“السخرية مني لها حدود ، كما تعلمين. قراءة المجلدات الاثني عشر كلها في أسبوعين؟ حسنًا ، إن استطعتِ ، تفضلي. إن استطعتِ قراءة نصفها ، لا ، حتى مجلد واحد ، فسأمنحكِ ما تشاء”
His reaction was unexpectedly intense.
حدّقتُ في إيثان ، في حيرة ، ثم عبستُ ، “هل أنت جاد؟ هل تعدني بفعل أي شيء أطلبه إذا نجحت؟”
“I don't go back on my word”
“Okay then. Let's see what happens.”
“Actually, I'll wait and see,” Ethan replied, clearly unconvinced.
With that, Ethan turned on his heel and left the room.
***
Ethan walked down the hall with a stern face. Even though he left the room angrily, his anger showed no sign of abating.
The History of the War of Eärendel was the first and only book his late father, Philip, recommended to him.
“On my sixteenth birthday, your grandfather gave me this book. And now, I give it to you.”
His father had said these words with his usual calm expression.
“Your grandfather said that whoever finishes this book is considered a real man. When I finished, he offered me my first drink. It took two months. I wonder how long it will take you?
في ذلك الوقت ، كان إيثان قد عزم على إنهاءه خلال شهرين ، آملاً أن يتشارك ذلك المشروب الأول مع والده.
But this covenant was not kept. Less than a month later, his father died in a car accident.
Years later, Ethan learns that his father's death was an assassination disguised as an accident.
The culprit was his uncle.
The same uncle who was nicer than him.
This revelation devastated Ethan.
اليوم الذي أمر فيه بإغتيال عمه في المنفى الشمالي كان بمثابة بداية تحول إيثان إلى شخص مختلف تمامًا.
For years, he had no time to read. كان الأعداء ، من داخل العائلة و خارجها ، يحاولون بإستمرار استغلال الدوق الشاب أو الإطاحة به.
و لم يتمكن إيثان من العودة إلى قراءة كتاب “تاريخ حرب إيريندل” إلا بعد أن أصبح في العشرينيات من عمره.
كان كتابًا صعبًا ، مليئًا باللغة القديمة و الجمل الطويلة التي وجدها حتى النبلاء المتعلمون تعليمًا عاليًا صعبة.
يتطلب الكتاب معرفة واسعة باللغة و التاريخ ، لدرجة أن معظم الناس لم يتمكنوا من قراءة الفصل الأول حتى مع وجود القاموس إلى جانبهم.
However, Camille claimed that she could finish it within two weeks.
A woman who would never normally look at a book.
If it had been any other book, he might have found her claim ridiculous but not infuriating.
لكن قول مثل هذا الشيء عن “تاريخ حرب إيريندل” بدا و كأنه إهانة ليس له فقط بل لذكرى والده أيضًا.
“Who takes two weeks to read one book?”
Memories of her smug face made him grit his teeth.
“Let's see if you can maintain this expression after two weeks.”
***
“Seriously, is he too stressed out over one book?” I muttered, turning the pages of the book.
Of course, after reading a little, I was able to somewhat understand why Ethan reacted the way he did.
It was really exhausting reading. The sentences were unnecessarily long and complex, as if they were deliberately trying to make them difficult to understand. I felt like I was reading an old academic paper.
Moreover, my lack of basic knowledge about the history of this world made some parts more difficult to understand.
“But it is certainly not impossible to read it within the time limit.”
The writing style became familiar as I continued reading, and I was able to enhance my historical knowledge with other books.
With such a wide collection, there had to be one or two books from world history that summarized the necessary information.
Did he really think I couldn't handle this? I went through hard studies in my previous life.
Ethan also promised to give me anything I wanted if I finished on time.
This was a golden opportunity for my future plans.
After I made my decision, I returned to Ethan.
“Would it be okay if I borrow some other books from the library as well?”
“Do as you please. But don’t even think about changing the main book now.”
He was still infuriatingly arrogant.
I suppressed a tremor on my lips, and smiled gently, “Sure. I can’t imagine it. Don’t worry.”
“……”
Ignoring his skeptical looks, she left Ethan's office.
As I was walking towards the library, I heard footsteps following me.
“Please wait a moment, ma'am.”
When I turned around, I saw Victor.
“Are you looking for books? Let me help you.”
واو ، صوته مذهل.
Victor had a rare and rich voice. While Ethan's voice was impressive, Victor's was equally captivating.
Victor hesitated a little, then spoke cautiously, “…I heard that you intend to read the history of the War of Eärendel.”
'Mmm, so… Camille probably spoke informally with Victor, right?'
Addressing Victor, who looked to be in his mid-forties, casually, seemed a little strange to me.
But speaking formally with a servant would not be appropriate.
“Yes, that's right. I'm looking for a book on ancient continental history, focusing on the centuries before and after the War of Eärendel. Preferably not too verbose, condensed into one or two volumes.”
Victor seemed taken aback for a moment by my smooth request, but quickly composed himself like a professional.
“Understood. And...do you need anything else?”
There was something hidden meaning in his tone.
"No, that's all. Why do you ask?"
When I tilted my head and asked him, Victor quickly bowed down.
“For no particular reason, ma’am. I will search for suitable books and bring them to your room.”
“No need. You can help me find it in the library.”
“This is the master’s order. Please understand.”
Ah, so Ethan instructed him not to let me into the library.
كان الأمر منطقيًا.
Ethan was still suspicious of me and wanted to rule out any potential problems.
“Okay then”
“Yes ma'am”
Victor returned with the books five minutes after I returned to my room.
“I have selected a few books that meet your criteria. This is the Ancient History of Bylot, volumes one and two, covering the period from the dawn of civilization to the fall of the Jupiter Empire. The book was recently published and is very comprehensive. These two volumes belong to two different continental history series, each covering the period surrounding the War of Eärendel. Since the viewpoints of the different authors differ, it is useful to compare them.”
Victor placed each book on my desk, explaining it as he did so.
“You found this quickly. There must be thousands of books in the library. Did you memorize the entire index?”
“That's because I'm a servant,” Victor answered briefly.
“I don't think this is something most servants would be able to do.”
“But I am the butler of the House of Dumont.”
It's like this.
This was a line Victor repeated often in the original story, his signature phrase. Hearing it in person, as a huge fan of the novel, filled me with a unique admiration.
Victor hesitated for a moment before pulling another book from his coat.
“This is not what you asked for, but...”
“What is this?”
“A Dictionary of Ancient Terms. The History of the War of Eärendel was written in an ancient style, so you will find it difficult to understand many of the terms without it.”
'Was that so?'
I've read about twenty to thirty pages so far, but I don't remember encountering any words so archaic that I couldn't understand them.
Maybe because I'm reincarnated from another world.
The feeling of unknown languages and characters automatically translating in my mind may include ancient terms as well.
“Thanks anyway. I'm sure it will be helpful.”
Victor seemed surprised by my gratitude.
"Something wrong?" I tilted my head.
He quickly shook his head, “No, nothing at all. I’m happy to help you.”
Victor gently placed his hands on his stomach and leaned over.
His posture was perfect, worthy of being in a textbook.
Everything about him was precise and courteous, exactly as described in the original story.
Unlike Ethan, he's always nice to me.
A man with a distinctive personality.