A New Task and Winter Preparations
I gave my reply to Hasse’s messenger. The city was only half a day away, so it was likely that the mayor would read it before I returned to the monastery the day after tomorrow. I was hoping he would understand the situation and settle down, but how he was actually going to react was anyone’s guess.
“Ferdinand, is it truly wise to leave him be?” I asked.
“As it stands, we have no better option. It would be easy enough to eliminate him, but we must consider what would follow,” Ferdinand explained. As nobles, we could quite easily use our authority to arrest a mere commoner mayor and literally have his head roll, but considering the state that Hasse was in, it would be unreasonable for us to execute the mayor and do nothing else.
“But still, isn’t it best to eliminate an evil villain like him as soon as possible?”
“Rozemyne, why do you refer to him as ‘evil’?”
“Well, he’s selling orphans, bribing scholars, and seems to have been exploiting the old High Bishop’s power. That seems like a lot of bad stuff...” I said, counting each reason off on my fingers. But Ferdinand simply raised an eyebrow in surprise.
“None of those are particularly bad, and they are certainly not evil,” he replied, catching me completely off guard. I blinked in surprise, trying to understand what I had just heard, and we both looked at each other in confusion.
“The mayor earns the right of ownership over the orphans by taking care of them, so whether he sells them or not is entirely up to him,” Ferdinand continued. “And giving nobles money and gifts to earn their favor is just a matter of course. Do you not remember Benno giving me gifts when we first met? It is only natural to use what you have to secure good relations.”
Orphans were literally owned by those who looked after them, and it was so normal to bribe nobles that it didn’t even count as doing something bad. I cradled my head, taken aback by this huge contrast in what we saw as common sense.
“...Wait. So what did the mayor do wrong?”
“What else but disobeying my orders, and standing up unpermitted to protest our decision?” Ferdinand replied. According to him, selling orphans and exhibiting a certain degree of corruption was fine as long as it benefited the city—in fact, doing these things even made him a good mayor. The people of Hasse would put their full support behind him if the money made from selling the orphans helped the city.
“Hasse totals one thousand people when the neighboring farming villages gather to live in its winter mansion, and it is only natural that they would be prioritized above a number of orphans. If we use our power to destroy a mayor battling to protect his city, we will earn the ire of all the townsfolk,” Ferdinand said.
My heart thumped painfully. I had never thought about it that way before. “So, um, basically... we’re the bad guys from Hasse’s perspective?”
“At the moment, yes. We took the orphans they were planning to sell to nobles by force, put them in a monastery that the townspeople cannot enter, and are prioritizing these orphans over the taxpaying citizens,” he explained.
Never in the world had I expected that saving orphans from being sold into slavery would be perceived as wrong by others. I stood there, shocked, as Ferdinand continued with an unfazed expression.
“Unlike before when you earned all of your own money as an apprentice blue shrine maiden, you are now living off the taxes of your citizens as the daughter of the archduke. Is it any wonder why you might be expected to prioritize taking care of these taxpayers over orphans?”
Since I needed individuals without jobs to start working for the new printing industry, the temple’s orphanage had been very convenient for me. That was why I was planning to spread the industry by building new orphanages across the duchy, and presumably why the archduke had given me his permission to do so. But never did I consider that I would be actively harming the lives of normal citizens.
“The archduke gave you permission to do this because he determined that, by giving official work to orphans previously outside of the labor pool, you would be increasing the number of taxpaying citizens to draw wealth from. He was not simply acting out of compassion,” Ferdinand said.
A chill ran down my spine. I was being forced to confront the flaws in my narrow-minded worldview and carefree attitude. It felt like another fundamental part of me was being torn apart and forced to change, which kind of made me want to cry.
“...I did not expect that we would have such fundamentally different understandings of evil,” Ferdinand said. “This insect will no doubt prove to be a productive learning experience for you. I hereby instruct you to create an opposing faction to the mayor, expand it, and then isolate him politically.”
“...Excuse me?”
