The Crown Prince Who Raises a Side Character

#44 Cedric the Servant (10) – Image Improvement. Territory Arc.

#44 Cedric the Servant (10) – Image Improvement. Territory Arc.

The denizens of Etched-rye, upon hearing the rumor that Claudia had ousted the Lord Regent and taken up residence in the manor, were seized by a uniform terror.

“Lady Claudia… isn’t she that notorious villainess?”

“They say she beats her servants at the drop of a hat and spews insults, that hardly anyone lasts a year.”

“Why would someone who’s been locked away in her mansion all this time suddenly take on the affairs of a lord?”

“Perhaps she intends to bleed us dry with exorbitant taxes!”

“Maybe she’ll feed disobedient villagers to magical beasts!”

“Hush! Keep your voices down! What if someone overhears us?”

In Etched-rye, Claudia’s name was infamous for all the wrong reasons.

It wasn’t that she had rampaged through the territory causing havoc, but rather that those who had entered her manor as servants only to flee in horror spread tales of every conceivable horror.

As is often the case with rumors, perhaps half was exaggeration or distortion, but the remaining half was based on firsthand experience, and thus could not be dismissed as baseless slander.

The villagers trembled, consumed by dread, wondering what Claudia would do next.

However, Claudia betrayed their expectations in the best way possible.

– Woof! Woof woof!

– Growwwl.

“…That fearsome demon beast everyone talked about? It’s just a dog with red fur?”

“These things are supposed to be guards? How is that even possible?”

The citizens of the domain were first taken aback by how surprisingly adorable the infamous Blood Demon Beasts that Claudia commanded were. Then, they were astonished by the announcement that these dogs would serve as guard dogs. Finally, they were amazed that it actually worked.

“I was about to get beaten to a pulp by some thugs when I heard dogs barking somewhere. Before I knew it, the guards came charging in. I owe them my life.”

“I lost my coin purse and kept searching, but a woof-woof found it for me!”

“My son’s a soldier in the guard, and he says his job’s gotten much easier these days. No need to wander around all over the place like before; he just waits and then goes wherever the dogs lead him.”

“Those criminals who had set up shop in the back alleys, they’re scared witless by even normal dogs these days, it seems.”

Claudia, who everyone thought would just sit around and do nothing, was surprisingly competent at running the domain. As a result, public opinion towards her flipped almost instantaneously, like turning over a palm.

There were two main factors behind this rapid surge in support.

One was that expectations for Claudia were absurdly low.

And the other was that the policies she implemented were incredibly ‘easy to feel’ and understand.

The truth is, even when a high-ranking official enacts a policy for the sake of the common people, it’s rare for those people to directly experience it and rejoice.

Extreme policies created without considering the social impact often cause side effects, earning them negative reviews. And policies that are carefully adjusted often have minimal effects, or require a long time to show significant results, making them equally difficult to perceive.

In contrast, the Blood Demon Beast guard system was immediately visible, easy to understand what they were doing, and the citizens didn’t have to endure any effort or losses in the process.

Introducing the new guard system didn’t result in additional conscription among the citizens, nor did it mean higher taxes.

It was a situation where they were purely benefiting without paying a price, so the citizens could praise Claudia with peace of mind, without any hesitation.

Of course, there were those who opposed this sentiment.

*

“Damn it. This is screwed.”

Hamelne, a young official of the Etched Dominion, was one of the most outspoken opponents of Claudia’s moves.

It wasn’t exactly because he was taking bribes from criminals, or that he disliked the improvement of Etched’s security.

No, in fact, he quite highly regarded Claudia regarding that point.

To be precise, he only highly regarded “that part.”

“You can’t just kick people out and not bring a proper alternative! You just dump a ton of newbies on us and expect us to work together? Does she think that actually works?!”

Those who quit their jobs in protest of the Lord Regent being ousted were mostly people close to the Regent, and financially comfortable.

In other words, they were high-ranking officials within the bureaucracy.

Claudia filled their vacancies by promoting some of the lower-ranking officials, including Hamelne, but he received the work without any transition or handover. It would be strange if things were going smoothly.

And he couldn’t even dedicate himself solely to this.

