Ascendance of a Bookworm (LN) - Volume 5.7 - Chapter SS1

The Royal Academy without My Sister

“Lady Charlotte, Lord Wilfried, could we have a moment of your time?”

It was lunchtime on the Earthday of the archnobles’ Dedication Ritual, and we had received a visit from Rozemyne’s retainers. As archduke candidates, Wilfried and I only needed to participate in the ceremonies, but Rozemyne was the High Bishop; she had to deliver the collected mana to the royal family and observe the cleanup process, among other things, so she hadn’t returned to the dormitory with us.

I cocked my head in response to the question. “Hmm? I do not see Rozemyne with you. Is she taking some rest?” It was unusual for her retainers to be here without their lady.

Hartmut threw his hands up in the air, a drunken smile plastered across his face. “That is what we shall tell the public, but in truth, Lady Rozemyne has been invited to the realm of the gods by Mestionora the Goddess of Wisdom. Aah, what a beautiful miracle! Praise be to the gods!”

I wasn’t the only one dazed by his bizarre words and sudden prayer; every single student and server in the dining hall wore a look of complete bewilderment.

Paying no mind to Hartmut’s fervent prayers, I turned instead to my sister’s other retainers. They had their heads in their hands, similarly troubled that he was being so strange, but Damuel at least managed an explanation.

“After the Dedication Ritual, Lady Rozemyne was permitted to share some of the collected mana with the library. She went straight there with Prince Sigiswald, whereupon the magic tools asked her to supply one area in particular.”

“The magic tools”? He must mean Schwartz and Weiss. Every student in Ehrenfest knows that Rozemyne supplies mana as a member of the Library Committee.

“Lady Rozemyne started doing as the tools had instructed... then abruptly disappeared.”

Even though Damuel was only a laynoble, everyone was paying a lot more attention to him than to Hartmut. I appreciated that he had given such a clear answer, but I was still at a loss.

“Um, what do you mean she disappeared...?” I asked.

“There is nothing more I can say. She was in front of us, then a moment later, she was gone. We do not know the details, but according to the library’s magic tools, she ‘went to see Gramps.’”

“‘Gramps’?” Wilfried repeated, a dubious look on his face. “Who in the world is Gramps?”

Cornelius shook his head. “The most they said was that he’s old and powerful. Not even Professor Solange or Prince Sigiswald could tell us anything.”

“Is she safe?”

“We believe so, as her name-sworn retainers are still with us. The most we can do is await her return.”

I cast my eyes over Rozemyne’s name-sworn retainers, formerly of the Veronica faction. If my sister died, they would too. One could only imagine the anxiety that would rack them until she came back to us.

“We have already discussed the matter with Prince Sigiswald,” Leonore said, looking around the dining hall. “By his order, until our lady returns, we shall act as if she has taken ill.”

“Hold on. Let me get this straight,” Wilfried interjected. “Something beyond explanation has happened to Rozemyne. She’s alive, but we don’t know when she’ll return. There’s absolutely nothing we can do, so by the order of a prince, we’re to act as if she’s ill. Everyone on the same page?”

The gathered students nodded, if somewhat uneasily.

“Well, we don’t have much of a choice in the matter,” he sighed. “None of the other duchies would believe us if we said she randomly disappeared or that she was invited somewhere by the Goddess of Wisdom.”

“Indeed,” Lieseleta said. “And even if we revealed that information with good intentions, we would receive a harsh scolding from both Aub Ehrenfest and the royal family. We would also inadvertently unleash Hartmut, who would start corrupting the minds of anyone who dared to listen. He would tarnish our duchy’s reputation. The rest of the country would lump us together with him.”

In complete silence, we all gazed at Hartmut. He looked no less enthralled and was still raving that only someone truly virtuous would receive an invitation from Mestionora. I recalled something that Ernesta, one of my retainers, had told me: Hartmut’s campaign to establish “the Saint of Ehrenfest” during my sister’s two-year slumber had earned us a lot of grimaces from the other duchies.

We must not unleash him, no matter the circumstances!

