Having finished the civil official course examination, I promptly sent
I told Brunhilde that there was no rush for a reply, since there were many factors to consider—the progress of Restlaute's and Haniloré's lectures,
"It seems they won't be able to reply immediately. A response from Aub Dunkelfelger apparently hasn't arrived yet. They said they'll let us know available dates as soon as they hear back."
That evening after dinner, Brunhilde returned bearing a reply from Dunkelfelger. Realizing the tea party wouldn't be happening anytime soon, I turned my gaze to
"Lieseleta, starting tomorrow I'll be heading to Professor
"Leave it to me. I'll be especially thorough with the cleaning supplies. We must ensure that Lady
"Sounds like a challenge—I'll get right to it," Lieseleta said, and began sorting through the cleaning supplies. Soon after,
Sensing my attendants beginning the preparations for tomorrow, I decided to write a letter to
"I'll be writing a letter, so I'm retreating to the hidden room."
There was far too much to write with vanishing ink for anywhere with attendants present. After entering the hidden room in my quarters, I used the ink Ferdinand had given me and, across several sheets, filled them cover to cover.
I wrote down what I'd done in chronological order along with the matters I wanted to discuss, but upon rereading it all, it came across as somewhat nonsensical.
"I ascended to the realm where the Supreme God resides during the Blessing-granting ritual. My blessings increased so much that they exceeded the capacity of my staff, and even the slightest thing causes blessings to overflow—it's Blessing Terror all over again. As a solution, I've been trying to restrain my magic compression and use as much magic power as possible, but is there any other good method? ...W-will this get through? If it's Ferdinand-sama, he'll surely understand!"
Reassuring myself that it would be fine, I spread the letter out on the desk and began to let it dry.
Then, as an experiment to see how much difference there was in delivery time between sending through Rhaimund versus Frauerlam—and whether the letter would even reach Ferdinand at all—I decided to use a small amount of vanishing ink on the letter going through Frauerlam as well. "This is a letter via Professor Frauerlam. Did it arrive properly?" I wrote.
After drying overnight, the ink writing should have disappeared. I would then need to write innocuous content on top.
...Innocuous content. What would that even look like? That's actually quite difficult.
"Then,
The next day, since
"...You really don't look ready to head to a research room at all, sister."
Charlotte blinked at the luggage Lieseleta had prepared. Like the time we'd held an impromptu tea party at the library, a wagon was loaded with all manner of items. I gave a wry smile at the excessive luggage for a visit to a research room.
"They're cleaning supplies and gifts from me."
The people in that research room lived in terrible conditions. When I'd told Charlotte about the state of Hirschur's research room,
Laughing it off, I left the dormitory. Since lectures had already started, the hallways were quiet with almost no sign of anyone. My companions today were attendants Lieseleta and Rihyarda, apprentice civil official Roderich, and the two guard knights
"This is my first time entering the civil official specialist building."
The two guard knights gazed up at the building as they said this. Inside, Matthias murmured, "Unlike the knights' specialist building, there are a lot of individual rooms." The civil official specialist building had many rooms resembling storage warehouses for materials, and since each research room was separate, there were many doors. The knights' specialist building, which was a collection of training facilities, was the largest and most spacious of all the specialist buildings, but it was located in a remote area. It consisted mostly of large facilities, and aside from the professors' rooms, there didn't seem to be many private chambers.
"...Ugh, doesn't it smell rather odd?"
Theodore said this while looking around. As a guard knight, he was restraining himself from pinching his nose, but his face clearly said he wanted to.
"It's the scent of medicinal herbs and materials—you're not accustomed to it yet, Theodore, since you're a first-year who hasn't done any compounding in lectures. Several smells are mixed together and create something a bit foul, but you'll get used to it soon enough."
When I told him this with a giggle, Theodore looked around skeptically. "You really do get used to it?"
"Absolutely. Once you start making recovery potions on your own and drinking them as a matter of course during training, you'll adapt. And if necessary, you'll be able to drink even worse-smelling potions. Compared to the medicine Ferdinand-sama gives you, the smell around here is nothing."
Theodore's face twisted. His expression said it all: What kind of things does he make me drink?! It was a medicine so unpleasant that even when tempered with kindness, Charlotte had still found it disagreeable. The undiluted version was beyond belief.
