Subaru Natsuki, who returned from the new Three Kingdoms

The alcohol made Subaru's mind exceptionally clear. He stood a few steps away and sighed, a rare moment of seriousness on his face.

"You should save your love for your true master."

Xia Wula steadied herself by holding onto the black rectangular prism, then turned around and clutched her chest.

"Damn it! Master, why do you suddenly become so handsome after drinking? Is it true that ruthless men are the most attractive? I'm about to get a nosebleed!"

"Even if you say such heartless things to Xia Wula while looking so handsome, Xia Wula will never deny that you are my master!"

"Xia Wula's master has only ever had you by his side. Don't think you can just abandon him with a few words!"

It didn't make sense.

Subaru Natsuki simply ignored Shaula's voice and re-examined the black cuboids scattered across the ground.

Natsuki Subaru turned his head to look at Capela, who was still clinging tightly to his back, and said:

"Capela, take us up there and have a look."

His tone was as if he were telling his mount to take two steps forward.

He felt he was qualified.

After all, he had been letting Capela ride on his back these past few days, and now it was time for him to ride a mount himself!

After being ridden for so long, can't he enjoy it a little?

"No."

Capela turned his face to the other side, but instead wrapped his arms even tighter.

"You! Absolutely not!"

Subaru Natsuki's eyes widened!

Capela raised his chin slightly with a touch of arrogance, thinking to himself:

I haven't even ridden you yet, and you already want to ride me?

Even if it's not impossible, you should at least ask for help.

Or perhaps, give something in return...

Her red eyes turned back from the side, past Subaru's cheek, and stuck firmly to his lips.

That place was warm and sweet...

It was far more delicious than any of the royal pastries she had ever eaten in the palace...

I want to try it again!

Natsuki Subaru had no time to notice the increasingly intense gaze behind him.

Seeing that Capela remained as unruly as ever, he sighed helplessly.

When will this taming of mounts ever end?

But trials must be overcome eventually.

He could only turn to look at the other people in the room.

"Can any of you help me get up there and look down?"

Xia Wula was the first to raise her hand above her head.

"Master, please ride on my back!"

"Xia Wula will definitely give Master the most perfect riding experience! Although Xia Wula can't fly, it can jump! As high as you want, as fast as you want, and in whatever position you want!"

Clarissa, who was standing behind, lowered her head.

Such a rare opportunity, and she didn't even have the right to fight for it. If she could fly, she could personally carry her father up to a high place, let him sit on her back, or hold him around her waist...

What a sweet father-daughter time that must have been!

Clarissa became increasingly resentful, wishing she could grow wings right now.

Shaula had already excitedly rushed towards Subaru Natsuki.

This time, Subaru Natsuki stood still without dodging, but Capela on his back raised her head first.

"Don't ride her!"

Capela's back suddenly opened up.

A pair of dragon wings grew from Capella's back. Her legs extended simultaneously, and while maintaining her human form, her five toes transformed into sharp dragon claws, gently gripping Subaru's shoulders and carrying him straight into the sky above the room.

Xia Wula missed his target again.

She stood on the ground, looking up at the golden figure, and angrily stomped on the white ground beneath her feet, cracking it.

"Damn blondie!! I knew it, you really are the kind of guy Shaula hates!"

In mid-air, Subaru Natsuki firmly grasped Capella's ankle, while his other hand soothed the dragon claw gripping his shoulder.

"Good steed, you didn't make your master look too bad after all."

"Who said you're my master!"

Capela blushed and snorted, then flapped her wings and carried him up to the top of the room.

Looking down from above, the originally chaotic black jungle suddenly revealed a clear pattern.

The black cuboids standing on the ground were indeed arranged according to the positions of the stars, together forming the outline of the constellation Orion.

One of the black cuboids is located exactly where Betelgeuse is.

"That's it."

Capella landed next to the black cuboid with Subaru Natsuki.

Once Subaru Natsuki had regained his footing, she retracted her dragon wings and claws and lay back on his back.

Natsuki Subaru reached out and pressed his hand against the black cuboid in front of him. The moment his fingertips touched the cold surface, hundreds of black cuboids simultaneously lit up with a blue-white light.

The first trial then disappeared.

The pure white floor beneath my feet receded into the surroundings, replaced by layers of dark brown wooden bookshelves.

The bookshelves rose up from the ground at everyone's feet, one layer surrounding another, one layer pressing down on another, stretching endlessly towards the heights.