Hartmut had special permission from the Zent to be here for this year’s Dedication Rituals, meaning we couldn’t send him back to Ehrenfest until they had all been completed in full.

“Everyone, hold your silence to the last,” Wilfried ordered, his voice tinged with despair. “The fate of our duchy’s honor rests with you.”

Everyone but Hartmut nodded in response.

We reported the incident to Father the same day—and in response, he told us to do as the royal family had instructed. Everyone, even those back in Ehrenfest, would pretend that Rozemyne had simply fallen ill until we were ordered otherwise.

“I can only hope that Rozemyne returns soon...” I murmured.

Her name-sworn retainers were still alive, which meant she was too, but not being able to see her was still deeply concerning.

Three whole days had passed, yet Rozemyne was still nowhere to be seen.

“How is the dormitory?” I asked. “I was told that some of the students were whipped into a frenzy and wanted to investigate the connection between Rozemyne’s disappearance and one of the Royal Academy’s mysteries. Are we not at risk of them revealing the truth to other duchies?”

There were various mysteries attached to the Royal Academy: the goddess statue that danced on the night of the graduation ceremony, the gazebo where the Goddess of Time played tricks, and the gewinnen pieces that played ditter, to name a few. But there was one in particular that was garnering a lot of attention: the disappearance of a student said to have played pranks at one of the supreme gods’ shrines and incurred their divine wrath. According to a report from my apprentice guard knight Fonsel, some of our own were comparing the tale to Rozemyne’s current situation. There was much that occurred in the boys’ rooms of the Ehrenfest Dormitory that we female students were never made privy to, so I was reliant on the accounts of my male retainers.

“Lord Hartmut caught them, so I don’t believe they will spread any such information,” Fonsel assured me.

Hartmut had apparently caught the students in question and said to them with a threatening smile, “Lady Rozemyne received an invitation from the gods. Do you truly believe she has done something to earn their ire? Be ashamed of yourselves, for you are too blind to see how fortunate we are to have the Saint of Ehrenfest.”

Fonsel continued, “He said that for their sullied minds to be corrected, they would need to learn to pray with perfect form, so he forced them to pray over and over again. He broke their spirits in the process, but not even that earned them forgiveness. They are currently being made to recite all of Lady Rozemyne’s great deeds.”

“As in... they are being forced to memorize them?”

“Yes. Lord Hartmut considers it even more important than their classes. The whole spectacle has deterred the other students from uttering even a word about your sister.”

In short, Hartmut was keeping a close eye on the dormitory and threatening the students into submission by means of praising Rozemyne. Though there were exceptions when students caused trouble, as a girl, I couldn’t go to the second floor—just as boys couldn’t go to the third.

“Would it be best for me to intervene as an archduke candidate?” I asked. “Is my brother aware of the situation, I wonder?”

“He is well aware. The students being reprimanded even went to his retainers and asked that he put a stop to Lord Hartmut.”

“And what was his response?”

“He declined, reminding the students that he had warned them to keep quiet. ‘Those who bad-mouth Rozemyne while Hartmut can hear them have only themselves to blame,’ he said. ‘Accept your fate and do as he tells you.’”

I understood all too well why Wilfried didn’t want to get involved with Hartmut. It seemed best to learn from his example and pretend to be oblivious to the entire situation.

“It certainly is important that the students learn not to speak lightly about Rozemyne’s absence,” I said. “And this punishment from Hartmut won’t impact their futures as a scolding from Father or the royal family would.”

The day after my decision to let Hartmut manage the dormitory, Professor Hirschur arrived out of the blue. She was our dormitory supervisor, so this might not have seemed strange at first, but everyone who knew her understood what a rare occasion it was.

“I was told that Lady Rozemyne has taken ill, so I came to see her,” Professor Hirschur announced. “It isn’t like her to hide away before finishing her classes. She cannot visit the library before she passes her exams, can she?”

I exchanged glances with Rozemyne’s retainers and Wilfried. The sharp look in Professor Hirschur’s purple eyes demanded to know what was happening.

But if the royal family hasn’t explained the situation to her, we should probably keep her in the dark...

