A Person on Terra, With No Books Left to Read

"Are you truly from this world?"

"Ugh—"

Theresica's stomach churned suddenly, and he couldn't help but rush to the side, vomiting uncontrollably.

In a daze, a piece of paper was handed to him. He subconsciously took it and wiped his mouth, but upon closer inspection, they were two notification letters.

"The messenger just delivered them. You instructed that these must be opened by you personally."

Shining removed her cloak and draped it over him, completely concealing his dishevelled state.

Theresica, enduring his discomfort, opened the envelopes on the spot. He desperately wanted to escape this place; in his eyes, these were two tickets out. However, the text on the notifications stunned him.

'Apologies...'

There was a lot of text, but the first two words made him freeze. I can't even get into a school like this?

Wait, there seemed to be a line of small text at the end.

'Our school does not accept Sarkaz.'

PS: To all my readers, please give me some recommendation tickets!!!!

Chapter 3: A Root Crisis

Theresica walked quickly, head buried in his cloak, as if fleeing a flood, and ducked into a street corner not far away. He didn't want to stay there because, even without looking back, he could hear the chaotic sounds of looting.

But... had he really avoided it?

Beyond the corner was another street. Although the disgusting sights of the aftermath of explosions were absent here, the houses were dilapidated and deserted everywhere. New and old knife marks crisscrossed the door panels, and brown bloodstains still remained on the walls. A huge hole had been blown into the storefront window next to him, revealing nothing but toppled shelves inside.

Occasionally, a few small figures would peek out from between the brick walls and alleys, casting curious glances this way. But upon noticing the guards following behind, they would exclaim and disappear.

He walked forward in silence, his expression growing more grim with everything he saw. Just then, a guard walked over nervously.

"Your Highness... please return. There are two groups fighting ahead, and we don't have absolute confidence in escorting you safely."

Theresica glanced at Shining discreetly. Seeing that she hadn't drawn her sword, he immediately relaxed.

"It's alright. I want to watch from a distance."

"...As you command."

Theresica followed the guards up a deserted three-story house. From here, he could see a cluster of buildings in the distance where two factions, carrying the banners of his sister and cousin respectively, were engaged in fierce combat.

They were not only fighting with melee weapons but also had crossbowmen and casters assisting. Arrows flew through the crowd, and the explosions from Originium Arts erupted one after another. Amidst this cacophony, a few faint cries could be heard.

Theresica, with Shining and the guards, followed the sound and pushed open a slightly ajar wooden door. A series of screams immediately erupted from within.

"Quiet!"

"Quiet!"

The guards shouted, but Theresica stopped them with a gesture. He stood at the doorway until the people inside calmed down before entering.

In this small, dilapidated house stood a middle-aged Sarkaz wearing glasses, trembling slightly. Around him were several elderly Sarkaz grandmothers, and behind their outstretched arms were nearly thirty young, emaciated Sarkaz.

They all looked at him warily, at his clean clothes, and at the guards behind him.

The scene made him feel a little unaccustomed to it. He immediately whispered an instruction to Shining, and a short while later, she returned with a small bag.

"I apologize for intruding so suddenly. This is a small token of my apology... They are all warriors, and this is all they have."

Theresica placed the bag of scattered dry rations on a broken table. The bespectacled elder Sarkaz started to refuse, but seeing the children huddled in the corner, he stopped himself.

"Thank you."

"It's nothing."

Theresica looked at the elder bowing to him, gently shook his head, and then pointed at Shining, asking, "May I come in and look with her? No one else will enter. There's a battle happening outside, and with us here, you'll be safer too."

A hint of hesitation flickered across the elder Sarkaz's face, but he finally nodded silently.

Having received permission, Theresica then entered the house with Shining. The children also relaxed considerably, and some even dared to curiously observe the Royal Guard standing by the door.

"Old sir, why do you have so many children here?"

"Alas... with the constant fighting, whose family is whole? Food can't stop, so after discussing it with everyone around, they asked a few of us old folks to look after these children. Those who can move focus on earning some food. Those of us who can't move can at least share a few bites in peace."

The elder's voice was sincere. Theresica nodded slightly and asked no further questions. It felt inappropriate to ask such a question while wearing clean clothes.

After lingering in the house for a while, and as the sounds of fighting nearby subsided, Theresica prepared to leave. After all, their presence made the old people and children quite nervous.

But as he was walking towards the door, a child suddenly ran over and urgently called out.

"My dictation!"

A short sentence, but the atmosphere in the room instantly froze.

Shining grabbed the child who rushed over, and sweat beaded on the elder Sarkaz's forehead as his body trembled even more violently.

Theresica looked down at his feet and only then noticed a piece of paper stuck to the sole of his shoe. He picked it up and saw that it was covered in sentences written in Columbian.

He gently brushed the dust off the paper and then crouched down in front of the child, reaching out to hand it back.

"Is this yours?"

"Give it back to me quickly!"

The child spoke a second sentence, and the atmosphere at the scene grew even more tense.

"Your foreign language skills are quite good. Do you know any other sentences? I can reward you."

Theresica spoke in the Sarkaz language, but the child's face was blank.

"Such a young Sarkaz, yet only knows Columbian?"

He looked at the old Sarkaz. Although there were some differences in the languages of various countries on Terra, their origins seemed to be the same, so learning them wasn't difficult. It was normal for a child to know a foreign language, but only knowing this one… that was unusual.

"Your Highness?"

Shining asked how to proceed, and the old Sarkaz, upon hearing the address, immediately knelt on the ground, trembling all over.

"Please... please..."

How to handle this? He was thinking much the same thing himself.

Theresica returned the paper to the child and then left without a word.

He walked towards his residence, his steps quick.