The steps connecting the different levels are as thin as vines wrapped around a giant tree. Standing below and looking up, you can only see the densely packed spines of books gradually shrinking until they all disappear into the darkness above.

Every beam was crammed with books.

Tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, or even more.

The space inside the tower was stretched out by endless bookshelves, the boundaries of which disappeared from sight. Even the sound of footsteps would take a long time to return from the heights as a faint echo.

Welcome to the Great Library of Gite!

Xia Wula chased after them into the library, spreading her arms wide with a look of smugness on her face.

"This is Master's study, a treasure trove of knowledge from all over the world!!"

Elsa walked in at that moment, accompanied by Merry, who had just changed her clothes. No one knew what Elsa had said to her earlier; the girl's cheeks were still flushed, and she didn't dare to look at Subaru Natsuki even once she entered.

Natsuki Subaru didn't notice their unusual behavior.

He stood between towering bookshelves, looking up for a long time, a look of dissatisfaction gradually creeping onto his face.

"Our family finally passed the trial, and all we got in return was a pile of books?"

Just as Shaula was about to explain, Natsuki Subaru began talking to himself:

"Those who truly know how to read always burn each volume they finish reading to avoid it becoming sour."

"It seems that this so-called great sage, Friguel, is nothing but a figurehead!"

"Our family is now very skeptical about whether he can cure old man Zimai's madness!"

Natsuki Subaru's lack of interest in these books doesn't mean others aren't interested.

Clarissa was the first to walk to the bookshelf, wanting to understand the value of these books for her father.

The book covers had no titles, only unfamiliar names. She picked one up at random, opened the cover, and the originally neat text immediately twisted and turned into a tangled mess of black lines.

Nothing else happened.

Clarissa stared at the pages for a moment, but still couldn't make out the contents, so she put the book back in its place, puzzled.

She continued her search along the bookshelf and soon spotted a familiar name on the cover of another book. This person was one of the children that Capella had previously adopted.

However, he died during a mission...

Clarissa had met him once before. Filled with doubt, she took out the book and opened the cover.

The moment the book was opened, another person's life story flooded into her mind without warning.

The sights that person had seen, the sounds that person had heard, and the joys and sorrows that person had experienced all became incredibly real.

This also includes her desperate experience of being trained by Capella to be like various small animals, which is also recorded in the book...

Clarissa even forgot that she was in the library, as if she had personally lived that life and personally witnessed that person's death.

When she saw the pages of the book again, the two memories had become intertwined.

Clarissa clearly remembered her name, but for a moment she couldn't confirm who she was.

She raised her hand blankly, unable to distinguish whether it was her own hand or the hand that the deceased had once raised.

A strong wave of dizziness then set in.

Before she could even close the book, she groaned, clutched her head, and collapsed to the ground.

Elsa's languid voice came from the side:

"The books here seem to be books of the dead. Each book records the life of a deceased person, and only those who knew the deceased can understand them and personally experience the memories within the book."

Elsa spoke as she calmly opened a book by someone she knew.

But she only managed a few breaths with a distorted expression.

Overall, she performed much better than Clarissa.

"Is that so?"

Clarissa was so confused by the jumbled memories that she turned pale and couldn't even stand up for a moment.

Natsuki Subaru also smacked his lips.

"I'm telling you to read less."

"It's best to read fewer books; too many will make you feel pretentious."

He stepped forward and helped the infatuated Clarissa up, then took a jar of wine from Patrasi, who had somehow followed him, uncorked it, and brought it to her lips.

"Look, your head is throbbing from the sourness. Let's have some wine to relieve it."

"Thank you, Dad..."

Clarissa nestled in Subaru's arm, held the wine jar, and took a small sip.

The spicy liquor slid down my throat, and quite a few of the unfamiliar voices crowding my mind were indeed suppressed.

When the pain subsided, she realized that she was almost pressed against Natsuki Subaru's chest, with one hand still tightly gripping his clothes.

Clarissa's cheeks grew increasingly red.

I don't know if it was because of the alcohol or something else.

But just then, a chill came from the side.

She stiffly turned her eyes, meeting Capella's malevolent red pupils. The blonde girl lay on Subaru's back, a smile playing on her lips, but her eyes clearly revealed murderous intent.

Clarissa shuddered in fright, quickly loosened her clothes, and stepped out of Subaru's arms.

Good dad~

Bad Mom~

If only I didn't have a mother...

Clarissa couldn't help but think...

"Everyone, come and see this."

Meryl's voice suddenly came from the other side of the library.