Ascendance of a Bookworm (LN) - Volume 4.4 - Chapter Aft

Afterword

Hello again, it’s Miya Kazuki. Thank you very much for reading Ascendance of a Bookworm: Part 4 Volume 4.

Amid many complicated feelings, Wilfried and Rozemyne’s engagement gets formally recognized. I wrote the prologue to show how Wilfried feels about this, which is something many people wanted to see during the web novel. What did people say to him, and what was he thinking when he agreed to the marriage? All is revealed.

This volume is about spring in Ehrenfest. Rozemyne wants to relax and read at her leisure for the first time in ages, but such a luxury is not so easy to acquire. She still needs to deal with her engagement being announced at the spring feast, performing religious ceremonies for the first time in two years, making clothes for Schwartz and Weiss, and much, much more.

So much has taken place. Rozemyne made ink (at Ferdinand’s instruction) to avoid having to embroider and accidentally ended up inventing a strange new type; she pointed out that Haldenzel’s Spring Prayer differed from the one mentioned in the bible and unintentionally revived an ancient ceremony; she felt that the city wasn’t clean enough from the entwickeln and tried to use waschen to clean it (although, in the end, Ferdinand used wide-ranged area magic to do the job); and she encountered gruns while gathering in the castle’s forest with Bonifatius!

Although quite a few out-of-the-ordinary things have happened, things are quite peaceful for the most part. That is, until Ahrensbach makes its move during the Archduke Conference and forces Ehrenfest to be on guard.

This volume’s short stories are told from Giebe Haldenzel’s and Gunther’s perspectives.

In Giebe Haldenzel’s story, I wrote about how the changes brought about by Spring Prayer were seen by someone actually living in the province. The weather changed dramatically due to a decision he made on a whim. Rozemyne won’t see this, since she goes straight back to the Noble’s Quarter, but the weather in Haldenzel is quite different now. The people there will struggle quite a bit as they are forced to deal with something they have never had to face before. And in the midst of all that, they discover something that is unmistakably a miracle.

In Gunther’s story, I wrote about the lower city’s perspective on the entwickeln and the wide-range waschen. Cleaning the lower city was a pressing matter for the nobles concerned with their reputation among other duchies, and they wanted it finished before the merchants from said duchies came. But only merchants knew about the upcoming business; for everyone else in the lower city, it came out of nowhere. I hope you enjoyed the soldiers heroically making use of Rozemyne’s warning and the city getting cleaned up.

Giebe Haldenzel was given a character design by Shiina-sama for this volume. I think her art conveyed the rugged edges he developed ruling a cold, harsh northern province. There are also designs for grown-up Delia and Dirk! Delia certainly has grown into a beauty, while Dirk looks a bit cheeky while still being cute, which makes him feel just like Delia’s little brother.

And finally, it has begun! Four Bookworm publications released back-to-back! There’s Part 4 Volume 4, Royal Academy Stories: First Year, the third fanbook, and then Part 4 Volume 5.

Royal Academy Stories: First Year is a book I’ve made to compile some short stories I published online. That said, over two-thirds of the volume is original content. It contains stories written from the perspectives of Wilfried, Cornelius, Angelica, Hartmut, Judithe, Traugott, Roderick, Hannelore, Rauffen, Ortwin, and Solange. The volume shows many things that occurred outside Rozemyne’s line of sight, and many illustrations were drawn for characters with only a small presence. This is something to be celebrated.

The third fanbook is similar in structure to the first and is filled with Shiina-sama’s illustrations. I also answered a bunch of questions, as per usual. The original short story I write will come with a map of the Royal Academy’s library; I’m currently debating whether to write it from Solange’s, Hartmut’s, or Philine’s perspective...

I have my hands full right now tackling the deadlines that keep coming one after another, all so that you may enjoy the fruits of my labor.

This cover art for this volume is based on Haldenzel’s Spring Prayer and the entwickeln. Rozemyne is covered in spring flowers and wearing her ceremonial High Bishop robes, while Sylvester and Ferdinand perform the lower city reconstruction and cleansing, respectively. It’s a joy to see, since it’s been a long time since either of them have appeared on a cover. Thank you very much, Shiina-sama.

And finally, I offer up my highest thanks to everyone who read this book. May we meet again in Part 4 Volume 5.

August 2018, Miya Kazuki