Chapter 181

#181 The Tin Knight and the World Inside the Library

You walked quietly, relying on the rope.

With each step, the lighting changed, with each step your sense of distance vanished, and with each step the air turned liquid in a bizarre situation.

The you outside the monitor guessed. This was a hallucination.

But the you inside the Tin Knight denied it. This was reality.

Both sides were correct. Both sides were wrong.

A vague understanding brushed past your mind.

This place was an undefined world.

This place was a sequence of letters not yet written on a blank page.

The only confirmed statement here was, “This library exists on the second highest floor of the Magical Tower.”

Other than that, neither the sky nor the ground nor even the space was fixed.

In an attempt to fill in the remaining blanks, the various books within the library revealed their sentences, resulting in the current confusion.

The phrase “How to provoke remote arson using dust in the air” created a hot blaze, and the next step produced the sentence, “The great wizard said, ‘My life is nothing but regrets,'” which created a somber and dark space, making it appear as if everything was going completely haywire.

Yet at the same time, you realized.

The sentences impacting you and your colleagues right now weren’t that powerful.

If you only looked at the phenomena occurring around, they would seriously pose a threat to your bodies, but the evidence was that the actual damage felt was almost nonexistent.

You, leading the way, said.

[The ‘Tin Knight’ evaluates that the effects are flashy but the actual influence is not much!]

[The ‘Tin Knight’ points out that it’s similar to when a massive earthquake happens on a 4D movie screen, yet the audience only experiences their chairs shaking a little!]

The witch walking second muttered.

“It seems like the magic on the library itself and the powers of the magical books inside are resonating together to create this space, but I can’t get a grasp on how it’s all tangled up.”

The scarecrow walking third murmured.

“Um, it feels quite conceptual. Even though our strides are all different, we cover the same distance with each step. But in the situation where the rope seemed to lengthen earlier, our bodies also should have been affected, yet it feels like nothing significant is happening.”

The little lion walking fourth expressed concern.

“The more we move forward, the stronger the influence of these illusions seems to get! The initial flames felt nothing, but just now, the flames were as hot as basking in the summer sun!”

After what felt like quite some time, engaging in a strange conversation that may or may not have been connected.

You suddenly asked about something that came to mind.

[The ‘Tin Knight’ is curious about how many steps have been taken so far!]

Sofia answered.

“We just took our forty-fifth step. We moved two more steps while talking, so now it’s forty-seven.”

[The ‘Tin Knight’ mentions it’s only two steps away from the rival’s record!]

“By the time you said that, we already passed it. Tch.”

The witch, about to scold you, clicked her tongue and stopped her feet.

Your companions, including you, were the same.

You realized why Gale and the White Knight had exactly walked forty-nine steps before circling back to the tower.

Forty-nine and fifty were different.

It wasn’t just a matter of numbers; even the territory itself felt distinctly different to both you and your companions.

From here on, it could genuinely be a matter of life and death.

[The ‘Tin Knight’ asks whether to continue forward or turn back!]

The one most surprised by the words spoken was none other than yourself.

Normally, you would have urged your companions to hasten forward, anticipating new adventures and crises.

Sure enough, your companions responded as if to say, “What’s gotten into you?”

“We made such a fuss getting here; we can’t just turn back. Be it information on the North Witch or a hidden treasure of the kingdom, we’ve got to take something from this tower, otherwise, I won’t be satisfied.”

At the witch’s words, you stepped forward cheerfully.

Then, in the next moment, the scenery flipped.

An expansive space that felt boundless, truly without an end.

Various runic characters glittered in the sky like stars, and constellations formed from those runes drifted through the air as if they were living creatures.

The ground felt neither earth nor rock but like stepping on a massive stack of thousands of sheets of paper.

“Ah, over there!”

The little lion raised his voice, pointing with a finger, and you turned your gaze.

A silver horse that had gone ahead rested on the ground, swaying its tail leisurely.

The problem was that a familiar face was also nearby.

Shining blonde hair, bright blue eyes, a spectacular white dress.

A girl who looked like a flipped version of Dorothea, except for her blue eyes, Gale Elilraz was there.

And for some reason, she was sitting at a tea table, lifting a teacup and sipping from it.

The sight of the White Knight, dressed almost like a butler, draping a white towel-like thing over one arm, was the real icing on the cake.

As you stood there dumbfounded, gazing at the scene, Gale casually lifted her head.

She met Dorothea’s stunned gaze and blinked her blue eyes.

“Would you like a drink if you’re thirsty?”

“Is that the important thing right now!?”

Dorothea shrieked.

