Having learned that treating the Devouring requires a lot of money,
Main sells some of her knowledge from her old world to Benno.
But while discussing business with him,
she suddenly collapses and falls unconscious.
Master, I got in touch with the guild master.
Let's go, Lutz!
Yeah!
Main's social circle comes together in a bid to save her.
Ascendance of a Bookworm
Chapter Eleven Life-or-Death Choices and Family Meetings
Not again.
Stupid fever.
Stay away!
I haven't finished any books yet!
Huh? What's that ball?
It's sucking up the fever.
Whatever! Take it all away!
Huh?
Where am I?
Such a nice bed...
What's this thing?
Have you come to?
Frieda!
Is this your place, then?
Yes. How do you feel?
The fever's gone, and I feel a lot better than usual.
Figures.
It's broken, after all.
You must've overloaded it with your fever.
Frieda, what is this?
A magical item.
A what?
It absorbed your fever for you.
This bracelet did?
It was barely holding together,
and absorbing the fever must've made it fall apart.
Did I only survive because of this thing?
That's right.
Remember what I said last time we met?
The Devouring can't be cured, but it can be controlled.
Oh, this is what you meant.
I'm really gonna be okay now, huh?
Listen carefully, Main.
All this magical item did
was take away some water from a cup that was about to overflow.
The cup's not exactly empty yet,
and it'll only fill faster as you grow.
What? You mean...
It'll start overflowing again soon enough.
How soon is "soon enough"?
Answer me, Frieda.
A year, at most.
Only a year?
Where can I get these magical items?
How'd you get this bracelet, then?
Magical items are the exclusive property of nobility.
The only ones we can get our hands on are the ones considered faulty or useless.
And Grandfather already went around buying those up for me.
You won't find any, no matter where you look.
What?
Even if you do find one, it won't be long before you'll need another.
Those of us with the Devouring can't live without these items.
There's only one way to survive.
Entering into an agreement with a noble.
An agreement?
Yes. In return for having them buy you magical items,
you will agree to work exclusively for them...
Just as I have.
I've agreed to become a noble's concubine after my coming-of-age ceremony.
C-C-Concubine?
You mean, like, you'll be his m-mistress?
Yes.
Grandfather does frequent business with nobles as the guild master.
Many offered to take me to form a bond with him or gain his backing,
and he made a deal with the person who made the best offer.
I'm amazed you could accept that.
It's the only way for a commoner with the Devouring to survive.
What if I want no part of that?
That means choosing to die.
So, Main, think long and hard before you decide.
Will you live life chained to a noble
or perish by your family's side?
Thank you so much for giving up one of your precious magical items for my sake.
Excuse me?
Benno told me that you would pay for it.
He asked me to lend a magical item if it came down to it.
Is that so?
I understand. I'll pay.
It'll be three small gold coins.
Three small golds?!
You can't afford it?
No, I can. I was just surprised by the price.
You can pay up, Main?!
Is it a problem if I can?
A huge one.
The agreement was that I could register you as my apprentice if you couldn't.
What?
Looks like we missed out.
Thank god my past self sold the AIO Shampoo improvements for three small golds!
Good job, me!
Main!
Dad, Mom, Turi!
A while later, my family and Lutz came to check up on me.
It seems Frieda had let them know.
I'm so glad you woke up!
How do you feel?
I felt my heart stop when Lutz said you'd collapsed.
Sorry I worried you.
But I'm fine now.
That's good. Can you come home, then?
We'll watch over her tonight.
She's not completely stable yet.
But...
I can tell because I have the same illness.
We're sorry for the trouble, but please take care of her.
I'll go let Master Benno know.
Sure. Thanks for everything, Lutz.
We can rest easy if she's in that young lady's care.
Frieda had the Devouring too, huh?
Devouring?
Yep. That's what Main's illness is called.
She told me about it recently.
I've never even heard of it.
Who cares what it's called?
I'm just glad she's cured.
Just one more year...
After they left,
Frieda and I decided to indulge in some girly playtime.
This is Ilse, our cook.
So, what are we making?
Er...
Do you have sugar?
We do. And also flour, eggs, and butter.
Then we can make pound cake.
Pound cake?
It's as easy as making a mix of even quantities of the ingredients and baking it.
Whipping the eggs and sugar is the most important part.
I'd like to try.
Next, you mix in the sifted flour.
Main, switch.
Making sweets is harder than I thought.
After that, you put in the melted butter...
and beat it all together...
Please switch, Miss Ilse.
You two are too frail.
Perfect. It's baked all the way through.
This is bliss!
Main!
Uh?
I somehow shook off Frieda and Ilse's passionate gazes,
and girly playtime moved on to Part II.
Amazing!
Grandfather copied the bath he'd seen in a noble's mansion.
He said I should get used to it before entering high society.
He sure dotes on you.
It's just an investment for the future.
Deep down, you don't want to leave your family, do you?
When I'm a concubine, I'll get to run my own store in the nobles' district.