He also had to simultaneously teach the rookies who were new to the organization and didn’t know anything about administrative work.

Anyone who has experienced organizational life in society would know to some extent, but rookies are more of a burden than an asset until their adaptation period is over.

Answering their questions about what to do about this and what to do about that is itself a time and mental energy-consuming task.

“She can fool people with flashy policies for now. But soon, accidents will happen everywhere…”

And when those things happened, it was likely that Hamelne and other existing officials would be held responsible.

The Lord is not one who takes responsibility but one who asks it, and cutting off the existing officials would be more helpful in strengthening power than cutting off the newbies who are purely Claudia’s people.

One day, Hamelne was feeling intense depression about the future that looked anything but positive.

“Take this.”

Summoned to the Lord’s office, Hamelne blinked as Claudia handed him a bundle of papers.

As if reading the question on his face, Claudia spoke.

“I saw some inefficiencies in how things were being done, so I made some adjustments. From now on, work according to the order written there. Pass it along to everyone in your department too.”

“I, I understand.”

Hamelin had to exert considerable effort not to let a sour expression cross his face.

Truthfully, it wasn’t all that unusual.

For superiors to glance at the work being done below and instruct, “Don’t do it that way, try changing it like this,” was a common occurrence.

The problem was, such meddling often resulted in utter failures.

Just the previous acting lord, for instance, issued the miraculous command of “to prevent paper waste, I will limit the amount of paper each bureaucrat can use per day,” only to quickly retract the order after seeing a proliferation of documents filled with writing so small it was difficult to read.

If *that* happened then how much more would it affect the order issued by a precious young lady who’d never done a day’s paperwork in her life?

Suppressing the urge to sigh, Hamelin began flipping through the pages of the document stack.

‘…Surprisingly, the introduction is well-written. Even prepared a table of contents.’

*Flip.*

‘Standard format? Predefining what content to write in what order depending on the type of task? I already do that, but… well, there are plenty of guys who ignore that and do what they want. Establishing it as a rule would be a good thing.’

*Flip.*

‘Hmm, dividing tasks by area? It would certainly be easier to teach. Skill acquisition would be faster too. But if a person in charge is absent, other employees won’t be able to handle problems in that area… Aha, that’s what the assistant manager is for.’

*Flip.*

‘A customer service manual? Wait, it’s recorded all the etiquette and procedures based on the guest’s rank when a VIP visits!?’

*Flip.*

*Flip.*

*Flip.*

Initially, Hamelin had started reading the document with the mindset of, *What kind of nonsense could she have written here?* But, the more pages he turned, the more serious his expression became.

He even momentarily forgot he stood before the Lady of the Land.

“…Impossible.”

Hamelin’s hands trembled. As the most capable administrator among the remaining officials of Eched, he recognized it. The immense value contained within these documents.

‘It’s not as if any single element is groundbreakingly innovative. No high-level technology or novel concepts incomprehensible to the layman. Many of these things are already done, consciously or unconsciously, by those with long experience in office.’

But that didn’t diminish the document’s worth. There existed an unbridgeable chasm between the vague notion of “this is good enough here” and “when A happens, do B.”

A meticulous manualization, bordering on the obsessive. A magical guide that allowed even novices, provided they weren’t completely illiterate, to perform the work of a full person simply by following the written instructions.

‘And it’s not just useful for beginners. Implementing these instructions will also dramatically improve the efficiency of veteran officials.’

The precise magnitude of the effect remained unknown until tested, but if Hamelin’s expectations were correct, even the lowest estimate suggested at least a doubling of efficiency. Beyond merely filling the manpower gap, it would allow them to further reduce the existing workforce and still manage Eched’s administration without issue.

Hamelin gazed at Claudia with eyes brimming with awe. The discontent he had harbored toward her had long since vanished without a trace. Indeed, he felt a sense of fulfillment in serving such a Lady.

“Magnificent, truly magnificent, my Lady! With this, we can manage the territory flawlessly, no, even more perfectly than that!”

At Hamelin’s words, Claudia seemed to flinch slightly. But it was fleeting. She waved her hand dismissively, as if nothing had happened.

