Chapter 25 – Silence Is The Best Response To The Ignorant (1)

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The library opened.  

And at that moment, a voice and image spread out to all people across the world.  

Scenes and stories announcing the library echoed like malicious propaganda.  

The voices, tickling both ears, lingered like echoes in the empty alleys of the city. Naturally, most people let it go in one ear and out the other.  

To them, the library was no better than a third-rate, absurd drama.  

No, in fact, everyone was too busy to even care about such nonsense.  

 

“Hey. Tia.”  

A man leaning against the wall chuckled as he spoke.  

“What do you think that noise is about?”  

 

A woman wearing a military vest was deeply sunk into an old sofa.  

She kicked a rolling bottle on the floor toward her, picked it up with one hand, and took a swig.  

“Gulp…”  

After swallowing, she answered in a low voice, as if it were nothing.  

“The Hanseatic Empire folks went crazy as soon as they heard about that library or whatever. They were like, ‘Finally, equal distribution of knowledge for all!’ Especially the crown prince.”  

 

“Funny, isn’t it? Equality? In this hellish world?”  

“Exactly.”  

The man sneered.  

Equal knowledge for all? Nonsense.  

The world was still ruled by the wealthy, while the powerless starved and died in misery.  

He didn’t know what the library was, but even if it opened, the benefits would only go to those already privileged.  

Knowledge was a luxury.  

 

“Sigh…”  

The woman shook the bottle playfully before gulping it down again.  

Her tongue seemed to burn, and she grimaced slightly.  

“I heard something about that guy who died there.”  

“The one from the outskirts? His name was…”  

“Out. You already forgot? He had connections with us too.”  

The man fell silent for a moment.  

“Yeah, that guy. He was strong, but it’s a shame how things turned out.”  

The man shook his head and sighed.  

 

“Yaku, don’t be too upset. It’s inevitable. Outskirt folks’ lives are as cheap as flies’, you know?”  

“Hmm…”  

The woman stretched her arm and laughed.  

After staring at the broken ceiling for a while, she turned back to the man.  

“So, what do you think? Have you thought about going? I have.”  

 

The man exhaled briefly.  

He tapped the table with his finger, pretending to ponder, but his conclusion was already set.  

“Why bother?”  

The man dismissed the idea.  

He had no desire to enter an unknown space with little information.  

 

“Come on. That guy’s weapons looked pretty expensive. And if the stories about the library are true, those books could be worth a fortune.”  

The woman stood up and emptied the bottle.  

After swallowing the burning alcohol, she grinned.  

“If the library’s real, there’s probably a witch there who can refill this bottle, right?”  

 

The man frowned.  

“But… it’s a witch.”  

“That’s exactly why it’s worth checking out. Have you ever seen a witch who actually uses her power properly?”  

The man paused.  

Memories flashed through his mind—witches from legends, self-proclaimed witches, and the crazy ones.  

But their power only shone in myths.  

In reality?  

They were nothing but superstitions.  

 

“…No.”  

“Exactly. Whether self-proclaimed or not, witches are practically non-existent. Oh, and even if they exist, we’re not some back-alley nobodies, are we? We’ve held our own against PMCs.”  

“It was the Gamma Legion, though.”  

“Still a PMC~”  

The man chuckled at her words.  

She wasn’t wrong.  

In this city—no, in this federation—there were hardly any as strong as them.  

Except maybe Sirius.  

 

“Speaking of which, Sirius has gone off the radar recently. At the same time, Lauten’s been acting strange.”  

“Strange how?”  

The woman narrowed her eyes and asked.  

“Yeah. Apparently, she’s been going around talking about ‘revolutionary promises’ and uniting PMCs. She’s formed her own organization, and its name is…”  

“Ah! I’ve heard of it! It’s called ‘Hana-hoe,’ meaning ‘Together as One.’”  

The man scoffed.  

“Yeah, that.”  

 

Politics, military, society—everything was in turmoil.  

And in that chaos, there were countless people trying to use them.  

“We need more booze. We’re out of money…”  

She looked at the man leaning against the door in the distance.  

“Hmm.”  

Then she looked at Yaku.  

They nodded simultaneously, and at that moment, the door burst open.  

 

“Ugh…”  

*Thud—!*  

A bloodied man collapsed.  

The man wiped his blood-stained knife and shrugged.  

“You should cut back on the booze. The doctor said your liver levels are already over 2,000.”  

The woman burst out laughing and raised the bottle.  

“The world runs on money! And there’s a reason I drink, okay?”  

“The dead guy had no money, and we needed cash. The reason is the booze. And you need a reason to drink?”  

“If you don’t want to hear my tearful story about how I can’t live without booze because of this damn corporate war, then shut up.”  

“Tch, tch.”  

The man smirked.  

 

“Well, we’ve got money for booze now. Should we gather the kids and head to that library? If it’s worth it, of course.”  

“Let’s go! Hahaha!”  

They went to the store, bought two bottles of booze, and called their subordinates.  

And then, someone appeared in the dark alley.  

“Excuse me~?”  

A young man’s voice called out.  

*Whoosh—!*  

“What the—?”  

Tia, who was drinking, drew her knife and pointed it at the man emerging from the alley.  

“Ah, I’m not an enemy.”  

Judging by the red liquid splattered on his face, he clearly had just finished a fight.  

Strangely, he held a brush in his right hand.  

 

“Then what do you want?”  

Tia asked.  

“…Do you know someone named Pathos?”  

“Pathos?”  

 

*****  

[The Library]  

I released butterflies into the world.  

To be precise, because the library desired it, I, as the leader guiding the butterflies, granted them a freedom that wasn’t truly freedom.  

