With the Italian restaurant now cleaned up, I wanted to next tackle the issues surrounding the town of Hass.
In the hidden room of the orphanage director's office, I once again asked the
"What do you think we should start with? If you told me that Hass could be erased at any moment, I'd want to know, wouldn't you?"
At my insistence,
"The biggest problem with Hass is that those townspeople know too little about nobility. They don't realize just how grave a crime they committed. That's the issue."
Even if a noble killed their daughter, commoners in Ehrenfest considered it only natural to swallow their grievances without complaint. So if that was the case, they certainly wouldn't kick up a fuss over some orphans—who had no bearing on their daily lives—being taken away. They'd never do something as stupid as attacking a building belonging to the Lord.
"However, you bear some responsibility too. If the townmaster had already signed a sale contract for the orphans with a civil official, then the nobles would have kept pestering you, and the favors you'd enjoyed up until then would have dried up."
"This might be because I used to come and go from the
According to
Orphanages outside the Temple, however, were places where children who lost their parents within the community were gathered. They consisted only of the community's own children. And it was the town's person of power—the townmaster, in this case—who supported them.
Apparently, they were considered part of the community's assets: the townmaster raised them, put them to work, and when money was needed, could sell them off.
"I heard that from the Chief Priest. Since the townmaster took in and raised the orphans, he has the right to sell them. At the Temple, the High Priest fills that role."
Because of this, it apparently didn't matter how I treated the Temple's orphanage. Whether I spoiled and corrupted them, or penny-pinched and made them scrape by on bare necessities, the Chief Priest might voice his displeasure, but the final say belonged to the High Priest.
The Temple's orphans became Gray Priests and Gray Shrine Maidens, and it wasn't uncommon for them to remain in the orphanage even as adults. They would be bought as servants for nobles, or become attendants for Blue Priests and Blue Shrine Maidens.
In contrast, in a primarily agricultural town like Hass, when a boy came of age, he would be given an appropriate plot of farmland and become an independent member of the town.
Girls, however, were given smaller plots of farmland, making it difficult to live alone, so they needed a husband.
Taking in a parentless man was welcomed, since it increased the family's numbers without sending one's own daughter away. But a parentless woman, with no marriage funds to speak of, often ended up in miserable marriages. It wasn't uncommon for them to become the second wife of an elderly man in need of nursing, or to be subjected to rough treatment.
"Without someone to back you, life gets hard no matter where you are."
Benno said this with furrowed brows, then shifted his expression and looked directly at me.
"You're the Lord's daughter, so even if you take the orphans, there's absolutely no issue from an external standpoint. But if you replace the orphans with a commodity, it's essentially the same as the nobility using its authority to seize merchandise someone has invested in up until now. Even if they don't complain openly, resentment will build. Make sure there are no lingering consequences."
Benno told me to use my position as the Lord's daughter to go around to the civil officials and nullify the contract from the start, or to pay the townmaster for the orphans' price, so as to cut off any future trouble.
He was far easier to understand and more comprehensible than the Chief Priest, who offered only the bare minimum explanation from a noble's perspective alone.
I jotted down what I needed to do on my writing tablet.
"Also, stop agonizing over things alone. Ask the Chief Priest properly."
"Huh?"
"If you bring your own considered answer, he should be able to correct it or offer advice. He did say he'd teach you the method, didn't he?"
I looked in turn at my writing tablet, Benno, Lutz, and Mark, then slowly nodded.
"Furthermore, perhaps because you were frail and didn't go outside much, you were already lacking in common sense to begin with. On top of that, merchant common sense has mixed in, then priest common sense, and now noble common sense is about to blend in as well. Your common sense is distorted no matter which social stratum looks at it. If you don't discuss these things properly, your ideas won't get through to the Chief Priest."
Just as my thoughts couldn't get through, the Chief Priest's common sense—which knew nothing but the world of nobility—didn't get through to me at all. I was told to use words more effectively.
There was no way I could have that kind of conversation using the roundabout way nobles spoke. This was a matter that had to be discussed in the hidden room.
"For now, find out when—whether there's a deadline—for dealing with the town of Hass. Ask if it's possible to save the town by sacrificing only the townmaster, as the best solution this time around. Make arrangements with the civil official who tried to buy the orphans. Pay the townmaster generously for the orphans' price. And only after all that is done, settle things with the people of the town."
"Yes."
