Gospel of Blood

Chapter 56: Castell Family Old Acquaintances

Charlotte didn't expect that Nice, this handful cat, would actually engage in information sale.

If you calculate the time, it should have been when she was still hospitalized at the church hospital half a month ago.

This guy is really bold. As a cat of the church, he actually dares to profit from the church, not afraid of provoking the wrath of the High Priest.

She decided to wait until she returned home to interrogate the other party properly and give it a good beating, so she wouldn't be sold one day.

The carriage continued to move and entered the outer city area.

This was Charlotte's first time coming to the outer city area during the day, feeling as if she had entered another era.

Dirty streets, and rows of cheap houses, although better than the dilapidated and desolate old city area, most pedestrians were dressed plainly and looked impoverished, giving the feeling that time had suddenly regressed by one or two hundred years.

Clearly, it was separated by only one wall from the inner city, yet it felt like another world.

It felt like, riding a bus in previous life through an underpass spanning the city, suddenly moving from a brand new, beautiful, skyscraper-filled new city district to an old city district full of make-shift and rundown buildings.

If it weren't for the occasional luxurious carriage passing by on the street, Charlotte would almost believe she had transmigrated again.

"Master, do you want to visit your store? I heard that the servants would come back happily after hearing the news of you leaning towards the church. They should be working hard now."

Sebastian said with a smile.

Charlotte: ...

She didn't believe those who ran away would come back on their own, let alone that the news of her leaning towards the church wouldn't spread so quickly in the outer city area.

She leaned more towards believing that those servants had been lured back by some influential and favored figure...

"No need, leave it to Casimodo. Let's go directly to the best servant market."

Charlotte glanced at the sky, which seemed to be clearing up, and spoke.

"All right."

Sebastian nodded respectfully.

The carriage continued to drive, and after about twenty minutes, it stopped in front of a secluded, old two-story building.

Charlotte glanced at the small building, where she saw a few crooked words nailed to it with wooden boards: "Frank Employment Agency".

"Employment agency?"

A strange feeling rose in the girl's heart.

"Yes, if you want to hire servants, you should come here. Although Frank Employment Agency is not a major agency, it's one of our Rose Society's subordinates."

"It's very secretive here, ordinary people can't find it at all, even your servant Casimodo can't."

"Here, you can hire any servant you want in Borde, even extraordinary ones are not impossible!"

Sebastian said proudly.

After saying that, he paused, smiled, and said.

"Of course, I think you can directly select servants from Rose Society. They're definitely more professional, more powerful, and more loyal!"

"No need, here is enough."

Charlotte shook her head.

The servants of Rose Society had been well trained by Sebastian, which was not conducive for her own majesty training. She wanted to personally assemble a team of servants loyal to her alone.

It's quite tragic, really. Despite being the head of a prestigious noble family and the heir to the domain, destined to return to the estate and manage the land, Charlotte's options for manpower are remarkably limited.

But now, Charlotte had very few people she could use. All in all, there was only Casimodo, plus Sebastian now.

Even the scoundrel Nice, who had signed a life-and-death contract, could only be considered half a subordinate at most. After all, that fellow was too unreliable.

As for Sebastian...

Although he was respectful, he likely had his own purposes and thoughts behind his loyalty to her. While it seemed like they were connected, in reality, they had not yet formed a true bond.

As for the members of Rose Society, they were loyal to Sebastian, not to her.

For those who had already pledged their loyalty, they were no longer blank slates. The effectiveness of the majesty magic brainwashing would be limited, especially since Sebastian held such high prestige within Rose Society.

Charlotte didn't need people from Rose Society, she needed to find some true blank slates instead.

She needed gems that she could freely mold and shape according to her own image!

Especially personal maids. She really wanted and needed to cultivate several maids who could serve her closely, those who could be loyal without having to conceal her Bloodborne identity in front of the other parties.

Ideally, they would not only be young and beautiful, but also professional, reliable, and possessing extraordinary powers...

Of course, for now, Charlotte just wanted to recruit moderately.

Commoner extraordinary were either already recruited by nobles or had grown up and become accustomed to freedom.

As for finding some initial embraces...

For now, Charlotte wouldn't consider it, as it would increase her chances of getting exposed.

"Well, everything will be as you need."

Sebastian said, seeing the girl's refusal. He didn't continue to insist.

He signaled for the carriage to stop, donned his mask, opened the door, instructed the demi-human maid to lay out the carpet, and then gracefully extended his hand towards the carriage.

"My lady, please be careful."

Charlotte glanced at the demi-human maid laying the red carpet at the entrance of the small building and twitched her lips.

But before she could descend, a limping middle-aged man hurriedly rushed out of the small building, looking surprisedly at Sebastian, who was disguised with a mask.

"Lord Sebastian, why are you here?"

Sebastian: ...

"This gentleman, you've mistaken me. I am the steward of this master, Stian."

Sebastian said elegantly.

"Haha, don't joke with me! Even with a mask, I can still recognize your elegant demeanor, not to mention you've laid out the red carpet!"

