The 31st Piece Overturns the Game Board

A freezing wind swept over the spire.

Whoosh…

"Ugh…"

Tap—!

Jamad's hand struck the book, knocking it out of Seol's hand.

"What the…"

- Seol, are you okay?

Seol rubbed his aching hand.

"Ah, I'm fine. I was just surprised."

Swoosh…

He looked at the cover of the book. He could feel the book's heft and its cover's rough, bumpy texture.

'I can't feel any more cold coming out of it.'

Seol tried to suppress his pounding heart and tried to open the book.

"Ah…"

However, the book reacted strangely each time he tried to open it.

Crack—!

It immediately froze over, and he couldn't even open a single page.

Step…

Step…

Seol suddenly heard footsteps coming from a distance.

"You've made quite a spectacle while opening the door. You're more savage than a troll. To think I came here to bring the key."

"…"

It was Bron.

Bron raised an eyebrow as he looked at Seol, who was struggling while bending over.

"It looks like you got what you wanted."

Seol hesitated before answering.

Should he say he got the book or play dumb? He was still unsure of Bron’s true nature.

However, he didn't hesitate for long.

"Yes. It was thanks to you."

He still wasn't sure what Bron wanted, but there was no need to turn away someone who had shown kindness. After all, Bron had even helped him obtain this book.

"Oh, to think you would admit it so easily. As expected, it’s good to do a few good deeds now and then. Well, I guess with this, I've paid a bit of my debt to you."

"Your debt to me?"

"Well, it was your party who defeated the Head of the Library and crushed Branka's plan."

"But you didn't stop him despite being able to."

"How could I have stood in his way? I had to keep my mouth shut even if I disagreed. Honestly, I was grateful you showed up at the right time. And besides…"

Bron turned around and began walking.

"The Head of the Library wasn't something a fake like me could handle. You must have seen it, too. I would have immediately turned into letters if it had touched me."

Seol imagined that scene unfolding before him—the sight of Branka's leg turning into letters and scattering into the air.

"Anyway, will you leave now that you got what you wanted?"

Swoosh…

Seol glanced down at the book and said, "I guess so…"

* * *

After returning to the lodging, Seol marveled at how pristine the surroundings had become.

It was so nice that he even thought that if this weren't a trapped world, the world inside a book might be worth living in.

But more importantly.

- The Head of the Library wasn't something a fake like me could handle. You must have seen it, too. I would have immediately turned into letters if it had touched me.

He was thinking about how Bron called himself a fake.

It seemed that Bron thought of himself as fake.

'Well, it isn't unreasonable. After all, the real Bron is already dead. That's why he might consider himself a clone carrying his memories…'

Seol was honestly surprised by how friendly Bron and the Frostmaw Tribe had been with him.

He even felt bitter about how fiercely he had fought against them before.

He wondered what would have happened had Branka come to his senses a bit earlier. Then, Seol remembered his words.

- Huff… Huff… Jamad. If I, Branka, had lived in the same era as you… Would our fates have been different?

It felt like that could have really been the case.

No. Even if he had changed his mind before awakening the Head of the Library, the situation might have been slightly better.

'Well, it's all meaningless to think about that now. The Frostmaw Tribe is going to survive well on their own…'

Whether they considered themselves fakes didn't matter.

Seol could do nothing for their future.

"Hmm…"

That's why, for now, Seol decided to focus on the task at hand.

The book that the Grand Duke of Frost had left.

After returning to his room, he tried opening it again, but it was useless.

Which meant…

"Was it all for nothing?"

The seal was so strong he couldn't even open a single page.

Seol briefly thought about the two Magicians in his party and then slowly shook his head.

Bornuil suspected they might also be after the Grand Duke of Frost’s book, so provoking them unnecessarily was a risky move.

Seol knew well enough that Magicians could become a bit eccentric when it came to matters of power, and he didn't want to make any mistakes here.

And if it was absolutely necessary, he could always ask Frannan.

'No. Come to think of it, there's one more person.'

Seol had an Archmage by his side—someone who had lived in this era and was also a member of the Zodiac, just like the Grand Duke of Frost.

'Bornuil, are you there?'

- …

'Bornuil?'

- The old man is asleep.

"…"

It was Ur who answered in Bornuil’s stead.

'Ur, I found the book.'

- Ah, so you've found that book. So, what's written in it?

Seol explained the problem he was currently facing to Ur.

- It isn't uncommon. Books that are restricted to certain readers often come with seals. But it's usually some kind of magical trickery. I should be able to break through it quite easily.

There were times when Seol found Ur to be incredibly reassuring. And this was one of them.

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call Ur's knowledge in mana or magic unparalleled. After all, he solved the mystery of the Void and conquered it.

