Chapter Text
Chapter 1 - Rozemyne’s POV: No Rest for the Gremlin
Rozemyne had expected her return from her trip from her fifth year at the Royal Academy to be much, much different. To be fair, she hadn’t expected that most of it would be spent carrying out the Gods’ work and travelling through time to save Ferdinand, only to then deal with the aftermath and save her friend Hannelore’s marriage prospects through yet another ditter match. Who would have expected that? But all was well and done now—Hannelore had found her suitor, and she seemed very happy with Kenntrips. Rozemyne was finally back home, and most importantly of all, Ferdinand had been saved.
It would be better if the man she had saved could show a little more gratitude. Instead, not only had he scolded her for risking her life to save him (again with this argument, when would he finally understand?) but he had been scowling ever since and made it very clear that he was still angry about it. Angry about being saved! (Or perhaps he was angry about the kiss she had given his younger self? She already apologized for that, though! She knew it had been improper, but Ferdinand could be incredibly stubborn, especially at such a young age! She knew she shouldn’t have kissed him without his consent, but she had not known what else to do to make him understand she meant no harm and that he could trust her!!)
Sometimes, Rozemyne wondered why she even bothered.
Though, to be fair, he might be angry about the overall situation rather than at her. If Rozemyne was being honest, she was a little bit annoyed with their current predicament as well.
Now that she was finally back home and had a bit more time to read (especially since Ferdinand was not speaking to her and for once had not assigned her extra work as a punishment), they had received alarming news from Hartmut.
The High Priest had gone to perform the Spring Prayer tour (Rozemyne suspected he had gone personally to resume the brainwashing of each giebe), and there he had discovered a rather unusual situation.
The Giebe of Krallberg had been put to sleep in his jureve since the beginning of summer. Apparently the man, named Ernest, had been suffering from headaches since the invasion of the Lanzanevians at their winter estate the prior year. After one particularly painful episode, he had collapsed and never woken up. The situation was especially problematic because the Krallberg province family had already lost almost all its members during the invasion.
The period between a Giebe’s death and the selection of a successor was particularly critical. If the foundation wasn’t nourished, the entire land would wither away. Hartmut had learned that the moment Giebe Ernest collapsed, a letter had been sent to Alexandria requesting aid. Somehow, however, it had never arrived. The loss of this letter placed all of Krallberg at risk.
Ferdinand had immediately launched an investigation to determine when and where that mistake had been made. Knowing him, he probably suspected some nefarious scheme behind it, perhaps the emergence of a political faction.
Rozemyne wasn’t so sure.
One could say the situation wasn’t as dire as it might have been, considering that after Giebe Ernest collapsed, his fiancee, Ellianne, had taken over. According to Hartmut, she had done an excellent job at maintaining the province and supplying it with enough mana. However, she was also the other half of a problem that was already bothersome enough on its own.
Ellianne was only fourteen. She had been the daughter of the previous giebe—Ernest’s brother, Edmund—who had died during the invasion. She had been “given” as a spouse to her uncle right after her baptism, and had been excused from going to the Academy because she was apparently too sickly for it. She had never gone to the capital for the winter social season, either. (Hence why she had survived the slaughter of her family).
It made absolutely no sense that such a person could sustain an entire territory by herself for nearly three seasons. Besides, if she had never attended the Academy, that meant she didn’t possess a schtappe and therefore could not be recognized as a noble. She absolutely could not inherit the province, yet there was currently no one else with enough compatible mana and the knowledge of the land’s foundation to take her place.
It was, as they say, quite a predicament.
“Will it really be alright?” asked Letizia worriedly as they stood in a room.
They were planning a trip to Krallberg. A teleportation circle would be used as enough time had already been wasted because of the lost letter. Most of Rozemyne’s retainers were busy preparing what they would need, and Letizia observed the growing piles with wary eyes.
“Of course, we will find a solution eventually,” Rozemyne said, trusting Ferdinand to find a way out if she couldn’t. “We will be back before the Archduke Conference,” she told Letizia. “And if there is a problem here, you just need to send us a message.”
“Via ordonnanz,” added Ferdinand, bitterly.
Rozemyne chuckled. “Yes. Until we find out what happened, it might be wiser to avoid letters and trust only magic messages.”
It was also why they had left most of her new Alexandrian retainers behind—they were on probation. They would be under supervision to see if one of them was the culprit behind this miscommunication mayhem.
