Ascendance of a Bookworm (LN) - Volume 4.5 - Chapter 13

The Library Plan and Completed Outfits

Upon returning to the temple, my normal daily life resumed at once. I practiced music and dedication whirling, helped Ferdinand, gave instructions for the temple and orphanage’s winter preparations, and maintained communications with the Plantin and Gilberta Companies. We hadn’t entirely finished transcribing our book from Dunkelfelger either.

“You certainly are busier in the temple than in the castle, Lady Rozemyne,” Philine noted, sounding impressed. She was now coming to the temple pretty much every day to serve as an apprentice scholar and assist me.

“It is all for the sake of spreading the printing industry,” I replied. “Everything I have exists for the sake of creating more books.”

I thought back on all the progress we had made so far. My humble paper-making efforts with Lutz had turned into the Rozemyne Workshop, spread to Hasse’s monastery, blossomed into the multitude of paper-making workshops owned and run by Benno, earned the archduke’s support, and made its way to Illgner where new kinds of paper were being made. By this point, it was on its way to spreading all throughout Ehrenfest.

Similarly, the printing industry had gone from being localized entirely within the temple’s workshop to being run wholly by the archduke. If the printing industry caught on in Groschel like it had in Haldenzel, it would only be a matter of time before it spread even further, since several other giebes were expressing interest as well. The production rate of books in this world would no doubt grow exponentially in the coming years.

Although I was still involved in the printing industry, there wasn’t much more I could actually do myself. We had reached the point where I was not just leaving work to craftspeople but leaving even the operation of workshops to others.

“Once the printing industry finds its footing in Groschel, it may be time to move on to the next phase of my plan...” I muttered. Hartmut must have overheard me, because he immediately shot me a dubious look.

“Lady Rozemyne, what do you mean by that?” he asked. “What next phase?”

There was no going back now that he had heard me, and as my retainer, Hartmut was going to be involved with the printing industry for the rest of his life either way. I saw no issue with sharing my dark plots with him.

“I plan to construct a library next,” I declared, puffing out my chest. In a world soon to be filled with books, there was nothing one needed more.

“Lady Rozemyne... If you’ll forgive my rudeness, I cannot connect the Groschel printing industry to the need to construct a library,” Hartmut said. He looked confused, but also like he was eager to learn. The problem was, I wasn’t sure what it was he didn’t understand.

“Is it not simple, Hartmut? The spread of the printing industry will result in more books, and we will require a place to store them, no? The need for a library is more than clear.”

The book room in Ehrenfest’s castle wasn’t particularly large; it was able to house several hundred books, but it certainly didn’t have enough room for a copy of every book about to be printed. The space available to me right now was simply too limited.

“Once I have learned creation magic from the archduke candidate course, I plan to construct a library much like how the High Priest constructed the monastery in Hasse,” I said.

Creation magic would allow me to create a library of Rozemyne, by Rozemyne, and for Rozemyne, the very thought of which sent my heart aflutter. The magic tools that existed in this world were entirely unlike anything on Earth, so I was sure I could create a library that was more impressive, more phenomenal, more perfect than any I had seen in my previous life. I saw no reason not to build the largest library in all of Yurgenschmidt.

“In the meantime, I intend to find out more about the libraries of other duchies so I can create the perfect library of my own,” I said. But my words were met with a barrage of questions.

“You wish to research libraries?”

“Are they not merely places for storing documents?”

“Won’t any room with bookshelves do?”

Hartmut and Philine exchanged glances as they took turns interrogating me. I shook my head violently in response, firmly rejecting their heresy.

“Libraries are certainly not just rooms for storing documents! First of all, their noble objective is to collect as much written material as possible, organize it for easy access, keep it safe, and create an optimal experience for any visitors. I will thoroughly investigate how the libraries in other duchies—particularly in the Sovereignty—are managed, and from there, I will create one that is absolutely perfect. Ehrenfest shall be blessed to serve as the foundation upon which I build the Rozemyne Library, a wonder of the modern world that will beat out whichever library in the Sovereignty surely holds the most books!”

Philine nodded with a completely serious expression. “Our first course of action should be to secure permission from Lord Ferdinand, then,” she said.

Nooo! This first hurdle is already impossible to overcome! I’m beaten!

My head cooled down in an instant. To achieve the impossible and secure permission from Ferdinand, I would need to learn everything there was to learn about the history and operation of the libraries in this world. I needed to come up with an argument so indisputable that not even he could refuse me.

For now, I shall keep my ambition a secret. Let your plans be as dark and impenetrable as the night, and when you strike, strike like a lightning bolt!

