WTTAO CH 09

“Ahem. It’s only natural that you would think that. I just haven’t had the chance to tell you, but I have plenty of money. I’m more than capable of paying your salary, so don’t worry.”

Hibiscus was being sold at an exorbitant price, with buyers willing to pay whatever was asked, and some of the profits had already been deposited in a bank. On top of that, she already owned the land where the hot spring would eventually emerge.

“Besides, I told you that I’m entering this contract because I see your potential and abilities. If you become lazy later on and neglect your studies, I’ll impose the penalty without mercy and terminate the contract.”

Cardian quietly stared at Roselia as she issued her warning.

“But… why is the contract period five years?”

As expected, he’s quite thorough. How can I tell him that it’s because there’s no guarantee I’ll… live until I’m twenty?

That was obviously something she couldn’t say.

“I only set the contract period at five years for now. When the five years are up, we can discuss extending the contract.”

Cardian still seemed somewhat suspicious, but he soon signed the contract.

Fortunately, he could write his own name quite well.

Roselia signed the contract next, and they each kept a copy.

“So, from now on, I’m Lady Roselia’s temporary aide?”

“That’s right.”

“Then, first of all, please speak casually to me. You’re my employer from today.”

“You want me to speak casually because you’re my employer? Ah, no. I’m more comfortable speaking politely.”

Roselia smiled and refused, so Cardian stared at her for a moment before nodding.

“All right. Do as you’re comfortable with. Then, as your temporary aide, what should I do first?”

“Before that, there’s something I want to ask. Who wrote the sign saying the blacksmith shop was closed?”

At her question, Cardian flinched.

“I… wrote it.”

“I thought so. Your writing is pretty good, but you did make a few spelling mistakes.”

Cardian was said to have gone missing when he was eight before my regression, so he must have learned basic writing before then. Though he did make quite a few spelling mistakes.

“Then naturally… we should start with studying letters, shouldn’t we? Ta-da!”

Roselia held out a book in front of him.

“What is this?”

The title of the book was:

Hey, You Can Do It Too! Fun Lessons in Reading and Writing

“It’s the book I used to study when I was young. I thought it might help you.”

Cardian took the book and stared silently at its worn edges.

“And these are writing supplies.”

Roselia took a stack of more than a hundred sheets of paper, a quill, and a bottle of ink from her bag and placed them on the table.

“For the time being, I’ll teach you letters using this book.”

“You mean… you’re going to teach me how to read and write? Yourself?”

He asked in surprise.

“Why? Would you rather learn from someone else?”

“That’s not it. I just find it strange that Lady Roselia, a noble, would personally teach a commoner how to read and write.”

“I’ll only teach you the basics. After that, you should learn from someone more qualified. Shall we start right away today? First, I’ll teach you some simple words and sentences.”

From the moment Roselia began teaching Cardian in the room beside the blacksmith shop, Mark and Mary tactfully left the area.

In the quiet space, the only sounds filling the room were Roselia’s clear voice as she read from the book and the soft scratching of the quill against paper.

Before they knew it, two hours had passed.

The papers Roselia had brought were now filled with words and sentences she had written.

“I can’t come here very often, so I think it would be best to have lessons once a week for about two hours. So keep writing the words and sentences I’ve given you until you memorize all of them. I’ll check them when I come next time.”

“Understood.”

“Next time, I’ll bring you a book on basic arithmetic, too. Oh, I almost forgot.”

Roselia took a small leather pouch from the pocket of her everyday clothes and placed it in Cardian’s hand.

“What’s this?”

“It’s the first salary for my temporary aide—10 gold coins.”

Ten gold coins was an enormous amount of money for a commoner, equivalent to roughly half a year’s living expenses.

“Even though we signed a contract, I’m still only a temporary aide, not a full-fledged one. I don’t know if I should really be receiving as much as 10 gold coins.”

“Don’t think of it that way. Even if you’re temporary, according to the contract, you’re my aide and therefore one of my people.”

“Your… person?”

“That’s right. So you deserve to receive it. From now on, I’ll make sure you only walk a path covered in flowers.”

Roselia smiled brightly at him, and Cardian’s eyes widened before he lowered his gaze slightly.

On the table of the blacksmith shop lay the contract that Roselia and Cardian had each kept a copy of, the pouch containing 10 gold coins, and the book and writing supplies she had given him.

Cardian stared at the items on the table, lost in deep thought.

When he was young, he had been found deep in the forest by the blacksmith Mark, having lost all his memories.