Besides, it was the perfect opportunity to see whether Letizia could handle some of her responsibilities. Rozemyne had no doubt she could, as she acted perfectly during the year at the Royal Academy despite the less than ideal circumstances. And while Ferdinand had not thanked Rozemyne, he had admitted that Letizia had handled the entire mess “surprisingly well.” Such praise from him was so rare that Rozemyne had almost felt jealous. (But also proud! Letizia deserved all the praises!)
“Would you like me to read to you what we know about Krallberg while we wait?” she offered the young girl.
Letizia finally tore her gaze away from the preparations and nodded sheepishly. Rozemyne was beside herself with joy. Little by little, she would turn this young girl into a proper bookworm! Just give her time!
“Gruttisheit!” she chanted, summoning her tablet.
“Be more careful when you summon it!” Ferdinand snapped.
“It’s fine, there are only trustworthy people here.”
Her retainers sighed behind her, but no one else complained. It was not like a year ago where the fact she possessed the Book of Mestionora had needed to remain secret (though that secret had not lasted long). While it was certainly better for most people to believe that Zent Eglantine possessed the one and only Book of Knowledge, Rozemyne didn’t think anyone in the room would betray them.
So. What does it say? She smiled.
Truth be told, she simply wanted an excuse to read and learn new things while she waited… and also avoid Ferdinand’s sore mood.
“Oh, that’s interesting!”
The text about Krallberg was surprisingly extensive for a province. She read through the whole thing before giving Letizia a small summary.
“So, can you picture the map of Yurgenschmidt? Well, Krallberg is the province that is at the tiny triangular shape in our border, right between Dunkelferger et Blumenfeld, formerly known as Werkestock.”
“There is a border gate here,” Letizia added with a nod, proving that she had been taking her geography lessons seriously.
“Yes, but that’s not all! You see, during the reign of Zent Garansorg, Krallberg was once an independent duchy called Valvert. Numerous wars caused it to be conquered by its neighbours and gradually assimilated. The land passed through the hands of all three surrounding duchies before eventually becoming ours. Because of the constant upheaval they endured over nearly three generations, the people of Krallberg stopped relying on entwickeln for their city and built walls made of stones around it.”
That should be quite a sight. Rozemyne couldn’t help but picture old European castles from her world. Despite the troublesome situation, she found herself almost excited at the thought of seeing the city. She liked the white buildings of Alexandria, but a change of pace was always welcome. Besides, since the region had once served as such an important stronghold, the city was apparently rather large, unusually so for a provincial capital.
Letizia’s eyes widened slightly. “Wouldn’t that be inconvenient… and not very practical or safe? Wouldn’t it be better to destroy it and rebuild it?”
Rozemyne shook her head. Ah, the mentality of the people living in this world sometimes!
“The wars had drained them of the materials and funds to rebuild the city each time, which is why they relied on this solution instead. They constructed the city using stone from the nearby mines. Valvert lies high in the mountains, within a micro-climate that leaves it covered in snow for much of the year, even after the arrival of spring. Finding workers for such construction was difficult, but it was still less costly than repeatedly having large-scale spells cast over the city.”
Rozemyne hummed as she looked over the next section of information.
“The city of Valvert is constructed in three large parts, each surrounded by its own stone fortifications and built slightly higher than the last. Some houses were even built into the retaining walls.
Letizia frowned as she tried to picture it. Because the people in this world neither read fiction nor watched anime, Rozemyne often found they struggled to imagine things.
Eventually, the young girl asked: “Like stairs?”
“Yes, exactly. Some platforms or quarters of the city are large enough to be remade by a future spell without altering the surrounding area. Thanks to that design, it was one of the first places to develop a sewer system—though not the kind we use today with slimes, since it was built before their invention. It’s also a strategic location. From the peak on which it has been built, one can see all three borders as well as the duchy gate itself. In Blumenfeld, the mountain is nicknamed “Bloody Peak” because red-soiled canyons cover the area, and when the snow melts, the river appears to run with blood.
Letizia shivered, but Rozmine found herself rather curious. Was it perhaps similar to the Grand Canyon from the USA of her world? She had only ever seen pictures of it in books.
“From our side, it is nicknamed “Green Valley,” while from Dunkerfelger it’s known as “Ashen Mountains” because an ancient volcano there still regularly releases ash.”
What a fascinating place.
“I only knew that its main export was ice,” Letizia mumbled, sounding almost embarrassed.
“And you would be right. Nowadays, because our summers are so hot, ice has become its main and most profitable export for us. However, the province also exports jewels thanks to its mines, and the teleportation circle we use is primarily meant for the safe transport of other products: glass and wooden furniture.”
