“Oh, a butler?” Heathe stared at me from across the table while I was busy nibbling my bread. Beth had kept her promise, and I was more than happy to ignore the repulsive stares I got from the maids.

“Yes,” Casey smiled. “He’s Leti’s capable butler.”

“Can I have one too, brother?” She looked at Volch, her puppy eyes gleaming with mischief.

“Sure you can,” Garlan laughed, ravaging the meat, his mouth decked with a variety of sauces. “I can become your butler if you want, lady Heathe.”

His plea earned a grunt from the Beth, but Heathe was more or less still glancing in my direction. Not because I was handsome, but because these high-class women loved having playthings.

“Don’t even think about it, Heathe,” Casey laughed. “Leti might kill you before you touch Ruddy.”

Volch was silently eating his meal, worry evident in his eyes. My lady was indulged in banter with the two sisters, their back and forth insults often eliciting laughter from Garlan. My lady got called flat-chested multiple times, which led to spraying curry and flying utensils that even fell atop the maids standing close to the dining table.

I slipped out of the table blithely with my bread and sauntered toward the balcony that was right around the corner of the dining room. It overlooked the lawn; guards indulged in idle chatter under the lambent glow of the mana lamps that failed to disregard the bright moon in the sky. Residences loomed beyond the walls, commuters scant in the dark hours of the night.

The weather was worse than I had imagined, so I pulled my suit closer, reveling in the newfound peace with my bread. I finished my loaf in four large bites, leaned against the railing, and eyed the shadows skittering outside the gates of the city in the silent darkness. They were armed with swords, and I presumed they were royal guards sent to spy on the manor. By the crown prince, more specifically.

“Royal guards,” Volch verified the same, offering me a glass of wine while I shook my head. His robe was stained with curry, and I knew better who the culprit was.

“I know. Crown prince won’t let you off easy this time around.” I said, watching him take a sip from the glass. He had removed his outer garment, and was dressed in a black shirt, something akin to modern world tunics, and formal pants. Not many aristocrats preferred wearing these commoner clothes. Most liked flaunting their wealth by wearing a houppelande decked with gemstones. Slippers covered the soles of his feet which were encased in socks like mine. Though, his were red in color, standing out starkly from his black attire.

“Hard luck, Rudolf,” he sipped his wine again, leaning his back against the balustrades atop the wall that almost reached his waist. “It’s not like I wanted to walk down this road. We are just too deep in the mess to just walk out unscathed.”

“I am no one judge you, Baron,” I said because he wanted me to console his weary heart. I don’t do that, and he shouldn’t expect anything from undead. Though I had to play my hand.

“My father carried my grandfather’s crime all his life, feeling guilty each passing day, and now I have to carry it for my life. It’s a never-ending cycle, Rudolf; that’s why we have decided not to have heirs. Rudina was a cheerful young lady of our manor, and look what the royal family did to her. Punishing her husband would have been all right, but they killed him and her son in front of her. All he did was pilfer a few jewels meant for the king and sell them to the merchants of Turza.”

“I can’t say I’m surprised, Baron,” I smiled at him. “If you want revenge, why not kill them once and for all?”

“Blasphemous!” he stared into the distance, though his tone was hesitant.

“There’s nothing wrong with being honest. If you want revenge, then there’s no point in suppressing your desires,” I shrugged.

“I just want a peaceful life for my family, Rudolf,” he said, moving his gaze back to my face.

Ah, what a boring delusion! But I wasn’t done with my machinations.

“You will never have it once the crown prince ascends the throne, Baron. Gallows would await your family until either exile or death would descend on you magnanimously. ”

He looked at me and nodded, his eyes downcast. “Even Casey has to live in fear for all her life if she stays in the capital or anywhere else.”

“That’s why you need to take action,” I patted his shoulder. “We are helping you with the funds, but it would be better if you were more discrete with your actions. I don’t want my lady to get implicated.”

“So, you know,” he gave me a weary look. “I don’t have much of choice. It’s either the kingdom or my family, and my father never taught me loyalty.”

“Stay true to your desires, Baron, and you will see the light at the end of the dark tunnel. Or perhaps more darkness, but it’s the same. You will see the end.”

He laughed, much to my surprise. “Are you just a servant, Rudolf?”

“Mongrel!” my lady’s scream resounded in the hall amidst the thundering chatter.

“You heard her, Baron,” I smiled and walked inside without glancing at the portrait of a thoughtful man in front of the picturesque city backdrop.

My lady’s face was marred with brown curry, and noddles dangled from her head, her eyes closed. The other girls weren’t any better, and their maids were helping them out. Garlan was eating peacefully, despite having been splashed with pie, soup, curry, and bread crumbs to top it all off. Even Rudina was bathed in food, and there was a smile on her face.

“My lady?” I removed my gloves and held her hand after clearing the edibles from her hair.

“My eyes, mongrel! That bitch threw curry into my eyes,” she said in rage, pulling my tailcoat.

I kneeled before her and cast [Splash] over her eyes amidst the jealous glances of the other maids who were rushing back and forth with filled jugs of water.

