Ch.65The Librarian of the Infinite Archives (3)

I could see certain books clearly and find the pointer. It was never a coincidence.

At some point, my eyes began to see more things.

Things that couldn’t be seen even with anomaly observation.

“Wait a moment.”

I turned my head toward the massive bookshelf.

On the wooden wall, there was a mark engraved that wasn’t visible before.

[ <ㅇ-)–<< ]

“Can any of you see that?”

When I pointed at the bookshelf, Jung Haewon turned his head and answered.

“The bookshelf?”

“No. What’s engraved on it.”

“I can’t really tell. To me, it just looks like a clean bookshelf.”

“Daju?”

“I can’t see it either.”

I figured as much.

“Follow me!”

I immediately ran to the front of the bookshelf.

The closer I got, the more information became visible.

[ <ㅇ-)–<< ]

* Those who can see this mark should immediately take care of their body and mind.

The mark signifies the ■■ of the one who ■■. Or, the weathering of the ■■.

I will tell you about the things you need to be careful of here.

.̴̨̡͓̙̥͉̖͈̝̼̱̇̆̊̀̐͗̿͜͠.̵̧̧̲̘͉̤̰̟̖̗͉̼̽͗̏̇̋̉̎̆̐͝.̸̧̛̛̹͖̟̘͙̜̭̏̄͛̓̽͗̾́̕͝͠.̶̛̗̣̪̣͍̝̹̤̤̰̫̖̣̞͊̉͗̋̍̐͒̐͜.̷̜͕̺͔̞͇͚̼̌͛̍̒̄̀̈́̓̾͘̚͝͝ͅ.̷̧̢͈̤̠̤̅̇̃̽̐͝.̴̺̺̉̑̀̀̅̉̓̓̈́͗͘͝.̵̨̢̫̭̥̖͇̯͙̮̿͆͛̾͘.̸̧̨̡̙̼̳̣͕͇͙̮̿͆͛̾͘.̴̙̦̼̼̺͖͂̃.̷̨̧͎̞̹̩̣̯̦̮̰͓̤̲͘.̶̲͙̗̐̐̈́͋̀̌̿͗̌́͐̈͆̑̕͜.̵̡̨͎̮̪̺͎̈͛͆̚ͅ.̶̭̺̞͕͓͈̤̯͔̺̊̏̂̋͑̃̂͗̾̒̇̒͜͜͠.̵̨̧͓͍̝̖̤̦̻̼͖̹̩̺̮̓̃̆̈́̇̕.̵̨̛͎͙̙̫͐̃̒̐̃͛̑̌̇̀́͝.̶̡͉̫͈͎͎̹̄͑.̵̬̯͍̓̇̍͑̓̕͝͝.̴̛͉͓̥̹̥̗̞̭̮̟͉̓͛̓̈́̆͜͝.̶͎̆͋͊̃.̶̿̈́̾̾̎̅͐̐͛̈́̎̋̚͜.̵̡̰͈͗̓̄͑̂̄̀̉͗̑̄́̀͠.̶̢̨̝͎̫̳͔̩͇͚̪͋̇͂͆̅̐͐̈́̽̌̒̕͝.̸̨̜͓̮̤̥̯̘̪̠̖̩͕̟͐͐̿̑̚

Thus I write here. The one to fear is neither thief nor murderer.

They can take your life but cannot make you lose yourself.

We should fear those who pity our most intimate parts.

“What are you suddenly doing?”

The others seemed confused as they gathered around.

I reached out and touched the carved mark.

What was engraved on the bookshelf was the mark of impermanence.

The death of one who receives everyone’s faith.

The destruction and regeneration of the self.

Or, it means that everything eventually returns to dust.

“Daju.”

“Yes?”

“You know I have good observation abilities, right?”

Daju hesitated for a moment before nodding.

“Yes. You’ve always seen things that others couldn’t. When we went to the mechanical device, or when we wandered through different floors. And also…”

“Yeah. So I think I can figure it out now.”

I showed the pointer again.

Even now, the contents of the book were changing moment by moment.

[Pointer]

* This ■■ indicates the ■■ where the library’s collection, [Extinction Scenario: 5000], is located.

The direction is as follows:

<—-

The remaining distance is as follows:

■■■■■■■■■

“There are some concerning aspects, but the direction itself is correct.”

“Oppa. If that’s the case.”

Yoon Daju asks me in a serious voice.

“The information we’re looking for. Is it really worth taking such risks to retrieve it?”

“Yes. And if not for this opportunity, we might never find it again.”

As I spoke with confidence, I observed the reactions of the others.

