Everyone noticed the cough and turned their gazes toward Grandfather. But considering our ranks, I should have greeted the Lord and his wife first.
I stepped forward toward the Lord and his wife and knelt.
"I am sorry for causing you worry."
"
When I stood at Adoptive Father's half-amused voice, he in turn knelt down to meet my eyes. My eyes went wide in surprise at the same moment the room rustled. A lord does not kneel before anyone in his own domain. I had no idea how to respond.
But Adoptive Father paid no mind whatsoever to the murmuring around us. He grabbed my cheeks, pulled me close, stared at me as if peering inside, and then lightly pinched my cheeks.
"Good, I'm glad to see you're well. After the attack,
Come to think of it, the High Priest had said he would eliminate anyone who disturbed my rest. He hadn't been exaggerating—he had actually barred Adoptive Father and the rest from even attempting to visit.
"Rozemyne, there is something I have wanted to tell you for these past two years."
As he spoke, Adoptive Father took both of my hands. Not knowing what was about to happen, I felt the urge to pull them back, but I tilted my head instead.
"What is it?"
"Not as the Lord, but as a father with children... I am grateful that you saved my children."
Saying that, Adoptive Father pressed his forehead to the back of my hand. I didn't know what was happening, but I imagined this was probably the highest form of gratitude one could show.
...I understand you're grateful, so please let go already! Your gaze is killing me!
I looked toward Adoptive Mother, who stood one step behind him, seeking help, but she struck me with a follow-up blow: "I, too, am grateful. Not just as Ehrenfest's, but as my own saint." I had only gone on a rampage out of love for my little sister, and now the Lord and his wife were bowing to me like this—it was more than I could bear.
"That's enough, both of you. Rozemyne is so frozen up she can't move."
"Father!"
Thanks to Father's intervention, Adoptive Father straightened up smoothly and returned to his usual posture, looking down at me.
"Ferdinand tells me you must make up for two years of lost progress before you go to the
"Yes."
"Rozemyne, you tend to push yourself too hard. Take better care of your body."
With that, Adoptive Father stood, and since my greeting to the Lord and his wife was finished, I crossed my hands in front of my chest.
"You should go show your face to those who were worried about you as well."
"Of course."
Right after I turned toward Father and Mother, Adoptive Father pointed out in a low voice: "Rozemyne, next is
...Whoops, close one, close one.
I hadn't even realized it until he pointed it out. Breaking into a cold sweat internally, I stepped forward before Grandfather.
"Um, Grandfather. This time—oh, no, two years ago, thank you so much for saving me. Ferdinand told me that if you hadn't found me, I might have died."
I called out to Grandfather with the thank-you letter I had written earlier. The stern-looking old man nodded heavily, saying, "I'm glad to see Rozemyne has recovered." Slightly nervous, I held out the heart-shaped letter.
"This is a thank-you letter. Would you accept it?"
"Oh, of course. ...Hmm? What an unusual shape."
"Hehe, it's shaped like a 'heart.' Cute, isn't it?"
"...A heart? Does it have some meaning?"
As Grandfather turned the heart-shaped letter over and over in his hands, looking puzzled, I nodded firmly and made a heart shape with the thumbs and index fingers of both hands.
"This heart shape is the shape of 'I love you.'"
My answer seemed to throw Grandfather for a loop. His eyes went wide and he froze for several seconds. Then, moving stiffly, he looked at my letter with a rather complicated expression.
"I-Is that so..."
The silence around us as Grandfather stared at the letter was heavy.
Maybe Grandfather didn't like the heart shape. Even after leaving the Knight Order, he still trained actively and was even asked to serve as acting lord. Perhaps he would have preferred something tough-looking rather than something cute.
...How stupid of me! If I'd thought about it for even a second, I'd have realized he might have preferred a helmet or a dinosaur—things boys actually like!
I was about to slap my forehead when it hit me. Origami could be unfolded and refolded. There would be a few odd creases, but he'd probably appreciate a shape he actually liked more.