The man laughed heartily, pointing at the carpet on the ground.

Sebastian: ...

Charlotte glanced oddly at the flame elf, while Sebastian coughed awkwardly and said.

"It's alright. He's a member of our Rose Society, so it doesn't matter if I'm exposed."

With that, he turned to the middle-aged man and said.

"Frank, this is Miss Charlotte. From now on, I am her steward. Seeing her is like seeing me... No, you should be even more respectful than seeing me!"

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"You? A steward?"

The middle-aged man was stunned.

But when he saw Charlotte's appearance and then, later, recognized her, he suddenly fell into a trance, freezing in place and murmuring.

"So similar! Incredibly similar!"

"Wait, the Black Eagle family crest?"

Seeing the emblem on the carriage, the middle-aged man's eyes widened.

His body began to tremble, and he suddenly became excited.

"You... You, you're Lady Charlotte of the Castell family?"

Immediately, the middle-aged man knelt down in front of the girl, choking up with excitement.

"It's you! It must be you!"

"Lady Charlotte, it's me, do you still recognize me? I'm old Frank!"

"I didn't expect to see you again after ten years!"

Charlotte looked at Sebastian with a puzzled expression, and Sebastian looked surprised.

"Um... It's not my arrangement. I'm not sure what's going on."

"However, Frank was taken in by me a few years ago. He used to be a wizard, but his magic circuit has been broken."

"Frank has always been vague about his past experiences. Following the principle of not doubting and questioning people, I have never asked much. After all, Rose Society is not lacking in people with complicated backgrounds."

"Now it seems... he may be an acquaintance of yours."

"I was a battle mage! I used to be a battle mage of the Borde Mage Corps, always following Lord and Lady Castell!"

"My wife used to be the head maid of the Castell Manor!"

Frank hastily said.

Charlotte's heart stirred. The original owner's parents were the heads of the Borde Mage Corps.

This middle-aged man claiming to have been a member of the mage corps might indeed be an acquaintance of the Castell family.

Moreover, his wife had once been the head maid of the manor?

Charlotte carefully recalled her inherited memories and found some vague memories of the head maid getting changed, but it wasn't very clear.

But... how did they end up in the outer city area and then taken in by Sebastian?

Charlotte was curious and puzzled.

She glanced at the residents gradually gathering in the distance to watch the excitement, revealing a reassuring smile.

"Let's go inside first and talk slowly."

Seeing the girl's innocent and warm smile, Frank was momentarily stunned. But he quickly reacted, bowed respectfully, and then excitedly said.

"Alright... Alright! Mina will be very excited to see you, very excited!"

...

Led by the excited and nervous Frank, Charlotte and Sebastian entered the two-story building.

In front of them was an old hall, where an old servant was dozing at the door. At the end of the hall was a bar counter, behind which stood a woman in her forties or fifties, her hair already showing signs of graying, but still exuding the charm of her youth. She was smiling and introducing something to a few guests.

Behind her, a huge display board was covered with all kinds of servant information.

On the old steps of the stairwell, two pretty little girls in dresses were giggling and playing freely under the guidance of a beautiful young girl in an old maid's uniform.

The girl in the maid's uniform looked about sixteen or seventeen, tall and outstanding, with fair skin. She had long black hair and a pair of rare black eyes, which made Charlotte feel familiar.

However, although her beautiful face was delicate, it lacked vitality, appearing expressionless like an iceberg.

The feeling it gave was like that of an unapproachable cold beauty in animation.

"Mina! Mina! Look who's here!"

As soon as they entered the hall, limping Frank called out excitedly.

Hearing his voice, the two girls, the beautiful girl accompanying them, and the woman working all turned their heads.

"Daddy!"

The two girls called out sweetly and then pounced into Frank's arms like cheerful pigeons.

"Dear Father."

The beautiful girl stood elegantly, bowed to Frank, and made a very standard gesture. Her voice was cold, almost devoid of emotion.

After speaking, she obediently stood aside, using her cold, vigilant, and distant gaze to size up Charlotte and Sebastian.

The woman who was communicating with the guests was a bit impatient.

She put down her work and said coldly.

"Frank, I've told you many times, don't keep making a fuss, it's disrespectful!"

However, when she saw Charlotte, her gaze quickly settled.

With a "thud," the information in her hand fell to the ground, and she also trembled.

"Madam Catherine?!"

But soon, the woman shook her head.

"No... no..."

"But... she really looks like her!"

Charlotte's heart stirred.

Catherine was her aunt. Before marrying into the Duke's Mansion, she had always lived in the manor.

"Lady Charlotte! Mina, she's Lady Charlotte! Don't you remember? She's our little mistress! She's grown up!"

Frank said excitedly.

"Lady Charlotte..."

The woman was stunned. Then, suddenly, she became excited.

"It's you! You're here! You've come to the outer city!"

"Castell hasn't forgotten us! Castell hasn't forgotten us! Sob... Sob..."

As she spoke, the woman's eyes turned red and she cried out.

...