Chapter 8

Chapter 8
### Chapter 8

The reduction of Lucian’s personal funding was no minor inconvenience.

While labeled an “allowance” for simplicity, these funds were drawn directly from the estate’s treasury. Consequently, the moment someone began tampering with those figures, the offense shifted from a simple clerical error to outright embezzlement.

‘And in this world, embezzlement is a one-way ticket to the gallows.’

Even the nobility, who typically enjoyed immunity from the harshest sentences, found no sanctuary when it came to financial treachery. Probing the family budget was viewed as an attack on the house’s very foundation.

If a financial officer—a man whose entire career was built on fiscal integrity—had committed such a crime, his status wouldn’t save him. Whether he was a low-level clerk or the Minister of Finance himself, he would be executed without delay, his head displayed prominently on the ramparts as a warning.

Whoever had been foolish enough to try this was essentially digging their own grave today.

With a cold resolve, Lucian marched toward the Treasury Department.

“It is a terrible mistake, Third Young Master! Embezzlement? I would never dare!”

The moment the accusation left Lucian’s lips, the finance officer broke into a cold sweat and collapsed to his knees. The terror etched across his features was far too visceral to be feigned. Under Lucian’s frigid scrutiny, the man began knocking his forehead against the stone floor, his voice cracking with desperation.

“I—I only executed the orders based on the submitted paperwork! I can provide the documentation this instant! Please, I beg of you, look at the records yourself!”

He was shuddering so violently, his face a mess of tears and panic, that he looked on the verge of losing control of his bladder. Lucian, who had arrived expecting to find a thief, felt a surge of irritation.

“So, you’re claiming you didn’t siphon the funds for yourself?”

“No! Never! I swear by the Eight Gods, if I have taken a single copper, let my soul burn in the depths of hell!”

“Then who directed you to finalize the budget in this manner? You mentioned following the submitted reports.”

“It was the Head Maid serving the Third Young Master! She is the one who has always delivered the budget requests!”

“What? The Head Maid?”

The title of Head Maid or Head Servant was given to the leaders of the domestic staff, depending on their gender. While a smaller household might function with one or two, a Great House required an entire hierarchy. The sheer volume of servants necessitated multiple managers.

Within the House of Valdek, it was standard practice to assign a head servant to the Grand Duke’s spouse and each of his children. The individual the officer referred to was clearly the woman overseeing Lucian’s personal staff.

“Unbelievable.”

A dry, mirthless laugh escaped Lucian. Regardless of her rank among the staff, she was still a common servant. And yet, this Head Maid had dared to commit embezzlement—a felony that would cost even a sworn knight his life?

“It’s the truth! Every single month, she brought me the proposals, and I merely processed the numbers she provided! You even granted her a formal letter of authorization in the past, Third Young Master!”

“Enough. Be silent and let me think. If you keep blathering, I’ll charge you as an accomplice.”

“Gasp!”

The officer immediately clamped his hands over his mouth, effectively silencing his whimpering.

Leaving the terrified man behind, Lucian fell into deep thought. It was undeniable that the previous Lucian had foolishly handed off his financial oversight to the Head Maid. It would have been child’s play for her to slowly bleed his accounts dry by shifting the numbers.

Still, the logic didn’t track. The risk-to-reward ratio was absurd; no amount of gold was worth the high probability of execution.

‘There’s no point in guessing. I’ll get the truth directly from her.’

With a heavy sigh, Lucian exited the treasury and made his way back to his quarters. With the paper trail leading straight to her, there was no room for denial. He would have his answers.

—

“I am Jenny, the Head Maid. I was informed you requested my presence.”

The woman who stood before him possessed a notably arrogant air. Lucian blinked in surprise; she appeared to be in her early twenties at most. Usually, Head Maids were seasoned veterans of the domestic arts, women of middle age with decades of experience. This girl was barely out of her teens, yet she held a position of significant authority.

“Wait, has there been a change in staff? I was certain Lady Dana held this position until recently,” Hans remarked, looking visibly uneasy.

