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Ascendance of a Bookworm (LN) - Volume 4.6 - Chapter 8




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Roderick’s Wish

That afternoon, I had plenty of spare time on my hands, thanks to having already completed my written lessons. I saw the first-years off to the Farthest Hall and then began studying for the scholar course with Philine and Roderick, using the third-years’ study guides as a base. Judithe was serving as my guard, since she had also completed her written classes, while the other second-years were studying for their respective courses or working on their practical techniques with Wilfried.

“What will you two do once the second-year classes are over?” I asked Philine and Roderick when we reached a natural pause in our work.

“My practical lessons will take much longer than yours, Lady Rozemyne, but once I’ve finished them, I am hoping to gather stories from other duchies,” Philine said. She now had a better understanding of what questions to ask, and she had mostly overcome her fear of speaking to new people after spending so much time in the castle and the temple. Her grass-green eyes sparkled as she pictured getting even more stories than last year.

“That is nice to hear. I very much look forward to your efforts,” I replied. “And you, Roderick?”

Roderick slowly looked up from his studies, set down his pen, and then tightly clasped his hands atop the table. “There is something I must talk to you about, Lady Rozemyne. May I have a moment of your time when you are next able?” he asked. His dark-brown eyes were drawn but resolved, much like when he had declared that he would give me his name.

I tensed up without thinking and swallowed hard. I had once thought of taking Roderick as a retainer, and my future would change dramatically based on whether I had the resolve to accept his name.

“Milady, I ask that you first settle your heart well,” Rihyarda said quietly. I turned and saw that she was wearing a gentle smile. “Giving one’s name is of great importance, but accepting a name is equally consequential. Your feelings on the matter are vital.”

She must have come to the same conclusion as me upon seeing Roderick’s resolved expression. I nodded to her sage advice, but Roderick shook his head. “I do not intend to give my name at the moment,” he assured me. “I simply wish to talk.”

“About what, then?” I asked, unable to think of anything but the name-swearing. Roderick must have seen my confusion, as his eyes wandered about the room in apparent contemplation.

“I wanted to speak of why I wish to give my name and my thoughts on various matters,” he said after a pause. “One of your retainers told me that, unless we have this conversation, you will not be able to decide whether to accept my name.”

I instinctively looked over at Judithe and Philine, the former of whom paused for a moment and then whispered, “That would be Hartmut.” It seemed that he was acting in the shadows again. Either way, it was still important for me to hear Roderick out.

“Rihyarda, prepare a room,” I said.

“As you wish, milady.”

“I would rather speak to you alone, Roderick, but I will need to bring my guards and attendants. Do forgive me.”

“I understand that I warrant suspicion as a member of another faction,” he replied.

While Rihyarda was off securing a room, I glanced down and started organizing the papers I had been studying from. My nervousness must have transferred to Philine, as she likewise began tidying up while glancing between Roderick and me.

I made my way to the room Rihyarda had prepared with Judithe as my guard and Philine as my scholar. Upon our arrival, I took the seat opposite Roderick and looked at him head-on. “What did you wish to speak of, Roderick?” I asked.

He stared at the floor for a moment and then looked at Philine, Judithe, and Rihyarda in turn. Eventually, his eyes settled on me. “Lord Matthias implored me to think carefully, and after doing so, I still wish to give you my name,” he said. “Naturally, that is only if you wish to accept it. I know that you presently do not wish to accept any name. I have been told that I will only be a burden to you as a name-sworn.”

I nodded in response, now even more certain that it was Hartmut he had spoken to.

“But I was also told that I should do my best to put my feelings into words,” he continued. “This is my only opportunity to speak with you, here in the Royal Academy, so... I was hoping we could talk.” He was speaking quietly and seemed to be choosing his words carefully. It was a stark contrast to his attitude the first time we had met.

Back then, he had come across as especially rowdy. Like a troublemaker.

Roderick had clearly been friends with Wilfried; I still remembered our first year in the winter playroom, when they would run around and play together. He was one of the kids who had thrown snowballs at me, and when borrowing teaching materials, I seemed to recall him picking karuta and playing cards over picture books. I could imagine the Ivory Tower incident had dramatically changed his life.