She opened her eyes slowly and glared at Heathe before throwing a pie on her face and storming out, oblivious to her shrieks. Beth and Casey giggled, ushering me to follow my lady.

“You have a bath in your room, Ruddy,” Casey stopped me with an apologetic glance. Heathe was the second sister, but she behaved like an ignorant lady for the most part.

I followed my lady through the corridors of the first floor until we stumbled across my lady’s room for the night. Casey had prepared new clothes for her in the wardrobe, and I pushed them into my lady’s hands once she started stripping down.

Casey’s hindsight was commendable, and she might have already anticipated the disastrous exchange between the two.

“I’ll get back at the darned bitch one of these days!” my lady said, struggling to get out of her sleeves. “She called me flat-chested and craved for you, mongrel!”

I ignored her curses and helped her out of the frock before walking out of the room. She threw her dingy clothes at me once inside the bathroom, and this time along with the underpants, and I really felt like burning everything. Of course, my bread money was too precious to just burn. Nevertheless, I did’t know if I could still be called ruthless undead after being forced to wash underpants.

I stumbled around the ground floor in search of a laundry area and found one, the other maids already busy with serving their own ladies. As you might have guessed already, I earned weird stares and probably more ‘pervert’ comments than my bread lad had ever heard in his life.

Mortals and their antics are the least of my concern, so I grabbed the soap and troughs and got to my own task. The weather was cold, and freezing water shriveled the skin on my hands, making it hard to move my fingers without casting fire spells. I used [Warmth], heating my body up so that my fingers stopped freezing occasionally.

Drizzles poured down from the sky, but it was hail, though very bleak, and didn’t hurt much. Most of them disappeared before reaching the streets, for the heat emanating from the roads didn’t let them fall to the ground. A couple of chips fell on my cheeks, leaving drops of moisture that evaporated soon.

Maids scurried away quickly, fearing the stealthy winds that had worsened. I took a seat on the lawn after I was done with the laundry along with my lady’s crumpled clothes in my hands.

I lay down on the verdant grass, trying to revel in the beauty of the dark clouds that had garnered in the enormous sky above. It was pointless, nevertheless. The sign of Apocalypse, as supposed great seers feared, but it was nothing more some horseshit of ignorant mortals. At least the modern world didn’t abet the superstitious beliefs thanks to mathematics.

I closed my eyes, [Warmth] preventing me from freezing away in the gossamer winter of the night, and my lady dropped by soon, looming above me with an annoyed expression. She was wearing a plain black gown that reached slightly past her knees, and I upgraded her wardrobe again in my head. It was always good to have a clear idea of what to shop instead of running around store after store.

I sat up and scuttled sideways, letting her take a seat on the clean verdant grass. “That was quick, my lady.”

“Why are you so moody today?” she asked as she settled down beside me.

“I just dropped by to wash your clothes, my lady. And I thought I’ll try to enjoy the hail for a while before stepping back,” I said, tucking her strands behind her ears. They turned rosy, and I almost laughed out loud.

“Are you lonely?” she asked, slapping my hand away.

“I am undead, my lady,” I laughed. “Even loneliness is scared to touch the soles of my shoes.”

She rested her head on my shoulder and nuzzled her wet hair in my neck.

“Should I dry them?” I asked, the unfamiliar scent of body lotion attracting my attention. A different one and it was more potent than the one I always bought her.

“Is that even a question?!” My lady snickered, but her hands wrapped around my waist.

“You should let me go first, my lady,” I sighed and tried to remove her hand from my waist. She used [Warmth] on her hair, much to my surprise, and all I noticed was her complacency.

“They’ll announce the draws of first-round tomorrow,” she said, pushing me to the verdant grass. Her almost dry hair tickled my face, and she pulled them back with her hand. “Will you watch me fight, mongrel?"

“I will, my lady,” I smiled at her, supporting the weight of her shoulders with my hands after dropping her crumpled clothes on my abdomen. Her attempts to fall on me were futile, but her loose strands of hair forced me to sneeze a couple of times.

“Ahem,” Beth’s dry cough sounded closely, and my lady clicked her tongue before getting up. “We gave you the same room for a reason, Leti. And gossips of the maids are worse than ballyhoos of the court officials.”

“Oh,” Beth paused and swept a casual glance at Letitia. “Black looks good on you, Leti.”

“Does it?” she beamed and turned to me.

“It does,” I said, standing up. Washing them is an easy chore, so it was an additional advantage for me.

“Now get going,” Beth said. “I don’t want you both flirting around in public.”

Well, those were originally my lines, and I felt annoyed to hear them thrown at me. Beth’s grin affirmed my doubts that she was doing it intentionally, but I didn’t have a comeback for that smile.

My lady pulled my hand, and we ambled to the room in silence until I walked inside first and sprawled her clothes over the cloth stand. She closed the door behind us as soon as I ambled toward the door.

“Don’t you dare!” she gritted her teeth, watching my [Devil eye] looming above her, ready to cast [Fatigue].

“I’m sorry, my lady,” I smiled at her and cast [Fatigue].