After three days, my fever finally went away, and I’ve slowly recovered enough to be able to keep some food down. What I’ve been eating has been finely chopped vegetables floating in bland soup. It’s okay for now since I’ve been sick, but I don’t think I’ll be able to stand it once I’m healthy again. Also, I’m pretty used to being called Maine by now. I’m going to have to live as Maine for the rest of my life, so I need get used to it quickly.

  “Maine, you done?” asks Tory as she comes in to check on me.

  “Yeah.”


  I hand my empty dishes over to her, and quietly lie back down on my bed.

  “Get some rest, Maine.”


  In these last three days, I haven’t even left this room! I’ve only ever gotten up to use the restroom, and after that I’m always brought right back to bed. Isn’t that too harsh? On top of that, I said “restroom”, but it’s really just a chamber pot kept in the bedroom. It’s extremely embarrassing! Also, not only does the rest of the family use this same chamber pot, but when they’re done, they just fling the contents out the window! And, of course, there’s no bath, either! I couldn’t stand it after a while and tried to wipe myself clean, and everyone looked at me as if I’d gone instane. This lifestyle… I can’t take it anymore!!

  It’s not like I can do anything about it, though. As a very young, sick child, even if I were to run away, there’s no way I’d be able to live the kind of life I’d want. I still have the mind of an adult, so this much is obvious. I’m not going to heedlessly run away, no matter how much I hate this situation. Judging from what I’ve seen in here so far, I don’t think the outside is going to be much better. I have no idea if there’s any child protection services or shelters or anything like that around here, and even if there were I don’t know if they’d be any improvement over this place.

  If I run away from the filth here, all that’ll happen is that I’ll spend my last few days running around the streets, getting covered in falling waste, and finally dying on the side of the road. What I need to do is focus on getting better so that I can then work on improving the conditions around here.

  My first goal is to get well enough that I can get out of bed without people being mad at me. ……Well, it’s a start.

  Then, before anything else: books. The first step towards improving my environment is definitely finding books. If I have a book, then I’ll be able put up with all of these grievances. I’ll persevere! And, so, I have decided that today I’m going to go explore this house. I’ve gone too long without reading a book; I’m starting to feel the edges of withdrawal.

  Give me a book! Raaagh! I’ll cry! A grown woman will burst into tears in public!

  Since I’ve got an older sister, I should be able to find around ten picture books somewhere in here. Unless I’m mistaken, I don’t think I actually know how to read this language, but at least I can look at the pictures and try to puzzle out the meanings of each word.

  The door opens quietly, and Tory sticks her head in. “Maine, you sleeping?” she whispers. I lie quietly in my bed, and she nods in satisfaction. Every time I’ve woken up, I’ve slipped out of bed in search of a book, only to collapse as I wandering around, so Tory has taken it upon herself to keep a close watch on me. When our mother leaves in the morning to go to work, she leaves Tory in charge of my care. Tory has been desperately trying to keep me in bed, and with my tiny body, no matter how much I try to run I can never break free from her grip.

  “I am absolutely going to ‘dominate’ you,” I mutter.

  “What was that?” asks Tory.

  “…Hm? Oh, I just want to get big.”


  Not really understanding the real meaning behind my answer, Tory gives me a troubled smile. “If you get healthy again, you’ll get bigger! You’re always so sick that you’re not eating, so even though you’re five, people still think that you’re three.”


  Oh, am I five, then? With an atypically frail build. This is the first I’ve heard of it. I can’t remember any birthday parties, so I couldn’t figure it out for myself. Or, maybe, could there have been parties that I just don’t recognize, since I don’t know the language very well?

  “Tory,” I ask, “Are you big?”


  “I’m six, but everyone thinks I’m seven or eight, so maybe I’m a little big?”


  “Ahh.”


  We’re only a year apart, but what a difference in physique. Surpassing her might be extremely difficult, but I can’t give up just yet. I’m going to eat right, take care of my hygiene, and get healthy.

  “Mom’s gone to work,” says Tory, “so I need to wash the dishes. Really, don’t get out of bed! If you don’t sleep, you won’t get better, and if you don’t get better, you won’t grow any bigger!” “Okay!”


  In preparation for sneaking out, I’ve been playing the good kid ever since last night so that Tory will let down her guard a little bit. I’ve been waiting patiently ever since for her to finally leave me alone and go somewhere else.

  “Right, I’m going now. Be good and stay here, okay?”


  “Okaaay!” I answer, the picture of obedience.

  Tory closes the door with a clack. I wait quietly as she grabs the box full of dirty dishes and heads out the door. I don’t know where she goes to wash the dishes, but she’s always gone for about twenty to thirty minutes. It looks like each home doesn’t have its own water supply, so there’s probably a well or fountain for public use.

  Heh heh heh… Now, get out!!

  From what I think is the entranceway, I hear the clunk of a turning lock, followed by the fading sound of Tory’s footsteps on the stairway. I wait until I can’t hear her at all anymore, then quietly get out of my head. I grimace as I feel the grit of the floor bite into my bare feet. Walking around barefoot in a house where everyone wears shoes is profoundly disgusting, but Tory, in an attempt to stop me from walking around, hid my shoes, so I have no choice. Searching for a book is my top priority, I have no time to worry about the defilement of my feet.

  “If they’re in here after all, I might have spoke too soon…”


  In this bedroom where my feverish self has been locked away, there are two beds, three wooden boxes full of clothing and other miscellaneous things, and a few baskets with other sundry items. In the basket next to my bed, there’s a few toys made from wood and straw, but no books. If there’s a bookshelf, it would probably be in the living room.

  “Yyyuck…”


  With every step I take, the gritty floor grinds into the soles of my feet. It’s customary here to walk around the house with shoes on, so I know that even if I want to complain, it’s not going to do very much good. Even still, the customs of Japan have been so thoroughly ingrained in me that it’s going to be next to impossible to adapt. If I’m going to keep living as Maine, though, there are a lot of things I’m going to have to get used to.

  “Grr, too high…”


  I’ve hit the first major obstacle in my home exploration: the bedroom door. It’s not as if I can’t reach the knob at all; if I stand on my tiptoes and reach as high as I can go, my fingertips just barely brush the bottom of it. Turning it, however, is a much bigger problem. I glance around the room, looking for something to use as a stool. My gaze settles on the wooden box my clothes are stored in.

  “Hnnnngh!”


  If I were an adult, moving this box would be a piece of cake, but no matter how hard I push and pull, my little hands can’t budge it. I could maybe flip over the basket that holds my toys, but it doesn’t look like it would be able to support my weight.

  “Man, I’ve got to get bigger soon; there’s too much I can’t do right now.”