"Um, Grandfather. I can fold it into a different shape too! Please let me fold another one for you."
"No, no, no, this is fine. I've taken a liking to this shape. There's no need to refold it."
"No, really. It's fine. I like this shape," Grandfather said, lifting the letter high in the air. The way he hurriedly tried to reassure me made my shoulders droop slightly.
...Just like I made
Thinking I had failed once again, I decided to take advantage of Grandfather's kindness and pointed at the letter. There was no origami culture here. He probably wouldn't be able to read the letter's contents without an explanation.
"Grandfather, this letter is meant to be unfolded so you can read what's written inside."
"Hm? Unfold it?"
"You can't read it like that, can you? Please lend it to me for a moment."
I took the letter from Grandfather's hands—he still had his brows knitted in puzzlement—and unfolded the heart-shaped letter. Then, holding it up so he could read the contents, I looked up at him and asked, "See? You can read it now, right?"
...Wh-what?!
Grandfather was staring down at my letter with an expression like the world was ending. His eyes were wide open, his face drained of blood, looking as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing. No matter how you looked at it, this was not the face of someone happy to receive a thank-you letter.
Had I made some terrible mistake without realizing it, like the mayor in Haldensee? I went pale and looked back and forth between the letter and Grandfather.
"...Grandfather, d-did I perhaps use some offensive phrasing or wording?"
"No, nothing of the sort! I was simply astonished at how well it was written! Rozemyne, you have beautiful handwriting."
...Even hearing that, his expression was absolutely not one of praise. It was more of a "What have you done!?!" look.
If I had inadvertently done something rude while trying to deliver a thank-you letter, that would be the worst. Grandfather was trying to smooth things over with a compliment, but that wouldn't work with everyone else. Not knowing what I had done wrong was troubling. If I had been rude, I had to apologize to Grandfather.
Trembling and shaking, I looked around with tears in my eyes, silently pleading for someone to help, and caught sight of Adoptive Father, who was clearly struggling to suppress his laughter.
...Adoptive Father is hopeless. He's enjoying my blunder.
He had the expression of someone who had found a new source of amusement, so I bypassed him entirely and turned to Father and Mother for help. Mother noticed my gaze and walked over.
"M-Mother, have I done something terribly wrong?"
"No, you haven't made any mistakes, Rozemyne. Don't make that face like you're about to cry. It's all right. Isn't that right,
Even Grandfather was fretting, looking back and forth between me and Mother.
"Please, both of you, calm down a little. ...Rozemyne, let me check to make sure there are no errors."
"Please, Mother."
I showed the letter to Mother, and she read through it before declaring firmly, "It's fine. There are no mistakes." I let out a breath of relief.
"Lord Bonifatius was probably just surprised because you changed the shape. You can restore it to its previous state, can't you?"
"Yes, I can refold it right away."
When I nodded vigorously, Grandfather let out a sigh of relief. It seemed that despite his appearance, Grandfather actually had a fondness for cute things.
I refolded the letter into a heart shape on the table.
"A single sheet of paper can become that shape?"
"Sister, please make one of those letters for me next time. It's so adorable."
"Of course, I'd be happy to."
It seemed I had managed to capture at least a little of Charlotte's admiration and respect. Feeling a bit pleased, I beamed with a full smile and handed the refolded heart letter to Grandfather.
"Grandfather, here you go."
Grandfather took the heart-shaped letter and stared at it intently once more with that complicated expression. Then he nodded gravely.
"Mm."
That complicated expression wasn't displeasure—it was simply the look he wore when studying something carefully. Relieved, I glanced around the room. Then, seeing the High Priest's face, I remembered. I was supposed to ask if Grandfather could teach me how to use body strengthening.
"Grandfather, I have a favor to ask. Would you teach me how to use body strengthening and the techniques involved?"
When I asked, Grandfather's eyes flew wide open and his lips curled into a grin. He thumped his chest and huffed through his nose.
