Ascendance of a Bookworm (LN) - Volume 5.2 - Chapter SS1

Someone Worthy of Caution

“Prince Anastasius, Prince Sigiswald has arrived.”

I entered Anastasius’s villa, ready for our private conversation, to find that he was already kneeling before me. He had started acting like my retainer ever since his marriage to Eglantine was decided. I accepted it, as I understood that he was emphasizing his position to our retainers and the others.

“Brother,” he said, “Dregarnuhr the Goddess of Time has—”

“We are the only two here, Anastasius,” I noted, interrupting his greeting and making my way to the seat I was offered. “No need for all the formalities; I’m more interested in what you have to say. What did you discuss with that Ehrenfest archduke candidate, Rozemyne? You thought it best to discuss things with me before telling Father, did you not?”

Just the other day, Anastasius had attended a tea party for those affiliated with the library. There, he had privately spoken to Rozemyne of Ehrenfest, and now it seemed there was something about their exchange that he wished to tell me. Important reports were generally given over dinner in the royal palace, with Father present, but on this occasion, I’d received a personal invitation. I was on tenterhooks awaiting his next words.

“Brother, do you recall the blessing that rained down upon Eglantine during our graduation ceremony?” Anastasius asked.

“Of course. How could I forget?”

The blessing in question had caused Anastasius’s retainers to argue that he was meant to be the next king after all, my own retainers to say that Eglantine was fated to be the next king’s bride, and the Sovereign temple to proclaim that she should immediately be raised to queenhood. In short, it had caused no end of trouble.

“As it turns out,” Anastasius said, “that blessing was performed by Rozemyne.”

“Don’t tell me—was she following instructions from Ferdinand again?”

Raublut, the Sovereign knight commander, was particularly suspicious of those two; I’d never really understood it, but the man controlling Rozemyne was apparently behind all this after all. His goal had presumably been to divide the royal family right after Anastasius and Eglantine’s union while simultaneously involving the Sovereign temple.

“She claims that the blessing simply came out while she was praying for Eglantine’s happiness and singing the song of the dedication whirl...”

“That seems... rather incomprehensible. I do not understand it.”

“Fear not, Brother; nor do I.”

That was hardly reassuring.

The more I thought about it, the more suspicious Rozemyne seemed to be. She always completed her lessons with terrifying speed and then promptly returned to Ehrenfest, so even those in her grade rarely saw her. After finishing her last class of the year, she would spend each day of her remaining time in the Academy visiting the library. She would not even participate in the awards ceremony despite having come first-in-class twice in a row. As far as I was concerned, she was an entirely unknown creature.

In her first year at the Royal Academy, Rozemyne took over royal magic tools through incomprehensible means and got involved in a fight with Dunkelfelger. Then, she gave a blessing to Eglantine during her graduation ceremony—despite not having offered one to Adolphine or to me, the future king.

During her second year, Rozemyne gave black weapons to apprentice knights without permission and used a strange shield to protect only those from her duchy in the attack on the awards ceremony. These events spurred Raublut to investigate the secrets of where Ferdinand was born, and from there, he began warning us of the threat the man posed. He said that Ferdinand was controlling Rozemyne and searching for an archive hidden within the Royal Academy’s library—one that could only be entered by those of the royal family.

“So, did you learn what Rozemyne or Ferdinand is trying to achieve?” I asked.

“No, but I asked her to serve as High Bishop for your Starbind Ceremony and grant you a blessing. She agreed, with some conditions.”

I furrowed my brow while Anastasius began listing her requirements; it was hard to believe that anyone would make demands of the royal family. It might have been more reasonable coming from a duchy that had contributed to the civil war, but from an opportunistic neutral duchy such as Ehrenfest it seemed a bit shameless.

“Does she understand Ehrenfest’s political standing, I wonder?”

In the past, we had seen little reason to pay attention to Ehrenfest; it was known as a backwater duchy with very little influence and even less cause to draw the royal family’s attention. Now, however, it had far too much sway. I wanted its people to understand their place, be a bit more humble to the royal family, and attempt diplomacy with the duchies that actually contributed in the civil war.

“Still,” Anastasius said, “if you can secure a blessing of your own, then fewer people will criticize you.”

That certainly was true. By showing the populace that the blessing Anastasius and Eglantine had received was from a human, not the gods, I could start to reshape public opinion. The Sovereign High Bishop had been so agonizingly smug when pushing for Eglantine to become the next Zent, saying that she had received “a blessing straight from the gods themselves.” How would he react in light of these new developments? The Sovereign temple had been getting too cocky for its own good as of late, so hearing about the shame he had brought on himself during the bible investigation had worked to ease my stirring heart. Having another means to put them down would be highly beneficial for us all.

I nodded and said, “I agree that a blessing will move the discourse along. As this is your idea, I shall entrust negotiations with the Sovereign temple to you.”

“Understood. Next, there is an underground archive that requires three keys to be opened...”