And so, I began happily plotting out how to obtain my library, brimming with motivation and generally having the time of my life.

I’ll definitely want magic tools like Schwartz and Weiss. They can work at the counter, instantly detect anyone removing books without permission, protect me from danger... And if all that wasn’t amazing enough already, they’re super cute too!

Ferdinand and Hirschur were both in the process of researching them, so I was sure they would be able to make similar magic tools soon. I grinned at the thought of shumils of all different colors hopping around and working in my library.

Since magic exists and this is a fantasy world, I might as well make the library a magical wonderland. I could add some kind of native growing function that adds more floors as more books are added! Fancy, huh? This isn’t exactly what Ranganathan—blessed be his name—meant with his teachings, but I think there’s something deeply appealing about a library that develops alongside its collection. You’ll never run out of space, and you can welcome all texts without having to be selective.

Not to mention, I think magic tools can be used to add functions to books as well. Like, making them automatically return to their shelf according to their serial number or activating a magic circle on their due date that makes them teleport back to the library. Ooh, maybe a light that activates when someone is searching for it... Gosh! This is so much fun that I can’t stop thinking about it!

But it was just as I was wiggling with glee and coming up with my perfect library schematics that I experienced a shocking betrayal: Philine, Hartmut, and Fran all informed Ferdinand of my plot the moment we went to help him with his work.

“Rozemyne.”

“Eep.”

“You seem to be quite enthralled with forming this interesting plot of yours,” he said, staring down at me with sharply narrowed eyes, “but I have received no reports on it. Just what are you planning?”

“N-Nothing at all. Really. I simply thought it would be nice to research libraries across the country so that I may one day build the most incredible library in Yurgenschmidt, that’s all. I intended to give you a report once I had a proper plan in mind.”

Fran sighed and shook his head. “Lady Rozemyne, you need to discuss these matters with the High Priest before forming any plans.”

“I could never do that, Fran. I need to do my research and construct the perfect pitch first. Ferdinand would eat me alive were I to try convincing him without having made the proper preparations. Discussing matters can come after that.”

“In other words, you intentionally kept this from me?” Ferdinand asked. I could feel the temperature drop to match his frigid tone, as though a sudden blizzard had swept through the room.

“Not at all!” I exclaimed, hurriedly shaking my head. “Did you not teach me that preparations and forward thinking are necessary for success? I am simply doing my best to behave like a noble. I-I mean, without any preparations, what would there even be to report?”

I didn’t want my dreams to be crushed here, of all places, so I worked my brain to full capacity, trying to figure out how to calm Ferdinand and protect my future library. And to my surprise, either due to my clear desperation or his awareness that nothing he could say would make me budge on the matter, he did indeed calm down.

Ferdinand tapped his finger on the desk. “I would rather you behave like a noble as a matter of course, rather than only when doing so furthers your book-related endeavors, but... Give me a simple explanation of what you wish to do. If you are talking about improving the book room’s collection, it would not be unthinkable for me to provide my assistance, depending on your goals and the circumstances.”

I can’t believe it... Ferdinand is actively and willingly helping me!

If he became my ally rather than my greatest obstacle, I would be unstoppable. I was so moved by the prospect that I decided to tell him all about my library. I explained how valuable libraries were on the whole, how I wanted mine to be, and even all the different kinds of magic tools I wanted set up inside. The words flowed out of me like water from a faucet.

“And that’s the kind of library I want to make!” I concluded.

Ferdinand, who had been listening to my passionate speech while tapping his temples, let out a long sigh. “You truly are a fool,” he said. “At least make your plans realistic.”

“Um, Ferdinand... What parts of my plan weren’t realistic?” I asked. We lived in a world where creation magic could remodel a city in less than a minute, so I was unsure what he meant, and my confusion only worsened when I saw that Philine and Hartmut were just as taken aback. It seemed that they agreed with Ferdinand.

B-But why...?

As I sat there, perturbed by everyone’s reactions, Ferdinand started rubbing his temples. “First of all, the size,” he muttered in a weary voice. “You do not need a library of that scale.”

“Hm? I absolutely do. The future will bring with it an infinite number of books, so an infinitely growing library is going to be crucial. Creation magic can achieve this, no?”

“You misunderstand creation magic. You would not be expanding the library but reconstructing it,” Ferdinand explained, “and each reconstruction would require an immense amount of mana.”

“In other words, I just need to ensure I have enough mana?” I asked. For the sake of my future library, I was more than willing to chug even Ferdinand’s ultra-nasty potion. My resolve was made of steel.

“There is far more to this than having enough mana. Just where do you think you will find the time and manpower required to remove all of the documents and shelves from within the building each time you remodel it?”

