Advent of the Three Chapter 20: Language [2]

Chapter 20: Language [2]

"I'm bleeding...?"

Evelyn was taken aback. Of all the things she expected him to say, that was the last thing she could've imagined.

She raised her hand to touch her lips.

Feeling sothing wet trace over her finger, she looked down to see it stained in red.

'How did this...?'

Evelyn had a hard ti coming to terms with the situation.

Just how hard had she been biting her lips?

".....Ah."

Raising her head, her expression changed.

He was no longer in front of her.

Looking around, she caught a glimpse of his disappearing back. Even now, his back stood straight and composed.

As fast as he appeared, he had left.

"Haha..."

Staring at the scene, Evelyn let out a bitter laugh. Even now, she has a hard ti understanding how to feel.

Perhaps, this was for the best.

Wiping her lips, she noticed Josephine looking at her with a dumbfounded expression.

"What?"

"...So you really did know him?"

"Uh?"

Clasping her hands, Josephine brought her head closer to hers. A strange smile marred her face as she leaned closer.

"He's pretty wealthy, isn't he?"

"Wealthy...?"

Evelyn thought about it. Well, yeah. He did belong to an up-and-coming noble house. The Evenus household wasn't one to be trifled with.

So,

"Yes."

"He's also handso, right? Pretty intelligent, too..."

"Hm?"

Evelyn's eyes narrowed.

"Where are you going with this?"

"....You think you can introduce ?"

"Introduce?"

Why?

"...I think I'm in love~"

What sort of fu—

***

The Institute boasted a massive library that spanned over several hundred square ters.

With tens of thousands of books, it was the perfect place for

to familiarise myself with the world and its laws.

"English... English..."

My current focus was the 'Languages' section, or more specifically, the 'English' section.

I had been so drowsy that I hadn't noticed it then, but that was definitely English. I was all too familiar with the language. There's no way I wouldn't recognize it.

So...

"How?"

Was this part of the ga setting?

".....That would make sense."

But at the sa ti, it didn't. If you were to create an entirely different language and social hierarchy, what was the point of adding English?

So sort of easter egg?

That too seed plausible.

"This should be the place."

: [Language and literature]

A bold sign was all it took for

to know where to go. Looking around, I scanned through the books before settling my gaze on a specific one. It was rather thick, and the cover felt extrely familiar.

"As expected..."

Taking the book, my hand glossed over the cover, and I took a deep breath.

[English Vocabulary]

A book I would've never expected to see in this world.

Flip—

Even the contents were the sa.

"..."

I felt a mixture of different emotions staring at the book in front of . In a sense, it reminded

a lot of ho.

Earth.

There wasn't a day that passed when I didn't think about ho.

It was all I ever thought about.

...And while it was true that I had sowhat adapted to this world, I had no choice but to adapt to it.

I would've been dead otherwise.

"There's a thesaurus as well..."

Scrolling through the books on the shelves, a lot of familiar ones, such as the dictionary and thesaurus, appeared. There also appeared to be a lot of novels. From romance to fantasy...

Grabbing a certain book, I opened to a random page to see what it was about, but...

"His warm body slowly embraced her..."

I closed it just as fast as I opened it.

"Just what were the ga developers thinking...?'"

It was smut.

Was this type of book even appropriate?

But,

"Sothing feels off."

I couldn't quite put my finger on it.

But it all boiled down to a certain point. Or location.

".....Mirror Dinsion."

That was the place where these books were found.

What I wanted to know was... What else did they find, and where exactly did they find it?

Grip—

Unknowingly, my grip on the book intensified.

Though I wasn't certain, I felt a little closer to an answer. At the very least, I now had a direction.

But...

"...Do I have no choice but to go?"

The Mirror Dinsion.

It was an extrely dangerous place. One where a single mistake could cost one's life.

However, as I thought about how these books ca from such a place, I had no choice but to go there to get an idea of what was happening to .

Even if it was dangerous.

But before that...

I looked around

and took note of the nurous books that surrounded .

"I should check out the other books."

Perhaps I'd be able to find the answers to so of my questions.

With how many books were present, I was bound to find sothing.

"Whooo..."

Putting the dictionary back, I headed deeper into the library.

It was ti for

to read.

