E13 - The Choice to Be an Apprentice Priestess

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[00:01] Ferdinand
    Main went to the cathedral for her baptism,
[00:04] Ferdinand
    where she got lost and
    stumbled upon a library.
(Flashback) [00:08] Main
    So many books...
(Flashback) [00:10] Main
    Part of it's like a chained library, too.
[00:14] Ferdinand
    With her heart set on
    reading all those books,
[00:16] Ferdinand
    she met the high priest
[00:18] Ferdinand
    and asked to join the church
    as an apprentice priestess.
SIGN    Ascendance of a Bookworm
SIGN    Ascendance of a Bookworm
SIGN    Chapter Thirteen The Choice to Be an Apprentice Priestess
[02:03] Lutz
    What did you do, Main?
[02:05] Main
    Uh... I got lost looking
    for water and collapsed.
[02:12] Lutz
    There's more, isn't there?
[02:14] Main
    I found a library and got too excited.
[02:18] Lutz
    Huh? A library?
[02:21] Main
    Yes, a library! A god-given
    paradise on earth!
[02:26] Main
    A room with lots of books!
[02:29] Lutz
    Okay, never mind. I get it now.
[02:32] Woman
    You left out the most important part.
[02:35] Woman
    She said she wanted to become an
    apprentice priestess to read the books.
[02:40] Woman
    She collapsed while talking
    to the high priest about it.
[02:43] Lutz
    What's wrong with you, you moron?!
[02:46] Main
    Sorry...
[02:47] Lutz
    We're leaving before you get
    up to any more stupidity!
[02:50] Main
    Okay...
[02:53] Main
    Even I know I should've been more rational.
[02:58] Main
    But now I know how to become a priestess,
[03:00] Main
    and they said they'd let
    me read the scriptures,
[03:03] Main
    so all's well that ends well, right?
[03:09] Tuuli
    You really stood out during the march today.
[03:12] Gunther
    Of course she did! She's so cute!
[03:17] Main
    Hey, Dad.
[03:19] Gunther
    What is it?
[03:20] Main
    I'm thinking of becoming an apprentice
    priestess at the cathedral.
[03:32] Gunther
    What? I dare you to say that one more time!
[03:38] Main
    I wanna be an apprentice priestess...
[03:42] Gunther
    Screw that! I'm not letting my
    daughter go to the church!
[03:46] Main
    Wh-Why are you getting so mad, Dad?
[03:51] Gunther
    Priest and priestess apprenticeships
[03:53] Gunther
    are the last resort for orphans
    who have nowhere else to turn!
[03:57] Gunther
    They're not fit for you!
[03:59] Main
    The last resort for orphans? Really?
[04:02] Gunther
    Really! Now never bring it up again!
[04:06] Eva
    Gunther, Main didn't know.
    Go easy on her.
[04:11] Gunther
    You're right. Sorry.
[04:14] Eva
    Why do you suddenly want to
    become an apprentice priestess?
[04:19] Main
    The cathedral had a lot of books.
[04:23] Gunther
    That's what gave you the idea, huh?
[04:27] Gunther
    But you'll have to forget about those books.
[04:29] Gunther
    Stick to what you've been
    doing and make your own.
[04:34] Gunther
    Would you rather cut ties with us and
    live with orphans to read those books
[04:40] Gunther
    or live with us like you always have?
[04:43] Main
    Huh? Cut ties with you?
[04:47] Main
    Why?
[04:48] Gunther
    Apprentice priestesses live at the
    cathedral and are worked to the bone.
[04:53] Gunther
    You're not cut out for it when you
    can't even stay on top of your health.
[04:59] Gunther
    Besides, books are very valuable.
[05:01] Gunther
    Do you really think becoming an apprentice
    will guarantee that you'll get to read them?
[05:06] Tuuli
    Do you wanna be a priestess that badly?
[05:09] Tuuli
    Didn't you promise to stay with us?
[05:12] Main
    Nah.
[05:14] Main
    I just wanted to find a
    way to read those books.