While I was bullet-pointing my discussion topics with the Chief Priest, Benno added one more thing.
"Ask whether it would be alright to use merchants to spread rumors."
"What kind of rumors?"
"Let me see... That the attack on the small temple has put the entire town of Hass in danger, and that the benevolent High Priest is worried that even townspeople who didn't participate in the raid might be dragged down with them."
Hearing Benno's words, Mark smiled gently.
"By emphasizing Your Grace's benevolence, then adding the terror of nobility and the stupidity of the townmaster, mixed with concern over who will take responsibility, and the general sentiment of not wanting to be involved with Hass lest they get caught up in it—I believe we can fan anxiety while conveying fear of the nobility."
Mark, thinking about the content of the rumors to spread, seemed somehow more alive than necessary.
"If we get the large shop owners to spread the rumors, and warn the merchant caravans leaving through the East Gate to be careful about getting caught up in Hass's troubles, the word will reach even the small caravans in no time. Merchants' information networks are incredible, after all."
Lutz also rested his chin on his hand as if deep in thought, apparently picturing the situation in his mind.
"We already met those large shop owners at the Italian restaurant, so information coming from the Gilberta Company, which the new High Priest is on good terms with, would be judged credible, don't you think?"
I never expected that my connections with the large shop owners would come in handy like this this soon.
"Oh," I said, eyes shining. Benno furrowed his brow and lightly raised his hand. "Hold on."
"Just as Lutz said, spreading rumors is easy. The problem is, once it becomes a rumor, the fact that Hass attacked the small temple will also become public. Whether the Chief Priest approves of that or not is the real issue."
"If the Chief Priest approves, please contact me immediately. Information warfare like this is my area of expertise. If I'm dealing with that townmaster, I'll hold nothing back out of courtesy or obligation. I'm itching to get started."
Eyes sparkling with energy, Mark let out a soft, dark smile.
Startled by the frightening smile on the normally elegant butler Mark's face, I stared wide-eyed, while Benno murmured with a resigned smile, "He really couldn't stand the townmaster's insolent attitude, could he?"
Come to think of it, Mark had said the civil official and the townmaster's attitudes were terrible. This was the perfect opportunity for his revenge.
Now that we had settled things regarding the town of Hass, I decided to also bring up this year's Winter Preparations.
"This year, I'd like to handle the orphanage's Winter Preparations together with the Gilberta Company's. Would that be alright?"
"I have no objections here, but shouldn't the orphanage's preparations start earlier?"
Benno narrowed his eyes as if recalling last year, so I gave a slight shrug.
"Last year, I had to do everything secretly, hiding from the High Priest and the Blue Priests, so I was desperate to finish during the Harvest Festival. This year, I'm the High Priest, so the dates don't matter."
I told them I'd coordinate this year's Winter Preparations with the Gilberta Company, and Mark nodded while writing the schedule on his writing tablet.
"The people at My Workshop are hard workers, so there's no problem with extra hands. If you could calculate the necessary number based on last year's figures adjusted for the increase in people and let me know, we'll handle it."
It seemed there would be no issues leaving things to the capable and efficient Mark.
"Thank you. Also, please send a carriage to the small temple around the Harvest Festival. The priests from Hass are going to stay here for the winter lockdown, so I'd like them brought over before we begin full-scale Winter Preparations. I'll assign soldiers as escorts too."
"It's a busy season, but... well, I suppose it's fine. The small temple and the Italian restaurant have both settled down somewhat. Compared to how busy we've been recently, it should be manageable."
Benno, who had been groaning "hmm," agreed to take it on. Indeed, the tense atmosphere born of the hectic pace had loosened a bit. It seemed the peak of our busyness had finally passed.
I copied the results of our discussion with the Gilberta Company group onto paper and made a to-do list for myself. With that, I was ready to begin my discussion with the Chief Priest.
"Shall we meet over there today?"
When I shifted my gaze to the hidden room, the Chief Priest lowered his eyes briefly, then said, "Very well," and stood up to open the door.
Settling into the long bench as usual, I cast my eyes over my list.
"Your complexion is considerably better than
The Chief Priest murmured this with a slight furrowing of his brows. Fran, worried about my condition, had apparently reported to the Chief Priest.
"Fran's report wasn't a lie, you know. For a few days, I really couldn't sleep, and my condition was bad enough that my guard knights were about to change my schedule. After meeting with Lutz and the others, talking things over, and having my perspective shifted, I was finally able to sleep."
