Please, Just Read It

Please, just read me!

Chapter 4

Cheina Yunsebella (4)

“Gyaaaah!”

It took nearly half a day for the cold body of the boy to be discovered.

To begin with, the corners of the Academy Library were places where human footsteps were incredibly rare.

Let alone where the incident occurred, which was the deepest corner of the library.

If it hadn’t been for the librarian who came to patrol, that boy’s body might have been left there for much longer.

*

Time flew rapidly.

Despite the shocking event of that morning, the library in the late evening was as silent as ever, like a dead mouse.

All traces of the boy’s corpse and bloodstains from the incident had already been thoroughly cleaned up.

I let out a deep sigh and glanced around.

[…….]

Yes.

This is it.

This is exactly the scenery of the library I’ve been bored with for hundreds of years.

Honestly, this annoying library hasn’t changed at all in the past 300 years.

[Huh…….]

I had finally gained hope that I could escape this tiresome library.

Yet that hope shattered into pieces not even ten minutes after encountering the boy.

I felt nothing but utter dismay.

Of course, I felt a bit sorry for the boy who passed away at such a young age.

But just thinking for a moment, it wasn’t hard to grasp which side suffered the greater loss.

In the boy’s case, he merely lost less than 20 years of life.

But what about me?

I’ve just wasted 300 years of waiting.

[And damn it.]

Honestly, that rotten kid deserved to die.

[How dare he be such a insolent boy…]

Even though I offered to save him from the hellish path of swordsmanship, akin to a den of demons, and guided him toward the way of magic…

The boy utterly ignored my goodwill.

As if that wasn’t enough, he even had the audacity to curse me while outright rejecting magic itself.

[Did I even curse at him? Did I hit him with some foul language?]

Of course, if I had been the one to throw the first insult, I wouldn’t have much to say.

For instance, if I had hurled insults at that boy, or urged him to attack his father with magic… then the blame would entirely fall on me, not the boy.

But.

If my memory serves me right.

[……I never once hurled insults during my conversations with the boy.]

Yes.

That’s right.

I actually continued to show respect toward him.

And rightly so, because I valued character more than anyone, being a gentlemanly magic book.

[…….]

I spoke to a boy much younger than me with honorifics, continuously and politely persuading him to walk the path of magic.

Surely.

I did—I know that I respected him…

Yet contrary to the saying that “you get back what you give,” it was the boy who showed an unexpectedly rude attitude.

-You wicked magic book! It’s because of scum like you that the knights’ positions are dwindling! Go die! How dare you encourage me to learn magic, you scabby book!

-Ugh, I’m sorry, Cheina Yun-whatever… please don’t curse me… my heart hurts too much…

-Shut up! You little paper shred!

Ah.

Yes.

Right.

[…….]

Now, the vivid memories from that time began to flood back.

Upon reflection, the boy had hurled insults at me right from our first encounter.

Just the fact that I was a magic book containing profound magical knowledge was enough for him to curse me as an abominable spawn of the devil and endlessly criticize me.

So, why did that boy suddenly die, you ask?

It’s simple.

Heaven, unable to bear watching that boy, probably bestowed divine punishment upon him.

[Ah…….]

Yes, this is it.

This is precisely why the boy died.

Karma.

In other words, the boy got exactly what he deserved.

This means that I bear no responsibility for the boy’s death.

Instead, I am the victim.

Yes, that’s right.

I am the victim of this incident.

[…….]

No matter what anyone says, I am, after all, the victim.

[Anyway.]

Shaking off the miscellaneous thoughts, I stared blankly out the library window.

Morning had passed, and time had drifted into the evening, filled with a crimson sunset.

Caught up in a strange atmosphere, I let my gaze sweep over the landscape of the library.

[The ties here are brutally enduring.]

It was 8 PM.

It had already been half a day since that boy, with whom I had briefly contracted, died.

The point where a new phase begins is inevitably midnight, so…

If about 4 more hours pass, I would be teleported to some arbitrary space.

Then, from that moment onwards, I would bid eternal farewell to this library.

[…….]

Of course, I felt no sense of loss whatsoever.

In fact, I only hoped to get out of this disgusting place as soon as possible.

I wanted to start anew in a new location.

[Where will I be teleported to this time?]