“I am telling you to produce a successor to the mayor so that Hasse may continue to function without him. If you can acquire an obedient pawn who will obey our every whim, eliminating the current mayor will cause no problems whatsoever. Do your best. Given that we will almost certainly be executing him regardless, we may as well exploit him to his fullest while we still can.”
Ferdinand spoke casually, but I was overcome with terror. My teeth were chattering in genuine fear as I contemplated the task I had just been given—plotting to destroy the life of another person. I may have gone nuts over books in the past and taken actions that ultimately put a huge burden on others, but I had never actively schemed against someone before. I had been raised to believe that such actions were wrong, and that they were something I must never do.
...I’m scared. I don’t want to do this. I can’t do this. No way.
I shook my head, trembling as I shrunk back in fear. But Ferdinand just gave my head a light flick as though trying to console a self-centered child.
“Rozemyne, if you do not handle this situation properly, the orphans in the monastery will not be able to go to the forest. That will prevent them from working in the workshop, and ultimately lead to them becoming burdens who can do nothing more than consume divine gifts. They will be ostracized not only by Hasse, but by the others in the orphanage as well. You do not wish to steal them away from their home, only to put them in a place where they will be shunned by all, do you?”
“But I don’t know how to plot and deceive people...” I protested as best I could, but Ferdinand just knelt down to make eye contact with me.
“There is a first time for everything. I shall teach you how,” he said, breaking into a smile so poisonously sweet that I could feel the venom flowing into me. It was a sensation that made me tense up and grit my teeth.
That night, I was so stricken by Ferdinand’s poison that I could hardly sleep. And when it came time to go to the castle the next day, my exhaustion was weighing me down just as much as the fear was.
I needed to be measured soon so that the clothes could be ordered and finished before winter, and it was so urgent that Rihyarda had sent me three separate ordonnanz yesterday. Ferdinand had caved under her pressure, so ultimately I was going to be dragged to the castle against my will. I felt so sick that I just wanted to rest, but they weren’t going to let that happen.
Curse Ferdinand and his brutally high standards...
While I was there, I planned to retrieve Hugo as well. I couldn’t foresee there being any issues with that since it was past the date we had agreed on anyway.
“Gil, we shall be going to the castle today. Inform Lutz that I will be returning with Hugo.”
“As you wish. We will have the picture books finished soon, so please cheer up.”
“Thank you, Gil. I hope that you continue growing up to be a good, honest person.”
Gil’s innocent, sincere smile healed my heart; it couldn’t have been more different from the fake, poisonous smile of a certain someone. All of my attendants really were so cute.
“Rozemyne, is something wrong? You do not look well,” Ferdinand said.
“I didn’t get any sleep because I was up all night agonizing over the fact I have to plot someone’s downfall.” And whose fault do you think that is? I added on the inside, fixing Ferdinand with a glare as he blinked in surprise.
“With such a frail heart, you will never survive as the archduke’s daughter. Am I wrong?”
“This might be a beginner-level task to you, Ferdinand, but to me it is one of the toughest problems I’ve faced. I don’t think I’ll ever sleep again by the time I’ve finished this.”
“Something this trivial would give you insomnia? Hm... You truly are weak, Rozemyne.”
I knew that I was weak, both physically and psychologically, so I simply nodded. Ferdinand let out a sigh, then lowered his eyes in thought for a moment.
“...I suppose there is no point thinking about this now. Let us depart.”
I headed to the castle in my Pandabus, now used to the slight smirk on Norbert’s face whenever he came out to greet us.
“I shall inform the Aub about the chefs, as you will be too busy to do so yourself,” Ferdinand said, blatantly lying with a self-assured smile on his face before flourishing his cape and striding off. He was definitely just running away from Rihyarda.
“Lady Rozemyne, welcome home. The seamstresses are already here,” Rihyarda said when I arrived, rushing me to meet them in the parlor.
The room was filled with piles of warm-looking cloth, plus a bunch of extravagant furs. This was my first time getting to pick the materials for my clothes, and while I knew I should have been excited about that, my mood didn’t improve in the least.
