Ascendance of a Bookworm (LN) - Volume 4.8 - Chapter Pr

Prologue

“This is Norbert. I have just returned. The archducal couple will be here soon.”

Melchior listened eagerly to the announcement from his father’s head attendant, unable to keep his blue eyes, which he had gotten from his mother, from sparkling with excitement. His older brother and sisters were at the Royal Academy over the winter, and his parents were busy socializing, so no one came to visit him in his room. He barely met with anyone except his retainers and was feeling rather lonely as a result.

“Lord Melchior,” Sargerecht said with a smile, “the archducal couple is due to relax here while their luggage from the Royal Academy is put away. Recall what you have recently learned and welcome them as guests.” He was Florencia’s retainer at the moment, but he was also Melchior’s tutor and planned to become his head attendant following the young boy’s baptism. It seemed that Melchior would need to practice his socializing now.

“I’ll do my best,” Melchior replied with a nod, trying his very best to remember everything he had been taught.

“Melchior, we’re back,” Sylvester said.

“Father, Mother. Welcome home. Allow me to take you to your seats,” Melchior replied, greeting them with a half-excited, half-anxious smile. He hadn’t seen his parents in days, so it was with a tense feeling in his chest that he guided them to where the tea was being prepared. “I want to hear about the Royal Academy. How are my brother and sisters doing?”

Melchior quickly surrendered control of the conversation to his guests, as his tutor had taught him was proper. His parents returned warm smiles filled with love; it seemed they could sense his growth through the way he was tracing the steps of standard socializing.

“Well, well... How should we begin?” Sylvester wondered aloud. “There’s just so much to talk about.”

“Before you left, Aub Ehrenfest, you were greatly concerned about socializing at the Interduchy Tournament. Lord Melchior has shared in your worry ever since,” Sargerecht said while he poured some tea. His addition to the conversation was a deliberate effort to assist the young boy, who had subsequently realized that he had spoken too vaguely. He had thus far been told to ask broad questions that were easier to answer, but the subtle look he was now receiving from his tutor made him realize that some direction was still needed.

“I see,” Sylvester replied. “We’ll talk about our socializing at the Interduchy Tournament, then.”

Melchior’s parents began talking about the events of the Interduchy Tournament and graduation ceremony. Ehrenfest had received so many guests that the archducal family had needed to divide themselves into teams to handle them, but even then, the abundance of visitors from top-ranking duchies had made things a struggle. They also mentioned Ferdinand playing ditter against a knight from Dunkelfelger over Rozemyne’s manuscript, and the unexpected appearance of an unfamiliar feybeast—during which the apprentice knights were said to have acted with extraordinary coordination. Melchior listened intently all the while, his imagination racing from the tales of this wondrous place he had never visited.

“Wilfried and Charlotte handled the visitors from lower-ranking duchies,” Sylvester continued. “We even had the archducal couple from Frenbeltag as guests.”

“Frenbeltag is next to Ehrenfest and is where you and Sargerecht were born, right, Mother?” Melchior asked, trying to picture the map in his head. The two of them smiled and nodded in response.

“Indeed,” Florencia said. “My elder brother and Sylvester’s elder sister visited, it seems. This year’s graduation ceremony was apparently quite emotional for them, as your cousin Rudiger was among the graduating students.”

“My... cousin?”

“You shall find out more about your family in other duchies after your baptism, but this is a good opportunity to get a head start,” Florencia noted. She explained that they had family in both Frenbeltag and Ahrensbach, and although the names were all so new to him, simply knowing that they shared his blood made him feel closer to them than he did to any of the nobles he had learned about for his baptism ceremony.

“Mother, why can I only learn about my family in other duchies after my baptism?”

“Because you will not have any opportunities to meet them before then,” Florencia explained.

Melchior realized then just how small his world really was. He glanced at the door to his room, and it immediately occurred to him just how little he knew about everything beyond it. There was so much out there for him to see and to learn from.

