Chapter 46: The Turnover
The carriage went straight to Beryl district where the Teucher future estate is located.
"It’s so peaceful here and the air," Anna took a sniff of the air and exhaled dreamily. "It’s so fresh!"
"All the reasons why we should move here," Ernest simply said. "It offers the best in the country."
"It’s all thanks to you son," Victor said. "And I want to apologize for everything, for raising my voice, thinking of you as worthless. This is all possible because of you."
"It’s not that a big deal for me," Ernest said, looking at his father. "I understand the situation we are in. We are literally poor and have debt. But we cleared it, this is a fresh start."
Victor looked away slightly.
Even now, he still appeared uncomfortable whenever the subject came up.
Ernest understood why.
For years, Victor had carried the burden of supporting the family.
Long hours at the forge, low wages, debt.
The deaths of children before Ernest.
Constant worry and pressure.
People did not always make the best decisions when trapped in that kind of life.
Eventually, the carriage entered one of the quieter streets of Beryl.
The road became wider.
The houses became larger.
Trees lined portions of the street.
Private gardens occupied spaces where entire rows of lower-district homes could have stood.
Several well-dressed citizens walked along the sidewalks while horse-drawn carriages moved leisurely through the district.
Then the carriage slowed.
"We’re here," the driver announced.
Ernest looked through the window.
And there it was.
Their future estate.
The estate stood behind a decorative wrought-iron gate surrounded by carefully maintained hedges and gardens.
A wide gravel driveway stretched from the entrance all the way to the manor itself.
The building looked almost unreal.
Two stories tall.
Built from pale stone.
Large windows lined the front façade.
Four massive columns supported an elegant entrance portico.
Several chimneys rose from the slate roof.
To one side stood a detached carriage house large enough to house multiple carriages and horses.
A covered walkway connected it to the main residence.
Decorative fountains quietly flowed within the gardens.
Flowerbeds lined the pathways.
Trimmed hedges formed geometric patterns around the estate grounds.
It looked less like a house.
And more like the residence of a wealthy noble.
Anna slowly covered her mouth.
"Oh my gods. It’s so beautiful in person!"
Then out of nowhere, Roland appeared.
"Good morning, gentlemen and ladies," Roland said cheekily. "Welcome, to your humble abode!"
Ernest looked at Roland and smirked. "It’s no way near humble. I’ll take it as a compliment though. So, I already signed the papers, we are locked into a financing agreement. So we can now move into the house, right?"
"That’s correct, I’m just here to officiate the transfer and hand over the estate officially to the Teucher family."
Roland reached inside his leather satchel and pulled out a small bundle of documents.
Several sheets of parchment.
A brass seal.
And finally, a ring holding multiple keys.
The keys immediately caught Victor’s attention.
Actually, there were far more than he expected.
Front entrance.
Rear entrance.
Cellar.
Carriage house.
Storage rooms.
Servants’ quarters.
The estate practically required its own collection of keys.
Roland smiled and lifted the ring slightly.
"Well then."
He looked toward Ernest.
"Congratulations."
Then he handed the keys over.
For a brief moment, Ernest simply stared at them.
The keys were surprisingly heavy.
Not physically.
Mentally.
Because they represented something much bigger than a house.
They represented success.
Freedom.
Proof that the gamble had worked.
A year ago, his family barely had enough money to survive comfortably.
Now he was holding the keys to one of the finest estates in Beryl District.
"Thank you," Ernest said sincerely.
Roland nodded.
"You’ve earned it."
Then he stepped aside and gestured toward the manor.
"Well? The estate belongs to you now."
Anna immediately looked toward the massive entrance doors.
"Can we go inside?"
Roland laughed.
"Of course."
The group walked up the stone steps together.
The closer they got, the larger the manor appeared.
The front doors alone were over three meters tall.
Dark polished wood reinforced with decorative brass fittings.
The craftsmanship was exceptional.
Actually, Ernest estimated a team of skilled carpenters probably spent months building them.
He inserted one of the keys into the lock.
Click.
The mechanism turned smoothly.
Then he pushed the door open.
The moment the entrance swung inward, Anna gasped.
"Oh my..."
The reception hall was enormous.
Sunlight streamed through tall windows and illuminated polished wooden floors.
A grand staircase curved upward toward the second floor.
Crystal chandeliers hung from the ceiling.
Paintings decorated portions of the walls.
The ceiling itself was nearly twice as tall as the one in their current home.
Victor slowly stepped inside.
His boots echoed lightly against the polished floor.
For several seconds, he simply looked around.
Anna slowly walked toward the center of the hall.
Her eyes moved everywhere.
The staircase.
The paintings.
The chandeliers.
The furniture.
Everything.
"It’s beautiful."
Roland smiled.
"This is only the entrance hall."
"Only?"
Victor repeated.
The property manager nodded.
"Wait until you see the rest."
Then he led them toward the dining hall.
The room itself was almost larger than their entire current house.
A long polished table occupied the center.
Twelve chairs surrounded it.
A fireplace stood against the far wall.
Large windows overlooked the gardens.
Anna looked completely overwhelmed.
Then they continued through the manor.
The kitchen.
A private study.
A receiving room.
A library.
Several guest bedrooms.
Storage rooms.
And eventually the second floor.
Six bedrooms.
Each larger than the room Ernest currently slept in.
One even contained a private bathing chamber.
Anna nearly fainted when she saw that.
"A bath?"
"Inside the room?"
Roland nodded.
Eventually they reached the master bedroom.
The largest room in the manor.
Victor entered first.
Then froze.
The room was enormous.
A king-sized bed stood near the center.
A fireplace occupied one wall.
A private sitting area occupied another.
The windows overlooked the gardens and fountains below.
For a long moment, nobody spoke.
Then Victor slowly sat on the edge of the bed.
His eyes wandered across the room.
And suddenly, he laughed.
A genuine laugh.
One Ernest hadn’t heard in years.
"Gods."
Victor shook his head.
"I spent twenty years breaking my back in a forge."
Then he looked at Ernest.
"And my son buys me a nobleman’s house."
Actually, hearing that made Anna’s eyes become slightly red.
"Thank you, Ernest," then she hugged Ernest dotedly.
And that’s it, their house in Oriel. But this is not the end as Ernest’s mind raced with possibilities.
As a mechanical engineer, he couldn’t just feel the urge of renovating the estate. For him, this house is just like an upgraded version of their old house, way upgraded. But it lacked amenities of the modern world such as indoor plumbing, electricity, something that he needed if he wanted to industrialize this world and become a trillionaire.
Luckily, he spotted a nearby stream not far away from his estate.
"Let’s do some experiment," he said to himself inwardly.
