M: {ED}
F: After Fran,
F: Main then managed to win over the hostile Gil and Delia, too.
F: However, she would soon come to face much bigger problems at the cathedral.
Title Card: Ascendance of a Bookworm
Title Card: Ascendance of a Bookworm
Ep Ep Title: Chapter Eighteen Orphanage Reforms
F: Well, Lady Main,
F: I'll take the alms of the gods to the orphanage.
M: Yes, please do.
Gi: Huh? Did Fran leave already?
Gi: We have all this bread left over.
M: The alms of the gods are running low now, aren't they?
M: You should take the bread to the orphanage.
Gi: I'll do just that!
M: Hey, Gil.
M: Can I ask you for a favor?
M: I just want to see what the orphanage is like.
Gi: I'll take you there.
Gi: I know a shortcut.
M: Huh... Everyone eats together in the girls' wing?
Gi: Yeah.
Gi: Food's handed out to gray robes, apprentices, and then unbaptized kids in order.
Gi: Here we are.
M: The basement?
Gi: Yeah. You'll find the unbaptized kids and gray-robed priestesses here.
M: Wait...
M: Are they locked inside?
M: What's with this awful stench?
Orp: Alms... of the gods?
M: N-No!
Gi: I-I'll close the door now!
Gi: Lady Main?!
D: I can't believe you foolishly took her to the basement, you foolish fool!
Gi: How was I supposed to know it'd turned into that?!
Gi: Lady Main, you're awake?
Gi: Thank goodness.
Gi: I... I'm sorry.
Fr: Lady Main, I'm sorry you had to see that.
M: That's the "orphanage"?
M: That awful mess?
Gi: It used to be better when I was there.
D: But then they got rid of gray-robed priestesses.
M: They did what?
D: Because of that, nobody was around to take care of the kids anymore.
D: And with the drop in blue-robed priests,
D: there weren't enough alms of the gods to go around,
D: and plenty of really young kids started dying off.
D: And that was a year ago, so it's probably even worse now.
Gi: Lady Main, help them out.
Gi: Please.
Fr: You mustn't get involved.
Gi: What?
M: Why not, Fran?
M: Life downtown and life in the church are very different.
M: You've already experienced that firsthand, and run into trouble because of it.
M: It's too risky to carelessly stick your nose into this.
Gi: Delia! You wanna help them too, don't you?
D: I want nothing to do with it. I don't want to remember life down there.
D: I just want to forget it all.
Flashback,D: Anything but going back to the orphanage, please...
Flashback,D: I'd rather die!
M: She must've gone through hardships I can't even imagine.
Gi: Please, Lady Main, help them out!
Gi: I get to eat all I want now, but they're still...
M: Forgive me, Gil.
M: Fran's right. It would be too risky for me to make a move.
M: There's basically nothing I can do here.
Gi: What?
M: Instead...
M: I'll ask the head priest to do anything he can to improve the orphanage's conditions.
Fr: Lady Main...
M: Fran, could you get me a meeting with the head priest?
Fr: Certainly.
F: I have to turn down your request.
F: There's no need for improvement.
M: But really young kids are starving and on the brink of death.
F: We don't have money to spend on unbaptized orphans.
F: Moreover, the church doesn't recognize unbaptized children as individuals.
M: Are you saying it doesn't matter if they die?
F: If they do, it is because the gods willed it.
M: What's the orphanage even for, then?
M: Is it not to raise children who don't have families?
F: It is not.
F: It is a place to raise servants for nobility, by the grace of nobility.
F: A well-trained gray-robed priest can fetch a pretty penny.
M: The way they think here is completely abnormal!
F: If you want to help the orphans, then do it yourself.
M: Is there anything I can do?
F: You can take on the unwanted role of orphanage director
F: and take personal responsibility for their well-being.
F: Can you handle that responsibility?
M: I can't.
F: Don't you have the money?
F: If you feed them well, you won't have to see them die.
M: If I use my studio's capital, yes.
M: But I don't have any personal funds left.
F: So you can't take responsibility for them or spend any money?
F: If you can't do anything, then keep your mouth shut.
F: This isn't a matter you should meddle with out of a halfhearted sense of morality.
Fr: Lady Main, would you like to stop by the library?
