Chương 110: Chapter 108: The Book That Should Not Exist

The Library of Origins was silent. Not the silence of an empty room. It was the silence that existed before the birth of the first star. Towering shelves stretched endlessly in every direction, disappearing into a sky that shimmered with galaxies instead of clouds. Ancient books floated gently through the air, their pages turning on their own as if every story was still alive. The four travelers stood motionless. Rayan. Kael. Caelum. Aster. Each could feel an invisible presence watching them. Not with hostility.

With curiosity. Before Rayan hovered the mysterious book. Its cover, once blank, now bore his name. The Unwritten King. The title itself sent a chill through his heart. He slowly reached out and rested his hand upon the cover. The instant his fingers touched it... The pages burst open. Golden light engulfed the library. Rayan found himself standing inside a vast field beneath a crimson sunset. The wind carried the scent of fresh grass. Children laughed in the distance. For a brief moment...

Everything felt peaceful. Then he saw him. A young boy no older than eight. Black hair. Golden eyes. Holding a wooden sword. It was... Himself. The younger Rayan trained alone in the palace courtyard. Again. Again. Again. Each swing was clumsy. Each failure earned another attempt. Nearby, a younger King Dasrath watched from the shadows. The king smiled proudly.

"He never gives up." Another voice answered.

"That's why he'll suffer the most." Rayan froze. The second speaker wasn't anyone he recognized. A figure cloaked in white stood beside his father. Its face remained hidden beneath a hood. Yet its presence felt strangely familiar. Almost... Like the Authors. The vision changed. Years passed within seconds. Rayan watched his own childhood unfold. His first lesson with Atlas. Meeting Cassian. His promise to protect Lyra. His duel with Kael. Every memory flowed before him like pages in a living book. Then...

The memories stopped. The next page was blank. Completely blank. Only one sentence appeared. > "The future begins where memory ends." Back inside the Library, Rayan gasped and stepped away from the book. His heartbeat raced. Kael noticed immediately.

"What did you see?"

"My life..."

"But someone was watching me." Aster's expression grew serious.

"The Library doesn't show memories."

"It shows..."

"The truth behind them." Before anyone could continue... A loud thud echoed through the endless shelves. Another book had fallen. Then another. Hundreds. Thousands. Books began dropping from the shelves all around them. Their pages fluttered wildly. Words detached from the paper like glowing birds. Letters filled the air. The entire Library trembled. A calm voice echoed through the endless hall. > "Unauthorized futures detected." The four immediately recognized it. It wasn't the Prime Editor. Nor the Authors.

It belonged to something far older. From between two endless shelves... An elderly man slowly appeared. He wore simple gray robes. His silver beard reached his waist. A wooden staff rested in his right hand. Unlike the overwhelming presence of the Authors... He felt ordinary. Comforting. Yet every floating book instinctively moved aside as he walked. As though the Library itself respected him. He smiled warmly.

"Welcome..."

"... to my home." The old man stopped a few steps before them. His gray robes swayed gently despite the complete absence of wind. His silver eyes were calm, carrying neither judgment nor curiosity, but the quiet patience of someone who had watched countless ages pass. He leaned on his wooden staff and smiled.

"So..."

"The story has finally arrived." Rayan stepped forward, instinctively placing himself between the old man and the others.

"Who are you?" The old man chuckled softly.

"A question every visitor asks." He tapped the marble floor with his staff.

"My name has been forgotten many times."

"The Authors call me..." Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. The Librarian. The title echoed throughout the endless Library. Millions of books glowed simultaneously before settling into silence once more. Kael frowned.

"If you're the Librarian..."

"Then you serve the Authors?" The old man slowly shook his head.

"I serve no one."

"I simply protect stories." He looked around the endless shelves.

"Every soul that has ever lived."

"Every choice ever made."

"Every possibility that could have existed."

"They all rest here." Aster looked around in amazement.

"So every one of these books..."

"... contains a life?" The Librarian nodded.

"Not merely a life."

"A world." Caelum's sharp eyes scanned the endless shelves.

"If this Library contains every possibility..."

"Then somewhere..."

"... there must be a future where humanity survives."

"There are many." The Librarian answered.

"And many more where it does not." He looked directly at Rayan.

"The question is not whether such a future exists."

"The question is..."

"... whether you can reach it." Without warning... A loud crack echoed through the Library. One shelf collapsed. Then another. Thousands of books crashed onto the marble floor. Black mist seeped from between the pages like smoke. The warm atmosphere vanished instantly. The Librarian's smile disappeared.

"They've begun." Rayan drew the Dharma Dragonblade.

"The Editors?" The old man slowly shook his head.

"Worse." The black mist gathered into human-shaped figures. One... Then five... Then dozens. Each figure resembled a person whose body had been erased, leaving behind only a dark silhouette with glowing crimson eyes. None carried weapons. Yet their presence filled the Library with unbearable sorrow. Aster stepped backward. His voice trembled.

"I know them..."

"The Forgotten." The Librarian's expression turned solemn.

"When a story is abandoned..."

"When a hero loses hope..."

"When a civilization disappears before its tale is complete..."

"Their stories do not vanish."

"They become these." The Forgotten. Souls with no ending. Lives with no conclusion. Pages that had never been finished. One of the shadowy figures slowly approached Rayan. Its voice sounded like hundreds of whispers layered together. > "Finish..." > "... our story..." Another reached toward Kael. > "Remember..." > "... our names..." Then the entire hall echoed with desperate voices. Thousands. Millions. Unfinished stories cried out together. The Library shook violently. Books flew from the shelves.

Entire worlds flickered inside their pages. The Librarian struck the floor with his staff. BOOM! Golden light surged through the hall. The Forgotten retreated several steps but did not disappear.

"They're becoming stronger." The old man's voice was unusually grim.

"The Final Eclipse is affecting even the Library." Suddenly... One Forgotten walked straight through the golden barrier. It reached toward Rayan. The moment its hand touched the Dharma Dragonblade... The sword began showing visions. A burning kingdom. A lone child standing among ruins. A crown buried beneath ash. Then... A single sentence echoed inside Rayan's mind. > "Every forgotten story deserves an ending." The vision disappeared. The Forgotten dissolved into tiny particles of light.

Only one object remained where it had stood. An old leather-bound journal. Its cover bore no title. Only a faded emblem. A dragon surrounded by seven stars. The Librarian slowly picked it up. For the first time... Shock appeared in his eyes.

"This journal..."

"... should not exist." Rayan frowned.

"What is it?" The old man looked at him in silence before answering.

"It belonged to..."

"... the Eighth Author." The entire Library fell silent. Even the Forgotten stopped moving. Aster's face turned pale.

"There were only seven." The Librarian closed the journal carefully.

"That's what everyone believes." He looked directly at Rayan.

"But some truths..."

"... were erased even before the first story was written." To Be Continue....