Ascendance of a Bookworm (LN) - Volume 3.2 - Chapter 14

The Harvest Festival 

When dawn broke, the monastery became a hive of activity. We would be closing it off come the end of the morning today, and so the kitchen staff were operating at full capacity to prepare breakfast and lunch while everyone hurried to finish moving things around. Breakfast was bread and soup, which was set on the tables for people to eat when they got an opportunity to. 

The priests piled mattresses, cutlery, and other such basic necessities into the carriages as they cleared out their rooms. The soldiers cleaned up their own rooms and bedding themselves, while those from the Gilberta Company worked to prepare for their upcoming business. And me? I would have been nothing but an inconvenience in the midst of all that. That was why, once Monika and Gil had served Brigitte and me our food, we hid away in my room posthaste. The only thing I could do was wait for everything to be ready for me to leave. 

“Lutz, I leave the workshop to you. I believe Ingo’s workshop should be finishing the materials needed for that winter handiwork soon, yes?” 

“That’s right. Also, I would like to ask Ingo to improve upon the printing press. Would that be acceptable?” 

“Yes, of course.” 

Bring ’em on! The more improvements, the better! I thought, and based on the wide grin that spread across Lutz’s face, he must have heard me loud and clear. 

We were using the feedback from those who had experience using the printing press to determine what areas needed to be improved, so I wouldn’t be particularly helpful in that process. All I could do was encourage the gray priests to speak freely about what parts they found inconvenient, and what changes they wanted to see. After all, the printing industry wouldn’t progress if we stuck to the status quo. 

“Gil, I shall entrust the temple to you in my absence. Please do what you can to help Nora and the others fit in at the orphanage,” I said. 

The gray priests and shrine maidens in Hasse had taught Nora and the others enough about temple life that they now fit right in at the monastery, but the temple orphanage was filled with people they didn’t know, and they would be living among a large group rather than being mostly among themselves. I had no doubts that bringing them to the temple would stress them out for reasons they hadn’t come across here. 

“As you wish.” 

Having entrusted the orphans to Gil, I turned to face Dad, the head of the soldiers. “...Gunther.” There was a pause before I spoke, since calling him by his name was so weird to me that I had to think about it for a moment. “I entrust guarding the priests to you. I ask that you bring them all to the temple safely. It is because you have been so reliably granting my wishes that I feel at ease sending them out with you.” 

“You can count on me,” Dad replied. 

I walked over and started handing out the coins that Benno had prepared for me beforehand. “As thanks for your efforts,” I said, passing them to the kneeling soldiers. The gleaming looks in their eyes was more than enough to assure me that they would take the job seriously. 

And so, the party heading for Ehrenfest departed. After seeing them off, Benno and Mark made their move; they would be operating away from us to spread their rumors. They would be spending the morning doing business in Hasse, making comments along the lines of: “I hear a bunch of citizens from Hasse attacked a monastery built by the archduke. But isn’t that treason? I don’t know who’s responsible for ordering the attack, but I can only imagine how many heads are going to roll for it...” Then, they would rush back to Ehrenfest. 

“Be careful, Benno. Mark.” 

“We thank you for your concern,” Benno and Mark replied together, before heading off toward Hasse. Not long after, my attendants and personal staff got into carriages to go to the mayor’s estate. 

“Monika, Nicola—please meet up with Eckhart and Justus’s attendants before heading to the next winter mansion. I will be waiting here for Eckhart.” 

After seeing everyone off, I waited in my room in the monastery with Brigitte for Eckhart to come and get me. It was time very comfortably spent, since Ella had prepared cookies for me, sandwiches for lunch, and freshly squeezed fruit juice for me to drink. 

“What is your home province like, Brigitte? I’m not too familiar with the duchy’s geography yet, so I would love to hear about it,” I said. In my opinion, it was easier to learn the geography of places you had actually heard locals talking about before. 

Brigitte put on a troubled smile at my request for small talk. “Illgner is located in the south-west of Ehrenfest. It’s a sizable but rural province, low in population without any special exports to speak of. We have a large lumber industry, but the same could be said of all provinces in our area.” 

“...If the province has so much wood, perhaps it would be suitable for making paper?” 

