The Top-Tier Butler of the Marquis Family

Chapter 126

It seemed I could raise Spinel’s Favorability by satisfying his intellectual curiosity. On top of that, since he also had the Gourmet trait, it would probably rise if I treated him to delicious food as well.

Only now did I feel that I could properly make use of the Traits and Areas of Interest categories.

If I dealt with people according to those, their Favorability toward me would naturally rise that much more.

Kalmond asked,

“Is binding a Document File with metal staples really such a special thing? Punching holes with an awl and binding it that way is simple too, isn’t it?”

“It cannot even be compared to that. You can bind documents just by pressing it like this with your hand.”

I opened and closed my right hand as I demonstrated.

But that was only possible because I had used a stapler in my previous life. The two people before me would not even be able to imagine it.

Unless someone had a special gift, they usually had to make a thing themselves and see it with their own eyes before they understood its value.

“This is only a very small part of my plan. Even if the fountain pen and the ballpoint pen are protected by patent law, a limit will definitely come. I have to think of other options in advance.”

“I want to hear your plan, Master.”

Since it was Eluna asking, there was no reason not to answer. I crossed my legs leisurely and rested an arm on the armrest.

“There is a Butler I know very well, and from what I heard, office supplies are not being produced professionally as much as I expected. Their shapes and sizes are all different too. Apparently people judged that there was not much money in it, but I think differently. It smells like money.”

“I think so too. Especially if the shapes and sizes are standardized, it would be important. If they could be used interchangeably anywhere, they would sell much better.”

“That is exactly what standards are. Matching standards is extremely important.”

This world was still in the age when handicraft culture flourished, so it did not even have the concept of standards. Standards were a distinctly modern idea. And later on, companies would even compete over them.

That sort of standards war was a problem for much later, so I decided to leave it for then. For now, I needed to keep explaining my plan.

“So I’m thinking of creating an office supplies set. Starting with memo paper, then writing instruments, envelopes, and the stapler Spinel just went to make. We develop a variety of office supplies and supply them to great houses.”

“That sounds like it would have considerable demand.”

I nodded. Kalmond seemed to have difficulty grasping numbers since he was a swordsman, but Eluna had already seen straight through the possibilities with her sharp insight.

I continued,

“When I went to the Royal Capital this time, an interesting plan occurred to me. Forming Delivery Contracts with great houses is important, of course, but wouldn’t breaking into the royal family be best of all?”

“That is certainly a good method. High nobles have a tendency to imitate the royal family.”

“And the nobles beneath them try to imitate the high nobles. And the ones beneath them do the same. It seems like that kind of cycle just keeps repeating.”

Eluna nodded as though she agreed.

In fact, even in the place where I used to live, some brands once advertised themselves by saying they supplied products to the British royal family.

Back then, the British royal family carried only symbolic meaning, but now things were different.

This was an age of monarchy, where the king was scarcely different from a god. If we advertised here that we supplied the royal family, everyone would rush to buy our products.

Looks like I need to make one more high-end fountain pen to present to His Majesty the King.

“Anyway, among office supplies, what do you think is the most important thing? Excluding writing instruments. We already have a certain degree of technical skill in that area.”

“Obviously paper.”

“You’ve got it exactly right.”

That was a field I had been thinking about myself.

The paper in this world was not of very good quality. It had its own techniques, so paper itself was not particularly rare, but premium paper was often made with silk or other fabrics.

No matter how good the pen was, if the quality of the paper receiving it was poor, you could never draw out more than a hundred percent of the pen’s potential. The true feel of the nib only came alive on paper.

“If we could standardize paper, improve it into something of better quality, and mass-produce it, then dominating the commercial sphere of the continent would not be just a dream.”

“Everyone must have thought of that before. They just failed every time.”

“I know that too. But what if there were the right person for that field?”

With that opening, I stared directly at Eluna. Kalmond’s gaze turned toward her as well, and she looked slightly flustered at being singled out so unexpectedly.

“……Are you talking about me?”

“Yes. As everyone knows, paper can be made from wood. The process differs wildly from region to region. So if we change the process a little, a completely different product might come out. And you understand the nature of wood better than anyone else, don’t you?”

Because you’re an elf.

I recited that part inwardly. Kalmond still did not know that she carried the blood of the elves. We were protecting each other’s secrets.

At the same time, I felt a little guilty. It seemed a bit like telling a chick to fry chicken.

Still, far more human blood flowed in her, so it should be fine.

“Even so……”

“Do you lack confidence?”

“To be honest, yes. This is the first time I’ve ever done development work like this.”

I nodded without concern. Everyone had a first time. I had started as nothing more than a novice Mana User, and now I could use Hand-Sign Magic. The important thing was to try it at least once.

“Don’t worry too much about that. I’ll help as much as I can too.”

“All right.”

“For the time being, Kalmond will step forward and handle Metis’s operations on the front line, and Eluna, you’ll work with Spinel on developing paper production. The future of our company depends on it, so do your best.”

“Yes, Master.”

Eluna answered, but unlike usual, her face did not look especially confident. At times like this, what mattered was trust and confidence.

“Even if you fail, it’s fine, so just try it first. Spinel and I will handle creating the office supplies set.”

“Thank you. That takes some of the burden off me.”

“That much I should do. I am the Master, after all.”

Perhaps the atmosphere between Eluna and me had grown a little too warm, because Kalmond cleared his throat and spoke up.

“But Master, what brought you back so suddenly without any word? It really seems like something must have happened.”

I nodded. Then I let out a light sigh.