“Lady Florencia, how was Frenbeltag? Have things, uh, calmed down somewhat?” Sargerecht asked, sounding rather hesitant. He was one of the nobles who had fled to Ehrenfest when it became clear that Frenbeltag was going to be on the losing side of the civil war, but he still wanted to know about his birthplace. Melchior remembered him once saying that he wanted to tell those from Frenbeltag that Ehrenfest was increasing its harvest by having archduke candidates perform religious ceremonies.

“Wilfried and Charlotte spoke to them in our place, but according to their report, Rudiger traveled across their duchy performing Spring Prayer,” Florencia continued. “Their harvest improved as a result, and they have said that henceforth, their archducal family will always take action to lead religious ceremonies.”

“For young Lord Rudiger to be doing such a thing... Children truly do grow shockingly fast, don’t they?” Sargerecht said with a relieved sigh and a sentimental smile.

“Yep. They sure do,” Sylvester replied with a chuckle. He then looked over at Melchior. “How about you tell us how much you’ve grown?”

“How have you been passing the time?” Florencia added. “Have your baptismal studies been going well?”

Melchior faltered. He was pretty sure he had finished everything he needed to do before his baptism ceremony, but he looked to Sargerecht for confirmation nonetheless.

“They have,” Sargerecht said with a nod and a smile. “Yesterday, Lord Melchior studied the general flow of the ceremony and the proper way to walk through the grand hall. He already knows the names of all the important nobles who will greet him, and the other day, he began studying geography so that he may assist with religious ceremonies.”

“Then I have a gift for our little hard worker,” Sylvester said as he opened up a small box. “Practice returning blessings before the baptism.”

“This is...”

“Your ring. You’ll need some practice before you can shoot mana from it. I’ll need to take it back so that I can formally present it to you on the day of, but for now... Hold out your hand.”

Such rings served as proof that one was a noble, and children received them from their parents after being baptized. Melchior observed that the feystone was green, matching the divine color of his birth, and after climbing down from his chair, he readily held out his hand. Sylvester slid the ring on his son’s finger, and the band shrank until it was a perfect fit. Melchior stroked it, feeling the bliss of having been accepted as a noble.

“Melchior, why not practice giving a return blessing?” Florencia suggested. “It is the same blessing as the one given when greeting someone of a higher status for the first time. All nobles must learn it. Focus energy in your left hand, so as to guide your mana to the ring.” She proceeded to demonstrate, and a red light emerged from her ring.

Melchior tensed his left hand, trying to imitate his mother... but his mana refused to move as he willed it, and the feystone in his ring shone only a small amount. The tool used to investigate mana capacities worked without issue, since it automatically drew from one’s latent mana, but return blessings didn’t seem so simple.

“I may not manage this before my baptism ceremony...” Melchior mumbled nervously without thinking.

Florencia gave a gentle smile and took Melchior’s left hand in hers. “I am fully certain you will master this. All you need is a little practice. Thankfully, this can very easily be done with another of the same blood, so allow me to take this opportunity...”

All of a sudden, Melchior felt an odd power seep from his mother’s hand into his. It wasn’t a vile sensation by any means, but it was rather uncomfortable, so he instinctively pushed the mana out again. And in that instant, a soft green light appeared from his ring.

“Ah!” Melchior exclaimed.

“Do you now understand the feeling of mana moving through you?” Florencia asked.

“A bit...”

Melchior looked down at his hand. He still found it strange that he could move something within his body by his own will, and he wasn’t yet confident that it was something he could manage on his own. It was true that he had transported some of the mana in his palm to the ring... but only with a great deal of assistance from his mother, who had made it so he only had to reactively push out her mana.

“Wilfried said that my sister Rozemyne gave a blessing that filled the entire hall at her baptism ceremony,” Melchior said. “How much mana do I need to move to be able to do that? Charlotte told me that I should see Rozemyne as a role model.”