Jenny arched a condescending eyebrow. “The previous Head Maid took her retirement due to her advanced age two months ago. Were you really that oblivious?”

“No, I… I simply didn’t have much interaction with her…”

“How pathetic. You claim to serve the Young Master, yet you remain entirely ignorant of the goings-on in his own household?”

Hans withered under her sharp tongue, shrinking back into himself. Lucian felt a vein twitch in his temple at the display.

While a Head Maid outranked a standard attendant, Hans was Lucian’s personal valet. A personal servant represented the prestige of their master; by openly berating him in Lucian’s presence, she was effectively spitting in Lucian’s face.

Thinking Lucian was too dull to notice, she even let out a small, mocking huff, a smirk playing on her lips.

“Regardless, why have I been summoned? This boy told me nothing of substance, so I am in the dark.”

“…I brought you here to discuss the budget. Are you the author of this proposal?”

“I am. I was told the Young Master had delegated this authority to my predecessor, so I stepped in to fulfill the duty.”

“Stepped in? I granted that power to the former Head Maid specifically, not to a random replacement.”

“Is that so? Do forgive me. However, the financial deadline was approaching, and since the Young Master showed absolutely no interest in the matter, I felt forced to act. Surely you can understand.”

“How dare you…!”

Hans cried out, appalled by her blatant insolence. It was a tone no servant should ever adopt with their lord.

Lucian raised a steadying hand to quiet Hans before speaking.

“Fine, I will set aside your lack of protocol for a moment. Answer this instead: What happened to the allocation? Why did you take it upon yourself to slash my funding while simultaneously padding the servants’ payroll?”

“I was under the impression the Young Master left the distribution to our discretion as well, so I made adjustments where they were needed. The staff has been overworked lately, and there has been a great deal of grumbling regarding their meager compensation.”

“And you decided this required no consultation with me?”

“Given that the Young Master hasn’t bothered with these affairs for over a year, I assumed it would be acceptable. It appears I miscalculated. Still, the paperwork is finalized, so please just move past it. It’s only for one more month, isn’t it?”

Hans stared at her, his jaw dropping at a level of disrespect that had crossed into total insubordination. She wasn’t even bothering to maintain a facade of loyalty anymore.

Lucian, his patience finally snapping, stood up and looked toward the other servants gathered nearby.

“Someone fetch me a whip. Let us see if her tongue remains this sharp after a few strokes of discipline.”

“….”

“….”

Despite his clear command, the surrounding staff stood frozen. None of them moved an inch. It was painfully obvious that their fear of Jenny outweighed their loyalty to Lucian.

Seeing the defiance, Hans’s face flushed with anger.

“What is wrong with you all? You heard the Young Master! Fetch a whip this instant!”

“….”

“Unbelievable! Fine, I’ll go get it myself!”

“Wait! Hans!”

“Stop him! Don’t let him leave!”

“Let go of me! Why are you blocking the way? It’s a direct order from the Young Master! Have you all lost your minds?!”

As Hans tried to push past, the other servants physically barred the exit, using their bodies to block the door. They were openly committing mutiny to shield Jenny.

Lucian narrowed his eyes at the surreal display. For servants to be this bold in their defiance, they had to be leaning on a power far greater than his own.

“You have someone backing you, don’t you?”

“Backing me? I am merely the milk-sibling of the Second Young Master, Lord Jordi.”

The smugness in Jenny’s voice explained everything. As the daughter of the wet nurse who had raised Jordi, she shared a bond with him that transcended the typical master-servant dynamic. They were effectively childhood companions.

For the rest of the staff, the choice was simple. Offending Lucian was risky, but offending Jordi’s favorite would result in a swift and brutal end.

‘The issue is they’ve decided I’m the lesser of two evils.’

Jordi wasn’t the only one capable of taking a life; Lucian could have them all executed if he chose. Yet, they chose to ignore him. It was the ultimate proof that Lucian was viewed as a harmless joke, while Jordi was a man to be feared.

