[Translator - Helga ]
[Proofreader - Starfall ]
Chapter 11
"Here it is. 'The Nature of Attributes', right?"
Arche began to examine the rows of books, finally reaching the section they were looking for.
"Why are you looking for that book, anyway? It's a very difficult read, so few people ever bother with it."
Arche seemed to have a sudden curiosity about my purpose.
What should I say?
I pondered for a moment, then, growing impatient, I replied, "Speaking of which, I have a question for you."
"Yes? What is it?"
"What makes you so confident that just because it's a difficult book for you, it's going to be difficult for me as well?"
"Well... that's..."
I had snapped at her, and Arche scratched her head awkwardly before resuming her search.
'This rude personality of mine can be useful sometimes.'
Since coming to this academy, I'd realized that pretending to be a professor wasn't as difficult as I thought. With a reputation for being so sarcastic, I could easily avoid difficult questions like this.
"The Nature of Attributes... Nature of... Ah, found it!"
The shelves were over three meters tall, and I thought she'd need a ladder, but she seemed to know exactly where every book was. She glanced at the arrangement of books and found what she was looking for.
With a snap of her fingers, a book from the highest shelf slid down.
She caught it effortlessly and handed it to me.
I heaved a sigh of relief as I took the heavy book.
'Thank goodness it hasn't fallen into the Phantom Thief's hands yet.'
If I could just keep an eye on this book, I'd be able to witness the Phantom Thief's crime. And once I had, the theft quest would be complete.
'After that, it's Gianluca's turn.'
The theft quest would be solved, but I still hadn't figured out how to kill Arche.
Given the academy’s setting, I needed to get rid of her as soon as possible...
"...Hmm?"
Lost in thought, I absentmindedly opened the book and was instantly confused.
It was empty.
There was no table of contents.
No author's note.
No words filled the pages.
The book was completely blank.
"The book...? How could this be?"
Arche, watching from the side, let out a cry of shock at the empty book.
I didn't have time for explanations. I quickly pulled out the next volume and flipped through the pages.
Flip, flip, flip-!
It was empty too.
And the next one.
And the next.
They were all blank.
'Could it be...?'
Defeated, I closed my eyes. There was only one explanation.
"...I'm too late. The Phantom Thief has already switched the books."
"The Phantom Thief? You mean the person responsible for the recent thefts in the academy?"
Arche's face turned pale. She had never expected a thief to break into the library.
"How could they...? Even the librarians get lost in this library. And how did they even know about this book? If the vice-principal finds out about this..."
Arche panicked, pacing back and forth.Nôv(el)B\\jnn
I was just as confused.
'I didn't know the exact timing of the events before the game started, but... I didn't expect the Phantom Thief to move this quickly.'
At this rate, I'd have to abandon the library and head to the next crime scene.
In the game, the Phantom Thief committed one final crime after stealing the books from the library.
I still had one chance.
"Let's report this to the academy first. And then we can make a list of the stolen books and check if they've been posted on any black market sites..."
"Wait, no! You can't do that!"
Arche grabbed my arm, her emerald eyes wide with fear.
"Since I was the first to discover it, the academy is going to hold me responsible. They'll revoke my librarianship and scholarship. If that happens, I won't be able to stay here anymore. I have nowhere else to go but this academy!"
Arche's dragon nuzzled her sympathetically.
While her situation was unfortunate, I couldn't bring myself to feel sympathy for her, knowing the danger Gianluca would eventually pose.
Instead, her statement about leaving the academy caught my attention.
'So, the theft incident was the reason Gianluca left the academy?'
I knew she left at the beginning of the story, but I didn't know the exact reason.
I stared at her face.
"...
Ranked 7th in the Masterclass.
A body overflowing with vitality.
Highly pure energy flowing explosively through her veins...
Seeing the sweat dripping down her forehead, my appetite increased rapidly.
If I could just take a sip of the blood of this young and energetic military candidate...
"Hey, why are you staring at me like that...?"
Arche suddenly looked scared and took a step back.
I quickly turned my head to hide my expression.
'Oh no, I guess I used the spell for too long.'
My ENP had increased too quickly, and I was almost losing control. I needed to find the thief before it was too late.
If my ENP reached its maximum, I, as a Blood Demon, would be driven to a frenzy by hunger.
"Arche? You're back? Did you find the book you were looking for?"
As I was trying to regain my composure, someone approached me. It was the student who had given Arche her bag earlier.
She asked Arche, looking surprised, "Why are you sweating so much? Is something wrong?"
"Well, something happened... Are you leaving now?"
"Yeah, I'm so tired from working the night shift. I'm going home to crash."
The woman named Hyunsuk yawned, her face weary. She was carrying a small handbag, not big enough to hold much.
Arche introduced her to me, "This is Senior Kim Hyunsuk. She's the librarian who has worked at Hwadam Library the longest."
Arche added that, unlike the students, the full-time librarians took turns working night shifts, so they always had a lot of work.
While listening, I glanced at Hyunsuk's lower body.
‘...Different shoes.’
The Phantom Thief was known for his ability to disguise himself as people around the crime scene.
I wondered if this woman might be the Phantom Thief, but the thief's footprints were from the sole of a shoe.
However, the shoes Hyunsuk was wearing now were low-heeled...
"I know. The person next to you is the new professor of the Deconstructionist Department, right?"
Before I could finish being disappointed, Hyunsuk looked at me and spoke.
"You're very eager to work. You came to the library right after you were appointed. Well, our library is so famous, so professors like you sometimes come here."
Like Arche, Hyunsuk boasted about the library.
Arche interrupted her, saying that wasn't the point.
"Senior, have you seen anyone suspicious while working the night shift?"
"Suspicious? Why are you asking that all of a sudden?"
"Well..."
Arche hesitated for a moment, then told her everything. It was probably because she trusted her senior so much.
After hearing the whole story, Hyunsuk said incredulously, "The Phantom Thief? You mean someone switched books in our library?"
"Yes. So we have to find them quickly. They probably haven't gone far..."
"Oh my, I never thought they would target our library..."
Hyunsuk thought for a moment, then seemed to remember something.
"Come to think of it... A maintenance worker came by this morning saying they needed to fix something. They said it was the principal's order... but I never received any message from the principal."
She said she had let the person in after checking their ID, but it had felt strange. Arche clapped her hands.
"Where did they go? That maintenance worker?"
"They said they were going to check the speaker system, so they must be in the machine room."
"Okay, I'll go there."
"Alright, I'll call the security guards, just in case."
Arche and Hyunsuk got ready to move.
Meanwhile, I stood there, watching them. Something about their conversation seemed odd.
"...Wait a moment."
The two people who were about to leave turned to me. I spoke to Hyunsuk.
"Are you sure it was just that one maintenance worker? Anyone else suspicious came in or out of here yesterday or today?"
"Didn't you hear me? I was on duty all night, so I know for sure."
"You mean you've been in the library continuously since yesterday?"
"Yes, I did. Is there a problem?"
Hyunsuk frowned, exasperated.
I raised my eyebrows slightly.
"Then how did you know I was the new professor? If you haven't left the library, you wouldn't have seen me."
My name hadn't been in the academy newspaper.
The only people who knew I was in the Masterclass were those in the main building hallway yesterday.
In fact, even Arche hadn't recognized me at first.
Hyunsuk stood frozen in place, as if rooted to the spot.
[Translator - Helga ]
[Proofreader - Starfall ]