Ascendance of a Bookworm

Stepping outside, I was stunned by the sheer amount of snow piled up. Since I’m basically a shut-in during winter, I hardly ever go outside. Seeing snow piled higher than my own height, I just couldn’t help but stare blankly.

The narrow alley leading to the main street had been shoveled, creating a path just wide enough for people to pass through, but the snow piled on the sides looked like it might collapse at any moment, which was scary.

“Myne, here,”

My father crouched down and spread his arms wide, so I obediently let him lift me up and clung to his neck. If I tried walking through this snow on my own, he wouldn’t make it to the gate before his shift change.

Being lifted up by my father, my face was now above the snow. When the cold wind blew, I could see the white expanse shimmering and rippling like waves on the sea.

“Dad, don’t you also clear snow from the main street?”

“That’s so the noble’s carriage can pass through.”

“…They really don’t have to move about in this snow, do they?”

Given how much snow was piled up, I thought there would be few people on the main street, but there were surprisingly many people walking briskly.

“There are so many people outside despite all this snow.”

“Because it’s a rare break between blizzards, right? When it’s snowing hard, there aren’t this many.”

As we chatted, snow began to fall again, so my father quickened his pace.

“It’s starting to snow again. Hurry, Myne. Hold on tight!”

“Ah! I’m falling!”

I was fussing and flailing as we reached the gate. After brushing off the snow, we headed straight to the duty room.

I knocked lightly and opened the door. In front of the fireplace was a desk piled high with documents, and there was Otto, busily doing calculations.

“Otto, I’ve brought the long-awaited assistant. Clear some space by the fireplace.”

“Thank you, Sergeant! I’ve been waiting, Myne-chan!”

Otto quickly cleared the papers off the desk, making room for me to work. Judging from the huge smile welcoming me, there must be a mountain of work piled up.

I took out a slate and stylus from my tote bag and hoisted myself onto a slightly high chair.

“Well then, Myne-chan, please check if the calculations in this department are correct.”

“Yes.”

Apparently, we need to clear this pile first before we can discuss anything. Looking at the large stack of documents, I prepared my stylus.

For a while, I quietly continued calculating. The only sounds were Otto clicking his calculator and me moving my stylus.

A knock sounded at the door, and a young soldier entered.

“Excuse me. I have a question for Otto-san…”

“Myne-chan, you have a question,” Otto said, without looking away from his calculator and documents, directing me to respond.

“Me? Wait a moment, I just need to finish this calculation…”

I completed the arithmetic, marked my answer for verification, and then looked up.

The young soldier compared Otto’s intense calculator tapping with my work, sighed lightly, and took out a parchment.

“This, please.”

“What is it? …Ah, a noble’s letter of introduction. Is the sergeant here now?”

“No, he’s on the night shift today…”

“Then get the department head’s seal and arrange for an early departure to the city walls. Since it’s a long journey in this snow, even usually gentle nobles might be irritable, so handle it promptly.”

“Yes, sir!”

The young soldier saluted and dashed out. I returned the salute and resumed my calculations.

“You’re really getting the hang of this,” Otto said without stopping his calculations. I replied while moving my stylus.

“The procedures are the same, after all.”

Gate duties are basically bureaucratic work. Once you learn the basic procedures, you can handle almost everything except for rare exceptions.

After a while, I started feeling a bit tired. I gathered the parts I had verified and stretched my back. Otto also seemed to finish and began organizing the documents.

“I’m tired now. Shall we take a break?”