Ascendance of a Bookworm (LN) - Volume 2.2 - Chapter Ep

Epilogue 

Ferdinand quietly looked down at Myne, who had fallen deeply asleep due to the potion and magic tool. He picked up the hair stick that had fallen from her limp hand. It was a simple stick carved from wood, but only Myne bundled her hair with sticks like it. He had thought at first that it was a style among commoners, but even the many hairpins that he had begun to see at baptism ceremonies were just thrust into the hair. Nobody bound their hair with them like Myne did with her sticks. 

Myne was a mysterious girl. She largely behaved as if she had already received some kind of high-quality education, and yet she rarely thought things through or carried herself with proper caution. She spoke of a “Melvil Dewey,” who by all investigation seemed not to exist and knew of a system of classifying documents that did not exist elsewhere. She invented everything she needed, one after another. She restructured the orphanage and gave the children work, the fruits of which were used to pay for their food. She loved books from the bottom of her heart, to such an extent she even created bibles for children. 

Under any angle, she was abnormal. Not even a strictly educated noble child could do what Myne had done. Her actions were not those of a small child who had just finished her baptism. She was always strange, though her efforts were not focused in a harmful direction. 

Had she merely been a curiosity, the Archduke would not have lent Ferdinand the magic tool. However, Myne had displayed an unfathomable amount of mana during the Healing Ritual earlier. A normal Devouring child could never fill that much drained land with mana so quickly. To be honest, as it stood, she had more mana than the Archduke himself. It was impossible to tell how much mana she would have when she was older. 

A commoner girl with a fearsome amount of mana and the knowledge of countless inventions, each worth a fortune, would inevitably become the seed of a war between nobles for possession of her. By declaring that she was in his custody, Ferdinand had secured her safety within the city to some degree, but it was only a matter of time before nobles from other regions learned of her existence. At the moment, he could not say for sure whether he could protect her from them, or whether she was truly worth going that far to protect. 

Which was exactly why the Archduke had told him to use the magic tool. Search through her memories to see the land of dreams she spoke of in the past. Judge her worth, and determine whether she means them harm or not. 

“At the very least, I would hope to confirm that she means no harm...” It was simple to view a criminal’s memories and confirm whether they committed the crime or not, but in Myne’s case, he would have to determine from her memories how much she was worth and what her future intentions were. That would be extremely difficult. 

“...And most of all, she will not forgive me for this.” He was using a magic tool to investigate her memories. There was no doubt that she would raise her guard against him and avoid his presence when at all possible. 

In noble society where one had to hide their emotions and make every move with the utmost caution so as to not walk into a trap, there were none who had their thoughts written on their face like Myne. Even in the temple, Ferdinand had to constantly think about how close an individual was to the High Bishop and how much he could trust them. And yet, he did not have to question Myne. Although she was at times a headache, she made her thoughts and feelings clear thanks to her transparent nature. He did not need to be on guard around her, and that was comfortable. 

I seem to have grown unexpectedly fond of Myne, thought Ferdinand with a sigh before putting on his head a ring identical to the one on hers. He then knelt beside the bench Myne was on and pressed the gem on his circlet to hers. He poured mana into her gently, synchronizing their minds. It was normal for the body to fiercely resist outside mana, and while she had in fact drank a potion meant to make the synchronization easier, she presented no resistance at all to his mana. That was certainly helpful for his mission, but Ferdinand was hit with the urge to chastise her, to tell her to protect herself a little and not accept others so easily. He clicked his tongue and spoke to her. 

“Myne, can you hear me?” 

“Wha? I can hear you, High Priest. Where are you?” Ferdinand had expected her to be afraid or disgusted, but instead she reacted normally like nothing was odd at all. He once again fought back the urge to chastise her. 

“I am synchronizing our minds right now. You had far more mana than I anticipated. You say that you were educated in the world of dreams, and it is now necessary for me to determine whether you intend to bring harm or good upon this land. Forgive me, but I will be investigating your memories.” 

“Okay, that’s fine. I don’t mind,” responded Myne casually, and nobody in the world could blame Ferdinand for reeling in disbelief. She showed no resistance whatsoever to someone intending to look through her memories. 

“To be clear, I will be seeing your actual memories. Do you truly not mind? Is that not an uncomfortable breach of privacy to you?” 

“Well, I mean, it doesn’t feel great, but... you seeing my memories is the safest bet for me to stay alive. I would much prefer this to being executed for nonexistent treason. And I mean, you’re doing me a favor by using this magic tool on me instead of just executing me outright, aren’t you?” said Myne. 

Due to their minds being synchronized, Ferdinand could tell that she really meant it. Should he praise her for her wisdom or scold her for not being more suspicious...? Likely the latter, but the lecture could wait. The synchronization seemed like it would be quite tiring, and the sooner he finished it the better. 