'Then, what should I do?'

- Send that book to the Void. You know how to do that, right?

'Of course.'

Seol focused on the Strength of the Mind, which he had extensively mastered in the Ruins of Watala. He closed his eyes and envisioned it—a giant door.

Swoosh…

BOOM…

Seol was now standing before a giant door.

He had mastered this power quite a bit.

"Then… Hmm?"

However, the book in his hand disappeared.

Seol tilted his head and returned to reality. He was definitely holding the book.

"…"

- What are you doing?

"Wait a moment."

Swoosh…

Seol stood before the Void's door once again.

And just like before, the book vanished.

"Oof…"

Seol relayed the situation to Ur.

- What? The book disappears when you enter the Void?

"Yes…"

- Ha… Haha… Hahaha!

Ur burst into laughter.

"What's wrong?"

- It's a masterpiece. To think an Idea Seal…

'Idea Seal?'

Not even Seol knew what an Idea Seal was.

After all, everything had been handled by the Grand Duke of Frost. That's why he didn't know how impressive the seal was.

- What do you think is the essence of a weapon?

"The essence of a weapon? I guess the weapon itself."

- Then, what is the essence of a book?

Seol finally caught on to what Ur was hinting at.

"Its contents…?"

- Correct. A book’s cover and the bundle of pages inside it are worthless. What matters is the knowledge contained in them. But knowledge and truth like this are extremely difficult to manage because they're easy to replicate.

"Replicate? You mean copying them?"

- Yes. People make copies because it's hard to steal the original. With weapons, replicas are of much lower quality, so it's pointless. But with books, you only need the content.

Seol nodded.

"So Azran made sure that couldn't happen. So there could be only one copy of this book accessible to a specific person."

- Yes. That's why it can't be transferred to the Void. It could be replicated if it enters the mind realm. This isn't an ordinary book. I'm curious about the knowledge inside. That Azran guy… He certainly isn't ordinary.

Seol felt a bit embarrassed.

After all, Azran was one of his pieces.

So, in a sense, Ur was also praising Seol.

"Impressive, right?"

- I'll find a way… N… No. You should also try looking for a way. If you leave everything to me like last time, we might waste too much time.

Nod…

Seol decided to leave the matters related to the book aside for now and moved on to another concern.

'I missed out on Branka's Shamanic Spells…'

The conclusion of this Adventure left him feeling unsatisfied overall. Although he did gain something, the result wasn't exactly fulfilling.

It felt disappointing since there was nothing tangible in his hands.

Seol asked Jamad if he regretted having lost Branka's spells.

- Losing the old man's Shamanic spells is unfortunate, but there's nothing we can do. After all, he died on his own.

Seol chuckled and suddenly wondered about the others in his group.

Joneh and Santio must have had their reasons for having climbed up to the 8th floor as well. But would they get something out of this?

He had already obtained Azran's book, so it would be great if they got something else.

BOOM!

At that moment, someone knocked on his door.

"Are you there?"

It was Joneh.

He seemed in a hurry—no, he was always in a hurry.

"Is there a problem?"

"There is… No, I think there will be…"

"Did something related to the Frostmaw Tribe…"

"Do you also suspect that I might have caused an accident?"

"Did Santio think the same?"

"…"

"Anyway, I'm coming out."

Creak…

As he opened the door, Joneh, Santio, and Bron were staring at him.

"Bron? You too?"

"Yes. He said it's something I should know as well."

It was one thing for Santio to be informed, but for Bron—who wasn't even a clear ally yet—what could have happened?

'This doesn't seem good…'

Seol frowned and followed them. Their destination was unexpectedly outdoors.

Bron was walking through the snow with a smirk, as if he enjoyed the situation.

"Hey, Seol…"

"Seol."

"Yes, Seol. Things just got a bit more fun."

It seemed there was a reason for Bron's smirk.

"Fun?"

Bron shared his honest thoughts.

"At first, I was just confused, thinking I would either die from old age or disappear without a trace… However, just watching you all has sparked my interest. Still, this is troublesome…"

"Why would it be troublesome?"

"Isn't that obvious?"

Bron's expression was full of both regret and disappointment.

"It makes me want to live despite being a fake."

"…"

"Just like those guys in the castle, I've already died once. There's nothing more pitiful than someone who has died before clinging to life. If I cling too desperately… I would feel too guilty toward the real Bron, who lived his life to the fullest."

He was drawing a clear distinction between the real Bron and his fake self.

He took pride in the real Bron's life and seemed anxious his fake existence might tarnish Bron's final moments.

"Well…"

"What do you think?"

"It depends on what your goal in life is."

"Haha… You sound just like Branka. Even if it's for a short while, I'm having fun, which is enough for me."

"Really?"

"What…?"

