CHAPTER 3:
In the library there were thousands of books for one to choose from
Books of Alexandria, Baghdad, Mecca
Knowledge from the major places of the middle east and Egypt
The books themselves contained mostly of medicinal herb recipes and written laws
For the first segment at least
“Useless. I told them to rearrange the order of the books yesterday, seems like my employees are slacking”
Archbishop Alexander tossed a leather cover boom on the floor behind him
“Was it really that important for you to rearrange the first segment?”
“It'd be much faster to get to the important part, in case of an emergency, which we are shaving right now”
Side by side Sylvia and the Archbishop were walking
Even though Sylvia was hearing what he was saying, at the same time she was reading a dusty old tome
Rather fast
“What are we searching for again?”
Charybdi questioned while running around in circles
“Knowledge, such knowledge that'll help us uncover what is going on”
Tap-tap, elegant as ever Scylla assorted while walking, slightly behind
“Really? Wait a minute, how are books gonna help us figure that out?”
Her round face got even more rounder as her eyes turned a cartoonish white
“Books and records to be exact, if we can trace suspicious behavior and link it to past behavior and the behavior of demons”
“That makes sense- hey! Why can't we just use your holy relic?”
While it was true that the Hebrew scrolls allowed the user to see the past of everything it did have its limitations
It didn't implant that knowledge into one's brains, the user has to memorize it
And memory fades
Well there's an easy counter to that, why can't you just carry the book around?
“Phttt, you really think I remember all of that thus I won't carry it? The thing is heavier than me, I can't even count the pages"
“That's lame! At least memorize everything in it”
“I've been trying, it ain't that easy, I assure you”
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
“He's right you know Charybdi, imagine yourself in that position, will you memorize everything?”
“Huh?! Well of course not, but that's his job”
She was rather funny wasn't she?
At least that's what Preston thought when he picked her up by the scruff of the neck like a cub
“Put me down!”
He tiny arms failed uselessly in the air
“Not until you behave”
At that she immediately barred her teeth at her ‘big bro’
“Please behave sister, we are in a holy place”
“Shut up!”
Tact as always Acylla remained unfazed while Charybdi pouted like a petulant that didn't get a Christmas gift
“You get used to it”
“Tell me brother”
A bro to bro moment between Preston and Garcia
How heartwarming
Ahem
“Back to the subject…we've finally arrived”
From where Sylvia and the others stood it seemed like an endless darkness
Ever expanding
“Wow! And scary at the same time”
“Hush”
As if scolding her Preston shot her a glare
“...”
“Fine…”
It was a damn miracle how Charybdi even saw the glare
“.....”
“With all due respect, Archbishop, what are we waiting for exactly?”
“Uhh, it was supposed to happen now”
Woosh!
The entire room lit up with multiple rows of candles
There in the middle stood Annabelle
Cough, cough
“Haru! What are you doing!?”
“I'm trying to-”
THUD!
Ouchies…
Haru rubbed his forehead head with his hand, all sprawled on the ground
Oh brother…
“Are you braindead?"
“Shut up, I was trying to so do something cool”
“Atop bickering you two!”
Sylvia almost threw her glasses at them, luckily she remembered the situation
“Ahem, did you find the old tome?”
The Archbishop brought his curled fist to his mouth while speaking
(Is he ill? Maybe that's why he is surrounded by his servants…damn)
“Uhh yes, it's a bit heavy but anyway”
The book itself was thick enough for the boy to warp both his hand around the black leathered spine
“Need help with that?”
(I guess…this book- wait, is she offering help?...)
“Sure, if you can”
Like picking up a a cat, it was that easy for Annabelle to carry the book
“What the-”
“Surprised? Didn't expect a woman to be able to pick that up huh?”
His face looked more like a deflated balloon than anything
“Annabelle!”
Oh snap!
“Yes! Coming!”
This was a complete drag
Why did he have to put up with this?
Maybe…is he acting like a child? Shit
“Wake up daydreamer”
Even though her voice sounded like it was dripping with pure honey…
Her gaze loomed over his head
Gulp
“Right”
It almost sounded like a grumble
“Kids and their immaturity…honestly”
“You are a young master you have a lot to learn yet in terms of teasing”
While the Archbishop was right in his case
This case might be hopeless…
Dust flew from the flipped pages
Upon a long book stand made out of shining carved wood the book sat
It a particular volume that the church for some reason didn't want to be opened
From his right hand Archbishop Alexander pocketed the golden key that unlocked the binding of the book
“The key, is it one of a kind?”
“Not really Haru, you see, this key is meant to protect every single thing banned in this library, it's of importance, I doubt that anyone else would have it”
“I can affirm what the Archbishop is saying, the church is picky with the people they control, there's no way they'd lent such a key to a person that they aren't sure they can control”
(I was already suspicious of them but I guess that makes sense, no one will unleash a beast they can't tame…)
“Garcia, can you reconcile and further prove our argument?’
Lips ans cheeks softly curled before settling down into a neutral face
“...”
“It is true, as far as I can remember the church has been historically bad at entrusting it's own people, while in the low levels of the church the people e turst each other all the time it seeme that the hugher ups don't trust anybody”
(There's 3 people in here who have thus confirmed what is to be saiid…maybe, no, this has to be connected to the current situation somehow…)
“If trust is to be broken that easily then it so seems that the church is fragile, they're hiding a fact, maybe that they can't really defend against hell?”
“Really? That is the theory that you are proposing? I think that's blasphemous”
“With all due respect Archbishop, it seems like the only logical answer”
“Settle this with a fight, gahhh!”
Before she could spew further, Preston's arm barred around her mouth
“It wouldn't be illogical to side with Haru here, whatever the actual fact may be, from an outsiders perspective there's no reason for such a powerful and important organization not being able to cooperate with itself”
She hadn't said anything thus far, until now
“I know for a fact that they are hiding something, the first clue was the key, it's just a book, the information must be trurthful enough and dangerous enough for them to be questioned, as church says knowledge is the key so why not share it”
Annabelle's words were true, every point that everyone made
Yet somebody begged to differ
“Everybody has different reasons for hiding something, the knowledge that this book contains may simply be too dangerous for normal humans to handle, or even holy beings like us”
“Humans or not they conceal this information even from their own Archbishop, it isn't a mater of who it is but a matter of why it is”
Haru spoke while crossing his arms
The bickering went on for quiet a while
No end in sight, the argument went in circles, for like half an hour…
“Guys guys, let me speak!”
“.....”
“Thank you, how about we view the actual book itself?”
Silent stared circled around the group
No one suggested otherwise and no one wanted to it, this would put an end to the argument despite being risky
Though no one was worried sbout Sylvia, she was the most capable of them all when it came to magic…
Her nimble fingers grazed over the draft pages, flipping 1 and 2 and 3 pages
Until
She came across that passage
“Sylvia? Are you…ok?”
“You're scaring us all”
“This isn't funny anymore!”
“...”
She didn't move….she didn't even notice Haru's hand on her shoulder
“Oh shit”...
