[Sneak Peek] The Butlers' Rescue Squad: BOOK1 前情提要：本得獎作品將於今年七月出版第一集，此為給國際讀者的免費試閱片段。
本書英文版將於亞馬遜和Google Books發行，連結一旦備妥將立刻提供於本文。前情提要：動保作家百年接力！《杜立德》作者Hugh Lofting冥誕與《執事》進軍海外
尖端原創大賞翼想本特獎作品《執事中途救援組1-3集 》因版權到期，由作者本人收回版權並集中管理，已於方格子上架完成🎉可至沙龍首頁購買方案，歷年作品也都在上頭，歡迎選購喔。
執事1的好評集中區：
執事2的好評集中區：
執事3好評集中區：
[Sneak Peek] The Butlers' Rescue Squad: Book 1-
An Award-Winning YA/NA Espionage Fantasy
Julie Breeze Chen【The Butlers' Rescue Squad: 1】 2026/05/31
This is a work of fiction intended for entertainment purposes. While certain settings and elements are inspired by real-life events, people, and locations, the plot, character traits, and dialogues are entirely fictional and dramatized. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, existing organizations, or actual events is purely coincidental.
Chapter 1★Hop on, bomber!
This is a story about butlers.
A group of butlers chasing a bomb—you may never have heard of this kind of thing, but here at midnight of Taipei City, it is actually happening.
Interchanges wrap tightly around the heart of the city to usher in the sprawling workforce. Headlights swarm like bees, forming golden rivers that drain into the downtown core. Just past midnight on a Friday, the traffic is still restless—shared by burnt-out commuters and thrill-seeking tourists.
"Beep beep beep beep—" Horns blare incessantly through the traffic jam as drivers curse furiously.
And this man in a dark blue tailcoat is clearly at the center of the problem.
Defying death, he sprints through the cascading stream of vehicles, his muscular, towering figure charging through the frenzy of headlights.
With panther-like agility, he crosses the street in an instant, charging straight toward the surging four-lane road opposite.
"Too far! At this rate, I'll never make it to the mall!" His facial features are dark as night, framed by thick brows, and his dark red eyes, like agate, hold a hint of boldness.
He is Yoru, the athletic powerhouse of the butler estate —"The Radiant Moon Manor".
He should be at that lush nocturnal manor, serving wine to his "Milady". As for why he is standing here instead—well, that's a complicated story.
"At this rate, we're never going to make it!" Yoru, a Bluetooth earpiece hanging from his ear, bellows into the microphone at the man on the other end: "Sean Smith! Get me a ride, anything will do!"
" 'Anything'?" A sharp, deep, joyful voice crackles through the earpiece.
Yoru jumps onto the sidewalk, sweat dripping, as a piercing whistle sounds.
"Cops...Damn it!" Yoru straightens his soiled tailcoat, losing off the pursuing traffic officer.
"Don't run around screaming in the streets wearing that fancy butler uniform! Are you some kind of mating cicada?" Sean Smith scolds sharply. "I told you to get to the mall A.S.A.P., not to attract the entire police force. You're a total cop magnet."
"If cops were useful, I wouldn't be panting like a dog here. " Yoru grits his teeth. "Alright! Where's the ride?"
A commotion erupts from the crowd ahead. A genuine, towering black mare, flesh and blood, and very real—comes charging toward Yoru, her breath snorting in sharp bursts as her horseshoes strike the pavement with a fierce, metallic clatter.
"No way... seriously?"
"When you said 'transportation', you meant this?"
" Joy from the estate stables. I had the farm drive her straight here." Sean Smith adopts a more relaxed tone, "No one's forcing you to ride Joy. But if anyone dies tonight, that's on you."
"I... I know! Is there anything that I can't achieve? Here we go!" Yoru reaches out to grab the reins of the horse, Joy, and leaps onto her back.
Holding dual certification from the Butler Guild and the Continental Royal Butler Training program, all butlers are skilled riders, and horses are always available in the stables.
But suddenly performing equestrian skills in a bustling Friday night district—this is something Yoru did not expect.
It is already past midnight, the fashionable partygoers and night market vendors just closing up shops are all gawking at them.
A magnificent black mare, standing over five feet tall and snorting steam, charges through the still-crowded streets. She carries Yoru, streaking through the evening breeze like lightning.
"Excuse me! Make way!" Yoru urges his horse through the crowd, galloping toward the shopping mall.
Although the glittering shopping mall is open 24 hours a day, the crowds are gradually dispersing at this hour, allowing Yoru to slip through.
"It's a horse! A real horse!" A little boy, startling awake on his mother's back during their nighttime journey, points at the steed beneath Yoru.
"That's right, it's a horse!" Yoru glances back at the boy, whose eyes sparkle with excitement, and winks with a smile.
The thundering hooves tear through the vast fountain square.
A magnificent shopping mall stands ahead like a glass fortress, its thirty-story facade shimmering with the kaleidoscopic brilliance of the city night.
Beneath Yoru, the black horse is a storm of darkness—yet, the moment she catches sight of the escalator entrance, she digs in her hooves and screeches to a sudden halt.
