Magic, steel, heavy industry

Chapter 2 Maid

Inside the castle of Anvil Territory.

Vilan sat leisurely on the sofa in the second-floor living room, holding a glass of fruit wine in his hand.

He had slightly wavy black hair and wore a black lord's robe with gold trim. The robe was made of fine materials, well-tailored, with slightly raised shoulders, and a silver badge on his chest symbolizing the Stone family.

Although Vilan was not well-liked in the Northstone family, his ruthless aunt would not allow him to lose face for the sake of the family's honor. His aristocratic attire not only accentuated his demeanor but also subtly made people forget his age.

Yes, Vilan has just celebrated his coming-of-age ceremony. He is an eighteen-year-old lord, a unique achievement in the Northstone family.

"Speaking of which, this castle is surprisingly clean. I thought I'd have to sleep in the carriage tonight." Vilan touched the non-existent dust on the sofa and looked up at the interior of the castle. Although it couldn't compare to the luxurious castle of the Northstone family, it was clean and tidy, and there were several exquisite oil paintings hanging on the walls.

Llorente, standing behind him, replied with a smile, "It seems Lord Vilan is quite lucky."

Vilan waved his hand. "Was it the assassin we just caught who cleaned this up? These people are really something, accusing someone of being an assassin without asking any questions. Am I some kind of important, high-priority target?"

"Would you like to interrogate him yourself, sir?"

"It wasn't an interrogation, just some curiosity."

"As you wish, I'll be right back."

Llorente nodded and walked out. Watching his reliable figure, Vilan couldn't help but feel fortunate. Although the original owner's parents were dead, they had at least left him a reliable advisor.

Soon, Llorente led the "assassin" in.

This was a tall, slender girl dressed in a gardener's outfit, about the same age as Vilan. She had long, slightly wavy, rose-red hair and a somewhat thin face. What caught Vilan's attention most about her delicate features were her green pupils.

That's right, the so-called assassin was just a poor little gardener girl.

The other person's hands were tied, and there was still a look of shock on their face. Although they tried their best to appear calm, the panic in their eyes could not be hidden.

Vilan gestured for Llorente to untie the ropes, then looked at the girl and said, "So you're the one cleaning my castle?"

Unexpectedly, upon hearing this, the girl immediately and stubbornly raised her head, "This is not your castle, this belongs to Baron Brown!"

"Baron Brown? Wasn't that my predecessor? I heard that baron committed a grave offense of blasphemy against the nobility and was stripped of his noble honors five years ago. What are you to him?"

In the past two weeks, Vilan has also done some things, such as learning a lot of information about the deeds of the Anvil Territory, including the poor Baron Brown.

Upon hearing Vilan bring up the past, the girl's expression darkened considerably, and she said in a low voice, "That's not how it is. My father did nothing wrong; he was framed..."

"Stop. I don't want to know these secrets. You're Brown's daughter? Then it's reasonable for you to live here. Unfortunately, this place no longer belongs to the Brown family. I am the new lord of Anvil Territory, Wieland Northstone. Theoretically speaking, you are now my lord as well."

Vilan laughed with a sense of pride, feeling as if he had finally become the client after years of playing the role of a slacker.

The girl simply turned her head to the side and, in a barely audible whisper, uttered two words: "Robber..."

"I heard you, Ms. Brown."

"...I understand. I will leave here. The castle is yours."

"Leave? Why? You've kept this place spotless. It's obvious that without you, this castle simply can't stay clean."

"Huh?" The girl was visibly taken aback, not understanding what the young lord was talking about.

Neatness? Why not just have your maid handle something so simple?

Seeing the girl's astonished expression, Vilan felt somewhat helpless. How could he tell her that he didn't even have a servant?

He smiled and said, "Miss Brown, I am officially hiring you as my maid so that you can continue to live in this castle. You may seriously consider it."

The girl thought she had misheard. This nobleman, who didn't seem fierce, didn't actually want to kick her out of his castle?

If she were still a noblewoman, then such a thing would be unnecessary to consider; no noblewoman would be willing to become a maid.

But the Brown family had been stripped of their noble status five years ago, and now she was just a lonely commoner, at best a little better off than the serfs outside.

In order to stay in her father's castle, the girl gritted her teeth and said, "I can agree, but I will only do the work of a maid. If you have any other intentions towards me..."

"It's a deal then. Sign this employment contract, and you can start working."

Vilan ignored the girl's warning and handed over a contract that he had just drafted.

As a modern person at heart, Vilan was happy to offer his employees an equivalent employment contract, even though in this world, apart from businessmen, no one really cared about a piece of waste paper.

The girl initially thought the lord intended to make unreasonable demands or exploit her through the contract, but after reading it carefully, she realized she was wrong.

This contract not only detailed the employment relationship between the two, but also listed many of the obligations that Wieland needed to undertake.

For example, paying wages on time.

As the first maid, the girl's salary was two silver coins per month.

After confirming that Vilan had not tampered with the contract, the girl readily accepted the quill pen and signed her name at the end of the contract.

Vilan took the contract back and glanced at it. The girl's name was Iglesias Brown, a beautiful name.

"Well then, Miss Igris, you can prepare a sumptuous dinner for me. I brought some ingredients with me, so you can make do with whatever you like."

"Sir, I am not a cook."

"But I don't have a cook right now, do I?"

Vilan stood up, ignoring Igris's displeasure, and put on his coat. "I need to wander around this castle now. Hopefully, I won't be hungry when I come back."

Then, led by Llorente, Vilan began to wander around.

The guards were housed in the castle estate, which included some low houses originally intended for the guards and servants.

As for Hans, as Vilan's most capable "civil official," he naturally went to learn about the town's details early on, led by the hunters, so that he could report back to Vilan.

The castle wasn't large; in just twenty minutes, Vilan had walked through it all, with the kitchen being his last stop.

The lord suddenly felt like a supervisor and wanted to see if his newly hired maid was working diligently.

When he entered the kitchen, Iglesias was squatting by the stove, holding a rhomboid stone the size of a grain of rice between her thumb and forefinger, and snapping her fingers lightly with her other hand.

Then something magical happened. Even though Igris hadn't done anything, a flame suddenly shot out from her fingertip and easily ignited the stove.