Chapter 29 – Knowledge Is Love, Light And Insight (3)

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The library had become eerily quiet.  

No, it wasn’t just quiet—it was enveloped in a thick silence.  

Even Wolf’s breathing was completely suppressed, as if the air itself had settled into a heavy stillness.  

“Huff… Ugh!?”  

Wolf gasped for air.  

She was trying to suppress her rising anger, but an even deeper emotion was boiling within her.  

Sorrow, defeat, and an inexplicable fear.  

She looked down at her hands.  

‘They’re trembling.’  

She was trembling.  

Her entire body was twitching faintly, and she writhed in pain, unable to control herself.  

“……You crazy bitch. What? Do I trust humans?”  

She gritted her teeth and spat out the words.  

“It seems… you’ve lost your strength, guest.”  

But even those words lacked power.  

It felt as if she was admitting her own defeat.  

Deep down, she must have wanted to deny it vehemently, but her mind was already filled with the reality of her loss.  

And the sight of death.  

Along with the witch’s voice.  

“Butterflies don’t betray. Wouldn’t you like to join them?”  

As if those words wouldn’t leave her ears, she shook her head back and forth, desperately trying to shake off what had entered her mind.  

But no matter how much she tried to rid herself of it, as long as it was embedded in her mind, it was impossible unless she removed her head entirely.  

‘They don’t betray?’  

Internally, she began to rationalize, thinking, ‘How does that even make sense?’  

Yes.  

How could such a being exist in this world?  

If that were the case, I would say this:  

In a world where existence itself is filled with betrayal, where everything is covered in lies and hypocrisy, how dare you claim there is no betrayal?  

That’s what she thought.  

She looked at me with suspicion, as if she couldn’t believe it—or perhaps didn’t want to believe it.  

*Step, step—*  

I slowly walked toward her.  

In the library filled with death and silence, the sound of ordinary footsteps echoed, apart from the sound of people dying.  

The butterflies that had been flying around the bright golden center of the library began to follow me, and soon, a few landed on my shoulders and head, fluttering their wings gently.  

Under the bright light, Wolf sat on the floor, clutching her wrist, glaring at me and shouting.  

“D-don’t come closer. I’ll… I’ll do more… you savage…”  

Her voice was filled with anger and trembling.  

“Guest, I’ll ask you one more time.”  

I spoke in the softest voice I could muster.  

She must have known how sharp that softness was, like a blade.  

“Do you really trust humans?”  

Wolf’s lips quivered.  

But she gritted her teeth and remained silent.  

“You won’t answer? Then I suppose you’re still thinking about it.”  

I nodded slowly and stopped walking.  

The distance between us was barely a step.  

Wolf swallowed hard.  

“Why do you trust humans? If you do, why? Are humans beings who fight to the end for their beliefs? Do you truly believe that? For the sake of justice?”  

I looked into her eyes and spoke.  

“Even Tia, whom you trusted, ultimately betrayed you, didn’t she? She chose the path of betrayal and corruption instead of justice, and in the end, she repeated the worst choices of her life. Eventually, she became a part of the library.”  

“N-no… that’s not…”  

Wolf shook her head in denial, barely managing to let out a stifled sigh.  

“That’s not all, guest. I am the witch, the librarian, and the keeper of knowledge in this library. I cannot be ignorant. And there’s no need to assume that what I say is anything but the truth.”  

Because it was the truth.  

At that moment, Wolf’s shoulders trembled slightly.  

“That’s the reaction I expected.”  

I didn’t miss it.  

“What is faith? Humans speak of faith, but isn’t it also the first thing they abandon when it’s most needed? They believe, but when they’re betrayed at the most critical moment, or when they think they don’t need it, they betray that faith immediately. That’s what humans are.”  

I slowly reached out into the air. Countless butterflies gathered at my fingertips.  

“The woman you loved is no more. She refused to come as a guest and instead coveted the library’s knowledge—its power. In the end, she paid the price. Now, she has become part of the butterflies.”  

A vein bulged on Wolf’s forehead.  

“Shut up…”  

“You will become the same.”  

She gritted her teeth and glared at me, then shouted again.  

“Shut up!”  

“Shut up, you say? Don’t you want to hear it? If you had refuted me earlier, I would have spared you my words, guest.”  

I smiled and lowered my hand.  

At that, the butterflies behind me, which had been ready to consume her memories at any moment, scattered.  

The butterflies fluttered boldly, crossing in front of her eyes.  

“Guest, have you ever, even once in your life, been certain that humans wouldn’t betray you?”  

