Warlock Apprentice

Chapter 1331: Section 1332 Servant Issues

Angel returned from the Wilderness of Dreams to reality and immediately left the manor.

At the door stood a somewhat shy girl, her features typically those of the southern Homo Sapiens, with a high nose bridge and deep eye sockets, and a very profound facial contour. Her emerald eyes were like limpid pools, shimmering with light. She had some light brown freckles on her cheeks, and her flaxen hair was tied into a long braid.

“Lucia? Why are you here, where is the Turin butler?” Angel looked over with some confusion.

Previously, the Head Maid Mana managed all the affairs of the manor due to a sudden misfortune. Now, the Turin butler has taken over her duties, a stalwart butler who had been in charge of the estate’s affairs since the old Pat was alive.

And Lucia, Angel remembered she was also a servant of the manor. He didn’t have much of an impression of her, only recalling that she had a good relationship with the maid Ollie and was quite shy.

“The Turin butler asked me to replace… Sister Ollie’s position,” Lucia said, her expression tinged with sorrow and loss when she mentioned Ollie. It was evident that her bond with Ollie was indeed very deep.

...
So, Lucia was the personal maid assigned to him by the Turin butler?

Angel pondered for a moment and then said to Lucia, “Please go and call the Turin butler for me, I’ll be waiting for you both in the main hall on the first floor.”

Angel didn’t say much more and turned to go downstairs.

In less than five minutes, the Turin butler and Lucia had arrived in the main hall.

Angel glanced at Lucia, “I have something to discuss with the Turin butler.”

Lucia hesitated, then nodded and left.

When only the two of them were left in the main hall, Angel looked at the Turin butler.

This was a serious older man, his hair neatly groomed without a single strand out of place, the tailcoat he wore without a wrinkle, so smooth it seemed raindrops would roll right off.

“Turin butler, I understand you arranged for Lucia to come here with good intentions. However, I should be leaving the manor soon, with no set date of return.” Angel paused, then continued, “As for Lucia, you can reassign her to another duty.”

The Turin butler’s expression didn’t change as he half-bowed, “As one of the masters of the manor, it is essential for you to have one or several personal servants. Even if the young master is not present at the manor, this is indispensable.”

Angel sighed internally; the brothers had been treated to this serious demeanor from the Turin butler since they were young, strictly adhering to noble traditions, and they had been chastised by him over timing and etiquette many times. Therefore, they had always felt a distance from the Turin butler since they were children.

After old Pat died, the Turin butler retired to a corner of the estate. As Lyon had been scared by his scolding in his childhood, he chose to have the more gentle Head Maid Mana take over as the main steward.

Perhaps it was the years of retirement that made the Turin butler more flexible; he seemed quite fond of spending time with the Kulakuka Tribe. If it had been his old self, he would have never allowed people of the Kulakuka Tribe to live on the estate; in his view, apart from servants and masters, there was no place for the Kulakuka people as they were subjects of the territory and should live outside the estate grounds.

It was precisely because of seeing this adaptation from the Turin butler, and since the people of the Kulakuka Tribe also held him in great affection, that Lyon brought him back to manage the estate.

However, once he became the butler again, Turin seemed to return to his old stern ways.

As he expressed, “As a butler, one naturally has to do the work of a butler. Mana did very well, and I approve of her style, but I cannot adopt her style, I can only do as I have been taught.”

The only change in the Turin butler seemed to be that he no longer minded the presence of non-servant personnel on the estate as much as before. But in other aspects, he was completely the same as in the past.

“If the young master dislikes Lucia, I can arrange for another servant,” the Turin butler offered again.

“Naturally, I do not have any aversion to Lucia. I just mean that her mere presence at my door, even if she does nothing, can already distract me. Whether I am meditating or researching, it causes me to lose focus,” Angel said, obviously exaggerating. He said this only because he didn’t want to waste Lucia’s time. Instead of lingering at his door with nothing to do every day, it would be more meaningful for her to do something else.

The Turin butler likely encountered such a situation for the first time, considering that the master was a Transcendent, and he could not apply the old aristocratic formula. After pondering for a moment, he said, “Then I will keep Lucia further away from the young master.”

“In that case, what’s the point of having a servant?”

“Her existence as the young master’s servant is the meaning in itself,” the Turin butler insisted without giving in.

Angel rubbed his temples; when it came to stubbornness, he really couldn’t outdo the Turin butler.

After some thought, he conjured the image of a Mechanical Puppet with his Illusion Technique and said to the Turin butler, “You can consider it to be my servant.”

Angel explained that a Mechanical Puppet could replace a servant in his experiments and daily life.

The Turin butler, unable to see through the illusion, pondered for a long time before eventually nodding, “If it is able to take care of the young master’s daily life, then alright.”

Though the Turin butler was somewhat dissatisfied, since this so-called “Mechanical Puppet” had not learned etiquette and the rules of serving nobility, ultimately it was a Transcendent object, and he refrained from saying more.

