Chapter 23
The presence drew closer and closer. He was in the form of a young man, looking roughly around twenty. No matter how generously one estimated, he didn’t seem older than twenty-two or twenty-three at most.
“There you are. I’ve been looking for you for quite a while.”
The beautiful man spoke. His voice was like a piece of exquisite chamber music—soft and sweet in a rich, low tone. When a man who looked like a painting spoke with a voice like music, the drunken men unconsciously swallowed dryly.
“I almost thought you’d run away. If that had happened, things would’ve gotten awfully troublesome. But fortunately, you didn’t go far. I won’t say thank you, but still, what a relief.”
As the mysterious man’s alluring lips moved, the men opposite him listened as if hypnotized.
Only one of them—the most perceptive—looked around nervously and glared suspiciously at the stranger.
“Who the hell are you? And why are you talking down to us when we’ve never even met? And why is it so quiet here?”
Something’s wrong. Run. You have to run now.
A sharp sense of danger whispered relentlessly inside his head. It was the instinct of prey recognizing a predator—like a mouse trembling before a cat.
The noble predator’s deep blue gaze turned toward the man who had just demanded an answer with a trembling voice. The man froze, and a gut-clenching fear seized him. His body wouldn’t move, as if frozen solid.
“You’re quick on the uptake.”
The beautiful man said flatly—then gave a smile as cold and blue as ice.
“That makes you more annoying.”
“Arghhh!”
The scream didn’t last long. Flames devoured him.
Fire seemed to burst out of thin air and suddenly engulfed the man, chomping down on him mercilessly. The flames burned so hot they glowed blue. The inferno feasted greedily.
“W-Wait, what the hell—!”
“Wh-What is this?!”
Only then did the other two finally panic. Their eyes, which had been vacant like people under a spell, now filled with raw terror as they watched their friend being wrapped and consumed entirely by blue fire.
“Why do people like you always exist? No matter how many I erase, there are always more.”
“M-Madman—what are you?! What the hell are you?!”
“You exist in every era. Generations change, but you don’t. I can see you anywhere. And that really pisses me off.”
“Damn it! Why are you doing this to us?! Why show up out of nowhere and—!”
“We built nations, created society, formed families so we wouldn’t have to live like animals. So why are people like you still like this? Why do you hurt others who live decently, when they’ve never done anything to you?”
“S-Stay back… don’t come near me…!”
One man collapsed to the floor, sobbing in terror, while the other hurled curses as he desperately tried to flee from the terrifying being.
But the lofty figure simply smiled coldly and flicked his hand. Blue fire roared to life, surrounding the area. There was nowhere to run. A perfect encirclement.
“Don’t run. Friends should stick together, shouldn’t they? You wallowed in filth together—planning to slip away alone?”
The man who controlled fire asked icily. As he snapped his fingers, the flames burning one of them instantly vanished. What had once been a human being crumbled into pure white ash and poured onto the ground.
“Ah… no…”
“Shhh, don’t cry. It’s too early to faint. We still need to confirm the fate of the remaining one, don’t we?”
The beautiful predator smiled gently. When he snapped his fingers again, something shot out of thin air. Whatever it was dropped helplessly to the ground.
“AAAAH!”
The one who tried to run screamed. The man who had already collapsed could no longer even produce a sound. His lips trembled bluish-white, his bloodshot eyes shaking wildly.
The thing lying pitifully on the floor was a charred human body. Burned to coal, the blackened corpse was once their friend—the one who had left early, saying he’d go home first.
“And now the four of you are together again. To face death together—what a touching friendship.”
The being who resembled a winter night declared almost like he was singing. One man trembled violently while staring up at him; the other stared blankly at his friend’s blackened corpse.
“I didn’t endure all that pain just to watch parasites like you cling to this world.”
The winter-night-like being added softly. Neither of them looked like they understood what he meant. Not that he ever expected them to.
“So… you’ll just have to disappear completely.”
He gestured again. Blue flames descended, and horrifying screams tore through the air. Breathing in the burning stench of flesh, the winter-like man murmured quietly:
“The sacrifices weren’t made so trash like you could stomp around freely.”
A dark emotion filled his deep blue eyes. He closed them slowly, trying to suppress it. Even after living through an unbelievably long span of time, ruling his heart was sometimes still unbearably difficult.
