A Sanctuary for the Broken
Shhhhh...
I bowed my head beneath the cascading water.
To think that even the servants were provided with warm water through a water-producing artifact.
I couldn't help but wonder if all ducal households were this lavish.
However, the baths for the servants, the knights, and the family lineage were entirely separate, suggesting a clear hierarchy in the quality of the facilities.
...Did my first introduction go well?
Duke Drynain, my savior's father, had invited me to go Mountain Cave Fishing with him.
Taken at face value, it could be interpreted as a friendly gesture to get closer, but...
That incredibly cold face of his. I had absolutely no idea what he was thinking.
And considering the shocked reactions of the knights standing nearby and the head butler at his side...
Perhaps the Duke had found it unpleasant that a commoner from a mountain village was prattling on so excitedly, and his invitation was merely sarcasm.
Maybe he intended to drag me up a mountain under the guise of fishing, only to punish an insolent commoner.
"But I'm just not used to nobles..."
Even when I worked as a mail carrier, the highest-ranking people I ever encountered were mid-level merchants, never nobility.
The only nobles I had ever met were... the Hero and Lady Seria.
Grit!
Just thinking about the Hero made me grind my teeth.
The man who took Seraphina, the woman I loved.
He had even forced his mana into my body, destroying my Mana Road and trying to kill me.
Needless to say, he was a mortal enemy whom tearing to shreds wouldn't even begin to satisfy.
With all my heart, I wanted to exact revenge on him somehow, but...
"What can I even do now...?"
My mana road was ruined, and I was left with a crippled leg and a blind eye.
In contrast, my opponent was the Hero, a man bestowed with the miraculous power of the Holy Sword.
He had even crossed the dungeon walls into the demon realm; I didn't even know where he was.
Whether by my own strength or the reality of the situation, there was no way for me to take revenge on the Hero.
The Hero was a noble, a man of immense power carrying the expectations of the entire world.
I, on the other hand, was just a former resident of Magia Bell, a remote mountain village known only for its Magical Ore.
But...
"One day..."
I would surely repay the debt to the bastard who took everything from me.
"Abel. Wear this."
As soon as I stepped out after washing up, Sebas, the head butler, handed me a black butler suit.
"I had it tailored based on the measurements of the clothes you took off. Let me know if there is any discomfort."
"Thank you."
I immediately went to the nearby changing area and put on the uniform.
...It felt a bit constricting.
The stiff fabric wrapped tightly around me from my neck down to my ankles, and white gloves covered both of my hands.
A black tie was fastened around my neck, making me feel slightly suffocated.
It was likely a reaction to having worn only comfortable, loose clothing my entire life.
Since this would be my daily attire and working uniform from now on, I needed to get used to it quickly.
"It suits you. Once you master the proper posture, anyone would mistake you for a seasoned butler of the Valstein family."
"Thank... you."
He smiled warmly, looking at me with great approval.
Was he naturally this kind?
Or perhaps my savior... no, Lady Seria, had said something to him on my behalf.
Come to think of it, with the exception of the Duke, everyone I had met here had treated me with immense kindness.
"Let us head to the workshop."
"The workshop?"
"That is where the young lady's personal servants gather. The number of active staff varies by one or two depending on the schedule, but keep in mind that the total count is ten."
Ten personal servants just to attend to a single noble lady...
I wondered if this was standard for nobility, or if it was an extravagance unique to a ducal house.
But my doubts didn't matter. I was merely one of the servants hired to work here.
"I will keep that in mind."
I had to adapt to my environment.
Step, step.
We walked through the grand hall of the castle and entered a corridor.
There were countless doors lining the hallway, and we crossed paths with several maids and knights along the way.
While exchanging brief greetings as I followed the head butler, I carefully observed my surroundings.
It would be unacceptable for a servant to not memorize the layout and facilities of the place they lived and worked.
"From here, we turn this way."
The head butler, walking with his hands clasped behind his back, led the way down a bending corridor.
Step.
As soon as I turned the corner, a door came into view at the very end.
Unlike the single doors we had passed so far, this was a grand double door.
Creak—
The head butler gripped the handles with both hands and pushed them open.
Clack-clack-clack...!
The mechanical whirring of machinery echoed from within.
At the very front table, I saw a maid diligently operating a sewing machine with spinning gears.
Though she needed to adjust the fabric with both hands, she had only one arm.
At another table, a boy was trimming branches from a large potted plant with shears.
He was supported by a chair that resembled a step ladder.
The boy had no legs.
The other tables were no different.
A girl folding laundry with only three fingers.
A man hopping around on one leg.
A maid who appeared to be a beastkin.
All of them were silently carrying out their assigned duties.
Taking in the entire room, I instantly understood why this place was called a 'workshop,' and why Lady Seria had so many personal servants.
This place was a sanctuary created by a woman named Seria de Valstein, providing a livelihood for those whose physical disabilities made it difficult to survive in a harsh world.
"Head Butler. May I... introduce myself?"
From today on, I would work here.
I would become one of them.
"Since you will be seeing each other daily, an introduction is indeed necessary."
At Head Butler Sebas's words, I took a deep breath.
"Nice to meet you!"
I raised my voice to draw their attention.
"My name is Abel, and I will be working here starting today! I look forward to working with you all!"
I bowed deeply at a ninety-degree angle and slowly raised my head.
Some froze and stared blankly.
Others cast wary glances.
One even let out a low whistle, looking at me with amusement.
For now, they all looked at me as a stranger.
...But I would do my best.
I resolved to be of help to them and to repay my debt to my savior.
"Anes."
"Yes, Head Butler!"
At his call, a maid stood up from one of the tables and approached.
...A sheep?