When we arrived in front of Hirschur's research room, Lieseleta pushed a wagon loaded with cleaning magical tools ahead and went inside first.
"Lady Rozemyne, please wait outside for a moment. I'll check whether the room is in a state fit for entry."
I recalled the first time I'd come to Hirschur's research room—Lieseleta had tried to activate a magical tool that forcibly sucked up everything on the floor, and Hirschur and Rhaimund had been scrambling about in a panic.
"...I just hope nothing essential gets lost in the process."
"I've urged Professor Hirschur to use orcs for cleaning, so important items should have been put away," Rihyarda said.
From behind the door came Hirschur's flustered voice: "Lieseleta, please wait just a moment!" Despite the urging, Hirschur had apparently prioritized her research as usual. Rihyarda sighed and shook her head.
"I've kept you waiting, Lady Rozemyne."
Lieseleta opened the door with a smile, and I was finally able to enter the research room. Piles of documents towered on the compounding desk. They were surely the materials Hirschur had hastily rescued from the floor.
"Professor Hirschur, is Rhaimund not here?"
"He hasn't finished his lecture yet. Let's discuss the details of the joint research after Rhaimund arrives."
Rhaimund had also been making incremental progress in his lectures, gradually clearing free time, and apparently now showed up from time to time.
"Perhaps you could look through these documents while waiting for Rhaimund? They're materials related to the joint research. If Lady Rozemyne familiarizes herself with them, it should make our discussions proceed more smoothly."
They were design drawings and notes—documents related to things yet to be created. I compared the hastily stacked documents on the desk with the neatly arranged materials on the research room's bookshelves, then looked sharply at Hirschur.
"Professor Hirschur, before I go through the documents, would you mind if I organized them first? Like those bookshelves over there?"
"Everything stored there is research that's already been completed. It was Ferdinand-sama who tidied it up. That your eyes go first to organizing things—you two really are alike. Feel free to organize the materials on this desk however you like."
"...What? If Ferdinand-sama tidied them up, does that mean they've been left unorganized for about ten years!?"
"What are you saying? Ferdinand-sama was here around this time last year, wasn't he? To collect the magical tools he'd made."
At that time, he hadn't just taken the magical tools—he'd also carried away a large haul of design documents and research results he deemed too important to leave behind. And while he was at it, he'd had
... Ferdinand-sama must have had his hands full dealing with this kind of teacher.
I pulled out several documents from the bookshelves so I could sort and organize them the same way Ferdinand had. Wooden tags grouped the research by topic, arranged in chronological order. The sections where parchment was bundled together appeared to be Ferdinand's own research—the handwriting hadn't changed, so I recognized it immediately.
... This is research on the Twenty Mysteries. But the second half is completely missing?
Justus's collected mystery stories were lined up first, followed by a simple map.
... Is this probably a map of the
Since I'd had few opportunities to fly around on a feystone in the cold, I didn't even know what the Royal Academy grounds looked like. When I'd been a Thief in the Ditter tournament, Rihyarda and my grandfather had told me that everyone had memorized the terrain.
... This must be where the Twenty Mysteries were located.
There were far more than twenty marks on the map, with circles and crosses indicating what had been verified. Perhaps because it was a handwritten map from over a decade ago, the faded appearance had a charm to it, making it look like a treasure map. But the research on the Twenty Mysteries cut off abruptly and unnaturally in the middle.
"Professor Hirschur, this is Ferdinand-sama's research, isn't it? There are no results, though..."
"Ferdinand-sama had a lot of research like that. Unless it was something he planned to publish, once he knew the results and was satisfied, he wouldn't keep the materials—or he deliberately chose not to write them down, judging it better not to leave a record."
"Is that so..."
For research funded by the territory, he was required to submit reports, but for research he did with his own money as a hobby, he apparently left many things undocumented.
... This research looks interesting. I'd have liked to see it through to the end.
Pouting slightly, I checked the classification method and binding before closing the documents.
"Well then, now that I understand Ferdinand-sama's method of organizing, I'd like to get started on organizing these materials right away."
The same approach would be best. There'd be less confusion, and both Hirschur and Rhaimund would find it easier to locate materials. I untied one of the decorative cords at my waist and struck a determined pose.