  After looking around the bedroom some more and thinking over my options, I decided to try folding up my parents’ bedding and standing on that. There’s absolutely no way that I’d let my own bedding touch this grimy floor that people walk on with boots, but my parents are used to living in conditions like this so it’s absolutely fine to use theirs. If it’s for the sake of finding a book, making my parents a little upset is no big deal at all.

  “Hup!”


  I stand on my tiptoes on top of the folded bedding and grab the doorknob. I twist with the entire weight of my body, and the knob turns. The door swings open with a creak… right towards me.

  “Wha?!”


  The door swings right towards my head with great force. I frantically let go of the knob, and stumble backwards.

  “Who-o-o-o-a!”


  With a clatter, I tumble off of the piled-up bedding and hit my head.

  “Ow…”


  I clutch my head as I rise to my feet. I notice that the door is still slightly ajar! My headache is only just another sacrifice to the cause.

  “I did it! It’s open!”


  I leap forward, stick my fingers into the crack, and pull the door the rest of the way open. I see that my parents’ mattress has slid across the floor, and it’s left a clean track behind it… but I’ll pretend not to notice for now.

  “Aha, the kitchen!”


  I leave the bedroom and find myself in a kitchen. “Kitchen” in the modern sense of the word might be a little, generous; this really looks more like an old-style cookhouse. In the corner I see a stove, with a cast iron pot sitting on top, and something that looks like a frying pan hung up on the wall next to it. A clothesline runs across the room, from which a grimy-looking cleaning rag hangs. Anyone trying to wipe something off with that rag is surely only going to make it worse.

  “It’s no wonder I’ve got a weak constitution with sanitation like this…”


  In the center of the room is a somewhat small table, two three-legged stools, and a box that seems to be being used as another stool. On the right side of the room is a wooden cabinet, probably being used as a cupboard. In the corner opposite the stove sits a large basket, filled with raw vegetables that look almost like potatoes and onions. There’s a sink here as well, with a large jug of water next to it. The sink is probably filled by pouring water from the jug; it looks like there really isn’t running water here.

  As I finish looking around the room, I notice two more doors besides the one leading back to the bedroom.

  “Ohoho, which one is the right one?”


  This kitchen really doesn’t look like the kind of place where I’d find a bookshelf, so I open one of the other doors that head out of the kitchen.

  “Hm, a storage room?”


  Beyond the door is a room that’s crammed full of a mess of tools and things that I’ve never seen before. Everything’s on shelves, but things are piled on them so haphazardly that it doesn’t look like anything in here is used very much at all.

  “Wrong one, huh…”


  I give up on this room and head over to the second door. I reach up and pull on the knob, but the lock only clunks dully against the frame. I rattle the door again and again, but there’s no sign of it giving way at all.

  “Don’t tell me, this is the door Tory went through…? Eh? Both were wrong?! Neither were right?!”


  Suddenly perplexed, I mumble aloud to myself. This is a two-bedroom apartment with a kitchen… but no bath, no toilet, no running water, and no bookshelves. No matter how hard I look, I can’t find another room.

  Hey, God, do you have a grudge?!

  In all of the light novels out there about reincarnation, the vast majority of them dropped the protagonist amongst the rich and noble, and very few of the remainder place her in abject poverty. I have the memories and sensibilities of a modern-day citizen of Japan; there is no way I’m going to be able to live in a house with no bath, no toilet, no running water.

  On top of that, the thing that I was most worried about: I can’t find any books. I looked all through the storage room and couldn’t find anything even remotely resembling a book.

  “…No way, are books expensive?”


  On Earth, before the invention of machines that could print books easily, books were ridiculously expensive. If you weren’t a member of the highest echelons of society, your opportunities to read books were few and far between.

  “I’ve got no choice. If it’s come to this, right now, I need to find words.”


  Even if I don’t have any books, it’s still possible for me to start learning to read. There could be newspapers, pamphlets, magazines, calendars, even advertisements! There absolutely has to be something around here that has at least one word written on it somewhere.

  At least, there would be in Japan.

  “…Nothing! Absolutely nothing! Not a single thing! What kind of house is this?!”


  I have gone through every item on every shelf of the storage room and the cupboard, and not only have I, of course, still not found any books, but there hasn’t been so much as a single letter printed on anything at all. Printing aside, I can’t even find a single piece of paper!

  “What the heck is… this…”


  Blinding pain blasts through my head, as if my fever had come roaring back. My heart pounds in my chest, and I am deafened by the sudden ringing in my ears. I crumple to the floor, as if the strings holding me up were suddenly cut. My eyes are so hot.

  Dying, crushed by books, had been my dream; being reincarnated, well, that’s okay too. But how am I supposed to live like this? What am I to live for? I hadn’t even thought that I could be reborn into a world without books. Why was I even born?!

  Tears run down my face as I struggle to find a reason to keep living.

  “Maine!! What are you doing up?! You shouldn’t have gotten out of bed without your shoes!” shouts Tory, as she walks into the kitchen to find me crumpled on the ground.

  “…Tory… there’s no 'books’…”


  Even though I want to read so badly, there’s no books. I have no idea why, or even how, I’m going to keep living on.

  “What’s wrong? Are you hurt?” asks Tory, concerned, as I lay there with tears constantly streaming from my eyes. There’s no way for me to explain. She can’t even see that not having books is a problem, how could she understand my feelings?

  I want a book.

  I want to read.

  Hey, is there even anyone out there who would understand?

  Where can I find a book?

  Please, someone tell me.

  Volme 6, 3 The ink guild and the beginning of winter

  As the fall came to an end, we finished printing our second batch of children's Bibles. I set aside the twenty we were going to use as textbooks and sold the other forty to Benno, earning six large golds. After months of being just over the poverty line, I was suddenly rich

  Not long after, Fran and Rosina came to my quarters to talk about my family, about the upcoming winter, and using the money earned from the picture books to further complete our winter preparations. And with that, I, my family, and the orphanage had completed our respective winter preparations, just as the weather cooled enough that it looked like it would snow at any moment.

  Lutz gave me a report as we headed home from the temple.

  "Myne, Master Benno said that the head of the Ink Guild and the foreman of the ink shop came to see you this morning."

  "…I guess they noticed the new ink we're using?"

  As predicted, wealthy people with connections to the nobles were beginning to buy the children's bibles from the Gilberta Company. One could tell at a glance that the ink used was not normal ink; there was a big difference between the blue-colored walnut ink and the solid black paint ink made from soot and oil.

  Naturally, the Ink Guild noticed this immediately and started looking for who had done it, but no one in the guild knew anything. No one, except the foreman of the ink shop I had visited, that is.

  "They said that a girl from the Gilberta Company knew how to make a different kind of ink."

  That revelation sent the head of the Ink Guild and the foreman in question straight to the Gilberta Company - specifically to ask Benno if he intended to make another Ink Guild for his new ink.

