Chapter 38
#38화 Servant Cedric (Cedric) (4) - This Servant Is Really Good at His Job
Aizen Empire, Golden Cloud Palace.
While the crown prince was busily immersed in paperwork, Lucidra, who had been watching his actions through Cedric's shadow, asked the crown prince with a sour expression.
“…So, this time’s concept is a servant, right?”
Without taking his eyes off the documents, the crown prince answered.
“That’s right. If possible, I do prefer something more specialized, with a distinct personality like a butler or a chef, but since I couldn’t know what sort of work the employer would assign, I went with a rather broad concept.”
“Either way, it’s still working under someone else. But will that really do?”
No matter how she looked at it, it didn’t seem like a servant so much as something else wearing a servant’s disguise.
Whether he knew the words she couldn’t bring herself to say or not, the crown prince answered calmly.
“I told you, didn’t I? The servants of Golden Cloud Palace live by speaking their minds.”
“No, from what I’ve seen so far, I don’t think there was ever a single one who was that far gone.”
The crown prince thought for a moment and then said, “Hmm.”
“Well, since quite a bit of my image has been mixed in, there may be ‘some’ differences from the original.”
What exactly is a servant in this guy’s head? Does he make screwing over the employer his top priority? And he’s on the hiring side, too?
Lucidra felt dumbfounded, but once again immersed herself in observing through the shadow.
Still, it was a spectacle you’d be hard-pressed to see anywhere else.
***
“Hmm, this is a satisfactory contract. I’ll do my best from now on as well! Miss!”
“Yeah….”
The atmosphere in the room was truly awkward.
Cedric had a bright smile on his face, whereas Claudia was slumped on the sofa as if all the strength had drained out of her body.
She gritted her teeth inwardly.
‘How did it come to this.’
Going back to the start, the root of the matter was Claudia stepping in and saying she would handle the servants’ employment contracts herself this time, even though that was normally head butler Bestian’s job.
Knowing full well that Claudia had never negotiated employment terms in her life, the head butler was horrified and tried to stop her, but once Claudia started digging in her heels, there was no stopping her recklessness.
Of course, Claudia had a plan of her own.
Because she held a grudge over Cedric constantly saying things like ‘That isn’t in the contract, so I can’t do it’ or ‘The contract says it’s fine to do it this way,’ she intended to stuff the agreement full of the terms she wanted and then have him at her mercy.
The result, however, was a thoroughly futile dream.
「Here, this clause that says ‘The worker shall be obligated to perform miscellaneous tasks requested by the employer’ feels far too vague. It would be better to specify what those miscellaneous tasks are. If that’s difficult, then at least a right of refusal is needed.」
「24 working hours? That’s impossible, Miss. A worker who can’t get proper rest becomes mentally and physically exhausted, and that is unfortunate both for the worker and for the workplace.」
「You want to know who I am? I’m Claudia of House Redbell, aren’t I? You ask whether I’m not afraid of repercussions? I didn’t do anything wrong, so why would I be afraid?」
「You want me to let you slap my cheek? I respect your tastes, Miss, but showing such private desires in a sacred workplace isn’t very proper. You want to exchange 15 silver coins for 15 gold coins? Hahaha, even so, what can’t be done can’t be done!」
===================================================================================================
*Employment Contract*
-The worker shall faithfully serve the employer and is obligated to perform household duties and miscellaneous tasks requested by the employer.
-The worker may exercise a right of refusal regarding miscellaneous tasks separately requested by the employer. However, once agreed to, they must be carried out without fail.
-If the worker fails to perform his duties properly, the employer may impose appropriate punishment on the worker.
-Working hours shall be 16 hours per day, excluding designated rest periods.
-The employer shall provide the worker with food, lodging, and clothing, and compensation shall be paid at 15 Birka silver coins per month.
-The contract term shall be three months, and the employer may not arbitrarily dismiss the worker during the contract period.