She had curly, wool-like hair and spiral horns like a snail's shell.
Her eyes were goat-like, and her mouth protruded slightly.
It might be rude to think, but 'she' looked exactly like a standing sheep wearing a maid uniform.
"Since Abel lacks experience as a servant, you will guide him as his senior, Miss Anes."
"Ah...! Me, as a senior! Yes, sir!"
At the head butler's words, she turned to me, waving with a bright smile.
As expected, her hands were hooves.
"Come this way!"
She grabbed my arm, attempting to pull me along.
Stumble.
Noticing my unsteady posture, her face fell in realization, and she quickly let go of my arm.
"I'm sorry. Let's go slowly."
I nodded to her as she spoke as if nothing had happened.
She led me out, passing the head butler, who had begun inspecting the workshop.
"Hmm. First of all... do you know where the restroom is?"
"Yes. Next to the bath..."
Stop.
She suddenly halted.
"Senior."
She turned her head and stared straight at me.
At first, I didn't understand what kind of answer she wanted, but looking into her sparkling, bright yellow eyes...
"...Senior Anes?"
"Yes! I'm your senior!"
She cheered, her ears twitching with excitement. She really was a sheep.
And so, I walked around the castle with my senior, learning the layout of the facilities.
"Do you understand, Junior?"
"Yes. I've memorized it, Senior."
"Oh? Really?"
When I explained the locations of each facility to the skeptical sheep senior, she gasped.
"Junior, are you a genius?!"
"I'm... not a genius."
I might have been called one when I was a child, but now I was nothing.
"You are a genius! Anes has never seen anyone memorize things this quickly!"
I had never seen a talking sheep before, either.
As she stepped closer, I noticed something strange around her neck.
While the rest of her body was covered in wool, the middle of her neck was completely bare, covered instead by a lace choker.
Flinch!
Sensing my gaze, Senior Anes hurriedly covered her neck with her hand and stepped back.
"I'm sorry...!"
Fearing I had offended her, I immediately apologized.
"N-No! You did nothing wrong, Junior! Let's go see the places the young lady visits most often!"
Turning her back to me, my senior walked ahead.
Watching her walk away, a memory from the market square surfaced.
I remembered seeing beastkin with animal heads bound in iron shackles, chains wrapped tightly around their necks as they were dragged along.
Although the existence of the Beast Kingdom generally ensured that beastkin rights were respected in other nations, there was an exception.
Beastkin who looked more like animals than humans were not even considered citizens within the Beast Kingdom itself...
"Hurry up, Junior!"
"Ah... yes!"
It didn't really matter.
She was simply the senior teaching me the ropes.
"This is Lady Seria's room. Of course, the maids handle the cleaning, so male servants rarely have a reason to come here."
My savior's room was located on the second floor of the castle.
There was a massive window in the center overlooking the grounds, with a desk and a bed beside it.
While it was spacious enough to be fit for a noble and the furniture appeared luxurious, it was far too simple to be considered a young girl's room.
It looked like a place meant solely for sleeping.
"The young lady has loved playing outside since she was a child! She never seemed to care for the dresses or accessories that other noble ladies adore!"
That was true.
When I first saw Lady Seria, I thought she was breathtakingly beautiful, but she didn't seem like someone who spent time dressing up.
"Even when we first met, she came charging in wielding a sword like some boy swordsman!"
"A sword?"
"Yes! Right into the auction house to beat up the bad guys so coolly... Ahem! Let's stop looking at the young lady's room and find your workplace, Junior!"
Caught up in her excitement, the sheep senior cleared her throat and quickly reverted to her 'senior mode.'
She walked toward the door, and I followed.
The next place we arrived at was...
"Come to think of it, the library happens to be short-handed."
"Ah. Is there no one in charge of it?"
"No! There is someone in charge, but we need someone with the strength to move the books."
There was someone in charge, but they needed a strong hand?
I wondered if it was a massive library, like a grand public archive.
When we reached our destination...
...A child?
I saw a black-haired maid girl sitting atop a hill of books, reading.
She kept her eyes closed, tracing the surface of the pages with her fingers before turning them.
It was not the way a normal person read, and I realized then that the girl was blind.
Looking closer, I spotted long ears poking out from beneath her maid headdress.
The girl was an elf.
"Lisa~"
Senior Anes called out, bending her knees slightly and spreading her arms.
"Sister...?!"
Leaping down from the hill of books, the girl ran toward us with quick, small steps.
I worried she might trip over the towers of books scattered around since she couldn't see, but...
Plop!
The small elf girl dove straight into my senior's embrace.
"What were you doing?"
"Mmh! I was reading a book about foxes..."
The girl spoke in a tiny, whispering voice.
Then, trembling slightly like a small animal, she turned her head toward me.
"Is... someone there?"
"Yep. This is Abel. He's a newcomer who will be helping you from now on."
"N-No! I can do it by myself! I've memorized all the locations and titles of the books!"
"I know, I know~ Our Lisa is so smart that she has everything memorized."
Glancing at me briefly before looking back at the elf girl, my senior continued.
"But you're still young and small, Lisa. You can't organize all the books in this library by yourself, can you?"
"I-I can!"
"Even with returned books and new arrivals piling up every single day?"
"..."
At those words, the girl stepped back from Senior Anes's embrace, tapping her foot lightly to gauge the piles of books around her.
"Okay..."
Realizing she couldn't handle it all on her own, she gave a small nod.
"Good. Ask Junior Abel for help. I only met him today, but he seems like a veeeery kind person. Right, Junior?"
At Senior Anes's question, I could only reply,
"Yes. I will do my best."
The elf girl named Lisa looked so frightened and anxious.
...Winning her trust would have to be my first priority.
My task for the immediate future was set.