“This will be both your and Lord Wilfried’s first time participating in winter socializing. We must carefully consider what you are going to wear,” she said, clearly enthusiastic to be involved in dressing a girl after years of dressing exclusively boys. She had apparently already ordered several winter outfits for me alongside Elvira and Florencia. “We ordered them to match your summer measurements, but children grow fast so we’ll be wanting your newer measurements.”
Well, I don’t grow very much, but sure...
Ferdinand’s theory was that my need to keep my body filled with mana at all times was making it hard for me to grow. I wanted to believe that I had grown at least a little lately since I had been eating a lot more and now had more opportunities to use my mana.
...And the measurements showed that I had in fact grown a little. Though it was barely anything compared to other kids my age.
“What kind of outfit would you like, milady? This is one that Lord Wilfried is going to wear. I suggest we get you something that looks just like it,” Rihyarda said, showing me a wooden board with the design for one of Wilfried’s outfits drawn on it as she pointed out various colors and types of cloth.
I knew it was heartwarming to see a brother and sister in matching outfits, but I didn’t feel too enthusiastic about being in that situation myself. Regardless, it appeared that Rihyarda had already emotionally settled on the colors and cloth. All that was left was the design, which she had also narrowed down to a few candidates.
“Lady Rozemyne, which of these two do you prefer?” she asked.
I really didn’t care too much about clothes myself, and would be fine with pretty much anything that made other people happy as long as it wasn’t embarrassing for me to wear.
“I would like this one, please,” I said, pointing to one at random. I had assumed that would settle the matter, but Rihyarda wouldn’t let me go until I also ordered a set of underclothes and shoes to go along with it. With nothing to lose, I took this opportunity to also order some clothes and carpets to make life in the temple easier. That would be a big help since getting clothes for winter last year had been such an arduous task.
“Rihyarda, I must be going soon to discuss the chefs with Sylvester.”
“The chefs you brought with you have been enormously popular in the castle, milady. I am told that, despite everyone wanting to know the recipes, Lord Sylvester’s lips are remaining as tight as can be.”
It seemed Hugo was steadily getting more popular in the castle. I smiled as Rihyarda complained about him not letting everyone share the delicious food, feeling a bit proud.
“Sylvester used his own money to buy the recipes; it’s no surprise that he wouldn’t teach them to others so readily. I imagine he wants to surprise the nobles during winter.”
“Lord Sylvester invited me for lunch one day, and I could hardly believe what I was tasting. Seems like I have a bright winter to look forward to,” Rihyarda replied.
Well... I’ll be taking that chef home with me today. Sorry! I apologized to Rihyarda internally before asking her to set up a meeting with Sylvester for me.
“I imagine that will be difficult on such short notice.”
“Lord Ferdinand has surely made arrangements for me. Perhaps try asking Sylvester.”
“As you wish, milady. It may be some time before I return. Please read this in the meantime, if you would.” Rihyarda took out a book and set it down in front of me. I could feel a beaming smile instantly spread across my face; all of my doom and gloom was being pushed out of sight and mind as the joy of reading washed over me.
“Thank you, Rihyarda.”
“Be a good girl and wait for me, now.”
I responded with a nod and a smile before picking up the book and immediately starting to read. It was a book about magic that Ferdinand had prepared for me, containing descriptions of feystone colors and how they related to the gods. It seemed that the colors were connected to the divine colors of the gods, and particular-colored feystones worked better with certain types of magic. For example, it said that when using magic related to the Goddess of Water or her subordinates, it was most mana-efficient to use green feystones.
It was a relatively easy book for me to read since I already knew the names of the gods and their relationships from the bible, but given that all of the Eternal Five and their subordinates were being mentioned at once, I could imagine that someone who started learning with this book would get lost almost immediately. It was probably meant for adults; the phrasing was complex at times, and the sentences were often long and winding. On top of all that, the writing style itself was antiquated and hard to read, using lots of older words. There were illustrations here and there, but they didn’t have anything to do with the book’s contents, so I got the feeling they didn’t really matter.
...If a book like this is being used to teach nobles essential information, then I feel like the picture books I’m making will actually be in high demand, I thought, continuing to read the book with newfound confidence in getting a ton of winter sales.