[05:18] Main
    I don't wanna be a priestess,
    if it means parting with you.
[05:23] Tuuli
    Thank goodness!
[05:24] Tuuli
    So you'll stay with us, right?
[05:27] Main
    Yeah! I'll go turn the high
    priest down when I feel better.
[05:35] Gunther
    I'm so glad you understand.
[05:38] Gunther
    You're my little girl. I'm not
    letting the church have you.
[05:47] Gunther
    She's starting to develop a fever!
[05:50] Eva
    She must've relaxed too much,
    since the discussion's over and all.
[05:54] Eva
    Go to bed, Main.
[05:57] Main
    Okay...
[06:03] Main
    In my Urano days, books took
    priority over everything.
[06:08] Main
    I guess I love my family
    too much for that now.
[06:12] Main
    But...
[06:15] Main
    I finally found some books.
[06:18] Main
    I wanna read them!
[06:21] Main
    It wasn't until two days later that
    the fever got back under control.
[06:26] Lutz
    The master said he wants to talk to you.
[06:30] Lutz
    But you still look pale.
[06:32] Main
    I'll visit the cathedral
    tomorrow and then go see Benno.
[06:36] Main
    Will you come with me?
[06:38] Lutz
    Sure, but why the cathedral?
[06:40] Main
    To read the scriptures.
[06:44] Main
    And while I'm there, I'll worm my way out
    of the whole apprentice priestess thing.
[06:48] Lutz
    I see.
[06:49] Lutz
    I mean, you're clearly not
    cut out for life there.
[06:54] Main
    Yeah.
[06:59] Main
    The next day...
[07:01] Lutz
    Later. I'll come pick you
    up at the fifth bell.
[07:05] Main
    Thanks, Lutz.
[07:06] Lutz
    Don't you dare wander off.
[07:09] Main
    Gotcha!
[07:13] Main
    Pardon me.
[07:23] Ferdinand
    Would you be Main?
[07:24] Main
    Yes.
[07:25] Ferdinand
    I'm the head priest here.
[07:28] Ferdinand
    The high priest has told me about you.
[07:31] Ferdinand
    Take a seat.
[07:33] Main
    Thank you very much.
[07:37] Ferdinand
    I've been asked to read the
    scriptures to you until he returns.
[07:43] Ferdinand
    Sit there and listen.
[07:46] Main
    U-Uh, Head Priest...
[07:51] Main
    I...
[07:54] Ferdinand
    If you have something to say, spit it out.
[07:58] Main
    I don't want to listen!
    I want to read it myself!
[08:06] Ferdinand
    And why is that?
[08:08] Ferdinand
    Do you not want to learn more about the gods?
[08:12] Main
    I do, but I also want to
    learn all these new words.
[08:18] Ferdinand
    I see.
[08:20] Ferdinand
    But these are the holy scriptures.
[08:22] Ferdinand
    Do you promise not to lay a hand on them?
[08:26] Main
    I promise!
[08:39] Main
    Thank you so much!
[08:41] Ferdinand
    I'll start reading now.
[08:43] Ferdinand
    The God of Darkness spent an unbelievably
    long spell of time all by himself,
[08:45] Main
    I finally get to read a book myself!
[08:52] Ferdinand
    but one day, he...
[08:55] Main
    Head Priest, does this
    say "Goddess of Light"?
[08:59] Ferdinand
    That's right.
[09:01] Main
    Is this "God of Darkness," then?
[09:04] Ferdinand
    Correct.
[09:06] Ferdinand
    That was quick.
[09:09] Ferdinand
    If you're such a fast learner,
    teaching you will be worth my time.
[09:13] High Priest
    Oh, did I make you wait long?
[09:17] Main
    The head priest read the scriptures
    with me, so I had a lot of fun.
[09:23] Main
    I truly appreciate it.
[09:25] High Priest
    That's good to hear.
[09:28] Main
    Thank you, Head Priest.
[09:34] High Priest
    So, what did your parents say?
[09:37] Main
    They yelled at me, saying becoming
    a priestess is for orphans.