“I had such an incredible time during my first winter playroom,” Roderick began.

In the winter playroom, there had been toys the likes of which he had never seen before and sweets that were given out as rewards, regardless of one’s status. It was a study environment that allowed the children to compare themselves with their peers, and toys could be borrowed in exchange for new stories rather than money.

“At first, I was only interested in karuta,” Roderick continued. “Winning at karuta or playing cards was the only way for me to taste those delicious sweets, so I started to tell a story to you in hopes that I might be able to borrow them to practice more. Halfway through my story, however, I lost track of the plot entirely. I began searching for ways to conclude it and just continued making things up as I went along.”

“I recall. It was quite an amusing story, full of innocent ideas...” I said with a giggle, thinking back on how his eyes had desperately wandered all over the room as he thought the plot up on the spot.

“I was glad that you enjoyed the story and got carried away with making another, this time for the playing cards. I wanted to borrow them again the next year, so I asked my parents to tell me a number of stories over the spring. I truly looked forward to the next winter playroom.”

Roderick had also been excited for the autumn hunting tournament, when children would gather to play games before the winter playroom. It was then that, at the encouragement of some adults, they had started on their quest to find the Ivory Tower.

“We never got lost thanks to the guiding marks on the trees, but my father said that only the archducal family was allowed to enter the tower itself. I had no idea that our little adventure would end the way it did; I was just thrilled to be exploring the forest I wasn’t usually allowed to enter.”

Wilfried was charged with a crime for entering the Ivory Tower, as were the nobles who had prompted him. He had received only a light punishment in the end, so the nobles had received only a moderate punishment in turn, but Roderick’s life had changed dramatically nonetheless.

“As the son of a second wife, I was not treated very highly to begin with,” Roderick explained. “My age and sex afforded me a lot of chances to meet with Lord Wilfried, and in my father’s eyes, that was my only virtue. At times when I was close with Lord Wilfried, my father would smile and treat me warmly, but his smile vanished when I was distanced. It was as though he had become an entirely different person. I started to despair as he criticized my every failure—after all, he was the one who had pushed me to go on the adventure to begin with.”

Roderick’s father had wanted to have the option to enter either faction, but now he could no longer approach the archducal family. His contempt only intensified once word of my mana compression method started to spread.

“My days at home were spent in misery, and my heart sank deeper knowing that the winter playroom I was looking forward to was no longer somewhere I could freely spend time with friends. In the end, I spent my time reading books. Being alone was more bearable than trying to play games with others and enduring all the judgmental eyes on me.”

My only knowledge of what had happened in the winter playroom during my long slumber had come from Wilfried and Charlotte. Now that I had another perspective, it seemed that things had been quite harsh for the children of the former Veronica faction.

“That was when one of your guard knights handed me a book newly made for the winter playroom,” Roderick went on. “I was informed that you would have shown it to me yourself, had you not been attacked and forced into your slumber. And inside... was the story I told you.”

His eyes suddenly grew distant and teary. At the time, he had felt as though he no longer had a place in the playroom. My book had given him somewhere to retreat to.

“I was so happy,” he said firmly, his fists clenched. “I read it over and over and over again, and soon enough, I realized that my ramblings had been edited to properly function as a story. From that point onward, I started to focus more on the language of everything I read. I am now much better at constructing sentences, although I am still far from perfect...”

Rather than focusing on playing games in the winter playroom, Roderick had read the knight stories and picture book bibles, come up with new tales based on the ones Philine had gathered, and rewritten his own collected stories. It must have proven quite difficult for him, considering the lack of reading material available to him.

“I believe your efforts bore the most bountiful fruit,” I said. “The stories you brought to the Royal Academy last year were extremely well-written.”

“You praise the efforts of all, no matter their faction,” Roderick noted. “You also purchased the stories I wrote last year. On that day, I realized just how much I wished to serve you, but I was instead met with suspicion. As it stands, I am a member of the former Veronica faction who committed an unforgivable error—one that harmed the person to whom you are now engaged. I could leave my faction immediately upon coming of age and I still would not be trusted. Securing a position in your service was an unattainable dream.”

