Tricked by the Library

Gospel Country, Annan's home. "Aaaaaah—" Early in the morning, Diya was rolling around in bed, punching Lisi's newly bought rabbit doll to vent her fury. Accidentally using a bit of real skill from the fist and claw faction, her little fists blew the rabbit's head right off. "Why... Why am I so stupid..." "Lisi, wait a moment, let me vent a bit more, or I'll burst!" "I'm an idiot! Waaaah!" Diya was now so filled with regret that she wished someone would give her a good spanking, all because she had actually missed out on a fortuitous encounter in the Void Realm—she had been swindled by the Legendary Library! After parting ways with the Watcher, she had arrived on the third floor of the library. The sights on the third floor were even more spectacular and bizarre than on the second. There were no longer any bookshelves; each book was placed on a dedicated pedestal. Moreover, the space on the third floor was vastly larger than the second. Diya felt as though she had entered a pantheon of gods' graves, where countless laws were born and perished according to destiny. Before her eyes, an ancient tome belched fierce, howling flames, as if it could burn even space itself, reducing its surroundings to scorched cinders. A nearby scroll exuded a biting chill that froze time itself, turning the area around its pedestal into a Frost Domain of Stillness. Beyond that were the Undead Wastelands, the Sword Spirit Graveyard, the Sea of Storms, the All-Thing Alchemy Sanctuary, and even prophecy bubbles that seemed capable of gazing into the distant future, alongside threads of destiny that could capture one's own fate... But the problem was, this was the Time Continent's Legendary Library! The only sorcerers who could reach this place were Two-Winged Sorcerers. Therefore, the memories they left behind were, at most, the adventure stories of Two-Winged Sorcerers. How could the power within possibly surpass legendary levels? It's all fake, just tricking me into reading it! Though the books were fake, the tempest of laws they exhibited was genuine. Diya cautiously skirted through the domains of each book, struggling forward toward the staircase leading to the fourth floor. Along the way, Diya's gaze was caught by a book. It was a fairy tale picture book. On the cover, a valiant knight was protecting a beautiful princess. The floor surrounding the picture book was a patch of grass exuding a fresh aroma, dotted with flowers, butterflies, and gentle sunlight. Amid the dancing deities and demons of the third floor, this picture book's domain was as serene as the Promised Land. Diya so wanted to just walk over, lie down on the grass, flip open the picture book, and enjoy a tranquil reading session. Yet her overwhelming greed made Diya tear her eyes away. Yes, everything here is very, very good. But the fourth floor will definitely have something even better! Clinging to this brighter dream, Diya resisted all temptation. She walked nearly a kilometer through the third floor before finally arriving at the staircase leading to the fourth! Unlike the previous three floors, the entrance to the fourth floor was bathed in radiant light. One look was enough to tell that even more powerful books were kept within! The Witch climbed the stairs with all her might, stepping onto the fourth floor brimming with joy, and then— She found herself on the roof. Diya stared dumbly at the sky made of reverse golden rain, unable to process what had just happened. Where's the fourth floor? How did I end up outside just like that? Clinging to a final shred of hope, she glanced left and right. Yet reality shattered her illusions: there was nothing on the roof. No books, no scrolls, no crystal balls, no data storage devices. By now, the Witch realized something was amiss. She spun around, attempting to return down the stairs leading back to the third floor. Yet after running down a dozen steps, she felt the distance between herself and the third floor hadn't closed at all; the staircase seemed infinite. She looked down and found she was still on the roof, having not moved down the stairs at all. The reminders from the *Guide to the Legendary Library* swarmed in Diya's mind like annoying flies: "② No turning back on a path once taken. After all, there are no do-overs in life." "③ This library has four floors in total. The quality of books on each higher floor surpasses the one below. After all, aim for greater heights." "④ Books may deceive you. After all, believing everything is worse than believing nothing." At this moment, not only the White Queen and the Black Butler, but even Diya understood. The crux was rule number four! Books really could deceive them! At first, Diya had thought it meant the books would disguise themselves with the grandeur of heavenly thunder and