The National Library

Saturday morning. Sunlight slanted through the gaps in the dormitory window, casting a thin, pale golden veil across the floor.

I slept an extra half hour than usual, and when I woke, Misha had already drawn back the curtains. The light fell perfectly by my pillow, as if timed specifically.

“Time to get up, Lady Loris~”

She called out softly, smiling faintly as she observed my sleeping face. They had plans to go out together today; otherwise, Misha felt she wouldn't have had the heart to wake the sleeping Loris, even after delaying for half an hour.

Ah, I really wanted to stay in bed...

That was my thought, at least.

Come to think of it, holidays without sleeping in felt soulless, didn't they?

However, thinking about what I had to do today, I reluctantly roused myself and quietly finished washing up.

Then, I sat down in front of the dressing mirror.

Going out today, I naturally couldn't just tie up my hair haphazardly like I did for class. Of course, I personally didn't care, but Shirune was already by my side, and for the sake of family honor, I had to dress presentably.

My pale-gold hair was unbound, and Shirune was tending to it, seemingly with extra care.

As for me, I was eating the bread, milk, and pastries Misha had brought back for breakfast.

Of course, I made sure to say thank you.

Shirune continued styling, and for some reason, she seemed to take a particular interest in changing my hairstyle (related to last night). After combing it through a few times, she let it fall naturally, braiding a small, thin plait on each side of my temples, which she then brought around to the back of my head and secured with a light blue satin ribbon bow.

The remaining strands hung straight down to my shoulders, swaying slightly when I moved.

Well, I looked at myself in the mirror.

I couldn't say whether I liked or disliked it, but it was a change of image, I suppose? It seemed to add a touch of elegance.

Honestly, it didn't suit my villainess persona at all.

“It’s done, Milady. Next are your clothes. Would you like to choose them yourself, or shall I assist you?” Shirune asked.

Having spent several years with me, Shirune had also picked up some maid skills; otherwise, she wouldn't have been able to serve as my sole attendant at the academy.

“I’ll leave it to you.”

I really knew nothing about women's clothing.

Shirune picked through various options, and Misha, who had originally just been watching quietly, for some reason joined in. The two of them dressed me in an off-white dress made of light spring silk, adorned with a delicate lace trim.

Over it, I wore a light blue short cardigan.

Finally, I put on a wide-brimmed sun hat.

Oh, it looked very ladylike.

Misha, for some reason, silently covered her nose in embarrassment, then wiped away what looked like ‘ketchup’ with a tissue.

Shirune, even more satisfied, lowered her head and said, “You’re dressed, Milady.”

I had no complaints, as I hadn't even lifted a finger to change. I reiterate, it wasn't laziness; I was simply helpless when it came to these elaborate outfits.

“Lady Loris looks truly beautiful today…” Misha murmured in admiration after she recovered.

She had also changed into her going-out clothes.

A plain, off-white dress, with a small bow tied at the neckline, seemed to have been specially chosen. Although the fabric wasn't as fine as mine, it was neatly ironed and unexpectedly complemented her brown eyes.

Her short hair was also clipped back with a hair clip, revealing her forehead and making her look much more energetic than usual.

“You don’t look bad yourself,” I said, feigning nonchalance. Then, picking up the small handbag from the desk, I added, “Let’s go.”

Misha’s cheeks flushed slightly, and she quickly followed.

The school felt much more relaxed without classes.

Shirune walked in front.

She had changed into a plain, long dress suitable for movement, her silver-white hair tied in a low ponytail, and her usual sword at her waist, making her look more like an accompanying guard.

Her tail swayed gently behind her, with such small movements that it was almost unnoticeable unless one looked closely. However, Misha was clearly observing it this way for the first time, her gaze fixed on it for a long while.

She probably wanted to touch it.

Actually, it didn't feel all that special.

“Good morning, Milady. Good morning, Miss Misha.”

When we arrived at the academy gate, the carriage was already prepared, and the coachman respectfully greeted us.

It was a two-wheeled carriage with a dark blue canopy, small enough to comfortably seat three people, just as I had requested—after all, it was best to keep a low profile when out and about. The coachman, a middle-aged man in a dark tunic, immediately removed his hat and bowed when he saw us approach.

After being cooped up inside for a week, it was finally time to get some fresh air.

...

The detached palace gates of the Royal Knight and Magic Academy were open on holidays.

Several carriages were already waiting outside the gates. Some noble children called out to friends, heading for the opera house, while others, young masters in groups of two or three, walked towards the city center.

