It's not like my warnings were enough to scare this guy away from me. "No magic" rule in the library aside, he and his party mate might be stronger than me in terms of level (if I can read from their names above their heads) and since Wind isn't here with me, I don't know if I can handle them all on my own. Sure, I vowed that I wouldn't rely too much on him. But even I have my limits as a mage with no melee-based [Masteries].
With no other choice, I let the barbarian carry me to the counter until he (rudely) tosses me at the counter in front of the librarian along with the weird NPCs and players.
"Who the hell is this, Thor?" One of the players in robes asks. "He doesn't look like an NPC here."
"I know. It's just that he has a strange black book with him." I cringe the moment he mentions the mentioned memoir. "Seems like he discovered something we're looking for."
I try backing away from them in my attempt to escape. But one of the NPCs approaches me and notices the book in my hand. [What do you know? You kept telling us your barbarian friend is an idiot. Yet he managed to fish out a fool reading what we're looking for!]
To my horror, the player flashes a smile the moment he hears his news. "Really? T-That's great!" He turns to the barbarian next. "You heard him! It's a great idea for you to wander around the library while we're busy with the librarian."
The barbarian narrows his eyes and frowns. "That's because I had nothing to do here. If I AFK on [Sleep Mode], the game will just kick me out of here. Remember the
"Yeah, yeah, whatever!" Another man in leather armor turns to the NPCs and asks, "Think this kid has the book?"
One of the robed NPCs grins as I notice their strangely red eyes are staring right at me. [Only one way to find out~]
Crud... If the memoir is the one they're looking for, I don't know what will happen if I let them snatch it away from this library. By the looks of the librarian's face, she doesn't look like she's willing to let it go while under a threat. I still don't have a chance against these players, but I can't let this book fall into the wrong hands. Maybe I should try lying and...
[Give us the black book.]
Suddenly, I flinch as I lose the feeling around my arms. I try to move them, but I can't move my right arm away from that scary NPC! What gives?!
A [Trance]?! I can't believe such a condition exists in [Isekai], too! I can still think, but I have the sudden urge to follow his order. Looking down, I see my arm holding the book rising and moving towards the mysterious men.
No! I can't let them! Something bad will happen if I give them this memoir! I don't know what it is, but I won't let it fall into the wrong hands!
Thankfully, I notice I can still control my arms a bit, enough to resist myself from giving them the book.
"Hey, what gives? You heard our employer already," the player in a robe demands. "Stop making it difficult for us and give us the book!"
No! If the librarian doesn't want to give this to them, then I'll do the same and guard this book with my life! I just need to resist this [Trance] long enough...
[Don't even try it, kid. You're too inexperienced to resist my comrade's magic,] one of the NPCs declared. [Not even your [Sign] magic isn't enough to break yourself from his control.]
The other NPC menacingly grins at me. [You heard him. Stop resisting and give us the book already.]
Crud... This time, my body starts to relax as I lose control of my body again! No, I can't! I won't! I can't lose to them!
I don't care, pop-up window! I just need to keep this book away from them! I just need to...hold on...!
[CEASE YOUR INFERNAL MAGIC AT ONCE!]
Suddenly, I heard fingers snapping.
[You are now freed from the [Trance].]
To my shock, I can control my arms again the moment a new window pops up. As much as I want to celebrate my freedom, I quickly take this chance to run away from the mages and their allied players and closed my eyes to avoid the mage's controlling magic this time just as I hid behind the counter next to the librarian (which I hope she doesn't mind).
"F-Failed?! That's impossible!" One of the players screams. "What the hell is that?! You had him on the ropes!"
[I-I know. But someone broke my magic a- ACK!]
As I leave my hiding place and give the memoir back to the librarian, I gasp upon seeing not only the NPCs floating in the air, but the players associated with them frozen in place as I noticed them trying to get something from their bags. I look at the librarian again and notice that she is doing nothing but staring at her former tormentors in shock. So if she isn't the one who stopped them, then who is?
"Oh, didn't expect you to be here, Magic Kid."
Magic Kid? Wait, I recognized that nickname before!
I quickly turned around and gasped upon seeing a familiar young [Elf] man in purple robes with a [Human] magician in a suit approaching us.
"Now I see why I haven't seen you with your brother lately," the [Elf] man says with a smirk. "I didn't expect you of all players to end up in a sticky situation like this."
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I frown while crossing my arms and glaring at him. "Give me a break! It's not like I can resist a magic I've never seen before. More importantly, why are you here, Zale? Don't tell me you're here because of the [Grand Familiar Tournament]."
"Probably. But I'm also here because I have business here in
"Is that even a real thing here?!" I ask in frustration and confusion. "Seriously, I'm not even in a mood to humor you after that event."
But Zale chuckles at me and looks around the library. "By the looks of it, you managed to put those unruly visitors under control before we arrived. So come on, kid. Ever heard..."