*

The library was teeming with books on all sorts of topics.

"How long...?"

Before I knew it, the sky outside was dark. I had been so imrsed in reading that I hadn't noticed that a lot of ti had passed.

"It's already past dinner ti."

The ti said 10 p.m.

By now, the canteen was already closed, and there was no way for

to get food.

But I didn't let that bother .

In the end, I learned a lot of things.

From the history of the continent to how the Mirror Dinsion worked.

From my understanding, it was a fairly complicated place.

While reading, what I grasped was rely rudintary knowledge. The place was extrely mysterious, and despite the ti invested, my questions remained unanswered.

I wasn't disheartened, however.

There were plenty of books for

to read. I was bound to find an answer sooner or later.

"Huaam..."

A yawn inexplicably escaped from my lips.

My tiredness was starting to catch up to . I had no choice but to call it quits for the day.

"Let's see..."

I sorted out the books in front of .

A student could only be allowed to borrow a maximum of three books per sester. In front of

were sixteen different books.

All of them interested , and if not for the rule, I would've brought them all back with .

Even so, rules were rules, and in the end, I settled for the ones that I had already read.

: [History of the Aurora Continent]

: [The basics of Curse Magic]

: [Rune language and its distinctions]

These were the books I deed to be the most useful for

in the long term.

I stood up and packed my stuff, placing the books I didn't choose back to where they belonged.

Thud.

One of the books fell as I positioned them on the shelf.

I reached out to grab it when...

My hand paused.

"..."

There was a certain scent in the air that triggered my nose.

"This sll..."

It brought certain mories that I had buried deep within my mind. Unknowingly, my feet moved toward where the sll ca from until I eventually neared a secluded area of the library.

"....Ah."

There, a person stood.

A familiar face.

Long, platinum hair cascaded down her back as she leaned on the table. Wedged in her fingers was a cigarette.

"....."

Unwanted mories started to resurface in my mind all of a sudden.

So much so that I felt my breath grow heavy at the thought.

I felt a strange tightness in my chest. It closely reminded

of the pain that had taken over my life during the later stages of it.

Perhaps that was why...

Without realizing it, I blurted out loud,

"It slls like shit."

At that, she furrowed her brows.

*Puff*

She took a long drag of the cigarette before blowing the smoke in my direction.

"Tough luck."

"...."

I stood blankly.

As the smoke drifted past , unwanted mories clouded my mind once again.

To the point where I unconsciously moved forward.

"Oy."

Flicking the cigarette away, she clicked her tongue and stood more alert.

"...What the hell are you doing?"

Tik—

The cigarette fell right in front of , and my feet paused.

As if bewitched, I focused my attention on the lingering orange glow at the tip as smoke drifted through the air.

My hand unknowingly trembled.

"...."

Stomp...

I raised my foot and stomped on it.

The weight on my chest lightened, and I felt like I could breathe again.

It was an impulsive action.

One that I normally wouldn't have taken.

But,

"Was that so hard to do?"

The side effects of the spell were still lingering in my mind, and the cigarette served to trigger painful mories I tried to hold deep within my mind.

It was sothing that I had trouble controlling.

"Ah, shit."

Ruffling her hair, her face crumbled.

"I didn't take you for such a fucker. Just like that bitch, you are the fucking sa."

That bitch?

I never had the chance to figure out who she was referring to.

By the ti I focused my attention back on her, she was already gone.

That was perhaps for the best.

I wasn't in the right state of mind at the mont.

Especially since,

?| Lvl 2. [Sadness] EXP

0.01%

?| Lvl 1. [Anger] EXP

0.03%

Notifications continued to appear in my vision. However, despite their appearance, I couldn't bring myself to focus on them.

The only thing in my mind was the thing beneath my foot.

Right.

The cigarette.

It was beneath my foot.

If I just moved it...

"....Gulp."

I swallowed.

The tip of my finger twitched, and I licked my lips.

A strange anxiety overtook my mind.

One that I was only able to calm down after taking a deep breath.

"Hoooo..."

Only then did I feel a little better.

I shook my head and kept my foot firm.

Doing everything possible from letting myself see it.

"Haaa... Really."

I took another deep breath.

Even in this life...

You still haunt .