I Raised the Villain’s Daughter Too Well

Top floor of the mansion.
Standing before a door large enough for an elephant to pass through, Maclaine steadied his breath and knocked.

Thud, thud, thud.
"Enter."
"Yes, sir."

Hearing the deep voice from inside, Maclaine opened the door, vowing not to be surprised by whatever he might see—
but he couldn’t stop his eyebrow from twitching.
His master, the head of the Seriratus family.
Seriratus Pitus, whose influence was so immense even the emperor would tread lightly around him—
was sitting on the bed, having his beard braided.

With a ribbon.
"So, how did the butler exam go?"
True to his reputation as a seasoned war hero, Pitus kept his back straight and wore a dignified expression even in this absurd situation—

"Daddy, hold still. It’s hard to braid like this."
"S-Sorry, my dear."
But the moment his eight-year-old daughter slapped his hand, he wilted like a treacherous courtier and smiled sheepishly.

Maclaine bowed his head discreetly and sighed so the master wouldn’t notice.
What was there to hide? Pitus was a hopeless doting father who treasured his late-born daughter above all else.
Once, just because Firnea said she wanted to see a unicorn, he went so far as to hire five thousand virgins and search every inch of the surrounding region where unicorns were last seen.
A full-scale expedition—borderline madness.

Suppressing the unutterable thought, “Shouldn’t he at least give her a proper upbringing…”, Maclaine began his report.
"Yes. It was the 39th exam."
"Hmm..."

Pitus, with a curious gleam in his eyes, urged him to continue.
"I did say to bring only someone who gave perfect answers in the test I designed."
"That was your instruction, yes."
"So the fact that you're here means someone scored perfectly. Only 39 tries in. I expected no less than a hundred attempts."

"..."
Maclaine barely held back a bitter smile.
He thought it was impossible to find someone even in a hundred tries.

That’s how brutal it was. If one couldn’t decipher the hidden meaning in under ten seconds, they couldn’t even attempt the question.
After all, the exam had been designed not to be passed—an idea born from Pitus’s proposal that only the most exceptional butler should serve Firnea.
"Well, fine. I trust you wouldn’t lie, so I’ll take it as fact. So, who’s the one that passed?"

"A boy named Virdem from the Serbus family."
"Serbus, huh. Of course it’s them."
"Ser...bus...?"

Firnea blinked and joined the conversation.
Seeing her do so, Pitus broke into a nauseatingly blissful smile and kindly explained.
"The Serbus family has served us for a very long time, my dear."

"There are lots of families like that, though?"
"You're smart. But even among them, they’ve served the most faithfully. They're incredibly perceptive, so I feel safe entrusting you to them—
well, actually, there’s no one I’d feel safe entrusting my precious daughter to. Not really. How could I trust anyone with someone so adorable?"
"Heeeh~"

Firnea quickly lost interest and resumed braiding his beard.
"...However, there is a slight issue."
"Issue...? Maclaine, are you telling me you chose someone unworthy to serve Firnea?"

"That thought never once crossed my mind. I only meant to say that, if one insists on calling it a problem, it could be viewed as one."
"And what might that be?"
"This Virdem… he’s rather young."

"Hmm? Isn’t that a good thing? How young are we talking?"
"Specifically..."
Maclaine glanced toward Firnea as he continued.

"He’s around the Young Lady’s age."
"...?"
Pitus blinked and asked again.

"Is that… some sort of analogy?"
"It’s literal. Unless my eyes deceived me, he might even be younger than the Young Lady."
"Huh."

Pitus rubbed his forehead, astonished.
"So you’re telling me… a ten-year-old passed my exam? That’s what you're saying?"
"Yes, sir. That’s correct."

"What about the possibility that he guessed all the answers by chance?"
"In the fourth test, without a hint of hesitation, he attempted to kill the maid with a knife. That’s not the kind of action one takes by accident."
"Indeed... That answer couldn’t possibly have come from a lucky guess..."

Pitus pondered in silence for a moment before speaking decisively.
"His talent is exceptional, but he’s too young. Assign him as a branch butler and prepare a new exam."
It was the correct decision. No matter how brilliant he was, they couldn’t place a ten-year-old in a position where he might need to use force in an emergency.

And yet, Maclaine allowed himself a small indulgence.
"Instead of assigning him to a branch family, may I take him on as my personal disciple?"
"Disciple?"

"Yes. I’m getting a bit old myself. I’ve begun to feel the need for a successor."
"Kuhahaha… Maclaine, you—old?"
Pitus burst into loud laughter and nodded.

