The Herb King

Anselm wasn't a particularly beautiful woman, but she was pleasant to look at. She had freckles on her face and curly red that reached her shoulders.

Noticing Aethelwolf's gaze, Anselm nervously lowered her head.

"How long have you been playing that instrument?" Aethelwolf asked her as he patted his daughters' head.

Anselm slowly raised her head and replied in a shaking voice. "I learned to play the flute when I was 6 so it should be around 30 years."

"I see. Do you love music?" Aethelwolf stared deeply at her.

Anselm looked away from him. She didn't dare stare at him for too long. "I do love music. I sing and play with the flute during my free time." She answered.

Hearing this, Aethelwolf stared at his little daughters and asked. "Do you two want to learn how to play the flute?"

The little monkeys nodded their heads vigorously.

"I wanna learn!"

"Me too!"

Aethelwolf smiled upon hearing their response. He would soon be busy when the renovation of the shop was done and he would have less time to spend with his daughters. It would be nice if they could learn how to play the flute from Anselm. That way, they would have something to keep themselves occupied.

After getting his daughters' response, Aethelwolf turned his gaze back to Anselm. "Do you mind teaching them how to play the flute?"

Anselm was taken aback. "No! I don't mind at all! I would be honored to teach the two princesses!" She replied.

"That's good. Starting tomorrow, you can start teaching them how to play the instrument." Aethelwolf smiled at her. He didn't promise her anything since he had nothing to give right now, but if she did well in her task, he didn't mind giving her something good in the future.

Anselm immediately bowed her head. "Yes, my lord!"

After that, Aethelwolf grabbed his daughters' hands and brought them somewhere to play.

***

In the next few days, Aethelwolf started hiring some employees for his shop. He was opening a beauty shop so he had strict requirements for his employees. When he posted the hiring notice, over a few hundred applicants signed up for the job. The salary he offered was way above the minimum wage in Northern Trance so this naturally attracted the attention of many people. However, Aethelwolf only needed twenty-five people in his shop so he had to select the best. In the end, he chose the most beautiful and attractive women among the applicants. 

Aethelwolf invited the twenty-five women who were selected to the Golden Lake Manor. He had to give them some training on how to do their job and this might take quite some time. Luckily, Samira and Julie were there to help him with the training. They were both familiar with the business so having their support would lessen his burden.

At this moment, the twenty-five women were taken to a spacious hall. Most of them came from ordinary families so the luxurious Golden Lake Manor made them amazed.

Among them, a young lady who looked to be nineteen nervously looked around. She could still not believe that she had passed the job interview. She came from a commoner family. Her father was a butcher and her mother worked as a seamstress. Their family was struggling financially so she decided to help them out. She coincidentally discovered the hiring notice posted by Aethelwolf. The salary offered was way above the average wage so she immediately sent her application to try her luck. Among the hundreds of applicants, she never thought that she would actually be chosen. Her name is Yulia.

Yulia knew about the Golden Lake Manor. According to her parents, the previous owner of the manor was a very strong Esper. She could only look up to experts at that level. She still hasn't seen the new owner of the manor, but from what she heard from the other applicants, the new owner was a mysterious family.

Suddenly, a series of footsteps echoed outside the hall. Everyone turned quiet as they stared at the entrance with mixed emotions. Some of them were nervous, while others were excited.

Soon, a handsome man with short black hair entered the hall. He was dressed in a lord's outfit which perfectly matched his dashing appearance. Behind him were two beautiful ladies with different temperaments. They were Aethelwolf and his wives.

"Hello, everyone! My name is Aethelwolf Lassiter, the lord of this manor. They are my wife, Samira, and Julie." Aethelwolf gave a short introduction of themselves.

Hearing this, the twenty-five chosen applicants quickly stood up and bowed at them.

"Greetings, Lord Aethelwolf, and to the two madams!"

"Please take your seats first." Aethelwolf gestured for them to sit down.

Meanwhile, Yulia was staring at Aethelwolf with a mesmerized look. He was the most handsome man she had ever seen in Northern Trance. Even the sons of the five noble families were nothing compared to him.

"First, let me give you an idea about what our shop is…" Aethelwolf explained to them about the nature of their business. He wasn't very specific when he posted the hiring notice so he had to give them a quick explanation.

"We have five products in our shop. This one is lipstick. My wife Julie will show you how to use it." Aethelwolf pointed at Julie who was holding a red lipstick in front of the women.

Everyone turned their gazes at her. They looked curiously at the lipstick in her hand, wondering what kind of item it was. From the name of the product, they already had an idea of what it was, but they wanted to see if it was any different from the products in the market.

Julie demonstrated how to open the lipstick. She then showed them how to apply it on her lips.

The ladies were fascinated by the product. There were similar products in the market, but the one in front of them was hundreds of times better! From the smell of the lipstick and even its unique container. Everything was perfect!

"The next product is…"