Chapter 3 Servants in the Castle

Leaving the study, Thomas descended the stairs with a heavy heart. At the turn of the staircase, he paused to reach for a cigarette but realized they were hidden beneath his pillow.

Mr. Carter, the butler, strictly forbade smoking within Tulip Castle.

"Thomas, what are you hiding here for?" A maid in her thirties, dressed in a black and white uniform with a mop and bucket in hand, approached from downstairs.

"Nothing much."

"Has Lord still not allowed you to serve him personally?"

Frustrated, Thomas slapped the wall. "Macy, tell me, why doesn't Lord like me? I may not have been a personal valet before, but I was the first valet for Viscount Roosevelt. I'm capable of doing this job."

"How would I know? I'm not a maid of Tulip Castle. I've never even met Lord before."

"I'm just asking if there's anything I'm lacking."

"You should ask Mr. Carter or Mrs. Mo Sen about that... And honestly, I don't think you have anything to worry about. Lord only has three male servants. Jesse is an assistant, and Tom is too clumsy to properly attend to Lord. Perhaps it's just his nature. In this small town, no one is more suitable than you to be his personal valet."

Thomas perked up slightly. "Yes, I've heard that Lord isn't highly regarded in Tulip Castle. Maybe he'll remain a Baron of Flower Town all his life, living in this remote countryside."

"Perhaps."

"Macy, do you regret following Master to this place?"

"I don't mind. Life in the castle is still better than starving back on the farm. I've already sold myself to Master, so there's no point in dwelling on regrets."

Just as Thomas was about to respond, someone interrupted him. "Do neither of you have work to do, Thomas, Macy? Mind your behavior and avoid whispering in places other than your own quarters or kitchen!"Ascending the stairs came Carter, the steward of this modest castle.

In his hand were a set of keys and a bottle of red wine, as he patrolled the entire castle.

"Very well, Mr. Carter. I'll get back to my duties right away." Thomas and Macy hurriedly left, each attending to their respective tasks.

If minor nobles were servants to major ones, then footmen and maidservants could be considered servants to the steward. The noble hierarchy was always so clearly defined.

Though small, the castle had no shortage of work. Even with just Liszt as the sole noble to attend to, the daily workload was immense. Cleaning, for instance, had to be done inside and out twice a day. There were also laundry, hot water, food preparation, toilet cleaning, and most of these tasks fell upon the footmen and maidservants.

But that didn't mean Carter was free from work. On the contrary, in addition to managing the servants, he was responsible for greeting guests, serving wine, supervising meal service, receiving and sending letters, safeguarding fine tableware, managing the underground cellar, and caring for the most important visitors.

Carter, now fifty years old, had already surpassed the average lifespan in this era where life expectancy barely reached fifty-five.

Knock, knock, knock.

He rapped on the door of the study.

"Enter," came Liszt's gentle voice from within, tinged with the refined accent known as "Steel Ridge" that was fashionable among high society. In the Kingdom of Steel Ridge and its vassal states, countless nobles considered this accent a mark of prestige.

Old Carter took a deep breath.

At Tulip Castle, he hadn't had much interaction with Liszt. His primary responsibility was managing one of the earl's secondary residences. Recently, during Liszt's coming-of-age ceremony, the earl appointed him as Liszt's personal butler, a promotion that represented the pinnacle of ambition for all servants.

But the remuneration, undoubtedly, has decreased.

Yet Carter didn't harbor any complaints. It had been a full thirty-five years since he sold himself into the Tulip Family at the age of fifteen. He had never married and lived alone, long considering himself a part of the Tulip Family.

If only one could follow the lineage of the Tulip Family, with Baron Liszt,

Living out one's final years in peace is indeed a blissful conclusion. "My Lord, reading at night is taxing on the eyes; you must take care. No amount of candlelight can compare to the brightness of the sun during the day."

Liszt smiled faintly, diverting his gaze from the thick parchment book on the table and looking at the aged butler. "Mr. Carter, have all the rooms been checked?"

"Except for those still in use by the servants, all others have been locked."

"Excellent. Then let's have a drink together." Liszt had already noticed the red wine in Carter's hand. Nobles were often passionate about alcohol, leading to an unspoken tradition where the lord of the castle would share a few glasses with the butler before bed, discussing matters of the castle.

Liszt himself was not fond of drinking, but his predecessor had a great love for it, resulting in a physical craving for alcohol.

However, the alcohol content here was low. Unless he drank excessively like with beer, it would be difficult for him to get drunk.

Each poured themselves a glass of red wine.

They clinked their glasses gently.

Swirling the wine slightly, Liszt took a small sip. "Will the expenses of the castle be covered until this year's taxes are collected?"

"It might be a bit challenging. You didn't bring much wine or flour from Tulip Castle, and Flower Town is quite remote. No merchants are willing to come here, so even if we have gold coins, it's hard to buy wheat or wine. The good news is that there are plenty of wild fruits in Thorns Ridge, so we don't need to worry about lacking fruit."

As Liszt was not favored by the Earl, he naturally did not receive much when the family split.

According to his memory, when Li Weiwei had split from the family, she had filled thirty carriages with her belongings. As for him... he didn't have a single carriage. He only had a few horses and a team of laborers carrying a few pieces of luggage.

The difference in treatment was immense.

However, this was for the best. Since he hadn't received much kindness, he wouldn't need to worry about how to show his affection to the Earl of Coral Island.

"Lacking wheat is unacceptable," Liszt said, putting down his wine glass with an unwavering tone. "Flower Town must develop quickly, and we must establish trade routes!"

Bread was the staple food here.

Without wheat to make white bread, they would be forced to eat coarser and harder-to-swallow black bread made from rye or oats. Liszt already couldn't enjoy the dishes from his hometown, so if he couldn't have delicate white bread, he'd starve.

"Establishing a trade route isn't easy. Thorns Ridge is too dangerous."

"On that, you can rest assured. I'll take care of it. Flower Town's future won't be restricted by poverty, and neither will my castle remain so crude without even a name," Liszt declared solemnly.

Only magnificent castles deserved names. A castle as simple as Liszt's wasn't worthy of being called a castle. Giving it a name would only invite ridicule from other nobles.

"How are the elf worms doing?"

"Very stable, my lord."

"That's good to hear."

Finishing his drink.

Old Carter, being perceptive, took his leave: "My lord, have an early rest. Goodnight to you."

"You as well, Mr. Carter. Goodnight."

After Carter left, Liszt spent some time reading a thick parchment book about the geography and customs of the Sapphire Duchy. The book was as thick as a dictionary, but it contained surprisingly little information. True to its name, the parchment was almost as thick as a sheet of pigskin.

"How was paper invented again?" Liszt recalled, realizing that his memory was quite good; he could still remember the process of papermaking from his online research. "When I have the time, I should invent paper... An industrial revolution might not be feasible, but there are still many ways to amass wealth."

Lost in thought, he drifted off into a trance.

Sure enough, the snake-like runes made of smoke appeared before his eyes once more.

"Task: As a lord, you need to understand every aspect of your territory. Please inspect Flower Town thoroughly, identify potential threats, and prepare for future development. Reward: Ascension of Aura."