Anyway, this library is the researchers’ domain, so I can’t force them to clean it. I silently followed the researchers.

“There is a library, but there’s almost nothing you can read. Those over there are old collected books, and these here are pre-publication drafts. The rest are other reference books.”

Prom explained while walking between the bookshelves. I looked around and asked.

“Then what about those bookshelves in the back?”

I thought the library wasn’t that big, but now I saw there was more space behind the green curtain decorating one wall.

It’s quite spacious even. The entire area was densely packed with bookshelves.

As I was peering over there, Titira quickly blocked my way.

“Th-that area contains forbidden books! It’s dangerous, so please don’t go in……”

“Uh……”

I may not be the quickest on the uptake, but I could read the frozen atmosphere as soon as the topic of ‘behind the curtain’ came up. I obediently nodded.

In what sense, I wonder. Prom sighed softly as he looked away from the curtain.

Then he stacked a few books in my arms.

“These are textbooks made for training researchers at the academy. And this is the monster encyclopedia we compiled.”

“Wow, it’s thick.”

“It will be good for learning the basic knowledge about Beltraum and monsters that you want to know. It’s easy to understand too. You should be able to study on your own.”

At Prom’s final words, I pouted my lips after briefly flipping through the book.

“So it’s self-study after all.”

“It’s not a lie that we’re busy. Sorry, but we don’t have time to teach you directly.”

I looked around at the researchers standing in front of me. There are only four people here running the Beltraum Research Institute.

It’s a surprisingly small number to conduct research on an unknown world. Enough to understand why they always have tired faces.

‘I don’t think Aspeiran is deliberately not providing more staff.’

Then are there really so few people who want to research Beltraum?

I wanted to ask, but it would surely be a sensitive topic, and besides, the atmosphere wasn’t very good right now.

In the end, I swallowed my curiosity and asked a different question.

“If I have questions, can I come to the lab?”

“Hm? No. Leave a note on that desk and we’ll write an answer. We often come to the library anyway.”

“Ah, you mean that desk.”

I looked at the large desk in the center of the library. A desk cluttered with papers, books, and an unnecessarily large number of writing instruments.

……Will they be able to find a note left there.

Can’t be helped. I put down the books in my arms on a chair and flexed my hands.

“Then I should at least clean the desk.”

“Huh?”

“How will you know where a note is if it’s this messy?”

“Ah, we can find…!”

“Come on, let’s just do it cheerfully!”

Clean, clean!

I clapped my hands and herded the researchers in front of the desk. The powerlessly pushed researchers whimpered and muttered.

“Absolutely don’t bring her to my lab…… or any other room.”

“Wow, are the other rooms dirty too?”

“Hiccup.”

Titira started hiccupping at my casually thrown comment.

……Somehow I feel like I’ve become the villain.

After lightly tidying up just the desktop as promised, I immediately returned to Sammemmer.

When I arrived at the breeding facility, our cuties were sitting together nicely on the wooden platform. They seemed very satisfied with their clean fur gleaming in the moonlight.

“Shall we go for a walk?”

“Woof!”

Sammemmer jumped up and down excitedly. After lightly circling the fir forest once like that, it was already time to leave work.

I took Sammemmer to the indoor breeding facility in the basement of the institute and hugged each one tightly, whispering good night. Then I closed the door and headed to my room on the 3rd floor.

“Phew, today was really a long day.”

Bathing Sammemmer, eating with Aspeiran, and finally meeting the researchers after two months……

I felt like I could collapse from exhaustion at any moment, but seeing the neatly placed pile of books on the desk, I couldn’t do that either.

“I should at least skim through them lightly……”

I sat down at the desk, staggering. Well, let’s start with the book on top.

“Hmm……”

Indeed, as Prom had assured, the content was organized in an easy-to-understand way. The monster encyclopedia is even quite interesting.

Intending to read in detail later, I flipped through it roughly and then fumbled to take out the next book, when my fingertips touched a rough leather cover.

I tilted my head to the side and picked up that book.

“What’s this?”

It’s a book with a dark brown leather cover. Looking more like a diary than a book, it had quite a luxurious appearance. Did they give it to me by mistake?

“Can I…… look at it?”

I couldn’t resist my curiosity. I slightly opened the cover.

And froze stiff.

“May a curse befall the one who dares to open this notebook. −Great Scholar Roam−”

“Gasp.”

It’s a cursed book!

I was about to close it quickly even now, but there was small writing below.

“Of course, it’s a joke.”

“……”

What a cheerful person……

Anyway, Roam? The owner of this notebook doesn’t seem to be a researcher I know. I flipped through the notebook a few pages.

“XX year X month XX day

The head of the Ricop family visited. Even if Mother doesn’t make a fuss, I know he’s the Matapju.

He said I have outstanding talent as a magician. That I could even rival that Yulianea. What a laughable story.

Mother was delighted, saying we could soon move to Kronen Castle. Well. I don’t think it’s such a good thing to catch the eye of the queen and Yulianea.”

“Yulianea?”

I know the name Yulianea. That was the name of Yulisis’ mother, the male protagonist of . She lost her life right after giving birth to Yulisis.

