First things first!
I needed to figure out what I had—and what kind of mess I was dealing with.
Sitting in my chair, I ordered Lucy to summon every single person who lived or worked in the household. It took nearly an hour, since some were off duty and at home, but eventually, she returned with them.
And... it wasn't what I expected.
I thought there'd be a swarm of maids, butlers, workers—some grand display of manpower. Instead, House Felton barely scraped together three people. Guess being on the brink of ruin doesn't leave room for luxury.
Lucy arrived with two women and a short, pudgy old man in noble attire.
My eyes barely registered the man. They immediately locked onto the women.
The first was tall, with dark skin, long black hair cascading down her back, and elongated ears—probably a dark elf. The memories didn't reveal her name.
But the second one? Oh, she was everywhere in Taurus's memories.
Short, with bouncing blonde curls, porcelain skin, a button nose, delicate lips, and a petite frame that contrasted wildly with her generously oversized chest—she was beautiful. Her name was Alice. A childhood friend of Taurus.
I guess... she's mine now.
They bowed.
"Lord Taurus," the fat man spoke with a wheeze, "allow me to congratulate you on becoming head of House Felton. I am the treasurer. At your service."
So, he was the money man. Good. A place to start.
The women greeted me politely, and I motioned for all of them to sit. Lucy took the seat at my right like a loyal shadow.
"Alright," I began. "Thanks for coming. Let's get to it—I've heard this family's on the verge of collapse. As the new head, I can't just sit back. I need to ensure our survival. So, Mr... what was your name again?"
"Mr. Leigh, my Lord."
"Right. Mr. Leigh. What's our financial situation? Show me everything we own."
To my surprise, commanding others came naturally—like the role fit me.
He scurried off like a rat and returned moments later with a small chest. He placed it in front of me with a grim look.
"This… is all we have, my Lord."
I opened it to find less than ten gold coins, two silvers, and a few bronze.
"How much is this worth?"
"It's enough to pay the staff for this month, my Lord. But… not enough to cover food supplies."
I frowned. "Really? Where's the ledger? The record of all transactions and income?"
"You mean... a record book?" He blinked. "Well..." His eyes darted sideways.
"There is one, right?" I asked, folding my arms.
"Yes, Young Master," Lucy replied.
I turned back to him. "So... where is it, Mr. Leigh?"
He averted his gaze again before muttering, "I… don't know. Probably lost somewhere."
He was lying. I could tell. Because I used to lie—and I was terrible at it. Just like him.
"You're lying. You do know."
He gasped, eyes wide. "W-What? Me? Why would I steal the record book?!"
I sighed. "So you did steal it. You just said it yourself."
"No! I didn't! How dare you accuse me of such a trivial crime?! I've served this house for years! Your father never questioned me!"
Classic liar behavior—defend yourself by reminding everyone of your good deeds.
"My father was a fool to trust someone as untrustworthy as you," I said coldly.
Alice and the other maid gasped.
Mr. Leigh's face twisted with rage. He raised his hand and began muttering under his breath. A glowing blue sphere began forming in his palm.
Before I could process what he was up to, he stretched his hand forward, letting the sphere come at me at an incredible speed.
But Lucia reacted at an incredible speed as well as she slapped it away mid-air, redirecting it into the wall. It exploded, leaving a hole.
Heart pounding, I stumbled back.
Was that magic?
Lucia's expression shifted from the sweet, beautiful maid I've seen, to something else. Raw anger was nkw etched all over her face as her eyes blazed blood-red. Without hesitation, she leapt over the table and slammed her boot into Mr. Leigh's face, sending him flying. Before he could even stand up to breath, she charged at him again, grabbing him by the collar and raining down punches on his disgusting face until it turned red with blood smeared all over it.
Then, she slammed him to the floor and spit on him.
"No one harms my Young Master while I'm here! Know your place, old man!"
I watched, horrified, as Leigh wheezed and bled on the ground. Lucia calmly wiped her hands with a handkerchief, flashed me a sweet smile, and returned to her seat beside me like nothing happened.
Terrifying.
"Please, continue, Master," she said softly.
I swallowed hard. I really shouldn't get on her bad side.
Clearing my throat, I sat upright again.
"As I was saying… my father was a fool for trusting that man. If I had to guess, he was stealing the family's funds and got rid of the ledger to cover his tracks. A sloppy thief. And because of that—he's fired. Any objections?"
I scanned their faces. Alice. The elf. Mr. Gray, the butler. All silent.
"No objections? Good. Moving on—how much debt are we in? I need to know exactly what we're dealing with."
"In that case," Alice said, arms folded, "why don't you go read the history books you were always glued to? They've got all the info you need, dummy. Stop bothering us."
I sighed. Rude tone aside, she was right.
"Alright, everyone," I said, standing. "Search the entire mansion. Bring me anything valuable—no matter how small. Understood?"
They nodded and scattered to their tasks, leaving Mr. Leigh groaning on the floor.
Lucia, still at my side, grabbed my hand and slid it between her soft, massive boobies, humming like remaining alone with me was the only thing that gave her joy.
I exhaled, letting her lead me to the library.
It was time to uncover what I was truly up against—and figure out how to claw our way back to power.
I wasn't doing this out of duty. I didn't give a damn about the responsibility forced on me, or about House Felton's crumbling legacy.
No.
I was doing this because once, I was pathetic. Powerless. Invisible.
But now… now they had to look at me and call me Master.
And that didn't sound so bad.
TBC