Oh. If they produced wooden furniture, then there had to be forests there, right? Rozemyne wondered why no one had informed her of this potential resource when she had been researching ways to implement her paper-making industry.
“So it is quite an important territory,” Letizia commented, looking even less relaxed than before.
“Yes, it is. There are around eight subsidiary noble families inside the territory,” Rozemyne agreed, suddenly growing a little more worried about the whole situation. Letizia’s anxiety was beginning to affect her.
“The province was overseen by an archnoble family,” Ferdinand supplied, as he sat beside them with his arms crossed.
The preparations for the teleportation were nearly complete at this point. Rozemyne arched an eyebrow at Ferdinand, surprised by his intervention. Usually, he did not care much about history—hence why her Book of Mestionora was filled with lore while his contained mostly magical knowledge. Yet, he did not open his Grutrissheit (he was still keeping it secret), which meant he knew that without its help.
“Despite their abundance of mana, no marriage ties were ever formed with the reigning archducal family.”
“Oh, that’s rare!” Letizia commented.
Ferdinand nodded. “Yes, but their family has been plagued with mana-related illnesses for generations, so no archducal family was willing to take such a risk.”
His gaze shifted slightly toward Rozemyne.
“When I attended the Academy, the heir apparent was sick with a mana disease, one so widespread within the family that no one was willing to arrange marriages with them. Despite that, their influence in Ahrensbach was still considerable during my time in the Academy. However, they lost power drastically during the civil war.”
Rozemyne frowned, and Letiza asked, “Were they affected by the purge?”
Ferdinand tapped the side of his head.
“Indirectly. Lord Ernest had already completed his studies when I entered the Academy, while his brother Edmund was in his sixth year. Lord Ernest, was the heir apparent, and despite his mana disease, held a good reputation among the scholar courses because his researches were said to be revolutionary. Unfortunately, there is always a delay before a student’s research is formally presented, translated and added to the library, and it was during that period that the civil war broke out. Most of the research had been conducted alongside people suspected of having ties with either the third or the first prince, so it was confiscated, and as I assume, later destroyed. In the end, none of it was ever made available.”
It had probably been completely erased. The thought made Rozemyne’s blood boil. So much knowledge, so many potential books, lost to that senseless war! She knew that Ferdinand felt the same; he wore that particular kind of frown she recognized all too well.
“I suspect that even though Lord Ernest himself had been judged innocent, his family reasonably concluded that it was too risky to keep him as heir and had his brother inherit the title instead. Though it is also possible that lord Ernest’s reputation had been greatly exaggerated, or that the revolutionary nature of his research stemmed more from his fallen colleagues than from Ernest himself. When I arrived in Ahrensbach, I investigated him out of curiosity and discovered that he had accomplished nothing of note after graduating from the Academy.”
Ouch. That was rather harsh. Rozemyne could almost feel Ferdinand’s disappointment radiating from him. Back then, desperate for any trustworthy ally, he had probably hoped to find a like-minded scholar—only to be met with a sad reality.
Rozemyne glanced in his direction, trying to catch his gaze. It was the most they had spoken since her return from the past, if one excluded the scolding she had received for making that trip in the first place. He noticed her look, tapped his temple in annoyance, then stood up.
“The lesson is over. Everything is ready. We should depart.”
Despite saying that, they did not leave immediately. Before departing, Ferdinand assigned Letizia so much work to handle in their absence that Rozemyne couldn’t help but pity her.
Slowly, Letizia and her retainers departed, followed by everyone else who was neither needed nor part of the journey. Unfortunately, that did not make the room feel any less empty.
When one was an aub, “traveling lightly” carried a rather different meaning. Although Rozemyne left behind a handful of retainers, she still traveled with quite a large entourage. Naturally, she brought her most trustworthy knights, with Leonore, Cornelius, Angelica, Matthias, Damuel and Laurenz; as well as her attendants, Lieseleta and Gretia; and Clarissa as her scholar. Rosina was accompanying her as usual whenever nobles were involved, and she could hardly avoid bringing Ella and Hugo along as well. Ella had only recently given birth, so special accommodations had been arranged to allow her to bring her baby and mother with her. That way she would have someone to care for her daughter.
In contrast, Ferdinand’s side consisted solely of Justus and Eckhart, making the difference almost comical. Raimund had tried to join, but was instead placed in charge of communication in Alexandria, as they needed at least one reliable person to maintain contact.
