Chapter 189

She wasn’t in the mood.

Even the light orb had its own responsibilities. Though Sheffy was of royal blood, there was no rule stating that the Forbidden Book Repository belonged solely to her. Following the rules was simply the right thing to do.

If one behaved in a domineering, lawless way, doing whatever they pleased, the Demon Clan would never have prospered to this day.

Sheffy had long grown accustomed to her unrestrained, free-spirited lifestyle as a princess. She never thought she could contribute much to the Demon Clan, but at the very least, she wouldn’t be a burden.

“Sigh… fine, fine, if I can’t go in, then so be it. But let’s be clear—about her identity, since you can already tell, don’t go running your mouth to others. I’m giving ground here, so you better have some sense too.”

“Thank you for your understanding, Your Highness. As for what you’ve said, that goes without saying. I do not have permission to leave this place, nor any reason to speak of other matters to anyone. I am merely the caretaker of the Forbidden Book Repository.”

You seem more like a stubborn dead soul…

That thought, Sheffy kept to herself. Otherwise, the light orb might launch into another lecture.

Belith remained silent, arms crossed loosely across her modest chest, leaning against the stone wall beside the door, patiently waiting.

Before stepping into the Forbidden Book Repository, Sheffy naturally turned back to explain the unfortunate situation to Xiarette.

But Xiarette wasn’t the sort of girl who’d throw a tantrum just because she couldn’t enter a scenic spot for some reason.

Even before Sheffy could speak, Xiarette was already smiling gently, even reaching out to pat Sheffy’s head, comforting her instead.

“It’s okay. I’ll head back to the castle and wait for you to return.”

“I wanted to bring you inside to have a look around the repository…” because there was a book about cabbage mushroom cooking techniques inside.

“Honestly, I’m not that curious about the Forbidden Book Repository…” Xiarette’s words came from the heart. “The only reason I wanted to go in just now was to see a new place with you, that’s all. If we can’t go in, it’s no big deal. We can just go somewhere else later.”

After all, as long as she was with Sheffy, there was no difference between a forbidden archive and a field of flowers or a barren desert.

What mattered wasn’t the destination—but the company.

She could also understand Sheffy’s little disappointment.

After all, she had come to Sheffy’s home. Of course Sheffy would want to show her more of her world.

“Next time, I’ll find a way to move the whole Forbidden Book Repository out—leave just the gate. That way, the gatekeeper becomes useless.”

“Sheffy… did you just quietly mutter something outrageous?”

“Nope.”

“Sigh… you, you. Oh, right—it’s fine that I can’t go in, but there’s just one thing I’m a little worried about. You… probably know what I mean?”

Their eyes met—it was all the communication they needed.

Besides, both Xiarette and Sheffy’s peripheral vision had already drifted toward Belith.

This… this wasn’t something convenient to say aloud either.

To Sheffy and Belith, the Forbidden Book Repository was a very special place.

Back when Belith had blindly pursued power, it was here that the two sisters fell out—and it was also here they reconciled.

And among the secrets contained within, some were things that Sheffy still hadn’t fully unraveled to this day.

【I don’t know how Belith managed to recall those things. Logically, the side effects of forbidden magic should’ve made it impossible for her to ever remember the part where I saved her. But she actually remembered. Isn’t that really strange?】

Even Xiarette could understand—just by hearing Sheffy call Belith along—that Sheffy wasn’t here merely to investigate Livra’s abilities.

She also wanted to solve the lingering mystery surrounding Belith.

That question, Xiarette had been keeping in mind for Sheffy all along.

Her words at first were open and steady, spoken with poise.

But the next line—suddenly came out shy and hesitant, her gaze darting away!

“Shea? So you did still want to go inside after all? It’s fine, I’ll go check out the new cooking method for cabbage mushrooms and tell you about it later.”

“Cabbage mushrooms…? No, I meant… Sheffy, when you and Belith are alone together in there… just say what you need to say. I’m worried you two might talk and then… talk too much… Ugh, no, I mean, what you sisters say is your own business, of course… but… but if we’re being objective… try not to spoil her too much… Like, if she tries to hug you… learn to dodge. That’s important. Really important!”

Oh no.

Xiarette brought seasoning with her when she came.

And by seasoning—it meant a whole jar of vinegar.

Even the lake breeze couldn’t blow away the overwhelming scent of jealousy, making cold sweat run down Sheffy’s back.

Because behind her… there seemed to be a matching sourness in the air!

Xiarette’s eyes locked with Belith’s across the space, and between the two, a violent clash of sparks erupted. The silence between them was, in fact, the fiercest confrontation.

Even the previously dutiful light orb had now quietly floated off to a distance, no longer blocking the entrance.

It wasn’t neglecting its duty—the Hero had confirmed she would withdraw, so there was no longer any need to guard the door.

But more importantly… it sensed the aura of a battlefield of love.

It was a little terrifying.

……………………………..

After Sheffy and Belith stepped into the domain of the Forbidden Book Repository, the stone door closed behind them.

Along the sides of the stairs leading beneath the lake, thousand-year eternal flames flickered, casting light upon walls carved with ancient scripts still untranslatable to this day.

The deeper they descended, the more spacious it became. At this point, Sheffy’s voice still echoed slightly—but soon, even the echo would fade.

“By the way, Belith, you were totally useless at that critical moment. Just now when I tried to argue for letting Xiarette in, you didn’t even say a word to help. If you’d said something too, maybe that gatekeeper would’ve shown us a bit more leniency.”

“Your face alone is enough, Royal Sister.”

“…You’re mad?”

“Nope. Belith is not upset at all that Royal Sister clearly knew I didn’t want the Hero to come along, but still deliberately called me out for not helping. Absolutely not mad.”

“You totally are upset though…”

A mischievous older sister, and a sulking little sister.