As it stood, Rozemyne physically couldn’t take her exams. The professors were sure to consider it strange, but until the royal family contacted them or gave us new orders, it seemed wise to keep things under wraps.

“We shall keep a close eye on her health and send word when things change,” I said.

“For days I remained patient, but I can wait no longer,” Professor Hirschur shot back. “Though I do not know the details of this ‘situation,’ I must know your plans for your joint research with Ahrensbach. Lady Rozemyne is the one with all the research materials, is she not?” She wore a smile but clearly had no intention of budging on the matter.

Wilfried gave a defeated sigh. “She’s here for the research materials. We won’t be able to fool her no matter how much we try.”

“Brunhilde, Lieseleta—my apologies, but could you take Professor Hirschur to my sister’s room and explain the situation?” I asked.

We had decided to bring our dormitory supervisor into the fold, and entrusting the explanation to Rozemyne’s retainers was only natural. I’d specified my sister’s room to keep Hartmut from getting involved; his constant raving would only slow things down.

The negotiations ended with Professor Hirschur agreeing to cooperate with our subterfuge and assist Rozemyne with her exams and such when she eventually returned. In exchange, she took all the ingredients my sister had brought with her to make the agreed-upon magic tools for her library.

“Though my sister is known for finishing her classes in the blink of an eye,” I said, “it would still be perfectly acceptable for her to wait until the final exams like almost everyone else.”

“Indeed,” my head attendant, Vanessa, replied. “She will surely have returned by then.”

That was what we told ourselves, but the following Earthday came without any new developments. Wilfried was currently overseeing the mednobles’ Dedication Ritual, in which Prince Hildebrand was also participating. I was simply waiting to hear from those of my retainers who were attending the ceremony.

“So? How was it?” I asked when they eventually returned. “Have any of the other duchies realized that Rozemyne is missing?”

According to Wilfried, not even her classmates in the archduke candidate course had noticed, but an entire week had now passed. Professor Hirschur had grown suspicious, and Lady Hannelore of Dunkelfelger had sent a message expressing her concern. It was only a matter of time before people started to ask questions.

Or so I thought. My apprentice attendants Kathrein and Cassandra looked at each other before staring at me quizzically.

“We have no reason to believe that anyone doubts our excuse,” they said. “Prince Hildebrand openly expressed his concern for her health and, in a conversation with Lord Wilfried, told us to give her his well-wishes. None would scrutinize the words of royalty.”

“His well-wishes?” I repeated. “Was that really all? Did he not follow them with orders of some kind?”

“No, my lady. We can assume the royal family wants to maintain the status quo. They are likely working on the professors as we speak.”

Professor Hirschur had noticed that something was amiss, but Cassandra said there were no rumors spreading among the other teachers.

My attendants continued: “Our one potential cause for concern is Lady Gentiane of Klassenberg. She wishes to join the Library Committee and is, according to Lord Wilfried, now awaiting Lady Rozemyne’s recovery. She has also given us some documents related to our joint research.”

“Is my brother going through them now...?” I asked. They would need to be reviewed before the Royal Academy’s Dedication Rituals concluded and socializing with the other duchies began.

“No, my lady. Lord Hartmut took them. Lady Rozemyne was apparently looking forward to seeing them, so... he stole them, claiming that the rest of us could make do with transcribed copies. Lord Ignaz could only slump his shoulders in defeat.”

It would have been better if the documents had gone to either my brother’s or my own retainers, but as we had yet to finish all of our classes, I supposed this arrangement was fine. We wouldn’t have been able to read them just yet, anyway.

“Will the transcriptions be done before socializing begins and we must discuss the results with Klassenberg?” I asked.

“Lord Hartmut is rallying all of his fellow retainers to have them done before they must return to Ehrenfest.”

“We may relax, then.”

“Lord Wilfried is proactively involved with the joint research, but he has asked that all invitations be redirected to you,” Kathrein said with a sigh, looking a tad concerned. “We will need to start preparing to socialize.”