Choi Serim was silently watching me.

Only one person wasn’t part of the conversation: Jung Haewon.

“What are you talking about? Weren’t we supposed to just go back?”

Jung Haewon started complaining with an aggrieved expression.

“You heard about the navigation. It says we’ll die if we follow it!”

“Daju!”

When I shouted, Yoon Daju pulled Jung Haewon away.

It didn’t take long at all to convince Jung Haewon.

“We’ve come all this way, so we should go all the way. I’ll trust Dabin noona.”

“Good. You made the right choice.”

It’s a bit regrettable, but this is for everyone’s sake.

The librarian authority I received from Choi Serim. She probably transferred the memories while I was sleeping.

I received only a small portion of the abilities, but even that was enough to learn a lot.

We cannot survive in this apartment.

I’m not just talking about being killed by strange entities.

[ <ㅇ-)–<< ]

The corpses of the dead lie scattered on the floor, eventually revealing their bones.

Perhaps.

We might already be dead. It just hasn’t actually happened yet.

Was it always the same?

Then this might be a newfound horror.

Something we’ve always lived with, but a primordial fear we could never get used to.

The more I think about it, the more captivated my mind becomes.

“Noona.”

I called out to Choi Serim.

My voice was trembling.

“Yes?”

Choi Serim answered in a quiet voice.

A knowing smile floated on her face.

“What’s wrong, Dabin?”

“What did I say last time?”

“I don’t remember. What are you talking about?”

I bit my lip firmly.

A voice colder than I expected myself capable of slipped between my lips.

“I told you to stay cute.”

“Huh…?”

“Please. Even if you know something, don’t recall it.”

“Alright.”

Choi Serim artificially raised her tension.

“Shall we go now?”

She even forced an eye-smile that didn’t suit her.

“Yes.”

I picked up the book and checked the direction.

[Deㅁㅁination]

The direction is ㅁㅁㅁasㅁㅁㅁfollㅁㅁㅁㅁ:

<<<<<<<<ㅁㅁㅁㅁㅁㅁㅁㅁㅁㅁㅁㅁㅁㅁㅁ

……

[Pointer]

* This ■■ indicates the location where the library’s collection, [Extinction Scenario: 5000], is located.

The direction is as follows:

<—-

The content quickly returned to normal.

The direction was the same as before.

The task was also the same.

Following the direction indicated by the pointer to find the necessary information.

We continued walking through the library.

Bookshelves forming the terrain.

Books. Papers.

Traces of people visible here and there.

“Look at this.”

Choi Serim picked up something from a house-like structure made of books.

It was a burnt doll.

“Hehe. Isn’t it cute?”

Choi Serim held up the teddy bear, forcing a smile.

Even a forced expression looks somewhat cute.

But.

Her face soon turned pale and stiff.

Splat.

Dark red liquid poured out from the torn part of the teddy bear.

Lungs. Stomach. Intestines. Liver.

As if it wasn’t a doll, but a living animal’s belly had been cut open.

Organs proportional to the doll’s size spilled out with blood.

“Huk.”

Following that, white powder scattered in the air.

Ground fingernails.

“What… is this…”

Seemingly in great shock.

Choi Serim stood there, shrinking her body, then sat down a few steps ahead.

“D-Dabin. I’m sorry.”

“Noona, are you okay?”

“Yeah. I’m fine… I’m fine…”

Whew.

Choi Serim took a deep breath.

“Let’s move quickly. It seems the surroundings are becoming more dangerous.”

“Yes. Let’s do that.”

The atmosphere continued to change.

The surroundings, which had been a spacious but ordinary library, gradually became darker and more bizarre.

The deeper we walked, the more it continued.

Thud, thud, thud, thud.

“Wait a moment.”

Daju, who was walking ahead, suddenly stopped and lowered her voice.

“Oppa, you heard that sound too, right?”

“Yes.”

Thud, thud, thud.

The noise repeats from a distance.

Then, out of nowhere, a voice.

“Wouldn’t it be better to stay here?”

“What?”

“There’s too much we don’t know if we go outside anyway.”

I looked to the side.

Jung Haewon was just staring ahead, seemingly unaware.

“Didn’t you just say something?”

“No? I didn’t say anything.”

“It was definitely a male voice.”

“Maybe noona misheard?”

Meanwhile, the distant thudding sounds had disappeared.

Silence fell. Everyone was frozen in place, either scared or tense.

I barely managed to open my mouth.

“Let’s go again.”

“Okay.”

“Yes, oppa.”

“…”

Jung Haewon followed silently from the very back.

Strange incidents continued to happen after that.