-The worker shall have the duty to conceal the employer’s secrets…(truncated)
……………
………
…
Signature:
Employer: [Claudia Redbell]
Worker: [Cedric]
===================================================================================================
Claudia trembled as she stared at the contract laid on the table.
No matter how cleverly she twisted the wording to insert toxic clauses, no matter how much she pressured him using the Redbell name, no matter how much she tried to tempt him with a massive salary, Cedric didn’t budge at all.
Rather, he wrote into the contract one by one even the parts Claudia hadn’t even considered, and it ended up being five pages long.
Claudia had wanted to flip the table over several times, thinking, ‘Do I really have to go this far just to catch one servant?’ But anyway, the contract was complete.
‘Anyway, from now on, this guy is my servant. I’ll torment him thoroughly…!!’
She glared at Cedric, eyes blazing.
“Hey.”
“Yes, Miss.”
“Talking so much has made my throat hurt, so go make me some black tea.”
“Understood! Please wait just a moment!”
After greeting her energetically, Cedric zipped right out of the room.
Left alone, Claudia watched his retreating back with displeasure, but soon a wicked smile formed at her lips.
In truth, she wasn’t particularly fond of tea.
At social gatherings, she would sip it as a kind of showy affectation, but honestly, she couldn’t understand what on earth people found tasty about it.
It was bitter, the aroma was odd, and in any case it had no real taste to speak of.
But now, that was better.
No matter how perfectly Cedric brewed the tea, she could dismiss it in an instant.
Should she pour the teacup’s contents over Cedric’s hand, asking how she was supposed to drink such filthy swill?
Making him brew it again and again until he produced a satisfying result would be amusing too.
“Heh, heh, heh-heh-heh. Hmph.”
Claudia, lost in pleasant fantasies and chuckling to herself, quickly straightened up at the knock on the door.
“-Miss, may I come in?”
“Yes, come in.”
Claudia returned to a cold expression as if she had never been smiling at all.
She watched every move Cedric made as he pushed in the cart and brewed the tea, saying nothing.
That was because, from experience, she knew that when she did this, the servants would often tense up and make mistakes.
But soon, she had to click her tongue inwardly.
No matter how sharply Claudia glared, Cedric remained completely unfazed and calmly began preparing the tea.
‘Anyway, I just don’t like him….’
Claudia’s inner complaints came to a stop.
It was because she had unconsciously been captivated by Cedric’s tea-brewing movements.
A professional’s movements, once they reach a certain level, have the power to draw people’s attention on their own.
Cedric’s technical model was none other than the servants of Golden Cloud Palace, and his skill and mastery were unquestionably enough to boast of being the best in the business.
Flair and restraint.
Cedric’s movements, which held those two contradictory concepts at once, seized Claudia’s gaze as if they were a work of art and would not let go.
As the black tea deepened in the teapot and gave off a subtle fragrance, Cedric carefully poured it into a teacup and placed it before Claudia.
The irresistibly captivating crimson liquid shimmered within the white teacup.
As if bewitched by the perfectly balanced fragrance and color, Claudia brought the teacup to her lips.
Not too hot, not lukewarm.
A flavor with a little more tartness and sweetness than ordinary black tea, and therefore perfectly suited to Claudia’s palate.
The aroma turned into pleasure and shook her mind, while the warmth flowing down her throat spread through her body, soothing the nerves that had been on edge.
“Phew.”
A low sigh escaped Claudia’s lips.
Claudia, savoring the lingering sensation as if half asleep, finally snapped back to her senses with a startled “Hah!”
And then, with creaking movements, she turned her head as if she were a wooden doll.
Grinning broadly.
Cedric was staring at her with a smile so bright and lively it could have lifted anyone’s mood, yet to Claudia it was an utterly detestable smile.
“I’m truly glad it seems to suit you.”
“Shut up!!”
Claudia, her face red, hurled the teacup.
Cedric caught the teacup without a care, then set it back on the table as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
The dangerous game of catch, with the teacup as the ball, continued until Claudia collapsed exhausted.
***
“Clean the place. Where, you ask? Obviously the whole manor! Don’t even think about resting until you’re done!!”