My brother bombarding me with invitations to girls’ tea parties was something of a regular occurrence now. He likely intended to leave any tea parties with Klassenberg to me while he took the results from our joint research.

“Should we consult Brunhilde?” I asked.

“That would be wise, my lady. I apologize for our inadequacy. As we are but mednobles, we struggled to obtain intelligence from Klassenberg...”

“There is little one can do about status. I ask only that you support Brunhilde however you can.”

The tastes of Lady Gentiane, a first-year, were still unknown outside of her duchy. It was the duty of attendants to meet and exchange such intelligence, but the archduke candidates of greater duchies were normally attended to by archnobles. During first-time meetings, apprentice medattendants wouldn’t receive any attention at all. Kathrein and the others might have been able to get a few words in, but there was a tremendous disparity between what they and Brunhilde were able to learn.

Plus, I chose my retainers on the basis that I would one day leave Ehrenfest...

My archnoble retainers responsible for tutoring the others had since graduated, and the apprentice archnobles in grades below my own still needed to be trained. It must have been because of Grandmother’s tyranny—few archnobles wished to see their children serve the archducal family, so there weren’t many in my brother’s year or my own who were willing to become our retainers.

“My apologies, Lady Charlotte. I am no help at all despite being an archnoble...”

“You are only a first-year, Ediline; I do not expect you to have already associated with nobles from top-ranking duchies. I will ask Brunhilde to train you alongside Bertilde, so work hard to establish those bonds this year.”

“Yes, my lady.”

Ediline was an apprentice archattendant in my service who had entered the Royal Academy at the same time as Bertilde. It was critically important that she socialize with top-ranking apprentice attendants while Brunhilde was still a student.

Once my sister entered the royal family and granted Ehrenfest her protection, Bertilde and Ediline would stand among the vanguard of our dormitory and need to interact with the top-ranking duchies alongside Vanessa.

“Ten whole days have passed,” I mused aloud. “Is Rozemyne truly oka—?”

“CHARLOTTE!”

Wilfried sprang up out of his chair to stop me. I clapped a hand over my mouth mere moments later, but it was already too late. My brother glanced at Hartmut, groaned, and then sat back down with a hand on his forehead.

“Fear not!” my sister’s greatest advocate proclaimed. “Lady Rozemyne is growing by the day. I am able to feel even the slightest changes in her mana!”

How foolish of me...

Thus began another of Hartmut’s long-winded speeches about Rozemyne. We would need a way to divert his attention, so I turned to my sister’s other name-sworn retainers.

“How very delightful that my sister is growing. Still, hearing these declarations from Hartmut alone makes me wonder just how credible they are. If name-sworn retainers can feel their lady’s mana, should the rest of you not be experiencing the same thing?”

Hartmut must have realized that I was indirectly telling him to shut up and allow the others a chance to speak; he went quiet to focus on Roderick and Matthias.

“Ah, erm...” Roderick stammered. “I do feel a very slight improvement in my brewing and the like, so I see no reason to doubt that her mana is growing. One thing I am curious about is whether it means her body is growing as well.”

Matthias nodded. “I don’t feel it as keenly as Hartmut does, but I can tell that Lady Rozemyne’s acquiring more mana.”

“I can sense her mana increasing and becoming more stable, so as Hartmut says, her vessel may be growing. I cannot say for sure, though...” Laurenz said.

I nodded. If nothing else, they seemed a lot less certain than Hartmut. Putting the question of her physical growth aside, there was no longer room to doubt that my sister’s already vast mana quantity was increasing further still.

But as I was feeling impressed, I noticed that Hartmut was grimacing in displeasure at his fellow name-sworn. I swiftly attempted to cover for them.

“The main takeaway from this is that nobody can compare to Hartmut when it comes to loyalty and compassion. Hartmut, I must ask that you continue to devote yourself as my sister’s greatest retainer.”

“As you wish, Lady Charlotte,” he replied, a truly satisfied smile arising on his face. The other nearby retainers all sighed in relief—and from among them, Lieseleta stepped forward.

“Lady Charlotte, Lord Wilfried, I wish to deliver a report.”

