Ascendance of a Bookworm (LN) - Volume 2.3 - Chapter 6

Punishment for the Knight’s Order and My Future 

Benno left the room and Damuel headed to the now-empty seat. I stood up myself, thinking that as a commoner I should sit at the foot of the table, but the High Priest stopped me. 

“Stay seated where you are, Myne.” 

“Wha? But...” 

I glanced at Damuel but he just looked at me, the corners of his gray eyes crinkled in a calm smile as he sat down. It would have been a bit much for me to force him off the seat so I could sit there myself, so I just sat back down where I was. 

Once everyone was in their seats, the High Priest looked over all those gathered. 

“Now then, Myne. I will explain to you what punishments the archduke decreed after being informed of the incident during the trombe extermination.” 

“The punishments?” 

I had expected that Shikza was going to be punished, but I didn’t want to know what that punishment would be. All I wanted was to never see him again. And as if sensing that, the High Priest lowered his eyes. 

“...It is not hard to imagine that this is not information you wish to know, and I myself am hesitant to inform you of the matters of the nobility. But this information will be essential in preparing you for your future.” He let out a sigh, then looked at Karstedt and Damuel before dryly continuing his explanation. 

“The archduke was extremely displeased that a knight assigned to protect the apprentice shrine maiden not only harmed her, but made the extermination more difficult. First, he ordered Karstedt to be more strict in his training of newcomers, and docked his pay for three months. He also ordered him to provide one quarter of the funds for your new robes. 

“Now, as for Shikza... A knight who refuses to listen to orders in battle would bring only harm to his fellows, and by attacking the one he had been assigned to protect, he has dishonored himself as a knight. The archduke has determined that a soldier of the Knight’s Order disobeying orders and abandoning his duty was worthy of grave punishment. 

“Thus, the archduke decreed that Shikza was to be executed. Under normal circumstances his entire family would be punished alongside him, but as that would likely earn you only more ire, Myne, the archduke gave Shikza’s father two choices: He could either allow his family to be punished, or he could sign a contract to never deal with you again and pay a hefty fee. If he signed the contract and paid the fee, his family would escape punishment, and Shikza would be recorded as having died an honorable death in battle.” 

I swallowed hard. Not for a second had I expected that the archduke would have Shikza executed. Considering that Shikza was a noble and I was a commoner, I figured he would get a light punishment at worst. 

“Shikza’s father paid the fee and swore not to involve himself with you—said fee went toward paying half the cost of your robes. And so, it was written that Shikza died honorably in battle while serving the Knight’s Order.” 

I realized then that the execution had already happened. I reflexively looked to Damuel, knowing that him sitting there meant he had avoided being executed. But maybe he had been given some other harsh punishment. 

The High Priest looked at Damuel as well, likely having noticed my gaze. 

“Damuel paid one quarter of the cost of your robes, and was demoted to the rank of apprentice for one year. His sentence was lightened solely due to your defense of him.” 

“My defense?” 

I didn’t recall defending him, especially not in any official setting. I cocked my head to the side in confusion, and Damuel smiled as he let out a friendly laugh. 

“You defended me in front of Lord Ferdinand, remember? You said I had been kind to you, warned Shikza off, and attempted to help you. If you hadn’t, I would have been punished just as harshly as Shikza was.” 

It seemed that under normal circumstances, he would have been executed all the same for failing to protect me. But my word had provided evidence that Damuel had tried to stop him, but could do nothing due to being of a lower status than Shikza, which lessened his sentence. He had been demoted back to the rank of apprentice despite having finally come of age, but considering the alternative was being executed alongside Shikza, that was hardly anything at all. 

“My family’s bottom of the barrel even among laynobles, and my whole life I’ve been walked over by people of higher status than me. Almost nobody’s ever stuck their neck out and helped me before. It’s hard to describe how happy I was when I learned you had asked Lord Ferdinand to lighten my sentence.” 

I got the feeling he was exaggerating the significance of what I had done, but judging by how unfair his upbringing seemed to be, I could guess that even laynobles had it rough despite being nobles. 

The High Priest spoke up. “Furthermore, Damuel has been assigned to be your bodyguard during his year as an apprentice.” 

“Wha? Bodyguard?!” 

“You truly are in significant danger,” said the High Priest, looking over me with his light-gold eyes before turning to Karstedt. “But you have no sense of self-preservation, so we will need to explain.” 

Karstedt met his gaze and nodded slowly before looking me right in the eyes. His light-blue eyes that had looked a little softer just moments ago hardened once more. 