Liliana didn't call for the academy's public carriage, as that was an expense. She was out working today.

As a commoner, her expenses at school were quite burdensome. Even with tuition and miscellaneous fees waived, daily food, clothes, and magical equipment still cost a considerable sum.

For this reason, she had to work part-time during holidays.

However, this shouldn't last for too long.

Once her magical attainments improved, she could take on more advanced tasks, so as not to bury her talent. Her current part-time work was out of necessity, as her learning progress wasn't quite there yet.

“Oh, keep it up, Liliana! Stay spirited even when working!”

...

Turning my attention back to my side.

Horse hooves clattered crisply on the cobblestone road.

The Royal Capital’s streetscape flashed by the carriage window frame by frame: shops in the early morning were taking down their shutters, the sweet aroma of butter wafted from bakeries, mysterious glows emanated from magic shops’ equipment, and merchants leading mules transported wine barrels…

Our academy was located in the most prosperous district, or in common terms, the city center.

Naturally, there were many interesting sights to behold.

However, I figured I needed to visit the library first this morning, so I wouldn't be looking at these sights for now.

I drew the curtains.

The National Library was situated on the east side of the Royal Capital’s Central Plaza, a three-story gray-white stone building with six Doric columns standing before its portico, inscribed with the names of past council presidents. My purpose in coming here was to research history.

And to see if there were any spare ancient texts.

Although I knew something about the game, my understanding of this world wasn't extensive, such as the exact situation of this country.

However, the ten-odd minutes spent chatting with Misha and Shirune in the carriage passed quickly.

Entry didn't require registration, but borrowing books did require formalities.

“Watch your step.”

Thanks to my low-key outing, I blended in normally with the crowd at the National Library, as did the two beside me.

Perhaps only Shirune would draw glances, but she had hidden her tail and horns on the way here.

Inside.

The hall’s dome was so high that it made one instinctively lighten their footsteps. To the left and right were classified reading areas, and in the center, rows of long tables were set up. Several elderly scholars were discussing something in low voices over a thick parchment book.

The air was filled with the scent of old book pages and aged ink, mixed with a hint of sunlight filtering down from the high skylight.

It was similar to the university libraries I had visited in my previous life.

I first went to the magic texts classification area.

The bookshelves were neatly stacked with magic theory works, from low-tier to high-tier. There were three versions of just the 《General Treatise on Basic Magic Circuits》. I casually pulled one out and flipped through it; it discussed the evolution of new magic schools and the principles of circuit optimization.

The content was much deeper than my class notes, but it was ultimately part of the modern system.

I flipped through a few more, all of them new magic—in other words, all products of the modern magic theory framework.

Hmm… I’ll borrow these!

I’ll study them later, diligently!

After all, I really wanted to live a long life.

Then I wound my way deeper and finally found a sign labeled “Ancient Literature and Old System Research.”

The bookshelves were noticeably shorter, the gilt on the spines much dimmer, and some even had handwritten labels pasted on their backs.

I pulled one out and opened it; it was a fragmented private notebook from a Court Mage from about three hundred years ago, mentioning several old-style magic circuit construction methods that had long been discarded.

It was very interesting, but compared to the ancient text I had at home, it was merely supplementary reference material.

After all, none of them were in Simplified Chinese.

The truly core ancient texts—those ancient systems that didn't rely on modern wands, didn't require lengthy incantations, and purely constructed magic arrays through one's own magic circuits and imagination—seemed to be completely absent.

Alright, I closed the last fragmented scroll, put it back in its place, and dusted off my hands.

Shirune stood beside me, noticing my expression, and quietly asked, “Milady, you didn’t find what you were looking for?”

“No.”

I felt quite helpless, or perhaps insightful. It was likely that ancient texts were genuinely rare. I should probably be grateful that my family had those dozen or so, and it was thanks to the Aldheim family that they existed at all.

But for now, research progress was very, very slow.

Perhaps this was my cheat.

“By the way, are the ancient texts at Lady Loris’s house… very powerful?” Misha asked, seeing me wander around here.

I thought about that yellowed ancient text, about the Simplified Chinese predecessors, and about the nights over the past two years when I almost drained my mana while consulting dictionaries.

“...Quite powerful,” I said, finding it hard to elaborate.

Misha looked at me with even more admiration.

With no further discoveries at the library, I glanced at the mechanical clock in the center of the hall; less than thirty minutes had passed.

Next, I suppose I’d look into the kingdom’s history.