Roderick looked away from us and down at his clasped hands before forcing himself to continue. “I could not become a retainer, but Philine could. She was doing the same things as me, but she still achieved what I could not, despite only being a laynoble. I was overcome with envy and resented that I was not in your faction.”

Upon hearing this, Philine apologetically looked down at the floor. Her expression was clouded with empathy.

“I had come to accept that I would never be your retainer, Lady Rozemyne, but then Aub Ehrenfest restored my hopes. He told me that I could earn the trust I require by giving my name to you,” Roderick explained. He then looked me in the eyes and said in complete earnest: “If giving my name to you will make me trustworthy then I shall do it. Philine swore her loyalty after gathering stories, and I too wish to do the same.”

 

    

 

Roderick was now squeezing his hands so ferociously that his fingers had gone white. “Please,” he said, his scorched-brown eyes revealing his determination. “If I write a story so wonderful that you begin to want me as a retainer, will you accept my name then?”

I enjoyed reading the stories Roderick brought me; as far as I was concerned, he was already my vassal. My request to take him as a retainer had been refused, but if allowing him to swear his name to me would change that, I was willing to oblige.

I mean, it was Sylvester who said we can trust those who give us their names, right?

“I would like to accept your name, Roderick,” I said.

“Lady Rozemyne?!” he exclaimed, his eyes wide with disbelief.

“You have already been giving me that which I desire most. I will accept your name alongside your stories.”

“It seems to me that his name hardly even matters to you, milady...” Rihyarda commented, unable to hide her exasperation. In truth, she had a point—gathering stories was my main concern, and I trusted Roderick regardless of whether he gave his name to me.

“I will accept your name, but we must make our own preparations before we can accept you,” I said. “First, please discuss this carefully with your family.”

“There will be no need for that,” Roderick replied with a pained expression. “My life and my choices mean nothing to my family anymore.”

“Would your parents not warm up to you once you are connected to me? I assumed you could use that as an opportunity to repair bridges once burned.”

Roderick shut his eyes tight and rejected the idea. “My father is the reason Lord Wilfried cannot trust me. He cost me my happiness in the playroom and my chance to become your retainer. I am giving my name to earn your trust, not for the sake of my father or family. I could never forgive my father if something he said or did ever brought you misfortune, Lady Rozemyne. I ask that you allow me to leave my home upon receiving my name.”

Roderick asking to leave his family reminded me of when Lutz had wanted to run away from home in the past. At the time, Ferdinand had said that we needed to learn all sides of the story before making a decision; it was possible that everyone involved was concerned for each other but failing to properly express their thoughts and feelings. It was a fact of reality that Roderick’s father had hurt him through his actions, but that alone wasn’t enough for me to draw a conclusion.


“Unlike with Philine, I do not have enough information to decide whether it is best for you to leave your family,” I said. “I shall need to learn more during winter socializing.”

Roderick seemed to deflate as though all the tension had suddenly escaped his body. He gave a careful nod and then smiled at me, his eyes set on the future. “I will make preparations for when I give my name in the meantime. I must first learn how to make a feystone engraved with my name.”

By the time we had finished our discussion, the first-years had started trickling back into the dormitory, keeping their distance from one another to avoid any collisions. I could tell they were cradling something invisible in their arms.

“Return to your rooms at once,” Rihyarda called to the first-years. “Take care not to bump into anyone.”

Charlotte nodded with a proud smile and then climbed the stairs. The first-years would be spending the rest of the day in their rooms until their Divine Wills were absorbed into their bodies. It made me nostalgic for last year.

After dinner, which was much quieter with the first-years absent, I started deciding what I was going to do on my day off tomorrow. My plans would impact the plans of my retainers.

“I would like to go to the library, if possible,” I said.

“Lieseleta and I were hoping to leave the dormitory to prepare for the tea party and future socializing events,” Brunhilde noted.