[09:44] Ferdinand
    It's not only orphans. There are nobles, too.
[09:47] Ferdinand
    Of course, orphans are the majority,
[09:49] Ferdinand
    but that's because they have nobody to take
    care of them or refer them to other jobs.
[09:56] Ferdinand
    I want you to understand that it doesn't
    take an orphan to be a priestess.
[10:01] Main
    But I'm frail and sickly, too.
[10:04] Main
    A live-in apprenticeship
    is impossible for me.
[10:09] High Priest
    So you didn't collapse the other
    day because you were unwell,
[10:13] High Priest
    but because you're sickly by nature?
[10:15] Main
    That's right. I have the Devouring...
[10:19] Ferdinand
    The Devouring?
[10:22] Main
    Yes, what about it?
[10:25] High Priest
    Bring it here!
[10:27] Ferdinand
    I know.
[10:29] Main
    Huh? Wh-What's going on?
[10:34] High Priest
    I offer the gods my prayers!
[10:35] Main
    Wh-What's happening?!
[10:42] Ferdinand
    Try touching this grail.
[10:44] Main
    Huh? May I really?
[10:47] High Priest
    Yes. Hurry up.
[11:00] Main
    Whoa! What's going on?!
[11:04] Ferdinand
    Main, we would like to speak to your parents.
[11:08] Main
    I'm sorry, Dad, Mom.
[11:11] Main
    Looks like this has become
    some kind of big deal!
SIGN    Ascendance of a
     Bookworm
SIGN    Ascendance of a
     Bookworm
[11:26] Main
    Lutz!
[11:32] Lutz
    What's the matter?
[11:35] Lutz
    Did you mess up again?
[11:38] Main
    I'm not sure what I did,
[11:41] Main
    but I feel like I did mess up, yeah.
[11:44] Lutz
    Urk. Not again.
[11:47] Lutz
    Anyway, Master's waiting.
[11:49] Lutz
    He told me to drag you there
    by the collar if I had to.
[11:53] Main
    N-No!
[11:58] Benno
    It's been a while, Main!
[12:00] Main
    Y-Yes.
[12:02] Benno
    Now, you will come clean.
[12:05] Benno
    Tell me everything that happened after
    you collapsed during the baptism.
[12:08] Benno
    Depending on that, I may have to
    rethink our business relationship.
[12:17] Main
    So I met the high priest and asked to become
    an apprentice to gain library access.
[12:25] Benno
    Use your brain a little,
    you thoughtless nitwit!
[12:28] Main
    O-Ow!
[12:30] Benno
    And? Did you get permission?
[12:32] Main
    When I went home and spoke to my parents,
[12:35] Main
    they yelled at me, saying becoming
    a priestess was for orphans.
[12:39] Main
    The head priest was saying
    there were nobles, though.
[12:43] Benno
    Didn't you notice the two different
    church uniforms, blue and gray robes?
[12:48] Benno
    The blue is for nobility,
    and the gray for orphans.
[12:51] Benno
    The orphans get ordered around by
    the nobles and work for no pay.
[12:55] Benno
    Since you're not a noble, you'll be
    a gray-robed apprentice priestess.
[13:00] Benno
    Of course your parents wouldn't allow it.
[13:03] Main
    Oh, so that's why Dad got so angry.
[13:07] Benno
    So? Were you able to worm out of it?
[13:11] Main
    Well, when I told them about my Devouring,
[13:16] Main
    they gave me a formal invite for my parents.
[13:21] Benno
    They're totally out to reel you in.
[13:24] Benno
    The silver lining is that you can
    still negotiate with the high priest.
[13:29] Benno
    You're in luck.
[13:31] Main
    What do you mean?
[13:34] Main
    And then Benno filled me in on the
    current situation with the church.
[13:41] Benno
    A few years ago, there was a coup
    and political purge in the capital.
[13:45] Benno
    The number of nobles went down drastically.
[13:48] Benno
    That reduction in the political class
    meant a downturn in the nation's power.
[13:52] Benno
    That's where the blue-robed
    priests in the church came in.