The entwickeln we had performed in the lower city had only messed with the underground parts that weren’t touching any buildings, so nobody had needed to take out any of their things, and none of the wooden stories had collapsed. On careful reconsideration, however, I remembered that Bonifatius had mentioned nobles having to put their furniture in the gardens when the Noble’s Quarter was remodeled to include the toilet slimes.

“Eep. So, um... Is there a simpler way to add to the building after it has been made?” I asked, using my hands to visualize stacking floors on top of one another.

Despite all my hopes, Ferdinand promptly shot down the idea. Creating a growing library was too much of an ordeal even with creation magic.

“Very well. I shall settle on making new side buildings whenever my library needs more space,” I conceded. If expanding vertically wasn’t an option, I would simply need to take a more horizontal approach. As far as I was concerned, this idea would solve the problem of needing to take out all of the books, but it was likewise rejected.

“It would require an exorbitant amount of mana to produce a library on that scale,” Ferdinand said. “It cannot be done.”

“I can manage,” I declared, my fists tightly clenched. “I can simply chug more potions to make it happen.”

Ferdinand glared at me and then shook his head. “It does not matter how hard you try. It requires mana to preserve structures made with creation magic, and it is impossible to say whether your descendants will have enough mana to maintain them. If they cannot, your library will crumble to dust. That will prevent it from accomplishing the goal of preservation, which you stated was essential for libraries.”

Come again?!

“When using creation magic, the most important consideration is whether the constructions can be maintained moving forward. That is precisely why the archduke cannot carelessly expand the city. Tell me, who in the world would be able to preserve a library that you were able to construct only through the extensive use of rejuvenation potions?”

“My descendants will surely treasure the library!”

The children of a bookworm will themselves be bookworms! It’s fate! And I’ll raise them to love the library more than anything!

Sadly, Ferdinand remained unmoved. “Do you love what your predecessors left behind more than books?” he asked, fixing me with an exceptionally cold stare.

“No.”

“Naturally. Do not expect from others what you have not even done yourself.”

His logic was as airtight as it was obvious. I slumped my shoulders, defeated, at which point Ferdinand struck me with even more cold, hard truths.

“You also mentioned that you desire shumil-shaped librarians like the ones in the Royal Academy, but you know how much mana they require to function. Ehrenfest does not have enough to spare that many nobles on preserving a library. That is what I mean when I describe your plan as unrealistic.”

Ngh... If there’s not enough mana, I’ll just have to make more.

I was teaching people my compression method specifically so that Ehrenfest would have more mana. We could use the new excess to preserve the library.

“Are we not in the middle of providing Ehrenfest with more available mana?” I asked. “That was our exact reasoning for teaching others my mana compression method.”

“At the very least, such mana is not to be wasted on operating an utterly unrealistic library.”

“Th-That’s just awful, Ferdinand...” I was so shocked at his merciless rejection that my fragile heart could hardly take it, but he made no move to console me. Instead, he kept up his attack.

“The only awful thing here is your foolish plan. Rethink it from the ground up, and make it possible to create this time.”

“Aw...”

I couldn’t believe it—the library of my dreams had been utterly rejected. I was so disappointed that I didn’t feel like doing anything ever again.

Aah, my library... My precious library...

“Rozemyne, now is not the time to mope. Our current book rooms will suffice. There are far more important matters to consider first.”

“You’re right...” I said, finally snapping back to reality. The castle’s book room would do for now, so I was better off focusing my efforts elsewhere. “Before I can construct a library, I need to overwhelm the castle’s book room, which means making more and more books. To this end, I must not only secure and transcribe more books from other duchies, but also increase the number of authors and people capable of producing scripts. That said... given the limited size of the noble population, relying on nobles alone will not be enough. I suppose it is about time to focus on raising the literacy rate of commoners.”

But as I started thinking about starting lessons in the temple alongside Operation Grimm, Ferdinand rubbed his temples. “Hold on. That is not what I meant,” he said.

“Hm?”

“Your focus should be not on this unworkable library of yours but on the Royal Academy.”

“The Royal Academy? But I’ve already started transcribing the books available there.”

“No! Forget about libraries entirely. You are going to be a second-year come this winter, correct? You must prepare for that first.”

That wasn’t something I had expected to hear—was there anything in particular I needed to prepare for before my return to the Royal Academy? Nothing came to mind.

“How are the clothes for the magic tools?” Ferdinand inquired. “I have not yet been asked to inspect the magic circles. They are going to be seen by Sovereign nobles and those of greater duchies alike, so our checks must be thorough.” He then went on to list off everything else I would need to do before my return to student life. I was going to have to prepare potions to drink and discuss what trends we would be spreading this year, among various other things.