“Don’t make such a fuss. If you have no complaints, go and disseminate it quickly.”

Though the gesture might seem careless at a glance, to Hameln, whose eyes were already clouded with adoration, even that felt like the humility of a monarch who didn’t boast of his accomplishments.

He bowed deeply, then with a flurry of excited steps, as though eager to apply it immediately, he departed the room.

Only after Hameln had completely vanished did Claudia mutter a soft, “…Cedric. Is that really so impressive? Honestly, I looked at it and didn’t quite get it.”

To her question, Cedric, who had been quietly maintaining his position diagonally behind her, replied, “Well, impressive if it’s impressive, and trivial if it’s trivial.”

“For something like that, his reaction was awfully flamboyant, wasn’t it?”

“Hahaha, it was rather similar to the young lady’s reaction when she first tasted omurice.”

“What.”

Claudia inhaled sharply, then rapidly fired back, “D-don’t lie! There’s no way I would have reacted that flamboyantly!”

“Is that so? The way you were focused, seemingly unaware of anyone around you, was precisely that same feeling, though.”

“Will you shut that mouth of yours right now!?”

“Ah, how can you disregard the truthful testimony of a loyal servant?”

Claudia picked up the paperweight from her desk and flung it with a snap, and Cedric, as always, nonchalantly caught it and returned it to its place.

Claudia glared at him, as if finding his composure infuriating, then clicked her tongue and said, “Even so, it’s unexpected.”

“What are you referring to?”

“Honestly, I thought instead of handing over documents like that, you would just take the lead and handle everything yourself.”

Claudia knew Cedric was also adept at administrative tasks.

Of course I know, seeing as I’m receiving personal tutoring from him every single day.

The reason she hadn’t bothered to hold onto the old bureaucrats when they willingly left was the same.

Even if those layabouts were gone, she was certain that with Cedric, there wouldn’t be a problem.

But contrary to Claudia’s expectations, Cedric chose to create manuals and assist indirectly, rather than diving into the work himself.

She couldn’t understand it.

Anyone else, she might have thought they were simply avoiding the hassle, but the Cedric that Claudia had come to know was, frankly, verging on a workaholic.

“It’s simple, really. If I were to step in and handle everything directly, it would be easier for the time being, but it would negatively impact the organization in the long run. An organization that grinds to a halt because one person is missing isn’t worth much.”

Though the final decision-maker is a slightly different story, Cedric added.

Claudia frowned, sensing a peculiar nuance in his words.

“Then, the reason you didn’t say you created these manuals, but instead made it appear as though I did…?”

“It’s more advantageous in many ways that way.”

Cedric replied without the slightest hesitation.

“People are naturally more inclined to stick to the same methods they’re used to, rather than considering work efficiency. Few, like that bureaucrat Hamelin, will proactively try and implement new things, and to force those people to work, it’s more effective to use the lady’s authority. If the Lord herself created the manual, they’ll at least pretend to try out of respect.”

“If you announced it under your name, that wouldn’t work?”

“Of course not. If a mere servant, and a relatively inexperienced one at that, suddenly started pushing for administrative reform, which bureaucrat would take it seriously?”

He wasn’t wrong.

Still, Claudia felt a sense of dissatisfaction.

“…It’s the same with the mansion. The servants are happy that I’ve changed, but they hardly ever talk about you.”

Strictly speaking, it wasn’t that they never spoke of him at all.

Since Claudia’s behavior changed after Cedric was hired, it would be strange if they didn’t connect the two.

However, that was merely a ‘guess’, to be sure.

Hardly anyone asserted outright, “Cedric changed Claudia!”

This was because Cedric himself made no effort to publicize his achievements.

“I merely offered advice. It was the young lady who accepted it and acted upon it. Please, do not underestimate your own accomplishments.”

“That’s not what I want to hear…”

Claudia, about to retort sharply, stopped herself.

The subtle unease within her heart.

The moment she voiced that unease to Cedric, it felt as though it would truly become reality.

“Tch, never mind. Just bring me some tea. Sweet.”

“Understood.”

After Cedric departed.

She murmured quietly to herself.

“…Why does he act like he’s trying to make it so I’ll be okay even without him?”