The place I would be transported to could be absolutely anywhere.

It could be the grand library of a majestic palace, or even inside a stinky house in a poverty-stricken alley.

Even a shabby bookshelf lying on the ground of a market street wouldn’t be an exception.

But honestly, I didn’t care.

[It’ll work out somehow.]

I just prayed that the situation would be better than now.

I waited endlessly for the sound of the old clock striking midnight.

*

As the night deepened, I sensed a presence in the once-dead-silent library.

[Huh…?]

In the library under the Imperial Royal Family’s jurisdiction.

This building, housing tens of millions of books, prohibited access to anyone after 9 PM.

This rule applied not only to the academy’s students but also to all faculty members.

Even the librarians would leave once the clock struck 9.

Clank—.

[…….]

Thus, it was unusual to hear artificial sounds in the library at such a late hour.

Clank—.

Rattle—! Rattle—!

The sound of a locking mechanism clicking was continually heard.

At first glance, someone might think it was the librarian trying to unlock the library’s main door with a key.

In reality, it was not uncommon for librarians to come back after dropping something off at the library.

However, I was a magic book that had been locked in this library for 300 years.

Therefore…

I easily realized that this noise was not caused by a key.

[Rather, isn’t this the sound made when someone is forcefully trying to pick a lock?]

So, who could be trying to break into the library at this time?

I started to speculate.

Clearly, it couldn’t be the librarian.

They would have the key, so there would be no need to force open the locks.

The likelihood of being an academy student was also very slim.

Surely, no one would be crazy enough to risk discipline by sneaking out of their dormitory late at night just to go to the library.

For the same reason, professors were excluded too.

[Then…it must be thieves.]

Thieves.

From my experience, the person trying to sneak into the library right now must be a thief.

Creeeak—. Clang—!

The metallic sound generated each time they used a thin lockpick to unlock the mechanism.

That sound was precise evidence supporting my speculation.

All thieves tend to use that very method every time they try to unlock a door.

[These fools.]

If they learned magic, they could open nearly all locks with “Alohomora.”

This is why people should learn magic!

[By the way, judging from the skill with the lockpick, they don’t seem like your average petty thief.]

As I’ve said countless times, I was in the Academy Library under the Imperial Royal Family’s jurisdiction.

There were countless books stored here, and naturally, there were also many rare books that were priceless.

And indeed, there had been many thieves who attempted to raid the library for those very reasons. Of course, all had failed.

Having lived here for more than 300 years, I’d watched all those thieves attempt to break in with great interest.

And from even my shallow perspective…

The one trying to sneak into the library now was surely quite the professional among all the thieves I had seen.

[First off, arriving safely at the library entrance is impressive.]

This was by no means an easy feat.

The Academy Lutemis, under the Imperial Royal Family, occupied an entire isolated island next to the mainland.

Thus, to reach the library’s front door, one had to fully understand the layout of this vast island.

The posts where guards were stationed.

And the specific areas they patrolled as well.

Just obtaining such high-level information made it clear that the one outside was highly skilled.

Even putting aside acquiring such information, managing to navigate past the guards and magical traps based on what they knew was quite an accomplishment as well.

And above all…

[…….]

Clang—!

Creak—.

The fact that they successfully unlocked the complex locking mechanism and infiltrated the library alone proved the thief’s capabilities.

[Let’s see here.]

Now that the library’s door was opened.

I’d like to take a look at just what kind of person this great thief was…

[……?]

However, at that very moment.

Upon seeing the person who entered the library, I couldn’t help but shout in shock.

[No way… a student from the academy?]

The one who quietly closed the library’s front door as she walked in was a girl.

A girl with platinum hair that fell down to her shoulders, possessing golden eyes.

It was easy to deduce that she was an academy student.

That black robe she currently wore all the way down to her toes was something only students from the academy’s magic department could have.

[Wait, why……?]

I thought there wouldn’t be anyone willing to risk discipline and sneak out of their dormitory…

Surprise!

Here’s one!

[Haha, I’m going crazy.]

Ever since that Cheina Yun-whatever boy, my predictions have never once hit the mark.

What?

The academy under the imperial royal family nurtures exceptional talents?

What a load of nonsense.

Upon thinking about it, this academy is undoubtedly just a bunch of idiots breeding more crazy people.