"My lady, what do you intend to do?"
"...I'm going to tuck up my sleeves. It's hard to work with these sleeves getting in the way."
"You're going to tuck your sleeves?"
While Rihyarda looked puzzled, I quickly tucked up my sleeves and got them out of the way. Pleased with how perfectly it worked, I was about to bask in satisfaction when Rihyarda sighed, "My lady, it's improper to bare your arms like this," and immediately had me untie them.
"My lady, you may sit here and give instructions. Lieseleta and I will organize everything according to your directions."
A chair was prepared, and I was tasked with sorting through the papers and wooden tags piled on the compounding desk. I looked through each one and separated them by whose research it was and what kind. Rihyarda and Lieseleta then divided the work, packing some into boxes, binding others, and putting them on the bookshelves.
"Isn't this material Professor Hirschur's current research?"
"Yes. I'd been looking for it for a while without being able to find it."
"May I store Rhaimund's materials on this bookshelf? Or should I bring them back to the
"He'll decide what to do with them when he graduates."
Hirschur said that many documents would become unnecessary as time passed.
As we continued organizing, the materials began to arrange themselves neatly by research topic, and the compounding desk gradually cleared up.
"Lady Rozemyne, there were more materials over here as well. Please organize these together with the rest."
"Of course."
I accepted the materials from Hirschur and put them where they belonged.
... Am I basically the dedicated librarian of Hirschur's research room?
Whether anyone recognized me or not, at least in spirit I was the research room's librarian. The library committee had only been able to supply magic power, so in a sense, this felt like the most librarian-like work I'd done since coming to the Royal Academy. I couldn't stop humming.
... Oh no. I'm having so much fun right now!
While I cheerfully threw myself into organizing the materials, the fourth bell rang. Shortly afterward, Rhaimund stumbled in, saying, "Professor Hirschur, something terrible has happened..."
Immediately after, eyes wide, he blurted, "I'm terribly sorry! I've come to the wrong room!" and hastily fled.
"...He didn't make a mistake, did he?"
When Lieseleta and I exchanged glances, Hirschur chuckled.
"Perhaps he thought he had the wrong room because it's become so tidy. He'll come back eventually. Shall we prepare a meal? There are gifts in that wagon, aren't there?"
Hirschur smiled and pointed to the wagon. It was just about the right time to be hungry. After cleaning the now-tidy compounding desk, Lieseleta and Rihyarda began preparing the meal.
Just as everything was properly set out, Rhaimund knocked and cautiously peeked his face through the door. As always, he hadn't bothered with his appearance, and his black hair was a mess. The moment after, his stomach growled at the smell of the gifts Lieseleta had brought in, and he looked away in embarrassment.
"Rhaimund, before entering, please tidy your appearance with a washlet at the very least. Don't present yourself before Lady Rozemyne looking like that."
Rhaimund was smiled away by Lieseleta and closed the door. He used a washlet outside the room before returning.
"My sincerest apologies."
Rhaimund was finally admitted, and we had lunch. As we ate, Hirschur began discussing the joint research. Rhaimund slumped his shoulders as he ate the meal Hirschur had portioned out to him.
"So it really wasn't a mistake after all."
Apparently, the previous night
"Since there had been absolutely no contact between us before at the Royal Academy, I was quite startled. I thought perhaps it was because he's the apprentice of her fiancé, and that's why she took interest."
Rhaimund had assumed it was related to the territorial Ditter research presentation and had replied, "I'll do my utmost with complete sincerity." But that very morning, after finishing breakfast and heading to his lecture, Dormitory Supervisor Frauerlam had stopped him and told him to "report the outline of the joint research once it's been decided," which had left him completely dumbfounded.
Unable to say he didn't know anything, Rhaimund had come straight to this research room as soon as the morning lectures ended.
"Ehrenfest has entered into a joint research partnership with Dunkelfelger and
... Wasn't it Professor Hirschur who stirred this up?
I thought that but said nothing extra, since she'd gone out of her way to arrange things so I could finish the civil official course exam. Rhaimund would also find it easier to accept if he believed it was his own dormitory supervisor who had proposed it rather than something being forced upon him from our side.
