Claude blinked, his vision clearing as the blur began to fade.
Whether it was from tears or something else, after rubbing his eyes a few times, he could finally see the room clearly.
Luckily, it seemed he hadn't been beheaded while he was out.
He cautiously turned his head to look around.
The room was empty except for him.
'Ah, I really don't want to work…'
Sighing, Claude sat on the edge of the bed.
"Shouldn't he at least give me a bit of an adjustment period? How does he expect me to handle so much work all of a sudden? I didn't even live here!"
After lazing around for so long, suddenly having to work was quite unappealing.
Not to mention, he worried about how he'd even manage all that work.
"I thought the lord was kind hearted for giving me so much money without question. Turns out he's a demon, a devil! No matter how urgent it is, how can he pile all that on me at once? He's insane! Couldn't he just assign it gradually?"
Claude's voice grew louder without him realizing it as he muttered to himself.
"He has no appreciation for people… Just wait. I'll make sure nothing works without me, then give him a piece of my mind. Or, maybe I should just escape now, while I still can…"
At that moment, the door clicked open.
Claude jumped onto the bed, startled.
"Who… who's there?"
A calm-looking maid entered, bowing her head slightly.
"Greetings, Head butler. My name is Wendy, appointed by the head maid to attend to you. I'll also be your guard. I look forward to serving you."
"Head maid? Ah, Belinda."
It seemed Belinda, newly appointed as head maid, had sent a personal maid to assist him.
But a guard as well? With a smirk, Claude questioned her.
"Serving is one thing, but a guard? A mere maid acting as a guard for the estate's Head butler? You really must be short on people."
Wendy didn't respond to the mockery. Instead, she lightly flicked her wrist.
Whoosh!
Something whizzed past his ear, and a dull thud sounded from the wall behind him.
Claude, sweating, turned to look.
A cockroach, caught on a dagger, was twitching against the wall.
Still as calm as ever, Wendy spoke.
"The castle is old, so there are many pests. I trust you'll address this issue as well, Head butler."
"…Right."
So, she's a maid, huh…
'Nothing's normal about this estate.'
Claude swallowed his distress.
"The lord ordered you to start working the moment you woke up. Shall we go?"
"…Right."
Ah, so it wasn't so much 'guarding' as it was 'monitoring.' And it seemed running away was no option. Even the maid was giving him orders!
Feeling like a lamb being led to slaughter, Claude rose slowly.
Just as they were about to leave, Wendy added as if she'd remembered something.
"The head maid had a message for you."
"What is it?"
"She said to wash up before working. If you bring even a single flea to the lord, she'll kill you."
"…Understood."
He hadn't had the chance to bathe properly on the journey from Auston.
As uncomfortable as he was, washing sounded nice…
But did she have to say it so harshly? He wasn't sure whether he was a steward or a slave anymore.
'Ugh, everyone here's out to get me. Fine, I'll do it. Who says I won't? Maybe I'll just tear it all down instead.'
…Of course, that was only an inner monologue. He wasn't eager to end up skewered on a dagger.
Even on the way to the prepared office after washing up, Wendy was silent.
Finally, unable to bear the quiet, Claude cautiously asked.
"So… do all the servants here throw knives like you?"
"No. Only a few of us were trained from a young age by the head maid. I used to serve Young Lady Elena before transferring here."
"Young Lady Elena? Ah, the lord's sister. Well, it's good to know they're not all like that."
If every maid were like her, he'd be eating with a constant side of anxiety.
Upon arriving at the office with a heavy heart, Claude looked around and sighed.
Piles of documents towered on the desk.
The lower officials had been stacking up all the delayed work.
And this wasn't even the end of it—he'd have to add Ghislain's tasks on top of everything else.
'Well, what choice do I have? All I can do is work myself to the bone.'
Within days of reluctantly throwing himself into the work, Claude had visibly lost weight.
He glanced over the papers with hollow eyes, frowning in deep thought.
"Hmm, is it even possible to revive this place? The estate is completely ruined. Sure, the lord might be competent, but that's not enough…"
Everything Ghislain had instructed was exactly what was needed to make the estate prosper.
It was almost surprising how a noble knew all of this.
Most lords didn't even know how their estates functioned.
At most, they might take an interest in money or military strength.
But Ghislain was meticulous, assigning Claude a mountain of work.
This meant he knew exactly how the estate operated.
Most of what Ghislain had assigned could be handled by throwing money at it.
Construction would take a little time, but with the help of mages, it wouldn't be too hard.
But the Fenris estate was practically a bottomless pit.
For every bit spent, they'd need to earn it back somehow, yet the estate had no source of income.
"The only thing that's worth anything is the lord's Rune Stone."
But even that wasn't limitless.
While it was fine for now, without a continuous revenue stream, even maintaining the status quo would be difficult in a few years.
No matter how many times he reviewed it or looked around the estate, he couldn't find a solution.
"Money… a way to make money."
Claude was deep in thought.
Seeing the estate's inevitable collapse, he couldn't ignore it as the Head butler.
This wasn't about escaping the endless pit of work, either.
Suddenly, his eyes lit up, and he smiled.
"This'll do nicely. Hehehe."
If he was going to make money, he'd do it fast and comfortably.
And he knew just the way.
"I have to report anyway… Might as well push for this while I'm at it. The lord might even like it."
Claude organized his ideas, clutching his plans to his chest as he headed to the conference room.
'The protagonist always arrives fashionably late.'
He deliberately walked slowly, prompting Wendy, who was following quietly behind, to speak up.
"Head butler, your pace is too slow. The lord is already there."