“It is now known to all archnobles that there exists an apprentice shrine maiden with value to be exploited,” Karstedt began. “You were given blue robes despite your lowborn status, you accompanied the Knight’s Order, and you completed your duty with an enormous display of mana that all those in the Order saw. The fact that the archduke himself permitted you to wear blue robes has only given weight to the rumors of your worth.” 

The Knight’s Order was a gathering of nobles; if scorning me as a commoner and treating me as such would bring misfortune upon their houses as it had Shikza’s, then they had to approach from another angle. Apparently it was only natural for nobles to immediately consider ways they could exploit me once they found out what the High Priest had said and how much mana I had. 

“You are a Devouring commoner that nobody has signed a contract with, but everyone knows you are in Lord Ferdinand’s custody. We believe a significant number of nobles will begin currying favor with Lord Ferdinand and the archduke while approaching you on seemingly friendly terms so that they may one day exploit you.” 

If we assumed that Wolf, the head of the Ink Guild, was connected to those nobles, then Karstedt had an idea what might be happening. 

“A noble who wanted to exploit you might have Wolf kidnap you so that they could then rescue you, putting you in a debt of gratitude to them. When dealing with nobles one must always assume they are attempting to take advantage of others, and if you keep that in mind, your life should not be at risk barring extenuating circumstances. But no such guarantees can be made for your family and friends...” 

The High Priest continued for him. “For example, it is possible that those working alongside Wolf will have you kidnapped, then sold to the archduke of an opposing duchy, who will then claim that you were his daughter all along. In that case, your actual family would be nothing but an obstacle—a reminder of the truth. They would therefore be silenced, one way or another.” 

The High Priest’s prediction was so grim that I gasped in shock. The very thought of putting my family in danger sent a shiver running down my spine. I balled my fists tightly in my lap, but I couldn’t stop them from trembling. 

And on top of everything, Damuel explained to me from his perspective as a laynoble how nobles thought of me. 

“Most laynobles are still full of scorn and contempt toward you. They don’t want to accept that a lowborn commoner has so much mana. And honestly, I would have had a hard time believing a Devouring commoner could have that much mana myself had I not seen it with my own eyes.” 

It seemed that the laynobles were more concerned with hating me out of envy than exploiting me. 

“But no laynoble would oppose Lord Ferdinand head-on,” Damuel continued, eyeing Karstedt and the High Priest nervously. “If they do anything, it’ll be through archnobles. And in my opinion, I think you’re most at risk from people who have more personal reasons to hate you.” 

“Shikza’s father is more concerned with the continuation of their house than anything, but his mother isn’t,” said Karstedt. “They had been forced to give Shikza to the temple due to circumstance and their small amount of mana, and she was really happy when he finally returned home thanks to the Sovereignty’s purge. I’ve heard that she... that she hates you with all her heart, Sister Myne.” 

I shuddered. From my own experience, I could sympathize well with the seething rage one might feel from losing a family member. I couldn’t even imagine how furious I myself would be with anyone who had hurt my own family. And right now, that fury was being directed at me. I could live with that if that fury ended with me, but I was terrified of it being aimed at my friends and family. 

“...Dangerous nobles, who might attempt an assassination. Are there any nobles foolish enough to bring their house down out of spite?” asked the High Priest. I clenched my fists in my lap, waiting for Damuel’s answer. 

With a sad expression, he whispered: “I don’t know. If Shikza’s mother actually does harm Sister Myne, their house will be finished for sure. But a woman’s wrath knows no bounds, and I don’t know what it will drive her to do. I can’t know.” 

Karstedt’s eyebrows sank into a deep frown. “If she’s willing to destroy her house to satisfy her lust for revenge, the situation may be worse than we thought.” 

It seemed that nobles were generally restrained by the fear of ruining their house, the honor of their ancestors, and the lives of their family. 

“I never thought Wolf or Shikza’s mom would be so dangerous,” said Damuel. 

It turned out that Wolf regularly went to the Noble’s Quarter to sell ink. He was somewhat well known among nobles since they were the ones who most purchased and used ink. However, none of them knew that he was known in the lower city as a criminal who would do anything to strengthen his connections with the nobility. 

“My plan had been to raise you here as an apprentice shrine maiden so that you could one day wed into a noble house, but now that plan will have to change,” said the High Priest. 

“What?” 

Is he saying he was going to make me marry a noble? I don’t think I’d agree to that; it sure isn’t something I’ve ever considered myself! 

