Chapter 92

Then more musical instruments in the room began to secretly make sounds.

"Alright, quiet down," Hebe said in a low voice.

The noise disappeared instantly.

"You can come here anytime you have time," Hebe said to her. "But for now, I'll arrange your bedroom."

As a librarian, Xiao Xiang certainly couldn't sleep in the servants' room.

Since Hebe had already chosen the two most comfortable rooms, Toyokawa Shoko didn't have many options left, so she quickly picked a simple and clean room.

There is little decoration here, and the temperature is even lower than in the other rooms. Although the furniture inside is equally luxurious and exquisite, the feeling is always closely related to "pale".

"Very good." Hebe glanced at his watch. "It's getting late, so I won't disturb your rest any longer. I will formally arrange your specific work tomorrow."

Hebe left, while Toyokawa Shoko sat on the edge of the bed, lost in deep silence.

Blanckug, and Silent Bookstore, are more amazing than you can imagine.

Toyokawa Shoko realized that she didn't seem to mind working there.

It could even be described as something to look forward to.

This was only her first day at the Silent Bookstore.

140 The second day of life

There was nothing out of place in this pristine white bedroom, and even the air seemed cooler than in the other rooms.

The pure black walls and white pillars silently defined the surrounding area. The flames in the fireplace flickered gently and slowly. Toyokawa Shoko lay on the bed and fell asleep, her thoughts quickly detaching from this physical body.

She doesn't dream often, and when she does, the images are vague and she forgets them as soon as she wakes up.

But this time was different. She knew perfectly well that she was dreaming, but she couldn't control her body or wake up from the dream.

Toyokawa Shoko felt as if she were walking on the sea, riding on a bright silver atmosphere. She swayed and rose higher with each step, getting a little closer to the bright moon in the sky.

However, as she moved forward, the black ocean beneath her feet rose higher, and the water level rose even faster than she did.

Filled with immense fear, Toyokawa Shoko plunged into the deep sea. She nearly suffocated, but did not die. Instead, she remained conscious, drifting with the ocean currents, feeling as if she were an uncontrollable puppet.

The water was deep and cold, but not clear.

Countless triangular fish-like creatures swam in the water, swaying their tails as they navigated the ocean currents. In the deepest part of the ocean that Toyokawa Shoko could see, there was a huge whale with a crown on its head, with pure white coral growing vigorously behind it like a forest.

The next day, she told Hebe about the dream.

The dim candlelight and lamplight flickered on the desk. Hebe sat in an elegant reading chair with armrests, reached out and picked up a fountain pen to write words on a thick sheet of paper.

"So, on your first night at the Silent Bookstore, you had a rather revealing dream, huh?"

Hebe wrote down many words on the paper, such as dream, deep sea, ocean current, whale.

She would never forget that it was at her request that the Silent Bookstore select Toyokawa Shoko as the administrator, which proved that the latter herself had commendable and special qualities.

"The meanings and metaphors of dreams are diverse. The same dream can be interpreted differently in different systems."

Hebe pulled a booklet about the size of two palms from the pile of books on the table and handed it to Toyokawa Shoko.

The latter took the booklet and found that the copy was titled "A Brief Account of Dreams and Borders".

Toyokawa Shoko opened the cover, and the elegant handwriting came into view. Strangely enough, although the manuscript was written in the language of Albion, she was able to read it without any difficulty.

"Dreams have their own laws, and specific rituals and preparations are required to be able to act consciously within them. Occasionally, there are lucky individuals who are perfectly prepared and can bring out some gifts from their dreams. This act is collectively known as 'entering a dream'..."

Dreams have no distance or direction, but they do have an up-down dimension. The higher you go, the closer you are to the wasteland; the lower you go, the closer you are to reality. Usually, you can tell if you're ascending by certain characteristics. These characteristics include... a bright silver atmosphere, a gust of wind lifting your body... a moon that's getting closer and closer, cobalt blue starlight...

Toyokawa Shoko's hand trembled as she read this; she had dreamt of these omens just yesterday.

She continued reading.

Unfortunately, this manuscript doesn't contain much about the wasteland; instead, it begins a new section about the knowledge of the "frontier."