Hortensia, an archnoble, being assigned to the library had apparently allowed them to open the librarians’ previously sealed rooms. Inside, they had found the keys to the underground archive.

“Are you referring to the archive that only the royal family can enter?” I asked.

“At the moment, we do not know for certain. Solange is the only remaining librarian from before the civil war, and, as a medscholar, there were many places she was not allowed to enter, and much she does not know.”

Our only choice was to go there and see for ourselves. However, with security this tight, it made sense to assume that the Grutrissheit was inside.

“Hortensia wishes to investigate the archive as soon as possible. To that end, we have selected her, Hannelore of Dunkelfelger, and Rozemyne of Ehrenfest as keyholders.”

I crossed my arms. Why grant the Ehrenfest archduke candidate a key when everyone was so suspicious of her?

“Anastasius, this does not seem to make sense,” I said. “Should the key not be given to Solange rather than Rozemyne?”

“As a mednoble, Solange would not be able to reach the archive. One must be an archnoble or higher, it seems. Would you assign two of your archnoble retainers for this?”

Hortensia had apparently asked the royal family to send those we could trust the most, as the facility was clearly important to us. Anastasius had declined, however, as we simply did not have the manpower to spare.

“An archive that well protected must contain valuable documents,” I said. “Only certain individuals can enter. I would not mind assigning my retainers to manage the keys if all they must do is open and close the archive whenever I intend to visit.”

There was no need to involve archduke candidates with a facility important to the royal family. The archive was likely meant to be a secret; it was best kept under my control, as the next king.

“Brother, the archive does not necessarily contain the Grutrissheit.”

“Why do you say that?” I asked. “It exists for the royal family, but the former archlibrarians made it so that we could not enter.”

According to Raublut, the first to learn of this archive, the previous librarians had devised a plot before their execution to ensure that the king would not be able to enter the archive. They had apparently pulled a trick of some kind to prevent the knights from entering their rooms.

“Solange informed us that, after rising to the throne, the king continued to visit the library each year around the time of the Archduke Conference,” Anastasius explained. “Hortensia also reported that she remembers Prince Waldifrid planning to visit the library after his coronation.”

“I see. After his coronation...” I replied, nodding to myself. “That makes it a lot less likely that he was visiting to obtain the Grutrissheit; the coronation of the next king is intended to show the aubs that it has been passed on.”

Past members of the royal family entering the underground archive was enough to confirm its importance back then, but it was hard to tell what it offered for those of us in the present.

“Furthermore, Hortensia wants more than for the archive to be opened; the library’s magic tools have been drained of mana and are in a terrible state, and she wants the assistance of anyone who can resupply and investigate them, librarian or no. Would it not trouble you to send two of your retainers to work in the Royal Academy’s library permanently—not just temporarily to open the archive?”

Naturally, it would be difficult to send two of my retainers on such a long-term job of unknown importance; they were providing critical support to my life and work. It was also possible that their new efforts would be in vain, as we had no guarantee that the archive would lead to the Grutrissheit. To me, it seemed a task best left to the retainers of other royals.

“What if you and Hildebrand were to send one retainer each?” I asked. “Do you have any who could stand to stay in the Royal Academy?”

“As you know, on top of my work in the palace, I am supporting Hildebrand with his duties as the Royal Academy’s overseer. I am busy enough that I cannot spare a retainer; I would ask for more, if possible.”

Last year, the adult royals had been too busy doing important work in the palace to oversee the Royal Academy. As a result, the young Hildebrand was assigned to the position immediately after his baptism. Up until that point, the overseer had existed purely as a figurehead, meant to remind those present who was in charge—yet there had then been the appearance of a ternisbefallen, the students using black weapons, the bible investigation, and the attack during the awards ceremony. It was a sequence of events too serious for Hildebrand to manage himself, which was why Father’s retainers had suggested that Anastasius take over the role this year. They argued that he could remain at the royal palace and go to the Royal Academy when an incident occurred, and that Eglantine’s new position as a professor would allow him to stay abreast of any goings-on.

Of course, Hildebrand had been quick to protest the idea, having seemed to feel that his duties were being taken away from him. His retainers had expressed similar reluctance, as they believed that replacing the young prince would make him appear incapable in some way. That was understandable, so we ultimately decided that Hildebrand would continue to serve as the overseer, but that he would contact Anastasius when matters got out of hand. It was a necessary precaution, as we all anticipated another incident between Ehrenfest and Dunkelfelger.

“Hortensia is the wife of the Sovereign knight commander,” Anastasius said. “She understands that the Sovereignty does not have the leeway to send any more librarians, hence her suggestion that the two archduke candidates serve as keyholders instead, considering their work for the Library Committee. There are no other students who will give mana to the library while they are so busy with their classes.”