Sylvester looked somewhat bemused for a moment and then waved a hand dismissively. “Don’t try to match Rozemyne; she’s a special case. The thing is, she was giving blessings and helping with religious ceremonies in the temple as an apprentice shrine maiden before her baptism.”

Don’t try to match her? But Charlotte said...

Melchior had received two pieces of conflicting advice. Perhaps this was his father’s way of saying that he simply wasn’t good enough? A wave of confusion washed over him, but it soon faded when he felt his mother’s hand calmly stroke his hand.

“Sylvester does not mean to say that it is wrong to have Rozemyne as a role model,” Florencia said. “He is simply concerned that you might overexert yourself when trying to control mana for the first time. It puts a great burden on your body when you are not used to it.”

She went on to explain that Wilfried and Charlotte had overdone it with their mana practice during Rozemyne’s two-year slumber, hoping to fill the void that her unexpected absence had created. Melchior had already heard them both explain how amazing Rozemyne was and that they had worked so hard to catch up to her, but he had never heard about them making mistakes. It was new—and very interesting—information.

So, Wilfried and Charlotte mess up sometimes too...

“You need only practice within your limits,” Florencia concluded, “and slowly increase your range of abilities from there.”

“Yes, Mother.”

“Melchior,” Sylvester interjected, sounding curious, “you’ve never met Rozemyne before, but you sure seem to respect her, don’t you?”

Melchior gazed up at his father quizzically. “Charlotte comes to play with me the most, and she always tells me how incredible Rozemyne is. And when Wilfried comes, he always brings toys and picture books that Rozemyne made. You and Mother talk about her sweets and recipes too, don’t you? She also saved Frenbeltag, which Sargerecht was so worried about.”

In short, everyone praised Rozemyne on such a regular basis that Melchior thought it was obvious that he should respect and idolize her.

“Also, I’m going to be supporting her and my brother, right?” Melchior continued. “He’s the future aub, and she’s going to be his first wife. I want to be strong enough to protect them both.” He would one day be playing a supporting role to the archducal couple, filling in for them while they were absent, keeping an eye on duchy matters, and ensuring the nobles were organized—essentially what Bonifatius was doing now.

“Your enthusiasm is wonderful, Melchior, but Rozemyne’s protection is best left to her guard knights,” Florencia said.

Sylvester nodded in agreement. “The archducal couple will have guard knights to keep them safe, but the same can’t be said for other nobles. Wouldn’t you find it cooler and manlier to protect a bunch of people at once?”

“A bunch of people?” Melchior repeated. He was unsure what his father meant and could only look at him in confusion.

Father is being weird again...

“Right,” Sylvester said. “There was an attack during this year’s awards ceremony, but Rozemyne was able to protect our duchy’s students with Schutzaria’s shield.”

During this attack, unfamiliar feybeasts had appeared that could only be killed with black weapons. The arena had promptly been thrown into total chaos, and it was only because of Rozemyne that Ehrenfest had managed to come out unscathed. The divine instruments that Melchior had thought existed only in books were real, and she had effortlessly used them to protect the students. It was like a legendary story from the bible, and just hearing it made him excited.

Melchior rushed to grab his own picture-book bible, opened it up to the page with the Goddess of Wind, and pointed to her shield. “Father, is this the shield that Rozemyne used?”

Sylvester shook his head and explained that Rozemyne had made one that was even bigger—big enough to protect all the students. It had apparently been an amber hemisphere with a magic circle on it, and anyone who attacked it or had malicious intentions was thrown back by an intense gust of wind. Again, it was like a legend come to life, and Melchior’s idolization of Rozemyne only grew stronger.

“Father, can anyone make Schutzaria’s shield?”

“Nah; I reckon Rozemyne and Ferdinand are the only ones. Ferdinand is more used to the geteilt he was taught in the Royal Academy before entering the temple, but I’ve heard that he can make Schutzaria’s shield when he focuses.”