As they walked toward the teleportation circle, however, Ferdinand let out a small cough.
Rozemyne’s heart skipped a beat.
That sound immediately put everyone on alert; they all turned toward Ferdinand as though expecting him to collapse unconscious once again.
Instead, he simply raised a hand as if he hadn’t just frightened everyone in the room.
Ferdinand, you idiot!! You did it on purpose!
It didn’t help that the memories of what she had seen during her journey into the past to mend the gods’ weave still haunted her.
And yet, here he stood perfectly fine and healthy, using the fact that everyone’s attention was now fixed on him to declare, “There is something you must know about this province before we arrive there. Especially you, Matthias.”
Rozemyne saw Matthias stiffen beside her, a stark contrast to Eckhart, who visibly relaxed the moment he realized his lord wasn’t actually ill.
It was Justus who continued in Ferdinand’s stead, “I conducted some research regarding Krallberg. While Grausam was in Ahrensbach, he made several trips specifically to this province.”
Matthias gave a rigid “understood” and nothing more, but Rozemyne could tell he was far more affected than he allowed himself to show.
“Does that mean we might find people there who are still loyal to Georgine?” Cornelius asked, resting a hand on his sword.
“That would be the logical conclusion,” Justus confirmed. “Especially considering what happened with this urgent letter, assuming the letter ever existed at all.”
Well, that complicated matters even further. It was also suspicious that upon realizing the letter had not arrived, they hadn’t even attempted to contact them via ordonnanz or any other means.
“We’ll have to be careful,” Damuel stated.
Weren’t they always careful? Still, the fact that Grausam had spent any amount of time there was hardly reassuring. The image of the man standing within his castle, his body modified until he barely looked human anymore, still haunted Rozemyne some nights.
Yes, as annoyed as she was by Ferdinand’s method of warning them, she was grateful to know about it beforehand.
“Nenlussel Krallberg!” she chanted as soon as everyone and everything were inside the teleportation circle.
She felt the mana drain from her body and braced herself for the usual nausea that accompanied teleportation, closing her eyes.
***
When Rozemyne opened her eyes again, she briefly wondered whether she had made a mistake in the incantation. Usually, teleportation circles led to closed, secured rooms within the castle, but here, they arrived at the base of an enormous tree.
She looked up in amazement, realizing that she was indeed inside a room, some sort of gigantic glasshouse. The tree formed the central pillar of the structure, and its branches seemed to create the arches upon which the glass had been set. Among the translucent panes, she spotted colored sections resembling stained glass. The whole space was bathed in multicolored light, giving it an almost eerie atmosphere. The teleportation circle behind her had been drawn upon an Entwickeln-like platform, pristine and white despite being littered with piles of brown leaves.
She immediately felt as though she had stepped into one of those Ghibli movies.
“This is beautiful!” she exclaimed with a smile as she stepped forward.
Almost at once, she began wondering whether such trees were common in the region, and if so, whether they could be used for her paper-making industry. Most of her retainers looked just as surprised as she was.
“The territory doesn’t seem to be dying,” Matthias observed as he looked around.
“Then you should look closer. It is not in poor condition yet, but it’s heading in that direction,” Ferdinand corrected.
And indeed, now that she paid closer attention, Rozemyne noticed that the grass made a strange sound beneath her feet—crisp as though it had been dried out too long under the summer sun.
For the land to already be in such a state despite the Spring Prayer… It was worrying. Unless they had waited for their arrival before performing it? That would have been more reassuring.
Unsurprisingly, Hartmut was waiting for them alongside a handful of blue and gray priests, as well as a few unfamiliar faces. He immediately kneeled and delivered his usual lengthy greeting. They returned the proper greetings.
“I apologize for not bringing a proper welcome party, my lady,” started Hartmut.
“It is fine,” she said immediately, waving a hand dismissively. “More importantly, Hartmut, this tree—”
Hartmut smiled, without rising from his kneeling position. “I have prepared a report regarding the resources and assets of this province. I believe you’ll find it particularly interesting. For example, this tree is called Silene. I also transcribed an old tale about it for you. For the longest time, the people of Valvert called it the tree of Ewigeliebe.”
Rozemyne, who had seen the divine tree of Erwaermen tilted her head to the side. Although the Silene tree was beautiful, it didn’t give off the same magical aura.