“In that case, would you take me to the world of dreams you spoke of? We should be able to go there if you bring up memories of it.” 

“Wait, does that mean I can go anywhere I want?” 

...Why?! Why is Myne so excited despite the fact that her memories are being searched?! Myne’s eager feelings of excitement were sent straight to Ferdinand, who felt nothing but worry about them. This is bad. I feel that this is quite bad indeed. Will I be able to stop Myne if she loses control? If I do not steel my mind, she might end up dragging me all across her memories. 

“Myne, you need to show me only what I came here to see. First, show me the source of your knowledge.” 

“No problem! I’ll start by taking you to my beloved library!” Myne replied in a bright voice, and suddenly Ferdinand was standing before a large, unfamiliar building. He wanted to look up to see just how tall it was, but he and Myne were sharing the same eyes, and what he could see was limited by where Myne was looking. What he could see was a beautifully paved stone road, and what he could feel was the gentle wind on her skin. Judging by the lack of filth and the resulting smell, they weren’t in a lower city. The building must have been somewhere in a Noble’s Quarter. 

“Aaah, it’s been so long!” Myne’s voice echoed and through her eyes Ferdinand saw that they were moving into the building. She was waxing nostalgic while skipping into the building without any hesitation. There was no doubt whatsoever that this was the world she spoke of. An unbelievably clear glass door slid to the side with a whirring noise, despite the fact that she hadn’t touched it or poured mana into it. 

“Myne, does magic exist here too? I seem to recall you saying that the Dewey Decimal System lacked a section for mana.” 

“Aaah... There’s no magic here. This is an automatic door that operates on different principles.” They lacked magic, but had something that worked like magic. That was strange and intriguing. 

“What country is this, Myne? It does not seem to be any country I am aware of.” 

“It’s called Japan. I used to live here in the past, until one day I was crushed to death by books. When I woke up, I was Myne.” 

Ferdinand could hardly understand what Myne was saying. But he could feel that she was speaking the truth with no intention to hide anything. It was the first time Ferdinand had ever found it difficult to understand someone precisely because they were being so honest. 

“...You died, from being crushed by books?” The idea of her being crushed to death was equally hard for him to believe. He couldn’t even imagine there being enough books to literally bury someone. But suddenly, he found himself in the middle of massive bookcases stuffed full of books. 

“...Where is this?” 

“The local public library I used to always go to.” It was a library where books lined shelves as far as the eye could see. Even the library in the Royal Academy didn’t have this many books. Certainly, with this many books, being crushed to death by them would not be impossible. 

“These are all... books?” 

“Uh huh, this is a library. Oh, but libraries have started carrying (videos), (CDs), and (DVDs) too lately. Aaah, I’m so happy. This is it! This is the paradise I’ve been chasing after!” 

Ferdinand could feel that Myne really was so happy she could cry. She immediately raced past the rows of bookcases, perhaps heading to her favorite spot. There was a soft carpet covering the library’s floor, stifling her footsteps entirely. Ferdinand felt dizzy just imagining how much it would have cost to build this library. 

...I see. Given that she loves books this much and has memories of a library this grand, I can somewhat understand why she began to sob after finding the temple’s book room. It seemed that in this world books were very beloved, in contrast to his own world. The books here were not chained, and Myne was picking up each book she wanted to read, each made with designs like the ones she had made in the temple. There were men, women, the elderly, and children in the library. Some wore fine garments that made their wealth clear, some wore raggedy clothing that made their poverty clearer. All of the clothing he saw as Myne made her way through the library was fairly colorful, but even the ones with raggedy clothing were touching books. In Ferdinand’s eyes, it was unthinkable that poor people would be allowed to touch books. 

“Myne, is that woman out of her mind? Should madwomen like her be allowed to touch books?” 

“A madwoman? Who?” Myne looked around the corridor. 

“To the left. That woman is exposing her knees despite being an adult. She must be too poor to afford more cloth, but she is dyeing her clothes. Why doesn’t she just stop dyeing her clothes? I simply do not understand.” 

“In this world, women can wear skirts of any length. Everyone’s just wearing the clothes they want, don’t worry about it. But still, this dream is just amazing. I can feel and even smell things.” 

Myne, having quickly lost interest in the woman, returned her gaze to the bookshelf. The lined-up books were similar to the paper books Myne had made, but they were more beautiful and in larger quantities than Ferdinand could have ever imagined. 

Myne, after deliberately looking from one end of the bookcase to the other, took one book off of the shelf. After hugging it tightly, she began inhaling its scent. Due to their minds being synchronized, Ferdinand also smelled the scent of paper and ink while Myne’s satisfaction was forced onto him. He wanted to end the synchronization right there. 

