Ascendance of a Bookworm: Part 5 Volume 5

“This is awful. Just awful,” I groaned. “How can that man call himself a prince when he doesn’t own a single book? He’s crushing the dreams of little girls everywhere! On top of that, he already has two wives. How am I supposed to make my heart throb for him?! I mean, he can’t even make a single library to propose to me with!”
“The heck are you saying?” Sylvester griped. He was baffled, but this was a matter of grave importance.
“Wilfried told me I could do as I pleased with the Ehrenfest Dormitory’s bookshelf. Wilfried! Yet an actual prince can’t promise me a single book. I can’t believe I’m having to give up on my book room, even after I suggested moving into the palace library.”
The quality of my life wasn’t the only thing on the decline—so was the quality of my fiancés. This was a nightmare. It had never even crossed my mind that being adopted into the royal family would cost me so much.
“I’m stunned,” I said. “Depressed, even. Prince Sigiswald is the biggest disappointment of my life.”
In an instant, my scant few reasons to be optimistic about moving to the Sovereignty had been completely obliterated. I had planned to spend the next year devoted to my handover duties, content in the knowledge that a new book room awaited me, but now my motivation was swirling down the drain. Swoooooosh.
“I’ll still go, since they promised to improve Ferdinand’s living conditions and spare him from punishment, but... I don’t want to.” A deep sigh escaped me. “To think I’m going to lose my library...”
“Drop it already. They might not provide any books, but they’ll at least make the room for you. And you have that book deposit system, right? We’ll send you the ones we make here, and your shelves will start filling up in no time. What’s the difference?”

I considered my options, though I did not voice them. It seemed likely that I was closer to obtaining the Grutrissheit than anyone, simply because of how much I had prayed since enrolling at the Royal Academy. The blue slate had already been whole by the time I entered the shrine, and it seemed reasonable to assume that I could obtain the others without much of a struggle.

However... Ferdinand told me that the Grutrissheit was in the forbidden archive, which only royalty could enter.

There were still plenty of documents in the underground archive that I’d yet to read; it was entirely possible that some unknown factor would stop me from becoming the Zent, even after obtaining slates from all of the primary gods’ shrines. For that reason, it was best not to give them any strange ideas.

Not to mention...

The royal family obviously wouldn’t overlook a Zent candidate who seemed capable of obtaining the Grutrissheit through the shrines. If they were set on Sigiswald taking the throne, then they would probably make me marry him. Worst-case scenario, they’d simply kill me and take the Grutrissheit by force. It was best to remain silent; I didn’t want to leave Ehrenfest, where my family was.

I put on a noble smile and said, “Perhaps further research in the underground archive will reveal what must be done to get Prince Sigiswald a Grutrissheit.” Of course, I didn’t believe that in the slightest; it was little more than nice-sounding nonsense.

Eglantine gave me a searching look, then cast her eyes down. “I thank you ever so much for lending me your ear, Lady Rozemyne.”

I took my leave and returned to the dormitory—whereupon I received some exciting news from Damuel and Angelica. They had found all of the primary gods’ shrines marked on the map I’d given them