Blegh. I’d much rather be planning out my library.

I sighed, which spurred Ferdinand to pinch my cheek. “Rozemyne, are you taking this seriously?” he asked.

“I always take everything seriously,” I replied. At least, everything that affects my dream of reading forevermore.

After lunch, I prepared to send an ordonnanz to Lieseleta. I needed to ask her for an update on Schwartz’s and Weiss’s outfits.

“Lieseleta, this is Rozemyne. How much progress has been made with the embroidery? Ferdinand is wanting to inspect it.”

“This is Lieseleta,” came an almost immediate response, spoken in a bright and cheerful tone. “The embroidery is already complete. I can bring it to the temple at your earliest convenience. I would like for Lord Ferdinand to perform his checks such that we may finish the outfits as soon as possible.”

I widened my eyes. Lieseleta’s demeanor was usually cold and utterly calm, so it was surprising to hear her being so upbeat. Angelica noticed my reaction and, as her older sister, started to explain.

“Lieseleta is always like this outside of work. Right now, she must feel more like she’s engaging in a hobby than carrying out a duty. You also aren’t there with her, which probably makes her feel even more at ease.”

“She certainly knows how to manage her public and private demeanors, doesn’t she?”

“People say that about my sister and me all the time. They say Lieseleta is a master at keeping her public and private lives strictly separated, while I dedicate myself only to the things I care about.”

You were gazing heroically into the distance as you said that, but they’re really not praising you...

As I tried to figure out how to break the news to Angelica, Damuel gave me a helping hand and changed the subject. “When you are away, Lady Rozemyne, Lieseleta speaks with Judithe and Philine about all manner of things. They sometimes chastise me for not understanding the hearts of women in the least... Those girls are just too much for me,” he chuckled.

I could hardly imagine Lieseleta telling Damuel off. I glanced over at Hartmut and Philine for confirmation.

“From what I can tell, she is teasing more than chastising him,” Hartmut said. “Damuel is very easy to speak with and a great conversationalist. I believe they are all quite fond of him.”

It seemed that Hartmut had also seen Lieseleta happily chatting away. I had never witnessed it myself, but perhaps that was just how things had to be, considering her position as my attendant. It still made me a little upset, though.

“Since Lieseleta is going to be coming here, I think it would be best to assign her some guard knights,” I said. “How is the apprentices’ schedule looking? I would be concerned about her traveling alone.”

“Lord Bonifatius normally trains the apprentice guard knights in the morning,” Philine replied without missing a beat.

I sent out an ordonnanz telling Lieseleta to have some apprentice guard knights accompany her, and she followed my instructions faithfully. She and Brunhilde arrived with Cornelius, Judithe, and Leonore, who carried the cloth with the finished embroidery.

“This is for Weiss’s apron, and this is for Schwartz’s vest,” Lieseleta explained proudly as she spread the embroidered cloth across a table in the High Bishop’s chambers. The complex magic circles were decorated with extraneous lines and patterns of various colors to make them harder to identify. There were flowers, vine-like plants... Just looking at it all made my head spin. I could hardly believe they had spent day after day doing such precise work.

Brunhilde gave a refined giggle upon seeing the awe in my expression. “We have finished embroidering the most important parts and are now working on the outfits themselves,” she said. “Schwartz’s shirt and pants are already complete.”

“We also added some embroidery to Schwartz’s pants. Our plan is to add the same design to Weiss’s skirt, and we are in the process of doing that now,” Lieseleta added. She spoke in a calm voice completely unlike the cheery one I had heard through the ordonnanz, but her dark-green eyes were still gleaming with excitement.

She must really love shumils—and making clothes for them, for that matter.

Lieseleta had gone through the trouble of embroidering such intricate designs, all out of passion. Surely a knight should just marry her at this point.

“In any case, I will be taking these embroidered pieces of cloth,” I said. “If they earn Lord Ferdinand’s approval, you may proceed to make them into the apron and vest.”

“Understood.”

I had Fran report that the embroidered pieces of cloth had arrived; Ferdinand seemed pretty invested in them, after all. He returned with a message saying to come to his workshop, so I stopped my transcribing and went there at once.

“Nobody else can enter your workshop, right?” I asked. Not even Eckhart was able to, from what I remembered. My retainers had tried to follow me, but there was only so far they would have been able to come.

“Meeting in your workshop would be unideal,” Ferdinand said as he opened the door to his hidden room. “I have something to give you.”

After taking the package from Fran, I followed Ferdinand into his workshop, which was as messy and cluttered as always. “Ferdinand, is it not rather scandalous for an engaged woman to be in the hidden room of a man without her attendants?” I asked.

