Chapter 30

This is a work of fiction.

The characters, organizations, and names are all fictitious and have no relation to any real entities.

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030 - The Mondalque Family

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On the 14th day of my reincarnation, I woke up late in the morning, almost at noon. I had gone to bed late last night, so it was no surprise I woke up late.

Annelise and Rosalina were already up. I was a bit disappointed I couldn't see their sleeping faces.

"You didn't have breakfast, did you? I'm sorry."

Maybe you didn't have dinner last night either. I left you some money, but I doubt you used it. I should have been more considerate.

"No, it's not a big deal."

"It's fine."

We can't eat out because the thief issue isn't resolved yet. We ate the grilled pond squid, skewers of labyrinth beef, and sandwiches I bought yesterday.

"Is this the grilled pond squid?"

Rosalina's eyes sparkled as she brought the grilled pond squid to her mouth. Didn't you eat this before? Do you like it that much?

"It's... delicious!"

I'm glad. Eating good food is important.

"This sandwich is also delicious with the saltiness of the dried meat."

The sandwich had plenty of vegetables and thinly sliced dried meat, along with a white sauce that created a great harmony. I thought the dried meat would be tough, but it wasn't because it was thinly sliced. The bread was a bit hard and dry, but it was still delicious.

"I've never eaten labyrinth beef skewers before. They're very delicious!"

The three of us enjoyed a noisy, late breakfast that served as both breakfast and lunch. My parents both worked, so I always ate alone in the morning and evening. That's why I learned to cook and became quite skilled at it.

I have no memory of such a lively meal. It felt good and warmed my heart.

When I arrived at the town hall, it was bustling with activity. Soldiers were constantly coming and going. It seemed the duke had taken action.

"Is something going on?"

I asked a soldier, pretending I didn't know.

"The town hall is closed now. Come back tomorrow or later."

He didn't say what was going on. Maybe he would if I bribed him, but I decided against it.

I activated Stealth in a hidden spot near the town hall and entered the building.

"All record cards have been verified."

"The evidence has been collected."

A somewhat important-looking soldier was receiving reports. By "important," I mean he seemed to have a high rank, not that he was acting superior.

From these reports, it was clear that the collaborators with the thieves had been caught. The duke seems to be a reasonable person, just as my intuition suggested. My impression from last night was correct.

The duke told me to come at night, but I'm here in the afternoon! I have no intention of following the duke's instructions!

No one was in the duke's private room last night. Maybe he has an office or is out dealing with the thief situation.

I found a room that looked like an office. It was as spacious as my private room, large enough to fit all the rooms of the apartment I lived in in Japan.

There was a desk by a large window, where the duke was sitting. There was also a sofa set. It looked very elegant.

The duke's desk was piled high with documents. You shouldn't let work pile up. Your subordinates will suffer.

There were soldiers on both sides of the window behind the duke and on both sides of the two doors. There were also three desks near the duke, where clerical workers were seated and working.

There was one more person in the room. This person was incredibly intimidating. The duke was intimidating, but this person was on a different level. His gaze was so sharp it could kill a villager just by looking at them.

He was so intimidating that I didn't even need to use Detailed Appraisal, but when I did, he was really scary.

What, a Guardian Knight Level 42!?

I've seen many soldiers in town and in the duke's castle, but Level 20 is rare, let alone Level 42. I don't know much about this world, but this guy is a monster.

As I was observing from the corner of the room, a soldier knocked and entered. This soldier was the somewhat important-looking one who had been receiving reports at the town hall.

"I have a report."

He saluted perfectly.

When the duke prompted him, the report about the thief collaborators was given. It turned out that 8 town hall employees had been working with the thieves. I had seen 6 of them last night, but 2 more were added in the morning.

The report concluded that all record cards had been verified, so there was no mistake.

"Only 8, huh. That's the only silver lining."

The duke muttered without changing his expression.

"Zaigen, what do you think we should do from now on?"

"Well... we should verify the record cards regularly. That way, we can enforce the rules."

"Sounds reasonable. How often?"

"Once a year would be fine, but we could do it before the two major council meetings each year."

I guess he didn't expect it to be this bad. They were discussing tightening the rules for officials. But they should have done it sooner. At least one person here wouldn't have been a victim if they had.

"Very well. We'll do it once a year. That should make a difference. Zaigen and Balkan, inform everyone from the nobles to the lowest officials and soldiers."

"Understood."

"Understood."

Zaigen, the difficult-looking man sitting at the desk closest to the duke, is the administrative executive officer, the top civil servant and the second-in-command of the duke's household.

Balkan, the incredibly intimidating man, is the head of the duke's knight order, the top military officer, and the third-in-command of the duke's household.

The duke is taking action. If there's evidence, he can act. So I'll present the evidence.

As I took a few steps forward, Balkan tensed and put his hand on his sword. The duke had good intuition, but Balkan's was even sharper.

I stopped and took a step back.

"What is it?"

"I felt something... was here."

Balkan responded to the duke's question. The duke's sharp gaze scanned the room.

"I see. I told you to come at night, but you're here already, aren't you?"

The duke is sharp!

