Ascendance of a Bookworm

A quiet anger filled the voice, and I heard gasps here and there. Oswald, lord wilfried’s chief attendant, looked completely pale.

“Sylvester, I recognize you as the lord. Even if you sometimes try to escape paperwork, you never run away when it really matters. You shoulder your duties and responsibilities as lord properly. That’s why I trusted what you said about lord wilfried, who has a similar temperament and used to run away from teachers, that he did similar things.”

The high priest spoke calmly. His calm tone made the anger feel even stronger, and it was frightening. What on earth had lord wilfried done in the temple to anger the high priest?

Although I wasn’t the one being scolded, my stomach clenched tightly, and reflexively I wanted to apologize with a “I’m sorry.” Maybe it was because I was used to being scolded.

“I thought it would be fine if lord wilfried had capable aides when he became lord, but lord wilfried is not Sylvester. And Lamprecht is not Karlstedt. Even if their temperaments and words are similar, they are different.”

“That’s... obvious, since they are different people even if they are parent and child, right?”

Father stroked his chin and furrowed his brows a little.

“Ah, they are different people. Until Rosemine pointed it out, I had somehow thought that because they looked alike, they would be raised similarly. But that’s not true. Sylvester shoulders responsibility as the lord, but wilfried uses his status as the lord’s son to avoid his tasks. I can’t imagine them being raised the same way.”

“Yes! I have a question!”

I sharply raised my hand at the high priest’s firm statement. It seemed to cut through the frozen atmosphere, and everyone gasped and looked at me.

With all eyes on me, the high priest lightly nodded, urging me to continue.

“What did lord Ferdinand see in brother wilfried to come to such an answer? Removing him from the list of successor candidates is a very serious matter, so please tell us why you judged him unfit.”

Watching Sylvester leaning forward eagerly for an answer, the high priest stroked his chin thoughtfully.

“Since the child I know best is Rosemine, I thought maybe wilfried looked inferior because he was unconsciously compared to Rosemine. But that’s not so. Lord wilfried is inferior even to the children from the orphanage, the merchant apprentices working in the workshop, and Rosemine’s attendants.”

Sylvester and Florentia’s eyes widened at the harsh evaluation. It was probably very different from what they had heard from teachers and attendants until now.

“That sounds quite excessive,” Sylvester whispered quietly, and I slightly frowned. It wasn’t excessive. It was the truth.

“It’s only natural that he is inferior.”

The lord and lady looked at me in shock. But I had no intention of stopping. If they didn’t properly recognize the current state, they wouldn’t be able to improve the environment or discipline lord wilfried.

“The children in my orphanage are strictly disciplined so they won’t be ashamed to serve as azure priests. Lutz and Gil, who live with purpose and constantly strive to improve, cannot be compared to lord wilfried, who lets all his whims pass without any effort or endurance... Even so, I wonder what lord Ferdinand is so angry about—what exactly did brother wilfried do?”

The one who reacted the most to my follow-up and hung his head was Oswald, lord wilfried’s chief attendant. Hearing that he was even inferior to orphans from two people, he seemed to slightly revise his opinion that this was not just a harsh critique.

“Lord wilfried can’t even sit and listen, and when told to complete tasks, won’t even try. I could have tolerated that because Sylvester was used to it. But that one brandished his status as the lord’s son to avoid responsibilities. I cannot accept a fool who uses his status to escape responsibility as the lord.”

The high priest said coldly to remove him from the successor candidates. It was serious, with no room for negotiation. Sylvester’s face changed as he sensed the high priest’s unwavering determination.