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“……Amazing…”

Wendy’s jaw dropped in awe.

I, too, had never seen a library of this scale before.

Wait, can this even be called a library?

A magical space set atop the Stairs of Truth.

There stood a wall about 20 meters high.

Even the largest bookshelf in the world would probably be smaller than this.

Endless rows of bookshelves stretched out like mountain ranges.

This is the famous landmark of Meikhael University.

The Wall of Truth.

“Count…”

Wendy pointed to one side of the bookshelf and spoke.

“Look. There’s a cat here.”

It was true.

Between the books on the shelves, only the butt and tail of a cat were visible.

But upon closer inspection, it seemed stuck.

The cat was flailing its hind legs.

Unable to stand it, Wendy approached and pulled it out.

“Squeak!”

Plop!

The cat slipped out of the bookshelf.

The recoil sent Wendy and the cat tumbling backward.

“Eek! A-are you okay?”

Wendy lifted the cat and asked.

Strangely, the cat had whiskers that looked like a catfish.

But that wasn’t the only strange thing.

“Sigh… Ouch, my back. Do I look okay to you?”

It was a talking cat.

“Whaaaat???”

“Sigh… Kid, call the insurance company. I can’t work like this.”

“I-insurance?”

The cat jumped out of Wendy’s hands and flopped onto the floor.

“Ouch, ouch. I’m dying. It’s already sad enough to work here for life~.”

“W-what do we do… The cat says it’s in pain…”

What to do, indeed.

I stepped in front of Wendy.

“I’m here to find a book.”

“Ouch… I’m dying…”

The cat glanced at me, testing the waters.

Perfect timing.

Let’s practice handling personalities.

I awakened the emotions buried deep within my chest.

[You feel ‘Wrath’!]

In an instant, boiling emotions surged.

I focused the rising wrath on the cat.

“Hwawack?! It’s hot!”

The cat let out a strange scream and jumped up.

It even stood upright on two legs.

“W-what?! What just happened?!”

My chest, having released the wrath, felt as if it had been burned.

I held my breath and quickly regained control.

[You feel ‘Patience’!]

[The ‘Wrath’ gradually subsides.]

Good. Now it’s manageable.

Unlike Mondri, using power on such a creature requires brakes.

I looked down at the cat, still confused, and spoke.

“I’m here to find a book.”

“W-what are you?! I-I don’t take orders from strangers!”

The cat waved its paws dismissively.

I thought it was useless, but it seems to do its job diligently.

I took out a card from my pocket and showed it to the cat.

A purple card.

The library pass Mondri issued.

This should do.

But the cat’s reaction was beyond my expectations.

“P-purple?! No way, is this… a purple card?!!”

I examined the card closely.

Nothing was written on it.

Just a plain purple card on both sides.

“Seems so. The Chancellor said showing this would let me borrow books.”

“Y-you’re…!”

The catfish-whiskered cat hurriedly ran to the bookshelf it had been stuck in earlier.

It pulled out a white apron, or rather, something from the apron’s pocket.

It was a golden, shimmering bell.

The cat shook the bell with all its might.

Ding-ding-ding.

The sound of the bell echoed through the Magic Library, the Wall of Truth.

The cat kept shaking the bell.

Then, the bell began to glow brightly.

But the amazing part didn’t end there.

“Count… over there…”

Wendy pointed to the mountain range connected to the Wall of Truth.

From there, lights began to shine like signal fires on a mountain.

As if responding to the cat’s bell.

Ding-ding-ding.

The sound of bells echoed from everywhere.

And countless lights began to move.

Their destination was right here.

And, of course, the lights were cats with bells around their necks.

Strangely, each one wore an apron.

“W-what’s going on?!”

“Who set off the alarm?!”

“Where’s the 5-minute standby team?!”

“They’ll be here in 5 minutes.”

“Those lunatics! Tell them to come right now!”

The cats rushed over in a frenzy.

Are they using the bells like walkie-talkies?

“They’re kind of cute…”

Wendy grinned and commented, but as someone who’s been in the military, I just felt sorry for them.

The catfish-whiskered cat was now stiffly standing in an apron.

It was nervously fidgeting in front of a large cat that had just arrived.

“Hey, did you ring the bell?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Where are the rats?”

“I didn’t hear you?”

“Rats! Rats! You must’ve called because there are rats.”

“There are no rats.”

“Kid! Then why’d you ring it? You only ring it like that when rats invade!”

“I-is that so?”

“You brat! You were probably stuck in some bookshelf, slacking off, weren’t you?!”

“N-no, sir!”

The large cat poked the catfish-whiskered cat’s apron as it spoke.

“Hey.”

“First Librarian Myomegi.”

“You’ve really messed up, not even keeping track of apron inventory. Huh? Causing trouble on your day off.”

“T-that’s…”

Suddenly, the large cat noticed us.

“Ah—my apologies. I didn’t realize there were civilians here. It seems our librarian made a mistake. Sorry, but could you show us your library pass? It’s just a formality, so please cooperate.”

“Hmm.”

I showed the purple card I had shown to the catfish-whiskered cat earlier.

The cat’s eyes widened in disbelief.

“M-my apologies! Please wait a moment!”

The black cat shouted loudly.

“……Hurry up! Everyone, assemble!”

At its command, the apron-wearing cats quickly formed ranks.

The black cat saluted me.

In all my life, I never thought I’d receive a salute from a cat.

I wasn’t sure if I should return it, but it didn’t seem to care either way.

“I am Myocheolsu, the First Librarian guarding the entrance to the Wall of Truth! It’s an honor to meet you. I never thought you’d come during my shift.”

So this is the power of the purple card.

Mondri, that old man, did say something unusual.

-This library pass was made specifically for you, Count. If there’s a book you want, you’ll definitely find it.

I see.

So this is a VIP card.

“But… what brings you here?”

“I’m here to borrow some books.”

“Borrow?! Unthinkable! All the books in this library belong to the Master. Even if they’re not here, we’ll find them and add them to the library’s collection!”

I was slightly surprised.

I thought Meikhael University was funded by big money, but it turns out the Ruelberta Family owns the library.

“The Director will be here shortly.”

“I’m already here.”

“Huh?!”

Librarian Myocheolsu turned around to see an old cat with long eyebrows and whiskers.

It looked like a dignified sage.

It, too, wore an apron.

But unlike the others, its apron was black.

“It’s an honor to meet you, Master. May I ask your name…?”

“Tristan Ruelberta.”

“Ah, Lord Tristan. I am Myoil, the Director overseeing the Wall of Truth.”

Director Myoil knelt.

The cats behind him also knelt.

“Lord Tristan, I heard you’re looking for a book. Do you know the title?”

“I don’t.”

“Then what is the book about?”

I spoke the reason I had come to this library.

“I’m looking for books on ancient magic.”

Myoil’s eyebrows rose.

“Hohoho… How interesting. Very well. I, Myoil, will personally guide you to where those books are.”

With that, Myoil jumped in place.

A light, effortless jump.

As he gracefully flipped in the air, the world turned upside down.

 

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