Chapter 46

“Aaaaaah!”

Elena grabbed the nearest book and began hitting the figure behind her—whether it was a person or a ghost, she didn’t know.

“Go away! Go away!”

“Ouch!”

“I said, go away!”

Thud, thud, thud! She swung her hands wildly. The voice of the figure sounded strangely familiar, but it wasn’t a moment for rational thoughts.

How long had she been hitting them? A hand poked out from the white cloth and grabbed her wrist.

“Ouch, ouch! Senior, stop! It’s me, it’s me!”

“Huh?”

She blinked her tear-filled eyes. Earlier, she had been too focused on the red eyes and black teeth to recognize them, but it was a familiar face.

She couldn’t recall the name, but it was a junior from the magic department, a year below her.

The junior pressed something that clicked. Suddenly, the disguise they had been wearing disappeared, revealing their real face.

She couldn’t believe such a gentle-looking face had been transformed by magical makeup. It was unbelievable.

The junior rubbed the places where Elena had hit them, muttering something that sounded like a mix of amazement and complaint.

“Wow, you don’t look like it, but you’re surprisingly strong, Senior.”

Feeling embarrassed, Elena looked down at her hand, still holding the book. It seemed her swordsmanship lessons hadn’t been in vain.

“Sorry. I’ve been learning swordsmanship lately.”

“That explains it! It felt similar to getting hit by one of the kids from the swordsmanship department!”

It was a bit sad to be compared to a kid, but she decided to take it as a compliment.

“Anyway, I’m sorry for scaring you. I had my own task to do…”

“Elly! What happened?”

“Elena, are you alright?”

Louder voices than the junior’s echoed throughout the library. It was a scene that didn’t match the phrase “Silence in the library.”

‘Well, I guess I wasn’t exactly quiet either.’

Looking toward the stairs, she saw Felix and Cedric racing each other up, as if competing in a sprint.

It seemed they had come running because of her scream.

Surprisingly, Felix arrived first. Beating Cedric, who was from the swordsmanship department, he ran to Elena and grabbed her shoulders, scanning her from head to toe.

His sharp eyes looked even fiercer, exuding an inexplicable pressure. Elena gulped nervously.

“What happened? Are you hurt?”

“Well, um…”

Seeing Felix’s urgency made her feel like she should have at least one injury. But she was completely fine, without a scratch.

If anything, the junior she had beaten up was the one who needed concern.

Elena looked up at Felix and gave an awkward smile.

“No, I’m fine.”

At that moment, Cedric, who had arrived a bit later, asked a similar question.

“Elena, what happened? Are you hurt?”

Once again, she smiled sheepishly.

“No, I’m fine. Thanks for worrying about me.”

“Then why did you scream earlier?”

Felix let go of her shoulders and asked. Elena glanced sideways at the junior, who was standing next to her, looking uneasy. Although they were right next to her, Felix seemed to notice them only then and glared at the junior.

“Philip, what did you do to Elena?”

Ah, so the junior’s name was Philip. 

Philip raised both hands and shook his head.

Seeing the flashlight in his right hand, it seemed he had used it to create a spooky effect, shining it upward on his already frighteningly disguised face.

Philip protested with a genuinely wronged expression.

“I didn’t do anything!”

This time, Felix narrowed his eyes at Elena. Feeling unjustly accused, she muttered in a sulky tone.

“Well, it’s not like you did nothing.”

“I… I just tried to scare her a bit…”

Felix gave her a look of disbelief, as if to say, 

“You screamed just because of that?”

“No, he was wearing a monster disguise earlier.”

“A ghost?”

“Yes. Philip, show them again.”

Sensing the ominous pressure of three pairs of eyes, Philip reluctantly pressed the magic stone again. The monster disguise she had seen earlier reappeared. It was still a chilling sight.

Felix frowned slightly and lightly tapped Philip on the head.

“Ow!”

“Of course she’d be scared with a disguise like that!”

“I was just doing what the club president told me to…”

“What if she had fainted from shock? Or worse, died from a heart attack?”

“Hic!”

Philip, who hadn’t considered that possibility, started hiccupping in surprise.

“I’m sorry…”

“Alright, alright. Let’s stop here. Elena’s fine, after all. You’re going to make him cry at this rate.”

