Ascendance of a Bookworm (LN) - Volume Short Story-1 - Chapter 12

Wilfried — Time with My Siblings

A short story originally written as a sales bonus for Part 3 Volume 4. Wilfried visits his younger siblings Charlotte and Melchior while staying home for the Archduke Conference.

Author’s Note: This chapter really emphasizes how Wilfried was the only one among his siblings whom Veronica raised, despite them all sharing a mother. It was fun getting to write about pre-baptism Melchior; I wasn’t able to do that from Rozemyne’s perspective because they’re not siblings of the same mother.

Fifth bell chimed, marking the end of afternoon studying and the beginning of my free time. Overall, it was another productive day. I still couldn’t compare to Rozemyne, but I was a lot better at harspiel than I used to be. There were even new songs I could play.

“Oswald, can I visit Charlotte and Melchior today?” I asked.

“Yes, Lord Wilfried. We can confirm that you have caught up to Lady Rozemyne in both history and geography.”

Apparently, I was behind in my studies and needed to close the gap. As a result, even though I’d already had my debut and safely made it into the winter playroom, my spring thus far had been spent chipping away at a mountain of work. Rozemyne was living in the castle while our parents were absent for the Archduke Conference, and I’d been told to focus on history and geography so I wouldn’t look really bad compared to her.

I studied so hard and for so long without any breaks at all, but she caught up to me in three days and even got mad about me getting to read new books first. It’s not fair!

How was I supposed to beat Rozemyne when it came to studying? Ferdinand was completely right in his evaluation that she’d start reading the moment you gave her a book—and she’d pull all sorts of tricks to get her hands on one, even when it wasn’t time to study. That was why I’d needed to be firm with my retainers: “I’ll work hard as a child of the archduke, but don’t expect me to overtake Rozemyne! It’s impossible! Can any of you even beat her?!”

They had ultimately acknowledged that it was an unreasonable request, and we had instead shifted our focus from beating Rozemyne to simply meeting the standards expected of an archducal child. My workload was still pretty ruthless, but I was actually allowed some free time now, which came as a huge relief.

“Also,” Oswald said, “Lady Florencia asked you to visit Lady Charlotte and Melchior in the main building while she is gone, did she not?”

“Yes, I was asked to play karuta and cards with Charlotte. She’s going to have her baptism and debut this winter, so I need to interact with her as both her big brother and senior.”

“You worked very hard in the run-up to your baptism, Lord Wilfried. Lady Florencia surely hopes that your younger siblings will take inspiration from your efforts.”

First I’d been told that messing up my debut would result in my disinheritance, then I’d been given a mountain of tasks to complete. In the end, after much hard work and the help of my retainers, I’d managed to come out on top and start leading the kids in the winter playroom. My retainers had even begun praising me as an ideal archduke candidate.

“It’s my duty as Charlotte’s big brother to make sure her debut performance is good enough for a member of the archducal family. That’s what Mother expects, right?”

Oswald nodded. “She likely wishes for you to strengthen your bonds with your siblings through karuta and cards while also teaching them about the status of the winter playroom.”

I puffed out my chest. Most of my free time thus far had been spent playing karuta and cards with my retainers, but I was much happier to have Mother entrust me with big brotherly duties and to be able to visit Charlotte and Melchior more often.

Grandmother always told me I wasn’t allowed to see my siblings before their baptisms, so I’ve barely spent any time with either of them...

All of a sudden, it hit me—studying and managing the winter playroom had kept me so busy that I’d forgotten to ask Father how Grandmother was doing.

“Oswald, how is Grandmother?” I said. “Can she not come back yet? It’s been almost a year now. Has Father said anything about her recovery?”

Oswald shot my other retainers questioning looks, whereupon they all glanced at me and shook their heads. He nodded, then spoke as their representative.

“We have heard nothing of note. We will consult the aub once he returns from the Archduke Conference.”

About a year ago, after my baptism, Grandmother was taken ill and went somewhere far away to recover. I was forbidden from seeing her in case I caught her sickness, so we hadn’t been able to catch up in such a long time. I really regretted that I couldn’t tell her what a success my debut had been and that my studies were going really well.

“I really hope she gets better soon...”

An entire year had passed, but she hadn’t gotten any better. Maybe she never would. I shook my head, trying to banish that awful thought from my mind.