At some point, Rihyarda tapped my shoulder and informed me that a meeting had been arranged for teatime at fifth bell. I decided to continue reading in the meantime—in all honesty, I would have much rather skipped the meeting entirely and stayed with my book.
When fifth bell rang, I started making my way to the front of the castle’s main building where Sylvester’s office was. Wilfried approached us along the way, having seemingly been caught by Lamprecht partway through one of his usual escape attempts.
“Rozemyne! I didn’t know you were back at the castle.”
“Good day to you, Wilfried.”
“Where’re you going?”
“...A fine question. Yes, a fine question indeed,” I said, deliberately trying to avoid answering. Wilfried already thought it was unfair that only I got to speak with Sylvester, so I didn’t want to say that I was on my way to have tea with him.
But Rihyarda answered for me. “We are going to the break room on the main building’s second floor, Lord Wilfried.”
“...Why does Father only ever give you any attention?” Wilfried grumbled, biting his lip and glaring at me with anger in his eyes. “No fair! You dummy! I hate you, Rozemyne!”
I normally would have kept a blank expression and ignored him, but I was so emotionally troubled by the task Ferdinand had given me that I couldn’t let Wilfried’s whining slide this time. Him skipping out on his studies and doing whatever he wanted reminded me of my early days as Myne when I had only cared about myself, which was annoying enough on its own without him insulting me too.
“You are the ‘dummy’ here, Wilfried. You have the opportunity to freely read books, and yet you spend that time running away from your studies and being a burden to all those around you. How is it unfair that Sylvester is treating me differently? You are only getting what you deserve. Now, hurry up and learn to read already, if you would be so kind. I am waiting ever so impatiently for the opportunity to study, and you are denying me that. If you weren’t years behind in learning to read, I would be studying right now instead of getting blood on my hands for Ferdinand!”
That last part wasn’t Wilfried’s fault at all, but I was so mad that I had to say it. I didn’t want to hear him complaining at me ever again.
Wilfried widened his deep-green eyes and looked at me in total shock, having never dreamed that I would talk back to him. His guard Lamprecht was looking equally wide-eyed, and Rihyarda was blinking rapidly.
“Wh-Wh... What gives you the right to talk to me like that?!” Wilfried stammered.
“Please remember that you are a coward who spends his time fleeing from the work expected of him as the archduke’s son. If you don’t want me pointing out your failures, then I would suggest you dedicate yourself to improving as a person.”
I was especially angry because things were getting worse for me by the day, while Wilfried just pranced about doing whatever he wanted despite also being one of the archduke’s children. I wanted to yell at him to try doing what Ferdinand had just told me to do.
“Lady Rozemyne! Please, contain yourself!” Damuel shouted, shaking me by the shoulders and bringing me back to my senses. It seemed that, in my anger, I had Crushed Wilfried a bit. Leaving now would probably be for the best; it wasn’t a good idea for us to stay face-to-face.
“As I am busy with a mountain of work, I will be taking my leave now.” I turned on my heel and walked off, which was fine, but the archduke’s castle was needlessly big and the distance between my room and Sylvester’s office was absurd. Due in part to my lack of sleep, I ended up getting out of breath along the way.
Cornelius’s face clouded over as he saw my walking pace slow down. “Rihyarda, Lady Rozemyne doesn’t seem to be feeling well,” he said. Cornelius always called me “Lady Rozemyne” when guarding me as a knight in the archduke’s castle, but his expression was that of a worried older brother.
Rihyarda peered at my face, then picked me up and resumed walking. That wasn’t good. Now my head was spinning.
“Milady, please take care not to pass out before the meeting.”
“Sorry. Things would be a lot easier if I could just drive a small Pandabus through the castle.”
“Why, I say we suggest that to Lord Sylvester.”
When we arrived at the break room, tea had already started. Sylvester was drinking alongside his retainers and Ferdinand.
“You’re late, Rozemyne,” he said.
“This room is so far from hers that she almost collapsed along the way. May I suggest that you give her permission to ride her highbeast in the castle?” Rihyarda requested on my behalf.