"Both of you are Ferdinand-sama's students, so if Rhaimund handles the design portion and Lady Rozemyne handles the prototype creation, you can still have a fully functioning joint research collaboration as things stand."
"...Lady Rozemyne would be the one making the prototypes?"
Rhaimund's blue eyes went wide as he stared at Hirschur. "Having a lord candidate do the prototyping is far too presumptuous." Unlike the trembling Rhaimund, Hirschur calmly said, "It's a matter of putting the right people in the right roles."
"Lady Rozemyne achieved excellent grades in practical compounding as well, and thanks to being trained by Ferdinand-sama, she's accustomed to practical compounding and can use time-saving magic circles. As a lord candidate with abundant magic power, she can compound as much as needed without any issue. This will greatly reduce the time required for research."
I was told I lacked sense when it came to design. While I could handle the level done in lectures just fine, my applied work was apparently lacking—I didn't have the design sense of someone like Rhaimund or Ferdinand.
"If this joint research succeeds and it becomes widely known that both of you are Ferdinand-sama's students, it will also benefit Ferdinand-sama."
If we framed it as Ferdinand's credit for having the joint research succeed, it would increase his importance in Ahrensbach. "It's for the sake of improving Ferdinand-sama's position"—once I heard that, I could only throw myself in wholeheartedly.
"It will help establish Ferdinand-sama's standing, and it will mean that Rhaimund, as a mid-ranking noble, is recognized as one of Ferdinand-sama's retainers. And it will also help me create magical tools for the library. Let's do our best together."
"Everyone around me is already fired up, so I really can't refuse at this point..."
Rhaimund said with a weary expression that if he refused, Frauerlam would fly into a terrible hysteria. Then he agreed to the joint research.
"Then, once we've finished lunch, let's start on the prototypes right away. I'll need the design documents and an explanation."
"Understood. I'm counting on you."
Delighted by Rhaimund's praise for my librarian work—he'd been impressed by how neatly organized the materials were—I saw him off to his afternoon lectures. Then I spent the rest of the time at Hirschur's research room immersed in compounding. I worked from the design documents Rhaimund had left behind, crafting magical tool after magical tool, and whenever Hirschur called me over, I infused them with magic power. For the physical strength I lacked, I compensated with body-strengthening magic, and for the stamina I fell short on, I used stamina-recovery potions.
... Yeah, this research room is no good. Even when I'm just going about normally, I end up on a steady diet of potions.
Then, when Rhaimund returned from his lectures, I proudly showed him the prototypes.
"How are they? Did they turn out as ordered? I really worked hard on these."
Eager for a bit of praise, I lined up the prototypes in front of Rhaimund. I was watching his reaction with excitement, but Rhaimund hung his head and drooped.
"...Um, are they really that disappointing?"
"No. They're very well made. It's just that seeing firsthand the difference in usable magic power made me a little faint."
Rhaimund, who had so little magic power, apparently sometimes needed recovery potions just to compound a single prototype. Even then, he could make maybe one per day. Looking at the four magical tools I'd produced in a row, he told me he'd been struck by the inequality of the world.
"I'll have Ferdinand-sama evaluate these for approval."
"Then please send them tomorrow. I'd like you to include my letter as well. There's also a letter that needs to reach Ferdinand-sama via Professor Frauerlam..."
Since the people in this research room tended to neglect their reporting, I told Rhaimund that I was under obligation to report, and he visibly relaxed.
"That would be a great help. Professor Frauerlam has already told me to report, so..."
The next day, I entrusted Rhaimund with both the letter to be delivered to Ferdinand and the letter to be sent via Frauerlam, along with the magical tools for submission.
... Please, let Ferdinand-sama's reply reach me.
As I offered a prayer to Ordnshenëri, Goddess of Flying Letters, Brunhilde brought me a letter.
"Lady Rozemyne, this is an invitation from Professor
... Wait? I haven't even told Professor Eglantine yet that I've finished the civil official course.
I was finally able to go to Hirschur's research room.
Now the main story has caught up with the SS from Justus's perspective.
Rozemyne, who organized the materials to be easy to use, was moved to tears and her spirits soared.
She was finally able to send a letter to Ferdinand.
Next up is the book-lover's tea party hosted by royalty.