Whoosh!

Daju suddenly swinging a hammer in our direction.

“AAAAAAHHHHH!!!!”

Me screaming terribly without realizing it.

But the most frightening thing was.

The fog that began to appear at some point.

Shadows moved in the fog where it was difficult to see even a step ahead.

Familiar prayers kept ringing in my ears.

“Oppa.”

“Yes.”

I took out a hammer from my bag and handed it to Daju.

Jung Haewon and Choi Serim also prepared their weapons.

And then.

Suddenly the fog cleared.

Hundreds of monks were surrounding this place.

Monks spinning in circles like they were performing a traditional dance.

[!@$%! #@54 !@$%%!]

[!!@#$$% !@# !@$%#^$%&^]

Muttering words I could no longer understand, they began to approach slowly.

Choi Serim pressed close to me and said.

“What should we do?”

“For now, don’t use your ability, noona.”

I concentrated my mind and stretched my arm toward the monks.

I focused on a single word in my mind.

[Weaken].

The librarian’s authority to control the entities of the library.

The strength drained from the monks’ bodies, but the others didn’t notice.

“Huff…”

I only managed to weaken about thirty of them.

Already my mouth was dry and a fishy scent filled the air.

“Shit!!!”

Whoosh-

Daju swung her hammer and knocked down several monks.

Jung Haewon also took one down with a bat.

However, there were countless enemies to face, and I couldn’t weaken all of them.

“Oppa, move!”

I quickly ducked.

Daju’s swinging hammer perfectly struck the head of the monk behind me.

Clang!

Sparks flew from the metal hitting the solid body.

“Huh?”

The creature took no damage.

The monk, without a scratch, prepared to counterattack.

Daju was thrown back and fell to the ground some distance away.

It was impossible from the beginning to face the monks with just a hammer and human strength.

Thump. Thump.

A pain that seemed to squeeze a corner of my chest.

Enduring the pain, I focused on the word in my mind again.

[Weaken].

The monk lost its strength and collapsed on the spot.

Daju got up, rushed over, and finished it off.

And.

Making all our resistance feel like mere struggling, the fog was rolling back in.

“Don’t scatter! Gather here!”

“Noona, where are you?!”

“Get out of the way, damn it!!!”

The voices of Jung Haewon and Yoon Daju grew more distant.

Only Choi Serim remained by my side.

“Huk. Huk…”

I could barely call out to Choi Serim.

“Noona. What do we do now.”

“…”

“I don’t think I can use my ability anymore.”

Using the librarian’s abilities put tremendous strain on my body.

I had managed to weaken almost all the monks, but now I could barely move.

When I coughed, blood gushed out.

I barely managed to focus my blurring vision.

Choi Serim looked at me for a moment, then turned her back and began walking somewhere.

“Noona…?”

“Dabin.”

Completely out of place for the situation, Choi Serim smiled brightly.

“Want me to show you something interesting?”

Before I could grab her, Choi Serim walked deep into the fog.

Thwack!

Something invisible struck her body.

Her eyes were already bruised purple.

Blood clots dropped from her broken nose.

“Aak! Ak!”

Then Choi Serim’s body was pressed down hard against the floor.

Crunch.

Crack.

Broken ribs protruded like thorns through her clothes.

The pressure grew stronger.

Bone fragments scattered into powder.

Finally.

The Word Key popped out and fell to the floor.

The Word Key popped out and fell to the floor.

Finally.

Bone fragments scattered into powder.

The pressure grew stronger.

Broken ribs protruded like thorns through her clothes.

Crack.

Crunch.

Then ■■■’s body was pressed down on the ■■.

“■■! Ak!”

■■■ ■■ from ■■■ ■■■■.

■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■

■■■■■■■■■■■■■■.

“■■■ ■■■■ ■■■■ ■■.”

“■■■■ ■■■ ■ ■.”

Before I could grab her, she walked into the fog.

“Want me to show you something interesting?”

“What… what just happened?”

I muttered blankly.

The voice in my ears didn’t seem like my own.

I felt like I saw something.

But at the same time, it felt like I hadn’t seen anything.

“I’m sorry, Dabin.”

One thing was certain: Choi Serim wasn’t hurt at all.

“I tried to stay cute like you said, but since this is the last time, will you forgive me?”

“…”

“Here. Take it.”

What she handed me was the [Word Key].

The symbol of all authority held by the librarian of the Infinite Archives.

I took it without thinking.

And the very next moment. My consciousness cut off with a thud.

Along with incomprehensible words.

“Go and earn the qualification. That’s how we can… the…”

“That’s how we can write the one story we want.”