“Why are we in the library, Riley?” Rose asked, her voice laced with curiosity.
The academy’s library, despite its sheer size and the flow of students passing through, maintained an almost sacred hush.
Tall shelves lined with ancient texts and spell tomes stretched high above, casting soft shadows under the warm lights.
Just like the last time I came here, everywhere you look was filled with books.
I glanced over at Rose, shrugging lightly.
“I just wanted to check on something,” I replied, keeping my tone casual.
Rose raised a brow, clearly skeptical. She seemed to pick up on the fact that I wasn’t exactly lying, but also wasn’t telling her the whole truth either.
Still, she only shrugged.
“Well, as long as you keep your promise, I don’t mind a little detour.”
“Of course,”
It had taken longer than expected to calm Snow’s little anger down earlier, so I’d half expected Rose might have wandered off on her own somewhere across the academy.
But as luck would have it, finding her turned out to be surprisingly easy.
In fact, it almost seemed too easy as if she’d been waiting for me.
I half expected Rose to ask more questions, considering I’d randomly dragged her out here with barely an explanation.
But it seemed the promise I’d made her was more than enough to keep her interested.
For context, I’d told her I’d grant her any one request, within reasonable limits, of course.
Knowing Rose, she’d probably come up with something absurdly specific or outlandishly quirky.
But I made sure to clarify that “reasonable” meant no ridiculous demands.
Anyway, for now, I needed to focus.
No mana spikes, no subtle shifts in the atmosphere, not even that prickling sense of instinctual danger.
By now, the gate to the dungeon should have opened, especially considering the scale of the creatures supposedly lurking inside.
Yet, despite amplifying my mana sense to its limits and sharpening my physical senses with my aura, I came up empty.
Not a single hint of its presence lingered in the air, which felt all the more unsettling.
Rose, my key asset for today’s plan, didn’t seem to pick up on anything unusual either.
After all, how could I possibly know about a hidden dungeon opening up without any official notice?
The moment I hinted at it, Rose might suspect me of having some kind of advanced foresight, or worse, some bizarre source of inside information.
Keeping everything natural and coincidental felt like the only way to avoid complicating things further.
I glanced down at my watch, noting the time.
The outbreak was close. If only there were any hints, even the faintest signal.
Rose looked at me, her brows lifting a bit, but she nodded and followed without complaint.
Knowing the White Queen and her ability to manipulate things to her advantage, I was sure she’d hidden the dungeon entrance well.
It wouldn’t be left out in the open for anyone to stumble upon.
Walking deeper into the shelves, I kept my senses on high alert, trying to detect even the faintest fluctuation in mana.
But once again, there was nothing.
Before I could do so, I collided with someone.
With all my focus on the dungeon it seemed I got lost in thought, and hadn’t noticed anyone around, and now I watched as she let out a soft yelp, trying to steady herself as her books wobbled in the air.
Instinctively, my body moved before I could think, reaching out to catch her by the back before she could fall.
The soft thud of books hitting the floor echoed through the quiet library section.
As she straightened up, my eyes fell on her familiar face, wide-eyed and slightly flushed as she looked up at me.
“Janica?”
“Riley??” Her cheeks went an even deeper shade of pink, and her gaze darted over me before she abruptly dropped down to gather her fallen books.
I noticed her shifting, almost squirming in embarrassment as she tried to stack them quickly, seemingly determined to keep the titles hidden.
My eyes caught a glimpse of one book as it slipped from her grip.
“D-Don’t look!!!” Her embarrassed shriek echoed, her voice ringing through the grand library.
Heads turned, and suddenly, it felt like every eye in the room was locked on us.
“J-Just shut it!” she hissed in a voice that was half a whisper, half a growl, her green eyes flashing with frustration. “Why are you even here?”
I raised an eyebrow, smirking a little. “Am I not allowed to come to the library?”
Rose, who had been watching our interaction in silence, simply tilted her head, observing Janica with a calm yet appraising look.
Her expression seemed unreadable, but her gaze lingered a moment longer than usual before she shifted her eyes toward the distant bookshelves, losing interest.
I realized that Rose and Janica had barely interacted since our academy life started.
Unlike the two close friends they were in the game, they were practically strangers now.
There was a noticeable awkwardness between them, a sort of unspoken understanding that neither wanted to break the distance.
Janica seemed to take in the scene with subtle curiosity, her gaze darting back and forth between Rose and me as she knelt to pick up the remaining books.
As she stacked them neatly, she skillfully tucked a few into the open shelves nearby, each movement measured, almost as if she was buying herself time.
“Are all those books for Lucas, perhaps?” I teased, watching as her face turned a deeper shade of red, her glare sharp enough to cut through steel.
I couldn’t help but chuckle, her reaction was priceless.
For a certified tsundere heroine, she wasn’t exactly nailing the aloof, unbothered look she was probably going for.
She glared even harder, her cheeks flushed, a suspicious glimmer of moisture in her eyes.
It was clear she was teetering on the edge, seconds away from a full-blown explosion.
As tempting as it was to keep pushing, I decided to cut her some slack. I had more pressing matters to deal with.
“Something like that.” I shrugged, hoping to sound nonchalant.
Honestly, her reaction was understandable.
There wasn’t an exam in sight, and the last place anyone would expect to find me was here, buried in shelves of dusty old books.
Even less so with Rose, of all people.
Who was a generational genius, who probably has no need for any books aside from recreational purposes.
Ignoring Janica’s piercing, suspicious gaze, I let my thoughts drift back to the game scenarios, searching through every memory I had of the possible events and choices.
Why is she even here? I wondered, surprised and unsettled.
No other main heroine was supposed to get involved unless the protagonist specifically brought them along.
But here was Janica, who had no business being in this scenario if things were following the standard storyline.
Before I could untangle that thought, I got my answer, as a familiar voice interrupted my musing.
He stared, eyes widening in clear disbelief as if he’d stumbled into some surreal scene.
His gaze flitted from Janica, her cheeks still flushed and eyes damp, back to me, a storm of questions gathering in his eyes.
“What did you do?” he demanded, his golden eyes narrowing as a frown took shape on his face.