Cedric stepped in to mediate. However, Felix didn’t seem ready to let it go.

He sneered at Cedric.

“You think this is no big deal, don’t you?”

Cedric brushed it off casually.

“I’m not saying it’s no big deal. I was startled by Elena’s scream too. But since she’s fine, let’s leave it at that.”

“I can’t just let this slide. I’m going to formally complain to the club president.”

“Fine, but let’s find the book and leave first.”

“You… You’re seriously thinking about finding a book right now?”

At this point, Cedric seemed annoyed as well. Just as he raised his voice slightly, Elena quickly intervened.

“Alright, enough. Let’s find the book quickly.”

“Are you siding with him?”

“Of course, we could just leave. But wouldn’t that put our club at a disadvantage? I don’t want that.”

“…”

“Besides, everyone else went through the same thing, right?”

When she suddenly looked at him, Philip, looking flustered, nodded vigorously.

“Yes, all the other teams went through the same thing.”

“See? We even saw Thomas come out pale earlier. I don’t want to make a fuss by myself.”

She gestured for Felix to stop talking. Fortunately, he didn’t say anything further.

Elena clapped her hands.

“Alright, everyone, back to your sections. Philip, you too.”

“Yes.”

“Got it.”

“…”

And so, they scattered again. Once alone, her heart started pounding rapidly once more, but she took a deep breath and moved forward. She had wanted to suggest sticking together, but since she had insisted on not giving up, she had no choice.

This time, she headed to the history section. It was there that she realized what she, Felix, and Cedric had misunderstood.

“The saint wasn’t that kind of saint (成人); it was this kind of saint (聖人).”

She sighed at their narrow thinking and scanned the book titles. She had a feeling she would find what she was looking for here.

“The Gourmet of the Saint, The Saint’s… Found it. The Secrets of a Saint’s Private Life.”

She quickly pulled the book out. It was a thick, heavy book, about the width of her finger.

Just in case, she opened it. Inside, it detailed how even saints, who were supposed to be role models, occasionally deviated from the norm.

But the so-called deviations were disappointingly trivial.

“Skipping worship or drinking too much is considered a deviation?”

Ahem, she hadn’t expected much, but for a book titled ‘The Secrets of a Saint’s Private Life’, the content seemed rather dull.

She wondered what could possibly fill such a thick book. But she had no desire to read further.

Holding the heavy book carefully with both hands, she began walking to find Felix and Cedric.

That was when she felt a gaze from somewhere behind her. She smirked.

‘They’re probably planning to scare me again.’

She had been caught off guard earlier, but this time, she wouldn’t fall for it. Without turning her head, she spoke.

“I know you’re there.”

“…”

“Come out. I won’t be scared.”

Footsteps echoed. They sounded a bit hurried.

Feeling exposed, they must be flustered. She chuckled and turned around. A man stood a few steps away.

Dressed entirely in black, from head to toe. His face, partially hidden by a hood, bore a large scar running across it.

– And the next day, Denian went back with another student and saw it again. A man with a large scar on his face!

It was exactly like the ghost Penny had once described in the library.

But…

‘It’s not a ghost.’

The presence and pressure he exuded couldn’t belong to a ghost. This man was undoubtedly alive.

Alice had once said something when Elena expressed her fear of the library ghost.

– Elly, it’s better if it’s a ghost. Do you know what’s scarier than a ghost? A person. If they really saw something, worry about it being a person, not a ghost.

As Alice had said, people were scarier than ghosts.

And looking at the man before her, her legs trembled uncontrollably. It was an instinctive fear.

At that moment, the first person who came to mind was Felix.

“Fe…”

But her voice, which had come out fine earlier, now failed her. Instead, she decided to run downstairs, where Felix and Cedric were.

However, no matter how much training she had, there was no way she could outrun a grown man.

She heard heavy footsteps behind her, and soon, the man caught her. Grabbing her hair, he yanked her head back, and she felt something cold against her neck.

It felt as though all the hair on her body stood on end. It was a familiar sensation. A sword.

She turned her head slightly to look at the blade the man held against her. A snake devouring an eagle crowned with a crown. It was a familiar emblem.

“Anguis…”

She whispered, and the man responded.

“Yes, it’s you.”

It was the same voice she had heard during Saint Esna’s Festival. The escaped Anguis man.