Ascendance of a Bookworm

The carriage stopped at the entrance of the temple, and I could tell the coachman had stepped down from the platform. I vaguely heard him speaking to the gatekeeper standing at the entrance.

Just as I was about to stand up from my seat to get out, Benno silently pressed me down. Looking up at him in confusion, he shook his head slowly without saying a word.

I took that as a sign to stay seated without speaking, so I settled back a little deeper into my seat, and he gave a small nod in return.

Ugh, my heart is pounding.

I had no idea what was going on, or what was going to happen next, and my whole body was trembling. Clenching my fists tightly, I glanced around inside the carriage. Mark was using the time while the carriage was stopped to do some writing.

Noticing my gaze, Mark looked up and gave me a reassuring smile. Realizing my face was probably a bit tense, I forced a smile back at him, which made Mark cover his mouth, trying to suppress a laugh.

Uncertain whether it was okay to break the silence, I puffed out my cheeks to show I was annoyed, and Benno poked my cheek from the side. I started to feel a bit silly for being the only one so nervous.

After a while, the carriage shook slightly, signaling the coachman had gotten back on. Mark quickly put away his ink and pen and handed the paper he had been writing on to Benno. Benno skimmed it and smirked.

Just as I leaned forward to see what was written, the carriage started moving again. At the same time, Benno spoke.

“At the gate, visitors must identify themselves, request an audience, and have the gate opened to stop the carriage. The order to get off the carriage will be Mark, then me, then you. Take my hand and get down slowly. Don’t jump off or miss a step.”

Apparently, he was referring to the time I jumped off with Lutz from the Guild Master’s carriage, shouting “Toh!” I quietly averted my gaze, worried I might stumble on the steps due to my nerves.

“I just requested the audience, so your attendants should be waiting at that gate. The one who used to serve the head priest will lead, followed by you and me, then Mark with the gifts, and the rest of the attendants will follow. We’ll head to the head priest’s quarters in that order.”

I had intended just to hand over a donation to the head priest, but it seemed I had to go through quite an elaborate process. I can’t even imagine how rude it would have been if I brought the money myself.

“I'll carry the donation box as you asked, and after you’ve checked inside the head priest’s office, be sure to thank me.”

“Huh? How? Is just saying ‘thank you’ or ‘I appreciate your help’ enough?”

“A more noble-sounding phrase would be better, but that’ll do.”

Noble words of thanks, like “It was a great service,”? That sounds way too pompous.

I thought about it and tried to recall phrases from knight’s tales and poetry collections, but those were too theatrical, and if the other person responded with something different, I wouldn’t be able to handle it with just a single verse memorized.

Since this was a merchant, I thought maybe something from business etiquette books would work, but it felt a bit off for something noble.

In the end, I pulled out some refined lady-like phrases from memory and lined them up.

“Hmm, how about, ‘I am truly grateful from the bottom of my heart for your kind acceptance of my request and your efforts’... or something like that?”

“Where did you learn such words!?”

Benno looked at me startled. His expression was so intense I couldn’t tell if that was a pass or a fail.

“Was that no good?”

“No, it’s enough. Use that wording until we return to the carriage.”

What!? Swallowing the voice that escaped, I forced a strained smile, though I was probably far from an elegant lady. I straightened my posture and took a deep breath.

“Understood.”

The carriage soon passed through the large gate and entered the temple grounds before stopping.

The coachman opened the door, and Mark stepped out first, followed by Benno. I stood last in front of the door.