"The border possesses the laws of both the wasteland and the present world. If the entire dream is regarded as a sea, then the present world and the wasteland are the continents at both ends of the sea, and the border is the island in between."

Therefore, apprentices who know shortcuts and unorthodox knowledge can quickly travel across borders in the modern world...

Most borders have fixed coordinates, but some borders exist between the wasteland and the mortal realm. Apprentices can visit borders either through dreams or by physically traveling to them using rituals and tokens...

Many inhabitants of the wastelands also need to cross borders to reach the modern world. Within certain special border regions, human bloodlines can continue, their lineages bearing special characteristics. These characteristics include... unusual hair color, eccentric personality traits, unusual occupational preferences, and diseases confined to the same sex within the family...

Toyokawa Shoko had been unconsciously twirling her long blue hair with her fingers, but when she saw these words, she unconsciously let go of them.

The words in the manuscript reminded her that her hair color was quite unusual, and that in her family lineage, female relatives seemed to have shorter lifespans, with many examples like her mother.

She read the booklet with great fear and saw the author's signature at the end: Merlin Ambrose.

Merlin? Even in the distant Higashi, this name is quite famous.

Such a legendary figure actually left behind manuscripts?

Hebe knew what she was thinking at a glance, "Contrary to what people think, it is precisely because these people are famous that later generations have used their names to impersonate them. For example, 'Zhou Gong's Interpretation of Dreams,' 'Merlin's Astrology,' 'Imhotep's Alchemy,' 'Tamamo-no-Mae's Stages of Illusion'... The later generations who wrote these books are skilled, but they can only gain more market by using the good reputation of their predecessors."

Toyokawa Shoko finally breathed a sigh of relief.

But she soon heard Hebe speak again, "However, the book you have in your hand was indeed written by Merlin."

It took Hebe less than two hours to write this cheat sheet.

"All hidden texts have one thing in common: they set a threshold for reading. They need to be 'translated' before they can be read normally. This is a kind of transcription of knowledge. After being 'translated,' no matter what the language is, it can be quickly understood and mastered by the reader."

Hebe pointed to the copy. Toyokawa Shoko had easily understood the knowledge in it and was not troubled by the Albion script.

"You cannot look at the hidden books here at will," Hebe said. "Every seven days, I will give you a test. Only if you pass will I give you the reading list for the next stage."

Hebe patted the tall stack of books on the desk. "These are the textbooks I prepared for you. You need to read them all and master the knowledge in them during this period. If you don't understand anything, you can ask me anytime... In addition, I suggest that you accumulate some questions before asking them."

The girl with beautiful green eyes paused for a moment. "This is the first task I'm giving you. After all, as a librarian, you need to have a thorough understanding of the hidden world."

"Of course, this counts as homework." Hebe smiled as he uttered words that weighed heavily on Toyokawa Shoko. "Next is what I'm going to have you do at the Silent Bookstore. Come with me."

Hebe led Toyokawa Shoko through the foyer and back to the colonnaded courtyard.

"Yesterday I took you past the Martial Practice Garden and the Fragrant Garden."

Toyokawa Shoko didn't understand why Hebe had suddenly brought this up, so she nodded obediently.

But she soon found out.

"I see you seem quite interested in these two places, so why don't you go and clean and tidy them up?"

As if to encourage her, Hebe even took out a can of Iced Cola and handed it to her.

Toyokawa Shoko felt a bitter taste in her mouth, and the bitterness intensified when she saw that the Coke can was labeled "garlic flavor."

141 Koguri

It does seem rather inhumane to ask a little girl to clean the Fragrant Garden and the Martial Practice Garden.

But Hebe trusts the judgment of the Silent Bookstore itself.

The fact that Toyokawa Shoko was chosen means that she must have some extraordinary qualities.

"Let me see your limits," Hebe said. "Xiao Xiang, get to work."

This was an absolutely delightful and extravagant dilemma; no apprentice could refuse the invitation from the Silent Bookstore. If it were Presis or Mostima, they would definitely try every means to attend this intensive tutoring program.

Hebe was certain that Xiao Xiang could understand her good intentions, and if she couldn't bear it, she would probably bring it up herself.