But the moment Joy spots the escalator entrance ahead, she slams on the brakes.
"Ah, escalators..." Yoru sighs. "Are you serious?"
"You're running out of time." Sean Smith urges.
"Ugh, you're so annoying!" Yoru pulls on the reins, turning the horse's head around.
The horse takes one step, then reluctantly manages a second, and stops cold. Any creature with an ounce of common sense knows the danger of charging up an escalator.
"Joy! You can do it! Jump!" Yoru softly coaxes the mount to leap onto the moving stairs.
The black horse draws herself up, leaps forward, and doesn't miss a single step. She gallops onto the second floor in just a few strides.
"Sorry, Joy, but this is the quickest route!" Yoru pats the horse's neck. His goal is to cut through the shopping mall's transparent sky-bridge to reach the other side of the district.
Down there lies a commercial area packed with family restaurants and big-box stores. The crowds have thinned slightly compared to a few hours ago, but their reaction to the anomaly on the street remains exactly the same.
They scream, bolt, and shove one another.
Strangely, the source of their terror turns out to be an adorable Corgi. With his stout limbs, round body, and a tan-and-white face that radiates a simple, honest charm, he looks harmless. Under normal circumstances, someone would likely grab the leash attached to his collar and engage in affectionate interaction.
But tonight, this Corgi is the embodiment of death.
"Ahhh! That dog... it's got a bomb on it!"
Someone has strapped an orange vest onto the dog's back—one that is crawling with circuit boards and bundles of improvised chemical explosives. The flickering indicator lights blink like the eyes of a demon.
As if aware that he has become an omen of doom, the Corgi scurries in a blind panic, his tongue lolling as he pants.
Terror spreads like a plague, infecting the surrounding pedestrians.
"Don't come any closer! Ah!" A mother, having just finished shopping, pulls her young daughter close.
"What do we do, Mommy? Aren't we going to save the doggy?" the little girl asks.
"My God! Isn't that a bomb? Call the police now!" Shopkeepers nearby rush out to look, only to retreat into their stores in fear.
The Corgi stands paralyzed in the center of the despairing crowd. He doesn't understand why humans—who once offered nothing but pats and treats—are now shunning him as if he were the devil himself.
Helpless and alone, the Corgi bolts across the road, knocking over a trash can. Soup and leftover scraps spill out, staining his once pristine, fluffy white fur.
The Corgi gasps for air in ragged breaths, seemingly aware that these may be his final moments on earth.
※※
Two hours ago, at the butler estate known as The Radiant Moon Manor, the late-night service was just beginning to unfold.
A man named Isshiki stands there, his gorgeous face carrying a trace of flirtatious arrogance, marked by a beauty mark just below his left eye. His white shirt is unbuttoned at the collar, and his deep green tie hangs askew—a look that screams rogue rather than refined.
As a butler, his light, airy gait is technically a flop by professional standards, but Isshiki has never cared for passing grades.
It is precisely this attitude that got him flagged as "unfit" by the Butler's Guild. After rumors of a forbidden romance with his former employer surfaced, he drifted here—to a manor that specializes in housing "problematic" butlers: The Radiant Moon Manor.
The citizens know little of the estate's origins. All they know is that if you want a cup of tea and a taste of the "princess treatment", the manor's rates are surprisingly affordable. It's as if the butlers inside know that simply being allowed to wear the uniform and do the work is a stroke of sheer luck.
In this society, butlers are ubiquitous. Guilds, unions, and specialized academies are everywhere; on the streets, it's common to see a butler holding a parasol behind a young mistress or master. Celebrities, fashion magazines, and TV tabloids endlessly fuel the obsession, turning the butler culture into a social craze.
Yet, beneath the rigid standard of this system, there are inevitably those who are discarded.
Places like "The Radiant Moon Manor" exist solely to shelter these outcasts. To put it in terms of stray animals: the manor is somewhere between a shelter and a halfway house.
For butlers who have been rejected, refused, or dismissed, places like The Radiant Moon Manor serve as a waystation—a temporary stop on the long road to finding a new employer and a permanent contract.
There is a certain kind of man who, if given the chance to become someone else, will take it in a heartbeat, discarding his past failures without a single complaint.
Isshiki is that kind of man. Once a non-sexual escort in the nightlife scene, he joined the butler craze just as it swept the nation. But last year, the certification system stripped him of his credentials, leaving him with nowhere to go but here.
Back then, he stood in the night, his black suit jacket drenched by the pouring rain, refusing to accept the reasons for his fall. Today, however, Isshiki is back to serve guests, even if his attitude remains a bit rogue.
"Oh, miladies, please stop staring at me like that! You all will make my heart skip a beat!"
"Still as smooth-talking as ever!" The girls break into soft laughter, raising their glasses to him.
At the stroke of midnight, business at the Radiant Moon Manor is still in full swing.
The main hall—encased in massive floor-to-ceiling windows like a glass conservatory—radiates a beautiful glow against the rainy night. Under the elegant, understated gold chandeliers, a live piano weaves a soulful jazz melody through the room.