“It is, but I have no choice. Your disappearing ink must be kept a secret. This would not have been necessary had you simply done your embroidery as you were asked,” he retorted.

Ferdinand apparently wanted to investigate the disappearing ink some more, and he thought my attendants would only get in the way. He cleared various devices from one side of his table and then unwrapped the pieces of cloth.

“Oho. This is quite good...” Ferdinand muttered upon seeing the embroidery in full. He then narrowed his eyes and began tracing a finger along the thread, checking to ensure there were no problems with the magic circles. Once he had confirmed that the embroidery wasn’t unfinished or incorrect anywhere, he had me touch where the magic ink was to make sure they would actually function.

I had studied magic circles a little, so I recognized several of the patterns. On the cloth were a number of smaller magic circles related to wind, and some more complex, overlapping ones related to fire. I didn’t really know what any of them did, though.

“Do they pass?” I asked.

“Yes. The ink shines faintly when you touch the cloth, but the embroidery on top means it does not particularly stand out. Having two layers of magic circles may strengthen the output, but stronger magic is nothing to be concerned about here.”

“That’s a surprisingly half-baked answer...” I muttered without really thinking.

“These are dangerous magics to research, you understand.”

The magic circles that had initially been woven into Schwartz’s and Weiss’s outfits automatically reflected attacks back at the attacker. Ferdinand had tested it and the improved version by having Eckhart actually attack them while he measured the results.

Ferdinand raised an eyebrow. “Even lighter attacks are consistently reflected,” he said. “Trying to determine just how much stronger the circle has become would be backbreaking.”

Does he mean that literally, perhaps...?

“We needed only to confirm that the circles did indeed return attacks with consistency,” Ferdinand continued. “As long as they are not weaker than before, they will suffice. Any fool who would attack these magic tools would be marked as a traitor to the king regardless.”

“Agreed. They should be ready to die the moment they attack the library.” I had no sympathy or mercy in my heart for any heretic who would dare attack the library or my shumils. Their deaths would mean nothing to me.

“You certainly become monstrous whenever the library or books are involved,” Ferdinand noted.

“I am always prepared to hold a bloody carnival for the sake of protecting my library and my books,” I replied. “That said, I don’t want to be called ‘monstrous’ by the person who made these monstrous magic circles.”

“I am rather used to the term,” Ferdinand said, unfazed. He had apparently been called cruel, monstrous, and even “the Lord of Evil” during his ditter days. That last one had come from him being as strong as one of the seasonal feybeast Lords, which was a truly frightening reveal. “Furthermore, here. This is a protection charm with one such monstrous magic circle.”

As it turned out, Ferdinand had improved his own charms while thoroughly investigating Schwartz’s and Weiss’s outfits.

“I thank you ever so much.”

“Perhaps someone will activate it and make all of my effort worthwhile...” Ferdinand muttered. It was a scary statement on its own, but what made it even scarier was the way he said it with a completely flat, emotionless expression. I inhaled sharply.

“No thank you. Why would you wish for something so dangerous to happen?!”

“I do not wish for it to happen. I simply would not see its occurrence as an issue.”

“I know there’s nobody else here, but still! You’re letting your true colors show too much!” I exclaimed, but Ferdinand merely dismissed me with a scoff. It seemed that he had no intention of changing anytime soon.

I mean, I know the hidden room is the one place nobles are supposed to be able to show their true selves, but come on! I don’t want to hear terrifying internal monologues like that!

“Incidentally, where are the magic circles you embroidered?” Ferdinand asked.

“Um... Here. The pocket parts.” I started setting them down on the table and named who had made which ones. Charlotte here, Philine there...

“And the others?” Ferdinand pressed, his brow furrowed.

“There aren’t any others. You told me to embroider one, so I did exactly that. One of my attendants is responsible for most of what you see there. Lieseleta truly is amazing.”

As I boasted about Lieseleta’s hard work, however, Ferdinand jabbed a finger against my forehead. “You cannot rest on the laurels of your attendants,” he scolded. “Forget not that you are already engaged; it is your duty as a bride to learn embroidery.”

“Whaaat? But things are already shaping up. I don’t need to do anything else. As they say, time spent on embroidery is time wasted. Transcribing books is much more important to me. It’s not like embroidery is going to bring more books into the world. Of course, if you were to tell me to embroider sound-blocking magic circles into carpets for my library, I would start on that in a heartbeat.”

“Good grief... And you said I was over-revealing my true colors...”

Three short days after Ferdinand approved the embroidery, Lieseleta completed Schwartz’s and Weiss’s outfits to perfection.