CHAPTER 2

See chapter 1 for disclaimer.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: SPOILERS! This contains spoilers for the light novel series Ascendance of a Bookworm. Neither the anime nor the manga have reached this far.

AUTHOR'S NOTE 2: Thanks to a translation issue, the titles of some of the characters in the anime, manga, and books are a little different. I hadn't realized this when I wrote the first chapter, and I didn't want there to be any confusion. I'll be using the titles from the anime as that is what most will be familiar with.

Anime light novel

Ferdinand: head priest high priest

Count Bezewanst: high priest archbishop (high bishop)

OOOOOOOOOO

Benno tried to remain calm and collected as he looked over the small group before him. He repressed a sigh. This had turned into a mess he could never have anticipated when he agreed to meet a couple of prospective apprentices just a few months ago. Now he and the people he was watching, settled into the chairs he'd provided, were about to embark on something truly incredible, not to mention terrifying.

They were gathered in his office at the Gilberta Company that evening, which meant that Mark and Lutz were in attendance; as if he could have excluded the boy without drastic action. He had tried to get the head of the Merchant Guild to hold the meeting in his office instead, considering their respective positions, but the old bastard had cheerfully declined, shoving responsibility for what would be discussed that night entirely onto his shoulders. He was there, of course, in the corner and by turns, looking grim and amused. Grim because of the subject matter for the upcoming discussion and amused because he had successfully dodged the job of managing this circus.

The Myne-induced headache had reached epic proportions, but he found it hard to argue with the girl's logic. Like it or not, he was smack in the center of history in the making, and the only way out of the mess was through. The Gutenberg Group, as Myne had dubbed them, were all present and accounted for, much to their confusion. Benno found that he envied them their blissful ignorance. Mark and Lutz had already been briefed and were looking appropriately grim.

The guild master and Frieda were there, as the old man had been present at the meeting with Myne the day before, and he wanted his granddaughter's take on developing events. The new head of the ink guild was there, as were his daughter and son-in-law. Like most present, the three were confused as to why they had been invited to a meeting with such an odd assortment of people. Heidi, not surprisingly, looked excited to be there, even though she had little idea what it was about. Her husband and father looked wary, a more appropriate response in Benno's opinion. Johan and the foreman of the shop where he apprenticed were present. The foreman looked curious and a bit confused, while the younger smith, likely suspecting what was coming or at least that it involved Myne and thus a lot more work for him, simply looked miserable. Ingo, the carpenter Myne favored, poor fool, had been the one to build the first printing press to her specifications, and he looked like he had a glimmering of what the meeting might involve, but he didn't look worried. That would change.

"Thank you all for coming. I know this was an inconvenience, but I have information that you will all need. I have news about Myne. Some of you may have heard rumors, and I first wish to clarify what actually happened, at her request. As much as I can, anyway." He took a deep breath.

"I have good news, bad news, and terrifying news. There was an incident at the temple a few days ago, one that I have very few details about. I do know that it involved the temple's high priest, a foreign noble, and the Archduke himself. The upshot of it is that Myne is, officially, dead. Her funeral, organized by her family, was held last night, minus a body, of course."

There was a stunned silence for a moment. Thankfully, before anyone could panic, the head of the ink guild asked. "'Officially?'"

"Yes. The Myne workshop is now under the management of the adopted daughter of an archnoble. Her name, coincidentally, happens to be 'Rozemyne.' Through machinations I'm happily ignorant of, this girl was secreted in the temple to protect her for some nebulous reason. Her true identity will be revealed at her baptism in the spring at her father's estate. At that point, she will be adopted by the Archduke and appointed as our city's high priest. Again, for reasons I don't know or care to know."

They were all staring at him, slack-jawed. Finally, Bierce, the head of the ink guild, sighed and offered one word in a tone that was equal parts exasperation, irritation, and resignation. "Nobles."

"Quite." Benno agreed. "I may be a merchant, but I'm very happy that I'm not the one trying to sell this load in the nobles' quarter." Several people chuckled. "That said, this is what the Archduke wants, so it's happening. We all just need to roll with it. Myne asked me to inform all of you in order to help prevent any future, potentially dangerous, misunderstandings."

"So, where does this leave us?" Ingo, the carpenter, asked. He had, Benno noted, gratefully, decided to move them along to the practical matters, rather than dwell on what the hell the nobles involved were thinking. The most they would get out of such an exercise in futility would be a headache; possibly a terminal one. When and if they saw Myne again, they'd all need to pretend that this situation made sense.

