Chapter 40 - As a Butler, I Became the Academy’s Heartthrob (2)
“…”
Parmela remained silent, her smile frozen stiff as her lips twitched slightly.
I could easily guess what was going through her mind.
She had always blocked noble ladies’ attention toward me under the pretense that “it’s presumptuous for a commoner to get close to nobles,” but even she couldn’t prevent someone from expressing gratitude to their life-saving benefactor.
“……Very well. Shall we move to another table then, Klien?”
“Once again, I’d like to express my gratitude for saving me, Sir Theodor.”
“You flatter me too much.”
“Please don’t downplay your own achievements. You’re making me feel embarrassed.”
“My apologies.”
It was the same terrace table in the dining hall where Parmela always had her post-lunch tea time. The only difference was that our positions had reversed this time.
I sat across from Klien while Parmela stood behind me with Elina in an awkward arrangement.
Klien, seated opposite me, received a neatly wrapped gift box from her maid and handed it to me.
“This is a small token of my gratitude.”
“Thank you.”
Feeling Parmela’s icy glare piercing my back, I quickly tried to rise from my seat.
“Um, Sir Theodor?”
“Yes?”
“If… if you have time, could we perhaps talk for a while…”
“Oh my. Then we should give you two some space.”
“Lady Parmela?”
“Please… enjoy your ‘quality time’ together… both of you.”
“Yes! Thank you!”
Parmela turned sharply and left with Elina.
“To voluntarily give up her seat so we could talk comfortably… how truly noble of character Lady Parmela is.”
“Haha…”
But I couldn’t laugh comfortably, knowing the retaliation—or whatever it would be—that Parmela would bring later.
Of course, I had no intention of letting this impromptu matchmaking session proceed unchallenged.
“Sir Theodor, what do you do on your days off?”
“Me? I secretly binge drink at shady taverns in the eastern back alleys and play dice games!”
I carefully crafted each answer to make myself sound as trashy as possible in response to her questions.
“Ah… well then…”
Watching Klien’s disappointed face as she excused herself first, I sensed my strategy had succeeded.
“…Did you have fun?”
“No. Not really.”
“It wasn’t fun? Is that how you treat someone who came to thank their savior? Is that what the Herthe family butler training teaches you?”
Parmela, oblivious to my efforts, scolded me like a military senior when I returned from my meeting with Klien.
What was I supposed to do? I did my best.
‘Well, at least it’s over now.’
But the incident during Magical Engineering class was merely the prelude to a series of events to come.
Eight days later.
I was crossing through one of the academy building corridors when—
“Look! Isn’t that the famous Herthe family butler?”
The whispers began with one student pointing me out, soon drawing the attention of passersby.
—Yeah, that’s the one who spectacularly stopped the rampaging golem and saved Lady Klien during the Magical Engineering incident!
—Hey, I saw it myself! Sir Theodor instantly buried that rampaging mandrake during Botany class!
—That happened too? I only heard about how he deflected falling debris when a classroom ceiling collapsed during class.
“Hoh. They’re singing your heroic tales. How does it feel?”
I ignored Vertus and quickened my pace.
My destination was a currently unused classroom at the academy—specifically, one in the corner of the top floor.
Elina greeted me when I entered. Parmela wasn’t present.
“…Let’s get straight to the point.”
Standing by the lectern, we began our usual information exchange.
“Did you secure the evidence?”
Elina nodded and spread the evidence across the desk.
“Here’s the magic core embedded in the golem. This is the fertilizer sample from the garden warehouse. And these are the explosive powders installed in the ceiling.”
“…And Beltane isn’t even trying to hide this evidence.”
Elina sighed in frustration.
“That’s exactly the problem. If these blatant attempts to harm the young lady reach the family head—no, even before that—his reputation in noble society would be completely ruined.”
Since the golem incident, strange occurrences had kept happening around Parmela.
While none were serious enough to threaten her life, there had been several accidents severe enough to potentially harm her and those around her.
As her butler, I had no choice but to intervene each time, which unexpectedly earned me fame starting from eyewitness accounts.
“Why would he…?”
My unconscious question went unanswered by Elina too.
Beltane’s motives remained a complete mystery.
If he wanted to assassinate Parmela, there was no reason to cause such clumsy, attention-drawing accidents.
If anything, he was sabotaging himself.
By now, not only academy officials but even the imperial security forces sent to investigate would know the truth.
They just hadn’t decided how to handle Beltane due to his social status.
“Moreover, if he’s being manipulated by a demon or is a demon disguised as Beltane… it makes even less sense why he’d do this.”