Fr: It might help you feel a little better.
M: You saw this coming, didn't you?
Fr: Well, it was part of my job to always know what the head priest was thinking.
Fr: Please forget about the orphanage.
M: How am I supposed to forget about it?
M: I can't even read like this.
Gi: How'd it go, Lady Main?
M: The head priest denied my request.
Gi: Why?!
Fr: Gil, control yourself.
D: This is why it's pointless to expect anything.
M: I'm sorry, Gil.
D: You too, Lady Main!
D: Fretting about it isn't going to help you do anything, so just forget it all!
Flashback,F: If you can't do anything, then keep your mouth shut.
M: It's not like I can't do anything.
M: If I use the Main Studio's capital, I can improve the conditions here.
Flashback_F: Can you handle that responsibility?
M: Lutz!
L: What's wrong, Main?
L: What happened, Fran?
Fr: You see...
L: Kids on the verge of dying? Yeah, that stings.
M: All I want is for them to have enough to eat...
L: If they have nothing to eat, why not just go forage in the forest?
M: Oh, right!
Fr: Unfortunately, orphans aren't allowed out of the cathedral.
L: But aren't you and Gil out and about?
M: They're my retainers, so they're an exception.
L: Then just make all the kids your retainers, too.
L: That way, they'll get to go outside, right?
M: Lutz, you're a genius!
L: Just have them pull their own weight and gather foodstuff from the forest.
M: He who does not work, neither shall he eat!
L: He who does not work, neither shall he eat!
M: But what about in winter?
M: And it'd suck if the orphanage went back to square one after I'm gone.
Fr: Uh, Lady Main, you shouldn't rush to decide everything right now.
M: Fran, am I allowed to send retainers out on errands?
Fr: You can, yes.
M: Then I can have them gather the wood I need to make paper.
L: You thinking Main Studio, Orphanage Branch?
M: Exactly!
M: If I turn the orphanage into a branch of my studio and have them earn their keep,
M: then none of the kids will have to starve even after I'm gone!
L: Right!
M: Great idea, if I do say so myself!
Fr: I agree that it's a wonderful idea,
Fr: but it's far removed from the church's established practices.
Fr: Should anything go wrong, the orphanage director will be held responsible.
Fr: Are you prepared for that?
L: You won't get anywhere worrying about that!
M: But...
L: Main.
L: What's worse? Being held responsible, or watching kids die without doing anything?
M: I'd be scared if I were alone,
M: but if you're in it with me, I'll be fine!
L: Great. That's that, then.
L: Let's help the orphans together.
Fr: In that case, you should watch out for Delia.
Fr: She still works for the high priest.
M: Fran...
Fr: Allow me to assist you, Lady Main.
M: Sure.
Eyecatch: Ascendance of a Bookworm
Eyecatch: Ascendance of a Bookworm
M: And so, we put our plan to help the orphans into action.
B: An orphanage branch of the Main Studio?
B: Why cause yourself headaches?
M: Hey, you said it yourself.
Flashback,F: Say you want to use the Main Studio to provide work for the orphans,
Flashback,F: provide them a better environment,
Flashback,F: or some bull crap like that, and get them to accept your ownership!
B: I didn't expect you to actually do it.
M: But if this works, we can mass-produce our paper!
B: Yes, but you'll need permission to set up a workshop inside the cathedral.
M: You're being unusually cautious about this.
M: I get it. I'll ask the head priest for permission as soon as possible.
M: Ow!
B: You nitwit! Don't just jump straight into things!
B: When up against nobility, you need to prepare and lay the groundwork,
B: even if you feel it's a roundabout way to do things.
B: Hell, it may even be the most decisive factor.
M: Groundwork?
Fr: Mister Benno is absolutely right.
Fr: You always try to jump straight into talks as soon as you decide on something,
Fr: but that goes against noble etiquette.
Fr: Normally, you must get an appointment beforehand by stating your purpose.
M: An appointment just to talk to somebody?
Fr: Yes. You can't be hasty when dealing with nobility.
Fr: You must take your time and make sure you go into the talks with the upper hand.
M: This just reminds me of corporate politicking.
Fr: Let me handle this, Lady Main.