"...I see."
The Chief Priest said this weakly, looking far worse off than I was at the moment. I tilted my head.
The Chief Priest himself used medicine liberally, and I knew that he often forced his own body into working order through medication. For someone who declared that showing any sign of weakness would leave him open to attack, seeing the Chief Priest looking so unwell was rare.
"You actually look more haggard than I do?"
"My education of you was too harsh, and I received a severe warning from those around me."
Apparently, when the Chief Priest had consulted with the Lord and my father about my insomnia, both had scolded him for going too far, and Fran had delivered a pointed criticism of his own.
"I was saddled with the difficult task of appeasing your good mood with something other than books from those two, but since you've recovered, that should be sufficient now."
He said this in a dismissive tone, averting his gaze, seemingly unable to think of anything beyond books.
Seeing the normally unflappable, all-purpose Chief Priest looking so utterly exasperated was truly a rare sight.
...No, no, there was no way I'd let this fun opportunity slip by.
"That won't do. You need to appease me. Go on."
"Completely unnecessary. If you've thought of something, report it."
I received a sharp glare, so I pouted my lips in a "hmph," then recounted what Benno and Mark had explained to me—how precarious the town of Hass was, what I had learned, and the differences between orphanages that Lutz had taught me.
"Wait. ...Don't tell me you hadn't realized the implications of the attack on the small temple?"
"It's a building, we're unharmed, and I did think that if an attack happened, I'd need to protect the orphans, but it never occurred to me that it could amount to something as serious as treason."
The Chief Priest was stunned that I hadn't grasped what the attack on the small temple signified, so I brought up what Benno had said about the difference in common sense.
"Benno told me that my common sense is different."
"What do you mean?"
"Benno said that because I was a sheltered invalid who never went outside, lacking common sense, I gradually mixed together the common sense of the poor, merchants, the Temple, and nobility... But really, my foundation is a common sense from a previous life—a place different from this one."
Since the Chief Priest had peered into my memories from my life as Honobono Reina using a Magical Tool, he should have at least some understanding of how completely different my common sense was.
"I've been conscious and moving about in this world for nearly three years now, and in that time I began living as a soldier's daughter, took a step into the world of merchants aiming to become one myself, and became a Blue Shrine Maiden Apprentice. Now, as the daughter of a higher-ranking noble, I've been adopted by the Lord, but beyond noble common sense, I lack even the awareness and common sense that any ordinary resident here would take for granted."
"...I don't really understand. What are you saying?"
The Chief Priest, who had never left noble society, couldn't possibly understand other value systems. I thought about whether I could come up with a good analogy, and recalled the Chief Priest's grimacing face at the cultural differences in the small temple.
"Imagine that you, Chief Priest, were suddenly dropped into the lower town and told to live there. You winced when you saw the orphans not using proper tableware, didn't you? It's like that—living surrounded by people whose manners, speech, and everything else are completely different, all the while believing you're the one in the wrong, observing those around you and adjusting yourself to fit in."
Perhaps recalling the orphans' behavior, the Chief Priest furrowed his brow unhappily and the corners of his mouth turned down.
"Thinking 'this is filthy, I don't like it, why are they doing this, I don't understand,' while eating with your hands, matching your speech and living habits to theirs. At the very least, that's how I survived in the lower town."
"That must have been difficult."
This was the most heartfelt expression of sympathy I'd ever heard from the Chief Priest. Perhaps he could imagine how hard life in the lower town was. Smiling faintly, I shook my head gently.
"It's still difficult now. The environment is better and more comfortable than living in the lower town, but noble common sense is also different from my own."
"From what I saw of your memories, you seemed to be living quite well. Were you not the daughter of a higher-ranking noble?"
Apparently, the Chief Priest had watched my memories and assumed I was the daughter of a higher-ranking noble. In fairness, judging by the lifestyle alone, it was an aristocratic existence, and I may have even said something like "a place like the Noble District" myself.
"There was no class system at all. ...Merchants have differences too—between large shops, street vendors, and traveling merchants, for instance—and if you look closely, there are many small differences, but there were no nobles."
"Then... it seems we should fundamentally rethink the education plan."
