The Top-Tier Butler of the Marquis Family Chapter 16 : Chapter 16

Chapter 016

Yet the fate of the powerless was, by nature, a wretched thing. I made a small gesture of surprise and bowed my head.

“I have heard a great deal about you. It is an honor to et you, sir.”

“Hahaha! You have heard about ? And what exactly did you hear?”

“I heard that, among all the butlers, you are the wisest. That is why you work only in this library, or so I was told. I also heard that you love books.”

That was, of course, information I had gathered in advance. According to Rohanpedia, Stewart was a capable man who had graduated from the Royal University.

When I first heard that, I was honestly shocked.

In this era, even getting into a university should have been difficult. And yet butlers were impressive enough as a profession that a man like that would enter a noble household as one?

I still could not quite grasp it.

Then again, I had barely left the mansion.

“You know quite a lot. I do not know where you heard it, but it is all very accurate. It has been a long ti since an apprentice I liked so much has co in! You will surely beco an excellent butler.”

“Thank you.”

So he had not heard that I was living on a one-month deadline?

Still, I saw no reason to add that myself. Right now, more than anything, I wanted to see the library as quickly as possible.

“Good! Then before I show you the library, I shall explain the work you will be doing here. Listen carefully.”

I folded my hands politely in front of and gave him a bright, attentive gaze.

To summarize his long-winded speech in simple terms, a Butler Apprentice’s duties in the library consisted of preserving and organizing books. Besides Stewart, there were a few other butlers here as well, and it seed they were also involved in the compilation of books.

Rather than a library, it almost felt as though there were a printing shop attached inside.

Though from the sound of it, it was closer to hand-copying than actual compilation.

Apparently the printing press had not been invented yet, because books were being made by hand. Soday, I ought to build a printing machine that would put Gutenberg to sha.

“That concludes the explanation. If there is anything you do not understand, or anything you are curious about, ask.”

“Would it be possible for to read books during spare ti?”

“Read books?”

Stewart looked at as though that had been unexpected. Damn it, was he displeased by sothing? Fortunately, his expression soon softened into a favorable one.

“Do you like books as well?”

“I do. It is my dream to beco a butler as learned as you, Stewart.”

“Hahahahaha! You really do know how to choose only the words I want to hear.”

For so reason, it felt like dealing with a senior in the military, but there was no helping it.

Right now, I needed to make a good impression and secure as much of my own ti as possible.

When it ca to winning over superiors, I would lose to no one. If there were a Status Window that could display that skill, it would be A-rank, or no, Triple-S rank.

Once again, I say this: if you want to master the art of flattery, I strongly recomnd entering graduate school.

“I am the sort who works rationally. If you finish the work assigned to you, I do not much concern myself with what you do outside of that ti.”

“Thank you, sir.”

“Good. Then let us go look around the library.”

Everything was going smoothly. I only hoped Arwen would bring good news today as well.

Thinking that, I followed behind Stewart.

“The library is incredibly grand.”

“It is. This library was built more than a thousand years ago. It is a space where history and tradition live on.”

“A thousand years?”

I was genuinely shocked.

It did not look that old, and yet it possessed a history spanning a full millennium. It was fascinating. I kept walking, looking around as I went.

“The Adelines are the oldest noble house in the kingdom. Their heirs faithfully follow the house precept of mastering both the pen and the sword. Of the two, this library is the place responsible for the scholarly side.”

“I see.”

“Have you ever worked with the Knight Order?”

“Not yet.”

“If the opportunity arises, gaining experience there would be helpful as well. Of course, it would still fall short of this place, where all the world’s wisdom is gathered!”

Look at that scholarly pride.

Even so, if the chance ca, I was more than willing to work there. But for that, I needed to catch Yanrof’s eye before the month was up.

If Arwen only built the bridge properly, that part would be resolved easily enough. It would count as a contribution to the House, after all.

Of course, there was always a chance things would not go according to plan.

In truth, I thought it was more likely things would not go well than otherwise. Was the world not always like that?

If it went badly, I would think about it then. For now, it was best to focus on what I could do.

“This is what you might call the starting point of the library. Requests for necessary books are made here, and other such work is handled here as well.”

It was sothing like a reception desk. As luck would have it, a noble had co hoping to use the library, so I was able to observe his behavior closely.

“Have you been well?”

“Welco, my lord. Were you satisfied with the book you borrowed last ti?”

“Very much so. Your eye for selection is exceptional.”

“You honor . What book have you co looking for today?”

A young butler standing at the desk handled the noble, and before long brought out the book he requested. After that, he filled out docunts and followed the proper lending procedure.

So the system was similar to the libraries where I used to live.

Well, anywhere people lived, things were more or less the sa.

In any case, the library was larger than I expected, and the number of books it held was considerable. Now I understood why butlers were assigned here.

This library was open even to the nobles who worked for House Adeline. As a result, it needed constant organization, and if a good book ca in, it had to be copied by hand.