I decided to leave my room and start toward the main building—and, along the way, I just happened to bump into Rozemyne. She was in her single-person highbeast, which meant she was probably on her way to the main building as well; according to Rihyarda, whenever Rozemyne was staying at the castle, she always spent her free time in the book room. Personally, I couldn’t figure out why she liked reading so much. It was way more fun practicing swordplay with the knights in the training grounds.

Though I guess she might not enjoy that. She has a hard enough time just walking around.

“Oh, Lord Wilfried,” Rozemyne said when she noticed me. “Where might you be going today?”

“To visit Charlotte and Melchior. Why not come with me instead of always going to the book room?”

The girls in the winter playroom were always doing all sorts of girly stuff together, so maybe Rozemyne and Charlotte would appreciate an opportunity to do girl things too. At the very least, Charlotte would probably love to spend some time with her big sister. But the moment I extended the offer, Rihyarda exchanged a look with Oswald, then let out a sigh.

“We appreciate your invitation, my boy, but milady cannot come with you. The archducal couple would not permit a half-sibling to visit the young ones before they have been baptized.”

Rozemyne must have understood what Rihyarda meant because she continued moving along in her highbeast. “I must go to the book room,” she said with a smile, “but you may read one of my picture books to them in my place. Do your best to raise them into book-loving children!”

And with that, Rozemyne’s group was gone.

“Er, Oswald... what was Rihyarda actually saying?” I asked, confused. “Rozemyne’s my little sister, so why does she need permission from Mother and Father? Before my baptism, I needed permission from Grandmother, but I don’t remember getting it from my parents.”

Oswald slowly shook his head. “As your head attendant, such matters fall to me.”

Oh, I see. I didn’t know that.

“Furthermore, as Rihyarda inferred, only the archduke, his first wife, and their children may enter the third floor of the main building. After all, that is the aub’s living area. Lady Rozemyne may have been adopted, but as you do not share a mother, she is not allowed entry. Thus, take care before inviting her there in the future.”

According to Oswald, mothers had such an enormous influence on their babies’ mana that, in private, half-siblings weren’t considered siblings at all. Thus, while Rozemyne was publicly the aub’s adopted daughter and my little sister, she was actually considered to be Lamprecht’s little sister.

Lamprecht was here as my guard knight, so I gazed up at him. He put a hand on my shoulder and said, “Lord Sylvester is married only to Lady Florencia, so this might not mean much to you, but Lady Rozemyne receives the same treatment as a sibling from another wife.”

“I don’t really get it.”

Rozemyne was being treated as Mother and Father’s daughter now, meaning she was a proper member of the archducal family. And since I’d never had a half-sibling before, I didn’t know how they were usually treated.

My attendant Linhardt folded his arms. “Adopted children and half-siblings are all considered part of the same family, but they are treated a bit differently when it comes to spending time with siblings of the same mother who have yet to be baptized.”

I nodded along. “So basically, Grandmother is my full sibling. Because we spent time together before my baptism.”

“No!”

“Wha...?”

Linhardt was firmly shaking his head at me, but why? Grandmother was the only family member I’d lived with before my baptism.

“Full siblings are those you share a mother with,” he explained. “Naturally, this is not the case with your grandmother.”

Apparently, my direct family—that is, my family connected to me through Mother—were Father, Mother herself, Charlotte, and Melchior. Rozemyne was included publicly, and if that extended to the entire archducal family, then Grandmother and Lord Bonifatius were as well.

“In the past, Lord Ferdinand was also a member of the archducal family,” Linhardt explained. “Now that he is in the temple, however, he does not publicly count. Lord Sylvester relies on him often for paperwork, so he is still treated as part of the family, but that is not precisely the case.”

“There are so many annoying definitions and distinctions here,” I said. “It’s surprising how distant I actually am from Grandmother.”

We made our way through the main building. Apparently, when viewed from above, it was basically a long rectangle with a garden in the middle. The south side usually had a bunch of scholars busily traveling between offices and meeting rooms. It was also where places like the grand hall, tea rooms for formal meetings, the teleportation hall, and the book room were.

On the north side were the aub’s living quarters. The third floor had rooms for the archducal couple and their pre-baptismal children, while the second had parlors, guest rooms for personal visitors, the dining hall, and hallways connecting to the northern, eastern, and western buildings. The first floor had rooms for live-in attendants and such, apparently. I didn’t really know, since I’d never been.

