"Where am I?"
I looked around the pitch-black space, but there was no one in sight. Where had my attendants gone? It was more likely that I, alone, had been transported somewhere.
"I was supplying Magic Power to the statue of
I recalled my situation and made my own prediction. But that shrine had statues of the gods lined up in a design that helpfully told you which ones to pray to. Now, everything around me was pitch-black, and I had no idea what was happening or what I was supposed to do.
…If I were trapped in the Library, that would be one thing, but being stuck in total darkness was a problem.
I slowly reached out my hand to feel for my surroundings. There was no wall within arm's reach. It didn't seem like I'd been stuffed into some kind of box. Next, I crouched down and groped around at my feet. There was a hard surface that felt like a floor.
"…Ah."
Lines of Magic Power began extending from my fingertips where they touched the floor. As those lines spread and expanded, the scenery at my feet slowly started to become visible. It was as though the darkness had been washed away by magic to reveal a landscape hidden beneath, or as though I myself was creating the scenery with my own magic.
I yanked my hand back in surprise, but the phenomenon of the scene spreading through the darkness didn't stop. Starting from the point where I stood, the landscape became visible as it spread outward like flowing water.
A floor covered in thick carpet that looked like it had excellent sound-dampening properties expanded in a wide arc, then abruptly dropped downward at a certain point. Inside a massive cylindrical building, a spiral staircase extended down and down along the circular outer wall.
And once the horizontal expansion hit the walls, the scenery began to appear in the vertical direction as well. What came into view, spreading upward from near the floor, was bookshelf after bookshelf packed tightly with books. The bookshelves stretched all the way up to the ceiling and then continued outward in every direction. Beneath the darkness lay an enormous library with a grand spiral staircase and bookshelves running along every wall.
"Whaaaat!? What is this!? A paradise bestowed by the gods!?"
I was overwhelmed by the walls lined with bookshelves and looked around in astonishment. This was the most book-filled library I had ever seen in all of
"Ohhh! Books, books! From there to here, from top to bottom—everything is books! Amazing!"
After supplying Magic Power to the statue of Mestionora, Goddess of Wisdom, I had been brought to this incredible place. My reverence and gratitude toward Mestionora were beyond words. But when words failed, I could express myself through action.
"Prayers to Mestionora, Goddess of Wisdom!"
With a benediction sent forth on pure impulse, I threw myself at the nearest bookshelf with a beaming smile. I reached out to stroke the spines of the books, savoring the sensation. The flat, straight feeling that met my fingertips turned my mind blank. It was like a painting on a wall—I couldn't pick the books up. I slapped at the wall repeatedly, but no books materialized.
"Nooo! What is this!? False joy!? This is the worst scam ever! Give me back my prayers…"
To build someone up like that only to plunge them into the depths of despair immediately after—what was that about? I wanted to file a formal complaint with Mestionora, Goddess of Wisdom.
"Are you one who seeks the knowledge held here?"
"I desire it! I want to read! With all my heart!"
I answered through tear-streaked screams, and then it suddenly hit me.
…Whose voice was that?!
Someone was here. My all-too-instinctive behavior and conduct completely unbefitting of an Archduke's adopted daughter had been witnessed in full. This was bad. Extremely bad. I had let loose with the same abandon I'd felt at the shrines of the gods, but as a Lord candidate, it was an unforgivable blunder. Cold sweat trickled down my back as I slowly, cautiously turned around.
"…Huh?"
There stood a golden Schmier. It was about the same size as Schwartz and the others, but its speech was remarkably fluent.
"Then come, you who seek knowledge."
The golden Schmier hopped its way down the stairs. It leaped down about five steps at a time, so its descent was quite rapid. I didn't know how far down it would go, but I was on the top floor of this enormous cylindrical library-like building. I quickly gave up on walking there myself, carefully scanned my surroundings, and mounted my beast. There was no one else besides the golden Schmier, so no one would scold me for it.
"Where is this place? Are you the 'Old Master' that Schwartz and the others spoke of? They said someone was waiting for me, that someone had called for me…"
I asked the golden Schmier as I followed it down the stairs. The golden Schmier answered without once looking back, still hopping down step by step.