“It is said that the founder of Valvert planted the first Silene tree and boasted that it did not require mana to survive. He taunted his enemies while hiding behind it since no mana-based attack could penetrate its bark. Because of this, the people of Valvert came to believe themselves superior, and used the tree which grew only within their territory as proof they had been chosen by the gods. Naturally, the gods did not take kindly to such arrogance and cursed both the tree and the family who dared to spread such lies. Soon afterward, the war began and the duchy was absorbed into another for the first time, vanishing from the map.”
Well, Rozemyne certainly knew how merciless the gods could be.
“The tree standing here is over 200 years old. It was first planted when Valvert ceased being a duchy and was integrated into the former Ahrensbach, as a reminder of their sin. The family that later took over is said to possess a faint trace of blood from the cursed lineage, and it is believed that this curse manifests as a mana disease that afflicts one child in each generation.”
Ah, it would make such an amazing tale! Too bad the world wasn’t ready for fiction. It would have to be presented as a religious text instead, but still, a new book to add to her collection and library city. Yay!
Hartmut continued, “Despite its flaws, the tree is quite surprising. While it grows, it can be molded into specific forms, which is why the people here use it to make extraordinary wooden structures such as this one.”
He pointed upward, and it took Rozemine a moment to realize that he meant the glasshouse itself.
“However as the legends say, it is cursed, and the sap can be dangerous. It can render whatever it coats unaffected by mana, even repelling it entirely. The substance is a dangerous poison called bleigift. Do not worry, as it is very easy to identify; it has a particularly pungent smell, like wet stone before a storm and burned wood.”
He said the last part while looking at Justus rather than Rozemyne, which was only fair. They were the ones who would truly be interested in such information. Ferdinand, who seemed rather annoyed by the conversation’s detour, suddenly looked up with interest. Rozemyne, meanwhile, was already wondering what kind of paper the tree might produce. She hoped it did not take 200 years to grow a decent size, otherwise it would not be viable to use. She certainly wasn’t planning to deforest the region! Still, if the wood was already being used to make furniture or enormous structures like this one, then it had to be a relatively fast-growing tree, right? And surely books were more important than furniture, right?
…Though, as she looked at the magnificent glasshouse supported by the tree’s living branches, she suddenly felt as though she had just thought something deeply sacrilegious, like insulting the gods within their own temple.
“Where is the person acting as a giebe?” Ferdinand asked after he finished looking around.
Behind Hartmut, a very young boy shrieked a little. He probably wasn’t even old enough to attend the Royal Academy yet. From where she stood, Rozemyne could only make out his youthful features and messy brown hair.
Hartmut sighed and glanced in his direction for a moment, before explaining, “This is Lord Klaus Sohn Heikhel. He is currently serving as Lady Ellianne Tochter Valvert’s scholar.”
“Scholar?” Ferdinand repeated.
Despite his earlier slip, the young boy stepped forward and, with a remarkably steady voice, requested the customary noble blessings from the aub and her fiancee, which they granted.
“This one is honoured to stand before Aub Alexandria and her future consort,” Klaus began. “While I am still barely in my summer, I fully intend to take the scholar course once I enter the Royal Academy. Given the circumstances, I was sent as a pillar to Lady Ellianne in order to assist and support her during this difficult period until the succession issue is resolved.”
If the only scholar they could provide her during such a crisis was an underage boy, then either Ellianne’s situation was even more dire than they had expected, or the territory and its noble families were in serious decline. Neither possibility was reassuring.
“I apologize on the behalf of my lady. She had truly wished to personally welcome you, but Glucklitat’s intervention didn’t allow that. Around the second bell this morning, one of the mines collapsed, and she took command of the rescue efforts herself, as if guided by Chaosfliehe and Wiegenmilch. She was deeply regretful of being unable to receive you properly and ensured that adequate hospitality has been met for your arrival. Should you wish for it, rooms have already been arranged for you and your retainers, and Cuococalura’s favors will soon be served at the giebe’s castle.”
“So there is still access to the giebe’s castle,” Ferdinand commented.
Rozemyne frowned. “How severe is the mine collapse?”
Klaus seemed surprised by the two opposite questions, as if he had expected to be scolded, but Rozemine was far more preoccupied by the potential loss of life.
He hesitated for a moment before carefully choosing to answer the aub. His red eyes darted from side to side, as if searching for guidance somewhere around him, before he finally replied:
“The latest report stated that around a hundred miners are still missing with approximately a dozen confirmed casualties. A tunnel collapsed, so the rescue team are attempting to dig people out as quickly as possible to limit further deaths.”