These types of books were easy to borrow. I took a few and sat down at a table to read them. Misha and Shirune accompanied me, which made me feel a little self-conscious in hindsight.

Dragging them along to accommodate my plans on their holiday.

Hmm… I’ll make it up to them later.

For now, I’ll delve into this.

《Kingdom History》, 《Kingdom Chronicles》, 《Five Thousand Years of the Kingdom》—these should keep me busy.

...

An hour later.

Misha had fallen asleep beside me, while Shirune sat opposite, watching me read.

Alright, I understood now.

The Kingdom of Barton was the name of the country I was in.

This country was a typical agricultural nation, under a feudal system, also known as a ‘kingdom.’ Most people’s family domains were in the kingdom’s heartland, and from birth until now, they hadn't left the five-hundred-kilometer radius around the Royal Capital.

And the Kingdom of Barton’s land area ranked abysmally among all human nations on the continent.

Fourth from the bottom.

Its population ranked fifth from the bottom; standing army size, third from the bottom; number of high-tier mages, second from the bottom.

The only data point that made it into the top ten was grain production—because, besides farming, this country genuinely had no other industries, which in a way, felt endearing.

I continued flipping through the books.

“The Kingdom of Barton is located in the southwestern corner of the continent, bordered by the Magical Beast Forest to the north, the sea to the west, and two human nations to the east and south—the Kingdom of Gartia to the east, and the Kingdom of Salo to the south.”

Both of these countries had larger standing armies than ours, more advantageous geographical locations, and trade volumes that far outstripped ours.

They had even fought wars decades ago.

The outcome was that the Kingdom of Barton, my current country, lost and ceded territory to end the war.

Even now, it paid reparations in grain annually through ‘low-price sales,’ which was likely one of the reasons behind its high grain production—it had to pay.

Wait, it was a civil war between humans? Shouldn’t there be monsters to unite against? I had a bit of a headache.

I continued to flip through.

It was a description of the border regions.

“Children living in the imperial border regions must learn from a young age to distinguish the alarm bells for different tiers of magical beast attacks. Every mage who survives on the border is forged in real combat.”

“At the same time, the Royal Knight and Magic Academy underwent a curriculum reform fifty years ago, increasing the proportion of practical combat classes. It established a Combat Department and a Joint Simulation Combat Department, requiring all students to complete at least one magical beast subjugation exercise before graduation.”

Ah… that seemed to be the case.

I recalled what I had heard in my first class.

For some reason, I thought of that pretentious Crown Prince and suddenly realized he probably carried some burden too. Barton was weak, but this weak nation was his nation.

Of course, it was also my country, but I didn't feel much belonging; after all, it was still fundamentally a feudal era, which naturally kept me at a distance.

In any case, I closed the book.

I had read enough.

I checked the time again.

It was still morning; not much time had passed at all.

What to do? It seemed I had a lot of free time in my schedule.

Perhaps I should scout out the next destination first?

With that thought, I decided to wake Misha. She rubbed her eyes, a little drool at the corner of her mouth, and quickly realized her lapse, blushing furiously and profusely apologizing. I didn't mind, and after I borrowed the books, the other two quickly followed suit.

The next place I was going was where Liliana worked.

It was a cafe at the end of a small alley near the academy district, not too far nor too close to the Royal Capital’s main commercial thoroughfare.

Liliana would be working there—this was a clear plot point in the original novel. Although she was a scholarship student with waived tuition, she had to earn her own living expenses, book fees, and miscellaneous costs for wand materials. The academy had helped arrange this part-time job at the cafe.

Later, that plotline would be triggered:

Alden, the villainous character similar to me—the self-proclaimed dashing fellow she defeated yesterday—would take advantage of the holiday to “accidentally” encounter her at the cafe.

Then, he would relentlessly pester Liliana with his greasy gentlemanly demeanor. In the game, at this point, Liliana would even feel a slight liking for Alden, if the player was on their first playthrough.

On a second playthrough, one would understand his sinister intentions.

And that's where things would go astray.

Fortunately, after a few more days of closer interaction, Liliana would express her dislike, but Alden would ignore her. It was in this atmosphere that one of the male leads would appear to heroically rescue her.

Actually, I could ignore it… but after Alden failed, he would come to me, asking me to team up against Liliana.

Two powerful villains teaming up—as if.

That would be troublesome, as Providence was very powerful. If I were truly arranged to follow that path, all my efforts up to now would be for naught.

So, I couldn't let it follow the original plot.

Allowing such an unstable element to linger around Liliana, who knew if the World's Will would use him to steer the plot in an even worse direction.