Fr: Your distaste for the orphanage's state and the gray robes' treatment
Fr: is something the head priest shares as well.
M: What? But...
Flashback,F: There's no need for improvement.
M: It didn't seem that way to me at all.
Fr: The head priest hides his feelings so the high priest can't find fault with him,
Fr: so it's really hard to tell,
Fr: but he is annoyed by the present state of the church.
M: Who, the head priest?
F: A noble must never put his emotions on display.
M: Tch. Darn noble.
M: After this discussion, I decided to take the post of orphanage director,
M: and Fran immediately went to work to make it happen.
M: It seems I'll be appointed to the post following a meeting with the head priest.
F: We'll talk here today.
M: In bed?!
Ar: Head Priest?
F: Hurry.
M: O-Okay.
M: Oh, it's a door?
F: Come in.
M: Head Priest... What's with this place?
F: It's a hidden room only accessible to those with a certain amount of mana.
M: A-A hidden room?
F: Even retainers can't enter. It's the perfect place for a secret discussion.
M: I get the feeling we're not going to be discussing the orphanage.
M: Am I gonna get yelled at?
F: Take a seat.
M: Thank you.
F: Do you understand why I brought you here?
M: I-I don't.
F: Because Fran advised me it was futile to expect noble-society subtlety from you.
M: I'm sorry.
F: I actually did feel as though I lost years of my life the other day.
F: I can't believe you criticized the high priest's policies in front of his retainer.
M: Huh? One of his retainers was there?
F: There was also a blue-robed priest, who is one of his supporters.
M: Oh, I think I remember seeing a blue robe...
F: You should memorize the faces and names of the people you need to be wary of.
M: Sorry.
F: Also, you show no signs of reading between the lines,
F: or of hiding your own opinions.
F: This could prove fatal in noble society.
F: You need to learn how nobles do things.
F: As a blue-robed apprentice priestess, you're part of their society now.
M: Okay.
F: Now, let's discuss your becoming the orphanage director.
M: Yes.
F: I have a question.
F: You're usually indifferent to people, so why do you want to help the orphans?
F: You aren't one to take on trouble if there's nothing in it for you.
M: It's so I can read my books with a clear mind, obviously.
F: What... did you say?
F: Main, talk to me in a language I can understand.
M: As things stand, I'm too bothered by it all to focus on my books.
M: That's why I made up my mind to help the kids.
F: So, just to clear the way for your reading, you'll become orphanage director
F: and run a workshop there?
M: Exactly.
F: You're a far bigger fool than I anticipated.
M: I think the whole director thing is off the table now.
F: That's all I wanted to discuss. I officially appoint you as orphanage director.
M: What did you just say, Head Priest?
F: I said, I officially appoint you as orphanage director.
F: As long as you're ready for it, I have no objections.
M: Thanks a lot!
F: "Thank you kindly," you mean.
F: That's how noble women express their gratitude. Keep it in mind.
M: Got it.
F: You'll also need a priestess to teach you how to talk.
M: Head Priest, do you mind if I ask you a question, too?
F: What is it?
M: Why aren't you like all those other priests?
F: Because, like you, I wasn't raised by the church.
F: I grew up in noble society, but joined the church for certain reasons.
F: Anyway, whatever you do from now on, make sure you report to me.
M: Got it.
Gi: Thank you, Lady Main!
M: Come, let's bring the kids the alms of the gods.
Gi: Yeah!
M: Delia...
D: I'll keep this a secret from the high priest,
D: so you'd better not mess this up.
M: Thank you, Delia.
M: All right!
M: Everyone out!
M: We're going to get you all nice and clean!
M: And then we'll eat until we can't eat anymore!
Title: Next Chapter Cleanups and Star Festivals
F: Lady Main, if you want to let the kids out of the orphanage,
F: it's going to be difficult to arrange clothing for all of them.
M: Don't worry. I'll just get some old rags from a used clothes shop.
M: Like these.
L: The money she spent on your clothes should cover everything.
Fr: You used to dress like this, too?!
02x04 - Orphanage Reforms
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Anime series based on a light novel and manga series written by Miya Kazuki and illustrated by Yō Shiina.
Anime series based on a light novel and manga series written by Miya Kazuki and illustrated by Yō Shiina.