“What a pathetic display.”

Lucian sighed and rose to his feet. He had anticipated resistance, but the rot his predecessor had allowed to settle was deeper than he imagined. He had hoped to play a long game of observation, but the time for subtle shifts had passed. He needed to re-establish the hierarchy immediately.

“Hans, come with me.”

“Eh? Where are we going, sir?”

“Follow and see.”

As Lucian walked toward the exit, the servants shifted uncomfortably, their expressions flickering with anxiety. They seemed concerned he might be heading out to secure a weapon himself.

“Y-Young Master. Please, reconsider your anger.”

“I’m certain the Head Maid didn’t intend to be so blunt…”

“I’m not going for a whip, so move. I have business elsewhere.”

Only after his reassurance did the servants slowly part to let him through. Lucian sighed at the pathetic sight. Just as he crossed the threshold—

“The Young Master is showing great wisdom. Lord Jordi will undoubtedly be pleased by your restraint.”

Her voice, dripping with the arrogance of her connection to the second brother, was a final jab of mockery. Lucian didn’t bother to look back. Within a few hours, her smugness would be replaced by a regret she couldn’t yet fathom.

—

“Young Master! How could you just walk away from that woman?”

Hans was practically vibrating with fury, his face red as he finally exploded. He seemed more wounded by the insults directed at Lucian than by the ones he had personally endured.

“If those cowards wouldn’t move, you should have just taken matters into your own hands and whipped her! No one would have dared touch you if you were truly set on it!”

“That’s true. But even if I had, the victory would have been hollow.”

“I don’t understand.”

“Do you think her connection to Jordi is a coincidence? They’ve set the stage. Even if I had brandished a whip, she wouldn’t have just stood there and submitted to the punishment.”

Instead of accepting justice, she would have fled the room screaming. The other servants, paralyzed by fear of Jordi, wouldn’t have lifted a finger to stop her escape. Lucian suspected that even if he had tried to restrain her himself, it would have been a trap. If she was truly Jordi’s milk-sibling, Jordi would have stationed hidden protection around her.

“She would have run straight to Jordi’s side. Once there, she would have conveniently forgotten the embezzlement and spun a tale of me being a lunantic—a monster who tried to brutalize his brother’s dear companion over a petty disagreement.”

“But would anyone actually believe such a blatant fabrication?”

“In politics, a lie doesn’t have to be believable; it just needs enough supporters. Currently, I don’t have a single person in this house who will testify for me, while Jordi has an army of people ready to swear to whatever lies he creates.”

“We… we could take the truth to the Grand Duke…”

“That would be the most disastrous move possible. How would my father perceive me if I ran to him because I couldn’t even control my own domestic staff?”

The core of the problem was that Lucian had technically authorized the oversight by handing the budget to a servant in the first place. If the Grand Duke looked into the matter, Lucian’s past negligence would be laid bare. He had to resolve this internally and decisively. The more Jenny was allowed to speak, the more ground Lucian would lose.

Hans listened to the logic, scratching his head with a pained expression.

“But Young Master, you don’t have any allies, do you? Even if you want to handle this yourself, you have no one to carry out your orders. What’s the plan?”

“Well, then I’ll simply have to recruit some.”

“Excuse me?”

“If I lack a faction within these walls, I’ll just go out and build one. It’s quite simple, isn’t it?”

Seeing Lucian’s confident grin, Hans could only tilt his head in confusion. He had no idea what his master was planning. Just as he opened his mouth to ask for clarification, Lucian came to a halt.

“We’ve arrived.”

“This is where we were going? I’ve never seen this place… Wait, is this a gambling hall!?”

Hans stared at Lucian in sheer horror. After finally regaining the Grand Duke’s financial favor, was he really going to throw it all away on a game of chance? Before the panicked valet could even start his protest—

CRASH!

“Everyone, listen up!”

Lucian’s kick slammed into the door of the gambling den, sending it flying off its hinges with a thunderous bang.