When he opened his eyes again, the flames were gone, and so were the ones who had once been human. Only a pitiful handful of white bones remained as their trace.
He stared down indifferently at the waste he had just incinerated, then elegantly stretched out his leg and pressed his shoe into the ashes.
He ground them into the floor. Soon even their final remnants vanished without a trace. The winter-night man turned away, satisfied.
The foul smell of burnt flesh scattered quickly in the wind.
Two days had passed since Noxia coincidentally met Jade Lannon. At last, the day of her first day at work had dawned.
Noxia woke up early, washed more carefully than usual, chose her clothes with care, and tied her thick chocolate-brown hair neatly into a single ponytail. Breakfast was a thick sandwich stuffed with ham and cheese.
Outside, it was fully spring. Noxia decided to walk to work. Since she woke up earlier than usual, she had plenty of time, and the weather was simply too good to waste such a chance.
Using going to work as an excuse, Noxia took a stroll along the main road. Rows of flowering trees that had yet to fully bloom lined the street. Once they blossomed, the sight would surely be spectacular.
Noxia arrived at the academy without issue. She had checked the route beforehand, and since the academy was the grandest building in the city after the royal palace, it was impossible to miss.
She passed through the main gate. Since the campus was opened early for students arriving for classes, there was no need to show identification.
Noxia headed toward the library. Since she hadn’t yet been issued an official staff ID, she needed to present identification to enter the building.
After manually checking her ID, the library guard let her in. Noxia headed toward the information desk in the lobby.
“Hello, I’m Noxia Decan. I’m the new assistant librarian starting today.”
Trying to hide her nervousness and speak as confidently as she could, she greeted them. The staff member behind the desk looked up from her documents and responded kindly.
“Hello, Miss Decan. Thank you for coming. Would you step inside, please?”
“Thank you.”
The staff member stood and opened a low door beside the desk, and Noxia went in.
She was led behind the desk, into an area students normally weren’t allowed. Beyond the door was a neat office. Noxia glanced around timidly.
“Liana, here’s the new hire. You remember the assistant librarian who’s starting today, right?”
“Ah, you must be Miss Noxia Decan! Welcome to your first day.”
A middle-aged woman who had been looking through papers lifted her head. She stood up and approached Noxia warmly.
“Hello, Miss Decan. I’m Liana Artmon. Librarian of the Academy Central Library—and your senior.”
“Hello, Mrs. Artmon. It’s nice to meet you, and thank you for the warm welcome.”
“Oh, think nothing of it. The commute wasn’t too troublesome, was it?”
“No, it was fine. I live close enough to walk.”
“Ah, on a day like this, walking isn’t bad at all. Though I took the carriage today.”
They exchanged light small talk to ease the awkwardness. Naturally, the older, more experienced Liana led the conversation.
“Then I’ll get back to the front desk. Have a good day, Liana, Miss Decan.”
“See you later.”
The desk staff left. Liana turned to Noxia with a bright smile.
“I’ll show you around the office and the library first. We’ll handle the handover afterward.”
Liana took Noxia through a staff-only door that led directly into the main library instead of the way they came.
The Central Academy Library was truly enormous—on a completely different level from the small town library Noxia grew up using.
Counting the basement reading room and the first-floor lobby, there were a total of seven floors. Every floor overflowed with books of every field imaginable, with comfortable reading spaces everywhere.
As they moved from floor to floor, Liana spoke in a calm library-appropriate tone, explaining various things to her junior.
“The assistant librarian’s main job is to help patrons on site. Stay near the search desk, and if someone asks for help finding a book, assist them. If there’s a book you absolutely cannot find no matter what, record it and report it to me as a missing item. We’ll need to reorder and restock it.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“If someone makes noise or damages books, you’ll need to stop them, too. If they’re too rude or difficult to handle alone, call me or a guard. We’ll resolve it right away. Understood?”
“Yes, I understand.”
“And you’ll also need to reshelve returned books. You said you learned how to read catalog codes, right?”
“Yes, ma’am. I learned it at school.”
Their explanation and Q&A continued like that. After touring all seven floors, they returned to the office.
Inside was a middle-aged male staff member who hadn’t been there earlier. Liana greeted him warmly.