"Business will proceed, but we'll be dealing with an archnoble with deep pockets rather than a commoner girl with limited resources. But things are changing. The Archduke has taken an interest in the printing business. He has decided to throw his weight behind this endeavor and grow it into a duchy wide industry." He let that sink in for a moment while Johan groaned. "That means more business and thus more profit for all of us."

"More of those damned letter-press things." Johan groused.

"For a start." Benno agreed. "Things are going to start moving fast, people, and anyone who can't keep up is likely to end as a smear on the road. That might not be just a figure of speech."

"I hope that's the terrifying news." Bierce offered dryly.

"It's part of it." Benno told him. "The rest involves a proposal Lady Rozemyne had for me, regarding a new business venture."

OOOOOOOOOO

Once Benno and the guild master were seated at the table in her private rooms and had been served their tea, and Mark was standing by at Benno's shoulder; Myne, I really need to start thinking of myself as Rozemyne, turned to her head retainer. "That will be all, Fran. We will retire to my hidden room when we're done. You know how to contact me if you need me."

"Without an attendant, Lady Rozemyne? That is…" He saw the annoyed look on her face. "Of course, Lady Rozemyne." He knew that noble customs often rankled her, but she rarely made an issue of it. Given all that had happened in the last two days, Fran decided, just for once, to let it be. The knight assigned by the archduke to protect her was absent at the moment, and it was perhaps best that the matter not be mentioned at all.

Fran also knew that he was being told that the conversation to come was private, and he wouldn't be able to report anything other than the fact there had been a meeting to the head priest, but he also knew there was nothing he could do about it. He had begun to feel a bit guilty about reporting her movements and actions to the head priest, anyway. Her new retainers were entirely loyal to her, and the devotion she had inspired in them, and even in the recalcitrant Gil, had been inspiring. Nevertheless, the head priest's orders were paramount, for the moment. He retreated to the kitchen to check on the new retainers.

Myne smiled at her guests and rose to lead them to her hidden room, so they could speak privately. Technically, the meeting shouldn't even be happening. She was moving to Lord Karsedt's mansion in two days, and the head priest had declared there should be no more meetings with anyone until after her baptism as Rozemyne. She had told Fran, however, that this meeting had already been scheduled, and it would be unforgivably rude to cancel on short notice, let alone simply not be there for the meeting. So, she had sent a message to Benno, asking if he and the head of the merchant guild could reschedule to a couple of days sooner and come to the temple.

Benno had not been overly happy, but he'd played his part, pretending that there was a scheduled meeting. The discovery by Frieda that the name on the magical contracts had changed from Myne to Rozemyne, diminished his irritation. At least, somewhat. What he had been told by the head priest had been equally shocking.

Once the three men were settled in what appeared to be a small sitting room, and the door was sealed, Myne let the carefully studied noble mask drop. She slouched slightly and sighed. They watched the little girl, waiting with varying degrees of impatience, to hear what she had to say.

She laid out the basics of what had happened without going into details they didn't need, and asked Benno to inform the rest of the Gutenberg group so that there would be no problems with future meetings. Then she got down to what she really wanted to talk to them about.

"The Archduke is a reasonable man… for a noble." The qualifier made all three of her guests frown. "Don't give me that look. Remember, you're not talking to a real noble. I was born in the lower city just like you. My outlook isn't going to change, no matter how much they rewrite history."

"The qualifier is inappropriate, nonetheless." Mark offered diplomatically before Benno could call her an idiot.

"Do you know the difference between a reasonable noble and an unreasonable one?" Myne asked. "A reasonable noble sees advantage in treating you politely and making fair deals, not looking down on you, instead of treating you like dirt and taking what they want. They still view you as disposable assets, though, and it wouldn't overly disturb them to dispose of you."

Benno winced a bit at that, knowing it was true, but feeling a little disconcerted at hearing a little girl state it so baldly. "Your point?" He asked after a moment.

"Every life matters to me." Myne said. "Those in the lower city are people, fellow human beings, not disposable assets. I don't understand the noble mindset, and I doubt I ever will." She frowned and amended the statement. "I hope I never will." Then, she shook her head and got back on track. "To that end, I intend to continue my efforts to improve the lives of the people in the lower city. I want what we discuss kept secret, because I'm not sure my adoptive father would approve of all the changes I want to make."

"Such as?" Benno asked warily. He was used to reining in her wilder impulses, but given her new position in noble society, he doubted that was possible anymore, and the thought of some of the things she might try to do terrified him. Despite coming from the lower city, Myne was young, and really didn't understand that nobles and commoners were different kinds of animals, and ones that did not get along all that well.