The northern building was where children of the archduke lived from their baptism until they came of age. My and Rozemyne’s rooms were there. The eastern building was for retired archducal couples and was where Grandmother raised me before my baptism—though it was closed off now that she had gone far away for her recovery. The western building was where the archduke’s second and third wives lived, but as Father was only married to Mother, it was empty for now.

I used a key borrowed from Oswald to open a door on the second floor, behind which was a stairway leading to the third. Until recently, I’d hated the feeling of the key sucking out my mana, but now it didn’t feel bad at all—maybe because I’d started supplying mana to the foundation. The authentication ended without issue.

I really am growing.

My retainers’ praise for me was true—with each passing day, I was learning to do more and more things. I opened the door, feeling my own growth firsthand. Then, after stepping through and locking it again, I passed the key back to Oswald.

The stairway was only faintly lit; the doors were always tightly locked for security, and there were no windows, so it felt like nighttime even now, at midday. We could see where we were going, since the walls, floor, and stairs were all pure white, but it was still a little claustrophobic.

We climbed the stairs until we reached another locked door. I opened this one the same way as the last, then entered the hall connecting all of the archduke’s private rooms. One of those was the children’s room for Charlotte and Melchior. There was a guard knight posted in front of the door, but Oswald spoke to them for me.

“Charlotte, Melchior,” I said upon entering the room. “I’m here to play.”

“Oh my. Brother,” Charlotte replied. “We have been waiting for you.” Her hair, which was the same color as Mother’s and my own, bounced as she turned to face me.

Before she could say anything else, her head attendant coughed. Charlotte let out a tiny noise in response, stood up straight, then knelt before me with polite, noble movements.

“The Goddess of Time has woven the threads of our fates together once again...” Charlotte said in a serious voice, then stood back up with a giggle. “What do you think, Brother? I have not yet memorized the names of all the gods, but I have learned to give greetings to some degree.”

“Charlotte, what kind of greeting was that?” I asked. It wasn’t one I’d heard before, so I didn’t know what it meant.

“Oh, do you not know? It is used when two nobles have not met each other in a long time and are overjoyed about their reunion,” she replied, looking a bit proud.

I turned to Oswald, who continued the explanation. “It is not normally used among family members who live together, but it may be heard during long-awaited reunions with someone who married into another duchy. Just like a first-time greeting, it is spoken by the person of lower status, so you will most likely receive it many times during the next winter playroom.”

The greeting wasn’t being used during our everyday trips to the playroom, but apparently it would play a more important role when it came around again next year. I would, of course, be on the receiving end; now that I had made it past my debut, I was going to be the next archduke. Charlotte, on the other hand, would probably be married into another duchy after coming of age, so she needed to learn all sorts of lengthy greetings.

“It must be rough, Charlotte, but do your best,” I said, trying to encourage her through the many hardships she was going to face.

Charlotte’s indigo eyes blinked several times, then she smiled at me. “Yes, I will do the best I can. Will you be playing with us today, Brother?”

“Yeah. Rozemyne asked me to read you two some picture books, and Mother told me to play karuta with you.”

I turned to Oswald, who had the box containing the karuta and picture books. Melchior had been hiding behind his retainer since our arrival, but he came over when he realized there were toys. His face looked a lot like Mother’s, but he had Father’s hair, which made me a little jealous. As he had turned three years old, he was no longer wearing lumpy diapers. He was also now walking like a normal person.

“Glad to see you’re doing well, Melchior,” I said. “Last time I saw you, you were uneasy on your feet and always looked close to tumbling. Now you seem pretty good at walking.”

“Brother,” he replied. “The Goddess of Time’s, um... threads... have... meeting! Granted!”

Melchior had probably intended to give the same greeting as Charlotte, who was watching him with a proud smile, but he hadn’t managed it at all. Shouldn’t his attendants have made sure he was able to say it in preparation for our meeting? Maybe his education was a bit insufficient, in which case I would need to inform Mother. Letting him drag behind would only make things harder for him down the line—something I understood all too well.

He may need a change of retainers, like what Rozemyne pushed for with me.

As children of the archduke, we went to the northern building as soon as we were baptized, so Mother and Father took care of our retainers before then. But I needed to be completely sure that Melchior was going to be okay.