I'll get to run a business after I'd given up on it due to the Devouring.
I can't wait!
Frieda, you're strong.
And then I washed Frieda's hair with the AIO Shampoo I'd asked Turi to bring.
You're good at this, Main.
Turi... My sister and I wash each other's hair often.
Incredible! My hair feels so silky!
Consider it thanks for the magical item.
We were supposed to have a nice, long chat while in bed,
but thanks to the bath,
the two of us fell asleep immediately.
Frieda gets baptized tomorrow.
How marvelous!
You look like an angelic messenger,
or perhaps the Goddess of Sprouts, bringing spring with her!
Huh? Why?
Miss Main, do you feel sick?
Oh, no.
It's just, looking at Frieda suddenly made me want to see my family.
Main, I'm sure you missed me.
I sure missed you!
You're going to put her off.
I missed you a little.
I see. You missed me, huh?
Since you're here, Grandfather would like to invite you to join us for dinner.
I wanna eat your cooking, Mom. It's been a few days.
Man, I wanted to eat some rich people food!
Sorry, Turi.
Well, Eva's cooking is the best in the world!
There he goes.
Dad's singing Mom's praises again!
That's when it hit me.
At some point, this had become my home.
Ascendance of a Bookworm
Master Benno was really worried while you were over at the guild master's place.
He thought they might try to steal you.
I fought them off, but...
But?
Not saying, because I'll get yelled at.
You can tell me!
No. Never.
Wait, Main.
Wh-What?
I was just thinking how grateful I am to have you.
Is that so?
My second winter in this world had arrived.
Three small golds?!
That old fart! He told me it was two!
So that's why.
They were shocked when I paid up.
Really? As long as you pulled one over on them.
Thank you for everything.
By the way, Mister Benno...
I have a question.
You made a snack using sugar?!
Is sugar that rare?
It's only recently that we started getting imports of it.
It's considerably popular among the nobles.
So they got their hands on the whole recipe.
You gave away a product nobles would love for free.
Those people are hyenas!
Why would you poke your head out of hiding?!
I'm sorry...
I'm glad you're better now.
I'm sorry I made you worry.
Just one more year, huh?
I refuse to believe it.
Main's always made the impossible possible.
I know she'll find a way again.
Business is thriving, huh, Mister Benno?
Winter is the busiest time for us.
You'd be surprised at how willing people are to splurge on things
that'll keep them occupied while they're snowed in.
Thinking of quick, casual games,
there's card games, karuta, shogi, and reversi, I guess?
Can I make them by next winter?
A year, at most.
Will you live life chained to a noble
or perish by your family's side?
Time passed mercilessly by as I couldn't bring myself to tell my family the truth.
Before long, my outfit for the baptism ceremony was finished.
I'm home.
Welcome back, Dad!
How do I look? Ready to take my baptism by storm?
Wow, Main!
I bet people will mistake you for a high-class girl!
We reworked Turi's ceremony outfit.
I just did what Main said.
Now she looks like some kind of rich girl.
Why? Because I'm that damn cute?
Please. It's because I'm that damn good.
Main's baptism, eh?
It was unthinkable back when she was tiny and feverish all the time.
How you've grown, my little girl.
Dad...
Seriously.
And her illness is cured, too.
What's wrong, Main?
Dad, Mom, Turi.
We need to talk.
It's about my illness.
What are you talking about? Wasn't your illness cured?
The Devouring is incurable.
I just borrowed a magical item from Frieda and suppressed its fever temporarily.
Magical... item?
Yeah.
Apparently, you have to keep using magical items to control the Devouring's fever.
Main did say before that treating it takes a lot of money.
Is that true?
How much was it, Main?
Don't worry about it. I already paid.
No keeping anything from us. Spit it out.
Three small golds.
Three small gold coins?!
How'd you have so much money?!
I sold my paper and the formula for the AIO Shampoo to Mister Benno.
What's done is done. Forget that.
I want to know what's in store for us.
You said you only suppressed the fever temporarily.
Does that mean it'll come back for sure?
That's why you didn't bring it up, right? You were trying to avoid the question.
How could you tell?
Of course I can. I'm your father.
I'll only last another year at most.
No, Main! You can't die!
Never!
Turi... I don't wanna die, either.
I don't wanna die!
Is there anything we can do other than using those magical items?
There is, but I'd have to go off to the nobles' district.
But then, you wouldn't...
I probably wouldn't ever see you again.
No! You can't go!
Yeah, I don't wanna live a life without you all.
I'd sooner die.
Dad.
Mom.
Turi.
Can I stay right here with my family?
You'll always be with us.
Of course.
Thank you!
Next Chapter Baptisms and Divine Paradises
What about your apprenticeship with me?
Gah! I'd forgotten all about that!
I'm sorry!
Good grief.
Just how thoughtless can... one... lass... be!
Ow!
That hurts, Mister Benno!
You'd better come up with a solution by next episode!
I get it, so let me go already!
Illustration by Kikuyaro