Published: August 3, 2025
At the lord's words, Benno instructed the servers and attendants to leave the room. Rosina, who had been playing as a musician, also stepped outside carrying Fischpiel. They all seemed a bit relieved—it was finally time for lunch.
After a moment's hesitation, Benno turned back to face the Guild Master and Lady Frieda. Although they were unrelated to the orphanage inspection, they would definitely need to cooperate when the Rosemine Workshop Orphanage Branch was established in the future.
“Lady Frieda, please step outside. Guild Master, I would like you to stay and hear the rest of the discussion.”
“...Benno, why are you leaving him here?”
“Gustav is the Guild Master of the Merchant Guild. He has connections with the major shops beyond mine, so it would be faster to have him involved in discussions about the industries emerging from this town.”
In other words, the lord left the Guild Master behind to ensure he would be dragged into any unreasonable demands that might come next. It looked like Benno would have to push his aging body to the limit. Poor guy. Well, he does seem full of energy, so maybe he’ll manage.
“Hmm, very well. Eckhardt, stand by the door. Everyone else, keep watch outside and prevent anyone from approaching.”
“Yes!”
At the lord’s command, the Guard Knights lined up in front of the door. Only Eckhardt Brother remained in the dining hall, while the three of us and Lady Frieda were sent outside. Mark took his place behind Benno.
The door shut with a bang, and silence filled the room. Tension thickened as the High Priest fixed his gaze on Benno.
We had done our best to prepare for this unreasonable request and devised countermeasures, but the opponent was Sylvester. Nobody knew what he might throw at us.
“Now then, please report.”
“Yes.”
Benno reported to the lord, reiterating the details already shared with the High Priest: the state of the orphanage, the surrounding economic situation, and concerns about failure depending on the actions of the responsible clerks.
Sylvester listened without a hint of surprise and nodded lightly. This was just a formality—to inform the Guild Master of the general situation.
“Rosemine, what do you think should be done?”
When Benno finished, Sylvester turned his gaze to me. I exchanged a glance with Benno briefly before facing Sylvester.
“I believe a new orphanage and workshop are necessary, even though it will consume much time and money. I would like the workshop operations to follow my methods, and since negotiating with influential townsfolk is troublesome, this would be preferable.”
“Oh?”
At this point, I explained the differences between the temple orphanage and the town orphanage. Sylvester prompted me to continue.
“The temple currently has few blue priests but many surplus gray priests. Therefore, we plan to dispatch several gray priests and gray shrine maidens to the new orphanage and workshop to teach the orphans my ways in both work and daily life. I would appreciate it if the new facility could have a small chapel attached for the gray priests to reside in, allowing me to come and go freely to oversee things.”
Building a new orphanage inevitably requires time and money. The cost is a real drawback, but time is a good thing for Benno—it allows him to prepare for expanding the printing operations.
“If we start constructing the orphanage and workshop from scratch, time and money are unavoidable. But considering the future, new facilities are necessary.”
To prevent interference from powerful locals and protect the orphans, it’s better to have them follow our way to smooth out life and work.
As I explained what Benno and I had already discussed several times, the lord glanced briefly at Benno.
“If you build a workshop, will the tools be ready soon?”
The tool orders had already been placed and preparations made, just in case they had to rent a workshop space before the orphanage was built. Benno nodded firmly.
“We have prepared to a certain extent. However, considering the number and ages of the orphans, printing might be difficult due to insufficient strength.”