In the Library

Nexus laughed a little loudly. "Look at you! Shivering in fear until your legs tremble."

What should I say? I indeed can't handle scary things. I saw Yulia clapping her small hands next to Nexus. Linda, on the other hand, just remained silent without saying a word. As for Tiara, she started carrying Radiant on her shoulder.

I was shocked by the sight. "Huh!? You're really strong."

She stopped for a moment when she was about to leave to answer me. "Of course, dear~ I will protect you," she said with a smile.

That smile looked terrifying from someone who just made another person faint quickly. I just stood there, stunned, watching Tiara go to Radiant's room. After she closed the door, I could only surrender to my shaky legs.

"Ta-da-da-da!! Here comes Geraldine to cheer you up!!"

We just stared at Geraldine with blank looks while Linda remained silent.

"Am I late?" she asked, confused.

"Of course, you're very late," I said.

Yulia glanced at me. What was she thinking? Nexus moved towards me and extended his hand. I reached for it, but she actually waved it off.

"The bowl."

Ah, it turns out I misunderstood. She wasn't trying to help me stand up; he was offering to put his bowl back.

Yulia stood up and said, "Time for a walk."

She passed by the still-confused Geraldine with no reaction as expected.

"So?" Geraldine asked.

Embarrassed, I said, "C-Can you help me stand?"

"Please, don't act cute in front of me," she said with a blank look.

I immediately responded, "Of course not!"

The living room became quiet after that. She helped me up the stairs, and I reached my room.

"So? Can you stand now?" Geraldine asked. It seemed she wasn't worried at all. Her face was blank, and she only glanced elsewhere while talking to me.

"Yes, how about her?" I said, looking outside my room.

Geraldine looked back. She understood the meaning of my words. "Don't worry, everything will be fine."

"Don't say it as if it's not fine," I said, feeling strange about her response.

My legs were still trembling in fear. Well, what can I do? "Thank you," I said.

She was surprised and looked into my eyes.

"H-Huh? W-What?" I responded, puzzled as to why she was looking at me so intensely.

"Are you feeling guilty?" She asked with a puzzled expression.

Surprised? Why was she so surprised?

"Do you think I'm not worried?" I asked, puzzled.

She looked back again, nodding. Then she left without saying a word.

What a strange person.

I tried to walk with my still trembling legs toward my bed. After arriving, I sighed.

Earlier, it was indeed dangerous to provoke her anger. But one thing is for sure; they have an agreement not to use violence openly against me. The first is the change of weeks for each member as of now. What else? Should I just ask? But they will want information from me. And what's worse, the little one with an obsession for curiosity will try to ask about my mind-reading ability.

Ah~ The bed is so soft. It feels good to finally let all of that out.

**Chapter 3: In the Library**

Still, I have nothing important to do. For some reason, these two weeks have been uneventful. Well, it might be important for others, but for me, these two weeks feel insignificant. I sigh and look at my phone.

"Hi~"

I stare at my phone, bewildered. Huh? When did this character animation appear? Wasn't it just text a few days ago?

"Hi, miss. You seem confused. Can I assist you?"

Her voice sounds slightly high-pitched and reminds me of a TV static sound. Perhaps her voice is automated? She keeps staring at me without blinking, but I realize it's just a piece of technology. It can't have reflexes like blinking.

"Can you open the school's secret files?" I ask, seizing the opportunity.

My phone displays a red "X" icon, and the AI responds, "I don't have access to that information."

Her tone, the way she speaks, and the accent... I don't quite understand the accent, but it sounds British. Her speech resembles that of a child.

I sigh and bury my face in the pillow beside me.

To the library, then...

As I enter the library, I'm surprised by its bustling atmosphere. Ironically, despite the crowd, the library is eerily silent, except for the sounds of pages flipping and communication between the librarians and students.

I see many students queuing in front of librarians lining the right end of the room. Why are there five librarians? I recall that during middle school, we had only one supervising teacher, and student representatives took turns looking after the library.

I decide to join the queue like everyone else.