Myne eagerly sat in a comfy chair at the end of the bookcase and began reading. It wasn’t just a board with a sheet strung over it. The chair was actually soft and extremely pleasant to sit on. Ferdinand had felt nothing like it before. 

Still, Myne’s sight only let him see the book, the floor, and a bookshelf. He could see the open pages, but they were filled with tightly placed letters he could not recognize. The book had probably been printed in the manner Myne discussed earlier. It was black and white, just like hers. 

“Do the books in your dream world not have pictures?” 

“Wha?! Huh? Who is... Oh, right. It’s just you, High Priest.” Myne let out a surprised noise after Ferdinand spoke to her. 

...This fool is unbelievable. She is completely absorbed in her own world, despite the fact that I am watching. 

“Ummm, pictures, right? If you want to see pictures, there are (artbooks) and (photo albums) here too.” Myne took out a large book filled with colorful pictures. The illustrations were so colorful and detailed it was hard to believe. Ferdinand was enraptured by their brilliance, but Myne shut the book in the blink of an eye. 

“Can I keep reading now, High Priest?” 

“No, you may not. Is this a children’s picture book, like the one you made?” 

“This is an (artbook), a collection of art drawn by a famous person. The kid’s corner is over here,” said Myne as she resumed walking through the library. 

“This is a picture book, and it’s what Cinderella is actually supposed to be.” Comparing the art of the picture book to the story Myne brought him just confused Ferdinand more. No human in the world had eyes that dominated the majority of their face, nor would one dress like that with hair like that. Or, well, perhaps a human like that did exist in this world. 

“...The story seems even more comical now that it has art attached, but regardless. Even this book has quite vivid colors. You need to put color in your books as well.” 

“I would like to, you know. It’s just that ink is so expensive. I’m trying to get it made, but it’s not easy. I wish I could just buy all the stuff I need here,” said Myne, and suddenly they teleported to a place where strange things were lined up on shelves. Not books this time, but oddly shaped... things covered in letters and various colors. 

“Oh, now we’re in an arts and crafts store. High Priest, if I buy things here can I take them with me when I wake up?” 

“Of course not, fool. Where are we?” 

“An arts and crafts store that my mom often took me to. This is paint.” Be it books or paint, Myne’s world was overflowing with all manner of things. The quantity and quality was enormous. He only knew what he had seen through Myne, but the wealth of culture in her world was enough to send his mind reeling. 

“There certainly is a wide variety of paint available.” 

“Uh huh. There’s all kinds of stuff here. Though I like bookstores more than arts and crafts stores.” The second Myne said that, they shifted locations once again. It seemed that Myne’s thoughts were as erratic as her behavior. Or rather, it would be safe to say that her behavior was erratic because her thoughts were. 

“Where is this?” It was a place with shelves full of books, just like the library. But unlike the library, loud music was playing, and it was so bright it made Ferdinand want to squint. 

“A store that sells new books. Eheheh, time to check for the new releases... Wait, nooooo! I can only see the ones I remembeeeeer!” Myne shouted something incomprehensible and got depressed out of nowhere. Being forced to experience the rapid ups and downs of her emotions was exhausting. Perhaps she collapsed so often due to the intensity of her mood swings. 

“Myne, why is it so bright despite the fact that we are inside a building?” 

“Oh, that’s because of the (electricity).” Myne looked up, and above the sea of bookshelves was a row of tiny suns, shining bright white light. 

“How do those things operate?” 

“Umm, they turn on once you flip a (light switch). But just like I wouldn’t understand an explanation about magic, you wouldn’t understand an explanation of how it works without doing a lot of research first.” 

Myne’s eyes once again locked onto the bookshelf. If she didn’t look around, he would only be able to see books. He could see interesting, unknown things out of the corners of her eyes, but she made no move to look at them. Their synchronization was hardly proving to be fruitful. 

“Myne, it is about time for you to stop looking at books.” 

“Awww, but why? I just want to see books. I can’t have dreams this realistic on my own.” Myne was nothing but unsatisfied. She truly only had eyes for books. 

Ferdinand never would have thought that peering into her memories would show him nothing but books. If he didn’t force her to think about something else, this journey would end with nothing but more knowledge about her world’s books. 

“Myne, do you remember why I am here?” 

“I would like to forget, but... fine. What do you want to see?” Myne let out an extremely heavy sigh. Ferdinand thought about it, then asked what he was personally most curious about. 

“Very well. I would like to see the place where you were educated.” 

Their surroundings shifted in an instant. They were inside a somewhat small room with desks lined up from corner to corner, each with identically dressed people sitting at them and writing. On the top of the small desks were books with strange letters and symbols on them, bundles of beautifully thin paper, and metal boxes with several colored sticks inside. The people occasionally looked up as they wrote letters with the sticks, using them like pens. At the front of the room was an adult, writing something on a large slate while presumably explaining what he was writing. That was likely the teacher of the school building. 

