Subaru Natsuki, who returned from the new Three Kingdoms

Betty always sat in the same chair, holding a book so thick it could kill someone.

There is no sunlight, no wind, and no sound from outside the mansion.

It's like a prison made up of countless pages.

"Your Excellency Beatrice."

"What's wrong now?"

"Do you usually stay here?"

"You already asked this question a long time ago."

Betty said impatiently:

“Betty is the manager of the forbidden library, so of course she should stay in the forbidden library.”

"But there isn't a single person here who can talk to you."

Betty has a book.

"Books don't laugh, nor do they drink with you."

Betty doesn't need these.

Natsuki Subaru stared intently at her.

Betty's gaze remained fixed on the pages of the book, but the fingers holding the book tightened slightly.

Natsuki Subaru suddenly remembered Liu Bei from that night.

That lord was the same.

He said nothing, sitting alone in the vegetable garden drinking, as if as long as he had wine, a sword, and a vegetable garden by his side, he didn't need anyone to accompany him.

But Liu Bei that day was so lonely that one glance at him would never be forgotten.

Natsuki Subaru was silent for a moment, then said seriously:

"Books are like this; once you've finished reading one, you should burn it."

Betty finally looked up, her brow furrowed.

"What nonsense are you spouting now?"

"It's okay if you don't burn it."

Natsuki Subaru looked at the small girl in front of him.

"What I mean is, books are inanimate, but people are alive. If a person always stays with inanimate things, sooner or later he will forget how to live."

"Why don't you go out more often and have a good laugh, you young girl?"

Betty was stunned.

But she quickly snapped out of her daze.

She hugged the book in her arms even tighter and lowered her head again.

"Betty doesn't need to go out, and she doesn't need to laugh."

"Betty only needs to read books."

Natsuki Subaru's gaze then fell on the book in her arms.

What book is this?

"It has nothing to do with you."

"When I came in last time, you seemed to be looking at it too. Were you looking at it for this long?"

Natsuki Subaru turned his head and looked around.

The bookshelves in the forbidden library stretched as far as the eye could see, filled with all sorts of heavy books, so many that one could read until the next life.

"There are so many books here, why are you only reading this one?"

Betty's fingers stiffened slightly.

"Betty can read whichever book she wants."

"You're meddling too much."

Subaru Natsuki became increasingly curious.

He stared at the book for a few seconds, then suddenly leaned forward.

He suddenly grabbed the spine of the book with his right hand.

"Let me see it!"

Betty was caught off guard by his sudden snatching, and her arms were suddenly empty.

"what you do!"

Magic instantly gathered in the forbidden library.

If this were Subaru Natsuki's first time entering this place, he would definitely be kicked out without any resistance.

But he's already been through it twice.

In the past few days, Parker has taught him how to feel the flow of mana.

Although Betty's magic doesn't stir the air, the mana around her gathers in a very short time before she uses it.

That change is almost imperceptible to ordinary people.

For someone who had died hundreds of times on the battlefield from the same stray arrow, it was clear enough.

"How can you defeat me three times with the same trick?"

Natsuki Subaru stumbled and fell to the side, clutching the book.

An invisible force grazed his back, overturning the chair behind him.

Betty's eyes widened slightly.

"You dodged it?"

Chapter 56: 055. At this rate, even I'm starting to want to ask you to have a drink with me!

"I, Natsuki Subaru, am a seasoned warrior; what haven't I seen in battle?"

Natsuki Subaru chuckled smugly, tucked the book between his right arm and body, and began flipping through it rapidly with his thumb.

'Speaking of which, I don't think I know any words in this world...' Natsuki Subaru suddenly remembered this.

If the world of the Three Kingdoms was characterized by a language barrier but a shared written language, then...

In this other world, the language is the same, but the written language is different.

Having only been in this world for a week, Natsuki Subaru hasn't had much time to learn its writing system.

But this didn't stop him from reading the book, because...

The first page.

blank.

Page 2.

Still blank.

Unconvinced, he continued flipping through a dozen more pages.

Every page was spotless, without a single ink stain.

Subaru Natsuki's smug expression gradually turned into confusion.

"Isn't it all empty?"

There's not a single word on it, why are you looking at it?

"No wonder you didn't want to leave; you were studying the wordless book here. Could it be that you also want to stage a golden uprising?"

"Shut up!"

Betty's voice suddenly rose to almost a scream, as if her deepest secret had been exposed.

The book flew out of Subaru Natsuki's arms and returned to her hands.

She clutched the book tightly to her chest, her eyes no longer showing the feigned impatience she had just displayed, but only the anger and panic that had been touched on a sore spot.

"This has nothing to do with you!"

"What books Betty reads is none of your business, you drunken lunatic!"

Natsuki Subaru opened his mouth.

He was just curious, but he didn't expect Betty to react so strongly.

Betty, however, had already turned her face away and said coldly:

You'd better leave now.

Betty finds you annoying.

“I see. It seems I have indeed upset Lady Beatrice. I should apologize. Everyone has their own way of living.”

"I love wine as much as Lady Beatrice loves books."

"Even if Lady Beatrice is a bookish pedant, it doesn't matter."

"You are our family's savior! For you, our family is not afraid of sourness, not afraid of anything!"

Natsuki Subaru was completely oblivious to the emotions hidden beneath her anger.

"Why aren't you leaving yet!" Betty became increasingly displeased when she saw Subaru Natsuki chanting scriptures again.

Natsuki Subaru nodded seriously.

“That’s true, I will indeed be leaving the mansion soon.”

Betty suddenly looked up.

"What did you say?"

"I made an agreement with Roswaal that I would only be a guest here for a week."

Subaru Natsuki counted on his fingers and quickly realized that he only had one hand, which made it inconvenient to do the calculations, so he had to give up.

"Anyway, the day after tomorrow is almost the date."

"Once I get the sword, I will return to the capital to meet up with Felt and Reinhard."

Betty, clutching the book, gradually darkened her expression.

"Lady Beatrice?"

"Get out! People who are destined to leave, get out of Betty's life!"

A massive burst of magical power erupted.

This time, Natsuki Subaru was still wondering why Betty had suddenly become even angrier, and he didn't have time to dodge.

An invisible force slammed into his chest, sending him flying.

"Wait, I'm still wounded—"

boom!

The library doors slammed shut in front of him.

Subaru Natsuki flew across the mansion corridor again, through a window that happened to be open, and crashed into the garden outside.

Fortunately, the soil in the flowerbed was loose enough.

He rolled twice when he landed, and a tearing pain still came from his empty left side.

The wound almost reopened due to the fall.

"It hurts..."

Natsuki Subaru curled up, a layer of cold sweat appearing on his forehead.

A blue butterfly followed closely behind, flying out of the window and anxiously circling around Subaru Natsuki.

After confirming that he could still speak, it landed on Subaru Natsuki's chest, its wings still trembling slightly with unease.