Chapter 63
“What, what are you saying? I can barely concentrate on my duties as head butler, and now you want me to suddenly take over as housekeeper?”
“Weren’t the duties of the head butler difficult because we don’t have a palace housekeeper? Then you will be the housekeeper. As for the head butler, we will bring in a new person for her.”
Edel felt so confused that her head began to spin.
But, unlike her, Laszlo felt that a big problem that had been troubling him had been solved all at once.
'She is capable of managing the family's finances and can comprehensively monitor the state of the mansion. The only remaining issue is the possibility of her betraying them, but the Count Canyon family is always under surveillance, so there is no problem.'
Of course, he was not unaware of the tense situation that Idil was experiencing.
“Don’t feel so burdened. After all, our family has always been in chaos, whatever you do, it can’t get any worse than it already is.”
“…really comforting words.”
"It's amazing that you also have a sense of humor."
Laszlo laughed merrily.
Idil was slightly surprised by his bright laughter.
'I didn't know he could laugh like that.'
Those wrinkles that used to appear between his eyebrows disappeared, and his sharp eyes looked more delicate.
His lively lips also smiled, revealing white teeth.
It was so beautiful that Idil felt sorry that she wouldn't see that smile often.
Perhaps that is why her will weakened.
"Anyway, you will do it, won't you?"
“Ah, well… I probably don’t have another option at the moment…”
After agreeing, Idell realized what she had done.
'What have you just done…!'
But things have already gotten out of hand.
As soon as Edel agreed, Laszlo suddenly stood up and opened the floor of his office.
'The earth... opens...?'
Normally, no one would think of opening the office floor unless there was something secret hidden there.
From that place, the sounds of gears turning began to be heard, followed by the sound of a metal box being opened.
Idel realized, even without looking, what this thing was.
"Are you really opening the family treasury to me now?"
"Yes."
Laszlo was acting as if she was asking about something obvious.
But the family chief's treasury was usually kept in a very secret place, and its location had to be kept strictly confidential.
But Laszlo, without any hesitation, presented the treasury to Edel.
“Sir! How could you open this in front of me? You should only open the safe when you are alone!”
"Anyway, you are now the housekeeper of the palace, so you should know where it is, shouldn't you?"
“Even if I were the housekeeper of the palace…!”
“I am a person who could die at any moment.”
Laszlo said that nonchalantly as he took some things out of the safe.
“Someone needs to know the contents of the safe, just in case. I was looking for someone I could trust for this task, and here he is.”
Idyll felt a cold sting inside her.
I realized once again that Laszlo always lived under the threat of death.
But this realization did not help her understand the situation.
While Laszlo was unaware of her confusion, he began to explain to her the contents of the documents he took out one by one.
“First, this is the decree that His Majesty the Emperor granted me. This contains documents pertaining to the lands, while this one pertains to the palace.”
Those were huge documents; hundreds of thousands of coins could be lost if they were damaged.
Edel felt an urge to grab his shirt collar and shake him violently; she really didn't want to see these documents, not even by the tip of a finger!
"You should leave such matters to Mrs. Linnea, not to me!"
“Lenia? That reckless girl? If she finds out, she’ll go around gossiping about her.”
"And me? Don't you think I'll do the same thing?"
"Do you have someone you trust to tell?"
Laszlo smiled slightly.
Idil felt confused; the person who had seemed nice to her moments before now seemed like a villain.
“Honestly, what makes you trust me? If word gets out that I’m the housekeeper of the palace, your enemies will try to seduce or threaten me.”
“And you will not succumb to their temptations or threats. You are the one who refused even a blank check, weren’t you?”
His clear brown eyes were looking intently at Idil, as he spoke without hesitation.
“And frankly, you don’t seem to have someone you’re willing to risk your life for or a place you’d like to return to.”
If that were true, she wouldn't have been so willing to sacrifice her life so easily when she came here.
“A person who has nothing left can be very trustworthy if I become their only refuge.”
"Do you mean by this that you will become my only refuge?"
"Does that bother you?"
A mischievous smile appeared on his face, and he seemed to be carrying a slight seduction.
She felt something vibrate inside her chest, but she strongly ignored it, convincing herself that what she was feeling was nothing but the evening chill.
“You seem to be a very naive person, sir. When you decide to trust someone, you shouldn’t doubt them, but you trust me too easily.”
“I have a good eye for discerning people.”
"And did you have a good eye when you appointed Marsha as head butler?"
“Because it was completely transparent, and it was easy to monitor. Although I didn’t know that she had taken all that money, for me, my peace of mind was always more important than money.”
Edel felt like sighing when Laszlo described the money that buys a house as "just a few pennies".
But when I looked closely at the documents I showed her, I understood why.
'How huge is his wealth...?'
The Crises family's wealth was far greater than Edel had anticipated. Far greater.
Laszlo even owned a mercenary guild, making him far more powerful than the Canyon family he had previously been with.
As soon as I realized that, I felt an overwhelming urge to grab the collar of his shirt and shake him violently again.
'How frustrating it is to have all this wealth and not be able to invest it effectively…!'
If others knew that Count Crisis possessed such enormous wealth, their view of him would have changed completely.
Discovering such a thing might have been a joyous achievement for the position of housekeeper, but Edel felt a great burden because she had to invest this latent wealth and breathe life into it as if it were fragrant money, which increased her sense of frustration.
With a disgruntled expression, Idell said:
“Truly, Count, you are not a good master to your family.”
“I know that very well, and that’s why I always needed someone like you. But I don’t understand why I realized this so late.”
Laszlo laughed merrily again, as if it really pleased him.
But when he saw the gloom on Idell's face, he felt a little sorry.
“It must be stressful for you; you might need someone to give you advice as well.”
Idel sighed deeply instead of answering.
Then, Laszlo made an offer that was more like a gift to Idil.
"Countess Barbara Celestine would have loved to meet you, what do you think? You could ask her for some advice."
***
“Head of the house, excuse me, housekeeper of the palace, the cloth merchant has arrived.”
"Oh, have all these hours passed?"
Since becoming the housekeeper, Edel's days have become busier than ever. She doesn't even have free time between appointments.
“Tell him to wait in the reception room, and offer him only a simple drink.”
Edel gave instructions to the maid who informed her of the arrival of the new visitor, then completed the quality check of the newly arrived food items.
"Is this the best type of butter and cheese you have available in your store?"
“Yes, yes, that’s right. In fact, this type is considered one of the best and no one complains about it.”
But for Ideal, who had previously dealt with the finest food products, this quality was not satisfactory enough.
'I cannot deal with stores that deal with the Count Canyon family, it could be misunderstood.'
After a short sigh, Edel paid the merchant for the butter and cheese and asked him to take them inside, but she did not make any lasting agreement with him.
Once she had finished working in the kitchen, she quickly headed to the reception room, where the fabric merchant was waiting for her.
“I apologize for the delay, and due to time constraints, let’s start reviewing the samples directly.”
Edel received the sample book from the dealer, then began examining the curtain fabrics for autumn and winter. The existing curtains looked very cheap.
"Can this fabric and that one be made a little thicker?"
"Sorry, we are unable to provide a greater thickness than this, but it is perfectly suitable for making curtains."
Idil simply smiled.
Certainly, there are noble families who might use this type of fabric for their curtains.
But for a noble family of such high standing and close ties to the emperor, this level was unacceptable. Idil was fully aware that even the smallest details made all the difference in the family's prestige.
“Unfortunately, if you receive better samples in the future, please let me know.”
Kindly, but firmly, Edel gestured for the merchant to leave, then returned to her office.