“Myne, what is happening here?” 

“We’re sitting in class. This is a memory from (high school), I think? It’s math class. Being here again is nostalgic, but I never really liked math. I liked Japanese class more, I think.” Their surroundings shifted again. They were in the same room, but now a somewhat older woman was walking around the room while reading a book. 

“Everyone in the country learns in a place like this. We start before baptism age and keep going to adulthood.” The room changed again and again as she spoke. Each room looked similar with students studying, but their age and the instructor teaching them changed each time. They really did learn from childhood to adulthood. 

“Do you do nothing but study?” 

“Umm, there’s a lot of subjects we study. Some are more hands-on.” Their environment shifted rapidly. They were outside where identically dressed students were running around a track. A nearly naked man was diving into water. A group of students were playing a song he had never heard before on strange flutes. 

“So you received musical training as well...” 

“That’s right. Though schools don’t go too far with music. The song I played on the harspiel wasn’t actually one I made myself, it was a song I learned here.” 

Now Ferdinand knew why she could play a song on the first harspiel she had touched. Myne’s exceptional talents were thanks to this world’s knowledge and the strict education she received here. It made sense that she would be completely different from normal commoners. 

“The country’s educational program was put in place by the government, so everyone knows how to read and do math. I want to introduce this kind of education to the orphanage so everyone there can learn to read, write, and do simple math.” 

“For what purpose?” Ferdinand could not understand the point in teaching everyone to read. Myne responded to his confusion without missing a beat. 

“The more people who know how to read, the more people there are to read books. Not to mention that people need to know how to read to write books in the first place. If I want to enjoy a life of reading books in your world, I’ll need to start by teaching people to read.” 

Up until now, Ferdinand had to some degree questioned if there was some dark underside to her actions, some plot driving her forward, but now that they were synchronized he knew for sure that she was utterly devoted to reading books with nothing more to it than that. In some ways that was relieving, but in other ways that made his head hurt. In any case, many of his doubts and questions had been answered by seeing her memories. 

“...I had thought you learned your letters exceptionally fast, but I see now that is because you are used to learning.” 

“Used to learning? Well, I suppose so. I never really thought about it like that, but I’ve been studying for my whole life. Plus, I wanted to read books so much that I just threw myself at learning letters.” 

Ferdinand absorbed every inch of what he could see. The students were all calmly studying together, organized and wearing the same clothes. The building was clean without any visible filth anywhere. 

“Myne, this building is quite pretty.” 

“That’s because it was just recently built. But what’s really great about this school is that it has the biggest library out of all the nearby schools. It’s why I applied to go here.” Their surroundings changed into a library once again. It was no doubt the school library she had been so happily talking about. There were many old books here, as evident by the distinctive dusty smell in the air. Myne was happily inhaling it all. Ferdinand was fairly tired of smelling books by that point. 

“Myne, enough with the libraries. Take me outside.” Their surroundings morphed into a quiet, breezy garden. There was stone pavement, grassy lawns, and flowerbeds next to lined-up trees. 

“Is this inside a Noble’s Quarter?” 

“Mmm, not exactly, but something like that. I think all of Japan is more like the Noble’s Quarter than the lower city. There’s stuff just like magic tools all over the country, after all.” The idea of a world having things like magic tools without having magic itself intrigued Ferdinand. 

“Oh? Like what?” 

“Well. There’s our vehicles, for instance.” Myne looked up and pointed at a white thing in the sky. It was flying high in the sky while making incredibly loud noise. She then turned to the side, looking at clumps of metal speeding along roads next to each other. 

“What are those? It must take quite a lot of mana to move that much metal at such high speeds.” 

“Like I said, these aren’t magic tools running off mana. They run off something else. Honestly, gems changing shape from mana and moving around is a lot weirder than this.” Now that she mentioned it, magic stones changing shape and moving certainly would seem odd to Myne if she had no prior knowledge of magic. She reacted with constant surprise when they were traveling with the Knight’s Order. 

“What other such devices exist here?” 

“Mmm, I guess most (electronics) will be in a home?” murmured Myne, and then they stood inside a building. 

A thin lace cloth was covering the windows. Using a lace pattern that elaborate for mere curtains indicated that they were in the home of an archnoble. There was faint light streaming through the curtains, but there was also a so-called “lightbulb” brightening the room. There was a leather couch, and in front of it was a tall black rectangle on top of a short cabinet. 

...What? Myne’s heartbeat suddenly shot up in speed. A cold sweat ran down her back and the blood was draining from her face. Myne’s heart was enveloped in stress, anxiety, and fear. And yet deep inside there was also happiness and nostalgia swelling together in anticipation. Her storm of emotions hit Ferdinand so hard his head spun. 