It was possible that Illgner had a greater variety of wood than Ehrenfest, and if they were in need of a special export then paper would definitely fit the bill. The printing industry simply required a large paper supply to function, so I wanted to have a thorough discussion about what kind of trees were in the province, and whether there were any rare trees or feyplants that could produce high-quality paper like trombes could. 

“For now, I need to prioritize the spread of printing throughout the archduke’s Central District, but I would like to meet Giebe Illgner one day to discuss the production of paper,” I said, and Brigitte’s amethyst eyes shone brighter than I had ever seen before. 

“Oh yes, please do. I shall be eagerly waiting for the opportunity.” 

We continued talking until the feystone began to shine, announcing that we had visitors. Brigitte opened the door to reveal Eckhart, Justus, Damuel, and Fran, who were all wearing tense expressions. 

“Those are some scary looks on your faces. Did something happen?” I asked. 

“We were just surprised to return to find the place deserted, without so much as a single attendant in sight. Where in the world did the crowd from yesterday go?” 

“We’re closing the monastery for the winter, so we sent them all to Ehrenfest’s orphanage. Did my attendants not tell you when they reached the mayor’s estate?” I asked. 

“Ah, I see,” Eckhart replied with a relieved sigh. They had apparently been so taken aback by the deserted monastery that they had come running straight to my room. 

“Didn’t you know about this, Fran? I... Wait, hold on. You look unwell, Fran. Is everything okay?” He looked so sick that I could tell something was wrong from a glance. 

As I peered at his worn-out expression, he forced a smile and said, “It’s nothing.” 

“In what world is that expression nothing? We do not need to leave until noon, from what I remember. Please rest in the boys’ building until fourth bell.” 

“No, I cannot rest when my mistress has no other attendants,” Fran said flatly. “Please forgive my staying.” 

Eckhart nodded in approval. It seemed that everyone ended up like this when Ferdinand trained them. 

...Curse you for being such a stubborn hard worker! 

“I will not forgive it,” I replied. Fran must not have expected me to refuse, as he—and everyone else, for that matter—looked at me in total disbelief. “I am rumored to be deeply compassionate, and thus I order you to either sleep on this room’s bench or privately in the boys’ building. You may choose which you prefer.” 

“Rozemyne, I’m not so sure about this,” Eckhart interjected. 

“I shall hear what you have to say about these matters when you can manage my health, Eckhart. Fran will be serving as my representative here, and I do not wish for him to collapse from exhaustion,” I said, silencing his protests with a sharp glare. “Now then, Fran—between this bench and the boys’ dorm, which do you prefer? If you pick neither, I will have no choice but to offer you my lap as a pillow. Now choose.” 

After enduring my glare for a bit, Fran conceded and reluctantly headed to the boys’ building. 

“Rozemyne,” Eckhart began, “you may not understand this very well yet, but—” 

“No, dear brother, you are the one who does not yet understand. To speak frankly, were I to collapse, you and Fran would be perfectly capable of taking my place,” I began. Any noble could give the same blessings I was. The only thing they lacked were priest robes, but putting Eckhart in long white or blue robes before sending him onto the stage would be enough to make him look just like a priest from a distance. “But nobody can take Fran’s place. Monika and Nicola are not yet capable of doing all the work of an attendant, and Fran is the only one who can help me with the rituals, manage my health, handle the potions, and accompany me on matters without offending nobles such as Justus and yourself.” 

“But attendants are—” Eckhart began, only to be interrupted by Justus. 

“Enough with the sibling bickering already. You lost, Eckhart. Get over it. Lady Rozemyne’s got a point here. ’Course, considering her position, you have a point as well. How’re you gonna live when you’re even more hardheaded than Ferdinand?” 

Justus scolded me for not having an attendant with me despite my high status, and Eckhart for not adapting to the situation. He was a bit eccentric about it, but he clearly had experience-driven wisdom. Both Eckhart and I had no choice but to apologize. 

As we waited for fourth bell, Eckhart and Justus updated me on how the Harvest Festival was going. When the bell finally rang, the door opened immediately and Fran walked in as though he had been waiting right outside. The exhaustion was mostly gone from his face, though, which was a huge relief. 

