A portly butler ran through the hallways of Budehuc Castle as fast as his legs could carry him, panting and sweating as he ran. Sebastian was determined to reach his destination, and held the book in his hands as if his life depended on it. Several other residents of Budehuc saw the middle-aged man charging through and knew it was the wisest to get out of the way to let him pass.

"There's no rush!" Duke called out after Sebastian, whom ran right past him. "Watch where you're going!"

Sebastian didn't hear the redhead mercenary and just kept on running as people got out of his path. Everyone knew that once Sebastian got momentum going, almost nothing could stop him. In fact, the only known things that could stop Sebastian during a run were Hallec, Fubar, Bright and the lizards.

Even still, people had gotten used to this by now. Sebastian seemed to always be in a state of panic and was constantly running to tell someone (mostly Thomas) about something. Because of this fact, everyone simply let Sebastian do what he was going to do and stayed out of his way as he ran.

Eventually reaching the stairway leading to the mansion's basement, Sebastian charged down them without a second thought. He knew that Thomas would still be on the ship and he had to hurry if he wanted to catch him.

However, once Sebastian reached the bottom of the stairs, he collided with something and collapsed to the floor, his book scattering loose papers everywhere. Looking up, Sebastian saw that he had run into Bazba's back.

Bazba looked over his shoulder. "Oh…Sorry, Sebastian. I didn't see you coming." He said.

"I-It's quite alright! I-I just need to pick these up quickly!" Sebastian replied as he scrambled to pick up the papers he had dropped.

"Here, Sebastian. Let me help you." A new voice said. Sebastian looked up and saw Luce walking over. As Bazba wandered off, Luce approached Sebastian, got down and started picking up papers.

"Y-You don't have to do that, Luce." Sebastian insisted.

"Please. You seem to be in enough of a hurry as it is." Luce assured as she helped Sebastian. "So what's wrong this time?"

The portly butler sighed. "I went over the books and I saw that there were some numbers wrong. I need to tell Master Thomas about this quickly." He replied.

"Is that was these papers are?" Luce asked. Sebastian nodded. "So what's the big deal, then?"



"If the numbers are wrong, something must be happening!" Sebastian replied. "Why, someone could be taking money from the treasury without us knowing!"

"But I don't see what the big rush to tell Thomas is about." The middle-aged Karayan shrugged. "I mean, nothing's going to happen before you tell him."

"I can't be to sure about that. I need to expect the unexpected in this job."

"But you're running around every day. I constantly see you running back and forth with something important to tell someone." Luce said, full of concern. "All that running can't be good for your health."

"I-I appreciate the concern, Luce." Sebastian said as he finished picking up the last of his papers. "But if there's something important I have to say, I need to relay it as quickly as I can. I'm the one in charge of the books, so it's my…"

That was all Sebastian could get out before he suddenly found himself a little short on breath. The portly butler paused to catch his breath.

Luce's eyes widened in concern as she approached the butler. "S-Sebastian? Are you alright?" She asked.

"Just…Just a little…Short on breath…" Sebastian panted as he looked Luce in the eyes. Luce gasped when she saw that Sebastian was looking pale. "I…I don't know what…"

Suddenly, Sebastian collapsed onto his side, clutching his chest. Luce screamed and rushed over to him before he blacked out.

1111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111

Sebastian moaned as he slowly opened his eyes, instantly finding that he could breathe properly again. When he was fully aware of his surroundings, he found that he was in a bed in the infirmary.

Hearing a sigh of relief, Sebastian turned his head and saw Thomas beside. "Thank goodness you're alright, Sebastian." He said. "You gave all of us quite the scare."

Sebastian instantly started attempting to sit up. "M-Master Thomas…" He said before Thomas stopped him.

"Don't you dare get up, Sebastian." Thomas ordered. "You don't need any more strain on your heart."

The butler paused. "W-What?"



"You had a mild heart attack, Sebastian." A new voice explained. Sebastian turned and saw Tuta coming over with a clipboard. "It was a result of a mix of stress and pressure put on your heart. You were just lucky that Luce was able to get help for you in time or it may have gotten a lot worse."

"A…Heart attack?" Sebastian asked.

"Yes, and with all of that running you do, I'm amazed that it didn't happen sooner." Tuta shook his head. "Sebastian, while you'll be okay to leave the infirmary pretty soon, I'll have to enforce a few rules on you."

"Such as?" The butler asked, somehow knowing what was coming.