“What? You’re done? Ha! Are you kidding me? There should be dust here… no, there isn’t. A leaf over there… no, there isn’t. Water stains on the window… why aren’t there any!?”
-Nitpicking over cleaning. Failed.
The servants’ respect for Cedric rose.
“Bring me a dish I can be satisfied with without using meat, eggs, fish, or milk. If you’re not even skilled enough to make a proper full-course meal, then at least you should be able to manage this much, right?”
“Wait, this isn’t meat? It isn’t? Mushrooms and tofu? Hah, so it’s just a fake that crudely mimics the outside? Seriously, there’s no way my mouth could be satisfied by trash like this…. …… What’s with that lukewarm stare!! Get that away from me!?”
-Nitpicking over cooking. Failed.
Claudia’s appetite grew.
“I need you to take care of my blood beasts. Let me say this in advance: hitting them or bullying them with force is forbidden. You can’t exactly call someone who raises animals by beating them a proper handler, can you? If even one of them complains, then you’ll be the one going into the animal pen, so be prepared.”
“Tch, you’re tamer than I thought. Well, at least it seems like you can get them to take naps properly, but something like this doesn’t even need you as long as the weather’s nice. What? You want me to say ‘hand’? …Hand! Right hand! Left hand! Right foot! Left foot! Roll over! Hahaha! What is this! Hey, tell me. What other tricks do you have… this isn’t it!!”
-Nitpicking over animal care. Failed.
Afterward, the servants often caught sight of Claudia amusing herself by giving the blood beasts one command after another.
***
“What the hell is that thing!!”
Claudia pummeled the pillow on the bed with her fists.
The finest bedding that even a commoner couldn’t buy no matter how much they spent was mercilessly reduced to tatters under her hands.
After tearing at the pillow until white feathers fluttered everywhere, she tossed it aside and ground her teeth.
“Cedric, Cedric!!”
She had never once in her life called out a mere commoner’s name with such fervor.
And she had never once been so furious over being unable to bend that commoner to her will.
He was that much of an unusual existence.
As a servant, his abilities themselves were excellent enough to not lose out to anyone—or even surpass them—but his attitude was politely courteous in a way that somehow felt subtly insolent.
Although he served Claudia according to the contract, he felt none of the unconditional fear or reverence toward nobles that a commoner ought to have.
As Claudia rolled around on the bed, lost in thought, her eyes suddenly turned to the huge mirror on one side of the room.
A disheveled mess.
And precisely because of that, seeing that this disheveled look was enough to captivate a man, an idea flashed through Claudia’s mind.
She didn’t bother to fix her clothes and only lightly covered herself with the blanket, then shook Cedric’s personal bell, which had been made because she called for him so often.
“-Did you call for me, Miss?”
Hearing Cedric’s voice through the knock, Claudia called him in without losing her smile.
And then, with an arrogant air, she announced it.
“The pillow’s ruined, so clean it up. Tidy up the area too.”
Naturally, to clear the feathers scattered all over the bed, he had to look toward it.
In other words, it meant he would have to take in Claudia’s more disheveled-than-usual appearance.
If Cedric were even momentarily distracted by the exposed skin and went dazed, that would naturally be a grave offense.
If he fidgeted in an effort not to look at Claudia, that would be something to tease him for as well.
Claudia smiled as she thought that.
“Understood, Miss!”
Then she almost stumbled when she saw Cedric begin cleaning with a paper bag over his head—no eye holes cut into it.
“What is that! What the hell is that now!”
“Hahaha, in case something like this happened, I trained myself in advance to focus on work without looking. I never had any use for it in daily life, but thanks to you, Miss, I’ve finally gotten a chance to use it! Ah, Miss, my deepest thanks for your kindness!”
Claudia picked up the pillow’s remains and hurled them.
The paper-bag fiend caught it with unnecessarily gentlemanly, disciplined movements, then stuffed it into some leather sack and continued cleaning.
Claudia pouted miserably.