This so-called committee had been supplying the library’s magic tools with mana since before their discovery of the archive beneath it. The other students had witnessed this already, so nobody would bat an eye about them continuing to work with the librarians. Naturally, Hildebrand was excluded from consideration; it was fine for a prince to offer his mana whenever he deigned to visit, but the library could not summon him at its own convenience. As far as Hortensia and Solange were concerned, Rozemyne and Hannelore were the only option.

“I understand the circumstances,” I said, “but I still think we should reconsider the Ehrenfest archduke candidate. It is one thing to supply mana, but to serve as a keyholder? Have you forgotten Raublut’s warnings? Her duchy is dangerous.”

Before I could say much else, an ordonnanz flew into the room. Another soon followed, then another after that. They were from Eglantine, Hildebrand, and Hortensia, respectively. Apparently, the very girl we were discussing had just supplied some critical information. She had given a detailed explanation of who could enter the triple-locked archive and said that it contained documents the royal family would do well to read.

“Some archduke candidates can enter?” I asked. “What does that mean, exactly? Rozemyne clearly knows more than Solange, but why?”

“If she had known this much to begin with, then she would have said so when the keys were first discussed. She is terrible at hiding things,” Anastasius assured me. “I would assume that Ferdinand gave her this information—perhaps after she revealed that she is becoming a keyholder.”

Indeed, it would have taken about this long for her to write to and then hear back from Ferdinand, assuming that they were corresponding by letter.

“To think a backwater like Ehrenfest, a bottom-ranking duchy at the time of the civil war, would know such things...” I mused. “Raublut is correct; we have every reason to consider Ferdinand suspicious. If their people are willing to supply us with information, however, then we have no reason to refuse them. Let us consult the aubs at once. Perhaps one of them has entered the archive before.”

If members of the country’s many archducal families were also able to enter the archive, then perhaps they would provide us with further intelligence. I decided to consult Klassenberg’s and Dunkelfelger’s aubs.

“Brother, if what Rozemyne says is true and these documents are best read by the royal family, then I think you should visit the archive with us,” Anastasius said. “I have taken the lead thus far because Rozemyne is friends with Eglantine, but if the information describes how to be king as we suspect, then it would be best that you read it.”

I could tell that my little brother wished for us to see these documents right away and clear any suspicions that Ehrenfest was planning a coup. He even seemed to feel sympathy for Ferdinand, who was under Raublut’s scrutiny. I pondered for a moment; Anastasius knew more about Ehrenfest than I, and not even Raublut’s accusations had given him much cause to doubt Rozemyne.

“My understanding is that Ferdinand was on poor terms with the mother of the current Aub Ehrenfest and was sent to the temple as a result,” I said. “Perhaps he is offering us this information as a show of gratitude now that we have sent him to a greater duchy instead. He may have reevaluated his opinion of the royal family.”

I was trying to keep Anastasius’s feelings in mind, but on the inside, I was more suspicious of Ferdinand than ever. Raublut suspected that he was part of a royal branch family, born in a villa known as Adalgisa—that he resented having been sent to a duchy and was aiming to secure the Grutrissheit for himself. I’d checked a record of Adalgisa in the royal palace and found that the previous Aub Ehrenfest had taken a child from there to raise as his own. There was no name written, but the date had made it clear that this child was Ferdinand.

We had worried that Ferdinand might cause another civil war, but wedding him into Ahrensbach had made it impossible for him to take the throne. Raublut wanted the key to Adalgisa to investigate further, but Father had refused, telling him the matter was resolved.

Perhaps I should grant the key to Raublut and get him to investigate further.

We needed to look into Ferdinand as well, but I thought it most wise to start by meeting this Rozemyne girl. Perhaps then I would understand why Hortensia and Anastasius were so confident about her being a keyholder.

“I shall do as you suggest and meet Rozemyne myself on our way to the underground archive,” I decided. “I can make time three days from now. Oh, and do inform Hildebrand about this; the king did technically make him the Royal Academy’s overseer.”

This matter was too serious for a young child to bear, but we had given him his position to begin with; who were we to reject him for wanting to carry out his duty? Having the young Hildebrand in attendance was also sure to lower Rozemyne’s defenses, even if only a little.

Now, I wonder what they know...

My curiosity was not limited to Rozemyne herself. I was eager to see what Ferdinand knew and what he intended to tell us.

My father wanted the Grutrissheit to legitimize his kingship, and securing it would allow for easy control of the political stage. If we had any leads, then I was resolved to follow them... though the process was admittedly bothersome. If this archive did not direct us to the book, I would consider it a waste of time.

I personally had no attachment to the Grutrissheit; Yurgenschmidt had been without one for as long as I could remember, and I was confident that I could rule without its influence. Indeed, we were managing fine already. I was willing to make some sacrifices to maintain this peace.

Yes, I understood that there could be nothing better than obtaining the Grutrissheit—but we did not have it, and the royal family needed to rule Yurgenschmidt either way. I was the son of a king without the Grutrissheit, and I needed to prove that we could survive even without its aid.

That was my duty as the next king.