"This is the last time."
Lucian wiped the smile from his face and spoke quietly.
"Bring. The head maid."
Crunch.
Everyone swallowed dryly at the sight of a Lucian they had never seen before.They had a feeling that refusing him here would lead to something disastrous.But even so, the servants forced themselves to ignore the warning their instincts screamed at them.
He's just the third young master. Even if he gets angry, he's still just the third young master.If we disobey Lord Jordi, we could die. Better to get scolded here than risk that.
To the servants, Lucian was merely a timid young master who rarely left his room.No matter how angry he became, they believed he'd never actually kill them.Jordi, on the other hand, had no trace of mercy in his hands.
If they had to choose whom to defy, it was far safer to defy Lucian than to defy Jordi.
"Young master, as I said before—"
Slaaap.
The servant who had tried to offer another excuse suddenly saw his vision flash white.Before he even finished speaking, Hugo had slapped him across the face.
"Look at these bastards. Who's your master, huh? Your own master is giving you an order, and you're acting scared of someone else? You've got no basics at all."
"G-Gah—! Why are you—!"
"Why? You still haven't come to your senses."
Slaaap, slaaap, slaaap.
Every time Hugo's palm—large enough to serve as a pot lid—swung left or right, the servant's head snapped in the same direction.Despite being hit with a bare hand, each blow felt like being struck with an iron club.
After five or six swings, teeth scattered across the floor, and blood streamed down in thick drops.
"Gahh—! G-ghk—! H-huuuk!"
"S-Stop it at once! What do you think you're doing in front of the young master!"
As their coworker was reduced to a bloody mess in moments, the other servants panicked and invoked Lucian's name.But Lucian only snorted and tilted his head.
"I told him to."
"Wh-What?"
"I said I told him to. I told him to 'educate' anyone who keeps ignoring my orders. He's doing a great job—so what's the problem?"
"Y-Young master…"
"Hugo. Keep hitting him."
"Yes, young master."
Slaaap!
"Guuuuagh!"
The hand that had paused for a moment now swung even harder than before.
And with every swing, more of the servant's teeth clattered onto the floor.Before long, his face had become so swollen and misshapen his own family wouldn't have recognized him.He collapsed, unconscious, his body limp.
"Young master, this one's fainted. What should I do?"
"Just toss him aside for now. When he wakes up, keep hitting him."
"Will that be all right? Any more than this and he might die."
"That just means his body is weak. If he disobeyed his master's command, he should have expected at least this much. He's probably already accepted it."
"That's true as well. Understood. If he dies during training, I'll wrap him in a sack and throw him out."
"!"
At their casual exchange, the servants' faces drained of color.It was obvious they weren't joking—they meant every word.The blows dealt just moments ago hadn't looked like something meant to spare the man's life.Even if he survived, with his teeth scattered like that it was doubtful he'd ever chew food properly again.In the worst case, his vision or hearing would never return to normal either.
After tossing the unconscious servant aside, Hugo turned his gaze toward the frozen group of servants.
"Let's see… you'll be next. Just earlier, you ignored the young master's order and begged for leniency, didn't you?"
"W-Wait! Just—just a moment—gahk!"
Slaaap.
With a vicious sound, Hugo's palm whipped across the man's face again.This time the blow was so strong it looked like it might shatter his cheekbone.Seeing that, the other servants trembled violently—then quickly dropped to their knees.
"Y-Young master! Please forgive us! Please forgive us!""We were wrong! We'll bring the head maid immediately!"
"No, you don't need to bring her. Jordi is scary, isn't he? How could I make my servants do something they're afraid of?"
"No! No! What does the second young master matter? You are our master, Young Master Lucian!"
"Don't overdo it. I won't even give you an order—you can just die. Better to die by my hand than Jordi's. Don't worry, Jordi will never kill you."
"P-Please—! Young master! Young maasteeer!"
The servants begged until the skin on their palms nearly peeled from the floor.Only now did they realize how utterly foolish they had been.
True, Jordi could kill them like flies.But that only meant the Grand Duke, the other wives, and every other young master could do the same.Lucian was no exception—he could kill them whenever he wished.
In that case, loyalty belonged to their own master.The master was at least someone who knew each servant by face and name, someone who might help them if things went wrong.
The Jordi they feared so desperately—Even if they died right here, he wouldn't know why, nor would he care.And if he did know, he would only laugh.No one wants a servant without loyalty, and no one pities them either.
"Please—please give us just one more chance!""If you wish, I'll even cut off a finger and offer it!""Spare us! Please, just spare us!"
The servants screamed and wept, begging Lucian with desperate madness.Even then, Hugo's palm continued slicing through the air.
When the second servant finally collapsed unconscious, Hugo turned to choose a third target—But then:
"Hugo, stop."
"Yes, young master."
The instant the order was given, Hugo retreated at once.Only then did the servants, feeling they had narrowly survived, gasp and wheeze for air.
Lucian stared at them in silence for a moment—and then spoke a single sentence.
"Head maid."
"Yes!"
Nothing more needed to be said.All the servants jumped up at once and scattered like lightning to fetch Head Maid Jenny.
Clatter, clatter.
It took them less than five minutes to drag Jenny back.
"You lunatics! Are you not afraid of Lord Jordi at all!?"
"Shut up!"
The servants forced the struggling Jenny into the room and shoved her to her knees.Judging from the scrape on her cheek and her disheveled clothes, she had been struck more than once on the way.Despite the pain she must have felt, her spirit showed no sign of bending.She resisted so fiercely that the servants couldn't properly pin her down, prompting Lucian to click his tongue.