“What is wrong, Myne? Did something happen?” 

“This is my home’s living room. It’s so nostalgic it... it just kind of hurts.” Myne spoke in a raspy voice while clutching her chest. Ferdinand could tell she was close to tears. 

He had mostly ignored it the first time she said it, since her attention was so focused on books, but Myne had said that she had become Myne in his world after dying here. In which case, it made sense that returning to her old home would be emotional. However, he couldn’t allow himself to be dragged around forever by Myne’s emotions. 

Ferdinand coughed to focus himself, then spoke to Myne. “That shelf has quite a lot of things on it. What are they?” 

“...That’s my mom’s arts and crafts. She’s curious about everything, but she gives up fast, so she would always make one or two of something then start charging ahead onto her next thing. Even though she’s not good enough to make anything that great without practicing more...” 

So she said, but Myne lovingly reached out to touch them in a way that belied her dismissive words. “This is a (coaster) made from lace and this is a hairpin. The Gilberta Company is actually selling these hairpins as a product now. The fancy hair stick I made was based on this style.” 

Ferdinand remembered the hair stick Myne had worn when assisting the Knight’s Order. Hers was of a higher quality, but it did resemble the hairpin on the shelf. 

“These baskets were woven from (ad pamphlets) that were rolled up into sticks. The experience of making it really came in handy when I made baskets for winter handiwork. I made the bag I always carry around the same way. But Mom got bored halfway through, so I had to finish it.” Myne pointed at the basket with pursed lips. 

“These are doll clothes and stuffed animals, though I know they all look pretty bad. The white and round one was supposed to be a (snowman), but she only ever finished the head. Here’s a piece of (cross-stitch) art she never finished, a (patchwork) tapestry...” 

The unshapely basket seemed to be storage for all sorts of unfinished things, which Myne took out one by one while thinking about the past. Their surroundings changed with each one, taking them through time and place where a black-haired woman was either encouraging Myne to do something or giving up on something. That black-haired woman was likely Myne’s previous mother. 

“This art is the same way,” said Myne as she left the room and entered a narrow hall. She touched some rectangular thing, and suddenly the hall lit up. 

“What in the?!” 

“Oh, that was (electricity). It’s the same thing you saw in the bookstore.” Myne looked up and pointed at a white light much smaller than what he had seen before. Something similar to mana must have been coursing through the rectangle. 

The now-bright hall had many pieces of art hanging from the walls. Each was clumsily made, enough that Ferdinand could agree with Myne calling her mom not very good. 

“They’re all over the place, aren’t they? There’s (watercolor), (oil paintings), and a (nihonga) she made after saying the other paintings weren’t good because of the materials. She ended up trying to simplify with (colored pencils), but ultimately just gave up on art altogether. She went for (calligraphy) next, since she thought just letters would be manageable. She brought me with her to tea ceremonies and flower arranging, saying I would need the experience for when I became a bride. Though she always gave up first and stopped going to classes.” 

Myne laughed and wiped away tears from beneath her eyes. Ferdinand could feel the indescribable nostalgia and love brimming within her chest. They were feelings that he, estranged from his family as he was, did not know for himself. 

“There was a time when we tried making everything ourselves to save money and be more in tune with nature. She got so into it I sometimes wished she would just leave me alone, but... it’s thanks to her dragging me around that I can live as Myne now.” 

According to her, she had first made the rinsham, soap, hide glue, ink, and so on here. Tears welled up in her eyes as she spoke, distorting her vision. 

“I’m sorry, High Priest. It’s just been so long...” Myne put a hand beneath her eyes as she ran into a small room. She picked up a soft, fluffy piece of cloth and stood in front of a porcelain bowl buried in a cabinet with a metal rod sticking out of it. She then grabbed onto a roundish handle stuck on the metal rod and twisted it. 

“What?! Water?!” Water burst out of the metal rod. Myne washed her face and wiped it dry with the soft cloth. It seemed that the soft cloth was used in the same way as towels were. 

...The cloth certainly is nice to the touch. If only we could bring it back. 

“Myne, what manner of room is this?” 

“It’s a (washroom). The bathtub’s over there. The long snake-like thing is a (shower).” The second Myne said that, they were inside the bathtub, now filled with sweet-smelling water. Flashes of bare skin peeked above the milky white hot water as she happily splashed the water onto herself with no regard to how Ferdinand might feel about that. 

“Wow! A bath! (Bath salts) smell so nice. I used to love this (peach) smell.” 

“Have you no shame, fool?! Where has your chaste heart as a woman, as a proper lady, gone?!” yelled Ferdinand, unable to look away due to their minds being synchronized. But Myne just shrugged while happily washing her face in the hot water. 