After arranging Toyokawa Shoko's work and study life for the next few days, Hebe felt much more relaxed.

She walked out of the Silent Bookstore, crossed the metal bridge, and arrived in the town of Blanckug.

Mordred's tavern was doing very well, and since it was mealtime, most of the seats were already full.

But the spot that belonged to Hebe remained vacant.

When he saw her, Mordred's eyes clearly darted away, and he looked even more guilty.

Hebe realized that this was because Xiao Mo still thought that he had accidentally killed her during the fight.

Even though Mordred no longer considers herself a knight, she has still inherited this sense of pride very well.

As Mordred served her food, Hebe quietly expressed her thoughts.

"The Martial Practice Garden is currently under renovation. Once it is fully open, we can continue to have sword fights there."

"Let's skip the sword fight."

Mordred's expression was somewhat gloomy.

She realized that she had no room to hold back against Hebe's ferocious and unparalleled swordsmanship.

Since they're not meeting on the battlefield, why fight to the death? That's why Mordred is now reluctant to duel with Hebe again.

Every knight hates an opponent who can overpower all opponents with sheer brute force.

This is because they are positioned in this way on the battlefield, charging into enemy lines and mowing down enemies with unparalleled skill. However, when they have to fight against beings whose stats are far superior to their own, they can no longer laugh.

Mordred, in particular, has always been known for her ferocious and powerful fighting style, yet she has now been overpowered by Hebe in her most prized area...

Fortunately, she was unaware that Hebe had already been to the Higashi and mastered terrifying swordsmanship skills.

Otherwise, losing once in swordsmanship might make me feel better.

Hebe was slightly disappointed that she didn't get to fight Xiao Mo.

Just then, someone approached and said mysteriously to Hebe, "Friend, would you like a divination?"

This is a petite Gypsy girl with a healthy tan, standing confidently by Hebe's table.

A small cobra was docilely coiled around her wrist, while raising its head to observe the surrounding movements.

Hebe glanced at Mordred, who was busy at work, and was about to refuse, but then she remembered her many identities and became somewhat eager to try.

"I won't pay too much for this," Hebe said. "What method do you plan to use for my divination?"

"Crystal ball, tarot cards, coin divination, Vedic Astrology... I know a little bit about all of these."

The Gypsy girl smiled smugly, and only then did Hebe notice that she was standing barefoot.

"One last question, why didn't you go to someone else, but instead came to me?" Hebe countered. "Am I that special?"

"It was just a chance," the Gypsy girl confessed. "You don't know, during this time, we were all betting in the tavern on who would get to sit in this position, and I was one of the bolder ones. When I saw you, I wanted to come up and ask if you had any customer needs or something."

The Gypsy girl's unexpected honesty earned her a higher regard from Hebe.

This child looks about the same age as Toyokawa Shoko, so it wouldn't hurt for him to patronize the business.

Moreover, I do have problems that I want to solve through divination.

"Okay, let's give it a try."

After she finished the stew, she saw Mordred still busy in the kitchen, so she left some money on the plate and followed the Gypsy girl out.

A long sigh of regret suddenly erupted in the tavern.

It was obvious that most people lost in that bet.

On the street corner outside the pub, there was a slightly worn, brightly painted caravan with the latest celebrity posters plastered on its side.

The Gypsy girl was about to take a chair out of the caravan when she saw Hebe follow her in.

"Wait, no..."

"What?" Hebe raised an eyebrow. "Not allowed?"

"It's not that it's impossible," the Gypsy girl said. "Most customers are quite resistant to the environment inside the caravan. I was originally planning to do your fortune telling outside."

"I don't care." Hebe glanced at her phone. "How long does the divination take?"

This guy is genuinely here for a fortune telling... and you can't fool him.

Once again, the small cobra coiled around my wrist hissed very softly.

The Gypsy girl smiled and said, "It depends on your choice. It can take more than ten minutes if it's long, or just five minutes if it's short."

"Do you know how to use Koguri?" Hebe sat cross-legged on the carpet, mimicking the gypsy girl. "It's a kind of divination method from the Higashi, similar to Ouija boards and spirit boards."