  The Gilberta Company had a precedent for making new guilds. They had fought against the Parchment Guild to make the Vegetable Paper Guild and the accompanying workshops, which now filled the market with vegetable paper, somewhat cheaper than parchment. Although there was an agreement that parchment would continue to be used for official contracts, vegetable paper surpassed it to a large extent because it could be mass-produced; it only made sense that those with a personal interest in ink would be on guard after Benno began using different ink on plant paper to sell books.

  "Master Benno wants you to come to the store tomorrow. He has something to talk to you about."

  "Okay."

  That was standard business for me, and the next day Lutz and I went to the Gilberta Company first before going to the temple.

  "Good morning, Benno."

  "There you are, Myne. Good to see you coming."

  Benno gestured for me to sit at the table as Lutz went up the back stairs. As a leherl, Lutz was practicing how to prepare and serve tea to visitors.

  "As I expected, the Ink Guild came to ask. You said you wanted to teach them how to make ink and then let them do it all, right?"

  "Yes. If you continue to expand your business into all these other fields, it will only create more enemies for you, and ink making really has nothing to do with the Gilberta Company's main line of work. As long as they let Myne's Workshop continue to make their own ink, I wouldn't mind selling off the production process and letting them take care of the rest."

  Mass production of ink will be important to spread printing around the world, but trying to manage both processes on our own might end up being too difficult to handle. It would make more sense to me to let other people take over these jobs when possible.

  "How much money are you thinking?"

  "Mmm, as much as I'm giving the temple, so… How about ten percent of the profits?"

  My suggestion made Benno shake his head with a grimace.

  "You're setting it too low."

  "But the profits will increase as the ink spreads, and I want you to sell the ink at a low price just like the vegetable paper sells at a low price."

  My thought process was entirely based on spreading the product as far as possible, but Benno dismissed the idea with a wave of his hand.

  "At least raise it to thirty percent for the first ten years. Then you can reduce it to twenty percent for the ten years after that, then ten percent for the rest of the time. That's just why I'm bringing you to the table. You shouldn't sell new technology that low."

  "Okay. I'll leave the percentages to you."

  Benno was certainly going with thirty percent rather than something much higher to accommodate me. I knew he had my best interests in mind, so I felt comfortable leaving all that to him.

  "Here's the tea." Lutz came down the stairs, looking tense as he placed cups in front of us.

  Benno took his cup, examining its contents with a sharp look in his eyes before taking a sip.

  "… It's still not there."

  "Definitely not the best, but it's getting better. Lutz, do you want Fran to help you a little? He's a good teacher; both Gil and Delia are much better at making tea now."

  "That sounds good… Haaah."

  Lutz was working hard under Mark's supervision, but his tea wasn't good enough to serve other visitors yet. For now, he was practicing on me.

  "That just leaves the magic contract."

  "Do you think we should use it?"

  Contract magic was expensive enough that it was generally only used when nobles were involved. Benno had signed magic contracts with me twice before, but both times he was thinking long term and laying the groundwork to protect me from nobles. But this time we were only dealing with the Ink Guild, which as far as I knew didn't have any nobles.

  "The deal we're making will last a long time and involve a lot of money. It's worth it, and personally, I don't trust the leader of the Ink Guild. I might as well play it safe with contract magic, this will be a contract with the Ink Guild itself, not with him."

  "A contract with the Ink Guild?"

  It seemed that the groups were also seen as separate legal entities in this world. I tilted my head in thought and Benno nodded slowly.

  "Yep. It will be important to ensure that the contract remains in place even when the head eventually changes."

  There seemed to be many historical cases where people who assumed positions of power decided not to honor the contracts their predecessor had signed. It had happened enough times for the judicial system to develop the concept of legal personhood.

  "We are going to sell the ink production process to the guild. They will let Myne's Workshop continue to make their own ink. We will make the price of ink cheap so that it will spread along with the vegetable paper. We get thirty percent of their profit from the ink. That amount will change every ten years. Sound good?"

  "Be sure to tell them that the ink is not good for use on parchment as it doesn't absorb much."

  After confirming the details with Benno and Lutz, Mark called and came in.

  "Master Benno, two visitors from the Ink Guild are here."

  "Let them in once I ring the bell."

  "As you wish."

  Mark left the room.

  Benno immediately stood up and set me down from my chair with a grim expression. He then lifted his chin toward Lutz, who responded with a silent nod before opening the inner door to the stairs.

  "Myne, I'll negotiate with the Ink Guild. You don't want to be seen. Stay with Corinna and I'll send you the magic contract to sign once it's all written down."

  "…Why jump through so many hoops to hide?"

  I thought it would be rather strange to sign a contract with one of the parties absent. I blinked in surprise, and after glancing over to where the visitors were probably waiting in the other room, Benno explained in a low, dark voice.

  "The shop foreman might be okay, but the guild boss has connections with the nobles and I don't hear a lot of good things about him. There are a lot of bad rumors. You'd better not let him see you."

  "Good. I'll trust you on this."

  I was very curious about this Ink Guild master, but I went ahead and climbed the stairs to Corinna's room with Lutz. Once there, he immediately turned to go back downstairs, as it was his job to deliver the magic contract paper.

  "Lutz, tell me how the head of the Ink Guild is later, okay?"

  "Yeah, sure."

  After dismissing Lutz, I turned to Corinna.

  "I'm sorry, Corinna. I just barged in out of nowhere."

  "It's okay, Myne. Let's take this opportunity to do the temporary stitching on your tunic."

  "Right. Sorry to give you such a big job to do so quickly."

  Corinna led me into the living room with a kind expression. On the way we saw Otto in the hallway, who greeted us with a friendly greeting. He must have been off work today as Dad was.

  "Sheesh, Myne. I can't believe you're making Corinna work hard for an arch noble when she's pregnant."

  "Otto, how many times have I told you to keep your nose out of my work?"

  "I'm just worried about you, Corinna."

  Otto did not back down even after receiving a hard look from Corinna. They were as loving as ever.

  I watched Corinna pull Otto out of the room like a petulant child, wondering if Otto was actually causing her headaches instead of her pregnancy.

  "I'm worried about you too, Corinna. has Otto gone overboard lately? He and dad are famous on the gate for being madly in love. is he so excited about his first baby that he's causing problems…"

  "My God, is that's what people say about him? I imagine your mother has it as hard as I do then. "Corinna burst out laughing and brought in some blue cloth, which she began to spread out on a large table.

  "Do you think you'll be able to finish the ceremonial robes? You really haven't been given enough time."

  "It will certainly be a struggle; The workshop is very busy. But it's still rare that we get work from the archnobles, so our seamstresses are giving it their all. We charge them quite a lot, after all."