In another world, he had received sixteen years of education. The knowledge he had learned from his teachers now appeared exceptionally clear in his mind, constantly shouting.

'It shouldn't be like this!'

These voices were unusually fervent, and the heat gathered in his chest, almost forming an impulse he dared not consider.

"Shining."

"I'm here."

Theresica asked, "Do you think I can change what Kazdel looks like now?"

"I'm sorry, Your Highness, I don't know."

Shining, following behind him, replied in a calm voice that allowed no room for misinterpretation.

"Is that so? Thank you for coming. Tell the King of the Scavengers I need to see him."

Theresica let out a long sigh and took out the notice he had received that day. It was already crumpled into a ball.

He squeezed it even tighter once more, then suddenly flung it towards the sky. The bright flame flashed and vanished, leaving only charred paper scraps falling down.

Chapter 4: Ascension

The morning sun streamed into the Kazdel district. Sarkaz emerged from all corners, their faces filled with confusion and bewilderment.

Although the intensity of the fighting had significantly decreased recently, quite a few troops had still been clashing within Kazdel city. But why had there been no movement in the city since last night? There wasn't even a shadow of a soldier on any of the streets.

What was going on? Had the war ended?

In the central area of Kazdel, a palace of simple construction was situated. Theresica stood on a slightly elevated terrace, from where he could see more than half of the city. However, what he saw was not a city skyline, but devastation and ruins.

"Sigh..."

"Young royal, your will has been executed. All troops have withdrawn from the district."

A familiar tone suddenly appeared beside him. It was the King of the Scavengers. He asked with a half-smile, "Why do you sigh? Is there something you are not satisfied with?"

"What should I be satisfied with? That the city hasn't been completely reduced to dust?"

Theresica looked annoyed. The King of the Scavengers didn't reply but instead drew the curtains.

"All the leaders who could come are already in the council hall. You can go and try to resolve the doubts in your heart."

"I will."

Theresica walked quickly. He didn't dare to take the King of the Scavengers' word for it. Everyone who had come today was a core member of this war. They either followed his sister or his cousin. With them present, the truth might be pieced together.

The attendant pushed open the doors to the council hall. Shining and the King of the Scavengers stopped outside the door, and only he entered the hall.

Inside the hall, two groups stood on either side. On the left were the exceptionally well-dressed Bloodfiend Grand Duke, the childlike clan leader of the Shapeshifters, an Absolutionist wrapped in a cloak identical to Shining's, and Manfred.

On the right were the clan leader of the Banshee tribe, a female Sarkaz, Ascalon, who had previously followed his cousin, and some unfamiliar faces and races. One of them was even a rival race to the Sarkaz, a Sankta.

The expressions on both sides were grim, but upon seeing him, they all quietly restrained themselves.

After sizing up everyone, Theresica took his place beside the main seat in the hall.

"I want to know what happened to my sister and my cousin. Why did I receive two pieces of bad news in one day? Can you explain the reasons to me?"

As soon as he finished speaking, a voice from his sister's followers roared, "They hired foreign mercenaries! They assassinated Princess Theresia!"

"This... this is indeed the case."

Noticing Theresica's gaze, the Absolutionist bowed and said calmly, "Lord Theresica did indeed plan a decapitation strike."

"And after that? What happened to my cousin?"

When he asked this, Theresica heard no answer, but rather the exclamations of his sister's followers first.

"What happened to that bastard Theresica?"

"Lord Theresica... he's missing."

The Absolutionist bowed even lower, but his voice remained calm, "Please forgive our incompetence. We cannot find Lord Theresica. He has vanished without a trace."

So… the King of the Scavengers was telling the truth then! This is truly bizarre!

A sudden feeling of emptiness washed over Theresica. He took a deep breath and forced a polite smile onto his face.

"I'd like to have this hall to myself for a while. There are also council rooms on either side. I'll trouble you all."

The silent standoff in the hall vanished in an instant. Everyone bowed slightly towards him and retreated. As the doors were closed by the attendants, he was left alone in the vast space.

Having lived in this world for many years, his interactions with his sister and cousin had decreased as he grew older, yet he could tangibly feel their concern for him.

Even though a civil war had broken out and the two had developed a rift, they still came before him during the holidays, doing their best to portray a harmonious family.

Was this the result of his own deliberate avoidance?

He couldn't tell.

After standing silently in the hall for a while, Theresica composed himself and signaled for the people from both sides to return.

Amidst the thick tension, he began to speak about the issue of the Sarkaz throne. His cousin's followers hesitated for a moment before expressing their support. However, his sister's faction, due to the absence of the current leader, Kal'tsit, and some other reservations, did not voice any opinions.

The emotions of everyone in the council hall were complex. No one had expected that the king about to be crowned would be such a child. But they were helpless, for the Sarkaz needed a king now.

An Absolutionist brought the ceremonial artifacts. If he passed the test, he would become the King of the Sarkaz.

Outside the palace, the prepared Sarkaz sentinels, holding furled banners according to the established customs, slowly marched from all directions towards the outskirts of the city and then returned. They had to pass through all the streets and residences, proclaiming to all the Sarkaz in Kazdel that a new king was about to be born.

On the streets, the dense crowds automatically parted to the sides, making way for the sentinels while slowly converging towards the royal palace.

The news of Princess Theresia's death and the disappearance of Lord Theresis had already spread throughout Kazdel, causing widespread disunity among the Sarkaz. Now that a new king was about to emerge, the flicker of hope in everyone's hearts was reawakened.

In the crowd, a heavily armed, burly figure suddenly stopped. She turned and followed the moving crowd. Her companion looked at her with confusion.

"Mudrock, where are you going?"

"The king's coronation. I want to see the result."