After eating a lunch of sandwiches with fruit juice, we closed up the monastery and departed. The mayonnaise in the sandwiches had been enough to bring a glint to Justus’s eyes, but when he asked for more information, I went ahead and told him that the recipe would be expensive since I was even charging Sylvester for it. But that wasn’t enough to make him give in; clearly desperate, he even started saying that he’d pay as soon as we got home. I simply put on a smile, deflecting him by saying that I only took up-front payments. An information nut like him would no doubt prove to be a valuable customer. 

Once we were in the Pandabus, Fran gave me a report on Hasse. “As ordered, I made their blood run cold. Richt looked as though his face had turned to stone.” 

There was nothing we could do now but watch and see how Hasse handled the situation.

We arrived at the next winter mansion where farmers gathered. The Harvest Festival there began just as it had in Hasse. Once I was on the stage, the same ceremonies were performed, and the same cheers arose at the blessings. Afterward, I was given a chance to watch a game of warf, the sport I had missed seeing yesterday at Hasse. 

While the mayor here was busy explaining the rules, food was set on the tables in front of us. There were a lot more tables set up throughout the plaza, but none had food on them yet. I could imagine that we nobles would eat first, then everyone else would eat once we were done. 

Once Fran had finished his poison-tests, I started eating the various different foods. I could tell that freshly harvested ingredients had most likely been used, and the flavor was simple but solid. 

“Now... begin!” the mayor announced, and an animal that had been brought to the center of the plaza was instantly thrown against the ground. The second it struck the dirt, it curled up into a ball like an armadillo or a pill bug. 

“Bwuh?!” 

The animal bounced across the field, followed by a crowd of players racing after it. One of them then kicked it, sending it rolling across the ground. They were using it as the ball in their game. 

Seeing them kick the animal made me flinch. “H-Hold on. That’s animal abuse, isn’t it?” 

“Oh, are you unfamiliar? Warfs are a type of feybeast,” the mayor explained. “Their hides are strong enough that no amount of kicking would be enough to kill them.” 

In my opinion, any game where you kicked an animal was messed up, regardless of whether it was likely to die or not. But those were morals that didn’t apply here. I had no choice but to keep my thoughts to myself—when in Rome, after all. 

This game of kicking a warf around was strikingly similar to soccer. A rough line had been drawn down the center of the court, with each team also halving their own side. Another line was then drawn to mark the furthest quarter of each side. A loop had then been placed at the far end of each half, and getting the warf into that loop scored a point. 

It was similar to soccer in how you had to kick the warf until you reached the goal, but here, once you reached the final quarter of each side, you could pick the warf up with your hands and set or slam it down into the loop. In that regard, it was more like rugby or handball. 

Holding it in your hands without kicking it encouraged the warf to show its head, but that was considered a foul, and you’d have to give the warf to the other team. To avoid that, you had to keep hitting the warf by either bouncing it against the ground or passing it to your teammates on your way to the goal. 

“Eep! Th-That looks like it hurt,” I observed. 

Tackling and pushing seemed to be par for the course, and as far as I could tell, there weren’t any rules on that at all. People pulled each other, snatched away the warf, and even kicked people who had been pushed to the ground. 

“People may get hurt, but that shouldn’t be an issue since the farm work is already over,” Eckhart said. “Not to mention, this is an important sport that determines the hierarchy in the winter mansion. Why wouldn’t everyone be this enthusiastic?” 

The players were apparently the representatives of their towns, and they competed once a year with their honor on the line. 

“I understand their enthusiasm, but I must say, it’s quite frightening.” 

“So you say, but this is much safer than ditter,” Eckhart replied, watching the game of warf. 

I had never heard the word “ditter” before. It was probably some other kind of sport. 

“What’s ditter?” 

“A sport played all the time at the Royal Academy. Apprentice knights ride their highbeasts and fight as a form of training, but since it’s done in the air, it’s fairly dangerous. Lord Ferdinand was a master of the sport—a high-level player who employed the most devious tactics. I can’t even count the number of times he defeated an opponent with wit and guile...” Eckhart said proudly. 

That was when a louder cheer ran through the crowd. It seemed that the winner had been decided, and meat was gifted to the winning town. 