"Leave it to me! I'll make you the strongest in all of Ehrenfest!"
I had absolutely no desire to become the strongest in Ehrenfest, nor did I think it was possible. Grandfather's enthusiasm was so intense I felt like he might actually kill me during training. Alarmed, I quickly added: "No, I don't want to become stronger. I just want to be able to move normally without relying on a magical tool for body strengthening."
"...Move normally?"
Grandfather blinked, as if he hadn't understood what I said.
Up until now, training had been waived considering my lack of stamina. But now that I was healthy, I needed to build endurance through training.
"My muscle mass has deteriorated significantly from sleeping in Yurieve. Even with a magical tool assisting my body strengthening, I can only move at an average person's level. So first, I'd like to be able to move without the tool."
As I explained my situation, Grandfather's eyes went wide with shock, and he looked me over from head to toe as if confirming whether I was really alive.
"That... that's going to be difficult. I've never taught body strengthening magic to someone who can't move. How do you even help someone who can't move to become able to move?"
"Huh? I... I don't know."
"Are you really sure you want intensive training?"
"Just please don't let me die."
As Grandfather and I pondered what to do, the High Priest pressed his temple with a look of exasperation, let out a long sigh, and made a suggestion. In the end, we decided to start with practicing body strengthening magic on just my right arm after removing the magical tool from it.
And then the dinner party began. Over the course of the meal, an explanation was given of what had happened in the castle over the past two years. Most of it was things I had already heard from the High Priest. All three of my brothers served as guard knights for the Lord's family, and they had apparently all been thoroughly trained by Grandfather.
"Grandfather must be quite powerful. Back then, I was wrapped in cloth and couldn't even open my eyes because of the medicine, so I wasn't able to confirm his commanding presence."
"Mm, I am strong. I still haven't lost to Karstedt."
What Grandfather told me from his seat beside me was that over the past two years, there had been a significant divergence in the growth of the knights' abilities. Those I had taught the magic compression method had apparently improved considerably. To be precise, they were still improving. The greatest gains were among the apprentice knights in their growth phase to whom I had taught the compression method. At the same time, the number of nobles who wanted to learn magic compression was also increasing.
"How about holding a lecture on magic compression soon? Of course, Rozemyne's health should take priority, but there seem to be many who are desperate to learn."
Grandfather made this proposal while glancing at me to gauge my reaction.
...Well, when you compare it to being trained by Grandfather and visibly improving, it's understandable they'd want to learn.
The people I had taught the compression method to were primarily the Lord's family's guard knights, along with several high-ranking and mid-ranking knights, with the exception of the leadership. If it were only them, I might have been able to convince myself that the difference was due to their baseline ability. But there was one case of a low-ranking knight who was still steadily increasing his magic power. Because of this, those who had been at roughly the same level as him were feeling anxious.
"Have you finished selecting the candidates?"
I looked toward the Lord and his wife, and Adoptive Father nodded slowly.
"The selection is complete up to the stage where we need Rozemyne's approval."
"Then let's hold it at the end of the winter social season."
"The end!? That's ages away!"
Grandfather exclaimed in surprise. I looked up at him from my seat beside me and nodded.
"The method of magic compression is taught in the first year at the Royal Academy, isn't it? If so, I'd like to observe Wilfried's progress and then decide whether to proceed. If Wilfried is included, his guard knights would be part of the group as well."
A faint murmur of joy rose from Wilfried's guard knights standing along the wall.
When it had been decided to teach the Lord's family's guard knights, I had rejected Wilfried's knights because they were not yet trustworthy. As a result, aside from
At the time, I had just been attacked by Wilfried, and I hadn't intended to sleep for two years, so I couldn't really fault anyone. But I had taught Charlotte's guard knights, so there must have been quite a gap between the children of the Lord's family. That couldn't be a good thing.
The High Priest nodded in agreement with my reasoning.
