Cain and Jade returned to the inn without lingering.
There was no conversation on the way back, no remarks about the city or the results they had just received. Both of them moved with quiet purpose, gathering what little they had brought with them. It did not take long, books slid into bags, clothes were folded with varying degrees of care, coins were counted once and then ignored.
Within minutes, they were back on the streets.
The library loomed ahead of them again, just as large and imposing as it had been the previous day. Its walls rose higher than most buildings in the city, smooth stone broken only by narrow windows and embedded mirrors that caught light at odd angles..
they walked inside.
The man who had evaluated them before greeted them, sitting at the same desk.
Without unnecessary words, he led them past the familiar desk and toward the door that separated ordinary readers from librarians. The transition was immediate. The sounds of the public space, quiet as it was, faded behind them as the door closed. The halls beyond were wider, cleaner, and better lit, with fewer people moving through them. The air itself felt different, heavy with dust, ink, and something faintly metallic.
The man walked at a steady pace, pointing out paths as they went. He gestured toward staircases, storage rooms, offices, and places Jade assumed were restricted further depending on rank or clearance. Cain followed attentively, occasionally glancing down branching corridors as if mapping the place in his head. Jade simply memorized what he needed.
Eventually, they stopped in front of a door.
Jade took in the space without much reaction. Sharing a room was not ideal, but it was expected. He would have preferred solitude, though he doubted he would have voiced that even if given the option.
Cain opened the door first.
The room was simple. Two beds on opposite sides, a shared long table between them, a lamp, shelves built close to the walls, and a window that showed them the outside. It was clean, organized, and devoid of anything personal.
The man knocked on the open door, drawing their attention.
He said, "For the first day or two, get comfortable with the place and the city."
He paused, then added, "I'm Luke. I'll be at the desk or in Team Two's first room most of the time. You're both assigned to Team Four."
He shifted his stance slightly. "Your captain is Jane. She's not in the city right now, but her room's three doors left from yours."
Both Cain and Jade nodded. There was no confusion, no questions.
Luke gave them a brief look, as if assessing whether they would need further explanation. Apparently satisfied, he turned and left, footsteps fading down the corridor.
The door closed.
They unpacked in silence. Cain placed his belongings neatly, paying attention to his clothes and other accessories, before stretching once and glancing around. Jade arranged his books first, setting them on the shelf before anything else.
After a moment, Cain spoke. "I'm going to look around the city."
Jade nodded. "I'll be here."
Cain didn't push further. He left the room quietly, the door clicking shut behind him.
Jade adjusted his coat, then left as well.
The public section of the library was still active when he arrived. A dozen or so people occupied the space, scattered across tables and shelves. Some read. Others spoke in hushed tones. The overall quiet was not absolute, but it was disciplined.
Glass fragments caught his eye as he walked.
Some were decorative, embedded into walls, tables or hanging from chains , polished and shaped like gems. Others seemed placed without explanation: small mirrors on stands, thin shards embedded into pillars, reflective surfaces positioned where they served no obvious purpose.
Jade noticed them.
He chose to ignore them.
Luke stood behind the desk again, flipping through papers. When Jade approached and asked for books related to mutation and species, Luke looked up, studied him briefly, then turned to retrieve them.
A short while later, he returned with a few volumes stacked in his arms.
Luke said as he handed them over. "You don't have to digest everything in a day or two, ease up."
Jade nodded in response, took the books, and found a seat.
The books were not large. They were dense, but manageable. Jade opened the first one without hesitation.
He began reading.
Time passed without him noticing. Pages turned steadily. The library never closed, but the number of workers gradually decreased. Readers left one by one, replaced by silence.
By the time Jade closed the third book, it was late into the night.
Much of what he read were things he already knew. Other parts expanded on them. The sections on the pre-corruption world were fragmented and inconsistent, often accompanied by notes disclaiming certainty.
Historians believed that sometime around nine hundred years ago, the world had drowned in mutate.
As the level of the liquid receded, books that had absorbed it changed. Some mutated beyond recognition. Others retained their form but altered their contents, influencing memory rather than preserving it.
Certain history books, those with sufficient popularity, wide distribution, and relevance, had affected the collective memory of all beings. Events blurred, timelines overlapped, origins became uncertain.
Because of this, orcs, feysians, minks, and humans all claimed descent from the pre-corruption world. Each had records supporting their claims. None could be verified.
Elves stood apart.
They were the most advanced, and the most cultured. Their society showed close to none internal conflicts. Historians theorized that because all elves bore strong resemblance to one another, discrimination based on appearance never took root, and otherwise, they were thoughtful enough to calm down. Over centuries, they remained detached, showing little interest in matters that did not directly concern them.
Orcs were described as barbaric, shaped by near-constant conflict. They had the highest recorded number of wars. Yet records also emphasized their capacity for restraint when necessary, a gentleness that contradicted their reputation.
Feysians, often called dwarves by outsiders, were short and sturdy. They disliked the term. Their development lagged behind initially, but as land became less restricted by species, they advanced rapidly.
Minks were closer to animals than most. they were also the most diverse. This did not make them savage. Rather, they were unfortunate in their early territories, forced to adapt to poor land and harsh conditions. Over time, this shaped their societies.
Humans, according to the texts, were unremarkable. Jade noted with mild interest that most historians were human, and that very little had been written about them as a result.
Why would anyone write about themselves?
Wildlife occupied entire sections of a book. Jade skimmed these briefly. The volume of information suggested that studying them alone could occupy a lifetime.
After the mass extinction of whatever species existed before corruption, mutated books did not disappear. Some remained powerful enough to alter surrounding areas. These locations were called scholartombs.
there were also lands still under the effects of mutate, and some had weird living beings reside in them. No one explored such places, it was invitation of death.
Jade returned the three books he had finished, then collected the remaining two.
He walked deeper into the library, passing through the restricted areas, navigating familiar corridors until he reached his room.
Cain was asleep.
Jade lit the table lamp and continued reading.
When exhaustion finally caught up to him, he set the last book aside and lay down.
Sleep came quickly.