Thud—
Namgung Il put down the book he was holding without even looking at it.
“……”
Several towers of books were already visible on the floor.
How many books had he checked with this?
It seed he had looked through far more books than when he had co last ti, but Namgung Il still hadn't found the book he had seen then.
'I still can't find it?'
As the situation reached this point, Namgung Il couldn't help but feel that sothing was strange.
At first, he thought he had simply rembered it wrong.
But now, his thoughts had changed a little.
The thought that this might not be simply due to his mistake began to grow in Namgung Il's mind.
“……”
Namgung Il started searching for the book, centering on the shelf he rembered.
He thought that even if there was a mistake in his mory, the error wouldn't be that large.
The fifth from the left, and the second from the top. He thought he could find the book quickly by searching around that shelf.
However.
'To not find it after searching this much... I guess I have to think in that direction.'
The result was that he still hadn't found the book.
With this, it could be said that he had searched all the shelves within a two-shelf range centered on the reference shelf.
Of course, he couldn't look thoroughly because ti was pressing, but he had still clearly checked the inside one by one to avoid making mistakes as much as possible.
'The location of the book has changed from where it was originally.'
This was the conclusion Namgung Il reached.
Wouldn't this explain why his mory was wrong?
His mory was accurate in the first place, and he had tried to find the book according to his mory, but the book's location had already been changed before that.
“……”
Then who on earth had moved the book's location?
Without thinking too deeply, there would naturally be only one person who would do such a thing.
'Cha Yul-ryeong.'
If his guess was correct, the one who moved the book's location was Cha Yul-ryeong.
Then for what reason?
Namgung Il imdiately began to ponder the reason.
'...There are two possibilities I can think of right now.'
One was that he had simply taken out the book to read it and didn't put it back in its original place when he put it back on the bookshelf.
If not, then for so reason, Cha Yul-ryeong had placed the book sowhere else and had not yet returned it.
In this case, the situation could still be considered fortunate.
“……”
Namgung Il was most concerned about the second case.
That was that Cha Yul-ryeong had intentionally moved the book's location.
In a way, it might seem similar to what was said before, but the point here was not simply that the book was moved, but that it was moved intentionally.
'If that's really the case... it ans Cha Yul-ryeong knew I would co here again.'
Namgung Il thought the possibility of the second case was higher.
If he had broken in here again after a really long ti since that day, it would be a different story, but he had returned here in less than five days.
But in the anti, Cha Yul-ryeong had sohow moved the book's location?
To have picked out just that one book among the nurous books in this room and changed its location was unnatural no matter how he thought about it.
'On top of that... it ans he also knew that I was after that book.'
So he would have moved the book.
But how did Cha Yul-ryeong notice that?
Although there were so close calls, Namgung Il had thought he had gotten away with it well that day without being caught.
'If not, he might have just acted cautiously.'
When he opened the door, an outsider was in the empty office.
The possibility that he had moved the book because of that one thing was also sufficient.
Given Cha Yul-ryeong's personality, it seed he would react sensitively to even such a trivial thing.
It wouldn't be too strange to think that he had prepared counterasures in advance for a possible situation.
“……”
Of course, if that were really the case, Cha Yul-ryeong's actions were extrely suspicious.
If he had nothing to hide, there would be no need to hide that book.
In other words... it ant that the possibility of Blood Spot Grass actually existing had beco higher.
'Are the contents written there really true?'
He couldn't be sure of that yet, but the possibility that the book was not simply soone's fantasy had certainly increased.
An herb that could revive the dead.
As what he had initially thought was a vain delusion gradually felt like it was becoming a reality, cold sweat ran down the back of Namgung Il's neck.
Swoosh—.
With that, Namgung Il ca out of his thoughts.
Whatever the reason, wouldn't it be too dangerous to continue the investigation like this?
Although there was a sufficient possibility that the book was in this room, searching through all the books here was realistically impossible no matter how he thought about it.
'How much ti has passed?'
It seed that about half an hour and more had passed.
Because he was looking for the book in the dark without turning on the lights, much more ti had been delayed than he had thought.
At this point, it was about ti for Cha Yul-ryeong to return.
It seed wise to stop here for today and retreat.
Rustle—.
Namgung Il began to put the books that had been piled on the floor back on the bookshelf, in the exact opposite way he had taken them out.
He didn't forget to put them back in the sa shelf they were originally in, as well as in the order they were stacked.
Given Cha Yul-ryeong's personality, wouldn't he be able to notice even such trivial details?
For a perfect cri, it was necessary to restore the bookshelf to its state before he had touched it as much as possible.
“……”
Namgung Il maintained his silence and organized the books.
Quickly but precisely.
He was concentrating much more than when he was taking out the books in order to not leave any traces of himself as much as possible.
Sssss—.
It was then.
Suddenly, the room beca drastically dark, and at the sa ti, Namgung Il's movents also stopped.
“……?”
Until now, Namgung Il had been securing his vision by relying on the moonlight coming through the paper window.
But as the moonlight suddenly stopped coming in, the room beca so dark that he could barely distinguish what was right in front of him, and in that state, he could no longer proceed with his work.
'What is it? Did a cloud cover the moon?'
Why of all tis did a cloud... Since every second was important, Namgung Il couldn't help but beco anxious.
Namgung Il, who was standing still in that state, waiting for the moonlight to co in again.
But even after waiting for a while, there was still no sign of the moonlight coming in.