The "ladies" and young "masters"—honorifics reserved for the guests who pay for their own brief "butler moment" — lounge at their tables, chatting lazily.
The crowd is sparse—about seven or eight people scattered across three or four small tables. Business at the manor has always been light, which lends the place a leisurely, unhurried air that the regulars have come to love.
A few butlers are weaving through the café, chatting comfortably with the guests.
Isshiki is the most dazzling among them. With his bangs swept up to reveal a clean forehead and that beauty mark at the corner of his eye, every glance he gives feels like an electric spark.
"For you, the 'Night Sea Cranberry' mocktail, paired with our signature appetizer: scallops slow-poached in sake until tender and succulent." Behind his friendly smile lies a hint of flirtation as he serves this fusion of Japanese and British urban cuisine.
The girls gaze at him, their faces bright with excitement.
"Hey, don't just talk about the food—tell us something about yourself!"
"My private life doesn't matter compared to my service to my ladies. Besides, you princesses rarely return to the manor. Tonight, I only wish to bring you joy."
Isshiki's eyes soften with humility as he bows slightly. "You young ladies have been looking around since you arrived. Are you searching for someone? Might I be of assistance?"
"We're actually looking for the manager, Yoru. He's just so adorable when he's being all clumsy!"
"Ah, the dashing Yoru, my esteemed senior. To think he's left such an impression of clumsiness in your heart, my lady. How tragic," Isshiki says, stifling a laugh.
"You don't think it's tragic at all. You're totally making fun of him, aren't you?" one particularly sharp-eyed young lady retorts.
"No, no… it's only because I find my mentor quite charming myself," Isshiki says, his emerald-green eyes shimmering as he flashes a grin. "But as for Yoru… he is indeed away from the manor tonight."
"Where did he go?" The conversation takes its predictable turn.
"He went to restock some supplies. There's an important party tomorrow."
"That sounds like something a newbie should do. Why aren't you going, Isshiki?"
With all the young ladies looking so beautiful and adorable tonight, would I be foolish enough to waste my time elsewhere? But saying that would render all his past corrective training useless, so Isshiki grits his teeth and holds back.
"A butler who is too flirtatious is as repulsive as recycled cooking oil. A true butler keeps his ladies longing for more while maintaining an air of absolute elegance." This is what Sean Smith once told him.
The ladies wait with curious smiles, lingering on Isshiki's every word for an answer.
"Oh, that's because I'm the indispensable anchor of this manor—someone has to stay behind and hold down the fort!" Isshiki winks at them. "After all, who's to say nothing will happen here tonight?"
※※
The blinking lights on the Corgi's vest pulse—on and off, a rhythmic warning of death.
In the eyes of the onlookers, that plump, adorable body is nothing more than a ticking time bomb. Any second now, he could be torn to bloody shreds. Under the deep blue night sky, the glittering luxury of the downtown district feels like a slaughterhouse in the making. Some have already braced themselves for the inevitable—to be drenched in gore and shrapnel.
"I'm almost there!" Yoru shouts into his Bluetooth earpiece, sweat stinging his eyes as he guides his horse into the shadows of the park's trees.
The police and fire departments have arrived, accompanied by Animal Control. They extend their red catch poles toward the panicked Corgi. These men are professionals; they drag dozens of strays to the pound every week. A single little Corgi should be an easy target.
But the moment the catch team sees the situation, they freeze.
"This... this is a job for the Bomb Squad, isn't it?"
The Police Captain snaps back, "Don't you have a blowgun or something? Some tranquilizers to put that dog out?"
"Sir..." A panicked officer whispers, leaning in toward the group by the squad car. "We just received an online threat. It says if the dog stays still for more than ten seconds, the bomb will be triggered remotely."
-
This is the end of the sneak peek of "The Butlers' Rescue Squad: Book 1". Thanks for reading and being a part of this abundant worldview.
The full book will be published this July on Amazon and Google Books. Links will be updated in this article once they are ready. 🎁
Follow my social media for more. Type "Book 4" in my IG DM, you will receive a VIP sneak peek of unpublished Book 4 PDF FORE FREE exclusively.
✨Official Site: https://rabbitchu.blogspot.com/
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Hello, lovely world! I'm Julie Breeze Chen. My writing career focuses on Young Adult and New Adult (YA/NA) fictions, with a special love for themes involving ANIMALS.🐶 I have published over 40 books with various Taiwanese publishers and am frequently invited to lead writing workshops at libraries, high schools, and universities.I’ll also be releasing Q&As and exclusive writing coaching on YouTube soon! My followers on IG will get exclusive content for FREE.
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各位好，我是Julie/夏嵐，一個已商業出版四十多部作品的獲獎小說家。讀者以青少年和成人為主，最喜歡書寫的是動物的題材，我也經常受邀到各大圖書館、高中、大學演講。
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不只在方格子上有各式免費小說可供閱讀，我也即將在個人YouTube上釋出有聲Q&A與作品教學，屆時會上傳到方格子付費牆，但這份獨家內容，只要是本IG追蹤者即可私訊免費取得。歡迎點本IG頭貼的各式連結追蹤我！🦄
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