"Your Excellency?"

Zaigen and Balkan looked puzzled.

"The one who gave me this ledger."

"So, there's an intruder here?"

"That's right. But he's not here to kill me. If he were, he wouldn't have left this."

The duke seems to understand my intentions. That's scary in itself. Scary in a different way from Balkan.

"You came at this hour. You must have something important to tell me. Go ahead, show me what you have."

My heart was pounding so hard it felt like it would jump out of my mouth.

The duke seems to know everything.

I moved to the sofa set. Balkan sensed my presence and tensed, giving me a sharp look. I felt uneasy.

I placed the ledger on the table and quickly moved back. It must have looked to the duke and the others like the ledger appeared out of nowhere.

One of the clerical workers picked up the ledger and handed it to the duke.

The duke's eyebrows twitched as he looked at it. He seemed pleased.

Zaigen, who had moved in front of the duke, showed the ledger to him.

"Hmm, this is..."

Zaigen couldn't help but speak out.

The ledger was then passed to Balkan.

"What!"

He was so surprised he spoke out loud.

"Balkan, gather all the soldiers immediately, including those on leave. Also, verify the record cards of those who haven't been checked yet. Keep the information confidential."

"Understood!"

Balkan sent his subordinates as messengers. He probably stayed behind to keep an eye on me.

"Now, the one who gave me this. You're still here, right?"

I didn't respond. Because Balkan is scary. He could probably rush at me and cut me down in an instant.

"I'm busy now, but I'll give you a reward later."

I don't need that. If I take it, the duke will know about me.

I left the room using Stealth without responding.

The duke has the magnanimity to accept suspicious people. It's dangerous to get too close, but I think he can be trusted as a partner.

I returned to the inn.

"Mr. Golteo's shop informed us that the house and servants are ready."

Annelise must have received the message while I was out.

"Let's go to Mr. Golteo's shop then."

"「Yes.」"

Just to be safe, I thought I'd leave the inn using Stealth.

By the way, how far does Stealth work?

"Can you grab my hand?"

I had Annelise grab my hand and activated Stealth.

"Oh, Master and Annelise disappeared!"

I let go of her hand.

"Only Annelise was visible."

So, if I'm in contact with someone, I can hide their presence too.

The test showed that I can talk while using Stealth, but only to those touching my body.

What a good skill, Stealth.

I activated Stealth and held hands with the two of them as we left the inn. I chose a moment when the inn staff weren't looking, so there was no commotion.

There was only one thief watching the inn. It seems they're using a human sea tactic to watch all the inns. What a lot of work.

There were two thieves near Mr. Golteo's shop. I could tell they were desperately searching for me. Have they figured out I took the ledger? But I don't think they suspect it's me.

No, maybe they think I did something because that torturer Upass went missing. That's more likely than the ledger.

I cut Stealth when we entered the shop. A staff member immediately came over, and I told them my name and about the house.

We were led to a separate room, where Mr. Golteo and three other people appeared.

"I apologize for keeping you waiting."

"No, not at all. I wasn't waiting at all."

I actually thought it was pretty quick.

"These three will be working at Mr. Toi's house."

Mr. Golteo introduced the three, who turned out to be a family.

I was supposed to have five servants, but we started with three. The other two were already lined up and would join us tomorrow.

Since it was just for today, three were enough.

"My name is Mondalque. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Mondalque, a sharp and efficient man in his 40s, had worked as a butler for a certain noble family.

"I am his wife, Melris. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Melris, who bowed politely, had worked as a maid for the same noble family.

"I am their son, Jewel. I am a butler apprentice. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Jewel, who was about my age, had worked as an apprentice butler for the same noble family.

I was curious about what happened to the noble family, but they weren't from this country.

"Their backgrounds are verified, and they understand the confidentiality agreement."

Mr. Golteo vouched for them.

"My name is Toi. I'm an explorer."

"There's no need for formalities with us."

"Good, I'm not great with formalities."

Then I introduced Annelise and Rosalina.

"These two are slaves for a reason, but I want you to treat them like me."

"Understood."

Their combined monthly salary was 100,000 grils, which is about 1 million yen. Hiring an excellent butler would cost more, according to Mr. Golteo. The Mondalque family is excellent, but they agreed to this salary due to some circumstances. I wanted to know the details, but they couldn't talk about their previous employer.

As long as they have good character, I don't mind. I don't have any specific requirements for servants, so I decided to hire the Mondalque family.

Mr. Golteo suggested raising their salary if I was satisfied. The other two, who would join us tomorrow, would start at 20,000 grils each, with raises based on their performance. It seemed like a probationary period before full employment.

We signed a magic contract at Mr. Golteo's shop. It included a confidentiality clause, which I appreciated. The magic would prevent my information from leaking. If someone tried to leak information, they would be forcibly immobilized.

This contract could also be used to prevent former slaves from revealing information about their former masters, and for servants and soldiers working for nobles. It was quite popular, despite costing 1,000 grils per contract. I thought it was worth the price for peace of mind.

Since the Mondalque family knew the location of my house, I paid Mr. Golteo the introduction fee and thanked him.

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