The Forbidden Library – Part 02

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Translator: Kell


“It’s not something the Church can openly admit, though. That’s why the road to Fort Niedra was closed by the Church over fifty years ago, and its location was never put on the map.”

“It is on there, though.” Zero pointed at the map.

“This is a map owned by the Knights Templar. It’s different from the maps out there. However, the closing of the road did not end the fort’s collecting of books. Countless brave people somehow managed to find Fort Niedra and sell their books. According to one theory, the number of Fort Niedra’s banned books alone rivals that of the Church’s whole collection.”

Zero let out an indifferent groan, and her pace suddenly quickened. I grabbed her by the collar, pulled her back, and quietly lifted her to my shoulder.

“What are you doing?” she asked.

“I didn’t think telling you to slow down would work.”

“Very good eyes you have there. I expected nothing less from a mercenary. If I am not careful, I might be stuck in that Forbidden Library for a hundred years.”

Barcel burst into laughter. “Unfortunately, I don’t think there are many banned books that you can enjoy. Most of the popular books that the Church banned are so-called porno books.”

Gemma coughed, her whole face turning red. “Can you not use such vulgar words?” she rebuked.

Zero, however, did not lose interest in the Forbidden Library, urging me to pick up the pace.

“A demon nesting in a fortress that collects banned books containing narratives of humans’ carnal desires invites the Knights Templar to join them. Is that not poetic? I cannot wait to see what awaits us there.”

Human guideposts were placed at even intervals. Whenever we were about to lose our way, one appeared in front of us with their bizarre presence. The guideposts even led us to a waterhole, which was rather thoughtful of them.

After two days of walking, we camped out for the night, and the next morning, after half a day of trudging across the plains, something white started falling from the sky.

“Snow?” Gemma took off her gloves and stretched out her arm, rubbing the white stuff that had fallen onto her fingers. “Ash.”

“Doesn’t look like there’s a volcano around,” I said.

“It’s a blast furnace,” Barcel said. “It is said that the fire in Fort Niedra’s blast furnaces had never gone out.”

“What do they use for fuel?”

“That I don’t know. Maybe it’s the owner’s burning passion for books.” Barcel laughed to himself.

Ash drifted down incessantly from the sky. Covering our mouths and noses with cloths, we trekked through the falling ash for another day.

Fourth day.

“Hey, look.”

Beside a human guidepost—I had no idea how many we had seen at this point—someone was waiting for us.

“An enemy?” I muttered.

“No,” Zero said. “A witch—no, a Mage.”

“What?!”

So either from the Coven of Zero or Cestum. Both were bad news.

Zero jumped off my shoulder, and gestured Gemma and Barcel to step back. I put my hand on my sword. Barcel had already nocked his bow. A second later, Gemma also gripped her axe.

Zero took the letter out of her pocket and threw it on the ground along with the envelope.

“We rushed here after accepting your invitation,” Zero said. “The Captain of the Knights Templar’s Knox Expeditionary Force, her attendant, Barcel, and escorts, a witch and a beast warrior.”

“I know,” came a reply. “I’ve been watching you.” The invitation on the ground crawled towards the witch’s feet, and she picked it up. “The Director was expecting a lot of guests.”

“Director?” I wondered.

“Apparently, for generations the master of Fort Niedra has been called the Director,” Barcel said. “They seem to like the name Forbidden Library.”

Gemma smiled in relief. “Then is the master still alive?”

“Well… considering the circumstances under which the invitation was sent, I wouldn’t get my hopes up. The wax was sealed with the crest of Fort Niedra.”

Gemma let out a groan. Her face tightened, and she looked at the witch. “We have a mission to fulfill, but I, the captain, accepted the invitation as a sign of courtesy! I trust there are no objections?”

“Thank you for coming all this way.” The witch gave a respectful bow. “Please, call me the Librarian.”


I had no idea why I would want to describe a gate made of intricately-intertwined human bones—undamaged skulls, ribs that had red jewels embedded inside instead of hearts, beautifully-curved spines, pure white femur—as magnificent. If a phenomenal artist created a gate out of human bones, it would probably look like this.

I could feel the intense obsession in the work, not born from malice, but love.

Thinking back, the human guideposts were similar. None of the corpses were decomposing, and they were all dressed in fancy clothes. Rather than forcefully skewering them, it felt more like an insect collector carefully fastening insects with a needle.

“C-Can I be honest with you, merc?” Gemma swallowed hard.

I nodded and gave her an awkward smile. “We probably have the same thing in mind. Wanna say it together, Captain?”

“I kinda want to turn back now,” Gemma, I, and incidentally Barcel, said at the same time.

“Say it again,” Zero remarked, feeling alienated. “I want to join you.” It was plain as day, however, that she did not want to leave.

The librarian said nothing as she walked under the falling ash. As they approached the fort, the huge gate opened smoothly without noise.

As soon as we stepped inside, we were stunned.

“Shit… What the hell is going on here?!” It was such an unusual sight that Barcel couldn’t help but curse.

Countless people milled about under the gray sky. Smoke from cooking was rising from houses. I could hear children laughing, blacksmiths hammering iron, and wagon wheels rolling across the dirt. Peaceful was the only word to describe the scene.

Shocked, Gemma grabbed the shoulder of the librarian walking slowly in front of us. “What the hell is going on?! Why are there people here? We didn’t find a single survivor in all the towns and villages we passed by!”

“The Director gathered people who have lost their homes and wandering around, looking for a place to stay.”

“No way. It’s too quick! Even the Knights Templar only made its move recently.”

The librarian gently removed Gemma’s hand. “You will understand when you see the Director. Please, follow me.” She resumed walking. “Rest assured,” she added in a voice devoid of emotion. “The Director loves humans.”

After passing through a street lined with houses on both sides, we came upon a strangely shaped tower that looked like boxes stacked on top of each other, with smoke rising from the top. The size of the boxes became smaller the higher up. It was the source of the ashes raining on the entire town.

“Um, are you still making gold coins?” Barcel asked.

“No. There is no point in making coins if there are no books to collect.”

“What are you burning, then?”

“Corpses.”

I wasn’t the only one who regretted the question. Gemma and Barcel stared at the ash on their shoulders anxiously.

“The Director can’t stand leaving bodies out in the open without proper burial. So while we search for survivors, we bring bodies from nearby villages and towns to the fort for cremation.”

“Then what’s with the artwork outside?”

“It’s only natural to reuse materials in good condition.”

The librarian slipped into the tower. “Please hurry,” she urged.

We followed behind, brushing off the ashes from our bodies as we took a quick look around the tower.

It was a plain chamber made of stone. The floor was covered with a red and blue carpet, and at the center of the room stood a thick pillar—or rather, a chimney that also functioned as a pillar.

Gemma exhaled. “It’s warm.”

“I suppose that huge pillar is a chimney-cum-heater,” Barcel said. “A lot of heaters in the north use fumes from fireplaces. It doesn’t feel cozy, though, considering it uses humans as fuel.”

“The fires of Fort Niedra burn on their own.”

“What?” Barcel gasped.

“The furnaces of Fort Niedra have been burning for the last hundred years without any fuel. Please make no mistake. We are not burning corpses for fuel.”

Barcel blinked in surprise. “I apologize,” he said. He didn’t sound apologetic. “I didn’t mean any offense. You seem to know a lot about the fort. Have you been living here long?”

“Yes. I was born and raised here.”

“So you were also here that night when the demons laid waste to the world!” Gemma cut in, running her hand over the cloth covering her mouth. “Tell me! What happened here—”

Zero grabbed her hand.


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