Ch.56The Wanderer’s Library (4)

The first thought that came to mind was, ‘Should I go back?’

The next thought was, ‘Did I make a mistake?’

I stood there feeling the ground pulling me down.

The rope was still taut, which meant it was connected to the top of the cliff.

But. Looking up, I couldn’t see anything. There was nothing but empty sky.

Light still remained, as if night hadn’t fallen yet.

I shouted with all my might toward the top where the others might be.

“Yoon Daju! Are you up there?”

Up there?

There?

There?

Only echoes returned.

I sighed and sat down.

Even when I tugged on the rope to send a signal, there was no response.

Had I been left here alone?

I lifted my head and thought.

First, there were wooden bookshelves all around me. Some empty, some densely packed with books.

Far below, some unknown entity had its jaws wide open, and from above, I could hear the prayer chants of monks.

I stood up again.

This time, I pulled a book from a nearby shelf and threw it downward. The book disappeared into the endless depths.

Then I threw one upward. The book opened in mid-air, fluttering before gravity overcame it and it fell.

“Huh?”

Something was strange.

I pulled out another book and threw it upward again.

A sky-blue leather cover. [World History of Viruses] falls down.

A leather cover. [World History of Viruses] falls.

[World History of Viruses] falls.

Surely only one book was falling, but afterimages remained in the air.

It was like watching a panoramic motion capture playback.

This didn’t happen when I first threw books downward. Perhaps this was related to the properties of this space?

“Waaaaaaah!!!”

This time, I pointed my head downward and shouted with all my might.

I yelled until my throat hurt, but no echo returned.

So then…

I held onto the rope tightly and organized my thoughts.

Books and sound. Both followed the same rule.

Things directed downward were fine, but strange things happened when directed upward.

Finally, I took out my flashlight and shined it downward.

The light was far too dim to illuminate the abyss. The beam extended for a while before disappearing at some point.

As expected, everything behaved normally within common sense.

This time, I shined it upward.

The beam extended slightly upward, then curved like a parabola and came back down.

Like an umbrella. The light pouring from above mercilessly stabbed my eyes.

End of experiment.

Sound. Books. Light.

I tapped the bookshelf with each word.

If I could find their common property, I could quickly figure out the rules of this place.

“Ah!”

A light flashed in my mind.

The riddle was surprisingly easy to solve.

Starting with where this place was, the answer came quickly.

A library.

And not just any library, but a place where all the world’s ‘information’ gathered.

“Information.”

Information. Information. Muttering, I looked down.

Like a waterfall, letters were being pulled downward.

Like Saturn’s rings, meaningless letters were frantically orbiting around a star.

Fragments of dead information that could never be transmitted outside again.

■■■■■■■■■■Seven■■■■■■■■■■

The star’s name was ‘Seven.’

Around here, information was severely distorted and couldn’t be properly transmitted.

It seemed that it had the power to pull in and break information.

If a person fell in, they might cease to exist altogether.

I fell into thought again.

Even if I sent signals upward, the star’s gravity would pull the information back. That’s why my communications couldn’t reach.

So. How could I communicate with the people above?

“Huff.”

Dizziness washed over me from attempting to observe the anomaly too forcefully.

As I barely held back the nausea, I faintly heard a voice from above.

“…Oppa!”

A strangely high-pitched voice, as if fast-forwarded.

But I could understand it immediately.

Yoon Daju was calling for me.

“Are you… okay? …there?”

“The situation here is also…!!!”

***

At the top of the valley.

Choi Serim looked at the distant maze. A place where giant bookshelves rose like a forest.

“Haewon. Still no answer?”

Jung Haewon, who had been peering down the cliff, answered heavily.

“No.”

“What should we do…”

Though responding with a worried voice, Choi Serim was still looking at the forest behind the cliff.

The prayer chants were getting closer.

Endless meaningless sentences recited in dry voices, and not just by one person.

The voices collided and shattered, creating an unpleasant noise.

Sentences that drained your strength just by hearing them.

There was no meaning in them. That alone was enough to make people despair and collapse.

“Unni.”

Yoon Daju grabbed Choi Serim’s sleeve and pulled her to the edge of the cliff.

“Let’s go down too. That seems to be our only option.”

“But… will it be safe down there?”

“What does it matter if it’s not? You think I wouldn’t go rescue my brother if it’s dangerous?”