As it turned out, Lady Hannelore had coordinated with Rozemyne’s attendants to lend us a book. Lieseleta wanted me to write a letter of thanks in my sister’s place and uphold our end of the exchange. Rozemyne had already decided which book she would give.

“If you see Lady Hannelore during class or a tea party anytime soon, do thank her for the book,” Lieseleta concluded.

“Those from Dunkelfelger are quite worried about my sister, aren’t they?” I replied. “Indeed, I shall thank her during our next tea party together.”

Wilfried gave a firm nod of agreement. “Yeah, Lady Hannelore is the type to be real thoughtful and considerate. She doesn’t get that there’s nothing for her to worry about. Hartmut and the others say that Rozemyne’s fine.”

It’s not about NEEDING to worry! You should worry about her anyway!

A deep sigh escaped me. I doubted that Wilfried even noticed the icy looks Rozemyne’s retainers were now giving him.

The laynobles’ Dedication Ritual ended without incident. Hartmut and the others had carried out the preparations to a T, meaning the rest of us had only needed to do as instructed and chant the prayer. I would need to thank my father, who had asked that the adults be permitted to stay at the Royal Academy and assist us with the ceremonies, and the Zent, who had actually allowed it. If we students had tried to balance everything ourselves, it would have been a truly nightmarish experience.

“Welcome back, Lady Charlotte,” Ediline said upon my return, looking tense. “Lady Brunhilde has arranged a meeting. There is something urgent she wishes to discuss.”

Having decided to prioritize the meeting over changing my clothes, I asked Kathrein and the others to prepare tea while I sent an ordonnanz of acknowledgment to Brunhilde.

“Lady Charlotte, I am delighted that you accepted my invitation,” Brunhilde said when I arrived. “And you came before even taking a moment to change. I am ever so grateful.”

“This is an urgent discussion, correct?” I asked, then held out a sound-blocker. “Will this be necessary?”

She accepted it with a slight smile, then got straight to the point: “Hartmut brought us a letter of invitation from Prince Sigiswald.”

“I doubt this concerns me...” I said. The royal family only ever wished to speak with Rozemyne—or if she was absent, with Wilfried. My brother was the more likely candidate to receive such an invitation, especially considering that he was older than me, so I wasn’t quite sure what Brunhilde wanted.

“It is addressed to both you and Lord Wilfried—and to Lady Rozemyne’s retainers.”

“On what basis did Prince Sigiswald select these participants...?”

“Hartmut suspects they want to discuss Lady Rozemyne’s status under the guise of praising those who performed the religious ceremonies. The meeting is limited to those who wore ceremonial robes, thereby excluding Lady Gentiane of Klassenberg.”

Klassenberg was much closer to the royal family than Ehrenfest. They were also considered an equal participant in our joint research. Their lack of an invitation only further reinforced Hartmut’s prediction.

“Lady Rozemyne’s move to the Sovereignty will most likely be discussed,” Brunhilde said. “Thus, I would advise you and Lord Wilfried to exclude your retainers.”

“That might be difficult when my sister’s retainers are participating...”

“Perhaps you could say that only those who visited the temple with her in Ehrenfest were invited. Besides, this is an excellent opportunity for Lady Rozemyne’s name-sworn and me to introduce ourselves formally to Prince Sigiswald. They will soon be moving to the Sovereignty, whereas I am due to become a member of our duchy’s archducal family.”

In short, we really couldn’t bring any retainers other than Rozemyne’s.

“Very well,” I said. “I shall convince my retainers.”

“Moreover, we will need to align ourselves with Aub Ehrenfest. I would ask you to reach a conclusion with Lord Wilfried and then report back to me.” Brunhilde had apparently tried to discuss the matter with my brother’s retainers, only for them to sneer at her attempts to act like a member of the archducal family before her Starbinding. There was no more headway she could make with them alone.

“My brother remains critical of your engagement to our father and shows no signs that his own engagement is about to be canceled, so his retainers do not realize how vulnerable they are right now...” I mused. “How troublesome. Even now, Wilfried is unable to control his retinue.”