[Enough, Zale. You heard the young man. He needs a brief respite from that situation. [Trance] magic is one of the dangerous magical arts in
I sheepishly chuckle and grin at the man. "Well, if the librarian said no to those adventurers and mages, then they should respect her wishes. I can't sit still and let them bully her like that." I scratch my chin as I stare at him for a while. "But you're right about one thing. I'm still too weak to overpower their magic and I appreciate your help, Mr..."
The man bows to me and says, [
T-Tazoru?!
I couldn't believe my ears. He's related to one of the magicians who saved the kingdom from [Mana Corruption]. I hadn't expected to meet Alphaeus's descendant so soon.
[Um... Young man... Are you still with us?]
I quickly shake my head when he calls out to me. "U-Uh, yeah, I am. What a coincidence. I'm actually here to study for the academy's upcoming entrance exam," I explain. "It's just that they targeted me because I found this."
I sheepishly show them the black book I found earlier. I would have hidden it out of fear that he might scold me for finding a seemingly outlawed book. But after how those jerks made a ruckus because of it, there's no reason to hide it now. I'll accept any scolding if I’ve broken the law.
[One of the corruption survivors' memoirs? Huh... I was wondering why those ruffians made a scene.] I let Xiri take the book since I already read all of it. [You've made the right decision to keep it off their hands. Thank you, young [Insignis]. I'll see to it this memoir will be kept safe in a secure place until further notice.]
Further notice? I widen my eyes at his declaration. "Wait... Are you not going to punish me for reading the book?"
Xiri chuckles and says, [The "law" you've spoken of is nothing more than a martial one. It's only a temporary ban on books that discuss the [Mana Corruption] as a whole. In fact, there's nothing forbidden about talking about the plague itself. However, time cannot heal all wounds and most of the kingdom is still scarred from the aftermath of it. I was only surprised you took an interest in the memoir itself.]
"Uh... Don't take it the wrong way, though. I only read it because it reminded me of the incident that happened near
"As in the rumored plague that invaded
That jerk! Does that guy know about privacy or being humble?! The way he worded it sounds like I'm bragging, which I'm not! Plus, I'm trying not to reveal everything about the incident to Mr. Tazoru!
[That's enough, Zale. He might be a young hero of the wilds, but he's still a young mage in training. I won't let you tease him like this.]
Young hero?! Seriously?!
"You already know me?!" I ask aloud.
[Yes,] Xiri answers with a nod. [I heard a lot about you from Ms. Oztar yesterday. You and your brother fearlessly eliminated the source of the plague and gained nothing but the [White Tiger's] respect. I assure you, your achievements will remain a secret as I already cast a spell to silence any mention to any outsiders nearby.]
Whoa... I take a glance at the librarian and judging by her tilted head and raised eyebrow, it seems like she has no clue what Mr. Tazoru has said. Looks like the only ones who know about this are me, Xiri, and Zale.
"Glad to hear that." I sigh since I have a few ideas about what would happen next. "So you might have guessed why I read the memoir, right?"
Xiri nods again. [You want to find the culprit behind the plague that almost destroyed the
Seriously?! He managed to figure that out with just the details of the incident?! I'm almost impressed! "That's what I've been thinking as well! But why didn't you investigate it further?"
[The reason I didn't is because there's not a lot of evidence that might back my theory. Don't forget it was more than the monarchy that was almost affected by the plague. It has been almost a decade since then and the people barely recovered from the chaos the succumbed victims created. I know you're eager to find out more about the [Mana Corruption], but you need to think about the political atmosphere and the motivation of the kingdom's vision for peace.]
Right... I guess that's the game lore's way of saying there will be consequences if I grow hasty and connect everything to the plague immediately. I guess I should take Xiri's advice and try another angle for now. Besides, I have other priorities to focus on right now, and of course...
"Politics are confusing and scary." I groan. "Alright. I'll wait until there are some updates on the investigation or something. Just know that the culprit behind that nasty mist might be somewhere in the kingdom and you should try to raise security for the tournament."
[Ms. Oztar already took care of that dilemma. Rest assured the [Royal Magicians] will ensure the safety of all residents and visiting adventurers for the remainder of the tournament festivities.]
"Plus, these kinds of [Quests] are supposed to be taken by [Sapphire Rank] adventurers and above," Zale speaks up. "I doubt you're at the right level to deal with world-changing incidents with your current rank and strength."
Right level?! Okay, sure. He has a point. But still...!
"Well, you haven't said anything during the discussion, Zale," I point out. "Besides, I'm guessing you're with Mr. Tazoru because you're bribing him to get into the academy without taking the entrance exam. Shame on you!"
"Bribe? Oh, so that's what you think," Zale grins. "Well, bad news for you, kid. I'm not here to sign up for the exams."
I raise my eyebrow, surprised at what he has said. "You're not?"
Then, Xiri sighs and says, [Again, please don't tease the young mage.] He then turned to me. [What he's trying to say is he's with me because he's working for me.]
...Eh? Work...for him? Wait, I don't understand...
"As in, I'm the assistant teacher for Mr. Tazoru. I'm one of the staff in
...
WHAAAAAATTTTTTT?!