SIGN    Noble Society
[13:56] Benno
    They had fallen out of favor with their
    parents and been dumped in the church,
[14:02] Benno
    but now they returned to noble society.
[14:04] Benno
    That meant the church lost the
    blue robes' obligatory donations.
[14:08] Benno
    They were also the ones
    employing the orphans,
[14:11] Benno
    who were now out of work and
    having a hard time surviving.
[14:15] Main
    That sounds like a disaster!
[14:17] Benno
    There's an even bigger disaster.
[14:19] Benno
    The grail you touched is
    actually a magical item.
[14:24] Main
    A magical item?!
[14:25] Benno
    That's right.
[14:27] Benno
    Normally, the blue robes
    stored their mana within it,
[14:31] Benno
    but a lack of supply could
    mean smaller harvests.
[14:34] Main
    What? Mana even affects
    the size of harvests?!
[14:38] Benno
    Yeah. That's why, with
    fewer nobles around now,
[14:41] Benno
    the church is in dire need
    of people with the Devouring.
[14:45] Main
    Uh, what does mana have
    to do with the Devouring?
[14:50] Benno
    Wha... You didn't know?!
[14:53] Main
    Most commoners have next to no mana,
[14:56] Main
    but the few who are born with a lot
    of it suffer from the Devouring.
[14:59] Main
    Ah! That raging fever is actually mana?!
[15:04] Benno
    Before the coup,
[15:05] Benno
    nobles despised those with the Devouring
    for possessing mana as commoners.
[15:12] Benno
    But things have changed.
[15:14] Main
    The church needs my mana?
[15:18] Benno
    Correct. If you join the church,
    you'll be able to live on.
[15:25] Benno
    But at the same time, it's risky.
[15:27] Benno
    As you possess both mana and money,
    nobles will see you as fine prey.
[15:32] Benno
    So, Main, how about you sign
    a new contract with magic?
[15:37] Main
    A contract for what?
[15:39] Benno
    One that states Lutz will
    sell everything you make.
[15:45] Benno
    Even if a noble tries to steal you away,
[15:48] Benno
    this contract will guarantee
    that you can contact us.
[15:53] Benno
    Forge an unbreakable pact with
    Lutz while you still can.
[15:56] Main
    An unbreakable pact with Lutz...
[15:59] Main
    But what if that puts Lutz
    in danger or hurts him?
[16:04] Lutz
    Your survival is more important.
[16:08] Lutz
    Besides, if I sent you off alone,
    I'd have a constant headache
[16:13] Lutz
    worrying about what you might do.
[16:16] ---
    Jeez.
[16:18] Benno
    Listen up. If you already
    have your invitation,
[16:22] Benno
    that leaves you very little time.
[16:24] Benno
    First, officially register the
    Main Studio with the Guild,
[16:27] Benno
    and secure an outlet for your goods.
[16:29] Main
    Got it.
[16:30] Benno
    If money can buy you better treatment,
[16:32] Benno
    have a revenue stream ready before
    you negotiate with the church.
[16:36] Benno
    Prepare all the means you can
    think of to survive in that world.
[16:39] Benno
    Rather than getting exploited after you join,
[16:42] Benno
    find someone there to have a
    give-and-take relationship with.
[16:46] Benno
    Consider each and every
    aspect of your situation.
[16:48] Benno
    Fight with all you have to live on!
[16:51] Main
    Uh...
[16:53] Main
    Why are you getting so worked up for me?
[16:57] Benno
    The longer you live, the
    more products you'll create,
[17:00] Benno
    and the more profits for us.
[17:02] Mark
    Master's worried about you, since
    you're always walking a tightrope.
[17:08] Benno
    Shut up, Mark!
[17:10] Mark
    I won't go as far as saying he
    sees you like his own daughter,
[17:13] Mark
    but he is genuinely concerned for you.
[17:17] Mark
    Of course, so am I.
[17:20] Main
    Thank you, Mister Mark.
[17:24] Benno
    Just him?
[17:27] Main
    Of course I'm grateful
    to you too, Mister Benno.