earthfire to lure them into reading. But in reality, that statement had been in effect from the very beginning—the *Guide to the Legendary Library* itself was deceiving them! The rule stating "This library has four floors in total. The quality of books on each higher floor surpasses the one below" was a lie! There was no fourth floor at all, nor were there books on the fourth floor that surpassed the third! If a sorcerer set their sights solely on reaching the highest fourth floor, the outcome would be missing all the fortuitous encounters of the first three floors. And because "No turning back on a path once taken," the sorcerer wouldn't even have the chance to regret it—they could only grit their teeth and swallow the bitter pill! If Diya had found the Legendary Library alone, that would be one thing; no one would know about her embarrassing blunder. The problem was, she had gone there together with the Watcher! When she regrouped with the Watcher at the entrance, and the Watcher asked in a light, cheerful tone, "What did you get upstairs?", the regret in Diya's heart had nearly overflowed, so mortifying that her toes could have dug out a three-bedroom apartment! As one could imagine, once Diya explained the library's fraudulent scheme, the atmosphere grew even heavier. Even though the Watcher was extremely mindful of Diya's feelings and never brought it up again, during their subsequent Void Realm Exploration, the Watcher had suddenly burst out laughing for some unknown reason, instantly shattering Diya's mental defenses. Damn that Legendary Library! Damn that Watcher! Why is everyone picking on me! No, I have to beat Yaxiu up (in the game) to let off some steam, or I'll never cool down! Diya brushed her teeth fiercely, washed her face fiercely, peed fiercely, and changed her clothes fiercely. Then she marched out, found Yaxiu, and said fiercely, "Yaxiu, I'm in a bad mood today—" "Then don't come near me." Yaxiu pushed Diya away. "I'm in a great mood today. Don't ruin it." "I want to duel you in Sorcerer Kart!" "Wait. You mean you're in a bad mood and want to relieve stress by playing Sorcerer Kart?" "That's right!" "Well, alright. I'll do my best to grant your wish." ... When Igola and Annan stepped down from the hovercar, they saw Banjie repairing a controller. Besides the frost faction, the sixty-year-old youth butler was also proficient in the alchemy faction. With a piece of universal material possessing a slime-like texture, he could repair most common items. "Good morning, Young Lady, Mr. Bogin." "How did it break?" Annan asked curiously. The youth butler said nothing, glancing at Lisi, who was eating macaroni. Little Lisi raised her hand. "I accidentally dropped the controller while playing a game earlier." Annan made an understanding sound, glancing at the crack-covered glass light-screen placed off to the side. "Then what about this..." "I accidentally threw the controller into the screen while playing." Little Lisi spread her hands with a sigh. She felt helpless too, but Diya was the one who had caused this mess. No matter how reluctant she was, as the younger sister, she had to clean up after her. Igola nodded thoughtfully. He walked over, picked up a table knife from the dining table, placed it into Lisi's hand, and then turned her around to face Yaxiu, who was eating a custard Lalafell. "Lisi, it's not that I don't believe you. It's just that everyone wants to see how you managed to be so careless. Please demonstrate, using Yaxiu as your target..." "Lisi, tilt your head back and slam." Before Igola could react, his chin was dealt a savage headbutt by Lisi. Yaxiu reached out and plucked the table knife from Lisi's grasp, letting out a huff. "Don't let kids play with knives, Igola. This is your punishment for not cherishing children!" "Why did I get punished too, then!" Lisi rubbed her head, pouting. "Aunt Bogin's chin is so hard..." "There, there, a little blow and the pain goes away." Yaxiu blew on Lisi's little head and said, "Lisi, this is the price paid to protect you. It's just that, depending on the situation, you might also end up becoming the price itself..." Just as Lisi was receiving dark life philosophy from her daddy, Igola dragged a suitcase across the living room and returned to his bedroom. The size of that suitcase was identical to the one Harvey had brought back yesterday. Yaxiu's gaze followed the suitcase all the way, then shifted to Harvey. The necromancer's nostrils twitched, and he shook his head. "That isn't a gift for me. It lacks that delightful fragrance." "Maybe it's not dead yet?" "Impossible. The foul stench of the living is even more pronounced. There's no way I wouldn't smell it." "Now I'm starting to get curious about what kind of hellish landscape this world looks like through your sense of smell..."