Rozemine didn’t know how large the city’s population was, and she still instinctively judged such matters by Erhenfest’s standards rather than Alexandria’s. From her perspective, it sounded like a major disaster. Normally, nobles didn’t personally involve themselves in commoners’ affairs (except perhaps in laynoble provinces) but since mining was one of the land’s primary sources of income…
“Again, my lady conveys her deepest apologies for this unfortunate tangle of Dregarnuhr’s threads. She promised she would return as soon as possible to greet you properly,” Klaus repeated. “She has not left you without a proper welcoming party. My family is waiting to entertain you while you await luncheon. They do not have authorization to approach the Silene, so they are currently at the giebe’s castle.”
To be honest, Rozemyne would rather go inspect the mine collapse herself and see whether there was anything they could do to help rather than sit around waiting for a meal. Still, hearing that people were already waiting for her made her hesitate. As she pondered on what to do next, she caught Hartmut watching her with a knowing expression, and she had the distinct feeling that he could predict her next move.
He probably could. Ferdinand likely could as well, judging by the way he tapped his temple and sighed.
“Let’s meet with your family first.”
She noted he had not promised they would remain there for lunch.
Klaus cautiously rose to his feet, and Rozemyne was struck once more by just how he was so, so small and young! Almost like Letizia! Aww! Rozemyne was taller than him! Ever since her growth spurt, Rozemyne had started seeing younger and smaller people as oddly adorable, almost like little babies. Was this what happens when people got older? She vaguely remembered feeling something similar back when she was Urano and looked down at middle-schoolers. Still, because this world had so many working children, she had thought she had grown desensitized to such things. Apparently not. It turned out that she had simply been the one who was child-sized all this time, making it impossible for her to properly notice the difference until now!
She was so happy to finally be the taller one now! Despite all their flaws and recent mistakes, the gods had at least done this one good thing for her!
As they stepped out of the enormous glasshouse, a cold wind greeted them immediately. Lieseleta and Gretia promptly draped her warm coat over her shoulders, ever prepared as always. Snow was falling outside; the sky hung grey and heavy with clouds, while tiny snowflakes drifted lazily through the air.
Rozemyne’s eyes widened. She had read in her Book of Knowledge that the city was larger than an ordinary giebe city, but she had not expected anything like this.
The city and the glasshouse itself had been built atop the mountain where the great tree stood proudly. Below them stretched three descending levels of the city. The first two were too far away to see clearly, but the nearest one she immediately recognized as the Noble’s Quarter thanks to its tall white buildings. What surprised her most, however, was the sheer amount of greenery surrounding them. Unlike in Erhenfest, the district resembled a vast garden or park with residences scattered around. Silene trees lined each side of the carriage roads, their branches arching overhead like natural tunnels. Lanterns and wooden structures resembling cat walkways and birdhouses hung from them. Here and there stood a white pillar beside a pond that released small clouds of steam as though the water itself was hot.
“Is that…”
She recognized that sulfurous smell immediately.
Klaus quickly explained, “This is a recent installation that was completed before winter. Lady Ellianne discovered a source of hot water deep within the mountain. We already had a system that allowed water to flow throughout the city during summer in order to cool it down, so we modified it to serve the opposite purpose during winter. Now, boiling water circulates throughout the city. At some point, we had a problem with the mist freezing over the roads, but we added lids and pipes to help it flow where it was needed. It has helped keep the main road usable even during the harshest part of winter. She also ordered the opening of public bathing facilities. Lord Hartmut told me you would be pleased to learn that the baths are accessible even to commoners from the lower city.”
“H-H-H-” Rozemyne hiccuped, and Klaus hurriedly corrected himself, “Of course nobles, and commoners do not share the same establishments! I assure you— I-If you wished to try them, we would never ask you to sha-”
“HOT SPRINGS!” Rozemine blurted, stars shining in her eyes.
It had been so long since she had seen such a wonderful sight! She breathed in deeply, recognizing the unique scent of snow mingling with the mineral-rich steam of hot springs, and had to fight back a sudden wave of nostalgia.
“This is amazing! Wonderful! Praise to be-”
She could not finish—her retainers quickly covered her mouth with their hands, forcing her enthusiasm back down. Rozemyne swallowed guiltily as Klaus stared at her with a frightened expression while Ferdinand pinched the bridge of his nose.
“I mean—” She hurriedly put her noble mask on and coughed like Angelica sometimes did. “This is very intriguing. I would be quite interested in seeing such an installation later. Oh ho ho!”