[17:33] Main
    Please help me with the contract
    magic and registering with the Guild.
[17:40] Freida
    Oh! You want to register Main Studio?
[17:44] Freida
    And here I thought you would be an
    apprentice merchant at the Gilberta Company.
[17:49] Main
    I gave up because merchant work
    would be too physically demanding.
[17:54] Freida
    In that case, would you divert Main
    Studio's products to our company?
[17:58] Main
    Hey, I gave you the pound cake, remember?
[18:01] Freida
    You did. And Liese's obsessively
    trying out different flavors for it.
[18:05] Freida
    You should come taste them.
[18:07] Freida
    Not with Lutz, but your older sister.
[18:12] Main
    If you want to estimate
    the demand for a product,
[18:14] Main
    you should canvas opinions
    from a wide range of people.
[18:19] Freida
    A wide range of people, you say?
[18:21] Main
    I know! How about throwing a sampling party?
[18:24] Main
    You prepare bite-sized portions
    of various pound cake flavors
[18:28] Main
    and ask the guests which
    ones they liked best.
[18:32] Freida
    That sounds like the perfect idea!
[18:34] Freida
    Things are about to get busy!
[18:37] Freida
    I'll send word as soon as we set a date!
[18:40] Freida
    Toodles!
[18:44] Lutz
    See? Isn't she just like you?
[18:48] Benno
    She sure is.
[19:02] Main
    What's up, Lutz?
[19:06] Lutz
    Are you really gonna join the church?
[19:11] Main
    Yeah, probably.
[19:16] Lutz
    Oh...
[19:20] Main
    Look, Lutz. If you wanna
    say something, out with it.
[19:27] Lutz
    I don't wanna. It'll make me sound lame.
[19:31] Main
    I see.
[19:36] Lutz
    You liar.
[19:39] Lutz
    You said we'd make and sell books together.
[19:44] Main
    I'm sorry, Lutz.
[19:47] Lutz
    You don't have to apologize.
[19:49] Lutz
    I know I can't do anything for you.
[19:54] Lutz
    But...
[19:55] Lutz
    It still hurts.
[19:57] Lutz
    You said you'd run a bookstore with me...
[20:01] Lutz
    I really wanted to make books with you.
[20:06] Main
    I know...
[20:08] Main
    But I won't give up on making books
    even if I join the church.
[20:14] Main
    I'm not giving up on my ambition so easily!
[20:18] Lutz
    What, to live a life surrounded by books?
[20:21] Main
    Exactly. Let's both do our best
    to make our dreams come true.
[20:28] Lutz
    I... I was only able to give my
    all because you were with me.
[20:32] Lutz
    And I wanted to keep it up
    at Master's store with you.
[20:37] Lutz
    I wanted to do so much more with you!
[20:45] Main
    Don't worry.
[20:47] Main
    Nothing will change if I join the church.
[20:49] Main
    Whenever I wanna make something, you'll
    be the first person I ask for help.
[20:58] Lutz
    But people already know your
    creations are valuable.
[21:02] Lutz
    They'll be lining up to help you.
[21:05] Main
    Even if I do work with someone else,
    I get the feeling it won't go so smoothly,
[21:10] Main
    and that I'll end up calling on you anyway.
[21:14] Main
    Will you help me?
[21:16] Main
    You're gonna bring all my
    ideas to reality, right?
[21:24] Lutz
    Yeah! I'll make anything and
    everything you think up!
[21:24] Lutz
    
SIGN    Next Chapter Conclusions
[23:11] Main
    Take that! And that!
[23:13] Main
    Next up, we answer the summons
     from the church!
[23:16] Main
    Take that! And that!
[23:17] Ferdinand
    What are you doing?
[23:19] Main
    I need to fight to secure
    the best treatment for myself!
[23:23] Ferdinand
    Leave that to your parents.
    You can't handle it.
[23:26] Main
    No, but I need to fight for myself...
[23:31] Ferdinand
    I warned you.
SIGN    Illustration by Tamaki Nozomu