The Top-Tier Butler of the Marquis Family Chapter 4 : Chapter 4

Chapter 004

When people hear the word butler, they usually picture an elderly male servant.

I used to think the sa. That was the sort of person one often saw in dramas and novels.

But the butlers here at the Adeline Marquis House were a little different.

Perhaps that was simply what all butlers in this world were like. Then again, since I had not seen the others, there was no way to know yet, so I put the thought aside for the ti being.

Butlers held far more status than I had imagined.

The Head Butler in particular, the leader of all butlers, seed to wield trendous authority. Not long ago, I had seen him speaking with the knights, and it was not the butler who spoke respectfully—it was the knights.

Whenever Yanrof, the Head Butler, appeared, the atmosphere grew heavy. I had the feeling he might be on the sa level as the Knight Commander.

And butlers had ranks as well.

At the very bottom were the Butler Apprentices.

That was the position I currently occupied.

After living as an apprentice for a ti, you took a test, and if you passed, you were promoted to a full butler.

There were other positions as well, such as Senior Butler and Supervising Butler. It did not seem to be a matter of hierarchy alone; I had learned that rank also changed depending on one’s assignnt.

My mories were still uncertain, so I did not know the details yet. I would need to learn more.

Butlers handled many kinds of work, but fundantally, they oversaw all administrative affairs within the family.

What were the essential elents of human life that everyone knew?

Clothing, food, and shelter.

From what people wore, to what they ate, to where they lived, everything fell under the control of the butlers. They held authority over the maids, had the power to appoint cooks, and controlled all matters related to clothing, food, and shelter.

In other words, if a person had a good eye for talent, they could rise very quickly in this line of work.

“In that sense, my ability is extrely useful.”

A smile naturally rose to my face. With the Status Window, I could see a person’s Traits and Skills at a glance.

Taking Rohan as an example, it would be far more profitable to have him handle cleaning than to place him in the kitchen.

His Cleaning was A, after all, while his Cooking was only C.

If I used this ability on other people, work efficiency would rise dramatically. As soone who loved simulation gas, I had stumbled upon a whole new kind of pleasure.

But it was still too soon.

I had not even returned to work yet, and more importantly, I was being ostracized among the Butler Apprentices.

I needed to solve that fundantal problem before making any moves.

Well, I was not especially worried.

I had already drawn up a fairly solid plan.

“Hey! Loser!”

As I continued walking, I heard soone’s voice.

It was a sticky, unpleasant voice.

Since he had not called my na and had only shouted “loser,” it might not have been directed at —but unfortunately, I was the only one standing in the corridor ahead.

I stopped for a mont and turned around.

A young man dressed exactly like stood there. He was one of the Butler Apprentices as well.

What an unexpected windfall.

I rembered him.

He was the man who had pushed from the balcony.

His na was probably Beron Yogheim. Arwen had told , so I rembered it clearly.

He approached with a nasty grin.

“Where do you think you are going?”

“I am on my way to see Lord Yanrof.”

“To see him? Fuck. Why are you talking so casually? Just because you hurt your head does not an you can behave however you want. I will kill you.”

The vicious curses flew out of his mouth.

My expression stiffened for an instant, but I still managed to offer him a gentle smile.

“You are smiling? You crazy bastard. Have you completely lost your mind?”

“This is not really the sort of thing we should discuss here. Shall we move sowhere else for a mont?”

“Hah!”

“By the way, your na is Beron, right?”

“‘Your na is Beron, right?’ What the hell did you eat today?”

Judging by the way he looked ready to throw a punch, I must have been right.

Beron had bullied ever since I first ca here.

A little of the original Dilen’s mories remained, and Rohan had told the rest later, so I was sure of it now.

Personally, I despised this sort of person.

Bastards who swaggered around relying on nothing but brute strength.

There had been countless n like that in South Korea too. Punks so young the ink on their ID cards had barely dried still went around shaking people down at school.

It had been a country ruled by law, but fists had always been closer than the law.

But things were different now.

An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.

If rough words ca at you, then rough words ought to go back.

Since I had gained power, I had decided to use it for a worthy cause.

Surely the reason God had granted this mysterious power was so I could deliver proper lessons to bastards like this.

And besides, I wanted to test the limits of my ability a little.

“You unlucky son of a bitch. Today is your day. I was already in a foul mood, so let us have a proper round!”

I casually cleaned out one ear with a finger.

“You talk too much. Just lead the way.”

“You little shit?”

And so Beron and I moved to a basent storeroom.

It was a place where various things were kept, and since few people ever ca there, it was very quiet.

THUD!

Beron locked the door from inside.

Then he cracked his knuckles and grinned wickedly.

“If I beat you half to death, your mind will go back to normal. Clench your teeth! If you lose any, that is your problem. Once your head is straight again, you ought to be thanking .”

“Before that, let ask you one thing.”

“What is it, you little bastard? A loser like you thinks you have the right to ask questions?”

“Why do you bully Dilen like this?”

It was a strange question.

I had referred to Dilen in the third person, because I was not really Dilen.

But Beron seed too dumbfounded to care about that part.

“Because it pisses off to see a worthless nobody slither in here pretending he can beco a butler. Begging on the street suits you a lot better!”

“That is all?”

“What did you say?”

“I asked if that is all. It is a pretty flimsy reason.”

Crunch.

He grabbed by the collar.

Then he raised his right hand, ready to strike my face whenever he pleased.

He was fairly strong.

Now I was curious about this bastard’s stats.

At that mont, his Status Window appeared in my vision.

○ Beron Yogheim

Rank: ★★

Level: 14

Traits: Molestation A, Theft B, Swordsmanship C, Fist Arts C, Provocation C, Iron Wall D, ???