“It is a retainer’s duty to do as their lord or lady instructs. Thus, when the cancellation is announced, I would advise Lord Wilfried to think carefully about the futures of those who serve him.”

As far as Brunhilde was concerned, my brother wasn’t putting much thought into the future. That was somewhat understandable, as he was being asked to maintain the status quo and didn’t have any handovers to rush through, but not even I could grasp his intentions.

What does Wilfried intend to do after the cancellation is announced...?

Our meeting with the royal family was underway. I’d assumed that my discussion with Wilfried had put us on the same page and that I could merely sit back as a tagalong...

But I was mistaken.

“Of course we are worried. But Ehrenfest has been preparing to function without her for over half a year now; her absence is not troubling us as much as you might imagine.”

Wilfried, was that not rude?! One might think you were sharply critiquing the royal family’s decision to adopt Rozemyne!

My brother had surely meant to say that Ehrenfest was almost ready for Rozemyne’s departure and that the royal family had nothing to worry about, but was that how our host had interpreted it? Prince Sigiswald was looking notably quizzical.

I neglected to prepare enough Wilfried countermeasures!

As my stomach began to ache, I exchanged a look with Brunhilde. She didn’t seem at all taken aback; instead, she gestured to Hartmut, as if she had expected this to happen all along. My sister’s retainers weren’t to be doubted. I watched on with hope... only for Hartmut to launch into a long-winded speech.

No! Save that for the dormitory!

I wanted to cry out in anguish—but to my surprise, Hartmut’s lecture actually worked. Prince Sigiswald was frowning at the crested feystone now being held aloft, likely having forgotten all about Wilfried. On the surface, it seemed as though Hartmut was simply babbling on, but he was actually redirecting the conversation to the rumors about Rozemyne and what we would need to do when she returned. How was he capable of such an impressive feat? It made no sense.

“We will return to Ehrenfest after this meeting and claim that we are taking the ill Lady Rozemyne with us,” Hartmut said. We had promised to report as much to Father.

Once the discussion had settled down a little, Prince Sigiswald asked my brother what he thought about his engagement being canceled.

“I consider it an inevitable development. And to be frank, I was ill-suited to be Rozemyne’s fiancé in the first place. You are a better match for her than I, Prince Sigiswald.”

I gasped. He had started strong... but that second part was so terribly rude!

And then you advised the prince to replace Rozemyne’s charms before their engagement?! Wilfried, what are you saying?!

I shot a nervous glance at Prince Sigiswald, but his face betrayed no emotion. That made the situation even more terrifying...

But then the prince gave Wilfried a cup of tea.

Wait... Prince Sigiswald was responsible for my brother losing his position as the next aub, right? Was he on guard all this time, fearing that there might be tension between them?

If so, his provision of tea implied that those concerns were now gone.

A relieved sigh escaped me. If nothing else, I could rest assured that my brother hadn’t caused offense.

“We appreciate your aid. I pray that Ehrenfest’s Dedication Ritual goes just as well.”

Hartmut and the others were returning home, so the rest of us had gathered to say farewell. Our excuse henceforth was going to be that Rozemyne had returned to Ehrenfest for its Dedication Ritual. It wouldn’t be hard to sell, so the air in the dormitory relaxed almost immediately.

“At last, everything’s back to normal,” Wilfried remarked. “Rozemyne’s disappearance was a big surprise, but at least we’ll get some peace for once.”

“Wilfried, what are you saying?!” I exclaimed.

“Am I wrong? We have barely anything to write about in our reports this year.”

Hartmut and the others might be gone, but think about Rozemyne’s student retainers!

They could neither complain nor protest, since Wilfried was a member of the archducal family, but their impression of him only ever seemed to get worse. Why did my brother always make such unnecessary remarks, displeasing those around him in the process?

“I, for one, am troubled by our sister’s absence. All those who reach out to Ehrenfest do so only to connect with her.”

“Hasn’t that always been the case? We’ll make it through the rest of the year just fine.”

That isn’t what I’m worried about!