"Hugo. Make her kneel."
"Yes, young master."
At Hugo's signal, his men pulled the other servants aside and grabbed Jenny from both sides.They were large men—each with a head and shoulders more massive than ordinary—so this time, Jenny couldn't move at all.
Panting heavily, Jenny glared up at Lucian with sharp, venomous eyes.
"Young master! Do you think you'll get away with this!?"
Everyone except Jenny gaped in disbelief.No matter whose backing she had, a servant should never speak that way to her master.But Jenny seemed to misinterpret the silence and raised her voice even more arrogantly.
"If you lay a hand on me, Lord Jordi will not stand by! Have you already forgotten what happened at the training grounds a year ago!? This time won't even compare—!"
Crack.
"Guh!"
Unable to listen any longer, Hugo silenced her with a single punch.If she kept talking, she would cross lines she couldn't return from.He might have gotten too forceful without meaning to—Jenny staggered, looking like she might faint from that one blow.
"Forgive me, young master. It felt like my ears were rotting, so I couldn't help myself."
"No, well done. Someone bring a whip."
"Yes, young master!"
Unlike before, one servant bolted out the door immediately, returning with a whip in hand.It was made of water-soaked buffalo hide, each strand embedded with small beads—fearsome even to look at.
"Wake her."
"Yes."
Slap, slap.
"Ugh…!"
Jenny's head twisted to the side with each strike, and she slowly opened her unfocused eyes.Lucian crouched down in front of her, idly running his fingers along the whip.
"Are you awake now?"
"Y-Young master… what are you doing…?"
"What am I doing? Performing the execution of a servant who doesn't know her place."
"E-Execution?"
"Yes, execution. Did you think this was just punishment? Sorry, but I have no intention of letting you live."
At Lucian's faint, mocking smile, Jenny's face went completely pale.He was actually saying he'd kill her—her, Jordi's wet-nurse sibling?
"L-Lord Jordi! Aren't you afraid of Lord Jordi!?"
"Then what about you—are you not afraid of me? I'm a noble. I'm your master. And what? You think I won't be fine after this? You know I could cut your head off right now for insulting a noble and no one would object."
"I told you! I-I'm—!"
"You're Jordi's wet-nurse sibling, so what? Even if I kill you, Jordi can't do anything to me. At most, he'll beat me a bit. And if Father intervenes, he won't even get to do that. For removing one insolent servant? That's nothing."
Swiish.
Lucian finished speaking and snapped the whip through the air.The sharp crack as it tore through the air made Jenny flinch violently.
Only now did she realize—This wasn't a threat.He was serious.
"Hugo."
"I'll hold her firmly. Senior Hans, the floor is going to get messy soon—please prepare some rags."
"Huh? Ah, right… blood is hard to clean."
Depending on the type, the wounds caused by a whip vary—but the one Lucian held was the strongest among disciplinary tools.A few strikes were guaranteed to draw blood, so preparations had to be made in advance.
Jenny, white as a sheet, clattered her teeth and pleaded with Lucian.
"Y-Young master… I—I was wrong. I made a mistake. Please forgive me, just this once…"
Lucian smiled faintly at Jenny's declaration of surrender.
"If you've done wrong, you must be punished, don't you think?"
And the whip cut through the air.
Jordi wiped his mouth after finishing his meal.Though it was the same menu as always, it tasted exceptionally good today.No—he already knew why.
To think he couldn't even handle a servant carrying his own rice bowl. What a pathetic fool.
Every time he remembered the humiliation his half-witted half-brother suffered, laughter welled up inside him.He knew people looked down on Lucian, but this?To think the brat couldn't even control his own servants.And after that, he didn't even take any action—he simply ran away outside.
Truly a disgrace not only to the House of Valdeck, but to all nobility.Because of this incident, Lucian's already poor reputation would undoubtedly sink straight to the bottom.
"I'm curious to see how he'll respond."
The smile on Jordi's lips deepened.The important part began now.If Lucian knew even a shred of shame, he would try something—anything—to drive Jenny out.But would that really be possible?
People feared Jordi.But Lucian… feared no one.
***
If Lucian wanted to deal with Jenny, he would have to act personally, not just give orders.And that was when things would truly begin.
Without any servant willing to testify for him, one could invent any reason they pleased for why a noble laid hands on a head maid's body.
Father will know the truth, of course… but to him, the truth won't matter.
A young master who can't even control his own servants or protect his own rice bowl is already failing at the basics.Even if Jordi orchestrated everything, the fact that Lucian fell for such a petty trick was humiliating in itself.
Jordi might receive a light scolding at worst, but what little expectation Father had left for Lucian would completely vanish.Of course, Lucian could choose to give up, leave Jenny alone, or even ask Father for help.But if he did, Father's wrath would rain down on him for not even trying to solve the problem himself.
"Young master! Something terrible has happened!"
"What is it?"
Jordi's thoughts shattered at the sound of his attendant's frantic voice, and he frowned.He had been enjoying himself—what now?
But the attendant, ignoring Jordi's irritation, shouted breathlessly:
"Jenny! Jenny is being whipped by the third young master!"
"…What?"
"They say the sound of the whip is loud enough to be heard from outside! If she isn't rescued immediately, she might die!"
Jordi shot to his feet, his face draining of color at the completely unexpected news.