Then is the owner of this notebook from the time when Yulianea was alive? Moreover, seeing that they’re moving to Kronen Castle, they must be royalty.

I continued reading the notebook for now. After a few pages of indecipherable magic formulas and doodles, a diary entry appeared again.

“XX year X month XX day

It’s fun to learn new knowledge. Mother seems to want me to aim for the monarch’s position, but I’m not interested in such a boring position.”

“Is this indeed a diary written by Aspeiran and Yuli’s uncle?”

Now I started reading only the diary entries.

“XX year X month XX day

Mother passed away. My teacher said I was pitiful, but I’m not particularly sad.

Still, it’s good that there’s no one to come to my lab and cause a disturbance anymore.”

“XX year X month XX day

I went to Beltraum for the first time. It was a beautiful world.”

After that, there were notes about Beltraum written continuously. And after a while, a diary entry appeared again.

“XX year X month XX day

Stupid humans. Those dimwits who only tremble in fear before a world with such infinite possibilities.

At the forefront of them is, ridiculously, our wise and splendid Crown Princess Yulianea.

When that wench was preaching about a magician’s beliefs or whatever, for the first time, I understood Mother’s heart.

I wanted to kill that pathetic thing.”

“These days, I keep thinking of Mother.”

“Monarch……”

The diary ended there. I quietly closed the notebook.

A magician with outstanding talent. The uncle of Aspeiran and Yulisis who aimed for the monarch’s position. The name Roam written on the first page.

Somehow, I felt like I knew who he was.

“Cameloiem……”

The culprit who killed Yulianea, the crown princess of Roakin and Yulisis’ mother.

The terrible tyrant whose neck Aspeiran personally cut off to save the people.

The owner of this notebook was surely that person.

The next morning, I immediately headed to the basement library.

I was curious why the tyrant’s diary was in the research institute’s library. And why it was mixed in with the books given to me.

And…… I also wanted to know a bit more about the tyrant Aspeiran defeated, which wasn’t detailed in .

I was planning to leave a note with questions if no one was there, but luckily, Sek was in the library.

Sek waved at me.

“Oh, Ms. Shuria~ Seeing you early in the morning~”

“Sek! Good morning!”

I approached Sek, who was crouched in front of a bookshelf rummaging through books. Sek looked up at me with a droopy smile behind his round glasses.

“What brings you here so early in the morning~. Do you have something you’re curious about?”

“Well, you see, there was something like this mixed in with the books you gave me yesterday.”

I handed the notebook I had brought to Sek. Adjusting his glasses, Sek examined the notebook and exclaimed.

“Oh my, this! To think this got mixed in.”

“Yes. But this is……”

“You must have been surprised when you saw it~. Since nothing is written in it.”

“That’s righ… wait, what?”

“This is a magic book~. It has a spell cast on it so that those not permitted by the author cannot read it. That’s why it appears as if nothing is written in it~.”

Sek waved the notebook in front of me. My eyes spun round and round looking at it.

A magic…… book? That those without permission cannot read?

‘But, why was I able to read it?!’

A book that those without permission cannot read. Yet a book I can read.

And probably…… a book belonging to Roakin’s enemy who drove Roakin into despair, the tyrant.

My mind raced quickly. I was certain.

‘I must not let anyone know I can read this book.’

Although Aspeiran said he trusts me, it’s also true that my past is unclear.

If it’s revealed that someone like me can read the tyrant Cameloiem’s magic book, it will surely become troublesome in many ways. I might even be treated as a remnant of the tyrant and summarily executed.

‘That absolutely cannot happen!’

I must keep it a secret no matter what. Hide it even if I die.

……But I can’t help being curious. Why am I able to read this book?

Neither my soul nor this body should have any relation to Cameloiem. Don’t tell me this is also a possession perk?

I couldn’t figure out anything just by pondering on my own. For now, let’s gather information from Sek. First of all, whether the owner of this book is indeed Cameloiem.

I sat down intimately next to Sek.

“A book with magic cast on it! How fascinating. I thought it was strange. It clearly had signs of use, but there was no content.”

“That’s right~.”

“Could it be the director’s book? I wonder how it ended up with me……”

“Ah, it’s not the director’s book~.”

Sek rolled his eyes once after saying that and then shut his mouth. Hah, not a chance. Spit out the information quickly.

I reached out with an expression of dying concern.

“Then is it Titira’s? Or Kiri’s? The fact that magic was even cast on it surely means it’s an important book, so we should return it quickly.”

“No~. You can just leave it here~.”

“What? I can’t do that! If someone’s precious book gets lost because of me, I won’t be able to sleep from guilt.”

“Mmm, but.”

Sek stretched his arms here and there, avoiding me as I tried to snatch the book.

This person, I wasn’t conscious of it because he’s always a weak researcher who moves languidly, but come to think of it, he’s incredibly tall. Is this what it means to be from Roakin after all?

‘But I won’t give up.’

When I was almost climbing on top of Sek, Sek finally cried surrender.

“Th-the owner of this book is no longer in this world, so there’s no need to worry!”