Help, I'm in Another World and All the Men Are So Hot! [BL]-Chapter 294: Augusto’s Care and New Beginnings

But when he was busy taking care of Damien, his mind seemed too occupied to worry about anything else—and he even looked a little happy.

Isaac raised a hand and spoke cautiously. "Indeed, Master Augusto has always shown a fondness for looking after others—whether they be younger children or elderly servants—ever since his childhood. It could be that he feels more comfortable as a caretaker than being the one cared for."

Damien appreciated the agreement but remained concerned. "Still, by the end of today, he looked pretty tired and drowsy. I’m not sure pushing him too hard is the right thing to do."

He recalled how, just before bedtime, Augusto’s eyes had started to droop. He’d seemed even more tired than Yor, who had been rubbing his eyes sleepily.

Sebas raised his hand and added, "If I may, Master Damien... feeling sleepy is often a sign of improvement. I’ve seen many soldiers returning from battle who were so troubled they couldn’t even sleep. For someone like that, being able to rest is a significant step forward."

Isaac nodded firmly in agreement with Sebas’s observation.

Damien frowned slightly, wondering just what kinds of experiences both Sebas and Isaac had been through.

"True," Theo interjected with a wry smile. "The family Augusto was entrusted to did once boast that he was so remorseful about his mistakes that he couldn’t sleep at night."

"...Is that family okay?" Damien asked, incredulous. "They don’t sound very... stable."

Theo chuckled softly, clearly sharing Damien’s unease.

In any case, Isaac and the others had noted that, until recently, Augusto couldn’t fall asleep without the help of incense. The fact that he’d begun to rest on his own was, at least, a positive trend.

Even so, Damien couldn’t help but hesitate. For someone who specialized in pampering others, the idea of making Augusto work harder didn’t sit well.

"Damien," Theo said gently, "since Isaac, who knows Augusto well, agrees with this approach, why not observe him for a while longer? We can have Isaac and Miria keep an eye on him and report any changes in his condition."

Isaac nodded in agreement, looking at Damien with steady confidence.

"...Alright. In that case, I’ll try sticking with this plan for now. I’ll continue letting Augusto take care of me and see how it goes."

"If there’s anything that concerns you, even a little, please let me know," Damien said.

"Of course," Isaac replied with a respectful nod.

Damien turned to the others. "And the rest of you, if you notice anything, don’t hesitate to speak up."

The participants all nodded firmly in agreement.

"Well then, I’ll move on to the matter of personnel recruitment," Leonide said, taking over now that they had reached a conclusion regarding Augusto.

Damien leaned forward slightly, recalling that Leonide had been tasked with searching for new servants and retainers. Unlike the urgent hires of Isaac and Miria, Leonide was conducting a more traditional and time-consuming recruitment campaign.

"I’ve been collaborating with Isaac to reach out to former retainers and servants of the old Castellani household," Leonide began. "Fortunately, with Augusto and Isaac under our banner, the response has been positive. Just today, we’ve secured the preliminary consent of two servants and one retainer to join us."

"Wait, that many people already agreed?" Damien asked, genuinely surprised. He’d expected recruitment to take much longer.

"Ah, I have an additional report about that," Theo interjected, raising his hand. He avoided making eye contact with Damien, which immediately set off alarm bells in his mind.

Uh-oh. Bad news incoming.

"Ahem... We’ve arranged for one of the villages in the former Castellani territory to be incorporated into the Crowell estate," Theo admitted sheepishly.

What!?

Damien froze for a moment in shock but quickly pieced together the reasoning. "Wait... is this to make it easier to hire people from the Castellani household?"

"Yes," Leonide answered in Theo’s stead. "For those who previously served the Castellani family, whether or not we hold part of the former Castellani territory has significant weight. At my request, Master Theo approved the transfer."

So this was Leonide’s idea. Damien glanced at Theo, who looked unusually apologetic, confirming it wasn’t her doing.

"And based on what you just said, the results were good?" Damien asked.

"Yes. The people we spoke to today were initially hesitant, but once they learned we held a portion of the former Castellani lands, they agreed to join us," Leonide explained.

Damien sighed. "Alright. If it’s working, I’ll let it slide this time. But from now on, report these things to me first, okay?"

"Understood," Leonide said with a slight bow.

"I’m sorry, Damien," Theo added, bowing his head as well.

They both seemed genuinely contrite, but Damien wasn’t sure how much they truly understood his concerns. Theo often operated under the philosophy of "the head of the household must endure for the family’s sake," and Leonide had his own way of thinking that didn’t always align with Damien’s.

Damien shook his head slightly. He still didn’t fully grasp the mindset of these nobles.

But at least he trusted that they wouldn’t do anything that wasn’t ultimately in his best interest. Even so, he couldn’t help but be startled when decisions were made without his knowledge.

"For now, I plan to focus on approaching those from the old Castellani household who remain in the capital," Leonide concluded. "That’s all from me."

"Next, regarding recruitment, Lucian."

Upon being called by Leonide, Lucian stood up. 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

Like Leonide, Lucian was also helping to find new retainers and staff members.

"Yes, I am progressing with recruitment within the territory through the Crowell domain’s steward," Lucian explained.

After much discussion, they had concluded that having people from within the domain was essential—more accurately, indispensable. As a result, the steward was tasked with organizing recruitment efforts.

After all, the steward himself was currently on loan from Theo’s family. It was imperative to find someone familiar with the domain to eventually take over the steward’s role.

This was a necessary task regardless of whether Damien continued as a baron or decided to pass the title to Augusto.