Chapter 23 – Terms of Employment Count Dan’s daughter, Chrisse Gate Vlad was a hikikomori.
Both her parents were magicians over B+ rank.
However, she had no talent as a magician.
When they turned 7, the kids of well-to-do Demon Continent families started going to school. There, they learn to read and write, do arithmetic, and learn history.
When they turned 10, those with talent went to magic schools.
Those without talent went to schools of general education.
The bullying began when Chrisse ojou-sama was 9 years old.
When they turned 9, the cla.s.ses for those who would go on to a magic school and those who won’t were separated as preparation.
Chrisse ojou-sama was put in a separate cla.s.s from her 3 close childhood friends. She alone was put in a cla.s.s for general education.
Three months later―she stopped coming to school because of bullying.
The cause of the bullying was…. because in spite of both her parents having talent in magic, Chrisse ojou-sama did not inherit that talent.
Then, because her three friends had talent, she was separated from them and became alone.
The stage for her bullying was set.
After that, Chrisse ojou-sama became afraid of light and the world outside, even now when she’s 10 years old she hadn’t taken one step outside her room.
Her room was furnished with a bath, toilet, and kitchen. They were specially constructed after that fact.
My head hurt from Master and Madam’s sweetness.
I understood the ojou-sama’s pain. But why didn’t they try to get her outside, and allow her to live inside as a hikikomori……
But they themselves were of course not okay with how Chrisse ojou-sama was currently shutting herself in.
It seems that I was bought as a caretaker and blood bag as one of their efforts.
Unlike people in the Fairy Human Continent, those in the Demon Continent celebrate birthdays every year until they were 15.
At 15 they were considered adults.
It’s like a high school kid graduating from getting christmas presents.
Then, on the day of her 10th birthday, they thought to start with getting her a blood bag as a present, they met the slave trader and he recommended me.
Master liked me at first sight and bought me without haggling―he mistook me for a girl.
Certainly, after a year on the ship, my hair had grown to my chin, and I was almost always at my cabin so my skin was white. My muscles had weakened and my arms had become slender like a girl’s.
If I had to say it, my looks are young and girly.
If that was the case, it probably couldn’t be helped if she misunderstood and I didn’t say anything.
Master, Madam, me, Merry, Gigi, and the maid left Chrisse ojou-sama’s room and went back to the room where we drank scented tea.
“Hahahahahaha! You looked so cute, so I thought you were a girl for sure! You got me there! Hahahahaha!”
“Oh you, always such a scatterbrain.”
Master and Madam laughed cheerfully as if they just went to a comedy show.
I endured the aching in my head and asked.
“But how could Chrisse ojou-sama immediately tell that I’m a boy? Even though n.o.body here did.”
Madam answered my question.
“Vampires move and see better in the dark, you see. That girl has good eyesight, even among us. So she probably could judge at a glance that even when wearing maid clothes, you had the body of a boy instead of a girl.
The head butler Merry bowed his head and apologized.
“I checked the doc.u.ments again, and it was certainly written ‘male’ in the gender column. It was my fault for not confirming baa~.”
“Hahahahahaha! It’s all right, it’s all right! It was my fault for immediately buying him at the shop without checking in the first place!”
“…… I could tell from the smell from the start.”
“Eeeeh!?”
I spontaneously shrieked in surprise.
It was the first time I heard Gigi talk.
As I feared, he had a low voice like a yakuza.
Merry knitted his eyebrows at Gigi’s late remark.
“Then why didn’t you tell me immediately baa~.”
“Because you didn’t ask.”
“So Gigi-san, you couldn’t do a job unless you were told to baa~?”
“I don’t do jobs outside of my charge. It usually causes problems.”
Gigi answered Merry’s sarcastic remarks without changing his expression.
The two glared at each other for a while.
The Madam changed the atmosphere that had gotten sour.
“Merry, Gigi, that’s enough of your quarrel. There’s no use fighting over what’s past. What we must think about for the time being is what we’ll do with Lute, is it not?”
“That’s right. I have behaved disgracefully in front of Master and Madam, I am very sorry baa~.”
“…………”
Merry bowed his head deeply in apology, but Gigi just crossed his arms in silence.
Everyone’s eyes were once again pointed at me because of what Madam said.
If I were returned to the slave house, there was a high chance of me being bought as a male prost.i.tute next time.
I’d rather stay here and become Chrisse ojou-sama’s caretaker and blood bag, compared to that.
My employers the Count and Madam don’t seem to be the type to treat slaves coldly.
This is such an ideal place for me.
That much I can affirm.
Because I didn’t want to be returned to the slave house, I frantically made my appeal.
“Please. Let me work here some way or another! I’ll do my best as a blood bag to open up ojou-sama’s heart!”
“I am very sorry but I must object. Having a boy attached to ojou-sama is…. Firstly, ojou-sama is afraid of Lute. It’s possible that her symptoms will become increasingly worse because of him baa~.”
“I’ll approve. In fact, he should be taking care of ojou-sama because he’s a boy.”
Gigi directly opposed Merry’s opinion.
Merry was surprised and hastily questioned him.
“Gigi-san, do you really think so!? Did you not see how frightened the ojou-sama was baa~!”
“That’s why I think it needs to be done. Ojou-sama already had female friends her age. It won’t mean anything to add another female friend her age. But something might happen if she got a male friend.”
“Gigi-san……”
The unsociable, scary faced Gigi-san with one ear torn off.
I was shaking deep inside.
But he now looked like an angel with a pair of white wings growing out of his back.
Merry calmed down his emotions and coughed once.
“I understand what Gigi-san’s thinking. It’s all the more reason we should return Lute for now and look for another slave with the right requirements, is it not? The slave we buy is going to be stationed at the ojou-sama’s side. We should take utmost care in choosing baa~.”
The head butler Merry wanted to return me.
The head guard Gigi wanted me to stay.
I don’t know who had jurisdiction here, but I wished that Gigi-san’s opinion would be heard.
Actually Merry, I’m gonna make you into grilled mutton one day so be ready for it!
Having finished their quarrel, Merry and Gigi’s eyes were turned to their master, the Count.
“Humm, I’ll take into mind what you two said. So in that case I’ll do both, I’ll have Lute take care of Chrisse for 3 days starting tomorrow, if he does well as a blood bag in that time I’ll keep him! If not I’ll send him back!”
“Will it be alright? It would be difficult to get repayment for goods that were returned just at the end of the provisional period, and not even half the price will be returned baa~.”
“Hahahahahahaha! I don’t mind! It was my mistake in the first place! If I don’t even give Lute a chance then this gentleman’s name will be sullied!”
“Good for you Lute. Do your best and be Chrisse’s blood bag.”
“T, thank you very much! Master! Madam!”
I vigorously bowed my head.
It had conditions attached, but it looks like I got a chance to stay with the Vlad family.
Now I’ll do what it takes to please the ojou-sama, I’ll let her suck my blood!
Still wearing the maid uniform, I became motivated and tightened my hand in a fist.
The Count and Madam watched me with a pleasant smile, Merry was dissatisfied, and Gigi and the maid watched with no expression.
Thus the fateful three days, that will decide whether or not I could stay at the Vlad house, begins!