Chapter 255: A rather gay foyer
Mr. Collins shuffled towards the front doors of the estate after Cass finished his little moment with his new staff. The maid who had spoken up for the group joined Mr. Collins at the door as the man continued to fumble. Cass almost snorted out a laugh, but controlled himself.
He did wonder for a brief moment how they got into the estate if they didn’t have a key for it, but then again, they were magical creatures, hired to take care of the estate, so Cass just watched without saying anything.
Eventually, the doors were open, Mr. Collins was sweating like a sinner in church, and Cass moved towards the doors first. Mr. Collins then wiped his forehead with the sleeve of his jacket, grinning at Cass as he gestured towards the estate.
"Well, my Lord. Come look at your new capital home." Mr. Collins said warmly, a little nervously. The man couldn’t be more nervous.
Cass could hear the carriage coming back down the dirt road, felt his lips twitch up, before he started moving towards Mr. Collins. A small look of relief on Mr. Collins face as Cass moved towards him without any more prompting, and Cass could feel how the rest of the group was moving behind him.
They hadn’t wanted to move before he did, and Cass appreciated it.
The estate itself from the outside was wrapped with twisting, winding vines. Several pretty rose bushes sat beneath windows, and several of the windows on the lower level had little planters attached to the windows. Cass couldn’t see any on the upper levels, but he could tell that several of the windows were open, and gossamer-like curtains draped in several of the lower windows while the upper levels appeared to have more substantial curtains. Probably because the upper levels were bedrooms while the lower levels were for day to day activities.
The doors were heavy, wooden, and looked ancient. Sturdy. Edgar let out a little whistle as they all approached, his hand reaching out to grip the door tentatively.
"This is...nice." Edgar said, his tone envious. "Whoever built this did a good job." He said and Cass could tell that the older maids liked that praise. They didn’t speak up of course, but he could tell they were happy.
Cass turned his attention to the space past the doors, and almost laughed.
Like their home back near the forest, this new estate had a large foyer, or main hall, with two staircases that went in a circle until they met at the landing at the top. It was a grand display of wealth, and the chandelier in the center wasn’t anything to sniff at.
It was a beautiful piece, glittering with all kinds of shiny stones in a multitude of colours. Unlike the one that they had back at their joint manor, which was just clear crystal, this one projected rainbows all over the white tile, making it an even more majestic sight. Both ladies gasped behind him, and Cass barely contained his own.
Mr. Collins looked a little smug as he glanced between the members of the hero party. Perhaps this was also a reason that he had suggested this mansion to Cass. He was fairly certain even if it did play a role, it was only a minor one.
Mr. Collins cleared his throat, gesturing with his hand to the front left.
"Over here, my Lord, are several sitting rooms you may use for guests or relaxation, a dining room, and two studies." He said, before gesturing to the back left. "Behind there is a more formal dining room, the kitchens, grainary, and many other things needed for running a house such as this." It was the polite way to say laundry and everything else a person would need to run a home during this day and age.
"I see." Cass said, interested, but also knowing he could just wander on his own after this. Mr. Collins dropped his left arm and raised his right.
"To the right are dedicated rooms for activities. We also have a grand ball room, another hall tucked away in the back corner of the estate that I believe was used for several major weddings, and the library." He said, moving his hand in a slow wave showing that he was speaking of all of the right side. The library and the grand ball room probably took up a lot of space for him to say that.
Cass nodded.
"I am assuming that the upper floor is for bedrooms?" Cass asked, and Mr. Collins smirked knowingly. Like he knew something Cass didn’t, and when he spoke, it made more sense.
"I think you are referring to the third floor, which is home to the master bedroom and the bedrooms for family members. The second floor is meant for guests, my lord. Each suit also comes with beautifully designed washrooms, all with running water." He was bragging, and damn it if he didn’t find that cute.
The man was reminding him of Sam, and damnit, he missed his little henchman. He would love this new place. Too bad he needed to stay at the main manor until Cass dealt with the little pervert trying to peek at his documents back at the manor.