"If Rozemyne wishes to give Wilfried an opportunity as soon as possible, then that is acceptable. You will observe his conduct and growth, and make your own judgment. Wilfried, as someone who will stand in a position of leadership, you must act thoughtfully."
"I understand, Uncle."
Over the two years, it seemed the relationship between Wilfried and the High Priest had improved somewhat. I spent the rest of dinner listening to my brothers' accounts of Grandfather's training regimen, asking Mother about the progress of the printing business, and hearing from Wilfried and Charlotte about how things were in the children's room and how far they had gotten with their studies.
The next day, the High Priest's intensive course began. After breakfast, I would review the previous day's material, and when
After lunch, I practiced Feyshare with Wilfried and Charlotte. Either the High Priest had been running me through an extremely strict schedule, or I still carried memories from my life as Reina—the Feyshare had progressed considerably. As
After Feyshare practice, the next activity alternated daily between intensive knight training and offering dance rehearsal. At the Knight Order, I trained in body strengthening magic alongside Grandfather and Brother
Apparently, you couldn't say you had truly mastered body strengthening unless you could simultaneously strengthen yourself, summon a riding beast, and swing a weapon.
The offering dance, I was told, was performed on graduation day to celebrate the end of winter and the beginning of spring, to honor the birth of new adults, and to dedicate song, dance, and music to the gods.
Twenty of the top-performing apprentice knights were selected to dedicate a sword dance, while seven candidates were chosen from the lord candidate students. The rest would dedicate music and song. Being selected was a great honor both personally and for the territory, so everyone worked hard to earn a spot.
...So it's basically a graduation ceremony performance?
I understood it as an exaggerated version of a graduation ceremony song. If you were selected, wouldn't there be no need to practice? When I consulted the High Priest about this, he scolded me. Apparently, graduating lord candidates were required to participate, and if you hadn't practiced, you would humiliate yourself.
"Can Ferdinand dance as well?"
"Of course."
...Just like with Feyshare, he probably performed a flawless offering dance and made all the female students faint.
The offering dance rehearsals were held together with Wilfried and Charlotte. The two had already been practicing for about a year, had memorized the forms, and performed with a reasonable degree of polish.
"The men's dance and the women's dance differ, but what they have in common is that they revolve around rotation. The foundation of dance is rotation," the instructor said. It wasn't a dance of jumping, leaping, or moving up and down—graceful, beautiful lateral movement centered on rotation was the fundamental basis.
"Tension is essential in dance. It is very much like a kreisel."
A kreisel is a spinning top toy—you spin it and it balances as it rotates.
"When a kreisel spins beautifully with proper tension, it almost appears to be still, doesn't it? And when the tension weakens, the rotation becomes unsteady and it stops. Similarly, when dancing, you must appear almost motionless while maintaining tension to the absolute limit. Your axis must not wobble. A dance with uneven tension is never beautiful."
...Come to think of it, my Japanese dance instructor during my life as Reina used to say the same thing.
My mother during my Reina days had made me do both Japanese dance and ballet, saying, "You might find it interesting, right? Try everything for at least three years." Lured by my mother's promise to buy me a book if the instructor acknowledged my progress, and desperate for any book I could get, I had practiced diligently. For three full years, I attended lessons while finding it agonizing that I couldn't read during class time.
...Now my body can barely move at all, so it's completely useless knowledge.
"And above all, what is most needed in the offering dance is the heart. The heart that offers prayers and gratitude to the gods is the most important element of all."
...So if I pray sincerely, there's a chance I'll end up like the unveiling of my Feyshare all over again.
"I understand very well."
Resolved to be more careful this time, I learned the fundamentals of the dance and began with stretching exercises.
...Owwwwww! My body is so stiff!
After training and practice, I would wash off the sweat in the bath, change clothes, and have dinner. After the meal, I would read to prepare for the next day, and if Richalda confiscated my book, it was time for bed.