I blinked in confusion, failing to fully grasp what the High Priest was saying. I would rather he not try to plan my life out like that, especially when it came to something as important as marriage. Just think of what poor man would be forced to marry me for fear of going against the High Priest’s authority. I would feel so bad for him. 

“I wasn’t planning on marrying any nobles.” 

“I believe I told you that regardless of whether you intended to sign with a noble, you would one day bear the children of a noble. I had thought to culture you here and give you experience as a shrine maiden so that one might accept you as a wife, but the situation has changed.” 

I certainly did remember him saying something like that when we were talking about Rosina becoming my attendant. It seemed that even then the High Priest had already intended to play the matchmaker for me. Just how much did this man love to give himself extra work? 

As I was caught up in awe of just how earnest the High Priest was and how extreme his sense of responsibility was, he glanced over at Karstedt. 

“Myne, it is also likely that you, your friends, and your family will be in danger if you remain on your own. It is for everyone’s benefit that you are adopted by a noble as soon as possible.” 

Being adopted by a noble meant cutting myself off from my family and living with nobles in the Noble’s Quarter. 

...I’ll have to leave my family again? 

A tremble ran through my heart. Fear had been bubbling up within me as my time alone in the temple went on—fear that my bonds with my family were weakening in their absence—and all that fear exploded at once. 

“Karstedt will be able to protect you to some degree if he adopts you, and I can guarantee the strength of his character. Will you do it, Karstedt?” 

“Anything for a friend, Lord Ferdinand.” 

The conversation continued without me as I watched on in a daze.

Karstedt leaned forward to get a closer look at me. He was an archnoble, his eyes crinkled warmly, and his muscular body was primed to protect me. Considering how much trust the High Priest had in him, I could guess that I would find no better adoptive parent anywhere else. 

“Myne, will you become my adopted daughter?” 

“No.” 

I shot down his act of good will with a single word. Everyone stared at me, their eyes wide with a mix of surprise and disbelief. 

“Sister Myne,” began Damuel in a panic, “an adoption like this is better than anything you could wish for! Why would you turn down Lord Ferdinand’s and Lord Karstedt’s kindness?!” 

“Calm down, Damuel. Myne, why do you refuse?” The High Priest’s quiet voice was tinged with anger. But still, I couldn’t say yes. 

“It’s just not possible. Spending the whole winter alone in the temple is already breaking my heart; I can’t agree to leave my family for the rest of my life. I just can’t.” I shook my head hard, and as I did so I could feel my mana stir together with my swelling emotions. It was surging up from within me. “I want to go home. I don’t want to leave my family ever again!” 

“Calm down, Myne!” exclaimed the High Priest as he stood up with a clatter from his chair, immediately pushing a clear, thumb-sized gemstone against my forehead. The stone turned light yellow in mere moments—a nigh-instantaneous change which made the High Priest balk. 

“Karstedt, Damuel—do you have any empty feystones?!” 

“Sir!” 

Karstedt and Damuel both hurriedly pulled out feystones, which the High Priest grabbed before picking me up and striding into his hidden room. 

“I shall take her to my workshop to minimize the damage!” 

Upon entering the room he sat down on the bench, set me down in front of him, and then put another feystone to my forehead. Stone after stone changed colors, and I could feel the mana stirring within me being sucked away. 

“I know we are so close to the Dedication Ritual, but still, you have let too much mana build up within you. So foolish.” 

“...That’s because I’ve been stuck in my chambers lately, and not offering up any mana.” 

It felt like my emotions had been sucked out along with the mana. I wiped the tears from my eyes and let out a sigh. But still, despite all that, the heat attempting to rampage inside of me had not been entirely quelled, and I lacked the energy to squash it back into its box. 

“I have to say, you seemed quite mentally unstable there. Did something happen?” 

“It’s all your fault. If you hadn’t dug through my memories...” 

Thanks to the High Priest’s magic tool, I had remembered with perfect clarity a world and a time I could never return to. I saw my old mom, talked to her, and ached for the family I had lost. I had been so busy here that I had done my best not to think about my past family, but he had dug the memories up and left a hole in my heart that would not heal. 

Which was exactly why I resolved to do my best to make sure I didn’t lose my new family, and why it had hurt that, immediately after making that decision, I had been forced to stay inside the temple. I was still overcome by a feeling of loss since I hadn’t had time to heal by spending time with my family. 

“...So that is why, then.” 

The High Priest glanced away, his brow furrowed with regret. It hit me that he hadn’t used the magic tool because he wanted to, and that he had been hit with the weight of my emotions too while we were synchronized. I cursed myself for my lack of tact. 