Lucia was reassigned by the Turin butler, merely from the position of personal maid to that of a general maid. Her registration was still under Angel’s name.

Angel didn’t say anything about it and directly assigned Lucia to train with the new Head Maid in management.

Having resolved the matter of the maid, Angel prepared to meet with Lyon. He planned to leave the manor for a while, so he wanted to give Lyon a heads-up beforehand.

The result was, before he could meet Lyon, he first encountered a gloomy White Bear.

“Why have you come?” Angel looked at the White Bear with some curiosity. He hadn’t returned to the manor since leaving with Eulica last time.

“I’ve come to deliver a message for the red-haired lord. He has some matters to attend to these few days, so he temporarily can’t come to instruct Lyon,” the White Bear said, his expression tinged with helplessness, “But I’ve come twice already, only to find that Lyon has been sleeping both times. Had I known, I would have used ‘Prophecy’ before coming.”

“Lyon’s sleeping now?”

“Yes, the sun hasn’t even set yet. I have no idea why he’s asleep so early,” the White Bear said helplessly.

Angel speculated that Lyon was probably exchanging combat skills with Sir Sabel in his dreams. Originally, Lyon planned to learn from Tullas, but Tullas’s method of exchange was to fight.

In the Wilderness of Dreams, Lyon wasn’t a Transcendent. He was utterly outclassed by Tullas in pure combat skills.

Although improving through combat was a good method, every time Tullas won, he would show an excessively triumphant look, which made Lyon gnash his teeth in frustration. So, he turned to Sir Sabel for advice. Sir Sabel, steadier than Tullas, provided a one-sided exchange, from which Lyon learned many useful techniques.

Naturally, Lyon was very pleased, so lately, besides seeking out Sir Sabel in the Wilderness of Dreams to learn combat skills, he spent time practicing in the manor’s combat arena. Thus, it was normal for the White Bear to be unable to find him.

“I happen to have something to discuss with Lyon as well, so I’ll go and tell him. You don’t need to leave a message,” said Angel.

The White Bear showed a look of gratitude, “That would be wonderful.”

The White Bear left satisfied. Angel glanced at Lyon’s room, shook his head, and turned to leave without disturbing his sweet dream.

He would speak with Lyon about the departure when the time came, in the Wilderness of Dreams.

Angel didn’t linger in the manor either. Calling for Popota, he leaped into the air and took out his Gondola, preparing to leave.

However, just as the Gondola had started up, he heard an eagle’s cry from behind. Turning around, he saw Sanders’s Magic Falcon, left here with its large wings unfurled, following him and flying over.

After thinking for a moment, Angel stopped the Gondola until the Magic Falcon boarded the Flying Boat, then set sail anew.

He had two purposes for leaving Pat Manor this time. First, he wanted to see Jin.

The only Transcendent who currently knew he was on the Old Earth Continent was Jin, whose trustworthiness concerned him. Especially now with the new issue of “Glowing City Night Talk” out, stirring up the matter of the Abyss, Angel wanted to keep his whereabouts as concealed as possible.

So his visit to Jin was to request that he not share Angel’s location with anyone else for a short while.

The second, and most important, purpose was to construct a Witchcraft Slot.

The Gate Model, after having been constructed for so long, finally lacked only a few final Pattern lines. Although building a Witchcraft Slot was not a big deal, the origin of this Gate Model was too special.

Angel didn’t know if it would cause any ripples, so he left Pat Manor to build his Witchcraft Slot in a place with few people and quiet surroundings.

…

The journey to Conniea was extremely smooth.

It was almost the month filled with blooming flowers, and the weather was no longer as cold as before. Last time he arrived, Conniea was blanketed with a thin layer of snow, but now the snow had melted, revealing the thriving side of Conniea.

However, Angel had no intention of setting foot in Conniea, and drove the Gondola straight to the outskirts farm where Jin was located.

When Angel reached the warehouse he had visited last time, he once again encountered the “Silver Star,” who had tried to scare people disguised as a ghost. Faced with Angel’s teasing gaze, Silver Star obviously felt a bit embarrassed.

“I didn’t expect it to be Your Excellency. I thought it was just an ordinary person trespassing,” Silver Star said somewhat shyly.

Looking at her expression and movements, probably no one would guess that Silver Star’s true form was a terrifying snake-haired Sea Demon. Moreover, one that had favorable feelings towards humans.

Angel stated his intention to see Jin.

After listening, Silver Star shook her head, “Ever since Your Excellency’s last visit, Lord Jin has been in closed-door cultivation and hasn’t come out yet.”

Upon hearing this, Angel was taken aback. Based on what Silver Star said, had Jin been in seclusion for almost a month under the influence of the ocean’s rhythm?

This was indeed curious.

To be in seclusion for so long must mean that the ocean’s rhythm had a significant impact on him.

Since Jin was in seclusion, Angel figured he probably couldn’t communicate with outsiders, so he didn’t stay any longer and bid farewell to Silver Star before leaving.