  It seemed that while making the fabric for my first set of tunics, they had also dyed extra fabric in the same color to use for another order placed by someone else. They were using that extra fabric now, and apparently, everyone in the shop was working at full speed on the embroidery.

  "We still have to do the first fitting for that other order, which gives us plenty of time to dye new fabric before the deadline. But we were told to finish these tunics as soon as possible, and while we don't have time to use a different fabric for the first fitting, I can't imagine it's grown enough that the measurements will be too different from the last time."

  As I spoke, Corinna fitted me with the blue fabric with pinning needles. It was hard for her to do with her big belly, and it seemed like everything she did was a struggle for her.

  "I'm sorry, Myne. I'll have to call a maid to help me. This is too much for me on my own."

  "Your belly really is big now. Is it almost time?"

  "Yes, I was told to expect it in mid-winter. The baby is quite energetic, he's always rolling around in there. Maybe it's a boy?" Corinna rubbed her big belly as she rang a bell to call a maid.

  But it was Otto who came in, saying "You called?" And he seemed eager to help. I couldn't help but laugh at Corinna's exasperated expression.

  "You know, now that Myne has stolen Benno from us, I think it's time for me to quit and accept my new life working for the Gilberta Company."

  "Um, Otto, what do you mean I stole Benno from you?"

  I don't even have the arm strength to lift Benno, let alone carry him anywhere.

  "It means what it means. As his financial guardian, Benno plans to continue expanding his business. That's why he's in the middle of beating how the Gilberta Company works into my head," Otto said with a shrug as he began to help Corinna. He was actually doing a pretty good job, a sign that he had been working hard to learn.

  "Otto, you look so in your element here that I almost forget you're a soldier. At this rate, it won't be a long time before you open your own store with Corinna, huh?"

  "… Well, it'll be a few years at least. I'll work hard for Corinna and for the sake of our baby."

  "Yes, yes, dear. Work your hands, not your mouth."

  Corinna finished the temporary stitching while giving Otto instructions. The length was fine, so we decided to go with the same measurements and everything as last time. Then she chased Otto out again and fixed my hair, which had been messed up by the temporary seams.

  As I was putting my top layer of clothes back on a knock sounded from further into the house, followed by Mark announcing himself. We could hear the footsteps of someone walking to let Mark in; I hurriedly finished dressing and nodded as Mark knocked on the living room door.

  "Please come in."

  "Excuse me, Corinna." Mark entered with a sheet of paper and a jar of ink. He spread the magic contract on the round table and confirmed each point with me. It was almost exactly what I had discussed with Benno, and the numbers in our favor showed that Benno had won the negotiations.

  There was only one point I didn't recognize. A line that said, "The contents of this contract will be recorded in the Ink Guild bylaws."

  "Mark, what does this part of the Ink Guild regulations mean?"

  "All workshops belonging to a guild must abide by the guild's rules. In short, the contents of the contract recorded in the Ink Guild regulations mean that they will also apply to Ink Guilds and ink workshops in other cities."

  The magic contract itself was only magically binding in Ehrenfest, but the guild regulations were maintained in all cities. As such, although there were several different Ink Guilds, they all followed the same regulations - although there were slight variations in the rules depending on the city and workshop in question. To my way of thinking, the guild regulations were very similar to the federal law that existed in addition to the regional laws.

  "But how would the Ink Guilds in other cities know to enforce these rules, is there any line of communication between then?"

  "They are buying the production process of this ink precisely because it will be profitable for them. It is natural for this Ink Guild to send a message to their fellow Ink Guilds in neighboring cities. They will amend their copy of the regulations after learning about the production process."

  I nodded at Mark's explanation and grabbed the ink. The contract already had Benno's name and a line for the Ink Guild, but the guildmaster's name had not yet been written. I wrote my name as close to the bottom as possible.

  "So, Lutz, what kind of person was the head of the Ink Guild?"

  "… He had a nasty look in his eyes. He was looking for you."

  "Bwuh?"

  Lutz clenched his fists and explained, speaking softly.

  "He told Master Benno that he knew a girl had brought out the new ink in the workshop. He said 'Let me see her if she is here.' I think Master Benno was right to hide you…… He felt much worse than the guild master."

  If Lutz was saying that this man was much worse than the guild master, it must have been really bad. Lutz and Benno both on guard around him was a sign that I should be on guard too.

  "But anyway, Myne. Hold out your hand," Lutz said, readying his knife.

  I grimaced as I remembered that the contract magic needed blood, then held out my hand. A sudden sharp pain shot through the tip of my finger and the blood came out. I pressed it against the contract which then burst into a golden flame, burned the paper, and sealed the deal. It seemed as magical as ever.

  "Myne," Mark said, "wait here quietly until Master Benno calls for you."

  "I know, Mark."

  With the contract signed, I passed the time talking to Corinna about her baby and ignoring Otto's crying about how I couldn't help him with the work over the winter.

  It was about lunch when Benno came running up the stairs with an angry look in his eyes.

  "Myne, I sent Mark to take Lutz home and call your father and sister to come get you. Don't even think about leaving until they're here! "

  "…What, did something happen!" I stood up and ran over to Benno, who looked out the window with a frown on his face.

  "I sent Lutz on an errand to the Merchants Guild, and on the way, some men joined him. They started asking questions about 'the Gilberta Company girl'. He said he must know about you as he is a leherl and mentioned the contract."

  "That must mean they are…" I paused, and Benno nodded deliberately.

  "They must have been from the Ink Guild, but I can't understand why they would start looking for information after signing the contract."

  It made sense that they would want to gather information beforehand to help them get better terms for themselves or something, but the contract was already signed. They had cornered Lutz even though that would obviously put us on our guard, and we had no idea why. And there was no greater fear, than fear of the unknown.

  "… There may be something going on behind the scenes here. Keep your eyes and ears open out there."

  "Okay."

  "Myne, we're here."

  "Dad! Tuuli!"

  They had both been off work and, judging by how heavy their breathing was, they must have been rushing here at full speed.

  "My apologies for calling you," Benno said to Dad, rising from his seat.

  "No, I appreciate you going out of your way to protect my daughter, do you mind if I ask you what the hell is going on?"

  "The Ink Guild has definitely seen her, but I don't know who's pulling the strings," Benno explained. "The fact that they're looking for information after the contract signing is strange, and the fact that they're after Lutz just doesn't make sense."

  I could see my father's eyes harden. Tuuli, who looked nervous, gave me a tight hug.

  "I think Myne will be safer if you send her to the temple now," Benno continued. "I'll leave the decision up to you and your wife, but they won't be able to do anything to her if she's at the temple. It will also give us time to look for information ourselves."

  "… Agreed."

  Dad nodded gravely, then lifted me up with a frown.

  "What do you think, Myne, do you want to go to the temple, or do you want to go home?"