"This is a place that reflects the wishes of visitors. It confirms whether a visitor has the will and qualifications to seek knowledge, then sends them forth. Your will has been confirmed."
…Huh? So my wish was reflected as a wall-to-wall library? Oh, come to think of it, I had been thinking that I'd rather be trapped in a Library than in darkness.
Mestionora apparently had nothing to do with it after all. Sorry for rejoicing on my own, blessing on my own, and despairing on my own, I apologized silently.
"Oh, so—are you the Old Master?"
"This is a place that reflects the wishes of visitors. It confirms whether a visitor has the will and qualifications to seek knowledge, then sends them forth. Your will has been confirmed."
"Um, I already heard that."
The golden Schmier spoke fluently, but perhaps it had a very limited repertoire. No matter what I asked, the same words kept coming back.
The library that had seemed to extend endlessly downward turned out to be an illusion. After descending about three or four flights of stairs, I arrived at the very bottom. Directly ahead was a door set with seven magic stones.
"Touch that door. If you are qualified, it will open."
When the golden Schmier told me this, I hesitated greatly, having previously been rejected by a door in the underground archive.
"Um, I don't have royalty registration, though…"
"Touch that door. If you are qualified, it should open."
The golden Schmier repeated the same words. It wasn't going to listen to my objections. With no other choice, I dismounted my beast, cautiously approached, and touched the door. I gave it the barest tap and immediately pulled my hand back, ready to be repelled. Nothing happened, though, and one of the magic stones glowed red.
…Seems fine.
This time I pressed my entire palm against the door. When all the magic stones lit up, the door swung open inward on its own. But beyond it, it looked as though a rainbow-colored oil film covered the view, obscuring what lay on the other side. Where did it lead? I stood there gaping before the wide-open door when the golden Schmier drew up beside me.
"You who have been acknowledged by the gods and seek knowledge—go forth. What you seek lies beyond this door."
"Yes! I'll go read as many books as I can!"
I remounted my beast and plunged headfirst through the invisible door.
Charging forward on my Lesser Bus, I found myself in a place like a cave with exposed rock. A pale white path glowed faintly, guiding the way ahead. When I galloped forward on my beast, a white spiral staircase appeared at the end.
"This feels familiar… Isn't this the path to the Garden of Beginning?"
During my first year, when I had gone to receive the will of the gods, I had arrived at a white spiral staircase, and climbing it led to the Garden of Beginning. This time, I rode my beast up the spiral staircase, and as I had expected, it brought me to the Garden of Beginning.
Just as I remembered, it was a white plaza with a circular white floor and, in the center, a large white tree resembling a sculpture of the same material. When I had attended the lecture to receive a Stappe, the will of the gods had been here, but during the lecture for obtaining blessings, there had been nothing.
The place looked the same no matter how many times I came. The massive white trunk extended up toward the ceiling, where white branches spread out. Light filtered through like dappled sunlight, streaming in thin rays between the lush white leaves of the sculpted white tree.
…I came here again, but what am I supposed to do here? There isn't a single book in this place.
Just as the golden Schmier had told me, I had come to read books, yet there wasn't a single one. I dismounted my beast and walked a full circle around the tree.
"You've finally arrived…"
"Hm?"
I heard a voice from somewhere, but no one was here. Remembering the golden Schmier that had witnessed my earlier blunder, I quickly reviewed my own behavior. I hadn't done anything instinctive here yet, had I?
…I haven't done anything unladylike, right? Yeah. I'm fine, I'm fine.
As I looked around, being careful not to forget to act like a proper Lord candidate, the great tree in the center gradually became translucent and slowly began to take on a human form.
"Huh!? Wha—!?"
At the utterly bewildering phenomenon, I stumbled backward. Honestly, I had no idea what was going on. I had come here wanting to read books, yet there wasn't a single book, and now something strange was happening. Confronted with a reality I couldn't comprehend, I was starting to want to go home.
…Where's the exit?
I tried to flee, but the hole that should have connected to the staircase I'd come through had apparently closed at some point, leaving me in a completely circular plaza. In other words, there was no escape route.
…I don't know what's going on, but I can tell something big is happening. This is beyond anything my common sense can handle!