“Don’t worry, I don’t mind. I threw away all my shame by day three of living as Myne. You don’t need to worry about it either. I’m a kid, there’s nothing embarrassing about it.” 

During her first three days of living as Myne, she had been forcibly changed by a man who she had not yet accepted as her father. No matter how much she wailed or cried in embarrassment, nothing changed. She had to accept her situation, and that was the day her sense of shame died. 

“I am not your father!” 

“Neither was he back then. Why do you care, High Priest? Surely you don’t think anything of a little girl like me. It’s not a problem.” So she said, but there was a big difference between Ferdinand thinking nothing of her body and her bathing in front of him without a care in the world. He had not expected her to lack shame as much as she lacked caution. 

“I feel more worry for your lack of shame than anything else!” 

“I’m sure I’ll get my sense of shame back when I’m older. Surely.” 

Myne left the bathtub and began washing her hair while humming. She was enveloped in strong-smelling bubbles. 

“Aaah, so many bubbles! I love it! They feel so good!” Myne reached for what she called a shower while trembling with bliss and satisfaction. She pulled it this way and water sprayed out of it like rain. 

“Nghaaah?!” 

“This will wash away the bubbles.” Myne used the shower to wash the bubbles out of her hair. Ferdinand had thought it curious that she would bathe without attendants, but now he knew that one did not need attendants to clean oneself here. 

“No matter how much you wash here, it won’t change anything in reality.” 

“It’ll definitely improve my mood, though. Tralalalaaa.” After finishing her hair, Myne washed her body with soap that smelled of honey. Its texture, smell, and bubble production seemed to surpass even the soap used by royalty. 

Upon finishing cleaning her body and washing everything off with water, Myne’s heart was filled with utter satisfaction. 

“You seem to be quite satisfied, Myne, but I would like to move on from this already.” 

Their surroundings morphed such that they were standing in front of the same white tub as before. Myne took something unusual off a nearby shelf. It was blue and glossy, but Ferdinand could not determine what it was made of. It wasn’t made of metal, which left nothing he could think of. Myne moved her finger and it suddenly began making a loud, aggravating whirring sound. Air hot enough to scorch the skin blew out of it at the same time. 

“What in the world is that?!” 

“A hair dryer.” 

The washroom even contained an expensive mirror. It seemed that Myne was the daughter of a higher class noble than he had expected. 

“High Priest, this is a (rubber) hair tie, and it bundles up hair like this.” Myne, having at some point put away the noisy dryer thing, began somehow stretching and shrinking a “rubber” hair tie. “Do you know of anything that can stretch and shrink like this?” 

“...Nothing close to Ehrenfest. I seem to recall that gumka bark felt similar to this.” 

“But it does exist?! Where?! How much will it cost to import?” Her train of thought was the very image of a merchant’s. 

Ferdinand, seeing Myne attempting to invent a new product in real time, let out a sigh. She was doubtlessly inventing so many new things while attempting to reproduce what she was familiar with from this world. It was easy to imagine how hard she had to fight just to find the proper materials. 

“Unfortunately, gumka are located far too north, and as they are a feytree they must be defeated in combat to acquire their bark. They contain mana like trombes, although they are fought with different methods.” 

“Trombes, huh...” said Myne sadly as she loosely bundled up her long, night-sky-colored hair. Ferdinand was so used to her bundling her hair with a stick that the hair tie felt wrong to him. 

“You aren’t using a hair stick?” 

“Aaah, I only made a hair stick because I had no other options. I wouldn’t wear a hair stick here unless I was wearing a formal Japanese dress. Mmm, I guess that would be Coming of Age Day here?” 

Myne searched through her memories, and their surroundings changed to the middle of a snowy day with cold wind blowing. There was a large crowd of young people wearing garishly colored outfits Ferdinand had not seen before. Since she called this Coming of Age Day, he could guess that this was something similar to the Royal Academy’s graduation ceremony. Judging by how beautiful the clothing was and how long the sleeves and hems were, this was no doubt a gathering of nobles. 

“The embroidery I used for my ceremonial robes was actually based on a common pattern on clothing here, known as the (ryuusuimon).” 

“Ah, I see. It does look familiar.” A nearby woman wearing a hairpin much more fancy than Myne’s hair stick had on a red dress with wavy water and flowers similar to what were on Myne’s ceremonial robes. 

“Myne, is that embroidery?” 

“Umm, parts of a long-sleeved (kimono) might be embroidery, but it’s not common for all of a design to be embroidered. With (yuuzen) dyeing, we can draw directly on the cloth.” 

“Directly onto the cloth? But how?” Ferdinand could only imagine the pigments seeping into the cloth and spoiling them both. 

