The shimmering lights on the shelf provided a clear vision amongst the survivors of the first crisis. Even so, the temporary protection each of them was receiving from the library didn't deliver the sense of safe haven they kept hearing from the librarians.
Everyone was on guard, assessing the librarians and their fellow survivors.
All aside from one person.
'That woman has lost her mind.'
Leonhart couldn't help but stare at the self-proclaimed God of the world, whom she deemed her creation.
Flaunting her ability to create such a phenomenon, the author walked towards her group and kept introducing herself. "My name is Amira Sinclair. My pen name is Sinclair. This is my novel, and believe me, I know how to pass this crisis. Do you want to hear it?"
Amira Sinclair is a slim and of average height woman, with pale skin that always looks slightly tired, as if rest is not part of her life.
Her eyes are dark hazel, exhibiting a calm and observant persona. Her long, straight brown hair is left loose, wearing an oversized sweater as her top and a green blouse as her bottom, chosen as if aiming to be comfortable rather than stylish.
She looks like someone you could pass on the street and never remember, until she speaks.
Leonhart approached her and said. "Did anyone tell you you're crazy?"
Instead of taking it as an insult, Amira seemed not to be affected by it, shaking her head as a response as she spoke.
"Crazy is too underwhelming. If you're not mad, you're not going to survive in this world."
'Mad bastard.' Leonhard thought inwardly before retorting. "Okay. Let's hear your great plan, God."
"I know you're being sarcastic, but sure, I'll let you be the first one to here this incredible plan."
Amira rubbed her nose as if proud that someone had finally believed her. That's where she's wrong, since Leonhart hadn't believed any words she had said from the beginning.
If that was going to change, Amira must say something so convincing to fool someone like Leonhart.
"This Library That Predicts You is just another arc that I designed for the real protagonist of this world to challenge. The protagonist will come to this place in a week to challenge this library."
'There's a protagonist now… Welp, I'm done listening to her shenanigans.' Leonhart thought inwardly as he was about to complain when Amira didn't look like she was done yet.
"That's going to be a problem, though. This arc only lasts a week, hence, before meeting her, we needed to do something to survive in the meantime." Amira paused. "What I mean is that we're going to die in a week if we don't do something to protect ourselves first."
Leonhart stared at her blankly, speechless at the conclusion she came up with because it doesn't make any sense at all.
Leonhart let out a disappointed sigh. "You… Okay, let's assume that we survived for a week. Are you planning to work with your main character?"
Amira gave Leonhart a dumbfounded look as if her ways of explaining were enough for even a monkey to understand, and couldn't help but face palm right after.
"Of course, duh. She's very overpowered. That's how I designed her. If I'm going to stick around with someone, it's someone I should genuinely know and trust. She's even busted as fuck!"
Leonhart was having trouble believing her. He would've definitely tried to understand a bit of the situation if it made a little sense, but Amira failed to do even as simple as that.
'This is not being delusional anymore. She actually believed it…' Leonhart was left flabbergasted once he came to this thought.
He slowly left Amira and sat beside his grandparents.
The Author stared at Leonhart before sighing in disappointment. However, she didn't look like giving up soon as she walked to the other groups to try and ask for their help.
'The Library of Fate.'
Just by sitting on the floor, Leonhart could feel the heaviness emanating from the library, not hostile, but something more benign.
The towering shelves, the worn-out books that held mysteries in their pages, and the ones known as the librarians. Everything related to the library was nothing short of ordinary.
"Leon, if what they say is true, should we stay here?" Lloyd suddenly blurted out.
Not only Leonhart and Sarah heard that. Since their guard was still up in its peak, the group was sticking together and happened to overhear his question.
It was rather a strange question to be even considered.
However, no one tried to refute.
Sarah, who usually answered Lloyd right away, didn't answer.
The Library welcomed strangers like them, and the librarians didn't feel hostile at all. Rather, they were guided to this shelter to protect them from the Fall.
Leonhart was even hesitating.
"Grandpa—"
Just as Leonhart was about to speak, a huge tremor could be felt from the floor and some who were standing up fell on their butts.
The Library shook violently, and everyone in the hall felt the urgency of the situation.
"What's going on?!" Yuri angrily shouted.
"You should calm down."
Caelix approached them as the group became agitated and raised their weapon. All the other groups also defended themselves, in case they were attacked.
Caelix looked at everyone in the lobby and declared. "This is just the Library defending itself from the horde of monsters from the Fall. We installed defenses that will last the whole attack to reduce the Library's burden, but it is still our last line of defense."
She paused. "If you're going to stay here, think of this as normal. The attacks happened almost every day."
With nothing to do but to believe her, everyone from the hall stayed in their position, not moving an inch as the tremor grew violently.
The shelves were shaking as some books fell on the floor.
Leonhart felt nervous as he looked above, afraid that the ceiling would suddenly collapse on their head.
However, after what felt like an eternity, the shelves didn't break down, or the ceiling above their heads didn't fall. The tremors grew intense, but the Library's hard wall defenses were tougher.
A few hours later, the tremor eventually stopped.
Caelix placed the book she was holding on the chain around her waist and brought out a weapon from the floor
"It's done. Come, I'll show you around the place."