I wanted to ask someone whether this kind of phenomenon was normal in Yurgenschmidt. While I was flustered and confused on the inside, the great tree had fully taken on the shape of a standing human.
He was a man who perfectly matched the impression of the great tree. By my unreliable eye for judging age, he looked to be in his late thirties. He was slender and large-framed, but completely white. His white hair fell past his waist, he wore white garments, and his skin was white too. The reason he seemed neurotic was probably the furrow between his brows, similar to
With his eyes still closed, he opened his mouth.
"You're late. What in the world have you been doing? The mana of the foundations is depleted, and the mana enveloping all of Yurgenschmidt is thinning, isn't it?"
"Huh? Uh—s-sorry?"
Being scolded the moment we met, I apologized without understanding what was going on. He was clearly no ordinary human. There was no telling what might happen if I angered him. It was best to stay humble.
But why was he suddenly scolding me? He had said I was late first, which meant he must be the Old Master who had been waiting for or calling for me.
"Um, might you be the Old Master?"
"Old Master? …Ah, what a nostalgic form of address."
So this was the Old Master. I stared at the white man intently. According to Schwartz and the others, he was both ancient and important, so I probably needed to be careful in how I handled this.
"Old Master, may I ask you a question?"
"I have a question as well. Your vessel has shrunk considerably, hasn't it? Did you fall under some strange curse?"
"A curse?"
I had wanted to ask who he was, but the Old Master had said something so out of left field that I never got the question out.
…Did I get cursed or something?
"Even if you came here in that vessel, it would be far too small to contain it all. What a troublesome affair."
"What are you talking about?"
There was so much I wanted to ask—about the vessel, about what it was supposed to contain. But the Old Master didn't answer any of my questions. He stood straight and simply tilted his face upward.
"May I request your aid? Anwachs."
The moment the Old Master spoke, blue light rained down upon me.
…Wait—wasn't Anwachs the God of Growth?
I was idly thinking about how casually he had called out, when I noticed my own body beginning to transform with a sickening sensation. My bones creaked, my muscles felt as though they were being stretched, and pain shot through my entire body. I gasped at the unexpected turn of events.
"It hurts! It hurts, it hurts! Old Master!"
"Give up and endure it."
"How cruel!"
Without any prior explanation, he had gone and asked Anwachs to make me grow, and now he was telling me to just endure it? That was too much. I wanted to complain, but the blue light raining down on me showed no sign of stopping, and the searing pain throughout my body didn't cease either.
Amid the agony, the first thing I noticed was the waist cinch. The belt that held up my stockings and the string of my pumpkin pants dug painfully into my stomach. It hurt, and breathing was becoming difficult. Through tears of pain, I frantically unfastened the leather belt that held my beast's magic stones and recovery potions, undid the sash of my High Priest ceremonial attire, and cast off my ritual garment. Then I hiked up the skirt of my undergarment to undo the waist cinch and the panty string.
When my breathing finally eased, my scalp was already creaking and tight. The hair styling gel had been holding my hair so firmly in place that it was pulling at my scalp in every direction. Instinctively, I knew I needed to get the gel out.
"Vaschen!"
Enveloped in water, I pulled out my hair ornament. Once the gel washed away, my hair—which fell so easily once the ties were removed—came undone on its own.
My momentary relief was short-lived. My shoes were painfully tight, and my toes had begun to curl inside them. Even after desperately kicking off my shoes, my stockings were just as constricting. The tips of my toes hurt, but my thighs looked like they would bleed if I didn't do something.
"Messer."
I used my Schtappe to create a knife and, in one swift motion, slashed my stockings from thigh to toe. It was a crude measure that only a blade crafted from a Schtappe could accomplish without risking injury to myself.
Then I turned the knife on the ties at the back of my garment. With a series of soft snaps, my back loosened and opened naturally.
My arms were getting cramped, so when I took off my upper garment, I was essentially down to my undergarments. My chest had grown since my Motosu days—enough to show cleavage—making my undergarment uncomfortably tight, but a slit along the side with the Messer meant I could still wear it. Below, my pumpkin pants still had room, so even though they were puffed tight, I didn't need to take them off.
…Ugh, I barely maintained the minimum level of dignity. Safe. I nearly ended up in nothing at all.