Klaus continued staring at her as though all his illusions had just shattered. Well… if it prevented him from being brainwashed by Hartmut, she certainly was not going to complain.
They moved along the paved road, which felt pleasantly warm beneath their feet despite the cold weather. Rozemyne soon noticed that some sections of the pavement were colored differently. It was not exactly a mosaic, since it formed no picture, but rather a curved and stylized line. When she stepped on one, tiny bubbles of lights burst forth like fireflies.
“Oh, this is a recent experiment,” Klaus explained after noticing her reaction. “There’s two kinds of feystones found in the mines that emit light when brought close to one another. We carved some of them into the cobblestones, and when people step on them, the stones touch and trigger the reaction. That way, anyone traveling alone at night can always find their way to an important location. Each line leads to a different key place within the city. For now, they have only been installed in the Noble’s Quarter, but lady Elliane wishes to expand them throughout the entire city and eventually beyond it as well, paving the commercial roads.”
Ferdinand looked down and deliberately stepped on one of the colored stones in the pavement. Tiny lights flickered beneath his foot. “Interesting.”
Klaus looked positively delighted by the compliment.
He added enthusiastically, “This solved a major problem for us because those two types of feystones are often the cause of mining accidents. The light they produce is not natural, and when it appears in tunnels filled with leaking mana gas, it can trigger large explosions. Until now, we simply extracted and discarded them, but we suspect that much like the silene tree, they interact with mana differently. Those stones are poor quality feystones and cannot store mana well, so we never knew what to do with them until Lady Ellian-”
He abruptly clapped his hands over his mouth and flushed bright red. “S-Sorry! Sorry! I know I get overexcited sometimes. I didn't mean to bore you with such details!”
Rozemyne chuckled. “It is quite alright. This is all very interesting, and Lady Ellianne seems to have already done many remarkable things for the city.”
Klaus nodded dreamingly. “She truly is amazing.”
At the very least, despite the ongoing crisis, the lady seemed to have earned herself some loyal supporters. Rozemyne found herself growing even more curious about her.
The giebe’s castle stood on the same level as the Glasshouse and the great tree. It was built more traditionally from white stone, though its shape was rounder than what Rozemyne was accustomed to seeing. It also had far fewer windows than the castle in Alexandria, but given the constant snowfall, that made perfect sense.
What truly stunned her, however, were the two enormous stained-glass windows beside the main entrance depicting the Goddess of Light and the God of Darkness. Each of them had been covered with an additional layer of ordinary glass. At first, Rozemyne assumed it was meant to protect the stained glass from damage, but the moment she stepped inside and felt the difference in temperature, she understood. It was not for protection, it was insulation!
Not only had they double-glazed the stained-glass windows to prevent cold air from entering the building, but the walls were also lined with wooden panels filled with what appeared to be sawdust!
“This—” She pointed out in astonishment.
Klaus looked toward the walls before explaining, “I do not know the details, as it was installed before my baptism, but I believe this was Giebe Ernest’s invention. Every residence here has it. It keeps the cold out during winter, and we remove it in summer.”
“Why was this never shared with Alexandria?” asked Ferdinand.
Klaus blinked in confusion. “I… I thought Alexandria remained warm all year round. I will relay your words and interest to Lady Ellianne as soon as she retur-”
“Ah, there they are!”
Rozemyne noticed a large group approaching them. Everyone wore their finest clothing.
The man who appeared to be leading the group stepped forward, kneeled down, and immediately introduced himself, “I am August Heikhel, the mednoble in charge of the territory surrounding the border gate. May I pray for a blessing in appreciation of this serendipitous meeting, ordained by the pure rivers flowing from Flutrane, the Goddess of Water?”
Rozemyne smiled politely. “You may.”
“Oh Flutrane Goddess of Water, may you bestow a blessing upon this new encounter.”
Yet as she received the light green blessing from the noble, she noticed something strange within the crowd behind him. A familiar young boy was kneeling beside him, with messy brown hair, red eyes, and the exact same ring upon his hand. She turned sharply toward Klaus, and there he was—standing exactly where she left him… but he was also standing in front of her ?
“May I ask who this boy is?” she inquired.
August stood up and gestured for the boy to step closer.
“As expected of Aub Alexandria. Your powers of observation are remarkable.”
By whom had he heard that? Rozemyne couldn’t help but wonder. Not even Hartmut would spread such lies about her.
“This is Nikolas. He is Klaus’ twin brother. We had originally intended to assign him to lady Ellianne as an attendant to ease some of her burden, but she refused to accept him as retainer.”
