The First Hall of the Eternal Library (2)

As the unsuspecting gentleman ventured into the expansive grandeur of the library, his eyes of pearl-blue widened in sheer astonishment at the spectacle that lay before him. As far as his gaze could fathom, rows upon rows of wooden bookcases unfurled, enticing him to delve into their hidden revelations.

The bookshelves were meticulously arranged, forming an almost symmetrical display, with generous walkways affording passage between each row.

A straight path of crimson carpet, adorned with golden seams, traversed the heart of the chamber, dividing the twin columns of towering bookshelves, each crammed with ancient volumes of unfathomable lore.

The uncarpeted floorboards emitted faint creaks beneath his footsteps, lending the space an overall antiquated ambience. Nox, who stood bewildered amidst the towering shelves, found himself nearly dwarfed by their colossal proportions, towering threefold over his own stature.

Lifting his gaze, he beheld the ceiling adorned in white paint, intricately etched with depictions portraying scenes from epics and sagas long consigned to oblivion, even by their originators.

The air was thick with the redolence of aged books, while the gentle sound of fluttering pages reverberated throughout the expansive hall, extending an invitation to explore the marvels harboured within.

With a gentle touch, he grazed the tips of his fingers against one of the wooden bookshelves, which, to his astonishment, felt remarkably ordinary in contrast to the magic-infused realm of the Tower, where even dining tables held traces of the arcane.

"Boy," called out a voice from behind him.

His back straightened and his shoulders stiffened on hearing the calm but heavy voice, filled with unimaginable power, which imbued him with the desire to kneel down and praise the being to whom the voice belonged.

But he controlled himself, and assembling all his courage, he turned around.

A tall man with a fit physique and fair skin, wearing a black shirt along with black pants under a long overcoat reaching down to his ankles, calmly stood cross-armed, staring at him.

Although this was not his first time laying eyes upon the man before him, he was astonished by the man's handsome features and the charm that radiated from his very presence.

"Luke," said Nox, trying his best to act and sound composed.

Nodding once, the man turned around and started walking, followed by the confused man, who didn't know what else to do.

They kept on walking for what may have been hours before an end to the never-ending rows of bookshelves was finally visible.

The duo soon arrived in a large hall filled with chandeliers, lamps, and candles, illuminating each nook and cranny of the area.

Red carpet with golden seams covered the entire floor of the hall, while the walls and ceiling were made out of what resembled dazzling white marble.

The hall was mostly empty, other than the two red-cushioned chairs with long backrests and a small coffee table positioned at the centre of the room.

Beckoning Nox to take a seat, Luke sat down on one of the chairs before reclining back into the backrest and making himself comfortable.

"What exactly is the First Hall of the Eternal Library?" The ponytailed man inquired, sitting down on the chair opposite Luke.

Luke exhaled all the air in his body through his nose, pressing his head against the soft red cushion of the backrest.

"It's the place where you'll, for the first time, experience what kind of hell the library truly is," he said calmly, squeezing the cushion on the armrests.

Nox looked around one more time. No matter how many times he examined the place, he couldn't make any sense of it.

There was more than a single doubt he wished to blurt out: What really was the Eternal Library? Where did it even exist? Was all this just in his own mind? And the most important question–

"How do I free my parents?" he inquired, turning his head towards the fearsome man sitting before him, impatience clearly visible in his wavering voice.

Contrary to the reaction he had expected, Luke closed his eyes, before massaging his forehead with three of his fingers.

After a few minutes, he stood up and threw a pair of black rimless glasses towards Nox, saying, "You'll need them… Get to reading."

The unwary blue-eyed man jumped up on his feet, barely catching the glasses thrown his way, before shouting, "You haven't answered me yet!"

"I don't want to," came the unbothered reply.

Nox gritted his teeth in frustration. Every action he had taken up to this point had been driven solely by Luke's promise—the assurance of reuniting with his parents. But as of late, his faith in the strange man's words has begun to dwindle.

Impatient and impulsive, he lunged at the back of the man walking away from him. "Just answer me!"

Luke, who had been walking towards the rows of shelves, slightly turned his head towards the fool, who was foolish and crazy enough to attack him in his own domain.

Twisting his feet, he readied his fist, raising it to smash the young man's skull—of course, only to a certain extent, from which recovery would have been easy.

But… he stopped as his eyes widened in amazement.