The Chief Priest pressed his temples and let out a deep sigh. It seemed he had designed his education plan under the assumption that, as the daughter of a higher-ranking noble, I already possessed a certain amount of knowledge and resolve. No wonder it had been so Spartan.
"So, what about the plan to partition the town of Hass that you came up with? If it seems impossible, I'll handle it here..."
"No! Benno and the others and I worked hard on this."
When I said this, firmly holding up my list, the Chief Priest muttered sourly, "You don't sound like someone who didn't want to do it and was losing sleep over it. I got scolded for nothing."
"I'm sorry. But it's true that I didn't want to do it, and it's true that I couldn't sleep."
As I read through the list, incorporating Benno's insights and Mark's opinions, the Chief Priest leaned forward with interest.
"...A solution unique to you, with your deep ties to the lower town. Interesting. I'll permit using merchants to spread rumors. Go ahead with it as is. As for pressuring the civil official in the Noble District, I'll accompany you—it's also an opportunity to teach you how to handle nobles."
The Chief Priest said that although this wasn't the traditional noble way of doing things, being able to employ various methods was a strength, so I should practice as much as I could. He intended to use the town of Hass as my practice ground to the fullest.
"Um, Chief Priest. Wouldn't it be better to have
"That's true. And that's precisely why your education is so important."
The Chief Priest let out a slow sigh.
"As you know, Wilfried is very much like
That last statement was entirely reflective of the Chief Priest's own way of life.
Whether the Chief Priest—born as the half-brother despised by the Lord's mother—had desperately tried to compensate for the Lord's shortcomings in order to find his own place, or whether he'd been pushed to do so by those around him, I didn't know. But having that way of life forced onto me was a problem.
"I think that's wrong."
"What?"
"No matter how similar they are, they're not the same person. No one can know whether Wilfried will grow into an adult capable of being a Lord like our adoptive father."
At my words, the Chief Priest narrowed his eyes and murmured, "Hmm."
"It's only natural that, having been raised strictly as Lord, he'd have shortcomings that those around him compensate for. But is there really any need to make a child who's received no proper education and been left to his own devices into a Lord? He has siblings, after all."
If it were a Lord who had received a rigorous education, worked earnestly and done his best, I'd cooperate as much as I could as his adopted daughter. And if he knew the role of a Lord as thoroughly as Sylvester, I could respect him.
But Wilfried was nothing more than a spoiled child. He had even less sense of responsibility than the children of the lower town who became apprentices after their Baptism Ceremony. I couldn't accept being saddled with extra burdens for the sake of a child who did nothing but run away.
"Chief Priest, as his blood relative, you should prioritize educating Wilfried over educating me."
Unlike the guards and attendants who were constrained by their positions, the Chief Priest, being on equal standing with Wilfried as the Lord's son, could conduct hot-blooded education without restraint—strapping him to a chair if needed, or producing trauma as necessary. He should do that at least once, so Wilfried could truly understand just how spoiled he'd been up until now.
The Chief Priest slowly shook his head at my argument.
"Unfortunately, that's not possible."
"...Why?"
When I tilted my head, the Chief Priest said with the most serious expression: "I despise foolish lazybones. When I see Wilfried making no effort and constantly running away, my blood runs cold and I want to throw him into the Valley of Terror. I once said as much to Sylvester, and he begged me to stay away from him."
I could understand not wanting to bring such a trauma-producing machine near Wilfried. But if he was to become the Lord, shouldn't he be raised even more strictly?
While I was pondering whether there was any way to make the Chief Priest Wilfried's teacher, the Chief Priest wore the same sickeningly sweet smile that had caused my insomnia.
"In exchange for Wilfried, you're truly worth the effort. You deliver results, and you come up with unexpected opinions that are genuinely fascinating. I want to try having you do this and that."
"N-no, thank you. Once I've done the bare minimum, I want to read books."
"The bare minimum, you say. Hmm. Your driving force—doing anything for the sake of books—I'm curious where it comes from as well. Truly fascinating."
Apparently, this venomous, scary smile was the Chief Priest's expression when he was in an exceptionally good mood. No child would ever feel at ease seeing it.
Something was wrong. My own blood was running cold, and not just from Wilfried's sake. Rubbing my tingling upper arms, I quietly averted my gaze from the Chief Priest.
...I decided that the Chief Priest's usual expressionless face, with his brows just slightly furrowed—the one devoid of any human warmth—was the kindest face he had. Smile? Terrifying!