“Hah, Hah…”

As I shifted my gaze, I noticed the girl sitting on the floor, gasping for breath.

Considering her tightly scrunched expression, it seemed her attempt to sneak into the library had been extremely taxing.

It made sense.

Eluding the guards and avoiding detection by magical devices was a strenuous task even for somewhat skilled thieves.

Yet, against those odds, she succeeded.

Truly, that girl was no ordinary child.

The vicious energy glistening in her eyes proved that fact.

[…….]

Yes.

That girl assuredly had some resolute objective in sneaking into this library.

There was no other explanation for why she would undertake such a feat.

Even if she were crazy, surely she wouldn’t risk all this trouble just for fun, right?

Of course not.

[Hmm?]

Just as I thought that, the girl suddenly narrowed her eyes, desperately searching for something.

Really desperately.

She began rummaging through the shelves as if searching for something…

[Wait a minute.]

No way…….

[……is she looking for me?]

*

I had no idea how she figured it out.

How that girl managed to find out about my existence was beyond my comprehension.

Yet.

One thing was crystal clear.

The reason she risked various dangers to come here.

And the reason she was desperately searching for something.

That was none other than to find me.

[Oh, no……. Really?]

It wasn’t a misunderstanding.

But even so, this wasn’t something that could logically be explained either.

How? Just how did that girl come to know of my existence?

Swish, rustle—

Swish, rustle—

Flipping through the cover of the book, almost frantically, in the dark, filled with infallible certainty, or muttering to herself, cursing quietly that there wasn’t much time left.

Those actions didn’t feel like something someone unaware of my existence would do.

Truly, that girl was earnestly searching for me.

[Perhaps…….]

Perhaps, just perhaps…

Could I finally escape this tiresome place today?

That’s what I was hoping for at that moment.

[……!]

Right then.

Remembering one crucial fact, I quickly glanced at the clock in the library.

[Ahhhh……!]

It was 11:58 PM.

Only about 2 minutes until midnight.

There was barely any time left until a new phase opened.

At that moment, the thread of my reason snapped.

[Hey!!!]

I screamed wildly.

[Here!!! I’m here!!!]

Whether or not this voice reached the girl, it was no longer my concern.

I just earnestly wished that my fervent feelings would reach her.

[Please!!! Just move a bit to the left!!!]

I poured all my strength into it.

I had never used this much energy since I was reincarnated as a magic book.

I truly shouted as loud as I could.

[You’re almost there!!! Please come this way!!!]

I didn’t want to miss this opportunity.

Even if the next phase began, there was no telling when I would meet an owner again.

If I was exceptionally unlucky, I might have to wait even longer than 300 years.

So.

I honestly didn’t want to miss this last chance that had just made itself available to me.

More desperately.

With all my heart.

I poured out my cries filled with frustration toward the girl.

Please.

Please, just read me.

[Ahhhhhh!!! Here!!! Here!!!]

It was unfair.

I felt utterly wronged.

I was screaming as loudly as I could.

Yet, that girl couldn’t hear me at all, and that fact was so infuriating and unjust…

Rustle—

At that moment.

The girl, who had been rifling through the books, seemed to hear something and abruptly paused her actions.

She turned her gaze toward the direction I was in.

[Yes!!! That’s it!!!]

Finally.

[Reach out!!! Just stretch your arm out!!!]

The girl’s hand, finding its target, began stretching out toward me.

And……

Thud—

[Yes!!! Got it!!! Now hurry, open it and reveal the cover…!]

-Dang!

-Dang!

-Dang!

-Dang!

-Dang!

-Dang!

-Dang!

-Dang!

-Dang!

-Dang!

-Dang!

-Dang!

[Ah….]

Midnight struck.

*

“Haah, haah….”

It was a close call.

As soon as the girl caught me, she didn’t ask any questions and immediately opened the cover.

I didn’t need to add any elaboration or showcase illusion magic.

Already, a peculiar bond had formed between me and the girl.

……A contract had been established.

“Haah, haah….”

[…….]

It had been 300 years since I fell into this academy under the imperial royal family.

To be precise, it was the 109,561st day.

Time was 11:59:59 PM.

An unprecedented second contract within a single phase was thus sealed.