Nobles tended to view commoners, when they thought of them at all, the same way they thought of farm animals. Cows gave milk, chickens laid eggs, horses pulled wagons, and so forth. When such creatures were not being useful, they were to be kept out of sight.

Commoners tended to regard nobles in much the same way they did dangerous forest animals. They were to be avoided whenever possible. When it wasn't possible, a delicate balance had to be struck between not looking like a threat and not looking like lunch. If what Myne had planned would make the Gilberta Company look like a potential threat, he didn't know what he would or could do.

"We'll start with the obvious. There's no point in spreading printing across the Duchy unless we also spread literacy. If you can't read, a book just takes up space."

"True." The guild master allowed. "You want to raise the literacy rate?"

Myne nodded. "I want to increase the customer base and help the people in the lower city in one step. This will be more of a long-term investment for those who get involved, but I know of a way to arrange some short-term profit. I'll offset the initial costs as best I can."

"How do we profit in the short-term by raising literacy rates?" Benno was genuinely curious. It tended to be a wild ride with Myne, but her ideas had made him a lot of money.

"I'd like the merchant guild to offer a new service to the various businesses in the lower city. Tell them that, for a small fee, you'll teach their apprentices how to read, write, and do numbers. Push the idea that literate apprentices will be far more useful to them by helping them grow their businesses while avoiding things like tricky worded contracts."

"That could work." The guild master nodded. "We've certainly had complaints about some nobles and merchants taking advantage of illiteracy. I know of several who would put the money and their apprentices' time into the endeavor."

"I'd also like to offer a similar service to the unbaptized children. Tell the parents it will give their kids a real advantage in finding apprenticeships in the future. Afterall, who would you prefer to take on as an apprentice? Someone who can read and write, or someone you have to train from the ground up? You won't be able to charge the families as much; in fact, some won't be able to pay, but it should be offered to as many as possible, even if they can't pay. Perhaps, some could barter services."

"Hmm."

She glanced at Benno. "Please don't pout. Charity is not a dirty word. Think of it as creating goodwill with future customers. It will probably cost less to teach a few poor kids to read than it did to offer those expensive gifts to the head priest at your first meeting."

"She's not wrong." Mark offered as the guild master chuckled, both at her point and at how well she knew the head of the Gilberta Company. Mark, himself, was making a heroic effort to contain his amusement at Benno's scowl, as he knew exactly how expensive Benno's gifts to the temple's head priest had been. And while it had payed off, in several ways, the extravagance had still surprised him a bit.

"I especially want all of the Gutenbergs to be able to read." Myne pressed on. "Right now, Heidi can't, and you've seen what she's capable of. Imagine what she could become once she learns how to read and write?"

"An even bigger headache for her husband?" Benno offered. "And probably the rest of us."

The guild master ignored the younger mans' snippiness and nodded thoughtfully, pushing on. "I can see the advantage, short-term and long-term, but why do you believe the Archduke would not approve?"

"For this venture," Myne admitted, "it isn't so much a lack of approval as a lack of understanding. Most nobles, I suspect, would ask; 'what's the point of a literate blacksmith?' You don't need to know your letters and numbers to swing a hammer." She shrugged. "Best not to confuse them."

"And the ultimate aim?" Benno asked shrewdly. The reasons she had laid out were good ones, and they were nearly enough to convince him that the venture would be worth it, especially if she offset the startup costs. But with Myne, or Lady Rozemyne as he supposed he had to get used to calling her, there was always something more.

"Knowledge is power." Myne said simply. "Once commoners across the duchy and beyond, I feel certain this idea will spread, can read and share information and ideas more easily, they'll discover that the more you know, the more you have to know. Literacy is a source of power all on its own, and I'm not sure the nobles really appreciate that." It is not a well-armed populace that a tyrant should fear, so much as a well-informed populace.

She deliberately didn't say the last out loud. Benno would freak.

"You expect literacy to change the balance of power?" The guild master sounded intrigued.

"Not immediately, and not by itself. There's also no changing the fact that the nobles have most of the mana or that the farmers are dependent on that. It's a way to start putting things on a more equal footing, though. That, the nobles won't like."

"That seems likely." Benno agreed, frowning. "I don't think I want any part in a revolution." The guild master looked less certain. After all, Benno hadn't had to basically sell his own granddaughter to a noble. It had been to save Frieda's life, but he still wished there had been another way.

