The Top-Tier Butler of the Marquis Family

Chapter 099

It was a warm, comforting wind, like her heart. Only much later did I realize that I had been smiling without even noticing it.

Well, this is awkward. I honestly have no idea what I’m supposed to say here.

The atmosphere had become strange.

“Thank you for thinking well of me, but I don’t think I’m really that good a person.”

“I heard that people who say they aren’t good people usually are.”

“From who?”

“Rohan.”

I burst out laughing. It sounded exactly like something he would say.

We stopped for a moment and took in the scenery spread out before us. Far off in the distance, the whole village lay in view. I found myself wondering what Arwen was thinking as she stood there beside me, but I didn’t ask. I didn’t want to disturb her.

Then I heard footsteps from behind.

“Attending Secretary.”

When I turned, I saw Arthas, covered in dust from head to toe. It looked like he had just finished training and was on his way back.

“When it’s just the three of us, you can speak casually.”

“Really?”

“Weren’t we going to be friends anyway?”

When I said that, Arthas glanced furtively at Arwen. When she smiled brightly and nodded, he let out a sigh.

“I never thought the day would come when I’d end up speaking formally to you.”

“Hmm? Strange. Wasn’t that decided the moment you got beaten by me?”

“That was an accident! An accident!”

Arwen let out a small laugh. Arthas folded his arms, scowled, and turned his head away sharply. Enough time had passed that it ought to have become a fond memory by now.

Grinning, I kept needling him.

“Brush the dust off your armor. A man who serves as the lieutenant of the Attending Secretary can’t go around covered in dust like that.”

“Ugh, what a nag.”

Still, I wasn’t wrong, so Arthas took off his cloak, rolled it up, and beat the dust from his armor. Arwen, like the exceptional maid she was, also plucked the dust from his hair and skin.

“Ah, thank you.”

“It’s nothing.”

Since the two of them weren’t close yet, they both wore slightly awkward expressions.

“You two are about the same age, so why not just become friends? Stop using formal speech and making things awkward. You’ll be seeing a lot of each other from now on.”

“Should we?”

“Yes. Let’s.”

It looked as though it would still take a little time before the awkwardness eased.

In any case, another connection had been formed just like that. I wasn’t sure whether things had gone well with Rohan, but now that Arthas and Arwen had agreed to be friends too, they’d likely end up spending time together often.

Once he was done cleaning himself up, Arthas threw his cloak back over his shoulders with a flourish.

“By the way, have the higher-ups said anything?”

“Not particularly. Why?”

“I just keep thinking our escort force might be a little too small. No matter how elite we are, there are monsters outside too. You never know what kind of situation might hit us.”

All sorts of monsters inhabited the continent, including Adeline Territory.

If I had asked openly what monsters were, people probably would have looked at me as though I were insane, so I secretly went to the library and studied the subject hard on my own. Somehow it felt different from asking about magic.

In short, it was a world where the monsters I had known in my previous life appeared almost exactly as they had there. I had been a little surprised, though, because monsters like slimes and orcs were portrayed as far stronger than I had expected.

Orcs in particular had formed allied tribes, so they were treated less like monsters and more like a distinct race.

I answered Arthas’s question.

“Along each stretch of road to the Royal Capital, the local army of that region will escort us in turn. They said they’d clear out the nearby monsters as much as possible. And the orcs have been quiet lately too, so it ought to be safe enough.”

“Are those men trustworthy? The local armies, I mean.”

“We’ll have to trust them for now. If you can’t trust your allies, then who can you trust? They’ll probably think of this as an opportunity, if anything. In times of peace, it isn’t easy for provincial governors or knights to earn merit.”

“Hmm.”

Arthas still looked worried. I understood. No matter how strong he was, it was his first mission, and on top of that it involved protecting an important person. Naturally he couldn’t help being tense.

Lately, after Sir Roland and then Sir Lorenz had both brought disgrace upon themselves, a wind of reform had begun sweeping through the Knight Order. He seemed determined not to get caught up in it.

After all, if he stumbled on this mission, he could very well become the next man to follow Roland and Lorenz into ruin.

“And honestly, part of what puts me at ease is that I don’t think it’ll be just us going.”

“What do you mean by that?”

Not just Arthas, but Arwen as well showed interest. My legs were getting tired from standing, so I sat down on a large stone set into the ground nearby.

“You really think they’d handle things so carelessly when the one moving is none other than Young Lady Sapiela of House Adeline? With only twenty cavalrymen?”

“There is some truth to that.”

“A secret organization will be following us. An elite detached unit made up of knights.”

Arthas looked at me as though to ask if I was serious. I let out a quiet laugh.

“Even Young Master Hamel is already full of worries. Each of them will send a sword of his own. Or they may send them to test us. Either way, what I’m saying is that this is basically our promotion exam.”

“What a headache. You were saying this would finally be an easy ride, but it’s no different from taking a test.”

“As I always say, you can quit if you hate it that much. I won’t stop you.”

With a deep sigh, Arthas raised both hands as though conceding defeat. At just that moment, Rohan, who had been loafing around, spotted us and came running over.

“What amusing conversation are you all having here?”

That reminded me of the time Rohan had dragged me away while I was spending time in the garden. If I hadn’t ended up carrying furniture that day, I never would have gotten tangled up with Young Master Hamel.

And when you’ve received something, it’s only proper to give something back, isn’t it?

“Perfect timing. Come here and do some work.”

“What?”

“I’ll give you a chance to earn merit with the Young Lady. Come along.”

“Hey, hey! Wait a second!”