The boy made a strange expression, unable to completely conceal his bitterness. In truth, this was the first time Rozemyne had encountered twins in this world. She had almost assumed they simply did not exist here.
“Does it mean that Lady Ellianne currently has no attendants? Why was a child even considered for such a position?” asked Ferdinand.
Hartmut replied in August’s stead, “I can confirm that she does not. Klaus, here, is her only noble retainer. She dresses herself in her own chambers and even cooks her own meals. As for why—”
He looked at August, then added for Rozemyne, “It had been quite a challenge to convince her that personally cooking your welcoming meal would not be considered appropriate etiquette.”
The noble embarrassingly said, “She is simply like that! We truly did try to provide her with some of our own retainers, and tirelessly delivered Erwachlehren and Anhaltung’s grace on that she couldn’t continue behaving in such a manner... But we found ourselves bereft of subordinates like Geduldh in hands of her husband. The invasion had so many of us meet Ewigeliebe, and nearly wiped out those serving in the giebe’s family alongside them…”
So there was simply no one else available, and instead of giving up one of their retainers, they assigned her a child.
August shook his head with a weary sigh. “Lady Ellianne is an amazing lady, but she places far too much upon her frail shoulders for someone blessed neither by Heilschmerz nor Jugereise. Until recently, she was confined to her uncle’s manor, never getting out. Only after her health improved was she finally able to leave, and ever since then, no one has been able to get her to honor Gebordnung and Duldsetzen.”
He opened his arms as though pleading for them to do something about it. “She has the heart of Wiegenmilch, but she can also embody the assertiveness of Elbberg, as you can see. And although her constitution has improved, she by no means shows vigor and resilience of the Fire pantheon, as her age would suggest, far from it. We pleaded to her to leave the matter of the mine to the subordinates and prioritize our supremes’ welcome party as propriety dictates, but she simply refused to heed Anhaltung. Please, accept our sincerest apologies for this. I fear she may disregard Erwachlehren’s gifts and is in desperate need of correction. Please, we beg of you to understand that her rudeness reflects only herself and not the sentiment of the other nobles within Krallberg.”
Ah, I see.
Rozemyne looked at the noble standing before her, immediately recognizing the pattern. Here was a man attempting to appear as an indulgent and supportive ally when, in truth, he was simply trying to save his own skin by dragging the other person through the mud.
“August Heikhel, you said?” she repeated.
The man beamed. “Yes. I am lady Ellianne’s uncle on her maternal side. Unfortunately, my sister climbed the towering stairway shortly after bearing Entrindunge’s blessing, a common fate for those who give birth to cursed children, and because of her engagement to Lord Ernest and limitations caused by Heilschmerz’s disfavor we were unable to act as her Erwachlehren as much as would have been proper. We are trying very hard now to make up for all the Dregarnuhr and Wentuchte’s work that was spun while the necessary threads were put far away.”
“We have records indicating that lady Ellianne was too ill to attend the Royal Academy,” Ferdinand said. “However, there is no mention of the exact nature of her illness in our record. You called her a cursed child, and as her maternal uncle, you ought to know more about her condition.”
The man started rubbing his hands anxiously.
“Ah. It is merely the term we use for children who are born with her physical features. Unfortunately, only Lord Ernest—I mean Giebe Ernest—is able to answer this. He served as the territory’s physician and personally oversaw her treatment since her birth. We were incredibly fortunate that before collapsing, he sported enough blessings from Sehweit, Dregarnuhr and Heilschmerz to restore her health enough for her to assume his obligations. It is truly a blessing from the Goddess of Order.”
“Indeed, it is,” Ferdinand repeated, his expression neutral. He turned to Rozemyne and stated, “It would be beneficial to meet Lady Ellianne.”
“Right now?” Lord August blurted, and the crowd behind him let out a small gasp.
Rozemyne recognized the way Ferdinand looked at them, the way he smiled at them. It was the Lord of Evil asking this, and he had a plan.
“Well. The matter has been delayed enough,” she said, and turning to Klaus she asked, “Would you show us where the mine accident occurred?”
“Aub Alexandria, please, the collapse of the tunnel happened in the lower part of the city where commoners reside. We could not—” Lord August tried to protest.
Klaus seemed uneasy at first, glancing back at what Rozemyne assumed was his father, before he slowly nodded. “Of course. I would never disobey the aub’s order. Please follow me, my lady.”
And so, they headed out before even getting any lunch.
