It's Too Late

"You should be careful what you're picking." the shopkeeper scolds, "Some of those books contain the truth about the royal family. You never know what might happen."

Ijohen scoffs, picking up a book titled 'The Lustful Princess and Her Lovers,' flipping through it, but then drops it down after realizing that there're illustrations inside.

"This is so wrong! I shouldn't be here!" he scoffs, backing away from the shelves.

Rihan picked out a couple of books, "I'm not interested in any of these too." he mutters.

"You're not interested in anything?" Ijohen scoffs. "Then why are we here?" he asks, frowning.

"I'll tell you later," Rihan replies, putting the books back seemingly unaffected by their contents.

"Where'd you find all this book anyway?" Ijohen asks curiously. "We didn't stumble upon them on accident did we?"

"And who made this place?" Sung Li questions as they walk around the room. He pauses at one of the walls, looking over the titles written on the spines with his fingers.

Rihan's demeanor didn't change at all, showing no sign of answering any questions. Because he also simply doesn't know.

This place existed far beyond his knowledge, even though its existence was necessary for his survival during his past life. There's nothing else that could've created such an environment except nature itself. Even if someone

Walking further into the library, Ijohen saw that there were other rooms too, filled with other boxes containing even more bizarre books.

He quickly closed the door behind them, hoping that nobody else would find their way to the library.

By now, Rihan seems to be the on-duty librarian while Ijohen and Sung Li sat in a corner. He helped the shopkeeper sort out some of his stock when the other two couldn't stand the idea of touching any of them.

As he was browsing around, a book on a table caught his attention, its cover showing a dark-skinned woman strolling through a lush garden.

The title was The Rising Pavillion, the first country to discover the art of cultivating Iron Cores. His eyes sparkle, snatching the book from the table.

"I found it!" he exclaims, stashing the book in his bag.

"What's the big deal?" his companion stares at him, strolling through the stacks of books.

"It's nothing," he said while opening his bag to stow the book inside. "Just some boring stuff about how a man stumbles upon a new technique for raising iron cores."

"I see," Ijohen stares at him with an expressionless gaze before continuing strolling in the opposite direction, pausing in front of another stack of books.

Rihan stares at the girl's figure, snatching the book from his bag.

The cover shows a beautiful woman strolling through the garden of the rising pavilion, her long hair flowing gently behind her. The words The Rise of the Golden Pavilion stares at him, "This is it! This is the one!"

He pauses in his stalking, staring at the cover of the book in his hand. A moment later his hand glows white, the energy forming a glowing ball of light in his palm.

Chanting softly under his breath, his hands begin moving in unison, his fingers caressing the air.

The book's pages flutter open, revealing the contents.

The story begins with the rise of the Golden Pavilion, the building's construction, the people who lived within it, the history of the building's foundation, and finally the final pages of the Golden Pavilion.

The Golden Pavilion rises from the ashes, its beauty capturing the hearts of many, its splendour becoming the envy of all.

The Golden Pavilion is filled with the most beautiful women and men, whose bodies shine bright with the power of cultivation.

They live happily ever after, enjoying their time in the Golden Pavilion until the day comes when the Golden Pavilion falls.

The story ends abruptly, but the last page stares at Rihan, the image of the building falling apart, crumbling to the ground, leaving only the empty shell standing tall.

Rihan stares at the last page, watching as it conjures itself, the letters fading in his vision. The building's name stares at him from the top of the paper, written in red ink, The Golden Pavilion.

"It's real," he whispers.

"What's going on over there?" Sung Li stares at the corner of the library.

"Nothing," Rihan replies, snatching the gold paper from the air and stowing it away.

Sung Li stares at the corner of the room, frowning at him suspiciously before turning around to continue strolling.

"It's been a long time since I've come down here," the shopkeeper says, "I haven't met anyone who can handle my collection yet. It's quite impressive, isn't it?"

"Yeah, very much so!" Sung Li cheers, his cheeks flushed. He could hardly believe that they have a whole library of forbidden books that were hidden beneath the public.

"How did you come across these?" he asked, holding a book in his hands and examining it.

"It's a long story," the shopkeeper sighs, "but if you're curious, you can ask my wife. Or the giant rats wondering about."

"Oh? Miss Kahina's your wife?" Rihan asks ignoring the rats.

"Yes." he sighs again, "But she doesn't come down here often, she's afraid of the rats. Especially the one giant rat. She also used to work for me as a maid but then became a book collector herself after we fell in love."

Sung Li blinks, turning his head away from the bookshelf, "I see." he mumbles, his heart pounding. He knew how dangerous it was to have these books in your possession.

If he's caught, they'll have to execute him. He would rather die than be found with these books.

Rihan looks at the other boy, seeing the fear in his expression, "Don't worry, you're safe with us." he reassures.

Ijohen sighs, rubbing his temples, "What's the point of having such knowledge? Don't tell me this is your secret hobby?" he scoffs.

He doesn't want to be involved in something that will put them in danger.

He was scared that someone might recognize that they had these books in their possession. If that happens, then he's sure that they'd end up socially executed for being a pervert.

"No, but I've got plans for these books. Don't worry, everything will go according to plan." Rihan assures, "I'm not planning to do anything bad. I just need to utilize a few of these books to start my capital." he adds.

A madman, they think, shaking their head. In a way, Rihan's calm demeanour while browsing for the books showed his composure, which made them admire him despite their fears and disgust.

"You discover new things every day." Sung Li said with a blank expression.

Rihan nods, "You'll understand once I explain the details to you."

"I hope it's not illegal." Ijohen grumbles.

Rihan glances at the books, "I don't know if it's wise to keep these around you guys though," he warns.

"It's too late for that thought!" Ijohen and Sung Li say at once.

Their voice echoes loudly throughout the spacious chamber carrying the weight of the words that came out of their mouths.