Several hours later, only five applicants remained from the dozens who had applied for the position. They were the best of the bunch and even Alaric felt a bit reluctant to reject them considering their expertise.
It’s a pity to reject these women. Should I recommend them to other positions instead?
Alaric thought while looking at the remaining five.
“Honestly, all five of you are perfect for the job, but I can only choose one.” Alaric’s words made the women nervously clenched their hands.
“Are you open to accepting a different position?” He probed.
Hearing this, their eyes lit up with hope. For women like them, it was difficult to find a stable job no matter how skillful they were.
“My lord, I will accept whatever job you offer.” One of them spoke without hesitation.
“Me too, my lord! I can do anything!” Another one chimed in.
“My lord…”
All five of them, including Pamela, expressed a positive response to his words.
“Good.” Alaric nodded, looking quite pleased with their decisiveness.
“You and you…” Alaric pointed at two of them. “Both of you displayed the best skills in cooking. I need two cooks who will prepare food for my workers in the soap shop I opened in Vale. What do you think? I can offer you two a decent salary if you take the position.”
“I agree, my lord!”
“I’m willing, my lord!”
Alaric smiled and nodded. “Alright. I will have someone write your contracts later.”
“Next is you…” He stared at the oldest of the five.
The woman he was referring to adjusted her posture nervously.
“You showed the most remarkable talent in and knowledge in gardening. The estate needs more skilled workers like you. Are you interested in this line of work?” Alaric rubbed his chin.
“Yes, my lord!”
“Good! Let’s talk about your contract later.”
“Moving on…” Alaric glanced at the remaining two women.
He scratched his head and pretended to be in deep thought as if he was hesitating about which one to choose between them.
After a moment of silence, he finally opened his mouth.
“You mentioned here in your self-introduction that you once worked on a ranch with your parents. Do you have experience in taking care of horses?”
The woman beside Pamela nodded her head. “Yes, my lord. My father taught me how to take care of horses and cattle. Although my skills are a bit lacking compared to my father’s, I’m confident that I can take care of any farm animals. I also know how to raise war horses.” She emphasized the last few words which made Alaric think about the frost horses.
“Oh? Can you handle Fatal-grade horses or even special ones?” Alaric revealed a look of interest. It was rare to find someone who knew how to take care of special horse breeds. After all, these creatures were more particular in their diet and needs.
The woman was taken aback, but she responded calmly. “If they are wild caught horses, then it might be difficult to take care of them. However, if they are already domesticated or if they are still young, then I can assure you that I can handle them.”
“Great! I have a job for you! I will tell you the details later.” Alaric slapped his thigh in excitement. He didn’t want to give this job to his warriors since it would only hinder their training. Now that he had a professional who could do the job better, he no longer had to trouble himself with finding someone.
“Yes, my lord!” The woman’s face lit up with joy.
Finally, Alaric glanced at Pamela. “Congratulations! Starting today, you will be responsible for serving the baron’s meals.”
Pamela covered her mouth and displayed an expression of joy. “Thank you for choosing me, my lord! I will not disappoint you!”
Alaric smiled, seemingly pleased with her. “Alright. You five, follow me to the head maid’s quarters. She will teach you all the things you need to know about your jobs.”
Alaric and Elena brought them to the head maid’s quarters.
The head maid was a middle-aged lady in her mid-forties, but she looked younger than her age.
“Greetings, my lord!” The head maid bowed upon seeing him.
“Head Housekeeper, these are the new servants we hired. Here is the information about them.” Alaric handed over the documents which contained the personal information about the five women.
(Note: Alaric is respectfully addressing the head maid here as ‘head housekeeper’.)
Alaric informed the headmaid about the women’s new positions. They then discussed the salaries and the benefits they would receive for their jobs.
After dealing with all these matters, Alaric headed straight to his father’s study with Elena in tow.
“So did you discover something?” Lucas stared deeply at his son. He had been informed about the assessment that Alaric conducted since morning, but he was still unaware of the results.
“Yes, my lord.” Alaric nodded solemnly.
“Among the applicants, there is a woman named Pamela. I’m certain that she is the person sent by Uncle.” He added.
Lucas rubbed his chin. The name was familiar, but he had forgotten which one he was referring to. “What makes you say that?”
Because she was the one who poisoned you in my past life…
Alaric was silent for a moment. “I observed them one by one and her physique is the best among the applicants. Although she doesn’t possess mana, her physical abilities surpass the others by a huge margin. She tried to hide, but she couldn’t hide it from me. Her expressions also looked fake to me. There are also a lot of suspicious points in her background. For instance…”
Alaric made a random comment about Pamela. Of course, this was him exaggerating.
“You discovered that much in just half a day?” Lucas stared at him in disbelief.
Alaric nodded calmly. “Yes, my lord. I gave her the position according to what we had planned. Please keep an eye on her, but don’t make it too obvious.”
“Alright. I’ll have someone observe her activity.” Lucas nodded.
The father and son discussed the next steps of their plan.