Ascendance of a Bookworm (LN) - Volume 4.3 - Chapter 6

The Meeting with Giebe Haldenzel

“The High Priest said to visit him this afternoon,” Zahm said upon my return to the High Bishop’s chambers. “He is surely worried about you as well.”

I looked down at the leather bag that Ferdinand had given me. Maybe I should show the extent of my appreciation by turning all the feystones into that golden sand...

“I am relieved to see you looking well again, Lady Rozemyne,” Monika said with a pleasant smile. I was surprised to see that she was already preparing lunch; it seemed that I had been talking with Lutz and the others for much longer than I had thought.

Once I had eaten, I went to the High Priest’s chambers. Ferdinand was probably mad that I had immediately ruined our schedules and forced us to come back to the temple early. I couldn’t help but tremble as I stepped into his room, and the stern glare he shot me the moment I came into his view was enough to make me flinch.

“Ferdinand, I truly am sorry about how much I’ve inconvenienced you today.”

“You have indeed inconvenienced me. However... I see you are well again.”

“It is because of your consideration that my fears have been vanquished and my energy has recovered.”

Ferdinand checked the color in my face before pointing to the leather bag in my hand. “Were those of use to you?”

“Indeed. I thank you ever so much. I was once again surprised by the thorough nature of your preparations,” I said as I returned the bag.

Ferdinand checked the contents; then his expression turned to a grimace and he tapped his temple. “It seems I did not provide an unnecessary amount. Still, for you to have turned this many feystones to dust, I can only imagine how emotionally disturbed you must have been. Better this than your emotions exploding within the castle, but still... I will need to think of a way to handle these situations without relying on the Plantin Company.”

“There is no need, Ferdinand. I feel better now. I’ll do my best so that I can keep spreading books!” I declared. I certainly didn’t want him to start thinking up anything that would sever my connection to the Plantin Company.

“Do only as we have already decided,” Ferdinand shot back. “Your behavior tends to become extreme when you are doing your best.”

“Ngh. Okay, well... Tell me what we have decided to do, then.”

We went on to discuss my upcoming meeting with Giebe Haldenzel. Now that the magic contracts had been nullified, the archduke would be permitting the establishment of new paper-making workshops. This meeting was mainly going to be about the Gutenbergs’ long-term stay. I also went ahead and reported to Ferdinand what I had just told Benno.

Once our conversation was over, we hurried back to the castle, where Ella had stayed behind. Rihyarda welcomed us with her lips pursed at my busy schedule, noting that she would have preferred me taking things more slowly now that I finally had some spare time.

Unfortunately, it was becoming clear that I could only run away from noble society for so long. I ate dinner with Charlotte, who expressed concern for my health.

It was ultimately decided that the meeting with Giebe Haldenzel would be held in the afternoon two days later, and that Ferdinand would accompany me as my guardian. A noble life sure was a busy one.

The meeting room for archnobles was a bit fancier than the ones I had visited previously—there were colorful tapestries, and the furniture seemed to be high-quality and historied. Waiting inside were Giebe Haldenzel, his wife, and Elvira.

Once Ferdinand and I sat down, Giebe Haldenzel greeted us with his wife. “At last we have the chance to greet you formally, Lady Rozemyne. May we pray for a blessing in appreciation of this serendipitous meeting, ordained by the harsh judgment of Ewigeliebe the God of Life?”

“You may.”

Giebe Haldenzel certainly looks a lot like Mother...

His dark-green hair and dark-brown eyes resembled hers exactly. He wore a polite smile, but his gaze was sharp, and it was obvious that he was watching me carefully. Even as he knelt before me, he was exuding an unmistakable amount of pressure; he carried the firm aura of someone who was used to standing above others.

“On behalf of Haldenzel, I wish to thank you.”

The giebe and his wife had previously come all the way to Karstedt’s estate for my baptism ceremony, but I had been dragged away by Wilfried and ended up falling unconscious before we could exchange greetings. Our next opportunity to formally meet had been during my debut, but I had been forced to leave prematurely after giving a blessing. Then, the following winter, we had been too preoccupied fighting with the former Veronica faction nobles about Wilfried.

“Have I done something worthy of your thanks...?” I asked.

I was offered pretty much the same explanation that Elvira had already given me: Haldenzel had been receiving chalices filled with mana since I began work as an apprentice blue shrine maiden. My efforts had apparently caused crop production to rise across the entire province, which had in turn made the people’s lives a little bit easier. Of course, this “little bit” had actually had a massive impact considering that they had existed in perpetual poverty.

I had learned in my lessons on Ehrenfest’s geography that Haldenzel was cold enough for its rivers to freeze over and that its citizens learned to live close together and take care of one another. The province itself was expansive, but its population was focused in the southern half, with the north having barely any inhabitants. To complicate matters further, Haldenzel was the province the Lord of Winter was most likely to appear in.

“My knights have reported that your blessings provide much aid during the Lord of Winter hunt,” Giebe Haldenzel noted.

“The color of the flag has returned to normal as well,” his wife added with a kind smile, referring to Ahrensbach’s unsuccessful attempt to take over Ehrenfest’s higher-ups. “Not to mention, due to how long winters last in Haldenzel, many have been saved by the printing industry.”

From there, Giebe Haldenzel and his wife explained how well the Gutenbergs had worked from their perspective. Lutz and the gray priests had apparently brought the necessary tools to a prepared workshop, put together the printing press, and then demonstrated how it worked. However, the printing press required the operator to organize the letter types into place, and almost no Haldenzel commoners knew how to read. The teaching process had taken a very long time as a result.