Rozemyne’s move to the Sovereignty would completely change how other duchies viewed and socialized with Ehrenfest. In an ideal world, we would spend this year attending social events with her, showing the rest of the country how well we got along and securing ourselves better treatment moving forward. It wasn’t something we could do without her.

I wished that I could speak my mind—that I could tell my brother exactly what was bothering me—but I’d already been sworn to silence. The most I could do was sigh.

Please return soon, Rozemyne. Please.

It was time for everyone to socialize.

As was now the norm, Ehrenfest’s interactions with other duchies had mostly been entrusted to my brother and me. It wasn’t an ideal situation, but at least Brunhilde was around to help us. She was currently Rozemyne’s retainer and a future member of our archducal family, which allowed us to broach more topics than ever before. It was heartening to have her support.

“Lady Gentiane of Klassenberg has said that Rozemyne promised to accept her into the Library Committee,” I announced. “How should we react? She seems to have orders from her aub and wishes to meet with our sister even while she is unwell.”

Lady Gentiane had asked us to arrange a meeting as soon as Rozemyne’s health showed even the slightest improvement. It was a troubling development, and as I wasn’t a member of the Library Committee, I didn’t even know what the induction process entailed. Was the promise even real to begin with?

“As I recall, Lady Rozemyne received the request through Lady Eglantine,” Brunhilde replied. “I would suggest we refuse it via the same channel. Or perhaps we could leave the matter to Prince Hildebrand, who is also a member of the Library Committee.”

Brunhilde’s idea to have the royal family deal with the requests they’d thrust upon us sounded exactly like something Rozemyne would come up with. Perhaps they were more similar than I’d expected, though I kept that thought to myself.

Lady Gentiane’s request aside, nobody seemed too concerned about Rozemyne’s health. A few people had sent their well-wishes, as expected, but that was about it. On the one hand, I was relieved that the truth hadn’t leaked to other duchies; but on the other, I was a little upset.

“Now is not the time to be sentimental,” Brunhilde said, having read me like a book. “We can expect to be questioned even more aggressively during the Interduchy Tournament. We would do well to get the aub and the royal family on the same page before then.”

“Father will tell them she is unwell, as he has told everyone. But on that note... what manner of hairpin did you receive from him, Brunhilde? You proposed that a matching one be given to my mother, did you not?”

Because my sister’s engagement to Wilfried was being canceled, the Leisegangs’ hopes now rested entirely on Brunhilde’s children. Brunhilde was about to take on a role she would find even harder to navigate.

“I shan’t break the promise I made to prop up Lady Florencia,” she said. “Thus, you will need to find a worthy husband of your own, Lady Charlotte.”

“But would any man agree to marry a mere interim aub...? Someone of a higher-ranking duchy might even insist that they deserve to rule instead.”

“Given the current trend of archducal families adopting new members, perhaps you could set your sights on those younger than you.”

In the event that Brunhilde became pregnant, I would need to become the aub before the baby’s baptism, wear down the Leisegangs’ power, and then wait for Melchior to grow enough to take over from me. To further smooth the handover process, I would want my husband to be someone of a similar rank, while Melchior would want to marry someone from a top-ranking duchy.

Socializing season concluded, and the Interduchy Tournament began. We received a flood of questions from the other duchies, as anticipated, but there was nothing we could do except repeat that Rozemyne had taken ill.

Uncle seemed very suspicious of us, though... He’s even started trying to gather intelligence on his own.

We hadn’t even told the truth of the matter to my uncle or his retainers—those of Ahrensbach were keeping too close an eye on us, as were the royal family and the Sovereign Knight’s Order. The most we could do was ask Lieseleta to deliver the packages Rozemyne had prepared before her disappearance. The absence of any food or letters would hopefully alert them to the highly unusual circumstances.

Oh, but how comforting it would be if we could speak with Uncle about this...

Perhaps because he was always cleaning up Rozemyne’s messes, I thought he might be able to work out why she had disappeared.

Father ended up escorting Brunhilde during her graduation, indicating to everyone that she was to be his second wife. In truth, it was strange to see a woman other than Mother at his side. No man was more devoted to a single woman, and yet...

