Ascendance of a Bookworm

Today, we were all going out together. At the third bell, we were to gather at the Gilberta Trading Company to buy clothes.

Lutz and I had been called by Benno earlier to discuss preparations for winter with him.

"What about Tulli?"

"She can go talk to Corinna about making winter hair ornaments," Benno said.

At his words, Tulli went to Corinna to hear about the winter handiwork of hair ornament making. When Benno rang the bell, a woman from the back came out and took Tulli away.

"For now, this morning I've arranged for two pigs and two butchers. Without skilled craftsmen, having only beginners wouldn't get us anywhere, right?"

"Really!? So soon after yesterday!? Benno, you're amazing! You're so quick with work! I'm surprised!"

I clapped and praised him, and Benno proudly smiled and puffed out his chest, saying, "Praise me more." Since we were about to order a large amount of tools, I decided to keep praising him.

"Benno, you're wonderful! If you gave us a discount, you'd be even cooler."

"Rejected, you fool."

"That's too blunt, Myne."

I tried negotiating a discount on the commission fees, but the two of them looked at me with exasperation and flatly refused.

"As for the smokehouse, it seems to be available anytime within the next ten days. People usually want to make it just before winter because of preservation reasons. When do you want to do it?"

Thinking about pork processing as a way to make preserved foods for winter, it made sense that few would want to do it too early. In our neighborhood, it was often just before snow starts to fall.

Now that the basement felt like a half-refrigerator with a chill, the problem wasn't so much quality, but the risk of using it as regular food and running out by midwinter.

"Three days from now, please. That day, both Father and Tulli are off."

"Understood. Then we'll proceed with the plan for three days later. I've already been ordering some tools since we decided to join forces, so we have most of what we need. We'll lend you the rest, and you can also use what you have at home."

"Thank you. Also, this is the list of things needed for the orphanage's winter preparations, aside from firewood and food."

I showed Benno the list I had written on the wooden tag. He furrowed his brow and groaned.

"...That's quite a lot."

"It's my first time properly preparing, so we’re short on many things. And there are a lot of people..."

"If you've managed without them so far, maybe you don't need to prepare everything deliberately."

I smiled vaguely at Lutz's words.

"I was planning to do just that for the orphanage—preparing firewood and food and slowly gathering the rest. But when I ended up staying at the temple, my family wouldn't allow that."

As a result, unexpected expenses kept piling up.

"Well, you do tend to collapse easily and get sick. Their worries aren't entirely unfounded if they can’t keep an eye on you."

"Myne's room does lack a lot of little things needed for daily life."

Since we were having lunch, food-related items were manageable, but bath and bedding necessities were noticeably missing. We had no spare linen like towels or sheets, and though there were futons, no blankets. Bringing them from home would feel out of place and reduce what we had there, so we had to buy new ones.

To make matters worse, there were no carpets suitable for autumn and winter floors. The items left by the predecessor were moldy and unusable.

"Myne, do you want me to lend you some money?"

"No, thanks. It's better not to mix money with friendship."

At the third bell, Fran arrived leading the attendants. They all wore gray jackets over their going-out clothes. Since the jackets were simple, scarves or gloves could have made a difference, but since everyone wore the exact same gray jacket, they stood out a lot.

"We really need to buy clothes soon."

"Right? I feel like winter coats matter more than what's underneath. If you have a coat on, even priestly robes underneath wouldn't be a problem."

Benno’s eyes widened at my words.

"Wait, no. That’s not acceptable. You have to get a full set properly."