Status: Dumbfounded

[Not Unlocked]

[Not Unlocked]

......

I had assud the window would not appear because we were on bad terms, but this system was surprisingly kind.

That aside, what was Molestation supposed to an?

Surely it was exactly the thing I was thinking of...?

Apparently, the list did not contain only positive Skills.

In any case, his Skills and Traits did not suit a butler at all.

That was the sort of combination better fit for a thug in so back alley. I could not understand why soone like him had been accepted here in the first place.

I had no intention of dancing to his tune.

SMACK!

I slapped his hand away with ease.

“Well, look at you. You are fighting back?”

“Do you know why I asked you to move sowhere quiet, you pretty little flower?”

This ti, I grabbed him by the collar.

I possessed a strength beyond anything I had ever known. Even if he struggled, there was no way he could escape my grip.

Beron coughed and choked, breathing raggedly.

“The answer? Because the one getting beaten is not . It is you!”

SMACK!

This ti, Beron knocked my hand away.

I could easily have overpowered him with raw strength, but I needed to test my power too, so I decided to play along for a while.

“You bastard!”

WHOOSH!

The punch he threw cut beautifully through empty air.

It lasted only a fraction of a second, but my body was faster. That was why his attack looked as clear to as slow motion.

Next, a kick flew at .

I moved my feet and lightly stepped back out of range.

Enraged, he snatched up a chair and hurled it at .

That was not how I had expected this to go.

CRACK!

Without thinking, I raised my left arm and blocked the chair.

It shattered into pieces, as though it had been smashed against the floor.

That was because I had not rely blocked it.

I had blocked it by using the mysterious power flowing through my heart.

This was more useful than I had expected.

Your Majesty! There stands a Swordmaster ready for service!

An endless number of applications sprang to mind.

But now was not the ti for that.

It was ti to teach the punk in front of a proper lesson.

I rushed him while he was still stunned and seized him by the collar.

“Ghk!”

SLAP!

I struck him lightly across the cheek.

Blood flew, and his face whipped violently to the side. More than the pain, he seed shocked by the sheer impossibility of the situation.

And no wonder.

When the boy who used to be everyone’s errand runner suddenly grabs the school bully by the collar and slaps him across the face, anyone who sees it would freeze up—including the man getting hit.

“Y-you have really lost your mind. Do you have any idea what happens if you do this...? Ugh!”

SLAP!

His voice trembled violently.

That was proof my plan was working perfectly.

I slapped him again. This ti, I hit him harder with the back of my hand.

“It is no fun if you just stand there and take it. Start counting for . I am only going to hit you thirty tis. All right?”

“Hey! Wait! Just wait!”

“Why should I?”

SLAP!

I struck him rcilessly until he gave in.

In the end, tears streaming down his face, he had no choice but to count the blows as he received them.

“Sixteen....”

“That was too quiet.”

“Sixteen!”

SLAP!

“Seventeen...!”

SMACK!

“Eighteen!”

“Hold it. Did you just swear at ?”

“N-no! It is a misunderstanding! I was counting! Seventeen, then eighteen!”

“You cute little bastard.”

SLAP!

I hit him across the face again with all my strength.

I had no intention of going easy on him.

n who strutted about relying on strength alone had to be subdued by strength, or there would only be trouble later.

Once I had completed the full thirty, I released his collar.

That felt incredible.

“Ughhh....”

He collapsed to the floor, crying and sniffling.

Both lips had split open, and dark handprints covered his swollen cheeks. He probably would not even be able to lift his face in public.

He was weaker than I had expected.

Or perhaps my own ability was simply that good.

Subduing one grown man had been effortless.

I dusted the blood from my hands and said,

“I will not bother telling the Head Butler what you did to the other day. But from now on, keep your head down. I do not want any more trouble.”

“Sob....”

“Do you understand what I an?”

Leaving the bastard, who reluctantly nodded, behind , I walked out of the storeroom.

Just before I left, sothing occurred to , so I turned back.

Then I grabbed him by the collar once more and brought up his Status Window.

Status: Abyssal Vengefulness

Just as I thought.

Letting out a sigh, I flung him aside and stepped back outside.

***

Yanrof happened to be in his office.

I gave a light knock and entered.

“You are certainly the one from that ti....”

He seed to recognize .

To be fair, the mansion employed more than a hundred butlers in total if one included the Butler Apprentices, so failing to rember a face was common. Even so, since he had seen not long ago, he seed to recall .

“I am Dilen. I ca because I have sothing I wish to say.”

“Sit.”

Graciously enough, Yanrof offered a seat first.

I had heard it from Rohan, but apparently Yanrof carried out many unseen duties in the Adeline Marquis House. Rohan himself had not known exactly what they were.

In any case, it ant Yanrof possessed even more power than he appeared to.

“Thanks to your concern, I have recovered completely. I am in a condition to return to work.”

“You an to say that you wish to continue the apprenticeship?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Hmm.”

Yanrof fell silent in thought for a mont.

Instinctively, I had the feeling that sothing unpleasant was about to be said. If he had intended to accept my request, there would have been no need for such hesitation.

I waited patiently.

“Regrettably, we have decided not to continue your apprenticeship any further.”

Just as I had expected.

I had sensed as much when I was beating Beron earlier. Beron was only a puppet, and I had a strong feeling there was soone behind him.

I did not know exactly who it was.

But it had to be soone with enough influence to sway Yanrof.

Keeping my expression calm, I asked,

“Forgive , but may I ask the reason?”

“I would rather not wound you needlessly.”

“I can bear it.”

“If that is the case, then it cannot be helped. Your midterm evaluation was poor, and since your injury created a gap in your duties, there were opinions that we should simply fail you as you are.”