“Wilfried, I can see a crack in your smile,” Mother warned with a calm expression.

My brother had made no attempt to hide his displeasure back at the dormitory. He was only trying to maintain a proper noble facade now because Mother had summoned him and his retainers to a meeting room and given them a harsh scolding.

As I watched their exchange, Mother turned to me. “Did you see the color Brunhilde chose for her hairpin? I said she should go with something that suits her, but instead, she decided to use the color of my hair and our duchy. To think she would make such a statement, and with the hair ornament she was given by her fiancé for her graduation ceremony...”

I gazed upon Brunhilde’s bright crimson hair. As my mother had said, there was an ocher hairpin adorning it—a clear show of resolve.

“Her decision makes sense,” I replied. “Brunhilde does not seek Father’s love; she cares far more about avoiding friction with you and keeping the Leisegang nobles under control. On a related note, your hairpin suits you wonderfully. Those crimson mitfairs make you look even more vibrant.”

Mitfairs were flowers symbolic of cooperation. They were a very appropriate choice, especially as Brunhilde and my mother were showing their support for one another through the colors they had chosen to wear.

Mother laughed and gave me a light pat on the head. “Next time, we will order a hair ornament for you as well, Charlotte.”

Once the graduation ceremony was over, it was time to go back to Ehrenfest. Rozemyne had yet to return, but we had secured permission to keep our dormitory open for when she eventually did. We ended up leaving two attendants, two guards, one chef, and two servants behind...

And it wasn’t until the day after the feast celebrating spring that we received a message from them. I was eating breakfast in my chambers when an ordonnanz arrived to inform me that Rozemyne had returned to the Royal Academy last night.

“And she’ll soon be returning to Ehrenfest?!”

As soon as I’d eaten, I discussed this change of plans with my retainers and started getting ready to meet my sister. I rushed out of my room and went downstairs to find that Wilfried and Melchior were waiting for me; then the three of us headed to the teleportation hall. Mother, Father, and Lord Bonifatius were already there when we arrived, as were Rozemyne’s retainers, who were hearteningly anxious.

The teleportation circle filled with mana. It started shining black and gold; then the shimmering lights faded to reveal three figures.

I’d intended to give Rozemyne a normal welcome, but when she finally became visible, I was too shocked to say anything at all. She was shockingly—no, breathtakingly beautiful. Hartmut had repeated to an obnoxious degree that she was growing... but I’d never expected to see her mature so suddenly.

Rozemyne’s dazzling hair, long and as dark as night, swayed majestically as she looked around the room with uncertain eyes. She was now taller than me and seemed so much like an adult that I doubted anyone would use the word “adorable” to describe her ever again. A sigh escaped me; I was struck with the urge to admire her refined, almost sculpturesque beauty from every angle, from now until the end of time.

“Sylvester, it is good to see you again. I am sorry to have worried you. Forgive me for being so blunt, but may I have a moment of your time? There is something extremely important we must discuss.”

Rozemyne greeted our father, then immediately requested a meeting. She looked exhausted, but she still agreed to go straight to the archduke’s office. There was something strange about her now, like she existed on a higher plane of existence. It forced me to remember the overwhelming gap I’d noticed between us during my baptism ceremony.

What should I do? It feels like Rozemyne suddenly left my world and entered another...

Feeling daunted, I merely watched as she spoke with Lord Bonifatius. Wilfried, on the other hand, strode over and gave her a beaming smile as if nothing had changed.

“Hartmut wouldn’t shut up about how much you’d grown,” he said. “Looks like he was telling the truth. That’s a shocker.”

“Eheheh... I’m a beauty now, wouldn’t you agree? Not even I could believe it when I first looked in the mirror.”

“Yep. You really are. But you didn’t grow on the inside, did you? Somehow, the gap between your looks and your personality is even worse now.”

Seeing their casual conversation brought me back to my senses. Rozemyne’s appearance had changed and she was taller than me now, but she was still my sister. I took a deep breath, both impressed and grateful that my brother had acted without the slightest hesitation, and then finally spoke.

“Welcome back, Sister.”