"Do as you like. If the sapling is that promising, he’s worth cultivating."
"Thank you, sir."
Maclaine rose from his seat, already excited at the prospect of refining a gem he hadn’t seen in years—

"I don’t like it."
"...My daughter?"
—and froze on the spot.

Firnea had stopped braiding his beard and looked straight at Pitus.
"You said he’s my age, right? Then I’ll take him."
"...My dear daughter… If anything ever happens, a ten-year-old child won’t be able to protect you."

"You’re going to let something happen to me?"
"What! Never! I would never let that happen! But just in case—"
"Then it’s fine, right? I’ll raise him well."

She said it in the tone of someone picking up a stray puppy.
Firnea asked.
"Is that not okay?"

"...What could possibly not be okay about it!"
And there had never been a single time Pitus refused a request from Firnea.
Maclaine quietly let out a second sigh.

That little devil had likely decided, in the middle of the conversation, that Virdem sparkled.
Not because he was a good butler, not because she understood his skills—
but like a crow collecting shiny things in its nest, she simply wanted to possess the gem called Virdem.
"Maclaine, you heard her? So let it be done."

"As you command."
Feigning composure as he exited the bedroom, Maclaine let out a bitter smile.
‘…Let’s just hope he doesn’t break.’

It was the first promising gem he’d seen in a long time.
If the boy could just endure until the Young Lady grew bored of him—
Maclaine was already half-resolved to make him the Chief Butler himself.
An almost impossible ambition, but one he couldn’t help entertaining as he walked away.
 
****

Of course, I knew I had passed.
But still—
“…What is this?”

Had I done something wrong?
The maids were binding me tightly with rope and leading me somewhere.
They even blindfolded me.
“It’s nothing serious.”

“Mm.”
A soft voice whispered near my ear, and I instinctively swallowed.
After a moment of consideration, I responded.
“As I said earlier, I sincerely apologize again.”

“…Pardon?”
“You told me to take it seriously, and I may have gripped you too hard. In hindsight, that wasn’t necessary… This isn’t payback with a grudge, is it?”
“…”

No answer.
Was this… actual bullying? Just as anxiety began creeping in, I heard a laugh.
“How did you know it was me? We all sound the same.”

“That was honestly fascinating.”
Dozens of maids, all identical in face, voice, even height.
I had no idea how they’d pulled it off, but if they were all twins, their mother must’ve had a hell of a time.
Still, even twins raised in the same environment develop distinct personalities.
If a butler can’t distinguish people by tone alone, they’re disqualified.

“But your voice is so beautiful, it’s hard to forget.”
“Oh my~”
While I worked on racking up favor points with the maid who would be my superior, the blindfold was removed.

We were no longer outside.
The dim room wasn’t well lit, but I could make out that it was smaller than expected—just a single desk and a chair.
“See you next time, Casanova Butler.”
The maids sat me down in the chair and all left.
I thought I was alone.

Until something moved in the darkness.
“Virdem of the Serbus family.”
“…Yes.”

I steadied my startled heart and answered.
A candle flickered to life.
Sitting before me was Maclaine, the Chief Butler—staring at me with a stern and serious expression, a stark contrast to the exam.
“Congratulations.”

“Thank you.”
This didn’t feel like a conversation one should have while tied up in a dark room.
“Aren’t you going to ask what the congratulations are for?”

“I assumed it was for passing the exam…”
“No. If it were just that, we wouldn’t have brought you to this interrogation—no, confession—no, questioning room.”
“Now I’m curious. Why exactly have I been brought to a torture cha—questioning room?”

“Lady Firnea has requested you.”
“Pardon?”
I knew questioning a superior was a sin ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) for a butler, but I couldn’t help myself.

Firnea? The eldest daughter of the Seriratus family?
Why would someone like her want me?
Reading my expression, Maclaine let out a small sigh.

“This process is a one-on-one interview with the Chief Butler, meant to determine whether a candidate harbors any impure intentions.
Well… in the case of someone from the Serbus family, it’s really just a formality.”
Maclaine seemed to have considerable trust in the Serbus.
Then again, if you can’t trust people who literally get cross-shaped magical obedience scars tattooed on their necks just to serve your family, what can you trust?

“So, let’s switch to a Q&A. If you have any questions, now is the time.”
Either way, this was a golden opportunity.
“What kind of person is Lady Firnea?”

Five seconds of silence.
“…She is… an exceptional person.”
“Ah.”

That was all the answer I needed.
I was doomed.