Of course, Gale seemed rather unfazed by it all. Her nonchalant attitude was on another level.

“Uh, um, you—what are you doing here?”

Dorothea stammered.

She was so overwhelmed with questions that she didn’t know what to ask first.

You thought you should help this poor witch out.

[The ‘Tin Knight’ suggests battle to the death if needed!]

“Right, a battle to the death, … Don’t interfere!!”

Dorothea’s staff smacked the top of your head.

You felt quite unjust, having only intended to assist.

In truth, you regretted not pushing just a little longer.

“Oh my, what a lovely strike. Do you have some skill in martial arts? By the way, I’ll decline the contest. If I were to do something, I prefer a single vs. tag match.”

“Stop rambling and answer me. What’s going on? Where is this place, and why are you drinking tea here?”

“Hmm, you’ve got a lot of questions. And shouldn’t you start with a hello after a long time?”

“That’s a nonsense way to utter your greeting!!”

Dorothea howled.

Gale shrugged her shoulders and subtly turned her wrist, pointing towards the silver horse. It was a strangely casual action for someone who otherwise appeared quite composed.

“I saw that child arrive here. So I thought one of the other compass holders would be arriving soon, and I waited.”

“Waited? Why?”

Just as Gale was about to open her mouth to explain…

A door suddenly appeared in the empty air, and something jumped out from within.

The reason why you judged it to be “something” rather than “someone” was simple.

The entity emerging from the door had no body.

Two gloved hands, a mask shaped like a rabbit with a monocle, and a pocket watch that floated at waist level.

That was it.

The sight of various parts floating eerily in the air was truly bizarre.

《Welcome to the game, everyone!》

“What the heck is this.”

Dorothea frowned at the floating rabbit mask.

Unfazed, the rabbit mask continued with its explanation.

《You are adventurers challenging the labyrinth to obtain a legendary treasure!》

《Survive against the complicated paths, countless traps, and dangerous monsters, and reach the exit of the labyrinth!》

《Some choices will be the light of hope, while others may lead you into the depths of darkness!》

《May glory and blessings accompany you at the end of your journey!》

Bing bang boom.

A surprisingly cheap sound effect reverberated through the air.

You tilted your head at the overwhelming scent of clichés.

Dorothea’s gaze shifted back to Gale.

“Hey.”

“Whether you noticed it on the way here or not, the magic of this library and the magic of the books stored here have intertwined chaotically, distorting the space. There’s only one space, but since there are multiple books, they’re kind of competing to see who gets to be the boss,” Gale explained after taking a sip from her teacup.

“If the magical book of flames had won, this place would have become a blazing hell. If someone’s adventure story had prevailed, a world based on that adventure would have formed. If a theoretical book won, the laws and formulas from that book might have reflected the space.”

“So then, what’s this game nonsense? What book gained dominance to produce this mess?”

“The Game Book.”

“What?”

“It’s a game created based on the various amusements that my master has circulated among the world. The original game is structured such that it presents something like, ‘You have come to a fork in the road. If you go left, you get 3 points; if you go right, you get 8 points,’ where the reader flips pages. But what my master created is a book where the content of the next page changes entirely depending on your choice.”

Dorothea’s expression twisted with confusion.

Perhaps due to her usual distance from gaming culture, she seemed unable to easily comprehend the current situation.

At that moment, Sofia, who had been rapidly absorbing various cultures lately, stepped in.

“So, what you’re saying is that the contents of that Game Book have turned into reality here?”

“Exactly. I’ve experienced it firsthand, so it’s definitely true.”

You suddenly felt a question arise and asked.

[The ‘Tin Knight’ remarks that having experienced it means actually participating in the game, so why are you still here!?]

If Gale and the White Knight had been doing well in the game, it was strange that they were still lingering in the library long enough for people to think they were missing from the Magic Tower.

Conversely, if they had faced severe adversity in the game and couldn’t escape, their current perfectly fine state was hard to understand.

As Dorothea inquired about this, Gale sighed.

“Because we reached that conclusion.”

“What?”

“You defeated the guardian of the legendary treasure in the labyrinth and retrieved the labyrinth’s treasure. However, due to the curse of the labyrinth, you also carry the fate of becoming the labyrinth’s new guardian. To escape the labyrinth, you must either leave a guardian in your place or break the curse itself. You decided to wait for an opportunity that will come someday. Normal end.”

After stating this, Gale rose from her chair.

Her shoes shimmered in a bright silver hue.

“May you and your companions achieve the good ending. Dorothea, settling things in such a place in such a manner is truly not my intent.”