Chapter 38: All Set!
They settled in the office while one of the staff entered with a pushcart where on top of it was their preferred choice of home.
The architecture in this world is very similar to late medieval to renaissance era or mixed of both. They are eye-catching and the one in the center of the presentation immediately caught Ernest’s attention the moment the protective cloth was removed from it.
Actually, even Victor and Anna visibly froze for several seconds.
Because unlike the smaller townhouse models shown earlier...
This one looked like the residence of an important merchant family.
A large two-story stone manor stood at the center of the miniature model.
Elegant symmetrical design.
Tall windows.
Stone columns near the entrance.
Dark tiled roofing.
Four chimney structures.
And surrounding the estate itself were carefully landscaped gardens protected behind decorative iron fencing.
A long carriage path extended from the front gate directly toward the main entrance of the house.
Meanwhile smaller detached structures stood at the sides.
Probably servant quarters.
Storage buildings.
And most importantly for Ernest?
A detached workshop structure connected through a covered pathway.
Ernest loved it immediately.
Roland carefully adjusted the miniature model afterward before speaking.
"This property is located at the western side of Beryl District near the canal gardens."
Then he pointed toward the surrounding layout.
"Approximately one thousand four hundred square meters total land area."
Victor almost coughed hearing that.
"...One thousand four hundred?"
Actually, their current home probably occupied less than seventy square meters total.
This estate alone felt enormous by comparison.
Roland continued professionally afterward.
"The main manor contains six bedrooms."
"Private bath chamber."
"Dining hall."
"Guest reception room."
"Upper study."
"Wine cellar."
Then finally, he pointed toward the detached side structure.
"And a seventy-square-meter private workshop building."
There it was.
The real reason Ernest chose this one almost instantly.
The workshop.
Actually, his mind already started imagining future projects the moment he saw it.
Metalworking benches.
Mechanical drafting tables.
Steam pressure experiments.
Prototype engines.
Maybe even primitive electrical testing someday if he advanced far enough technologically.
Meanwhile Anna looked completely overwhelmed now while staring at the miniature estate.
"This is a house?"
Her reaction made sense.
Because compared to lower district housing conditions, this place practically looked aristocratic.
Not noble-palace level obviously.
But absolutely upper-class.
Victor quietly crossed his arms afterward while continuing to stare at the model.
"Are we going to live in this?"
"Yes," Ernest simply said and looked at Roland. "So, I’m sure there will be staff to manage this place."
That part he knew because despite it being a luxury gated-residence, this is still a medieval world, meaning sanitations are not that advanced. No indoor plumbing, no water supply, no sewage treatment systems, and no automated conveniences like in modern society.
Everything still relied heavily on manpower.
Roland nodded immediately afterward.
"Of course."
The property manager pointed toward several smaller structures beside the manor model.
"The estate already includes staff quarters near the rear section of the property."
Then he continued calmly.
"Most upper district households employ domestic workers."
"Cleaning staff."
"Groundskeepers."
"Stable workers."
"Laundry workers."
"Kitchen servants."
Actually, Ernest already expected that.
Because without indoor plumbing or modern sanitation systems, maintaining a large estate manually required enormous labor.
Water needed transporting.
Baths needed preparing.
Waste needed removal.
Fireplaces needed cleaning.
Clothing needed handwashing.
"You’d need around thirteen full-time staff, which we also offer in addition. You’ll contract their services annually."
Roland calmly pulled another parchment stack from the side afterward before placing it atop the table.
Actually, these were not merely property documents anymore.
They looked more like operational cost breakdowns.
Household management contracts.
Staffing structures.
Estate maintenance estimates.
Honestly, upper-class living in this world basically functioned like operating a small organization.
Roland continued professionally.
"For an estate of this size, the staffing structure would typically include:"
He began listing them one by one.
"Two cleaning workers."
"One cook."
"One assistant kitchen worker."
"Two laundry workers."
"Two groundskeepers."
"One stablemaster."
"Two carriage and stable assistants."