In the end, insects living in a controlled environment would live perfectly but grow weak and gain nothing.  

Thus, the insects escape the jar, face all kinds of dangers, and become free.  

The library is a giant jar.  

It captures butterflies that once lived freely, makes them live in the library, and then releases them back into the world.  

And unfortunately, many insects die inside the jar.  

That’s the story.  

 

‘Like stars rising in the night sky, butterflies glowing faintly in the darkness fly across the world.’  

Their fluttering wings cut through the air, leaving faint vibrations.  

Humans couldn’t detect it, but the butterflies spread across the world, sowing themselves among humanity.  

Soon, all humans became visible to me, and the assistant librarians could see them too.  

To anticipate the guests, their steps, their desires and fears.  

Through the butterflies, I could understand why they came, how deeply they would fall, and how to receive them.  

 

Shuji and Yu Hae looked at me.  

Their eyes held a mix of incomprehensible wonder and faint fear.  

Humans always fear what they don’t understand, yet are drawn to it.  

“This is…”  

Shuji murmured.  

I answered calmly.  

“I’ve released butterflies across the world. So the library can judge the guests directly, understand who they are, and prepare how to receive them.”  

They still seemed not to understand.  

Of course, I didn’t expect them to.  

No, they didn’t need to understand.  

Humans never admit the possibility that their existence might be planned and controlled by someone else.  

No matter how the library receives its guests, even if it leads them to their deaths, they will walk in without knowing the end.  

 

“……”  

I absentmindedly stroked the cover of a book.  

The library is an entity that willingly destroys itself.  

It crumbles and collapses, luring guests deeper inside.  

And eventually, it devours them.  

It was irrelevant to me.  

I simply did what was necessary.  

“Ah, of course, if I were in danger, the story would change.”  

I added as if talking to myself.  

The library moves according to my will.  

If I decide to intervene directly, I won’t hesitate to cut short the lives of the guests.  

The library is thirsty, and to satisfy its endless hunger, someone must die.  

Thus, death is recorded.  

The lives of the slain are etched into the books, their final moments preserved as images.  

The records flow to those connected to them, who vow revenge and come here.  

And they, too, meet their deaths.  

 

Ultimately, what the library seeks is to obtain ■■■.  

To be precise, it seeks to prove ■■■.  

If such a thing exists in this world.  

If the proof succeeds, it will be a great provocation against me, the library, and even the Holy Kingdom. The library will become the dwelling of ■■■, and I will become ■■■.  

 

I climbed the stairs.  

The wooden stairs between the first and second floors creaked softly, and the air on the third floor was heavy.  

“Here it is.”  

A new apple tree created by the library for its new purpose.  

I reached out and plucked two apples.  

Their red skins glistened golden in the library’s light.  

‘A gift for the two of them.’  

They were beautiful, delicious fruits—the fruit of the tree that grants knowledge of good and evil.  

 

Holding the apples, I descended and stood before Shuji and Yu Hae, handing one to each.  

“You may eat them.”  

Shuji hesitated, staring at the apple.  

It was too perfect.  

The glossy skin, the subtly sweet aroma, and the fatal color.  

“This is…”  

She couldn’t finish her sentence.  

I smiled faintly.  

“After eating this delicious apple, Yu Hae and Shuji, please prepare for what’s to come.”  

 

Yu Hae looked at the apple with curiosity.  

He didn’t know what it was.  

“I’ve never seen this fruit before.”  

Shuji hesitated but brought the apple to her mouth.  

She took a careful bite.  

*Crunch—!*  

A refreshing sound echoed through the quiet library.  

The apple’s juice spread across her tongue, filling her mouth with sweetness.  

Shuji’s eyes widened.  

“It’s delicious. Yu Hae! This is amazing!”  

“Huh? Oh… okay…”  

Yu Hae also took a bite.  

He chewed slowly, very slowly.  

*Creak—!*  

 

“Wow! Is this it?”  

“The inside is cleaner than I thought. But… there’s a smell of blood.”  

“It’s faint, but it’s there.”  

Tia and Yaku entered, opening the door.  

Behind them, their subordinates filed in, and I stepped forward, leaving Shuji and Yu Hae behind, to greet them.  

“Welcome, guests. I am the head librarian and librarian of the Butterfly Library, and also a witch.”  

 

“Nice to meet you! A man named Pathos, the witch’s lover, sends his regards~!”  

“That artist bastard, he even befriended a witch.”  

“……”  

I felt deeply displeased.  

[Do you wish to kill them horribly?]  

“……”  

[If you wish, you may do so.]  

[The library exists solely for you.]  

‘Is that true?’  

I asked in return.  

[Yes.]  

[It is the reward for coming to this world.]  

[He gave you the library for your sake.]  

 

Before the sentence could finish, Tia, the woman in front of me, cheered brightly.  

“Hey! Witch! Are you really a witch!?”  

“Shall I prove it, guest?”  

“Do it! You know, like that instant-death magic from the lost spells! Do that!”  

“Very well.”  

*Crack—!*  

I instantly exploded Yaku beside her.  

The butterflies that entered his body spread through his veins, and while they couldn’t penetrate his brain due to some biological issue, they blew up everything else.  

“…Huh?”  

Only his head remained as the man died.  

“…Y-Yaku?”  

“Has the proof satisfied you, guest?”  

“Y-You…”  

“If you wish, I can show you his final moments in slow motion. Or, I can prepare a book to revive him.”  

The former is true; the latter is a lie.  

I had no intention of reviving him.  

“…Give it to me now.”  

“If you wish…”  

I turned around and indifferently pointed at Shuji and Yu Hae.  

“Fight them for me, guest.”  

“Damn it…”  

This is the library.

Translator Note

Had some tests but im back now :3