It looked like a quarrel was about to break out.

—But then Belith suddenly hooked her pinky finger around Sheffy’s, and her steps slowed significantly.

Grumbling while leaning in closer like this… didn’t feel like someone preparing to argue, did it?

The arrangement was scattered yet orderly—when it came to the layout, the Forbidden Book Repository of the Demon Clan was less like an ancient library and more akin to an underground labyrinth.

The books dating back a thousand years were not neatly placed on bookshelves. Every few steps, one could spot yellowed pages sprawled across stone walls and trickling springs.

The spring water seemed ready to soak the pages at any moment, but just before making contact with the paper, a hidden magical mechanism would activate. The water would veer mid-air in an arc that defied logic, avoiding all the precious pages and landing with a gentle drip-drop into the shallow pools lining either side of the stone path.

“Ugh… this damn place is still just as damp as ever. If we moved a fire slime in here for one day, I bet it’d mutate into a water slime.”

“Royal Sister, this place obviously isn’t fit for long-term living… It’s under a lake, after all. Being able to keep this dry is already a miracle. Besides, I heard… these old books managed to survive till now because of the humidity?”

“They don’t get moldy?”

“In theory, yes—but they’ve remained perfectly preserved. Modern magic could achieve that too, but keeping it intact for this long would be pure fantasy. And from what I’ve heard, the Demon Clan ancestors didn’t rely on magic for this—it was all clever craftsmanship.”

Truly, in any world, any lifetime, there was always something wondrous known as—the wisdom of the ancestors.

Never mind the books, which had lain quietly against stone walls for a thousand years in such dampness and still remained pristine.

Even the candle flames along both walls—burning for the same span of centuries without ever extinguishing—left one nothing short of awestruck.

【By the Demon Clan’s renown, the flames shall burn for ten thousand generations. The fire shall never die, and shine eternally upon descendants.】

The words left by the Demon Clan ancestors were treated as myth among commoners. No one truly believed that such inextinguishable flames could exist.

Only the royal family of the Demon Clan had the right to witness the truth behind the legend with their own eyes.

Walking ahead, Belith noticed the footsteps behind her had stopped.

She, too, paused and turned around… to find—

Her Royal Sister was on tiptoe, puffing air toward a candle, making the flame wobble left and right.

After admiring how her cheeks puffed up like buns when she blew, Belith purposefully delayed her response a bit before asking with a patient smile,

“And what is Royal Sister doing?”

“Huff…! Blowing air! I just find it really strange—there aren’t even any traces of magic on this thing, so why doesn’t it go out? Huff…!”

“So cute… Ahem! Royal Sister, you shouldn’t waste time on something so pointless! The records say even water can’t extinguish these flames—they symbolize the everlasting prosperity of the Demon Clan. Do you really think just blowing on them will… aaahh!! Royal Sister!! You blew the candle out!!”

“Huh?!”

It… it really did go out!

The candle that had been burning with blue flame actually flickered twice and then died out, a puff of white smoke rising from the wick.

Oh no, oh no—did I just wipe out the Demon Clan’s thousand-year glory?!

Just as Sheffy was debating whether to reignite it with flame magic—

The candle showed its resilience.

The white smoke swirled back up into the wick, hovering at the top. Within moments, a blue flame reignited from within the vortex of smoke.

—Fwoosh!

With the sound of the flame reigniting, the blue fire swayed without wind and returned to its original form, continuing to burn steadily, unwavering.

Sheffy and Belith kept a close, tense watch for a while. Once the flame stabilized and showed no signs of going out again—

Phew… thank goodness.

It seemed Sheffy wouldn’t have to bear the shame of being the sinner who extinguished a thousand years of Demon Clan glory!

“Haah… I still don’t know how it works, but as long as it didn’t go out, that’s what matters. Otherwise, I definitely wouldn’t be able to sleep—ah! Royal Sister! Don’t blow on it again!”

“I wasn’t—! I’m just really curious how it can not go out and reignite?! Hm? Belith.”

“What is it, Royal Sister?”

“Your hand.”

“My hand?”

“Your hand.”

“My hand? What do you mean?”

“I suggest you quit playing dumb, yeah?”

When you stopped me earlier, hugging me from behind—that much I can understand.

But if you were just hugging my waist, then why did your hand end up on my poor, little chest?

Did you feel anything? No, right? Only cold and conscience.

Sheffy knew it was intentional. With a sigh, she closed her left eye. A psychic-type spell activated.

Belith’s hands were forcibly removed from the inappropriate location.

Her whole body was tugged backward by an invisible force, dragged away until she was two meters from Sheffy.

“…Royal Sister, I didn’t mean any harm… Damn it, your reaction is way too fast…!”

“Oh? You really dare to admit it, huh?”

Sheffy patted down her black skirt—the part above the belt had been creased all over, clear evidence of Belith’s skilled and seamless maneuver.

After all, Belith had a life-sized body pillow of Sheffy in her room. She’d practiced countless times how to maximize her gains in a limited time—if she ever got to touch her Royal Sister.

Now she stood with both hands out in front of her, fingers twitching in a pinching motion, giggling obsessively with a deranged smile. Sheffy truly had no idea how to save her anymore.

Sigh…

What misfortune befell this family…

And what were you even trying to pinch? At my level? Please, you’re just grabbing at air.

Sheffy snapped her fingers, dispelling the psychic magic that restrained Belith’s movement.

Maintaining a safe distance, she passed by her sister and continued walking in the direction where the candlelight stretched.

“Hurry up. I really don’t want to go looking for a book while also guarding against a ‘house thief.’ If you don’t want to tag along, go back on your own. I’ll search alone just fine.”

“Uugh… I was wrong, I was wrong. Eh—Royal Sister, wait for me!”

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