Chapter 52
#52화 Servant Cedric (Cedric) (18) - A Noble Young Lady's Lucky Day
Cedric thought.
'My body is in terrible shape.'
His whole body felt heavy, as if he had weights hanging from every limb, and his arms and legs went numb without warning.
His senses, which had always been razor-sharp, had dulled so much that he had to reinforce them with mana just to stay at an ordinary person's level.
There was no room for doubt: his body was racing toward destruction.
In a way, that was only natural.
During the assassination attempt on Claudia, the force he had used was around mid-Grade 4.
It was power that a combat-specialized doppelgänger like the adventurer Vern could use without trouble, but for Cedric, who had sacrificed the peak of each individual ability in pursuit of versatility, it was the sort of power that came with enormous backlash.
His body had already been strained considerably by then, and after that he had used more magical power than he was allowed to.
Armin Redbell's surveillance had been as relentless as his personality, so to strike back while completely evading the eyes of his subordinates, Cedric had to combine a wide variety of spells.
Even while clearly hearing every component of his mana-constructed body creak and scream, Cedric never hesitated to smile.
'Still, it's lucky the contract ends soon.'
After all, this body was not his true body.
Even if this body broke apart, that was still a long way from death, and unless it were suddenly destroyed by an external force like Vern's body had been, the backlash reaching his true body would be minimal.
If there was any concern, it was whether he would fail to fulfill his role as 'Servant Cedric,' but luckily, given his current condition, he should be able to endure the remaining time.
“Cough! Cough! Hiss. I almost got it on my clothes.”
He gave a bitter smile at the sudden coughing up of blood, then quickly straightened himself and set off again.
Because of the side effects, his senses had grown terribly dull, and he did not know.
That a maid was horrified by the sight of him.
***
Sometimes, there are days when you wake up feeling unusually good for no particular reason.
For Claudia, today was exactly one of those days.
Perhaps the maids helping her get ready in the morning had sensed it too, because the maid brushing Claudia's hair opened her mouth to ask a question.
“You seem to be in a good mood today, young lady.”
“Can you tell that just by looking?”
“Yes. Did something good happen?”
“Not really. I just feel strangely well today.”
Amid the useless, tension-free small talk, cheerful laughter bloomed warmly.
Watching the smiling faces of the maids reflected in the mirror, Claudia thought to herself.
'If this had been before, they would have been stiff as boards and worked like dolls.'
Only a few months ago, it would have been unthinkable for the maids to try striking up an ordinary conversation with Claudia of their own accord.
The moment Claudia's mood soured, a hand would fly, so what maid would have been bold enough to speak carelessly?
'What a foolish thing I'd done.'
Just because she herself was having a hard time and suffering did not make it a valid reason to take it out on other people.
Servants were not things she could handle and discard however she pleased; they were human beings with the same blood running through them and the same capacity to feel pain.
Being a noble and establishing authority were one thing, but inflicting indiscriminate harm was another; proof of that was how, even while chatting like this, work efficiency had not gone down—in fact, it had improved.
They were facts she had never known before, or had known but chosen to ignore.
'I feel sorry all over again….'
Of course, she had already apologized for her past mistakes and even provided financial compensation, but that did not make the guilt in Claudia's heart vanish all at once.
All the more so because she knew that while some servants had sincerely accepted her apology, others had only accepted it because her status left them no choice.
She would have to repay that lingering discomfort little by little over a long period of time.
Breakfast time.
The chef, who had recently redoubled his efforts to improve, had brought out a menu that was quite familiar to Claudia.
“Omurice and hamburger steak?”
“It took me quite some time to truly master what I learned from Cedric and make it part of my own cooking. Please savor it.”
After taking a bite of the omurice, covered not in Cedric's usual red sauce but in a dark brown one, Claudia gave a small nod.
'This is pretty good in its own way.'
Unlike the food she'd eaten before, the sauce had a deeper, richer flavor and felt more mature.
As far as Claudia's personal tastes went, she preferred Cedric's version, but other nobles would probably like this one better.
As for the hamburger steak, Cedric's version had originally been one large piece, whereas the chef's had been made into small, round, bite-sized meatballs.
It was easier to eat with a fork, and the taste wasn't bad either.
“Good. It's tasty.”
At Claudia's simple praise, the tension that had been stiff in the chef's body melted away, and a smile of delight appeared on his face.
She thought it was a little much to get so happy over something she hadn't even praised all that much, but at the same time she felt sorry for him, thinking how little recognition he must normally get from her.
In this huge mansion, it shouldn't have been hard to say that food made just for her was delicious.
When she went out into the garden, she saw several servants taking care of the blood beasts.
More accurately, they looked more like they were playing with them than taking care of them.
“Go on! Fetch it! That's right! Good job!”
“Paw! Paw! Hiss, why won't you listen to me?”
“Isn't that just a matter of skill?”
“What? Hey! Switch! Let's swap the ones in charge and try again!”
“Now, now, I merely spoke the truth. Why are you getting so worked up?”
Ignoring the servants, who had started growling at one another despite not being dogs themselves, the two blood beasts the size of small dogs stretched out and yawned.
Thinking about how the servants had once trembled at the mere sight of a blood beast's shadow from far away, it was an astonishing change.
Of course, you couldn't treat a giant beast that could stand up to even a lion the same way as a dog shorter than your knees....
'Have they forgotten that those blood beasts they're playing with have droplets of my blood in them?'
Claudia did not always share everything the blood beasts saw and felt in real time.
However, when she met those blood beasts, she could receive their experiences from them as direct impressions.
Conversely, she could give them somewhat complicated orders for an ordinary dog, such as, 'In this situation, do this,' or 'When that happens, go to that building and call someone.'