Cornelius and Leonore asked to hunt feybeasts. “We need to prepare ingredients for the archscholars,” they said. The duchies with few apprentice knights would apparently come together to get the ingredients that everyone needed. “We shall trust Judithe to guard you.”

My retainers’ collective message was clear: “We have our own plans, so please sit quietly in the dormitory while we’re gone.”

As I frowned, unwilling to give up on the library, Hartmut gave me a smile. “Lady Rozemyne, might I suggest reading one of Lord Ferdinand’s books?” he asked. “I believe you would do well to study in your room. Alongside Philine, of course.”

One of Ferdinand’s books?!

I spun around at once to see Hartmut wearing an expression that essentially said, “That settles it, then.” I hated to play into his hands like this, but I couldn’t resist the allure of new books. I decided to spend tomorrow doing exactly as he had suggested.

The next day, after breakfast, my retainers immediately went about their business. Brunhilde and Lieseleta had finished their preparations and were already on their way out. “Lady Rozemyne, Lieseleta and I are off to socialize,” Brunhilde said as they headed to the door.

“Indeed,” I replied. “May fortune favor you.”

“Leonore and I will be hunting feybeasts for ingredients,” Cornelius said. They weren’t the only ones, though; several other apprentice knights were preparing to head off as well. Only the bare minimum necessary to protect Wilfried, Charlotte, and me were going to be staying at the dormitory. “Make sure to stand guard, Judithe.”

After my attendants and the apprentice knights had departed, Hartmut came over to instruct me. “I will give the book to Rihyarda,” he said. “Please return to your room, Lady Rozemyne.”

I waited for a bit, and soon enough, Rihyarda returned with the book that Hartmut had given her. Philine and I examined it closely.

“It’s so thin. I had thought it would be at least as thick as the book from Dunkelfelger...” Philine said. I was hardly surprised to hear her using that as a yardstick, considering that she had spent forever transcribing it. The new book was indeed rather thin, but it seemed lengthy enough that it would take me more than a day to finish.

“This here is a magic circle. I wonder if this book is about making magic tools...” I mused aloud. It took only a moment to confirm my suspicion, as the book went into great detail about the ingredients needed for certain tools and the quality those ingredients needed to be. It was even complete with illustrations of magic circles.

“This is written in Lord Ferdinand’s hand, so perhaps it is a compilation of his research results,” Philine suggested. She saw his handwriting often while helping at the temple.

I nodded in agreement while continuing to thumb through the book. One section detailed the research of professors we had read about on the second floor of the Royal Academy library. Ferdinand must have made this for his own benefit.

“Lady Rozemyne, there’s something between the pages...” Philine said, pointing to a slip of plant paper that had been inserted into the book. It was easy to spot, since it was a different color than the parchment. A quick glance revealed it was a note from Ferdinand; in a shocking twist, he had written down what I needed to know to make the magic tools that would serve as the foundation of the ideal library I had spoken to him about.

“Let’s see here... ‘I made this magic tool for an indolent professor. It returns things you do not wish to lose back to you. If you add a time limit to the circle, it may be used to automatically return books following their due date. Study well and learn to add one circle to another.’ Wow. Ferdinand really is something else,” I concluded.

He had shot down my dream library as entirely unrealistic, but here he was searching for ways to make the more practical ideas possible. The fact that he had already designed the proper magic circle but was making me figure it out for myself was very much like him.

“I’ll do my best.”

I skimmed the book several times over with Philine, fiddling and experimenting all the while in an attempt to make the proper magic circle.

“We need to put Wind here if we want the book to move, right?” Philine asked.

“Look more closely. If you insert Wind there, it won’t activate due to the Life over here. But if we add Earth here, perhaps it will do something else entirely. What exactly should we do?”

It was difficult to make a new magic circle by combining the functions of two others. As second-years, we simply didn’t stand a chance.

“Do you understand this, Judithe?” I asked.

“Third-years don’t learn about magic circles that complex, so I’m basically in the same situation as you,” she replied, shaking her head and then taking a step back. She had given up so quickly that she almost reminded me of Angelica. It was a worrying development.