“I…”  

Wolf opened her mouth, then closed it again.  

Her breathing grew ragged.  

“……”  

I didn’t press her further.  

Instead, I waited, watching the movements of the butterflies.  

“You’re hesitating. Isn’t that the answer itself, guest?”  

I slowly bent down and looked directly into her face.  

“Even the person you loved abandoned you. And yet, do you still trust humans?”  

Wolf, as if frustrated and trying to hide her emotions, dug her nails deep into her palm.  

*Drip—*  

Blood seeped out.  

“What if… it wasn’t her fault?”  

“Ah, I see. Hmm… You’re saying it was the environment that made her that way, aren’t you? Well, that could be true.”  

I smiled and shook my head.  

“Humans are rational beings. So, when something is hard to accept, they always make excuses. They say it wasn’t their fault, but the environment, the situation, or someone else who caused it.”  

I chuckled and straightened up.  

“That must make them feel better. It’s almost like blaming others. They have to do that to survive. But isn’t that just self-deception?”  

I traced my fingertip through the air.  

The butterflies floating in the air began to swirl around her, as if embracing her.  

Wolf, panicking, flailed her upper body, unable to move her lower half.  

“The humans I’ve met so far haven’t been good people. At first, they were pure, and their initial reactions were all the same.”  

I placed a butterfly with red wings, carrying memories, on my fingertip.  

“They speak of beliefs and then betray them, whisper of love and then betray it, talk of faith and then stab the ones closest to them. The tongue has such power. Now, let me ask you this: Even so, do you still believe?”  

Wolf’s breathing grew ragged.  

Her fingertips trembled slightly.  

“Then… what makes you, the witch, any different?”  

I smiled quietly.  

“I’m different. I’m not human. I’m closer to a butterfly than anything else.”  

At that moment, Wolf’s face turned pale.  

“Th-that’s… nonsense.”  

I lightly reached out and brought my hand close to her cheek.  

*Swish—*  

“Gasp!?”  

Though my fingers didn’t touch her, she flinched and pulled back.  

“Guest. I’m not human, I don’t lie. I only speak the truth within the limits the library allows. It’s just that the truth is too uncomfortable for humans.”  

I slowly looked into her reddened eyes.  

“So, I’ll ask you again. Do you really trust humans?”  

Wolf couldn’t say anything.  

*Click—*  

She only bit her lip.  

That silence was proof that her heart was breaking.  

I turned around slowly and left her with my final words.  

“One day, you’ll realize it. That humans cannot be trusted. When that day comes, you too will become a butterfly. You’ll be free.”  

For that freedom, you’ll live only for the butterflies.  

*****  

Reddened eyes, slightly parted lips, and a body trembling as it sat on the floor.  

Wolf still looked at me with disbelief.  

“Do you understand now, guest?”  

I smiled softly and gently lifted her chin with my fingertip.  

Her face, filled with despair and an even greater despair, was a mix of dead eyes, tears, and blood, making her look utterly miserable.  

But when she felt my presence, Wolf flinched and reflexively tried to pull back, though her psychological collapse made such resistance meaningless.  

“Ugh…”  

She clenched her fists, but her hands trembled lightly.  

Her eyes were a mix of confusion, anger, and a faint trace of fear.  

‘Ah. This is it. The moment they face the truth.’  

The more she wavered, the more thrilling the sensation I felt, and I took another step closer.  

“Don’t be so tense. I only wanted to show you a better truth, guest.”  

I whispered in a gentle voice and touched her cheek.  

As my soft touch reached her, Wolf flinched and trembled.  

She looked at my hand in confusion, then quickly turned her face away, blushing.  

“Wh-what are you doing…?”  

“Hmm… I thought you’d like this, guest. Why are you so embarrassed?”  

I smiled faintly and brought my mouth close to her ear.  

Her shoulders twitched, but she didn’t resist, freezing in place.  

“You’re finally opening up a little. I think it’s really cute, guest.”  

“Sh-shut up…!”  

Wolf muttered weakly, but her voice lacked strength, and her increasingly red cheeks betrayed her wavering emotions.  

Enjoying her reaction, I slowly took her hand.  

Then, I gently kissed the back of her hand.  

“!?”  

Wolf’s body shook violently. She stared at me with wide eyes, as if in disbelief.  

“Y-you… what are you doing?!”  

“Huh? It just seemed like what you wanted. After all, a librarian must do everything they can for their guest.”  

I smiled innocently.  

Judging by her reaction, she didn’t seem to dislike it.  

And then, a spring breeze blew through the library.