  Honestly, I wanted Dad to take me home so I wouldn't be alone. But that would make it more likely that these people would go after Lutz and my family.

  "… I don't want to leave so soon, but I don't want anything to happen to you or Lutz even more. I'll go to the temple. The snow will start soon, anyway."

  I put on a brave face, but the thought of living in the temple made me indescribably nervous. I squeezed Dad's shirt tightly.

  And so began my winter in the temple.

  Drama CD 3 SS: Witnessing the name swearing

  Within the dormitory’s mixing workshop, Roderick was stirring the contents of a cauldron with his schtappe-transformed mixing stick. He was taking far too much time to make a simple restoration potion and I could feel myself getting more irritated with every passing second.

  “No matter how you try to cut it, isn’t this taking way too long?”


  “…Please don’t compare me to an archnoble such as yourself, Lord Hartmut.”


  Roderick meekly retorted back at me with an apprehensive look on his face. He’s a second grader who has only just begun his mixing lessons and has barely learnt the recipe for making restoration potions. As a mednoble and not only that, a mednoble with a mana capacity close to that of a laynoble’s, he’s unaccustomed to mixing so perhaps this is only as to be expected. I know that I shouldn’t bear the same expectations for him as I have for Lady Rozemyne or myself. Lady Rozemyne not only passed all her classes on the very first day, but even knows how to make restoration potions that aren’t taught at the Royal Academy.

  …But if you consider him as someone who’s about to become a retainer to a member of the archducal clan, there’s far too much left to be desired. Scholars who serve the archducal clan have to be able to procure the materials that their charge needs, prepare restoration potions and feystones, assist their charge in office work and collect any information that their charge requires. But let alone the laynoble Philine, even Roderick was unable to assist Lady Rozemyne with mixing. He was less knowledgeable about magic tools and magic circles than his own mistress and had too few acquaintances to be able to effectively gather information. Considering the only thing Roderick could do was write stories, even if he were to give his name to Lady Rozemyne, he was too incompetent to actually do work as one of her retainers.

  …His mana capacity is far too low for him to realistically do any typical scholarly work. I’m worried about whether he’ll even be able to finish his name swearing stone in time before Lady Rozemyne returns to the Royal Academy. In the first place, if he were to actually do his research, he should be able to find the procedure for making a name swearing stone in the Royal Academy’s library. In spite of that, Roderick claimed he was unable to find anything. For someone who’s an apprentice scholar, he’s far too uneducated and hasn’t read enough books. Perhaps this is due to him always reading and writing stories but he’s even less knowledgeable about magic tools and magic circles than Philine.

  …At this rate, I’m concerned about who’s going to communicate with Raimund next year after I graduate. Since Roderick is a mednoble, I did have higher hopes for him than I did for Philine but…


  I lost myself in my thoughts as I watched Roderick make restoration potions at an excruciatingly slow pace. It’s impossible to leave negotiations with a mednoble from another duchy to Philine. Although Lady Rozemyne does not discriminate between people based on their social class, there are many more issues with a laynoble retainer than she thinks. An apprentice scholar of mednoble rank or higher is absolutely essential to ensure that they will be able to resolutely refuse if a mednoble from another duchy have some sort of absurd demand. This is a barrier which effort alone will not be able to overcome.

  …In the first place, shouldn’t a scholar be disqualified from being Lady Rozemyne’s retainer the moment they’re unable to help her make the magic tools and magic circles she desires?

  I groaned as I recalled the trials that Raimund and I had received from Lord Ferdinand. The subject matter was to create various magic tools that would help bring Lady Rozemyne’s idealised library into reality.

  …This is obviously too difficult a task to expect a medscholar who’s only in his 2nd grade to accomplish, but it will be embarrassing if Ehrenfest’s students didn’t understand the research materials handed over by a student from another duchy despite being the ones who had commissioned the job in the first place. At the very least, a basic understanding of Lord Ferdinand’s task will be needed so that they can explain the contents to Raimund and accurately convey any of Raimund’s questions back to Lord Ferdinand.

  The knowledge of magic tools isn’t the only thing Roderick has to learn. He also needs to learn how to deal with Professor Gundolf and any nobles from Ahrensbach who try to make contact through Raimund. It is imperative for a scholar to collect information on such individuals and then decide whether to let them meet Lady Rozemyne. In certain cases, the decision should be left to the archduke’s discretion.

  …Even an archnoble such as I had my fair share of struggles.

  Ehrenfest has other apprentice archscholars but they’re all serving other archduke candidates. In order to solidify Lady Rozemyne’s position within the duchy, it is imperative that information regarding Raimund or the creation of new magic tools isn’t leaked to others.

  …I do plan on asking Clarissa to help collect information on other duchies but…


  Dunkelfelger’s Clarissa is an apprentice scholar who proposed to me last year. She only proposed to me as a means to achieve her true objective of serving Lady Rozemyne. For the sake of her future mistress, I’m sure she’d be willing to divulge some information. In other words, the current situation is one where even someone from another duchy such as Clarissa is more useful than Roderick.

  …Well, even if he isn’t really useful for anything, Lady Rozemyne wishes to keep him around so I guess I’ve got no choice but to help him out. As I absentmindedly supervised Roderick’s mixing, I recalled that time I received the report that Lady Rozemyne had decided to accept his name. When Lady Rozemyne made the decision to accept him, Rihyarda, Philine and Judithe had been the only ones present.

  Once the rest of us retainers had finished our lectures, Rihyarda called us to a conference room upon which we were informed about Lady Rozemyne’s decision. I still vividly remember just how averse Lady Rozemyne was towards the idea of accepting someone else’s name, so it came as a huge shock to me that she eventually agreed to accept Roderick.

  “Are you seriously telling me that Roderick isn’t the only one who wishes for this but that Lady Rozemyne also wants Roderick as her retainer?”


  “Yes. Right after she enrolled at the Royal Academy, Lady Rozemyne listed Roderick as one of the apprentice scholars she wished to recruit as a retainer.”


  I had expected Lady Rozemyne to reject him and tell him to give up after listening to his circumstances. Hence, I had listened to Rihyarda’s explanation with bitter feelings in my heart. I can’t believe I made such a significant miscalculation. Supposedly, in addition to Philine who collected stories, Lady Rozemyne also desired Roderick because he wrote stories for her.

  …That would’ve been back when she had only just woken up from the jureve. I can’t believe she’s remembered Roderick this entire time.

  “As you can surely understand, even if milady wished for it, it would’ve been impossible to appoint a Veronica faction mednoble as a retainer, let alone the one who had laid the trap for Lord Wilfried in the White Tower incident. Back then, I explained the circumstances to milady and refused her request, but luckily, Lord Sylvester gave permission for her to accept Roderick if he gave her his name. Now Lady Rozemyne is finally able to have Roderick as her retainer and Roderick is able to serve his chosen mistress. All’s well that ends well.”


