The Terminally-Ill Lord Desires Hospice Care

My name is Betty, a 12-year-old maid of the Berger family this year. No… “Was a maid” might be more accurate.

To be honest, I had pride in working for the Berger family, the work was easy, and above all, they had the finest facilities, so I wanted to stay attached there for life.
But thanks to the damn orders of that old butler, I ended up in this tragic situation of having to follow the lord, the former lord, to some rural area.

It’s not that I dislike the lord. Our lord was the only noble who didn’t punish the servants even if we accidentally stepped on his feet or got caught gossiping behind his back. There are rumors that it’s simply because he has no interest in subordinates, or that he views us as less than ants, but at least I’ve never seen him get angry.

Yes, he’s more or less that gentle, but… even so…

“Lord, no, Raul sir…?”
“What is it?”
“Are you perhaps in a bad mood?”
“What reason do I have to ask such a question?”
“Your expression has seemed rather unpleasant since earlier…”
“To be precise, it is neither good nor bad.”

To be honest, it feels awkwardly uncomfortable. I feel like I would be 10,000 times more comfortable sitting next to the coachman uncle. From his very appearance, the lord is not exactly a bright person.

A pallid complexion devoid of vitality, hollow eyes empty of warmth or light and shadowed lids, an androgynous face of both beauty and handsomeness, a jet-black tied-back hairstyle more befitting a woman than a man, a cold yet distinct baritone voice, and a slender yet well-proportioned build.
To be honest, he is beautiful, but also gloomy and frightening enough to be mistaken for a ghost.

“…However, if my face and expression are so uncomfortable for you.”
The lord suddenly changed his posture, squatting down to bury his face between his knees. Then, gazing at me with those faintly visible hollow eyes over his knees, he spoke.

“Raul sir…?”
“This way, my expression will not be visible, so we can both be more comfortable.”

And as rumored, he was indeed an eccentric beyond imagination. An utter eccentric unmatched in the empire, with mannerisms and speech that defied comprehension.
But…for some reason, he did not seem cowardly or lecherous, contrary to what the other maids and servants said.

As time passed and night fell to the point we could no longer see ahead, we had to disembark from the carriage and make camp.
While the coachman uncle and I were fine, I worried about the lord.

“Coachman uncle… Is it really okay for someone like Raul sir to camp out like this…?”
“Little girl. Do you know how many years that man has spent on battlefields?”
“Ah…!”

The lord nonchalantly soaked the end of a stick in whale oil and easily lit a fire by snapping his fingers.

“…Does going to war make everyone like that?”
“Well, at least I can’t do that.”

Having not eaten all day, I wanted something to eat, no matter what. Be it the lord, the coachman uncle, or myself, all people need to eat to survive.

“Uncle, there’s a box with food supplies in the back of the carriage. Could you bring that out?”
“To think you can still stomach food in the middle of these woods.”
“Be they nobles or commoners, there’s no one who can live without eating, is there?”
“Listening to you, I’d think you were a 10-year mercenary veteran.”

The coachman uncle clicked his tongue as he retrieved the box full of food supplies.
“Eh?”
But the box the coachman uncle brought out was completely empty.
“I’m certain there were plenty of supplies loaded in here last night…!”
“The work of those who despise the lord, no doubt. Likely the maids attending the young miss.”
“Huh…? But why…?”
“How should I know the lewd thoughts going through their minds. Whether it’s to curry favor with the next lord or what. Filthy hyena bitches, at any rate.”

Whether they were hyenas or wolves, I had no particular interest.
The only important thing was the fact that I would be going hungry.

“…What’s wrong?”
“Raul sir, that is…”
“It seems we have no food supplies.”
“I’m so sorry, I’ll take responsibility and go forage for fruit or something…!”
“It’s fine.”

It now seemed we were doomed to starve. No matter how gentle the man was, never getting angry even if you stepped on his feet, he was sure to get angry about being starved.

“Is there any food anyone strongly dislikes?”
“No…”
“Then bring back anything you find.”

Leaving just those words, the lord walked into the woods, empty-handed without any proper hunting tools.

“Will he be alright…”
“Yeah, returning safely without even a torch.”
“No, I mean being able to hunt successfully…”
“…Feeding yourself comes before your master, it seems.”
“We’re just trying to survive, aren’t we?”

And sure enough, less than an hour later, the lord returned with the same impassive expression as if nothing had happened. At first, I considered his safe return fortunate, wondering what kind of hunting was possible on a night like this.
“Unfortunately, I could not obtain anything like a wild boar.”
At least, until I saw the sack the lord set down.