That was roughly how each day went—constantly being made to learn new things and having ever-growing piles of assigned reading placed before me. Reading was fine, but memorizing everything was exhausting.
...Even so, I'm going to do my best. I'll earn Charlotte's admiration and become an outstanding, exemplary big sister.
The first-year magical theory coursework wasn't particularly difficult. It covered the basics of magic power and magic stones. Both had elemental attributes, which connected to the gods and related to noble colors. I just needed to memorize which element corresponded to which color. Having been in the position of needing to memorize the Holy Book, I understood everything thoroughly from just a brief lecture.
The country's history was difficult. It was tedious, with similar-sounding names appearing one after another, turning my brain to mush. Fortunately, the founding narrative extending from the creation myths had been in the Holy Book, so I already knew it.
"For now, just memorize the broad strokes. You'll need detailed history going back decades. In particular, remember well the political upheavals in the capital—what changed as a result, and which factions rose to power. It will affect your relationships at the Royal Academy as well."
I looked at the royal family genealogy chart that the High Priest had spread out. The royal family, too, apparently pitted their children against each other to elevate whichever one had the most power. The previous upheaval had been caused by a power struggle between the First Prince and the Third Prince, resulting in a fierce conflict that had practically split the country in half.
The First Prince was defeated, and the Third Prince was killed on the brink of victory by an assassin dispatched by the First Prince, resulting in mutual destruction. Then the Fourth Prince and Fifth Prince fought once more, each backed by their respective power bases.
In the end, the Fifth Prince won, and perhaps because the prince himself had been repeatedly exposed to mortal danger in the brutal fighting, a massive purge was carried out against the Fourth Prince, his relatives, and the noble factions that had supported him.
"That dragged the national power down with a thud. How foolish, right?"
"That is certainly true, but the fool here is you. Watch your tongue. The Royal Academy is the place where those nobles who sided with the Fifth Prince walk around flaunting their influence."
"Besides, when you say 'purge,' it wasn't just the outright enemies, was it? If princesses from around this area and even their children were purged, that's going too far, isn't it?"
I pointed at the genealogy chart as I spoke. On the royal family's genealogy, those who had died of natural causes had their names erased with a single horizontal line, but those purged in political upheavals were crossed out with an X. The men of the bloodline, naturally, but also princesses and female descendants from previous generations who seemed to have little involvement in the succession dispute had been purged as well.
"You may say it went too far... but didn't they need to eliminate any further seeds of conflict? Wouldn't that be the natural response?"
"That may be, but if the purge reduced the very nobles who supported the country to the point where the nation fell into chaos, then I'd say it was undeniably excessive. They could have at least spared the more capable princesses, couldn't they? Marry them off to nobles in their own faction, or use them to seize the territories of the weakened opposing faction... I don't think they needed to kill them."
"There is some logic to what you say, but that particular princess deserved what she got. She was a princess who had affairs with all sorts of men because she wanted children with higher magic power. If left alive, who knows when a child of a supposedly dead prince might surface."
Hearing that story, I was thoroughly repulsed by the royals' do-as-they-please attitude. A princess running around having affairs with everyone, with any number of children potentially popping up at any time—I honestly couldn't see how she was different from the Blue Priests.
"Both the nobility and the royal family have been drastically reduced. Naturally, the royals, but also the powerful noble families are desperate to increase the ranks of their own kin. In your case, Rozemyne, since you always wear a magical tool that assists body strengthening, you don't appear to have particularly high magic power at first glance. But be careful not to be snatched away."
"What!? That's terrifying!"
"That is reality. At the Royal Academy, never let your guard knights or Richalda out of your sight."
Tears of fear welled in my eyes as I nodded repeatedly.
She had made a mistake!? — Trembling and shaking, Rozemyne. And Grandfather watching his granddaughter, thinking she looks like she's about to cry!? What do I do!? — Grandfather.
Grandfather and I, our attempts at communication thoroughly failing, ended up both teary-eyed. A translator is definitely required.
Next is the presentation ceremony.