10-2 Part 3
I Banished the Corrupt Magistrate, but
There Is No Replacement
- The Book of the Otherworld -
Translator : PolterGlast
Because the Prince's room was so austere, Puis-sensei
initially looked around the room with a surprised expression. But it was a
different story when he spotted the bookshelf. He dove toward it with child-like
steps.
「Splendid, truly this many! Where did
you get hold of all these?!」
「I didn't buy them. I dug them up
myself.」
However, that alone didn't convey the meaning. He opened a
book that caught his eye, captivated by the vivid cover impossible in this
world.
I understand that feeling very well. It's a color palette
completely impossible with this world's technology. As a work of art, its level
is extremely high. Compared to this, the paintings of our world are
scribbles—though that might be going a bit too far.
「Beautiful... Ah, but what do you
mean by 'dug up'...」
「I'm not doing it right now, but excavation
is actually my hobby. I excavated all of these from ruins.」
「What did you say?! Then you
absolutely must dig up more!」
「In that case, I have a good idea.
Won't you go excavating with me right now?」
「Eh. Ah, no, but that is...」
I was convinced of my victory. Even while hesitating, Puis-sensei's
heart was drawn to the invitation. All that was left was to push hard. I
invited a fellow enthusiast and my teacher to go play.
「We can make up for the delay later.
Let's go together. I'm actually quite busy myself, so if we miss this chance,
there won't be many more opportunities.」
「That sounds tough... Understood,
please let me accompany you!」
But it would be troublesome if Georg found out here.
Therefore, being used to escaping, I slipped out of the palace using a somewhat
special route and headed to the ruins where I met Zirant that day.
◇ ◆ ◇ ◆ ◇
We began excavating. With the power of the Shovel
that can now cut even iron, the excavation work proceeded smoothly and
effortlessly. I felt no weight from the soil at all.
「It's strange... With this many
things sleeping here, why didn't anyone try to dig here?」
「Maybe no one has any interest in the
other world.」
「No, you can't necessarily say that.
Items from the other world are traded at high prices in the underground. For
example, things called guns. On the other hand, there are few who turn their
eyes to works of art like us, though...」
A gun, huh. That was painful... I touched the affected area
that hadn't healed yet. It didn't penetrate, but the heat of the bullet seemed
to have burned the wound at that time, and it still stings and throbs with
pain.
Even so, the pain is halved.
I thanked Zirant once again.
「More importantly, we've broken
through to the entrance. Now, let's go in.」
「Yes? No, isn't that a bit too
fast...?」
「That's just how it is. Come on,
hurry!」
I unearthed a single building. Kicking and breaking its
window, I took Puis-sensei's hand and led him inside.
「Ooh, amazing... This is my first
time seeing a place like this!」
「This building might be a jackpot. It
definitely looks like a landlord who would like books.」
Illuminating the back with the light of the lantern, a small
bookshelf was placed by the bedside. We immediately lunged at the treasure and
scavenged through the numerous books stored there.
「This is splendid. This one's cover
is so vivid, it's as if the picture was painted directly onto the book!」
「I agree. However, it seems this
wasn't painted directly. There are countless books possessing the exact same
cover art without a fraction of a difference. The other world where this book
was written is a ridiculous place. These are all printed materials.」
We found books that looked good. We opened their pages and
traced the letters. Placing the lantern on the bedside, we forgot even the idea
of taking the books back to the surface and immersed ourselves in the books in
our hands.
「Umm, can you read all of this...?」
「Yeah, mostly.」
「What did you say?! Even these
complex letters?!」
「I can read them. If you need, I can
become your teacher next time.」
「Ooooh... By all means, please teach
me, Ashley-sensei!」
The language of the other world is difficult. At first, I
also collected these just for the covers. The other world's language is
complex, sometimes having 20 or 30 words with similar meanings.
That means such advanced expression is possible just by
choosing words, but conversely, it requires the reader's education to be almost
infinite.
「Then let's take turns. You teach
law, and I'll teach this otherworldly language.」
「So that's how it is. But then, I'll
have no excuse to give Georg-sama...」
「But either way, I wouldn't last a
single day with classes like that. However, if I can talk about books with you,
well, it's not bad. I don't mind taking your classes, Sensei.」
「...Understood. I will try consulting
Georg-sama about that.」
Persuading Georg-aniue is possible. Because if I show
even a little motivation, that's already great progress.
「Let's return to the topic. The
educational standard of the world where this book was made is crazy. Over
there, they have a system called compulsory education.」
Incidentally, I told Puis about the other world I had
learned from books. About the system of compulsory education, and also how it's
impossible in this world.
「Kings and lords hate it when commoners
acquire wisdom. It's precisely because they are educated that they can remain
kings, nobles, and bureaucrats. If everyone acquires wisdom, their own
positions become precarious. No one in this world would want to do it, and they
probably wouldn't agree, calling it a waste of money.」
The typical example of that is the slave plantation. The
people only need to plow the fields. Wisdom is monopolized by the privileged
class. I think such ideology lies behind those laws.
Long peace ended up robbing nobles of their power and
bringing power to the commoners. The Plantation Expansion Law might also have
the ulterior motive of overturning that. I told him about that as well.
Then, looking down at the book, I started teaching him
starting from Kanji with few strokes that are easy to remember. Thus, the
positions of student and teacher temporarily reversed. Teaching characters to
the earnest and brilliant Puis was quite an undeniable pleasure, and
time flew by. Then, suddenly noticing, it was already night.
「Well then, today was a huge harvest
after a long time. Something like this is rare, but—it's special. I'll give
half of the books we obtained to you.」
「Ashley-sama! What a splendid person you are! No wonder Georg-sama
is... Ah, it's gotten completely dark outside, hasn't it.」
「Yeah, we can't dig any more than
this. Shall we head back?」
「Let's come again.」
「By all means, let's. If it's you,
you're highly welcome, Puis-sensei.」
After that, we each carried half the books and returned to the palace.
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