Home/The villainess's personal maid is very good at her job/ch 17

Episode 17

At the medicine bottle that clearly looked expensive, Janet waved her hands.

"You don't have to give me that. I still have medicine left that I'm using."

Instead of answering Janet's words, Kendrick pulled out another bottle.

"This one is good for scars. They say it can erase most scars, so after the wound heals, be sure to apply it diligently."

Janet silently met Kendrick's gaze.

In the man's eyes was a firm resoluteness that would not yield an inch.

"If I don't accept this too, are you going to threaten to throw it away?"

At Janet's question, Kendrick flinched.

"Threaten? That's hurtful. That was just a form of persuasion."

"Persuasion?"

"You seem so unaccustomed to receiving things from others, Miss Janet."

"……."

Struck at the heart of the matter, Janet was at a loss for words.

He was right.

She was still unfamiliar with anyone's consideration or favor. To the point where childish torment directed at her was actually easier to endure.

"But you'll need to get used to it now. As a Ludwig handmaiden, you could become someone's idol, or someone who needs special attention. And above all—"

Pausing, Kendrick smiled as he faced her.

"I enjoy putting things into my people's hands."

……My people.

Janet blinked deeply once.

For some reason, that word struck her powerfully.

Meanwhile, Kendrick himself was also startled by the word he had uttered.

'My people, huh. This is a bit……'

Wasn't that too much like flirting? After saying it, he felt the nuance was a bit odd.

As he was briefly flustered, considering whether to correct it to something like 'partner' or 'comrade'—

"I realize this anew, but Theo really seems like a wonderful superior."

"Pardon?"

Suddenly, at this timing?

But Janet's eyes were filled with sincerity.

"Superiors who take care of their people this attentively aren't common, are they?"

In her previous life, the parachute executive she had served had also only cared about himself, showing no interest in his people.

By comparison, Theo was truly the epitome of a wonderful superior.

At Janet's sparkling gaze, Kendrick was lost for words.

He had certainly received praise, but why couldn't he readily feel happy about it?

As he tilted his head at the ironic feeling—

"I'll be sure to apply these diligently. And I'm late in saying this, but thank you for the gifts as well."

Janet smiled as she tucked the medicine bottles away.

Not long after, the meals they ordered arrived.

After they finished eating, a waiter carefully approached and offered them something after.

"Would you prefer tea or coffee for your beverage?"

"Black tea."

"I'll have coffee, please."

After checking the menu, the waiter disappeared with a polite bow.

Once the table was empty again, Kendrick spoke.

"You seem to like coffee."

"Well, I'm not sure. Rather than liking it……"

Janet paused, furrowing her brow slightly. With a face that seemed to be pondering something, she continued.

"For some reason, when I drink coffee, I feel oddly at ease."

She didn't know why.

Nobles didn't particularly enjoy coffee to begin with, and for the same reason, the Graham household also didn't drink it.

Yet somehow, Janet liked coffee.

Black tea and herbal teas were also good, but they had a different feel altogether.

"So Theo, do you dislike coffee?"

"Yes. I dislike it."

It was a rare, definitive answer.

"Why? Is there a reason?"

"Because once, I drank so much of it I got sick of it."

Drank so much he got sick of it?

At Janet's curious gaze, Kendrick shrugged once in reply.

"Anyway, about the commission you entrusted me with before."

At the naturally shifted topic, Janet's eyes lit up.

"Simon?"

"Yes. The commission regarding him has been successfully concluded."

"You recovered the 30 million Ecl safely?"

"Of course. Every last Ecl, without exception."

And that wasn't all.

One leg and one arm had also been broken.

But Kendrick didn't add that part, merely smiling.

"That's a relief. I didn't want to hand over even a single coin to that bastard."

"Your prediction was exactly right, Miss Janet. He ran straight to the gambling den the moment he got the money."

"If it's gambling, he's the type to jump out of bed even in his sleep."

"So, what are you planning to do with that 30 million Ecl? If there's a disposition you'd prefer, I'll help you."

At Kendrick's question, Janet answered immediately.

"First, I'll pay Illinia the commission fee."

"The commission fee is fine. This much, I can do as a service—"

"No. This was work I commissioned as a client. I should pay the proper price."

At Janet's firmness, this time it was Kendrick who yielded.

"Understood, Client. Then I'll charge you 3 million Ecl as the commission."

As Janet nodded happily, Kendrick chuckled and added.

"Then, how shall I help you with the remaining 27 million Ecl, Client?"

"Well, you see. For the remaining money……"

---

After the meeting with Janet ended.

Instead of heading straight to Ludwig, Kendrick went down to Soluna's basement.

At Illinia's headquarters, Hobbs and Gale were chatting.

"I heard from a traveler from the East that there's a nasty cold going around over there! They said they were worried it might develop into pneumonia!"

At Gale's hearty words, Hobbs nodded.

"Is that so? Then we should stock up on medicine effective against colds, just in case."

"True, this place sees a lot of travelers. You never know which traveler might spread pneumonia."

"Yes. It wouldn't hurt to be prepared—Vice-Captain?"

"Oh! Vice-Captain! It's been a while!"

Belatedly spotting him, the two stopped their conversation and greeted him.

Gale raised his hand and waved cheerfully as he strode over.

"You seem to have gotten even bigger."

"Oh, does it show? I've been building more muscle lately."

Gale, a former mercenary, had a hobby of building muscle.

Apparently, muscles were the standard of beauty or something like that.

Flexing his biceps proudly, Gale smiled smugly.

"Hehe. Our adorable Fernando."

Kendrick ignored Gale, who was whispering to his muscles, and turned to Hobbs.

A coffee cup sat beside the tall stack of papers on the desk.

"You still drink that stuff."

"Coffee, you mean?"

"Yes. You drank it to death on the battlefield—aren't you sick of it?"

On the battlefield, it was hard to get clean water. So before drinking water, they always had to boil it thoroughly.

But boiling water didn't remove mud or impurities.

Drinking plain water mixed with impurities was a trial, so what the soldiers chose instead was to brew and drink "coffee."

The strong aroma and flavor masked the unpleasant taste.

And since coffee also had a stimulant effect, it was the perfect beverage for soldiers who had to stay alert day and night.

Having drunk so much of it to the point of disgust, even the smell of coffee after being discharged made his stomach churn.

He felt like he'd already drunk a lifetime's worth of coffee in Ashleyad.

"I'm not particularly sick of it. Perhaps it's become a habit—if I don't drink it, I actually feel more anxious."

At those words, Kendrick suddenly thought of Janet.

Janet had also said that she needed coffee to feel at ease.

"Did the meeting go well?"

"Yes. Fortunately, she seems to be adapting well in Ludwig."

"……Why are you saying that so matter-of-factly. You already knew all of that."

Since you've been spying from the villa right next door.

At Hobbs's reaction, Kendrick smiled with crinkled eyes.

"Got a problem?"

"Come on. As if I would. What about the medicine? You delivered it properly, right?"

Nod.

Kendrick nodded as he roughly skimmed the tall stack of papers.

"You're sure it's the kind that won't leave any scar?"

"It's made by the Empire's finest pharmacist, so there's no doubt. You do know that one bottle of that stuff could buy two carriages, right?"

"Only two? Did you buy something too cheap?"

"Alright! Fine! I'll drop it!"

Hobbs replied briskly and let out a deep sigh.

"So, what did she say about handling the 30 million Ecl entrusted to us?"

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