Once the passionate game of warf calmed down, more and more food had started being set on the tables. The children excitedly carried some off while the adults started pouring beer. Soon, the sky began to darken, and the temperature dropped. Fran put a warm coat over me the moment I started to shiver from the cool autumn breeze; Monika had apparently brought it for me. 

Is there anything my attendants can’t do? 

In the center of the plaza where the farmers had played warf, there was now a fire providing warmth and light. It wasn’t as big as a bonfire, but it was decently sized, and the feast began under its warm glow. The mayor celebrated everyone’s year of hard work and spoke of the upcoming winter, to which everyone toasted and began eating boisterously. 

In the meantime, since we nobles and the city officials had already finished eating, we discussed taxes and the food that would be paid to the duchy. The mayor and his officials were wearing bright expressions, since this was their first good harvest in many years. I didn’t know how large it had been last year, but I was glad to see them so happy about the larger harvest that my blessing at this year’s Spring Prayer had provided. 

Justus was at the center of the tax discussion. His work as a tax official would apparently begin first thing tomorrow morning, and he had said that I would need to join him since part of the taxes would be going to me. 

“Lady Rozemyne, you can wait until you’ve finished eating breakfast,” he said. 

Even when the sun fell over the horizon and everything went dark, the festival didn’t end. People cleared the tables with full bellies, leaving only beer and some light snacks, while musicians with instruments came out and started to play. 

The stars of this year’s festival—the newlyweds—were the first ones to come out to dance. They were soon joined by more boys and girls holding hands. Some were small children who had just been baptized, and others were young couples embarrassed about being teased. People clapped, whistled, and stomped their feet in celebration. Cheers and loud singing echoed through the air, with everyone yelling their appreciation for the harvest. It was the kind of festival where it was easy to find yourself absorbed in all the smiles, passion, and energy. 

The Harvest Festival ended when seventh bell rang. The kids were taken away to sleep, the girls helped clean everything up, and the boys hurriedly secured as much beer as possible to drink back in their rooms. 

“High Bishop, in the interests of deepening our bond, may I offer you—” the mayor began. 

“Lady Rozemyne will be heading to her room now. We will accompany you in her stead,” Eckhart said, having been instructed by Ferdinand to take my place when the mayor and other officials tried inviting me to Bribe City. At his encouragement, I retreated with Fran and Brigitte to the room prepared for me. 

As Monika and Nicola prepared my bed and a hot bath, I listened to them talk about the Harvest Festival they had experienced. It was the first Harvest Festival of their lives, and from what I heard, it had been filled with fun and surprising things for them.

Justus began his work as a tax official first thing in the morning. He made sure everything that had been discussed during the festival had been handed over, then spread out a large cloth with a sizable magic circle drawn on it over the stage from yesterday. He placed feystones on the four corners, put the taxed goods in the center, then waved his schtappe through the air and chanted something. 

In an instant, the goods were enveloped in light and disappeared. 

“So all of that is being sent to Ehrenfest?” 

“That’s right. This will be your portion, Lady Rozemyne,” Justus said, before sending the tithe that I would be receiving to the castle. My share of the goods had been marked as such, and since I had given real blessings at the Harvest Festival, I was receiving more than last year as thanks. “Other blue priests and shrine maidens will need to have their noble family members retrieve the goods from the castle, but in your case, your family is already in the castle, so the court chefs will prepare the food for winter ahead of time. All you need to do is ask my mother or Norbert to prepare a carriage to carry it all to the temple.” 

“That’s very convenient. I’ll have to ask Rihyarda to prepare a carriage when I return.” 

When Justus had finished with the taxes, we left for the next winter mansion. The attendants departed in their carriages, and since we could catch up in no time on highbeast, we were able to leisurely rest until noon. 

Aah, the Harvest Festival sure is fun. 

...Or so I thought until the third day. It was exhausting being in the middle of energetic festivals day after day. To each new city, this was a one-day-a-year event, but we were stuck in the madness for ten days straight. I yearned for the quiet, uneventful days of yore. 

...I want to go back to the temple and lock myself in the book room. Someone, give me some reading time. PLEASE!