"…I know, don't rush me. Can't I even walk how I want? I'm exhausted, you know? Let me take a break, at least!"
He felt a lump in his throat as he spoke.
Wendy glanced at him with a hint of pity.
He wasn't the most pleasant person, but he had been drowning in work for days, barely getting any sleep.
It was a little sad.
"…Very well. Please walk at your own pace."
Claude puffed up with a sense of small victory and continued walking slowly.
When he finally arrived at the main hall, Ghislain and all the vassals were already gathered.
The vassals bowed their heads in greeting as he entered.
Claude lifted his chin, basking in the attention.
'Ah, so this is why people crave power. The work is annoying, but this isn't so bad.'
Whatever the case, he was the estate's head butler.
With all the additional positions Ghislain had given him, he had effectively become second only to the lord within Fenris.
Plus, he'd been granted authority over personnel, so everyone was wary of stepping out of line, lest they be saddled with extra responsibilities.
But not everyone was greeting him so respectfully.
When his eyes met Kaor's, the man openly grimaced.
His expression made it clear he wouldn't let Claude off if he got the chance.
Claude felt a bit conflicted.
'Hmm, that guy's dangerous. He's got less patience than an ant's leg hair.'
Even with the lord backing him, Kaor had drawn his sword without hesitation right in front of Ghislain.
'Better try to get on his good side.'
Claude gave him a deliberate, friendly wink.
"That bastard?"
It was like pouring fuel on a fire.
Kaor drew his sword in a flash and charged, but Wendy stepped in front of Claude, pulling out a dagger.
Belinda moved to stand by Wendy's side, while Gillian gripped his axe, eyeing Kaor.
The soldiers guarding the hall, unsure of what was happening, instinctively rushed to the lord's side.
The vassals were in a panic.
'These lunatics are drawing weapons in front of the lord again!'
'Where did the lord find all these troublemakers?'
At that moment, Ghislain lightly stomped his foot.
A wave of mana, thick with killing intent, filled the entire hall.
Everyone froze in place.
Ghislain spoke in a flat tone.
"Enough. What do you think you're doing in the conference hall?"
At his words, they all sheathed their weapons and returned to their original positions.
Kaor glared at Claude, breathing heavily, before finally turning away.
Only then did Claude breathe a sigh of relief.
'Wow, even when I try to be friendly, he loses it. I'd bet my hair he doesn't have any friends.'
As the tense atmosphere settled, Ghislain looked at Claude and asked.
"How's the work going?"
"Well… We've started gathering supplies and materials. We've also posted notices to recruit laborers and are searching for mountain villagers. But…"
"But?"
"I suggest we scrap all the current plans and start from scratch."
The vassals turned pale.
They had already spent a significant amount of money on various projects. And now he wanted to cancel everything?
Especially since it was all work Ghislain himself had ordered.
Claude was practically calling out the lord as wrong.
But Ghislain only looked intrigued, asking calmly.
"Why? Is there a problem?"
"Of course! Not just a problem—several, actually."
Ghislain narrowed his eyes, signaling him to continue.
Claude swallowed and spoke.
"For starters, this estate's land is too barren. No matter how much we improve our farming techniques, we can't increase yield. With no food, the population won't grow, and naturally, tax revenue won't increase."
Ghislain nodded thoughtfully.
"So?"
"Well, we're building all these facilities on your orders. But where will you get the maintenance costs when there's no tax revenue?"
"Hm."
"If it was just a matter of difficult farming, that would be one thing, but there are no resources at all. We can't produce handicrafts with no workforce, we're not at a trade hub, so we can't develop commerce… In short, there's absolutely no way to make money."
"Just hearing it sounds grim."
"That's what I'm saying! It's so grim, there's nothing we can do!"
The vassals from Fenris nodded instinctively.
It wasn't that the previous lords hadn't tried to improve the estate.
They had attempted every possible solution, but each one failed.
The last war had been the previous lord's desperate attempt to find a breakthrough.
But in the end, he lost his life, along with the battle.
Seeing their agreement, Claude continued with more confidence.
"Some facilities are necessary, I admit that. But the rest are useless right now. And we certainly don't need them on this scale. Building so many facilities in this barren estate is pointless."
"Why are you dampening the young master's spirit!" Belinda yelled.
"No, I'm not insulting anyone—it's just the reality."
"We have plenty of Rune Stones, don't we? Just use those!"
"I already told you, the issue is maintenance costs. Rune Stones don't reproduce on their own! If we expand recklessly just because we have money now, when we run out of Rune Stones, we'll be completely broke."
"That's why the lord brought you here—to fix that!"
Claude let out an exasperated laugh.
"What, am I a god? If I touch barren soil, will it suddenly turn fertile? Or will a mine just pop out of the ground? You'd need a god to fix this!"
"Why aren't you a god, then?!"
"…Good question. Why am I not a god? Honestly, this whole estate could just burn down…"
Realizing he'd said too much, Claude glanced nervously at Ghislain.
"No, my lord, that's not what I meant…"
Ghislain chuckled and nodded.
"I'm not asking you to do the impossible. But from the sound of it, you've come up with another solution?"
"Exactly. The real issue here is the lack of a steady income. Rather than spending recklessly, we need a stable source of revenue. And I have an idea! A way to make money quickly and easily. You'll love it, my lord."
"What is it?"
Claude announced confidently.
"We open a casino!"
At that moment, Belinda's foot flew through the air and hit him square in the face.
[T/L: Please support me and read extra chapters here: https://ko-fi.com/revengerscans ]