'...Should I use my internal energy?'
If he used the Heavenly Thunder Emperor Divine Art, the surroundings would temporarily brighten due to its characteristics.
If not, there was also a way to create sword qi on the Thunder Tiger Sword to light up the surroundings.
“……Ha—.”
At that thought, a hollow laugh ca out of Namgung Il even in this situation.
To think that he would use his internal energy for sothing like a lamp.
There would be no lamp in this world that was this inefficient.
'A little while should be fine.'
At his current level, he would be able to maintain his sword qi for about an hour without any problem.
The surroundings would be much brighter if he took out his sword qi rather than just using his internal energy.
Since he couldn't delay any longer, Namgung Il tried to secure his vision in that way until the moonlight returned.
“……?”
It was then.
As he was about to draw his sword, Namgung Il suddenly stared at the bookshelf.
'...Light?'
It seed that a faint light was leaking out from the bookshelf.
To be precise, it was a stream of light visible beyond the empty shelf.
He hadn't noticed that light at all before, but it seed that he was now able to notice its existence thanks to the surroundings being completely covered in darkness.
“……”
Why was light flowing out from behind the bookshelf?
As that question arose, Namgung Il took his hand off his sword and approached the direction where the light was visible.
'A hole... is it.'
It seed that the light was flowing in through here.
A small hole that he would never have been able to find if the light hadn't existed.
In fact, it felt more like a crack than a hole.
'That ans that light is being generated from behind the bookshelf...'
Of course, since it was night now, he couldn't think of it as sunlight.
Rather, wouldn't it be more natural to think that there was so kind of space behind the bookshelf, not a wall?
As that thought arose, a strange light appeared in Namgung Il's eyes.
'A hidden space?'
It was a place that felt really suspicious to anyone.
If it was hidden by a bookshelf on purpose, it could be said that it was a space that the owner of this room absolutely did not want to show to others.
In other words, it ant that sothing that Cha Yul-ryeong was hiding existed behind this bookshelf.
'That book might be beyond this.'
Furthermore, there might be sothing related to Blood Spot Grass.
As that thought arose, Namgung Il approached the bookshelf closely and fumbled at it with both hands.
'How do I get back there?'
Although it was a bookshelf that could be easily broken if he put his mind to it, he couldn't open the entrance in that way, of course.
In this kind of space, there would surely be a device to open the entrance.
Namgung Il began to fumble at the bookshelf with both hands.
'Where is it? Where on earth is the device...'
It was then.
Perhaps because he had moved his hands here and there while standing close to the bookshelf, Namgung Il montarily lost his balance.
Because of that, his body tilted towards the bookshelf.
Namgung Il reflexively put both hands on the bookshelf to avoid falling.
Click—.
At that mont, a strange sound was heard.
“……Huh?”
Not only the sound, but there was also so change in the bookshelf.
A light that was leaking out more strongly from the inside, as if a door had been opened.
Thanks to Namgung Il pushing with both hands just now, the bookshelf had rotated, creating a space to enter inside.
“……It opened?”
To think it was such a simple structure.
It seed he had opened the entrance by a fluke, but that wasn't what was important right now.
Swoosh—.
As soon as he figured out the thod, Namgung Il pushed the bookshelf with more force than before.
At that mont, the bookshelf began to move, rotating in the direction Namgung Il had pushed, and as a space large enough for one person to pass through was created, Namgung Il stopped pushing.
“……!”
As soon as he opened the entrance, a secret space was visible.
A room of a similar size to the office.
Lanterns placed here and there were illuminating the room.
'This is...'
Namgung Il entered the room with a bewildered expression.
What on earth was this place for?
Although he looked around, Namgung Il couldn't easily guess what this room was used for.
'...There are traces of herbs being used here and there.'
Tools that would commonly be used in a pharmacy were placed in the room.
In addition to that, there were even herbs that still had their shape.
Was Cha Yul-ryeong preparing dicine here? For now, just by looking at the traces, he couldn't help but think that.
'Oops, this is not the ti for this.'
This was not the ti to be leisurely looking around the room.
For now, to find the book that was his purpose for coming here, Namgung Il began to search the room.
“……?”
Just then, Namgung Il discovered sothing and stopped moving for a mont.
'...A coffin?'
Although it was simply a wooden chest, Namgung Il naturally had that thought after seeing its size.
Among the things he had found in the room so far, it was the object that felt the most suspicious.
Namgung Il instinctively reached out his hand there.
“……”
Before opening the lid, Namgung Il hesitated for a mont.
If this was really a coffin, was there a corpse inside?
Although he had a sowhat reluctant feeling, Namgung Il took a slight breath and imdiately opened the lid.
Creak—.
Namgung Il lifted the lid with one hand.
But there was nothing inside, and only old dust rose slightly.
'...There's nothing here.'
Well, it was strange to think that there would be a corpse in a place like this.
It seed this was just a large wooden chest, not a coffin.
Although it was a little strange that there was nothing inside, Namgung Il didn't pay much attention and closed the lid again.
'Let's hurry up and search other places.'
Thinking so, Namgung Il turned his head.
“Namgung Il.”
Just then, soone's voice was heard from behind.
Namgung Il looked at the person who had called him with his eyes wide open.
“……!”
A person who was looking this way with a cold gaze.
The owner of this room. It was Cha Yul-ryeong.
(End of Chapter)
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