“...Does that not exist in the Noble’s Quarter either?” 

“We change the colors of thread when sewing and embroidering, but I do not know of anything drawing directly onto cloth.” 

“Oooh, interesting. Benno should make good money from it, then.” Myne laughed, her mind already filled with profit calculations. 

“I see. You are worth as much as the knowledge you have brought with you from here.” 

“Most of the things I’ve made are stuff my mom taught me, though.” Myne giggled as she returned to the hall and opened a different door. Inside was a strange room filled with things Ferdinand had never seen before. 

“This is our kitchen. We make food and eat it over there. And this is a (gas stove). All you have to do is press this to make fire pop up. Convenient, right?” Myne pressed an oddly designed square and fire appeared with a pop. The blue flame wavered in place. It seemed that the fire in this world was blue. But the strangest thing of all was that the fire didn’t disappear after Myne pulled her hand back. It was easy to start a fire with magic, but to keep it burning you would need wood or a large quantity of mana. 

As Ferdinand metaphorically widened his eyes in surprise at the fire being lit without any firewood or mana, Myne pushed the button again. That made the fire disappear instantaneously, as if it had never existed at all. 

“...Myne, what is that large white box?” 

“That’s a (refrigerator). It keeps food inside of it cold, so it doesn’t go bad as fast.” Myne opened the door and cold air came flowing out. Ferdinand couldn’t recognize any of the colorful things inside, but as he was familiar with the principle of preserving food in the cold, the fridge didn’t surprise him as much as the gas stove did. It was really just the small size of the fridge that impressed him. 

“Aaah, an ice house.” 

“Wait, you have a (refrigerator)?” 

“You did not know? The temple has an ice house larger than this room. Fran should be using it frequently.” 

“I thought it was weird that you always had more kinds of milk whenever visitors came, but I never thought it was coming from a (refrigerator). If only I had known,” said Myne, getting blatantly depressed. “I could have made more kinds of food.” 

Ferdinand had heard about what food Myne ate from Fran, and although he didn’t understand most of it from description alone, he recalled that there was great variety. She intended to introduce even more variety? 

“...I have heard that many different kinds of food are served in your chambers. Is that all food from here as well?” 

“That’s right. I’ve been trying to recreate the western food here as much as possible... Oh, I wonder if the food here will taste as good as I remember?! Should I try it? I feel like I’m kind of hungry.” 

Myne’s excitement soared and she looked around her. Then, she remembered something, and their surroundings changed again. They were in the same room, but they were facing a different direction, and there was clattering behind them. 

“Hurry and eat if you’re hungry. I can’t clean up until you’re finished, remember?” They suddenly heard a woman call out from behind them. Myne’s heart jumped and she froze up, going still like a block of stone. The fact that the woman’s tone felt soft despite her chastising was likely due to Myne’s emotional state. 

Myne turned around, clenching a shaking fist tightly, and they both saw a black-haired woman setting plates on a table—the same black-haired woman that had been appearing in Myne’s memories. 

“...Mom.” 

“I made your favorite tonight. You should eat it before it gets cold.” 

Myne gave a small nod and headed for the table, which was big enough to sit four people. The kitchen had lacked any such table moments ago, but Myne’s memories were reproducing the table and a full meal on top of it. The food was so nostalgic that Myne’s eyes got wet just from looking at it, but Ferdinand couldn’t recognize anything. It was mostly black and brown, nothing that looked tasty to him. 

“Is this truly food, Myne?” 

“Yes. It’s everything I’ve been wanting to eat. There’s fresh white (rice), there’s (miso soup) with (tofu) and (wakame seaweed), garnished with plenty of (scallions). There’s yellow (teriyaki), and my mom’s meat and potato stew with (hijiki). There’s also my mom’s (pickled vegetables).” Myne inhaled deeply to enjoy the full flavor of her home’s food, then quietly clasped her hands with wet eyes. She then lowered her head reverently. 

“I’m home.” That short phrase was all it took for Myne’s heart to be filled with so much warmth and gratitude that it hurt. The moment she dexterously used two red-tipped sticks to bring a bite of food to her mouth, tears escaped her eyes and spilled down her cheeks. 

“Nnn... It really does taste just like Mom’s food...” Myne chewed slowly, savoring the flavor from beginning to end. The gentle flavor filled her mouth from corner to corner. The food was better than anything Ferdinand had ever had, with a storm of feelings hitting him head-on: nostalgia for a mother’s cooking, happiness to eat it again, sadness that it was just a dream... 

“It tastes great, Mom.” 

“Oh my, it’s not often you praise my cooking. Is there a book you want or something?” The woman was eating in front of Myne, and after widening her eyes in surprise at her daughter’s praise, she laughed. Her eyes had the same overflowing, protective love that was there when she was dragging Myne along with her to do arts and crafts. 