She had ordered the blood beasts spread throughout the territory to 'teach their children what they had learned,' so even if Claudia did not personally meet each one and give orders, the security system would pass on by itself.
Claudia debated whether to offer the servants a light warning, then decided to remain silent.
To be honest, it was quite an entertaining sight to watch.
-Woof!
-Bark!
Perhaps sensing Claudia's intentions, the two blood beasts sent back the message, 'We'll tell you later how they were fooling around!'
Claudia left the garden with a smile.
The next place she visited was the study in the lord's residence.
Bastian, who now looked perfectly natural with a stack of documents in his hands, gave a report on the territory's administrative state.
“The number of free commoners coming in from outside and trying to settle in Eched Territory has been steadily increasing. It seems the appeal of a territory where you don't have to worry about criminals or monster attacks is very strong for them.”
“Any problems with food or land?”
“Eched Territory has a great deal of land that was never used and left abandoned to begin with, so if we accept the migrants gradually and have them clear farmland, there shouldn't be any major problems. The territory's finances are also fairly healthy, so if necessary, we have the means to buy food from outside.”
“I should probably thank my brother and sister. They must have squeezed them pretty hard.”
“After all, it was the price of having the young lady's life threatened. I don't think anyone could complain even if you squeezed them harder.”
“How are the other Redbell territories reacting?”
“Quite a few are confused to see the young lady supporting His Highness the King's Brother rather than His Highness the Second Prince, but relatively few are openly voicing dissatisfaction. Seeing that the marquis hasn't imposed any particular restrictions on the young lady, the atmosphere seems to be that this is a kind of 'not putting all your eggs in one basket.'”
If all the eggs were placed in the Second Prince's basket, then the moment the Second Prince lost, everything would be lost.
But if some eggs were split into the King's Brother's basket, then even in the worst case, something would remain.
Of course, that was only true in theory; in practice, it was a strategy with plenty of problems.
Apparently, the Second Prince was already flying into a rage, accusing them of trying to keep both sides.
The point was that Marquis Redbell didn't care about the Second Prince's behavior and barely dealt with him, so only the eldest son, Armin, was being put through so much trouble that he was practically losing his hair.
“The eldest son really is impressive, working this hard for his younger sister.”
Claudia burst out laughing.
Though she had gained a little more composure and dignity and had become softer toward 'her people,' her fundamental nature had not disappeared without a trace.
The delight she took in other people's misfortune was the very picture of a villainess noblewoman.
After going through the paperwork for quite some time, she wrapped up her work for the moment and went to look for Cedric.
She wanted to drink the black tea he had brewed.
“Here you are, young lady.”
A short while after she summoned him, Cedric appeared with a serving cart, and Claudia quietly lifted the black tea he had brewed to her lips.
The skill of adjusting the temperature so it was easy to drink while still preserving as much as possible of the aroma that would normally weaken once it got that cool was something only Cedric could manage…
“…Hm?”
Feeling a strange sense of incongruity, Claudia tilted her head and took another sip of the clear orange liquid.
And she became certain.
'The aroma is weaker than usual?'
The taste itself, as felt by her tongue, had not changed much.
But the aroma, an important part of tea, felt somewhat weaker.
According to what Cedric had told her, he used mana somehow to lower the temperature while preserving the aroma so it could still be enjoyed fully, but perhaps that process had not gone well.
Even though she'd tasted a failed drink that was less polished than usual, Claudia didn't get angry.
No, if anything, she was a little pleased.
Thinking that Cedric could fail at something too somehow made him feel more familiar and amusing.
“Honestly, it tastes worse than usual. Have you been relaxing too much lately?”
Claudia said to Cedric with a hint of mischief.
She was looking forward to whatever shameless reply he would give her back.
But the response she got was unexpected.
Cedric opened his eyes wide as if truly shocked, then soon lowered his head with a somber expression.
“…I'm sorry, young lady. I have no excuse.”
“Huh? Oh, ah, no, there's no need to take it that seriously. People can make mistakes. You were the one who taught me that, remember?”
Claudia changed her original plan to tease Cedric and hurriedly comforted him.
She had never imagined that this would be the reaction.
By now, Cedric's existence was something huge and inseparable from Claudia's life.
Claudia was not so petty that she would truly scold the servant who had changed her life over a trivial mistake.
That was, until she heard what Cedric said next.
“I offer my deepest gratitude for your broad magnanimity, young lady. You have truly grown so much. I believe I can now leave with peace of mind.”
“…Leave?”
Claudia repeated the word blankly.
A moment later, her once calm face turned vicious.
“Don't say such nonsense. Where do you think you're going?”
“The contract period will soon be over.”
“Then we can just renew it again!!”
Crash!
The teacup Claudia dropped shattered with a loud clatter.
But Claudia didn't even glance in that direction.
Her eyes were fixed only on Cedric.
“Don't go. You're mine. You're my servant. Do you think I'd let you leave!?”
“Even if you say that, extending the contract is impossible, young lady.”
“Then why!!”
Bang!
Claudia slammed the table and rose to her feet.
Claudia's blazing eyes met Cedric's calm ones in silence.
Cedric was the first to lower his head.
“…You seem rather agitated right now. I'll come visit again later.”
Cedric said that and left the room, and Claudia glared fiercely at the door he had gone through before sinking into her chair with a huff.
At that moment, Maid Neria came in to clean up the broken teacup shards.
After tidying the floor with careful sweeping and wiping, she hesitated for some reason instead of leaving right away.
With the good mood she'd had all day rendered meaningless, it was the moment when Claudia, now thoroughly on edge, was about to snap.
“Um, young lady. Actually─”