork in the morning, Penelope headed to the workshop.

Just in time, workers were carrying tubs into the room.

The tubs contained the caustic soda and fruit oil Penelope had ordered—ingredients for soap-making.

“We heard you’re making soap, my lady. Let us help.”

Two maids approached, bowing politely. It seemed the administrator had given them a heads-up.

Penelope was a bit surprised.

“Two of you want to help me? Don’t you have other tasks to do?”

Halo was an extremely poor territory, and the staff at the castle was woefully insufficient.

It wasn’t uncommon for a single maid to handle the workload of five people.

Yet the two maids looked at her with bright, determined expressions.

“Thanks to your efforts, my lady, our biggest worries have been eased. We’ll gladly roll up our sleeves to help you.”

“Just leave it to me. I’m the strongest in the castle!”

Maid Giselle flexed her arms enthusiastically as she rolled up her sleeves. Laura, just as eager, nodded with a twinkle in her eye.

Penelope chuckled and replied, “Thank you for your kind words. Since you’ll need to learn how to make soap anyway, you’re welcome to watch and help.”

“Yes, ma’am!”

“We’ll do our best!”

The two maids exchanged smiles before breaking into quiet laughter.

Most of the castle staff held Penelope in high regard.

Her resilience in managing the territory after the Baron’s death, without showing outward grief, had left a deep impression.

Everyone in Halo knew of her journey to the Imperial Bank to secure funding for the territory.

Her calm and dignified demeanor, without ever raising her voice, had made her an object of admiration among the staff.

“First, can you fetch some clean water?”

“Yes, leave it to me!”

Giselle, eager to show off her strength, dashed off to get water. Not to be outdone, Laura rolled up her sleeves.

“I’ll prepare the other materials.”

The two maids busily set to work fulfilling Penelope’s requests.

Soon, clean water, caustic soda, fruit oil, and wooden molds for the soap were neatly arranged on a shelf.

Finally, Penelope rolled up her own sleeves.

At that moment, as if waiting for his cue, the wizard burst through the door.

“Are the materials ready?”

“…As you can see,” Penelope replied, her brows furrowing slightly. His timing, coupled with his tendency to slack off only to swoop in at the last moment, was infuriating.

“Good.”

Ahwin grinned, a glint in his eyes visible even through the curtain of hair covering his face. At the same time, the two maids turned pale.

‘He really is as strange as the rumors say.’

‘They weren’t lying about wizards being eccentric.’

Unaware of the staff’s whispers about him, Ahwin pointed toward a door at the back of the room.

“Move everything into that room. My equipment’s all in there.”

“Yes, understood.”

Laura responded without hesitation.

Penelope froze.

…Wait, his equipment? Why would he have equipment in the castle?

Ahwin had arrived at Halo Castle empty-handed, not even carrying a wand or staff. There was no way he had personal equipment.

Before she could voice her doubts, Laura opened the door to the inner room.

Penelope gasped. Laura, who had opened the door, was equally stunned.

“Oh my… what is that?”

Laura’s jaw dropped as she rubbed her eyes in disbelief.

Beyond the door lay another world entirely.

A maze of tangled magical devices, chimneys puffing out smoke, and colorful, mysterious vials filled the room.

It looked like a room where a single misstep could set off an explosive chain reaction.

It was, quite literally, an alchemist’s laboratory.

Penelope swallowed nervously before asking, “Why… how are these things in Halo Castle?”

“This isn’t Halo Castle. It’s my workshop. I just opened a portal to connect it to this room.”

That’s possible?!

Penelope was speechless.

Should I call this an illegal invasion or a miraculous feat of magic?

Even as Penelope wrestled with her thoughts, Ahwin continued nonchalantly.

“Move everything in. Without that equipment, there’s no way to experiment with making green herb soap.”

“…”

He wasn’t wrong. A wizard needed their tools, after all.

Asking him to create soap without providing any tools was akin to demanding a meal without a kitchen.

It’s just that the scale of his solution is utterly absurd.

Ahwin gestured impatiently. “Hurry up. Just place the materials next to the table. Don’t touch anything else.”

The maids flinched. The thought of stepping into such a hazardous-looking lab was daunting.

Penelope, sensing their hesitation, asked, “Is that room safe?”

“The area around the table is clean. Just stay within that space, and you’ll be fine.”

“Wait, so you’re saying something could happen if we touch the wrong thing?”

Ahwin shrugged, his tone casual. “If you’re curious, try touching something.”

His smirk only added to Penelope’s frustration. He didn’t even bother making his sarcasm sound like a joke.

Penelope pursed her lips tightly and shot him a wary look.

Ahwin met her gaze, his expression curious, as though he were observing an interesting specimen.

Flustered, Penelope asked, “So… if we go in there, we won’t end up trapped forever or anything like that, right?”

“That won’t happen. Though, I admit I’m a little tempted to test it.”

Ahwin chuckled lightly, his mood oddly cheerful.

What’s so funny? Why is he so impossible to read?

Sighing, Penelope addressed the maids.

“Just remember what the wizard said. Don’t touch anything in there except the materials.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Leave it to us.”

Summoning their courage, the maids moved the materials into the lab. Despite their unease, they couldn’t afford to show weakness in front of their mistress.

Thankfully, no accidents occurred. It seemed the room wasn’t as dangerous as it looked.

Once everything was ready, Ahwin began explaining.

“The process is simple. First, mix equal parts water and caustic soda. Then, at the right temperature, combine the mixture with the fruit oil and this.”

He picked up a small green vial from the table and gave it a gentle shake. The liquid inside shimmered with an emerald hue, exuding an almost mystical glow.

“This is green herb extract that I prepared myself. We’ll mix it with the soap ingredients.”

“Wow, it seems easier than I thought,” Penelope remarked brightly, feeling more at ease.

Easier?

Ahwin’s eyebrow twitched. He had spent the entire night painstakingly extracting the herbal essence drop by drop. Her casual remark was grating.

“I worked all night to extract this, one drop at a time. Don’t you have anything to say about that?”

“Well… I imagine it must have been a very peaceful task?” Penelope replied without thinking.

Ahwin’s brow furrowed in irritation.

Isn’t that right, though?

Penelope thought back to his perpetually dark circles and pale complexion, a clear sign he hadn’t recovered from past emotional wounds.

Repetitive tasks could be soothing for the mind, after all. Surely, the alchemy experiment had been therapeutic.

What else does he want me to say?

“Oh, staying up all night must have been quite the ordeal,” Penelope added belatedly.

“…I should just stop talking and start working,” Ahwin muttered, clearly exasperated.

He retrieved a white lab coat, gloves, and goggles, donning them with precision. Then, he handed a set of protective gear to Penelope.

“Thank you,” she said, accepting the equipment.

Turning to the maids, she added, “Fetch gloves and cloths to cover your faces. Inhaling caustic soda fumes can be very harmful.”

“Yes, ma’am!”

The maids followed her instructions diligently.

Soon after, Penelope and the maids joined Ahwin in making the soap.