  “So their feelings were mutual…”


  “Yes. The children who left the greatest impression on Lady Rozemyne were the ones who appreciated her picture books. But a laynoble like Philine was a bit too underqualified to become a retainer to a member of the archducal clan. I tried to get Lady Rozemyne to change her mind but I would be disqualified as a retainer if I couldn’t even grant any of milady’s wishes. Hence as the condition for accepting Philine as a retainer, I recommended that she also accept an archscholar such as you, Hartmut. How nostalgic, it’s already been over a year since then.”


  Apparently I had only managed to become a retainer because Rihyarda had recommended me as part of a package deal with Philine. Lady Rozemyne hadn’t actually chosen me herself.

  …I can’t believe it! To think that Lady Rozemyne hadn’t even noticed me at all…


  It was honestly a huge shock to me. Now that I knew that Lady Rozemyne is someone who doesn’t judge people by what faction they’re from but rather by her personal impression of them, it’s no wonder that she didn’t even know my name since she had never talked to me in person before. But that doesn’t change just how much pain I felt on an emotional level. I’m an archnoble who’s the son born from the marriage between one of Lady Florenzia’s retainers and one of Lady Rozemyne’s own retainers. I’m also a friend of her blood-related brother Cornelius. I had received and rejected invitations to join the retinues of both Lord Wilfried and Lady Charlotte. I had always thought I’d be the first choice when Lady Rozemyne chooses her retainers but it seems like it had been my delusions all along. My mother had always told me to cool my head whenever I started talking about Lady Rozemyne and it seems like she hadn’t recommended me either. This was the first time I’d learned of all this.

  …I really want to go back in time and punch myself for being so overconfident that I’d be selected as one of Lady Rozemyne’s retainers!

  “By giving his name and offering Lady Rozemyne control over his life, Roderick has proven that he holds stronger loyalty than any other retainer. He will surely become her closest and most trusted aide. The White Tower incident in which he ensnared Lord Wilfried will not serve as a justifiable reason to treat him coldly.”


  Rihyarda glared at me sternly to warn me against any mistreatment of Roderick. I have no intention of treating him coldly for such a petty reason. After all, I myself have concocted similar plans before to drag Lord Wilfried down from the position of heir and prop up Lady Rozemyne as the next archduke. Although my mother found out and stopped me before I had an opportunity to enact those plans…


  I’ve never held any negative feelings for Roderick and instead I welcomed the White Tower incident with open arms since Wilfried’s reputation got dragged through the mud without me having to even lift a finger.

  …I did feel sorry for Roderick when he was betrayed by his family and friends and was made to bear sole responsibility for the incident. But that was only the kind of generic pity that anyone would feel for him in those circumstances.

  However, any feelings of goodwill I had for him were now dead. After all, he expressed his desire to serve Lady Rozemyne and was accepted, even giving his name to her to demonstrate the depth of his loyalty. There’s no way I wouldn’t be jealous.

  “If I treat him coldly, it’s obvious that Lady Rozemyne would resent me for it. There’s no way I’d do anything that could earn her ire. But us Leisegang nobles fully intend on showing him the depth of our bonds with Lady Rozemyne to dispel any foolish notions that he could turn into her closest aide just by giving his name to her.”


  If one were to disrespect the commoners known as Guttenbergs, it’d invoke Lady Rozemyne’s wrath. Hence, even if I’m dissatisfied with this, as long as Lady Rozemyne herself wants Roderick as a retainer, I will refrain from making a move against him.

  …To be completely honest, I’m extremely irritated about Roderick’s very existence but I will respect Lady Rozemyne’s wishes. I’m at least capable of that much restraint.

  “I-I did it!”


  “You’ve only made the restoration potion. Stop spacing out and drink it already.”


  I glared at Roderick as he jubilantly watched the cauldron which had shone brightly for an instant to indicate that the potion was complete. Who even gets excited just from successfully making a restoration potion?

  “Y-Yes!”


  Urged on by my impatient tone, Roderick hurriedly drank the restoration potion. Both the formation of the potion and the dyeing of the feystone were taking him far longer than I had expected. As his supervisor, I’m honestly worried that he might not be able to make his name swearing stone in time. And yet, the moment he gathered all his materials, Roderick had already begun celebrating as if his name had already been accepted. Even now, he was doing nothing after drinking the restoration potion and was simply waiting for his mana to recover.

  …I’d only just warned him to stop spacing out. Is he an idiot?

  “How many times do you need me to tell you that we’re running out of time? If you have nothing to do while waiting for your mana to recover, write your story! You’d be sorely mistaken if you think I’d welcome you into our ranks without putting in some effort!”


  “O-Okay!”


  Roderick hurriedly grabbed a few pages of blank plant paper and ink. There was already a stack of used plant paper and wooden boards beside him. He was planning to use this opportunity to dedicate a new story to Lady Rozemyne together with his name.

  …This is unacceptable! If you want to devote something to Lady Rozemyne it should be of the highest quality possible. I picked up some of the wooden boards and crossed out certain lines while making various edits. The story which Roderick had written had numerous spelling errors and often used immature vocabulary. Furthermore, the mix of plant paper and wooden boards made it very hard to follow. But despite that, I know Lady Rozemyne will be delighted just by having a new story to read. Last year, when Clarissa proposed to me, I had tasked her with making something that would please Lady Rozemyne. As a result, this year, she brought two manuscripts with her to the Royal Academy. Back then, Lady Rozemyne had been waiting in front of the dorm entrance with a displeased expression on her face, but as soon as I showed her Clarissa’s manuscripts she instantly had a change of heart. Her anger melted into a smile and her golden eyes sparkled as she peered at the bundles of paper. The appearance of her body swaying from side to side to follow the movements of my hand was so adorable that I immediately decided to marry Clarissa for being able to show me such a wonderful side of Lady Rozemyne.

  I’m sure she will show me that same blessed smile again when she reads Roderick’s story. It’s only because I know just how much Lady Rozemyne will treasure every single story, I can’t forgive Roderick for trying to show her such shoddy writing.

  “Rewrite all the parts which I underlined. The parts which I circled have spelling errors. I won’t allow you to dedicate anything with flaws to Lady Rozemyne. Don’t you agree it would be far too disrespectful to dedicate anything to your mistress other than something made to the very best of your abilities?”


  He’s the one pleading for Lady Rozemyne to accept his name so this is the minimum amount of effort to be expected of him. As I spoke to him in an intimidating tone that indicated my refusal for any compromise, Roderick tearfully gulped down his saliva and fervently nodded before picking up his pen again. I carefully perused over his writing and pointed out all the mistakes. Once his mana had recovered, I ordered him to go back to dyeing the feystone and once his mana was spent, I had him drink a recovery potion again. We repeated this cycle so many times that I lost count. In the meantime, I lectured him on all the knowledge he’d need with regards to magic tools and magic circles so that he’d be able to discuss them with Raimund. And then finally…


  “Lady Rozemyne! I’ve finished at last!”