"One estate steward."
"And two general household servants."
Victor genuinely looked stunned hearing the number of employees required just to maintain one residence.
"...That’s practically another workshop."
Actually, he was not wrong.
Large upper-class households historically operated almost like miniature businesses themselves.
Roland gave a polite nod afterward.
"Large estates consume enormous labor."
Then the property manager opened another document.
"Now regarding finances."
There it was.
The important part.
Roland pointed toward the primary figure written near the center.
"Property purchase price: Four million eight hundred thousand riels."
Then below it:
Minimum required down payment at twenty percent:
960,000 riels.
Actually, Ernest mentally winced slightly.
That would nearly wipe out his liquid savings entirely.
Still...
His monthly income already reached levels capable of supporting financing comfortably.
Roland continued afterward.
"Remaining financed balance: Three million eight hundred forty thousand riels."
Then he pointed toward several payment structures beneath it.
Five-year financing term:
Approximately 77,000 riels monthly plus interest.
Ten-year financing term:
Approximately 41,000 riels monthly plus interest.
Fifteen-year financing term:
Approximately 29,000 riels monthly plus interest.
Actually, compared to his current income?
Even the five-year payment structure remained extremely manageable.
His salary alone already reached three hundred thousand monthly.
And that excluded future quarterly bonuses and increasing profit distributions from the Helmarte Soap Works.
Then Roland moved toward another section of the computation sheet.
"Estimated annual household staffing contract costs..."
He paused briefly while checking the numbers.
"...approximately one hundred eighty thousand to two hundred twenty thousand riels yearly depending on servant experience and service packages."
Actually, that honestly sounded cheaper than Ernest expected.
Probably because labor remained abundant in this world.
Meanwhile sanitation and convenience technology barely existed.
Meaning manpower replaced machinery.
Roland continued calmly afterward.
"Food supply contracts, coal delivery, carriage maintenance, and estate taxes are billed separately."
Victor slowly rubbed his forehead afterward.
"...Oh my god."
The man looked like he was mentally collapsing trying to process the scale of upper-class living costs.
The property manager looked directly toward Ernest.
"With your current business position and income verification from the Helmarte Soap Works..."
He smiled slightly.
"...Oriel Merchant Banking would likely classify you as a low-risk commercial client."
"Okay, that’s good. I’ll take the five year term since I don’t want to burden myself with long monthly payments."
"That’s great! You don’t really sound like a twelve-year old child. You are fortunate that you have a precocious child," Roland said to Ernest’s parents, to whom only replied in an embarrassed chuckle.
"Sir Ernest, I do have questions. I do use your product a lot when I bathe everyday. I smell good and fresh thanks to it but when I try it on my hair, it becomes stiff? Why is it?"
Ernest blinked once hearing the question.
Actually, that immediately caught his attention.
Because Roland just accidentally pointed out one of the biggest limitations of primitive soap.
Hair care.
"Well..." Ernest leaned slightly back in his chair afterward while thinking how to explain it in simpler terms. "That’s because the soap wasn’t really designed for hair."
Roland looked genuinely curious now.
"Why?"
"Hair and skin react differently."
Actually, Ernest internally thanked his past engineering education and random internet knowledge from his previous world.
Because while primitive soap worked extremely well for body cleaning...
It absolutely destroyed hair quality over time.
Especially alkaline soap.
He continued calmly afterward.
"The soap removes oil very aggressively."
Then he pointed toward his own hair briefly.
"For the body, that works well because it removes dirt and sweat."
"But for hair, it strips too much natural oil away."
Roland slowly nodded afterward.
"That explains the stiffness?"
"Yes."
Actually, human hair naturally relied on oils to remain softer and flexible.
Traditional alkaline soap disrupted that balance heavily.
Modern shampoos solved that issue through entirely different chemical formulations.
Which this world obviously did not possess yet.
Roland suddenly looked impressed again.
"You even understand that? But don’t worry, our company would surely make a kind of product that cleans the hair."