“Judithe, you should use your head more,” I said. “Let’s think about this together. A magic circle that makes things travel automatically to specified places could prove useful during ditter.”

“I don’t think knights are supposed to be doing things like this...” Judithe grumbled. Still, three heads were better than two, so we brought her into our struggle. Unfortunately, it wasn’t the magic spell to make things easier that I had hoped it would be.

“I would like to hear Hartmut’s thoughts on this,” I finally conceded. He had been selected as my retainer for being a skilled apprentice archscholar, so perhaps he would know. I had Rihyarda go call for him, but when she returned...

“Hartmut is absent, milady.”

“Really? He didn’t mention having any plans today...” I muttered. Philine nodded along in mutual uncertainty, but Judithe gave an amused smile. There was a knowing sparkle in her violet eyes.

“Maybe he’s going to meet his lover,” she said. “If she’s from another duchy, this will be their first meeting in almost a year. So romantic!”

Come again?!

“Are you saying that he tricked me? That he got me to hole up in my room with a book so that he could go meet his girlfriend...?” I asked.

“Oh, no, no, no!” Judithe replied, waving her hands as she hurriedly backpedaled. “That was just what came to mind; I don’t know whether it’s actually the case. I just thought it would be funny.”

“Now that you mention it, though, I recall that Hartmut refused to tell me who he plans to escort... Do you know, Judithe?”

“Sadly not. Hartmut is nice, has many friends, and speaks with the students of other duchies all the time in his search for information. It really could be anyone.”

And today he’s on a secret date...

I decided to lurk in the entrance hall, hoping to ambush Hartmut when he returned, but the apprentice knights soon came back from their gathering. They balked upon seeing me as soon as they entered the dormitory.

“Lady Rozemyne, has something happened...?” Leonore asked.

“Hartmut left in secret,” I said, keeping my eyes glued to the door. “I imagine he is in the middle of a romantic meetup with his partner, so I am waiting for him to return. I shall make him tell me who she is.”

“It gets really cold near the door, so you’re going to get sick if you keep standing around here. Could you at least wait in the common room?” Cornelius asked with an exasperated look as he tried to gesture me inside.

“I want to surprise him, so I’ll continue waiting here.”

“I see... I’ll go get changed, then.”

With that, Cornelius headed to the stairway. Leonore followed behind him, although she glanced back at me several times before she eventually disappeared from sight.

I’m going to find out his secrets, no matter what!

I stood in wait with my hands firmly on my hips, and soon enough, Hartmut returned. He saw me, blinked in what seemed to be faux surprise, and then raised an eyebrow. “Why, Lady Rozemyne, what are you doing here?” he asked. “Have you finished Lord Ferdinand’s book already?”

“Thought you could distract me to have a secret meeting with your sweetheart, did you? Who is she? Is it someone you dare not introduce me to?”

“You sound entirely like a jealous wife...” Hartmut replied with a chuckle. He then took out a bundle of paper, and the enticing aroma of parchment and ink caught me in a trance. He moved the papers to the right and my eyes followed. He moved them left, and my entire body was pulled with them. “I was meeting a scholar from another duchy,” he explained. “They had promised to transcribe something for me. Knight stories, to be precise. For my one and only liege. Does that cheer you up?”

Knight stories, for me? Oh, Hartmut truly is my most loyal vassal!

“It does!” I exclaimed. “Show them to me, please!”

I urged him to hurry, and in response, he handed the bundle to Philine. “You must be cold if you have been waiting here,” he said. “I suggest you read them in your room.”

“Naturally. Judithe, Philine—let us return at once,” I said. As I excitedly headed to my room, I saw Cornelius climbing down the stairs, freshly changed. “I shall be reading knight stories in my room,” I informed him.

“Wait until you’ve warmed up,” he replied. “Alright?”

When Cornelius reached the bottom of the stairs, I heard him call out to Hartmut. I glanced over, wondering what was going on, and saw a glimpse of Cornelius catching a feystone or some such that Hartmut had tossed to him.

And so, I started reading the knight stories from other duchies, having completely forgotten to ask Hartmut whom he had visited.



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