On top of that, if soone requested a particular volu, they had to find it for them, which ant a fair amount of manpower was necessary.

I had never t the head of the Adeline House, but it was clear enough that a considerable amount was being invested here too.

As expected, a marquis house was simply on another level.

At that mont, Butler Stewart led to one side.

“Look at this chart. These are the symbols by which the books are organized according to category and the. If you commit these major classifications to mory, you will be able to find books quickly and easily. Well? Is it not astonishing?”

Stewart pointed at the large chart and explained it, while I examined the library classification table carefully.

It was organized better than I had expected. I had assud the books would simply be shelved in the order they ca into the library, but while it was sowhat crude, there was clearly a system to it.

When I had the ti, I would have to teach them the Dewey Decimal Classification system. They would probably lose their minds.

Then again, the scholarship of this world was not yet so specialized, so perhaps that might make it difficult.

Still, if I found the right way to apply it, sothing useful ought to co of it.

In any case, as I looked over the classification table, I found a section labeled Martial Arts and Instructional Texts.

And there was one more section that drew my eye.

Ancient Studies.

Beneath that major heading were four characters:

Ancient Magic.

I shifted my gaze again.

Then what about the present?

Under Modern Studies, there were four clearly written characters:

Modern Magic.

A shiver ran down my spine at once.

Magic existed in this world!

“...Are you even listening to ?”

I had beco so excited that I completely missed Stewart’s explanation. Experience told that in tis like this, it was best simply to confess.

“I am sorry. I beca distracted while looking at the symbol chart. Please forgive .”

“Hahaha! Were you already trying to morize the classification chart? That is an excellent attitude. I am beginning to think soone like you will adapt to this place very quickly.”

“I may be lacking, but I will work hard.”

“I shall look forward to it.”

Then now that you understand, could you please leave so I can read?

***

That day’s work ended smoothly without any trouble. On the first day, it was mostly just observation, so there was hardly anything for to do.

“You have worked hard today, sir.”

“Yes. As you saw today, this library has a great deal of contact with people from outside. In a sense, it is not unlike Rosetta, where you worked before. So for the next few days, you will need to do nothing but observe.”

“I will keep that in mind. I look forward to learning from you again tomorrow.”

I bowed politely, and Stewart gathered his things and left the library.

At last, freedom.

Once my duties were over, I skipped dinner and imdiately moved deeper into the library stacks.

The place where I stopped was none other than the Modern Magic section.

“Shall we begin?”

There were truly countless books there, bound in many different ways. Since their titles were not written on the spines, I had to pull them out one by one to check them.

Even so, that sort of inconvenience was sothing I could more than tolerate right now.

I was convinced that the mysterious force flowing around my heart was magical power.

There were too many signs pointing that way.

If that was the case, then I had to find proof and learn how to use that mysterious force.

As I wandered along the shelves in search of a book, one particularly interesting title fell into my hands.

I would like to take this mont to offer my heartfelt respect to the author of this book.

Books, by their very nature, ought to be easy.

The sa went for titles.

A scholar capable of giving a title that direct was likely the sort of person who had pierced through the order of all creation.

In other words, I had found exactly the book I needed.

I sat down on the floor right where I was. Then, calming my pounding heart, I opened the first page.

― All things are composed of indivisible particles. Mana is one of them.

Ah! What a marvelous proposition.

I turned back to the cover and checked the author’s na.

Akon de Salvius.

Akon, was it? It sounded like the sort of na a great mage would have.

In any case, after committing the na to mory, I continued reading.

― The fundantal operating principles of magic cannot be considered apart from mana. Mana is power. And mana can exist in a truly wide variety of things. If we limit the scope specifically to the human body, two representative locations may be nad. The first is the dantian, and the second is the heart.

Now that is so writing.

The way it slipped directly into my mind was exhilarating. I kept reading line after line.

― In ancient tis, those who pursued the path of magic condensed mana in the heart. But as the ages changed, after the Twilight of Mana, all mages ca to condense mana in the dantian. Regrettably, neither the underlying chanism nor the reason for this change is known in detail.

Wait a mont.

They condensed mana in the dantian?

Then that ant the abdon, did it not?

But my power was in the heart.

And what in the world was the Twilight of Mana?

― Fundantally, mana is operated through channels called Mana Circuits. The larger those Mana Circuits are, and the more complex they are, the greater the power that can be exerted.

After that ca explanations of the structure and principles of Mana Circuits.

Because I already understood the principles of electromagnetism and modern physics, I was able to make them part of my own knowledge without difficulty. At its core, mana seed quite similar to electromagnetism in its properties.

I would have to co back to that later. It was worth researching.

Of course, theoretical inquiry was not what mattered most right now.

What mattered was how I could use the power flowing through my heart effectively.

And so ti later, I finally achieved what I had set out to do.