"I'm asking if you really are satisfied with that."

"I don't know… At one point, I wondered why I was brought back, wondering if it was destiny… But maybe that was just my wishful thinking…"

At that moment, Bron stopped talking, and his eyes widened.

Seol followed Bron’s gaze to see where he was looking at.

"This…"

It was a place they had seen before.

"Isn't it the transfer door?"

"To be more precise, it's the Scorpion Door… But, isn't there something strange?"

"Yes… There is something strange."

The Scorpion Door was still on the ground. It remained intact even after several days.

Not only that…

"Was it always this fancy?"

While the gate had previously looked like a simple wooden door, it had now transformed into something as grand as the front gate of a noble's mansion.

"It absorbed mana. The door absorbed mana from its surroundings."

Everyone turned to look at Joneh.

"Joneh…"

"It wasn't me! I cut off my mana long ago! In fact, there was nothing left to cut off—by then, my mana had already drained completely.

It didn't make sense.

If that were the case, why was the Scorpion Gate still there?

"Then, the reason why it remains…"

Joneh stammered.

"This… This might sound crazy—no, it is crazy. But I'm not crazy."

"Please, go on."

He spoke in a nervous tone.

"Someone on the other side is holding onto the door handle and refusing to let go… They’re keeping the door from disappearing…"

"…"

"Who do you think it could be?"

At that moment, everyone hesitated and took a step back.

Santio said while stepping back.

"This… This… There's no way…"

"If that thing is still alive, what could it possibly want…?"

At that moment…

Whoosh…

Light began seeping from the Scorpion Door.

Flash—!

Bron quickly moved and blocked the door.

"What's going on?!"

The ominous vibrations weren't just coming from the Scorpion Door.

WHOOM…

The Grand Duke of Frost’s book Seol had also begun to tremble.

An abnormal mana phenomenon was detected.

'This is bad!'

CRACK—!

Seol transformed into the Night Crow while Joneh conjured an emergency transfer gate for escape. Meanwhile, Santio heightened his mana resistance to shield everyone.

Their response was swift and flawless.

WHOOM…

"Hey… I got it."

"What?"

Bron said while blocking the door, "The thing on the other side… It’s not trying to come through."

His words stunned everyone.

"It's trying to take us there.

"What…?"

At that moment…

WHOOSH—!

There wasn't even a sensation of the door opening.

The surroundings instantly shifted. The snowy mountain and the castle had vanished without a trace.

If the ice castle looked like a crude form of art, this place felt as if something alive had been perfectly frozen in time—a world intricately crafted in ice.

"The library…"

"The bookshelves… They're all frozen."

"Oh my god…"

Seol couldn't believe his eyes.

"The Head of the Library…"

The Head of the Library and Branka were frozen in the middle of the 4th floor. It was also exactly how Seol had seen them.

"The 4th floor…"

"We must escape!"

"Everyone, grab onto me!"

At Joneh's shout, everyone quickly clung to him

Swoosh…

A white mist crept across the floor.

CRACK—!

Their bodies began to freeze, but there was no sensation of cold. It was as if their senses had completely shut down.

How did one breathe?

"I-I'm the Scorpion Master! Let's talk…"

"I'm the Aries Master! Please, let's talk…!"

Joneh and Santio hurriedly shouted, but…

CRACK—!

Their entire bodies froze.

"Ugh…"

Bron's temples throbbed as his veins popped out.

It seemed he was trying to use a Forbidden Shamanic Spell, but…

Crack…

He also ended up frozen.

"Oof… Oof…"

Seol panted.

Step…

Step…

Someone was approaching him from behind.

Whoosh—!

Suddenly, Jamad emerged from Seol's body.

- Seol, run!

Jamad, who had dismissed the Night Crow form, tried to swing his arm at the approaching figure.

Crack…

But he froze.

Everything did.

Even Seol's face was being overtaken by the frost.

The figure who had approached them now stood before him and pulled the book from his grasp.

"Why…"

Crack…

Did he still remain?

He couldn't finish the question.

It was the Grand Duke of Frost, Azran.

Azran looked down at the book in his hand for a moment and then said, "This book…"

As if he had made a decision, he placed his index finger on Seol's forehead.

Swoosh…

In an instant, he invaded Seol's mind, bypassing the Void's door.

Everything around him froze.

However, just then…

Shweek—!

For the first time, Azran stopped moving.

FWOOSH—!

A fiery line appeared on the ground. And a knight holding a sword stood before him.

"…"

Although the knight had caught his interest, Azran's gaze was fixed elsewhere—on the figure sitting in a chair, watching him.

"Don't cross the line."

A voice came from the figure staring at Azran through a pair of glasses.

"How dare a mere Magician…"

It was Ur.