Sylvester crossed his arms in thought. “Won’t the wings hit the walls and all that?”
“Milady’s highbeast has no wings, and she can change its size at will. It won’t be a bother to anyone.”
At that, Sylvester’s deep-green eyes shone with curiosity. “Lemme see it. I’ve never seen a highbeast without wings before. If it looks funny enough, I’ll give her permission.”
“Okay. I would be riding him alone in the castle, so he would be about this big...” I said, taking out my feystone and making a single person-sized Pandabus. And since that single person was me, he was about as small as a rideable children’s toy. I got inside and drove around the room at a walking pace.
“That’s a highbeast?! The heck is that?! Bwahahaha! Now that’s funny! I’d expect nothing less from you, Rozemyne—you always think of stuff nobody else can,” Sylvester choked out, guffawing with laughter as he pointed at Lessy. “Alright, I’ll keep my promise. Feel free to use it all throughout the castle.”
“No... No! Sylvester!” Ferdinand exclaimed.
“What, Ferdinand? Better this than having attendants and knights carry her around at all times, right?”
With the archduke on my side, I had nothing to fear. I let out a sigh of relief, having been permitted to use Lessy in the castle and its estates, and took my seat. As I sipped my tea, Sylvester glanced my way.
“So, what did you want to talk about?”
“I imagine Ferdinand has already informed you, but I am here to take Hugo back,” I said.
Sylvester shot his head to the side to look at Ferdinand. “...You didn’t mention this, Ferdinand.”
“Wait, really? What in the world did he talk to you about, then?”
“There are more pressing matters than the chefs. And Sylvester, you should know that the lending period that was agreed upon is now over. There should be no issue with her taking him home,” Ferdinand said, tapping a finger against his temple.
While that was true for me, it seemed Sylvester did in fact have several problems with that. “No way. The food’s finally getting real good. Let him stay a bit longer.”
“No. I can’t give you any more time; we won’t be able to open the Italian restaurant without him.”
As Sylvester and I glared at each other, Ferdinand waved his hand. “Summon the chef. We can let him decide.”
That might have been a reasonable idea if not for the fact that no commoner chef would be able to defy the archduke’s orders. Hugo wouldn’t be able to speak his mind at all.
That was no doubt why he had a stony expression on his paling face when he was brought into the room. Chefs were commoner servants, and would normally never visit a noble’s room like this. And as one could tell from Fran disliking the idea of me teaching Ella recipes directly, it was rare for commoners to leave the ground floor.
“You have served me well,” Sylvester said to the kneeling Hugo, who was facing the floor in a way that hid his expression from view. “What would you say to me offering you a job at the castle? I would be glad to have you as a court chef.”
“My lord, I...” Hugo began, hesitantly trailing off rather than jumping for joy—a clear sign that he wanted to refuse.
“Sylvester, we are just borrowing Hugo from the Gilberta Company, and it is absolutely necessary that we return him to them. Once he has returned, you will be free to invite him back as much as you please. Hopefully you would give him time to train a successor first, but either way, please do not try to steal him away here and now,” I said.
While still wearing his serious archduke expression, Sylvester gave a light shrug. “What a shame. I’ll have to visit that eatery again sometime, then.”
“I shall await your patronage, my lord,” Hugo said reverently.
I decided to take Hugo to the carriages that were leaving the castle, and so exited the room after we had said our farewells to the archduke. As soon as we were out in the hall, Hugo let out a quiet sigh.
“Thank you, Lady Rozemyne. I have a partner I wish to wed, and it would have been problematic for me to become a court chef so suddenly.”
Hugo had been throwing taues along with the other single people back at last year’s Star Festival, but it seemed he had finally found a girl of his own. That explained why he wanted to go back to the lower city so much; there weren’t any easy methods for commoners to pass messages between the lower city and the Noble’s Quarter, so it would have been even harder than a normal long-distance relationship.
“So, will you move to the Noble’s Quarter once you get married, Hugo?”
“...It depends on her, but if the stars align, I would like to be a court chef after the next Star Festival,” Hugo murmured with a grin.
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