As I was mulling over the situation, Oswald spurred me on. “Rather than standing there with such a serious frown, why not begin playing karuta?”

I took the cards from him, then looked over at Charlotte and said, “Right. This is karuta, a game that Rozemyne invented. It’s really useful for memorizing the names of gods and the divine instruments. It makes greetings easier to learn too. It was by using these cards that I was able to remember the names of the gods.”

After showing a demonstration of the game with my retainers, I invited Charlotte to play with me. And soon enough—

“You’re so fast, Brother!”

“Heh. The world of games is harsh. Status means nothing, and you can only count on your skill. If you don’t practice a lot, then you’ll lose to everyone in the winter playroom.”

I’d gone all out, just like Rozemyne always did with me, and effortlessly emerged victorious. There was no way I was going to lose here when I could usually win in the playroom. Charlotte seemed really frustrated about losing and was glaring at the karuta, her shoulders slumped. I knew exactly how she felt; it had been annoying beyond words when Rozemyne kept beating me.

“I want karuta like this too,” Charlotte said. “Why does Mother only ever...?”

“Mother didn’t give this to me; I got it from Rozemyne for studying. She said she’d only be able to prepare enough for the kids in the playroom, so I guess Mother and Father will need to wait until winter to buy a set for you. But, um... I think she said something about selling a picture book during the summer.”

I could vaguely remember Rozemyne mentioning that she wanted to sell a picture book about the subordinate gods when all the nobles came to the castle for the Starbinding.

Charlotte placed a hand on her chest and sighed in relief. “If we can buy books in the summer, then I can study before the winter playroom.”

“And you can play with me until you get your own karuta. I’ve been told to come here as often as I can during the Archduke Conference. I’ll always accept your challenges.”

“My... challenges?” Charlotte repeated, tilting her head at me. All of my friends in the playroom understood me when I said that, so why did she look so confused...? I racked my brain for a moment, and then it hit me—she didn’t know anything about the playroom. It was frustrating when communication wasn’t as simple as it was with my retainers.

“Charlotte, you’ll get good too if you practice lots. I got a lot better after playing with my friends in the winter playroom. Though I never managed to win against Rozemyne...”

Even after coming up with so many schemes, I hadn’t managed to beat her a single time before the end of winter. It was a frustrating thing to admit, but I was so close; I would win during the next winter playroom for sure. My friends and I had vowed to defeat her before saying our farewells, so I could guess they were practicing karuta and cards at this very moment.

“Understood, Brother. Let us play again.”

“Right. I won’t hold back, y’know.”

Charlotte was motivated, and we all started playing... but Melchior just kept getting in the way.

“I got iiit!”

“You didn’t!” I exclaimed. “That was the wrong one! And you haven’t gotten any cards yet, so one of your retainers has to give one up in your place!”

I tried to get Melchior to give back the card, but he shouted, “No!” and tried to hide it. We couldn’t play while he was doing that.

“Come on, Melchior,” I said. “Don’t be selfish. You need to put it back!” I snatched the cards away from him, and immediately he started crying—not that it would change anything.

“Brother, could you not let Melchior have at least one?” Charlotte asked.

“This is a serious match. We can’t be soft on him. If he doesn’t know the rules, then we have to teach him. And if he won’t learn the words, then he can’t be allowed to play.”

“Brother... Melchior is still only three years old.”

“So what? Everyone always says it’s important to be stern with the archduke’s children, so why should we be soft on Melchior? Mother asked me to teach you two as your big brother. I’m just giving you the same treatment that Rozemyne gives me.”

Oswald stepped forward and smiled at Charlotte, Melchior, and their retainers. “Lady Charlotte, Lord Melchior, because Lord Wilfried was raised in the eastern building and not in the main building as you were, he has no experience interacting with young children. He knows almost nothing about them.”

He then turned to me and crouched down so we were face-to-face. “You have already been baptized while Lord Melchior is only three—you cannot hold him to the same standards you hold yourself. You would not want others to expect you to perform at the level of an adult, would you? And you told us not to compare your progress to that of Lady Rozemyne.”

He was right. It was unreasonable of me to expect a three-year-old to act my age.

“Sorry, Melchior,” I said. “It looks like I was wrong. But, er... Oswald, what standards should I hold him to?”

“That is a question you must ask his retainers. The expectations placed on a child slowly develop as that child grows. You, yourself, have come a long way since last year, have you not?”

