Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
There was a three storey library sitting quietly inside the tower under the shade of trees. The rather old, broken walls were filled with crawling vines and leaves, giving a rare, peaceful atmosphere to the place. Rhode pushed the door open and saw a petite figure reading a book. The little girl lifted her head curiously and revealed a grin.
“Ah… Rhode…”
“Christie, you’re reading again?”
Rhode gazed at the surroundings. This quiet library was part of the tower. He heard from the elder that this was the cultural treasure-trove of the Senia Family, and no one had visited here for a long time. On the contrary, Christie seemed to like it here, which she often came here for the books. What surprised him was that even though the books weren’t written in the general language, Christie didn’t have any problems reading them. But after considering the other half of her soul inside her, it didn’t really seem impossible.
Another half of her soul…
This was the reason why he was here.
He knew the reason why Marlene followed him here, so it was only Christie left. He knew that it would be a form of torture for a weak little girl like her to come to the Land of Chaos and he wouldn’t have agreed if it were possible. However, he changed his mind after listening to her words. But the problem was that Marlene had expressed her thoughts while Christie was still behaving as usual. After arriving at the Tinder Origin, she basically holed herself up in the library and didn’t seem to have something she needed to accomplish.
“Christie, how do you feel here? Still alright?”
Rhode went up to Christie and also nodded to Bell who stood silently behind. Then, he caressed her hair and said. Christie narrowed her eyes like a blessed kitten and nodded slightly.
“Yes… Rhode. This place is quiet and comfortable. There are so many interesting books too…”
“Glad to hear that.”
Rhode revealed a gentle smile. Although he didn’t know why the other ‘Christie’ wanted to be here, Christie’s behavior comforted him a lot. He initially thought that this adventure would leave her exhausted, but it seemed like everything was fine. He shifted his gaze to Bell, who was standing on the spot and gazing blankly at the flipping pages in Christie’s hands as though they were reading together.
These two little fellas are kind of amusing.
Rhode nodded before quietly making his way. Back then, it seemed like it was the right choice to leave Bell with Christie as the latter needed a friend who was closer in age with her. On the other hand, Bell, who had never interacted with the outside world, needed a kind, helpful person to guide her along.
That’s all for now, I suppose.
Rhode took two steps back quietly to not disrupt the two little girls in their own world. Even though he didn’t know what the other ‘Christie’ wanted to do, the battle would begin tomorrow after the evacuation. If the defense eventually couldn’t hold up, he would keep Christie by his side because he was confident in protecting her no matter how dangerous the situation was. Moreover, with Bell by her side, there wouldn’t be too much trouble. Perhaps Christie also had things that she needed to do, just like Marlene. Since Christie didn’t seem to have the intention of telling him, it might be due to the other ‘Christie’ not informing her of anything yet.
Boom.
“Ah!”
As Rhode strolled in the library, someone turned the corner and bumped into his chest. Then, he heard a shriek and the sound of a pile of books falling to the ground. He lowered his gaze and saw a young lady on the ground. She had black, silky long hair that reached her waist. She wore a black dress and a pair of long socks, as well as a pair of brown leather shoes.
“Sorry, I didn’t notice anyone around.”
Rhode offered his hand. The young lady gazed at him for a few seconds before holding his hand and standing to her feet.
“No, I’m sorry, Sir Overlord. I didn’t notice that you’re here.”
The young lady knelt and stacked up the books.
“You’re also a resident here?”
Rhode scanned her curiously as her dress was rather unique—it was neither the white leather armor that the humanoids wore nor the rough, plain robe that the residents were clad in. On the contrary, the young lady wore a dress that seemed like what ancient nobles would wear. This piqued his curiosity instantly. If he recalled correctly, the elder had introduced the composition of the residents in the Tinder Origin. There was no class division in this place that was separated from the outside world. Even though there were rulers and the ruled, there shouldn’t be nobles.
The young lady lifted her head and nodded.
“Yes, I’m a resident here, Sir Overlord.”
… Although somewhere didn’t seem right, it was fine since they could still communicate.
“By the way, why did you call me ‘Sir Overlord’?”
Rhode asked curiously while the young lady answered.
“Because I heard the visitors calling you ‘Sir Overlord’. That should be the way they address a ruler in the outside world, right? Although I should call you ‘Sir Elder’ considering the custom and your identity here, I addressed you as ‘Sir Overlord’ instead, in order to not raise any confusion. If you feel that this isn’t appropriate, I can change the way that I address you.”
The young lady’s voice was as calm, gentle, and soft as the atmosphere of the library. Although there wasn’t any echo, Rhode heard her crisp voice clearly. He shrugged before stretching his arms to lift up the stack of books, which astonished the young lady.
“Sir Overlord?”
“Since it was me who bumped into you, I should express my apologies. Where do you intend to put this?”
There are about a dozen books in this pile. No wonder she can’t see her way. But…
“Please come with me.”
The young lady turned around and led Rhode around in the library for quite some time, until they finally arrived by a particular shelf.
“This is the shelf. Please pass the books to me.”
“Sure.”
Rhode put down the books and scanned curiously at the surroundings. There wasn’t any dust on the floor, window, or even the shelves. It seemed like someone had cleaned this place up thoroughly. However…
“Is it necessary to clean this place? If I recall correctly, no one visits here, right?”
Previously, the elder mentioned that the residents here weren’t interested in books, which was also what Rhode observed. Apart from Christie and Bell, there wasn’t anyone else. Of course, perhaps all the interested ones were evacuating at the moment.
“Even if no one comes to the library, it is still my job. Besides…”
The young lady turned to the two petite figures.
“… It doesn’t seem like my job is meaningless.”
“You’re right.”
Rhode displayed a smile for a second before returning to his poker face.
“Alright then, I shall leave the two girls in your care. By the way, tomorrow will be the last day of evacuation: you should also get prepared. From tomorrow onward, we will be facing a relatively vicious attack, where even this place may be affected.”
“… I understand, thank you for your reminder.”
“You’re welcome.”
Rhode waved his hand casually before turning around. Then, he turned around as though he recalled something.
“By the way… Hmm?”
Other than the books that were neatly arranged on the shelves, the young lady who stood there a second earlier was nowhere to be seen.