  Roderick handed a bundle of plant paper over to Lady Rozemyne. Her cheeks instantly relaxed and she gave him a warm smile. I’d already known in advance, but this once again proved that receiving a new story would bring her more joy than anything else.

  “Well done, Roderick.”


  “Lady Rozemyne, I deserve some praise as well.”


  I sullenly pouted at Lady Rozemyne, but who can blame me? Rather than Roderick who has a bad memory and a low mana capacity, I should be the one getting commended for teaching him how to do most of the work. Even if you were to disregard his family’s faction, Roderick doesn’t have the qualifications required to serve the archducal clan. The only thing he can do is write stories to please Lady Rozemyne. He’s unable to perform any of a traditional scholar’s duties.

  “It is thanks to your efforts, Hartmut, that Roderick was able to make his name-swearing stone and is going to be capable enough to begin his scholarly work as soon as he becomes my retainer. Well done and thank you.”


  I desperately held back tears of joy as I listened to Lady Rozemyne’s praise. Everyone around me always praised me for being an excellent scholar but I can’t count the number of times I’ve been frustrated with my lack of talent for writing stories. But on the other hand, scholars like Roderick who could only write stories were not very useful. It would only cause trouble for Lady Rozemyne if every scholar was like that. I’ve realised that I just need to be helpful in my own fields of strength.

  “Now then, as much as I want to say we should get right to it, I don’t know much about name-swearing. How is it done?”


  “You will need at least one or two observers present for a name-swearing ceremony.”


  As Lady Rozemyne asked her question and tilted her head in wonder, Rihyarda explained the procedure necessary for a name swearing ceremony.

  Although the method for preparing a name swearing stone was well known, the ceremonies themselves were held in private so there weren’t many details provided in written documents. As I wondered why RIhyarda would know such a thing, I recalled that her son Justus had undergone one of these ceremonies himself.

  “Still, this is problematic. Who should I choose to observe? Would you be the safest pick, Rihyarda?”


  “Please do select me, Lady Rozemyne.”


  I raised my hand and enthusiastically volunteered myself. I will never forgive any attempts at deceiving Lady Rozemyne with a fake name offering. And more importantly than anything, I wish to burn the visage of Lady Rozemyne’s first time into my own eyes.

  “Rihyarda, can I please ask you to be the observer?”


  I tried to show my sincerity through my actions, but for some reason I was promptly ignored. How vexing. It seems like I still haven’t done enough to earn her trust. I wonder what I need to do to receive permission to attend.

  “I suppose I cannot help being refused. If participating as an observer is no longer an option, I suppose I will need to give my name as well to see the ceremony.”


  I’ll use this as an excuse and push for her to receive my name. It was something I’d only thought up on the spot, but it might actually be a pretty good idea. Just as I started scheming for ways to convince her to accept my name, Lady Rozemyne hurriedly gave me permission to attend.

  “Now, let’s begin.”


  With Rihyarda’s words as the signal to start, I stood in a location that would let me stop Roderick if he were to try and harm Lady Rozemyne. I can’t wait to see what kind of expression Lady Rozemyne will have when she accepts a name for the first time. Is she really not pushing herself out of a sense of duty despite being reluctant to bear responsibility for another’s life? I focused my eyes on her so that I‘d be able to spot even the slightest change in her expression.

  “I, Roderick, hereby swear to create stories as Lady Rozemyne’s loyal vassal for the rest of my life. As proof of this, I offer my name alongside a story written by my own hand. May my name be with you always. May my life be yours forever.”


  Lady Rozemyne picked up the name-sworn stone from the box which Roderick reverently held out to her and checked it before putting it back. It was a stone which could easily rob Roderick of his life but there was no hesitation in her movements. She carefully wrapped her hand around the box containing Roderick’s name-swearing stone and poured her mana into the white feystone on the lid. At the same time, Roderick’s face warped and he lurched over in pain. Neither I nor Lady Rozemyne knew what was happening so we both froze in surprise but Rihyarda calmly gave us an explanation.

  “His name is being bound by another’s mana. He’s going to experience a great deal of pain, but only until the sealing is complete. Continue supplying mana and finish this quickly, for his sake.”


  “Understood.”


  Lady Rozemyne had a determined expression on her face as she tightly gripped the white box in her hands. Right as I felt the flow of a tremendous quantity of mana, Roderick was bound in a white light as if he had been caught in a net. Even though the feystone was the only thing Lady Rozemyne was holding, it had a clear and definite effect on Roderick.

  …Is this Lady Rozemyne’s mana? The phenomenon I was witnessing was something I could never have imagined. I had thought that becoming name-sworn was only an act used to swear fealty, but since one had to be engulfed in their charge’s mana, it also meant that they could be granted mana using this method.

  …In other words, I could use this method to envelop myself in Lady Rozemyne’s mana!?

  While I was still in shock at the realisation I had made, the name swearing ceremony finished successfully. Roderick stated “I’m fine now”, while wiping the sweat on his brow. The painful expression he had earlier had completely vanished and he picked up the bundle of papers he had dropped on the ground before holding it out to Lady Rozemyne.

  “Please accept this.”


  Lady Rozemyne received the bundle and started flipping through its pages. Just as I expected, her golden eyes blessed by the Goddess of Light glimmered with joy whilst her cheeks blushed as if she had been visited by the Goddess of Sprouts. She hugged the manuscript tightly with a look of pure bliss. As she let out a deeply satisfied sigh, I glanced with complicated feelings at Roderick who had easily brought her such happiness.

  “Roderick, I have accepted your name and your story. I swear that I’ll strive to be a good lady to you.”


  As Roderick kneeled on the ground, Lady Rozemyne brought out her schtappe and lightly tapped it against his shoulder. It was clear that they were now in a much deeper master-servant relationship than the one that I had with her. I recalled Rihyarda’s words that by giving his name, Roderick ‘will surely become her closest and most trusted aide’.

  …Why wasn’t I the one to give my name to Lady Rozemyne!? I also want to be bound by her mana!

  The word ‘jealousy’ would be nowhere near enough to describe the turbulent feelings I held towards Roderick who was now able to feel Lady Rozemyne’s mana at all times. Just by imagining the act of giving my name to Lady Rozemyne and letting her bind me with her mana, excitement and anticipation welled up in my chest.

  …Since she accepted Roderick’s name, wouldn’t it be fine for her to accept my name as well? As long as Lady Rozemyne didn’t have any objections, I wished to give her my name. My reluctance towards the act of giving my name had significantly diminished. Besides, considering Lady Rozemyne’s personality, if I were to ask her “You already accepted one person’s name so why do you refuse to accept a second!?” it would be hard for her to reject me.