Because I had the memories of my Motosu life, I could still think of it as "safe," but by Yurgenschmidt's noble standards, this was a complete violation. What a barbaric thing to do to a young lady!
…I mean, sure, I'd wanted to grow, but I never asked for this kind of growth!
The blue light had disappeared at some point. I glared at the sky where the unexpected light had shone. The growth seemed to be complete—the pain had faded. My entire body was utterly exhausted, but at least the agony was gone.
…I want recovery potions so badly.
After drinking my recovery potion infused with kindness, I reached for my High Priest ceremonial attire. The ceremonial garment had been altered to accommodate growth. If I cut the stitches letting it down, it should fit my newly grown body. It had been taken in to save money, and this certainly wasn't how I'd intended to use it, but I wanted to give my past self a round of applause.
I cut the stitches along the altered parts with my Messer and put it on with a rustle. Unlike Lizelote and the others, I couldn't tie it neatly, but I managed to fasten the sash. At least I had avoided walking around in my undergarments.
With an exhausted sigh, I raised my head. The white man stood there, utterly motionless. I glared at the one responsible for this whole ordeal—the one who had asked Anwachs to make me grow.
"Old Master! You saw me in an utterly undignified state!?"
"I cannot see physical forms. All I can perceive is Magic Power."
I thought, *Huh?* But come to think of it, he really had never opened his eyes.
"Your vessel seems to have grown. It's good that you've grown since that time. This time you came through the proper path. You're a bit more mannerly than back then, at least."
…The proper path? Back then? Was he mistaking me for someone else? Huh? Was I grown because of a case of mistaken identity?
With his eyes still closed, he might not even know whether he had the right person.
"Um, if you'll pardon me…"
"Now, bring out your Schtappe and offer your prayers."
"Wait—hold on. I need to change—"
"I can't wait any longer. Hurry."
His stern tone made me reflexively respond "Yes" and produce my Schtappe. Offering prayers was something I had done many times before. I would just have to go along with it until the man before me was willing to listen to what I had to say.
The moment I gave up persuading him and brought out my Schtappe, noble colors began pouring out of it one after another.
"Whoa!"
The noble colors that flew from the Schtappe floated as seven orbs of light along a circle roughly one meter in diameter centered on me. They hovered at about chest height. The spherical lights grew denser, deepened in color, and transformed into rectangular shapes. In the end, they became the Slates of noble-colored magic stones—each one corresponding to a color I had obtained from the shrines of the gods during the Lord's Conference—and hovered in the air before me.
The one directly in front of me was the blue Slate I had obtained first. The words that had been etched into my mind when I absorbed it came naturally to my lips.
"Klectark."
The blue Slate transformed into a thin pillar of light, and the blue light moved leftward around the circle as if telling me to speak the next word. The yellow Slate arrived before me.
"Taidighin."
The yellow Slate became a thin pillar of light as well. Next came the green Slate, the red Slate, the white Slate, the black Slate, and the gold Slate, each transforming into a pillar of light in succession. When I was surrounded by the pillars of light, the white man slowly looked upward. I followed his gaze.
There was a gap in the ceiling, and I could see blue sky beyond it.
"Call upon the Supreme God and the five great gods, and pray from the bottom of your heart. Ask to borrow the wisdom of Mestionora."
Doing as the white man instructed, I knelt on the spot and offered my prayers.
"I am one who offers prayers and gratitude to the gods who created this world. Governing the vast, towering heavens—the Supreme God is the divine couple of Darkness and Light. The Darkness God, Siegksandraht. The Light Goddess, Feuerspräde. Governing the broad, expansive earth—the five great gods. The Water Goddess, Flutrene. The Fire God,
The seven-colored light surrounding me shot upward with a whoosh. The next instant, a torrent of light cascaded down upon me. As the flood of knowledge that poured in with the light threatened to overwhelm me, a stern voice rang out.
"Do not resist. Accept it all. Receive as much of Mestionora's wisdom as you can—leave nothing behind, let nothing slip through the cracks."
That was the encounter with the Old Master.
Some readers had predicted in the comments that it would be the great tree of the Garden of Beginning.
Mine had gone looking for books and ended up with an unexpected growth spurt.
She wanted to cry and ask for books instead.
Next is the Book of Mestionora.