For some reason, the students immediately look in my direction, and I'm left puzzled. Why are they all watching me? I can see it quite clearly. It's Marienetta, aware of my presence, and yet she pretends not to see when people turn to look at me. The power of the majority is truly frightening from a psychological standpoint.

One of the librarians stands and hurries over to me.

"Uh... Excuse me, let me show you to your room," she says, looking slightly worried.

I wonder what's bothering her. Well, it doesn't matter.

"Sure," I answer, feeling slightly weird and confused.

She guides me to the third floor. As we climb, I notice many students and rooms dedicated to helping them focus. There are isolation rooms, rooms for playing jazz and classical music, group study rooms, and even a karaoke room within the library. They seem to cater to students' preferences for a focused and comfortable learning environment.

When I enter the elevator tucked away in a long library hallway, the elevator's voice immediately fades away. It seems like my ability doesn't work here. That's puzzling.

"Am I being directed to the VIP room again?" I inquire, attempting to mislead my power by keeping it inactive while I talk.

The librarian lowers her head and replies, "Yes, of course, Miss. That's why you can just skip the line and let us know."

(I guess we'd be in trouble otherwise.)

I apologize for that, but I just can't get used to it all. Maybe I should be more arrogant like Youna suggested. By the way, I wonder what was on the flash drive she brought. It's still a mystery to me, but I'll leave it be.

The third floor only has one person there, Nexus.

She notices my presence and stops reading. She approaches me slowly.

"Hey, could you order an avocado chocolate drink?" I ask Nexus.

She taps her forehead and says after sighing, "Yes, we will prepare that."

"Us"? Well, the service here is truly unparalleled. They don't even mention the cost. Maybe $10,000 is an amount that can't be spent in a month with reasonable thinking. And if they can earn points to get money, then I can, too. I earn $3 in pocket money for school each day. Even $1 gets me a full serving of salad. With $3, school food should be enough. I don't go home until late in the afternoon, just like at this school. Schools like this, my middle school, also let out in the afternoon, so I only need lunch.

"It's unusual to see you here, isn't it?" Nexus inquires while standing right in front of me. She's about 173cm tall, maybe?

"I was bored in my room," I reply with a sigh.

She turns around and heads towards a pile of scattered books. "As long as you're not causing a ruckus," she says as she passes.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," I mumble.

I glance at the library's bookshelves. They're so huge and wide. They're not as tall as the central building, but they still seem larger than most libraries I've seen. I hope I find some comic books here.

After some searching...

Nothing, not a single one. Why? Why isn't there a single one?

Someone touches me from behind.

"What kind of book are you looking for?" Nexus asks, puzzled.

"Oh, I'm looking for comic books."

She touches her temple and says, "They're not here."

Huh? I'm just left staring blankly at her face. After a few moments, the sound of the elevator arriving can be heard, and a server comes in with the avocado chocolate drink I requested.

Nexus glances at the server placing the drink on a table near the bookshelves. But shouldn't those tables be used for reading instead?

"Being free must be nice, huh?" Nexus mutters.

"Sure, but it will become a debt when I leave."

She looks back at me. "You need to learn how to lie."

"Huh? What's the point of that? Isn't honesty a human's perfection?" I say, taunting Nexus about her obsession.

She sighs. "If perfect people are those who act honestly, religious leaders wouldn't be so profoundly foolish."

Huh?! Why does it go in that direction?

Seeing the confusion on my face, Nexus adds, "No one can prove what and where it's beyond, right? In that context, they're neither honest nor dishonest. Therefore, they can't achieve perfection."

Her words are a bit harsh, but my joking comment is quickly dismantled by her logic.

"So, do you believe in God?" I ask, curious about her answer. She who pursues perfection... Is she planning to become a god? We don't live in a magical or fantasy world. We live in reality.

"Of course, I believe, as long as humans can't prove the limits or the opposite, I will continue to believe."

After that, I spend time reading an encyclopedia. However, on the second floor, it's quite noisy with their thoughts. Oh, well.