  …I will need to show her just how useful I can be and become an existence that would be hard for her to throw away. I’m sure I will encounter many difficulties but I believe I stand a chance. On this day, I swore to myself that I would do everything in my power so that one day she would accept my name.

  Volume 7 3.1: Plans For Dirk

  Dirk was at risk of dying anytime if his Devouring was severe, he would need a mana tool to absorb his mana. I wanted to do the most I could for him to survive.

  “Lutz, can you help me with something? I need you to get some tauw fruits from the forest. They can be stored in the soil area of the workshop’s basement, right?”


  I asked for Lutz, who was in the workshop, to come to the second floor of my chambers. I whispered my request to him because I didn’t think it would be wise for a noble like Damuel to learn about tauw fruits.

  I gestured towards Dirk with my gaze, Lutz gave a slight nod to my request and quickly left for the forest. He sort of understood the circumstances from my expression. We could prevent Dirk from dying from a mana outburst if Lutz returned with them.

  “Sister Myne, the High Priest has approved the meeting.”


  Fran rushed back panting. Apparently Arno and the High Priest didn’t seem pleased at having to have two sudden meetings on consecutive days, but they couldn’t turn a blind eye to it. I needed the High Priest to determine if Dirk really had the Devouring and his current state so we could take premeditated action.

  “I don’t think we can hand Dirk over to Wilma today. We have to bring him to the High Priest’s chambers. Fran, please carry him.”


  I wanted to bring Dirk along since he was the subject of concern, but Delia clinged onto him protectively and Fran shook his head at what I said.

  “Sister Myne, we are not allowed to take a orphan who has not been baptized outside the orphanage.”


  My chambers were still considered a part of the orphanage because it was still in the same building, but it differed for the High Priest’s chambers. It had completely slipped my mind that bringing the children to the forest was supposed to be kept confidential. It had only occurred to me that the children had been kept in the orphanage so that the blue priests did not have to see them.

  “…I intended to bring Dirk along because I thought it would be better, but I guess that is not a good idea.”


  Like always, Fran and Damuel accompanied me to the High Priest’s chambers. When we entered, we were greeted by the High Priest’s annoyed questioning, “What’s going on now?”


  “I would like to discuss a very important matter. Will it be fine to discuss it here?”


  I muttered out the last part and gestured towards the hidden room with my eyes. The High Priest gave a perplexed look before taking out the sound-blocking tool. I took it into my hand.

  “Is this matter that serious that you have to be this cautious of your surroundings?”


  “…Yes, that’s right. It’s Dirk, the baby from the other day, he might have the Devouring.”


  I recounted what I saw that morning, and the High Priest responded with a troubled sigh,

  “The severity of the situation would depend on the amount of mana he possesses. But based on the symptoms you have described, he likely has quite an amount.”


  “So he really has the Devouring?”


  “Yes.”


  The High Priest nodded with a grim face and tapped against his temple with his finger.

  “He will need to enter a contractual relationship with a noble, the earlier the better.”


  “A contract…”


  “He won’t live long if he doesn’t do so.”


  I clenched onto the mana tool. Signing a contract with a noble meant that your life would be in their hands. Your life depended on their mana tools, and in return, you had to work for them like a slave. You would basically become a living mana generator for the noble for the rest of your life. The very thought of Dirk, who was close in age to my baby brother, having to go through that, sent a shiver down my spine.

  “High Priest, is it possible to make him into a blue robe priest and offer mana like me? Or perhaps find him a noble adoptive parent?”


  “Raising a blue priest from infancy to adulthood will require a hefty sum. Who will be willing to do that?”


  As a fellow blue shrine maiden, I was more than clear on how expensive it was to live like one. Even with the income from the Myne workshop, I was near bankruptcy having to prepare my things for the winter. Everything from clothes, shoes, etcetera was exorbitant.

  “You could get by as a blue shrine maiden because you have a workshop on the side, but would that be possible for a baby orphan?” the High Priest lectured.

  “…No.”


  “Or are you intending to raise him alongside yourself? Would you spend that much for a baby with no blood ties with you? Will your family accept that? Even if you could, wouldn’t others accuse you, the orphanage director, for being biased towards an orphan?”


  I didn’t tarry at that. Forget about being in trouble for showing favoritism to an orphan, I didn’t think it was even possible for me to cover both our expenses for life. I wanted to help him, but I was helpless and weak. I sat in dismal silence. The High Priest saw my dejected spirit and took an edge of his voice.

  “To have a noble adopt him will require the archduke’s direct approval. I cannot churn up an adoptive parent for him this sudden. You were a special case because of your sheer mana, exceptional sense for business and knowledge from another world. You were adopted by an archnoble because of your assets to the city,” he explained.

  He basically told me that strings were pulled behind the scenes for me to get adopted by Karstedt. The High Priest had put himself in a risky position for me.

  “Myne, the baby is a boy, right?”


  “Yes.”


  Oh yes, we didn’t know the baby’s gender when I last spoke to the High Priest. He figured out his gender because I addressed him with ‘he’.

  “That makes the situation much more tricky…” he shook his head slowly.

  “I have told you before that a child’s mana potential is dependent on the maternal side of the family. A female baby is more likely to be adopted, the noble will try to label them as their real child and marry them into a political marriage as a pawn.”


  I nibbled on my lower lip. Most of my memories were that of Urano, so I didn’t look favourably upon things like being forced into a political marriage and slave-like contracts.

  “Given the mana shortage, a noble might choose to adopt him, but I cannot determine his chances until I know exactly how much mana he possesses. Well then… How about tomorrow’s third bell? I will visit your chambers with a mana measuring tool. Would that be fine?”


  “Yes, please.” I gave my reply and returned the sound-blocking tool back. But the High Priest pushed it back into my hand.

  I was confused why he did that, perhaps he wanted to speak about something else.

  “Myne, does anyone else know about this baby’s Devouring?”


  I dug through my memories. I was sure that none of my attendants were well-versed about the Devouring. Even Fran could not recognise that Dirk’s symptoms were that of the Devouring. Lutz probably made a wild guess since I had asked for some tauw fruits while looking towards Dirk. Anyways, I was confident that my attendants were unaware of it.

  “I believe that I am the only one who has fully realised that Dirk keeps burning up because of his Devouring.”


  “Well then, keep this to yourself. Take extra caution to hide this from the High Bishop.”


  “Yes…”


  That would mean I couldn’t tell Delia that Dirk had the Devouring (she couldn’t inform the High Bishop if she remains in the dark). I didn’t feel comfortable hiding things from Delia, especially since she cared for him so much and truly wanted to be the best sister for him.