I nodded, then decided that I would ask about Melchior over tea and sweets. One of his retainers gave him a sweet, and immediately he went from crying his eyes out to being all smiles.

“Lord Melchior enjoys hearing stories,” another retainer explained. “Perhaps he would enjoy the picture book you brought more than the karuta?”

It was settled, then; I would read to him after finishing my tea.

“You know how to read, Brother?” Charlotte asked.

“Yeah. You’ll need to learn before your debut,” I replied, then took the picture book from Oswald. It was the one about the two supreme gods and the Eternal Five, which I pretty much knew by heart after reading it so many times.

I spread the book open in front of Charlotte and Melchior, like Rozemyne and my retainers had always done when reading to me, and then began.

“This story begins long, long ago—before the gods performed their legendary deeds, and even before the two supreme gods married one another. The God of Darkness was in a pitch-black abyss...”

As I continued, Charlotte and Melchior stared at the picture book with wide eyes.

“And so, Ewigeliebe the God of Life gained power, stole Geduldh the Goddess of Earth, and froze her so that she could only be touched by those who received his harsh judgment. Geduldh’s siblings would need to build up their strength to regain new life once again... which is why the seasons come and go. The end.”

Melchior let out a cry of happiness, while Charlotte looked at me, impressed. “So you truly have learned to read, Brother.”

“Heh. Impressive, right?” I said. “I’m something else, but Rozemyne’s even more impressive.”

“Rozemyne... Just what kind of person is my elder sister? Please do tell.”

After stressing how extremely hard I’d been working since autumn, I went on to describe how amazing Rozemyne was. I noted that she was just like a teacher but even more harsh, which made Charlotte’s expression cloud over.

“So, she is obsessed with books and has been forcing your retainers to resign one after another?” Charlotte eventually summarized. “She sounds much scarier than when Mother described her. Will she really want to be my friend...?”

Before I could say another word, Lamprecht grimaced and put a hand on my shoulder. “Lord Wilfried, if I may... You appear to have given Lady Charlotte the wrong impression.”

The wrong impression? I understood that he was Rozemyne’s older brother, but there was no “wrong impression” to give. I was describing things exactly as they’d happened.

I was going to protest, but then I saw Linhardt wearing a half-smile out of the corner of my eye. Melchior’s and Charlotte’s retainers were already muttering about Rozemyne. On second thought, maybe I had exaggerated a little. I would need to reconsider my phrasing.

“Lamprecht’s right,” I said. “Rozemyne isn’t scary. She’s just passionate about studying and really harsh. In the winter playroom, she didn’t seem to dislike anyone in particular, so the two of you will probably become fast friends. She never holds back in games, but she’s really fond of girls who like books.”

I even explained my work leading the boys in the playroom while Rozemyne led the girls. We’d done really well, even getting some praise from the attendant in charge... but rather than commending my hard work, Charlotte’s eyes wavered.

“Does she like or dislike anything other than books?” she asked.

“Umm... I don’t really know. But I do know that she doesn’t have much stamina. You won’t believe how weak she is, and she collapses all the time. She’s got plenty of mana, though. In fact, she’s been helping me supply the foundation, and even when I’m exhausted from emptying feystones, she continues like it’s nothing.”

But the more I spoke about Rozemyne, the more uneasy Charlotte seemed to get. Was I giving her the wrong impression again or exaggerating too much? Was I making Rozemyne sound overly harsh? As I thought back on what I’d said, Charlotte took my hands in hers.

“Do you like her, Brother? Is she someone you consider likable?”

I couldn’t keep making my sister feel anxious, so I gave a big nod. “Don’t worry, Charlotte. I know you’re worried about your upcoming baptism and debut, but you’ll be fine. I’m here for you.”

As her elder brother, I’ll do everything I can for her!

I gave Charlotte’s hand a reassuring squeeze, but that just made her look even more uneasy for some reason. Confused, I turned around and saw that Lamprecht had a distant look in his eyes.

“Huh...?”

Upon returning to my room, I was told that I should have praised Rozemyne more. I thought I’d done a good job of describing her strengths, but apparently it wasn’t that easy.

The next day, on top of all my other work, I was tasked with learning to praise people. Apparently, I needed to ease Charlotte’s worries before winter.

This is all Rozemyne’s fault! Nothing I said about her was untrue, so why am I getting the blame?!