CHAPTER 198: SACRED ARCHIVES (1)

Without another word, Nyra grabbed Adrian’s hand firmly, and Adrian, taken aback for a moment by the sudden contact, simply allowed himself to be led.

Not long after, they soon arrived in front of a grand structure. Nyra finally let go of his hand and puffed out her chest proudly.

"This here is the sacred archives of Eldryth! It is one of the most respected places in the entire kingdom." She turned to him with a triumphant look in her eyes. "I knew this was a place you’d like to be."

Adrian couldn’t hide his smile as he took in the magnificent sight. "You’re not wrong," he admitted with interest.

As they approached the entrance, two Elven guards in simple clothes stepped forward to block their path. They both looked surprised when they saw the Princess holding hands with a human almost as young as her just moments before.

One of the guards addressed Nyra but looked at Adrian. "Your Highness, who is this human you bring to the sacred archives?"

"The King of Zarion seeks entry to our Great Library," Nyra replied with authority. "He is an ally and a guest of the council. He has my leave to enter."

Her words made the guards recall Adrian’s identity and his former visit immediately. They cursed themselves internally for their momentary suspicion. The guard who had spoken bowed his head deeply.

"Forgive my impertinence, your highness. We were not informed. Please, enter."

Nyra wasn’t bothered as it only made sense for them to show caution. She gave them a curt mod and walked in with Adrian.

The interior of the library was even more grand than the outside. The space was amazingly vast and open, with a high domed ceiling that let in light.

It didn’t have an overwhelming number of books, but the ones that were there were beautifully arranged on shelves carved from dark wood.

There seemed to be two main sections. One was a large, accessible area with several beautifully bound tomes. The other, more central section, was raised on a dais. Here, the books were housed in individual cases.

There were exactly five books in that section and the way they were organized made it clear that they were far more revered.

Adrian turned to Nyra, who had already begun to talk. "I can see you’re already taken by our books," she said with a smile. "It’s so sad they’re not of much use to you."

Adrian looked her in the face. "Why so?"

The sudden proximity of his focused gaze made her shrink back for a fraction of a second before she regained her composure.

"Well," she explained, "you’re a Knight. All the books here are spellbooks for mages."

A look of realization crossed Adrian’s face. "I see. That’s not a problem, then. Mind if I peruse them anyway?"

The Princess was surprised by the question but accepted nonetheless. "Of course I don’t mind. Let’s check them out now!"

As they reached the first tall bookshelf, Adrian picked up a tome. The moment his fingers touched the cover, he was greeted by a new notification.

[ERROR: Knowledge has already been acquired by Catalog.]

Adrian wasn’t too surprised. He simply returned the book to the shelf. Before he began moving through the rest, he turned to Nyra, who was watching him with a curious expression. He felt she deserved an explanation.

"I’m about to go around and touch the books one by one," he said to her calmly. "My actions won’t leave any lasting effects on them. Could you give me some time to finish?"

Nyra didn’t show a single bit of doubt on her face. "Oh, no problem at all. Take your time!"

For the next five minutes, Adrian walked swiftly through the shelves, his hand gliding over the spine of every spellbook he could reach, the [Catalog] skill working silently.

By the time he was done, he clasped his hands behind his back and thought, ’Not bad. I was able to obtain forty-five new spellbooks.’

He returned to Nyra’s position. "Are you done?" she asked, her head tilted.

He was feeling a lot more comfortable around her now. "Yeah," he replied with a nod, before adding, "I was also wondering why the shelf over there seems so isolated. I wasn’t sure if I should check them out without your permission."

Nyra’s expression turned serious and a little sad. "Oh, those... Well, the books there are a mystery to our people. They are all written in a language we can’t comprehend, and none of us can trace their origins. They were found deep beneath the palace years ago. Even my late mother, with all her wisdom, could not decipher a single word."

Adrian was intrigued. Hearing that there was a different, unknown language meant several possibilities. In his time here, he had learned that everyone on this planet, shared the same language, one that he believed must be English.

This linguistic uniformity had always struck him as odd. The existence of ancient books in a completely different script was a massive anomaly, a clue to a history that had been lost to time.

"Can I have a look?"

Nyra seemed to think over his question. Her people respected the books greatly, treating them as sacred relics. But the reality was that they were useless to them. As long as he wasn’t going to damage them, she didn’t see the harm.

"Alright then," she said, her own curiosity piqued.

They walked closer to the revered display. Nyra unlatched a velvet rope, allowing him to approach one of the crystal cases.

Adrian looked at the book within. It was a slim volume bound in what looked like dark red cover. He reached out and placed his hand on the cool surface of the case, focusing his intent on the book within.

A notification flashed before him right away, one that made his heart skip a beat.

[Would you like to translate and catalog the Transcendent fire spellbook, ’Supernova’ for 5,000 TP?]