"Who said anything about a revolution?" Myne asked innocently. "You're just businessmen trying to earn a little extra profit and looking to a future full of even more profit."

"Myne." Benno began, starting to feel a bit irritated with her. He wasn't certain whether it was the faux innocence or the fact that she was right that annoyed him more.

"I'm after evolution, not revolution. It's a gradual, natural change. I just want to start things moving, not violently upset society in one go. That wouldn't really help anyone."

"Fine." Benno allowed. "Sounds harmless enough that we'll probably survive it. What else? I know you've got something else up your sleeve."

"It's a matter internal to the temple, but I would like your thoughts."

"Go ahead." The guild master encouraged her when she hesitated.

"I want to end the practice of the blue-robed priests forcing their female attendants to 'offer flowers.'"

"Offer flowers?" The guild master asked in some confusion. He knew next to nothing about the temple's practices. He glanced at Benno and found the younger man looking uncomfortable. Then, the penny dropped. "Oh."

"Yeah." Myne nodded. "A gray-robed shrine maiden can't refuse an order from a blue-robed priest, especially if she's his retainer. If it's not a blue-robe having his fun, which is bad enough, it's a blue-robe offering his attendants to noble visitors as a kind of payment or bribe." Her face twisted in distaste. "This is supposed to be a temple, not a brothel."

"That, likely, won't be a popular move." The guild master advised. "But as high priest, you should have that authority. I would suggest consulting the head priest about how best to proceed."

Myne nodded. "I'll do that. I think he'll be sympathetic, at least." She frowned. "He can be fiercely pragmatic, though, and this might cut down on the number of future grey-robed retainers available." At their confused looks, she explained. "Did you know that a number of the gray-robed priests and shrine maidens aren't actually orphans, but the children of nobles and gray-robed shrine maidens that were forced to offer flowers? That is, raped?"

Judging by their expressions, Myne concluded, they didn't know that.

"The purpose of the orphanage," she continued, "is not to provide care for children who've lost their parents, but to train servants for the nobles. When a lot of the blue-robed priests left a while back to return to life in the noble quarter, a lot of the retainers got left behind, but a few were purchased by nobles that decided to take their favorite retainers with them."

"Purchased." The guild master frowned. This, apparently, was something else he didn't know about his favored customers.

"Nobles don't have employees, apparently. They have slaves, but call them retainers." She frowned in thought. "Maybe to soften the blow? I don't know. There's still a lot I don't know about noble society, but I do know that the more I see of it, the less I like it. Calling chains jewelry doesn't mean you aren't a prisoner." She saw the looks on their faces. "I don't have any plans regarding that practice. I honestly have no idea what to do about it."

"I see." Both men looked relieved, but still unhappy about the revelation. "Are there any other matters?" Benno asked.

"No." Myne shook her head. "I mainly wanted to let you know what was happening and to ask you about the reading instruction."

"Ask?" Benno raised an eyebrow.

Myne rolled her eyes dramatically. "This isn't an order from a noble, Benno. It's a business proposition. While I do want it to happen, you're free to refuse if it's too much trouble or you don't see any profit in it after running the numbers properly." She spread her hands in a helpless gesture. "I admit, I can't predict all the potential problems and costs. I'll leave the details to you, but bear in mind; the Myne workshop is willing to provide the materials and initial funding for the venture."

"Materials?" The guild master asked, his interest piqued.

"Books for the students to use. Slates and chalk, flash cards for their use. Free initially, but at a steep discount later on for materials used for educational purposes. I view it as an investment in the future, like Benno's gifts to the head priest."

"You've taught this one well, Benno." The guild master noted while suppressing a smirk at the younger man's expression. "I appreciate your consideration in not making it a command, Lady Rozemyne, and I do see the potential in your idea."

"As do I." Benno admitted somewhat reluctantly, as he hated agreeing with the old bastard about anything.

"You are something I never thought I'd see in my lifetime." The guild master continued in a more serious tone. "A noble with a commoner's upbringing and sensibilities. I find myself leery of your proposals only because I can foresee what a dangerous combination those sensibilities and an Archduke's resources could be in the wrong hands."

And they still didn't know about everything she wanted to do. Myne hadn't spent all of her time reading in her past life. She'd learned handicrafts, gotten a well-rounded education at her university, and she'd occasionally watched TV. She remembered something she had once seen a villain on one of the shows do. She held out her cupped but empty hands as if showing them something.

"Do any of you know what these are?" She asked with a bright smile.

The three traded confused looks.

"The wrong hands. Wanna help me change the world?"