“There are a lot of books I want, but that’s not it. The food just... really is that good.” Myne cleaned her plate, leaving nothing behind. She then clasped her hands and once again said “Thank you for the food” with a reverently bowed head. 

After finally lifting her head, Myne looked at her mother in the eyes. “I’m sorry, Mom.” Myne’s mother looked up, and with big tears falling out of her eyes, Myne bowed her head again. “I’m sorry for dying before you. I’m sorry for being so dumb I only noticed how much you loved me after I died. You took such good care of me, you always let me do what I wanted to do, but I died before I could pay you back at all. I’m sorry.” 

The regret, shame, and nostalgia in Myne’s heart hit Ferdinand hard, with her love for her family especially overwhelming him. The storm of emotions was too much for him, and, unable to bear the synchronization any longer, he severed their connection. 

Ferdinand, who had been leaning over Myne the entire time, stood up and took a few steps back before collapsing to his knees and shaking his head. 

“...I have never felt worse.” He had synchronized with Myne too much. Even he had begun to weep, although the emotions weren’t his. Myne would be waking up soon now that the synchronization had ended. Ferdinand quickly wiped his eyes with his sleeve. He could see tears dripping out of Myne’s eyes as well, despite the fact they were still closed. 

Myne’s eyelashes fluttered, and slowly she opened her eyes. After blinking several times, she gingerly lifted her head and looked towards Ferdinand. 

“Oh, High Priest. Good morning.” Myne got up while still wiping away her tears with her sleeve. While sitting on the bench she was about eye level with Ferdinand on his knees. She gave a happy smile, her golden eyes still shaky and wet. 

“High Priest, thank you for showing me my memories. I think... they were getting more and more blurry, the longer I lived here.” Her buried memories had been unearthed so clearly thanks to the power of mana, but most people found their memories getting buried after months and years of living life. It was only natural that Myne’s memory would fade. 

“...I never thought I’d be able to eat my Mom’s food again, and although that was just in my head, I never thought I’d get the opportunity to apologize to her. I’m just so, so relieved.” 

Despite Myne thanking him directly, Ferdinand was unable to find the proper reply. He couldn’t think of what would be best to say. Myne’s storm of emotions still lingered within him, and perhaps he feared saying something that did not come from his own heart. 

“Um, did you maybe feel everything I felt, since our minds were synchronized?” 

“Of course I did, but do not blame yourself. That is how the tool functions.” Ferdinand sighed, and Myne stood up. 

“I’ll give you a big squeeze, High Priest.” 

“What? I do not understand. What is a big squeeze?” Ferdinand stiffened, not knowing what was about to happen. 

“This is a big squeeze. Squeeeeze,” Myne said, wrapping her arms around his neck. “Whenever I have dreams that make me really emotional, I calm down by having Tuuli squeeze me like this. I have Lutz and my family, but you don’t have anyone to hug you like this, do you?” 

Myne’s proud voice rang in Ferdinand’s ear as he froze in surprise. It would have been easy to push her off and tell her he didn’t need her sympathy, but for some reason he didn’t feel the urge. The storm of emotions had certainly tired him out. 

Myne was probably feeling just as exhausted as he was. He could hear her heavy breathing calm down as she clung to him. Once she was calm enough, she let out a sigh and loosened the grip of her arms around his neck. 

“High Priest, please use this on me again. I want to read those books and eat (Japanese food) again.” 

“I absolutely refuse. Synchronizing with you was beyond exhausting.” This time, Ferdinand did detach Myne from him. He stood up and took the magic tool off his head. He had no intention of synchronizing with someone with such an exhausting range of emotions again. 

But Myne refused to take her circlet off, and said “I won’t give it back until you promise to synchronize with me again,” before kneeling down and covering the circlet with her hands while Ferdinand blinked in disbelief. 

...Now then, how should I explain this idiot to the Archduke? She was so unnaturally obsessed with books that thoughts of crime and wrongdoing didn’t even enter her head. She also lacked common sense, a sense of shame, and the caution necessary to protect herself. If left unattended, it was impossible to say what she might do. 

But she had an enormous amount of mana, more than the Archduke himself, and knowledge from a world with a staggeringly advanced culture, the value of which was incalculable. If they used her well as Benno had been, she would undoubtedly bring enormous fortune to Ehrenfest. At the very least, they could not afford to lose her to anyone else. She would need someone to watch over her and steer her in the right direction. 

“Yes, she will need to be enclosed. Books will be the bait.” 

“Oh? So you’ll synchronize with me again?” 

Did she just intentionally choose to misinterpret me, or does she have no grasp on reality...? Ferdinand, looking down coldly at Myne as she beamed a happy smile at him, snatched the circlet off her head.