Seven quails, two rabbits, one freshwater fish, and various edible mushrooms and fruits.
…Just how did you catch all this? It’s so dark now without the sun that you can’t see anything. And how did you catch the birds without even a bow?
No, more importantly, where did you even get that sack from? You definitely set out empty-handed.

“Raul sir, isn’t this far too much food for just us…”
“The fruit is for the horses. While there seems to be hay, they appear exhausted from the heat, so some fruit would be good for them as well.”
“I see. Then if you’ll allow us to handle the preparations, you should rest a bit, Raul sir.”
“No need.”

The lord grabbed a quail that was still alive by the neck, killing it as he pulled out a small knife.
“I’ll do it. You must rest, having driven the carriage all day long.”

The lord’s cooking turned out to be quite lavish. The meat, coated in some kind of fruit juice of unknown origin, had no gamey or foul odor whatsoever.

“…Raul sir, this is truly excellent. I’ve never tasted such delicious meat in all my life.”
“You exaggerate.”
“No exaggeration… By the way, will you not eat any, sir?”
“One fruit will suffice for me.”

And so, the remaining meat naturally became mine and the coachman uncle’s, and we ended up overeating in the middle of the woods.

“…You two sure can eat.”
“You never know when you’ll go hungry again, so my policy is to eat your fill while you can.”
“I see.”

I had intended it as some playful banter expecting a laugh, but the lord neither laughed nor got angry. He simply squatted there, gazing into the campfire.
Seeing the lord like this makes me wonder if his ill reputes were exaggerated. The lord did not seem cowardly, view subordinates as less than dogs, or shirk his duties onto others. No, he seemed quite the opposite.

“Umm…”
Just as I was about to ask the lord about that, a rumbling came from my stomach.
“May I be excused to the restroom for a moment?”
“Just don’t go too far.”
“Yes, understood.”

Of course, while I said that, I was still a lady. There was no way a lovely young lady like myself could let an unrelated man hear the sounds of me using the restroom, so I deliberately walked quite far away to relieve myself.

“Phew…”
But then, the surrounding bushes and trees started rustling.
“What kind of wind is making such a racket…”
“Grrrrrr…!”
Unfortunately, it was not the wind, but demonic beasts.
“These dwarfed jerks…!”

And I knew the identity of these demonic beasts. Massive tigers with horns – the infamous, valuable horn tigers whose hides and horns fetch high prices.
Of course, that also meant they were formidable beasts that required a well-equipped party of reasonably strong adventurers to hunt.
And those horn tigers were now…

“No matter how I look at it, that’s not 15 portions worth.”
It seems the scent from my earlier business had attracted a whole 15 horn tigers.
This must be why the lord told me not to go too far. As the saying goes, ‘listen to your elders and sweet treats will come’ – it seems these tigers listened well, and got meat instead of sweets.

“Grrrrr!!!!”
As the horn tigers charged at me, I tightly shut my eyes.
“In my next life, I’ll be born into a noble family! Damn it!”
“A humble dream, isn’t it?”
“…??”

When I opened my eyes, the horn tiger that had been attacking me was rolling on the ground – with its head completely gone without a trace.
And there was the lord, blood on his palm, gazing at me.

“To have such a humble wish is quite modest of you.”
“R-Raul sir…? You killed that horn tiger just now…? And instantly at that…?”
“Had I not killed it, it would have torn into your neckline. I personally did not wish for that, so I used force. Is there an issue?”

There was no issue per se.
I was just curious how he had killed a horn tiger capable of shrugging off warhammer blows with a single strike.

“Stay behind me.”
The lord then walked towards the horn tiger pack, cane in hand.
“I shall respect the profound and strict laws of your world that I am unaware of. And I apologize for my subordinate’s rudeness in trespassing upon your territory without permission.”

The lord then raised his bloodied right hand.
“However, if you insist on baring your meager fangs regardless, I too shall respond accordingly. You little kittens.”

At that, the terrified horn tigers instantly fled as if they really were just kittens, allowing me to finally heave a sigh of relief.
It seemed the lord’s ill reputes were not entirely exaggerated.
Dragon Massacrer, Giant’s Demise, Sea Angler, Demon of the Land, and Tree Hunter. I could somewhat understand how he earned such epithets.

“…Raul sir. But I was quite far away, how did you know to come so quickly?”
“I heard your voice and the demonic beasts’ cries.”
It seemed the lord had exceptional hearing.
“And the scent was also an important clue.”
“Yes…?”

Understanding the meaning, I could no longer contain my embarrassment and let out a shriek.
“Aaaaaahhhh!!!”
And I could somewhat understand why the lord was called a vexing person.