"Wow." Lady Ava breathed, scanning everything. "It feels so light and airy here. Almost like the forest back near our home." She said, and that too made the older maids quite happy. Ser Hune kept her mouth shut. She had an incredible poker face, because she was from the forest, and Lady Ava was a human, through and through.
Cass chuckled.
"They’ve done a wonderful job with making the space feel big, breathable, not stifling. This is an older build, correct?" Cass asked, confirming with Mr. Collins. He nodded.
"It is, my Lord. About 200-300 years old, give or take. I..." He hesitated. "I believe the original owner was a fairy, or someone of fairy blood since it hadn’t changed hands in a long, long time." That explained a few things, but then again. Cass wasn’t looking for the former inhabitants’ life records. It didn’t really matter to him.
"How wonderful." Cass said, meaning it. He noticed how Mr. Collins hadn’t brought up a shrine or temple in the mansion, and Cass wondered if that was a fairy thing, or something else. They continued on. Cass poked his head into a few rooms on the left, a few rooms on the right, and then as a group they went up the stairs to the second floor together.
The main rooms on the lower floors were relatively well maintained, so this was the test to see how the rest of this giant home was taken care of. Cass could see the nervous shifting of the group trailing them, and had noticed how the new employees were trailing them at a distance.
Cass kept his eyes forward, even as he knew that his guards would be watching them.
The first bedroom was fine, so was the second. It was the third where Cass could tell they were slipping a bit. Cass wondered if they had tried to clean more, tried to scrub more when they heard that someone was coming, but the sheets were also dusty along with the curtains. Lady Ava brushed against them and ended up in a sneezing frenzy.
It was about as funny as it was alarming. The girl must have dust allergies.
The maids looked ill after having witnessed that, and Cass could tell that there was something brewing amongst the new staff. Mr. Collins glanced at Cass, but Cass said nothing.
They continued up to the third floor, which had a smaller, separate landing a few rooms down the way from the main landing. It was probably done this way so that there wasn’t any strange maneuvering one would have to do when bringing in furniture, and so that it didn’t take away from the entryway.
This one had a nice light fixture as well. Not as sparkly and rainbow-y as the last one, but still pretty. It was of a pretty fairy in a beautiful crystal flower. The eyes were the same type of jewel, a stunning vibrant green that made Cass smile.
The rooms at the upper level? The only one that was done to any kind of satisfaction was the master. All of the others were still covered in clothes to prevent dust gathering on the actual furniture, but Cass didn’t buy that for a second. The fairies looked actually ill as Cass stood in what was supposed to be his ’dressing room’ and found that it was barren, dusty, and probably a haven to insects. He then turned to the hero party.
"May I have a moment with my employees?" He asked the group, and everyone looked at him. Fiona was the first to nod.
"Of course, Cass. Lady Ava and I will go downstairs. We didn’t get to look at the grand hall yet, so we’ll be down there." She said. Lady Ava nodded. They headed out immediately. Edgar hesitated for a second.
"Did you say there was a basement?" He asked Mr. Collins, who gave a grim nod.
"Not anything pleasant, I’m afraid. The main part is for wine storage, but the other..." He trailed off and Edgar nodded.
"Lucian, do you want to check that out with me?" Edgar asked, and Lucian grumbled. It was clear that he had wanted to stay. Cass wasn’t going to let him, and Edgar was giving him an easy out.
The dragon pouted, glancing at Cass, then to Edgar, and stomped his foot like a toddler. He didn’t throw a tantrum though.
"I fucking guess." He grumbled, and Cass had to fight his lips twitching. The two men left, and Mr. Collins, along with his guards sans Sir Forsythe stepped outside as well.
Cass looked around at his new hires, people he was employing. Of course, there was a very possible chance that some of them were spies. There was a reason that Lord Blackburn had been so paranoid, but Cass was going to be a little different. While he knew that there was danger, that didn’t mean he was going to treat them poorly. He would give them chances, show them what he found acceptable, and if they didn’t rise to his level, he’d let them go.
Unless they crossed the line, and then they’d be made an example of, like stablebitch.
Cass felt a rather devious smile touch his lips and watched how that made the others react. He let out a soft sigh. It was time to speak, time to let them know the new rules.