“I’m sorry. You didn’t deserve that,” I said, squeezing the High Priest’s sleeve as he pressed yet another feystone against my forehead. “You had to do what you did to make sure I’m not a threat, and it’s thanks to that I’m still alive at all. I know you did the right thing. 

“It’s just, when I think about the family I’ll never see again, I remember how important my new family is to me... But I have to spend all winter here, alone. It’s so lonely I could just die. And if you tell me now that I’ll never be able to see them again at all, maybe I will...” 

My heart started to hurt as I confessed how I felt, and the tears welling in my eyes made the High Priest’s face distort in front of me. 

“Myne, contain yourself!” 

“I’ll never see my family again if a noble adopts me!” 

“Myne!” The High Priest, his voice risen in a panic, grabbed my arm and pulled me toward him. I fell into his arms, and was soon enveloped in his long, drooping sleeves. 

I looked up at the High Priest, blinking in surprise, and saw him grimacing as he looked back down at me. 

“A... hug such as this will calm you, correct?” 

“...Yes.” 

Our positions were the reverse of what they had been after using the magic tool. Hearing the High Priest struggle to say “hug” was kinda cute, and I let out a small giggle. But it was kinda uncomfortable for him to hug me while I was standing, so I sat on his lap and searched for a more comfortable position. 

“...Myne, it seems that you have already calmed down.” 

“Not yet.” 

I couldn’t wrap my arms around the High Priest like I could with Lutz or Tuuli; all I could do was lean against him while sitting on his thigh. 

“This is perfect. Just keep squeezing me.” 

“I do not think this is perfect at all,” he said with a frown, but did as I asked without untangling himself from me. His warmth and steady breathing calmed the storm in my heart. 

Only after seeing that I had well and truly calmed down did the High Priest murmur an exasperated “What can be done with you...” Then, like chastising a rebellious child, he explained to me why I had no choice but to be adopted by a noble. 

“Unlike a normal Devouring child, you possess an enormous amount of mana. Far too much to be ignored.” 

“...Do I really have that much mana?” 

I could imagine that I had more mana than most people due to how the knights had reacted during the Healing Ritual, but I hadn’t thought it was an “enormous” amount. 

The High Priest’s expression tightened as he looked down at me. 

“It is too much mana for an average noble to contain, even after contracting with you. And it must be considered that your capacity for mana will grow as you do. You will need to learn to control the mana packed within you, and master the techniques necessary for putting it to good use.” 

Apparently, I would need to become a noble’s adopted daughter so that I could go to the Royal Academy and learn about mana, about magic and the ways to use it. A noble who signed with me would need to prepare magic tools that could consume a seriously enormous amount of my mana so as to not put those around me at risk. But there were barely any nobles in the city who had magic tools that could withstand my enormous amount of mana. 

“Your mana is too much for a sole noble to keep to themselves. It must be used for the sake of the duchy. For the sake of the country.” 

“...I’m not sure I understand.” 

Ever since learning that I was sick with the Devouring, I had been told that I would need to sign with a noble to calm the heat and survive. It was hard to believe I had so much mana that not even that was an option for me. It didn’t feel real. It felt like it was happening to someone else, not me. 

“You need to face reality, Myne. You endanger the lives of all those around you just by getting emotional. If you do not learn to control your emotions, it is likely that one day you may hurt even your precious family.” 

“...Th-That won’t happen so long as I’m with them. The reason I got like this in the first place is because I miss them.” 

The problem was being kept separate from my family. As long as I was with them, I could live in peace. 

“So please, don’t take me away from my family,” I said. 

The High Priest shut his eyes tightly, knitting his eyebrows. It was clear by the look on his face that he was enduring a Myne-induced headache, which made me feel just a little guilty. I knew I was asking for the impossible from him, but I just couldn’t remain stable without my family. There was no helping that. My heart wanted what it wanted. 

“...Ten years old,” murmured the High Priest, seeming to have selected an age out of nowhere. 

I looked up at him in confusion, and the High Priest shook his head with exasperation while setting me down from his lap. 

“The Royal Academy begins accepting students when they are ten years of age. That is when you must go. Until then, you may remain with your family, visiting the temple to offer up your mana as you have been. However,” added the High Priest, his expression hardening to show that he was drawing a firm line, “I will not listen to your protests after that. If you are determined to be a danger to others, you will be executed, and your family along with you. None will be spared. Remember this well.” 

“...Okay.” 

It seemed that the High Priest wouldn’t budge on me being adopted once I was ten. I put a hand on my chest as the weight of having a limited amount of time left with my family hit me.