According to his adoptive father Mark, although his clothes had been torn and reduced to rags, they had originally been quite expensive.

If the clothes he had been wearing when he disappeared were so luxurious, then he must have been a noble.

And if a child like that had been alone in the forest, there was a high possibility that he had been abandoned.

So Mark assumed he wasn’t a commoner and searched around for information, but he couldn’t find any noble family that had lost a child around eight years old.

Rather than sending the memoryless Cardian, who had nowhere to go, to an orphanage, Mark adopted him.

Mark’s daughter, Daisy, who was two years older than Cardian, treated him like her own younger brother.

Because he had Mark and Daisy, Cardian didn’t consider himself unhappy despite having no memories from before the age of eight.

Mark and Daisy cared for him so deeply that he had even reached the point where he felt he didn’t need to recover his memories from before eight or find his real family.

Then one day, a certain baron commissioned Mark, who was running the blacksmith shop, to make armor and a shield.

Mark completed the work with all his heart and handed the commissioned items over to the baron.

But the baron didn’t pay him a single coin.

Instead, he kept putting it off day after day.

Mark went directly to the baron’s residence to demand payment.

He returned having lost one of his eyes.

But as a commoner, Mark couldn’t demand compensation for his medical expenses from the baron, nor could he protest the injustice done to him.

That was the reality of the difference in social status.

From that moment on, Cardian came to hate and resent nobles.

Mark, meanwhile, was unable to operate the blacksmith shop for nearly half a year because the injury to his eye was so severe.

After that, the family’s financial situation became difficult, and naturally, they began accepting commissions only from commoners rather than nobles.

That was how things remained until a silver-haired girl came to their shop.

Her name was Roselia Hailen.

She was the only daughter of the current lord, Count Hailen.

Since she was a noble as well, Cardian had immediately felt a strong dislike toward her.

That was why he had kept his distance and treated her coldly. Whenever he saw his father, Mark, treating her kindly, he felt irritated all over again.

But the noble girl named Roselia was different.

She didn’t get angry even when faced with a commoner’s impolite behavior.

Instead, she had given them expensive medicinal herbs for free and saved his sister.

On top of that, she had appointed a commoner like him as her temporary aide, paid him a salary, and even personally taught him how to read and write.

Being treated like a human being by her despite being a commoner left Cardian confused, but he couldn’t say that he disliked it.

He was still suspicious, however.

He had no idea why she was being so kind to him or what her true intentions were.

For now, he decided to accept her offer and keep an eye on her.

After all, he only intended to remain by her side until he had repaid the debt he owed her for saving his sister and providing the medicinal herbs.

But for now, it was still a little difficult for him to look directly at Roselia’s bright, seemingly selfless smile.

The Imperial Council Chamber of the Ortia Empire.

A luxurious purple carpet covered the floor of the spacious chamber, while a long table made of white marble stood in the center.

Representatives of the noble families that supported the Ortia Empire had gathered around the table for the council meeting.

At the head of the table sat Emperor Lassis Ortia, the ruler of the Ortia Empire.

The emperor was in his early fifties, but his white hair made him look nearly twice his actual age.

Seated close to the emperor was the High Priest Veleno.

Despite being in his mid-fifties, Veleno possessed an exceptionally youthful and sacred appearance. He sat in his white priestly robes, in a position even closer to the emperor than the heads of the Spirit User families and representatives of the other noble houses.

“The agenda for today’s meeting is to decide on the theme for the Founding Festival, which will be held in a few months.”

Count Ikera, who was presiding over the meeting, presented the agenda.

“Since this is a celebration of the founding of the Ortia Empire, I believe the theme should be centered around praising the Spirit Users who were the heroes of its founding.”

One of the Spirit User families, Duke Gaile Chesshui, spoke.

“I agree. I also support Duke Chesshui’s opinion.”

Viscount Jansen, seated beside him, voiced his support.

Beginning with Viscount Jansen’s agreement, opinions supporting Duke Chesshui’s proposal began coming from various parts of the room.

“What does His Majesty the Emperor think?”

After watching the discussion unfold, Count Ikera turned to the emperor and asked.

However, even when Chairman Count Ikera addressed him, the emperor did not immediately answer.

Instead, he turned his gaze toward the High Priest.

“What is your opinion, High Priest?”

The High Priest Veleno, who had remained silent until then, looked toward the few nobles who had expressed their opinions with an elegant and holy smile.

For an instant, his eyes turned cold.

Then, just as quickly, they softened again.