“I was ambushed in the Royal Capital.”

“An ambush?”

The two of them were startled.

“Are you all right?”

“If I weren’t, I wouldn’t have walked all the way here on my own two feet, would I? There’s no need to make such a fuss. I dealt with every last one of them.”

Even so, the two of them did not seem able to calm down easily. Kalmond in particular already seemed curious about who was behind it. Perhaps that was because he had once gone through life and death with me.

“There’s also the matter of the Delfino Merchant Company, so while I’m here I came to do a bit of investigating.”

“It seems the one behind it hasn’t been identified.”

“They killed themselves after surviving. They were real professionals. Aura Users too.”

“How many were there?”

“Six.”

“That must have cost a fair bit of money to mobilize.”

Kalmond swallowed hard. He could handle Aura himself, but he had not reached any particularly high level. He was simply specialized in stealth and ambush.

Carefully, Kalmond said,

“Do you think the one behind it is the Delfino Merchant Company?”

“That’s only what I suspect. There’s no evidence. So now I’m going to gather the evidence one piece at a time.”

Grinning, I lightened the atmosphere a little, then gave Kalmond an order.

“Bring Simon to me right now. Very politely.”

“Understood.”

Kalmond, apparently having caught on roughly to what I meant, sprang to his feet and left the room. Until he returned, I folded my arms, closed my eyes, and put my thoughts in order.

***

“It has been a long time, Master.”

Simon responded readily to the summons. Telling Kalmond to bring him politely had been sarcasm, meaning that he could rough him up a little if necessary, but it seemed Kalmond had misunderstood.

“Yes. Have you been well?”

“Thanks to your care, I’ve been well.”

“I didn’t really take much care of you.”

“……”

“Still making Face Masks these days?”

“Of course. Do you perhaps need another one?”

For a man who claimed to have spent so long rolling around in the underworld, this fellow really had poor instincts. He rubbed his hands together eagerly, clearly waiting for another commission to fall into his lap.

“Both of you, step outside for a moment.”

Kalmond and Eluna withdrew. Only then did Simon’s expression change completely. He had finally realized that I had not smiled even once until now.

He collapsed to his knees.

All right, I’ll give him credit for changing his stance that quickly. Yes, this much at least was worthy of someone who had survived in the underworld for a while.

“I-I don’t know what wrong I’ve committed, but if I’ve offended you, please forgive me!”

“No, why are you asking for forgiveness when you don’t even know what you did wrong?”

I let out a sigh. Somehow Mannheim came to mind. If a relationship twisted because of a pointless misunderstanding, I was the one who lost out. I flicked my fingers lightly.

“This isn’t something you need to kneel for. There’s just something I want to confirm. Come closer.”

Simon came over to me, and I placed a hand on his shoulder.

○ Simon

Rank: ★★★

Level: 46

Traits: Mask-Making S, Alchemy A, Material Procurement A, Eloquence B, Craftsmanship B, Material Desire C, Negotiation C, ???

Status: Fear

Areas of Interest: Research into methods for creating more elaborate Face Masks. Owning a small house with a front yard. Clearing up the misunderstanding.

Favorability: 34

Alignment: Neutral

[Not Unlocked]

……

His Favorability was extremely low. But considering the nature of our relationship, that was only natural. We were connected through work. If his Favorability had been high, that would have been stranger.

His Alignment was not bad either. Just as with Mannheim before, one of his Areas of Interest was clearing up the misunderstanding. It seemed he thought I was misunderstanding something.

Based on the Status Window alone, I could infer that he was not guilty.

That put my mind somewhat at ease.

Even so, if I wanted to sleep soundly from now on, I still needed to make sure.

“Do you know why I’m doing this?”

“To be honest, I don’t.”

“I think someone may have figured out who I am. I was attacked recently. And I wasn’t wearing a Face Mask at the time.”

Simon flinched. His face went pale. But he still forced himself to say everything he wanted to say.

“I never revealed your identity, Master! If I had, there’s no way I could still sell Face Masks in the underworld!”

I understood. That was why I found myself nodding.

But on the other hand, the moment he became known as a famous Face Mask craftsman, exceptions naturally became possible.

So I formed the hand signs.

WHOOSH!

“H-hurk!”

The moment Simon witnessed the magic, he fell over backward. The Fire spell was useless for anything other than lighting a fire, but I had recently learned that it was extremely effective when used for intimidation.

“I didn’t want to reveal myself, but as you can see, I’m a Mage. It would be best not to tell any pointless lies. I’m not as patient as I look.”

“Yes, yes! Master! But I truly am innocent! I have never told anyone who you are. Besides, I don’t even know your main occupation or your real name, so how could I possibly hand over information?”

I stared at him.

I did it on purpose. It felt as though he needed certainty. In the end, I nodded and withdrew the flames from my hand.

“Fine. I’ll believe you. But if anyone starts poking around your identity, or if anything at all seems strange, report it to me immediately.”

“Y-yes, understood.”

“I’ll attach guards to you for the time being. Go on back.”

Simon bowed repeatedly and hurried out of the room. Kalmond and Eluna soon came back in, and I crossed my legs and spoke to the two of them.

“Kalmond, assign some guards to Simon. And Eluna, set up a meeting with the Delfino Merchant Company. I want to see the company master’s face.”

Then suddenly one person came to mind.

“Ah, forget the meeting with the company master. It would be better to meet Young Master Hamel first.”

“I’ll arrange the meeting.”

“Tomorrow, immediately.”

My eyes met Eluna’s. She lowered her head slightly and accepted the command.