“Yeah. That’s right. You’re right.”

Choi Serim answered weakly with a blank expression.

Seemingly irritated by this, Yoon Daju raised her voice.

“What’s wrong with you, unni? You’ve just been standing there. We really don’t have time! Snap out of it!”

“Yeah… sorry.”

“This isn’t working. Hey, Jung Haewon.”

“Yes?”

“Go down first. I’ll bring unni later.”

Speaking in a firm tone, Yoon Daju glared at the horizon. Her hand still firmly gripped Choi Serim’s sleeve.

“Wouldn’t it be better if I took Serim noona?”

“No, it wouldn’t, so just go down, please.”

The prayer chants were getting closer. Yoon Daju raised her voice to match.

“It’ll be dangerous down there too! Go find my brother and stay with him! If it seems dangerous, save him!”

“Oh! Yes!”

After answering confidently, Jung Haewon stepped down the cliff.

Only after confirming this did Yoon Daju firmly grip the weapon in her bag.

A hammer with a strap attached to the handle so it could be swung far.

The prayer chants buzzed in her head.

Just as she was about to take out her weapon and put down her bag, Daju felt something cool in her hand.

A damp, somewhat eerie sensation.

Choi Serim was holding onto her tightly with her head bowed.

Sweaty forehead. Damp palms. Choi Serim, who looked seriously unwell, barely opened her mouth.

“My head hurts…”

“What? Suddenly?”

“Yeah… sorry… I can’t move… I don’t know why I’m like this, but it hurts.”

Between the bookshelves. Shadows could be seen striding out from the distant forest.

After laying Choi Serim down in a suitable place, Yoon Daju glared at the library’s caretakers.

“My head hurts too.”

Hoo. She sighed and looked for a solution.

By now, she could see the faces of the approaching enemies.

People in black monastic robes.

The monks held lanterns in one hand and different books in the other. They uttered meaningless sentences in dry voices.

The nuns, with their hands clasped in prayer and heads bowed, muttered prayers in high, sharp voices.

If there was one commonality, it was their gait.

It didn’t feel like people approaching.

Like black waves rushing in from a dilapidated port. They flowed across the floor. There was no bending of knees or swinging of arms. They didn’t shake their heads or turn their gaze. With empty eyes fixed on some point in the void, they only moved their mouths to mutter.

Pale faces. Powerless voices. And bizarrely elongated bodies. Their arms had almost no flesh, and their bony fingers seemed several times longer than normal.

Daju swallowed hard.

She needed some normal people around to joke with and act spoiled.

At this rate, she’d have no choice but to draw on those memories.

The monks approached with a wooing sound.

As they raised their arms in an attacking posture, something fell to the floor with a patter.

Decayed clothing and rotting flesh.

The next moment, Daju felt her consciousness growing distant.

Not a matter of courage, but a fear hammered deep into her instincts.

The monks who had been uttering meaningless words all turned their gaze at once, staring directly at her.

“Huff.”

Daju barely managed to breathe.

They stopped in place and opened their mouths in unison, like a choir.

[[[You must not enter here.]]]

Their jaws stretched down to their chests.

There were already hundreds of visible jawbones.

Feeling fear tightening around her, Daju exhaled a shallow breath.

The choir continued.

[[[This is a library that only authorized monks may enter. Please leave.]]]

It continued.

[[[This is a place that serves God. Please leave.]]]

It continued.

[[[Please leave.]]]

The monks cracked their joints with a loud sound.

With just the strength of their grip, the nuns violently destroyed bookshelves blocking their path. Crack. The sound of breaking wood echoed loudly through the library.

The cold voices singing in unison penetrated through the noise.

[[[There is no knowledge for intruders to gain here.]]]

[[[Please leave.]]]

Yoon Daju gripped her hammer.

The immediate danger right in front of her. And the unknown danger lurking below the cliff.

If there was one new thing she realized, it was that the surroundings were rapidly growing darker.

The stained glass ceiling covered in dark colors.

The giant light that had substituted for the sun was gradually losing its brightness and falling below the horizon.

Crack.

Smash.

“Hoo…”

A deep sigh escaped from between Yoon Daju’s lips.

Jung Haewon was no longer visible. Choi Serim had collapsed, clutching her head.

Along with the sound of monks breaking bookshelves as they advanced,

night was falling in the library.