I hauled Rohan back to the warehouse. Then I gave him some special work to do and took a small measure of revenge. He grumbled, but there was nothing he could do. He couldn’t exactly disobey the Attending Secretary’s orders.

And so time passed, and at last the day the auction opened arrived.

***

When I reached the entrance of Noblesse Auction House, Kalmond and Eluna were there to receive me. The two of them lowered their heads when they saw me.

“Just the two of you came?”

“This is a very safe place. There’s never been a single incident here.”

“That’s a relief.”

As we walked down the corridor, I asked after the recent state of Metis. Quite a few nobles I recognized came into view. That was only natural, since I belonged not to just any house, but to House Adeline, which ruled this territory.

But at the moment I was wearing the Face Mask and acting as Suhyeon, so there was no chance of any of them recognizing me.

“And the response to the standard-model fountain pen has been excellent. Baron Ainse has really been spreading the word well.”

“And the profits?”

“Around 20,000 Gold.”

“Unbelievable.”

We had earned an absurd amount of money in the blink of an eye. Twenty thousand Gold didn’t hit with immediate reality, but in any case, it was enough to cover several months of tribute to the Young Masters.

“How did the meetings with the Young Masters go?”

“They went well. All of them said they’d accept the sponsorship funds.”

“Who refuses when money is being offered? Especially when it isn’t even dirty money.”

At that point, the entrance leading into the main auction hall appeared. We paused our conversation for a moment and entered together with the others.

Inside, it was enormous. A massive hall large enough to seat well over a hundred people. We took seats off to one side in a corner, since there was still something we needed to discuss.

“Tell me the full story in detail.”

This time, Kalmond answered.

“Both Young Masters sent representatives. Just as expected, neither of them appeared in person. They showed goodwill and said they’d be watching Metis from now on.”

“They didn’t say anything else?”

“They didn’t. We did gather some information about the businesses the Young Masters are currently involved in, but nothing especially useful.”

Privately, I found it irritating. They had clearly expected tribute anyway, and yet after sending representatives, all they offered in return was a single line about watching us. But that was fine.

This alone was enough.

The fact that I was supporting all three Young Masters would surely work to my advantage someday. Until then, I just had to keep my head down quietly.

“Mond. Did you compile that list?”

“Yes. Here.”

Kalmond discreetly handed me a slip of paper. On it were written the names of around twenty large and small organizations. Some I had heard of, and many were unfamiliar.

“So in other words, if we swallow all of these, we’ll be able to seize control of the Underworld?”

As I crumpled the paper and tucked it into my clothes, I asked the question. Kalmond’s eyes gleamed.

“We’ll be reborn as an overwhelmingly powerful organization that no one will be able to oppose.”

“Good. Prepare thoroughly. The moment I return from the Royal Capital, we’ll begin the work. And make sure the smokescreen is laid properly so none of it can be traced back to Metis.”

“I will obey.”

By now, Kalmond had already built an independent organization of his own. He had poured part of the secret funds obtained while eliminating the Black Pig Gang into it. Since we couldn’t swing the sword under the name of Metis itself, he had effectively created a mercenary force.

If I hadn’t been able to see Status Windows, I would never have trusted Kalmond this deeply.

He was still in the state of Diamond Loyalty, and once the Underworld had been cleaned out, he would hand over every organization he absorbed to me. Backed by that overwhelming information network, our company would cooperate with it and grow even stronger.

Just thinking about it sent a thrill through my chest.

And with that, our secret conversation came to an end. More and more people were beginning to arrive, so from then on, we passed the time talking about ordinary company matters that anyone could hear.

“Well, if it isn’t the people from Metis.”

I had assumed no one would recognize me, but there was someone who did. It was none other than the eldest Young Master of House Adeline, Kaien himself.

“Young Master. It is my first time greeting you. My name is Suhyeon.”

“I’ve heard quite a bit from my lieutenant. And not long ago, you made us an excellent proposal as well. Very commendable.”

“I merely did what I ought to do. Thank you for looking upon us favorably.”

“There are plenty of fools who can’t even manage that.”

Despite his youth, his bearing was formidable. It seemed likely that the lieutenant at his side had recognized Kalmond and identified me to him. Well, that wasn’t the important thing right now. I needed to focus.

“Suhyeon. Since fate has brought us together like this, let us at least shake hands once. I hope we’ll be seeing each other often.”

“It would be an honor.”

The moment I took his hand, blue letters scattered into the air and the Status Window appeared.

○ Kaien de Adeline

Rank: ★★★★

Level: 35

Trait: Willpower A, Virility A, Swordsmanship A, Social Dance B, Dignity B, Politics B, Stratagem C, Slander C, ???

Status: Greed

Areas of Interest: Defeating his rivals and inheriting the House. The skin of young men.

[Not Unlocked]

……

It felt almost like some sort of assorted gift set.

To begin with, his rank was one step lower than Young Master Hamel’s. Considering that the difference between four and five stars was enormous, that told me that Hamel’s overall evaluation was actually better.

His level was somewhat higher than Hamel’s, but a gap of four levels didn’t mean much. Depending on what one did, rapid leveling was entirely possible, so it couldn’t serve as any absolute standard of judgment.

And then his traits. I had thought, Surely not, but there it was. Virility. And at A-rank, no less.

And then his Areas of Interest......

To be honest, at first I thought I was seeing it wrong. Or that the system itself had malfunctioned.

That final sentence was enough to make me frown. The skin of young men. The eldest Young Master had a taste for men? I had never heard even a rumor of such a thing, so it came as quite a shock.

Wait a moment. If I use this well, I could turn it into something rather interesting.

It felt as though I had unexpectedly drawn a joker.