“I was stunned to see that all of the Ehrenfest craftsmen know how to read,” the giebe said. “We had our hands full adopting the Gutenbergs’ technologies over the winter, and now we must teach our own people to read; after all, it would not do for them to mistakenly place the letter types upside down and not even realize it.”

“The orphans in my orphanage learned through playing karuta together and reading picture books, but the process is not a fast one,” I explained. “It might be wise to have layscholars or apprentice scholars proofread the draft prints for now.” Given that the books were being sold to nobles, quality assurance was our highest priority even in the Rozemyne Workshop.

“Your Gutenbergs have developed quite a positive reputation among the craftsmen of Haldenzel, Lady Rozemyne. They are all so skilled despite their youth.”

The Gutenbergs had taught ink workshops how to make the special ink that we used for printing and carpentry workshops how to make the wooden parts needed for printing presses, all during their long stay from spring to autumn. Once they had the scholars proofreading, the printing had gone off without a hitch.

There was one issue, however: the smithies in Haldenzel still weren’t skilled enough. They had completed their own letter types and other kinds of metalwork, but nothing they had made was good enough to earn Johann’s approval. That simply wouldn’t do—it was surprisingly easy for letter types to get scratched, worn down, or broken during the printing process, so they would need to be able to make their own.

“I am told the smiths have banded together,” the giebe continued. “They are determined to receive the Gutenbergs’ approval by spring.”

“In the report I received from the Gutenbergs, they expressed their concern that Haldenzel had not accepted them,” I said, recalling the report mentioning that Haldenzel had met the Gutenbergs with extremely high resistance. “But I see now that these fears were for nothing.”

As the conversation continued, I decided to use this opportunity to relay the suggestions that had been passed on to me.

“Haldenzel receives few outsiders, and our lifestyles rarely see any change at all, so I can understand why the craftspeople showed resistance to this new technology,” the giebe responded. “That said, the bonds between family members are as strong as the earth, and once we accept someone, we protect them like family. Once the people understand the blessings that printing will bring us, they will never forget what you have done for them. They will treasure printing forever. I would like to provide a formal response to the Gutenbergs’ suggestions once Haldenzel has grown used to its technology.”

“Please take your time—my hope is that your printing will bring as much wealth as possible to Haldenzel. Still, I see that the provinces even within Ehrenfest have quite unique cultures. Haldenzel seems much different from Illgner,” I observed. I had once traveled all throughout Ehrenfest for Spring Prayer, but it was hard to pick up on a province’s culture when I was just landing on a stage to give my blessing and then immediately leaving again.

“We have been told you will accompany the Gutenbergs on their return to Haldenzel in spring. When this time comes, you may see firsthand the strength of our proud people, who endure even the harshest winters with a smile.” Giebe Haldenzel spoke with a pleased smile as he boasted about his people, and I couldn’t help but smile with him. I could imagine him among his people, doing his best to protect them amid the harsh environment. While it was certainly different from Illgner, it seemed to me that Haldenzel was a good province too.

“I am quite looking forward to visiting Haldenzel as well.”

“Giebe Haldenzel,” Ferdinand said, “the Gutenbergs will be sent following Spring Prayer and will then depart again by the end of summer.”

The giebe crossed his arms, his brow furrowed as he pondered the meaning behind those words. Ferdinand went on to explain that printing workshops were due to be spread all throughout Ehrenfest, and that the Gutenbergs needed to begin long-term preparations to accomplish this.

“There are many provinces waiting for the Gutenbergs,” Ferdinand concluded. “Consider it special circumstances that Haldenzel is seeing them twice.”

Giebe Haldenzel closed his eyes as he processed this information. Then, after a moment of silence, he looked at me head-on. “Lady Rozemyne, I find it extremely reassuring to know that you are working among the leaders of Ehrenfest. As Elvira’s daughter, I trust that you will treasure your family and never forget your home.”

“Excuse me, Giebe Haldenzel... You seem to be praising me, but both Ferdinand and Mother frequently inform me that my softness for my family is a weakness that must be dealt with.” I shot Ferdinand and Elvira slightly concerned glances, since it sounded to me like the giebe was instructing me to prioritize him as family, but they just quietly awaited my next words.

I returned my attention to the giebe, whose dark-brown eyes glimmered as he shook his head. “That is not what I meant,” he said. “Rather, you have been gifted with a talent for inventing a seemingly endless stream of products. I imagine many other duchies will seek your person in the Royal Academy, but I pray that you recall your home and your family, and that you remain in Ehrenfest nonetheless.”

It seemed that he wasn’t telling me to prioritize Haldenzel, but rather to avoid leaving the duchy. I had misunderstood him once again.

A sigh escaped me. Little did he know, those I considered my family were found not among nobles, but in the lower city. And with the magic contract preventing us from interacting as family, I needed to treasure the tiny connections that still remained—like Tuuli delivering her hairpins, and Dad guarding me on my way to Hasse. These were connections that existed only in Ehrenfest; I had no plans to leave the duchy for as long as my family was here.

“My family is indeed in Ehrenfest,” I said. “Barring orders from Aub Ehrenfest himself, there is no other place I would call home.”

Giebe Haldenzel seemed visibly relieved to hear my declaration... but out of the corner of my eye, I noticed that Ferdinand was now wearing a deep frown.