So, only Rozemyne and Ferdinand—the High Bishop and the High Priest, respectively—could make the shield. Melchior immediately drew a connection between working at the temple and receiving the divine instruments for the gods.

The temple sure is amazing...

“Father, I want to go to the temple too!” Melchior announced. “I want to learn to make the divine instruments!”

“Lord Melchior, what are you saying?!” his attendants cried. “Please calm down!”

Melchior reflected on his choice of words; maybe he had spoken too crudely. He looked at his parents. Florencia was giving him a concerned smile, while Sylvester had an eyebrow raised in amusement.

“Father, Mother, can I have permission to go to the temple?”

“Sure,” Sylvester replied at once. “You’ll learn a lot from the experience.”

Melchior’s attendants, however, continued to protest. “Please reconsider, Aub Ehrenfest!” they cried. They were at something of an impasse, and when a decision couldn’t be reached concerning how to raise Melchior, it was down to Florencia to give the final verdict as his mother. All eyes fell on her.

“Sylvester,” she said with a smile, “you must not give your permission so willingly.”

Melchior was overcome with disappointment; he knew that his mother’s opinion was stronger than his father’s at times like this. “But why do you, Sargerecht, and the others not like going to the temple?” he asked. “Don’t my siblings go there?”

Wilfried and Charlotte were Melchior’s closest family members, and they had been participating in religious ceremonies since he was first gaining self-awareness. Rozemyne and Ferdinand were also in the archducal family, and they led the temple. Everyone praised them, so Melchior had to wonder why he wasn’t allowed to go there too.

“The Haldenzel Miracle taught nobles the importance of religious ceremonies, and news of Frenbeltag’s improved harvest has probably spread that same message to other duchies as well,” Sylvester said to Florencia. “But most importantly, Melchior will one day be participating in those religious ceremonies too, once he learns to control his mana like Wilfried and Charlotte did.”

“Right!” Melchior replied. “I’m going to help just like Wilfried and Charlotte!” He eagerly showed her the picture book again, but she just looked at him as though he were a rebellious child.

“It should be best for him to get used to the temple sooner rather than later,” Sylvester argued. “Giving him permission now shouldn’t cause any problems. It’s going to happen sooner or later either way.”

“Sooner or later, indeed,” Florencia replied, “but I stand very firmly for the latter. Melchior will only trouble Rozemyne and the others with his current mindset—that the temple is like a game of sorts. At the very least, we should not grant him permission until after he has learned to control his mana and recite prayers.”

It was reasoning that both Melchior and Sylvester could agree with. Melchior didn’t want to get in anyone’s way; he just wanted to join his siblings after being baptized. He wanted to be a useful member of the archducal family, like his sister Charlotte had always encouraged.

“I’ll learn the prayers, then,” Melchior said.

“That’s the spirit!” Sylvester replied. “I’m pretty sure Wilfried and Charlotte received a bunch of instructional boards from Ferdinand when they were learning them themselves. You can borrow those.”

“Okay!”

“Lady Florencia, are you certain about this...?” the attendants asked reproachfully. Melchior was still rejoicing at the news, so he failed to understand why they appeared to be so against it.

Florencia looked over the attendants, then spoke in a calm tone. “Lady Rozemyne becoming the High Bishop and Lord Ferdinand continuing to serve as the High Priest even after his return to noble society have led to their retainers visiting the temple on a daily basis. We are no longer in the past; the temple’s reputation is gradually changing for the better. I imagine that you will not find it easy to change your perspectives, but please try to accept this.”

“Understood.”

Melchior didn’t know what the temple had been like in the past, but he could tell from Florencia’s words that Rozemyne had caused this change for the better.

I want to meet my sister Rozemyne soon. I wonder... Can I invite her to a tea party?

Charlotte had spoken about having a tea party with Rozemyne before being baptized; maybe she would introduce him if asked. It was with this hope in mind that Melchior waited for his siblings to return, his heart filled with admiration.