Elina voiced the question calmly.
Even knowing Beltane’s true nature, his actions remained baffling.
“—Anyway, I’ll send the evidence directly to the Herthe family by post. While there’s no proof connecting Beltane to demons, this should be enough to report him to the family.”
After Elina left, I remained alone in the empty classroom, lost in thought.
“…He must be plotting something.”
I’d prefer if he caused open havoc like Vertus—at least then I could just knock him out. This drawn-out cat-and-mouse game was driving me crazy.
“If only I knew what kind of demon he is and what abilities he has…”
—Want to know? I could tell you.
“!”
Vertus’s sudden offer. While extremely helpful to me…
‘What’s his angle?’
He wouldn’t help me without reason.
—Forgotten? If you die, I die too. Call it reluctant cooperation. I’ve been agonizing over this decision until now. And one more thing.
‘What else?’
—Truth is, I have a vague guess about his identity.
‘Really?’
—Just speculation, but if I’m right… the one pretending to be Beltane is among the Fallen Deities I particularly despise.
Parmela Herthe was mentally exhausted.
First, news of her broken engagement with the crown prince had leaked.
“—It hasn’t reached lower nobles yet, but among high nobility like us, it’s being whispered about.”
The young lady of House Sadalena, a rival ducal family to the Herthes, had summoned her unexpectedly and declared this with a triumphant expression.
“Whatever gave you the confidence… to sever ties with the imperial family… Even the Herthes won’t escape the backlash unscathed.”
Though true, Parmela didn’t care. She had prepared for this when pursuing true love.
The crown prince wouldn’t have spread this himself, so where did the rumor start…?
The question crossed her mind, but it wasn’t her main concern now.
Only one thing weighed on Parmela’s mind:
That her “true love” wasn’t progressing as hoped, despite abandoning even her reputation for it.
Thanks to his recent heroic acts during incidents around her, Theodor had begun attracting students’ attention.
Rumors of “defeating the crown prince in a duel” combined with his exploits made his fame snowball.
—That butler Theodor… upon closer look, he’s quite handsome too?
Especially among noble ladies. No woman dislikes a man who shines in crises.
Had he not been a Herthe family butler, they likely would’ve openly flirted with him in all sorts of vulgar ways without hesitation.
“…Tch.”
Reaching this point in her thoughts, Parmela felt a pang in her chest.
“Are you alright, my lady?”
“It’s nothing.”
She feigned composure for her worried butler.
As she walked on:
—There’s Lady Parmela. Still as beautiful as ever.
—But lately… she’s been openly discouraging ladies from approaching Theodor. It’s rather unlike her usual demeanor…
Ignoring the subtle criticisms mixed into what were once pure praises, she continued down the corridor with her attendants.
Yet rather than progressing, the distance between Parmela and Theodor had grown.
Partly because investigating incidents kept Theodor and Elina busy, leaving little time together. But the bigger issue was…
‘…I know. It’s my fault.’
Her way of treating Theodor.
Even normally bad at expressing affection, her jealousy over noble ladies’ attention made her increasingly harsh toward him lately.
This wasn’t her intention, not what she wanted.
Though internally screaming this, her ducal upbringing, Herthe pride, and innate temperament combined to make her—before she realized—the “villainous noble lady” nitpicking and tormenting her butler over trivialities.
‘…What should I do?’
The answer was simple: discard pretenses and honestly confess her feelings.
She knew this, but the mere thought made her heart feel ready to burst.
As she moved to her next class with this suffocating feeling—
“Hello, Miss Parmela!”
Professor Plentina called from across the hall and approached.
“…Good day, Professor. I hope you’ve been well.”
“Yes! Thank you for asking.”
With characteristically cute, quick steps, she stood before Parmela, gazing up with innocent eyes.
“Is something wrong, Miss Parmela? You don’t look well.”
“Oh my. I appreciate the concern… but I’m fine.”
“Ehh. I don’t think so. Shall I guess?”
Why this sudden familiarity when they weren’t close? Parmela kept the question to herself.
“—For example… that the Theodor you admire won’t look your way?”
Plentina’s eyes had turned pink.
“!”
Parmela hastily stepped back to create distance but—
Stagger.
“Ugh…?”
Her legs failed her, making her collapse instead.
Her head rang. Vision blurred.
“What… are you…”
As Parmela swayed, Plentina closed the distance again.
Behind her back had grown a pair of elegant, straight black wings—a succubus’s.
“—Shall I help make him notice you?”