"Absolutely NO running while panicked." Tuta explained. "Going for a jog is okay, but you can't run as frantically as you have been or else the next heart attack you have may not leave you as lucky as this one."

"But what if I have something important-"

"Sebastian, the only exceptions I'll make are if someone invades the castle or if someone is hurt badly." The doctor explained. "If it's simply about a mistake or error in the books, then it can wait longer for you to find Thomas."

"Yeah, Sebastian." Thomas agreed. "I looked at that mistake in the books while you were out. Something like that isn't worth you risking your health over just so you can tell me about it."

The butler paused, then sighed. "Okay. I get it." He said.

"Good to hear." Tuta nodded with a smile. "Now you stay in bed for a little bit and I'll be back later to check up on you."

"Get some rest, Sebastian. It'll do you a world of good." Thomas added as he followed Tuta out the door to the infirmary.

As the doctor and castle master left the room, Luce came in. She saw Sebastian on the bed and walked over.

"I'm glad that you're up, Sebastian." Luce said. "I was afraid that heart attack would have been a lot worse."

"From what I heard, it probably would have if you hadn't gotten me help quickly." Sebastian said with a smile. "I'm in your debt, Luce."

"Oh, don't be silly." Luce shook her head as she pulled up a chair and sat down beside Sebastian's bed. "I'm just glad that I was there when it happened."



"Well, it looks like my constant state of worry has finally become my downfall…" Sebastian sighed. "I never would have thought something like this would happen."

"I suppose that maybe you should consider this an eye-opener to not be so worried all the time." Luce suggested.

"I'm afraid that I can't help it, Luce." The butler replied. "It's part of my nature to be concerned."

"But if it takes its toll on your body and health…" The middle-aged Karayan said. "Why are you always so worried about everything, anyway? How did it all start?"

Sebastian paused. "You…Really want to know?"

Now it was Luce's turn to pause. The way Sebastian sounded, it seemed like he didn't want to talk about it. "Well, if you don't want to talk about it…" She said.

"No, Luce. You're curious, so I'll tell you." Sebastian replied as he took a deep breath. "Some fifteen years ago, I worked on the books for a castle during the Dunan Unification War."

"The Dunan Unification War?" Luce asked. "I hope you didn't get caught up with Luca Blight or anything."

"No, thankfully." Sebastian said. "But one day, I noticed something wrong with the numbers. I let it slide for a couple of days, and then acted when I found the numbers still not matching." He paused for a second. "I went to the castle master to tell him about it, but by the time I reached him, it was too late. The difference in numbers was that one of the staff was stealing money. The master found out about it before I got to him and he confronted the staff member."

Luce bit her lip. "What…What happened?" She asked.

"He didn't want to get caught, so he pulled out his sword and started turning on everyone. He killed seven people, including the castle master, before he was killed in return." Sebastian said.

"Oh, my." Luce said, shaking her head. "That's horrible."

"That's not all of it. My wife was one of the casualties, and she was pregnant at the time."

Luce's eyes snapped open. "Your wife?" She asked.

"Yes. Afterwards, I left that castle and came here, hoping to start anew." Sebastian finished. "I didn't want anything like what happened fifteen years ago to happen again, so when I found a mistake in the books, I wanted to make sure I reported it as quickly as I could."

"Oh, Sebastian..." Luce said as she wiped a few tears from her eyes. "Is that why you're always so worried?"

"Seven people lost their lives fifteen years ago because I didn't report a mistake fast enough. I don't want to be responsible for the deaths of more." The butler said. "Thomas and Cecile are like the kids I could have had, and if someone so young died because of me, I would never forgive myself."

"My. It's easy to see why you're so worried all the time." Luce nodded. "But remember what Tuta said. You're taking too much toll on your health because of your worry."

"I understand that, now. I need to calm down a little more from now on." Sebastian nodded before pausing. "Thanks for listening, Luce. I feel a lot better getting everything off my chest."

"Oh, don't worry about it, Sebastian." Luce said. "If you need help, I'll be here for you."

Luce leaned over and gave the butler a kiss on the cheek. "You get some rest, Sebastian." She said. "When you get out of here, I'll get you some lunch."

"I-It's quite alright, Luce." Sebastian said.

Luce chuckled. "Exactly. That's why I'll do it." She said. "Now you relax. You should be out of here soon enough."

Bidding farewell to the bedridden butler, Luce left the infirmary. Once he was alone, Sebastian let out a sigh and lay down, preparing to get some rest.

"Maybe I COULD stand to wind down a little bit…" Sebastian noted to himself as he dozed off.

END