Tatakau Shisho - Volume 08

by Yamagata Ishio

  And so Bantorra Library overcame its first crisis.”

  The hair-raising and cruel history lesson continued.

  “Three or four hundred years passed since then. Well, a lot’s happened. You can read about it in history textbooks.

  Explaining only generally, the Armed Librarians were split into an organization managing Books and an organization that governed the populace. The latter was independent and became the Present Management Agency. Furthermore, from that uniform rule it began to shift into divided governments based on regions. The so-called states were born.”

  She left out the history of the Present Agency and the change into countries. It was irrelevant.

  “The Armed Librarians have also changed during this period.

  They collected Books from the world’s mines, sorted out Books of happiness and offered them to Ruruta. Worthless Books were left in the Labyrinth for the time being so they could lend them to people who wanted to read them when the need arises. No one could pass through the Beasts of the Final Chapter wandering around the Labyrinth except Armed Librarians.

  And thus the system was created.

  Well, that means that at the time our current system was established.

  Oh yeah. From that period the only ones to know of Ruruta’s existence were the Armed Librarian executives. There should be only few people who know the truth in order to protect the secret, after all.”

  And with that the story came to its first stop for now. Hamyuts removed her mouth from the device and decided to take a breather.

  When Yukizona had finished listening to her story he was also speechless. The history, his duty… everything was a lie. They were practically dancing in their palms until now.

  Seeing the stunned Yukizona, Hamyuts sighed.

  “Yukizona. I’ve argued with Matt whether to tell you or not. Can you withstand our reality? Mattalast said you’d be fine though.”

  “…”

  I can’t, he wanted to say. He wanted to immediately drink the water of Argax and forget all about it.

  “There’s also old Ireia. We haven’t told her the truth. She is a proud person and somewhat inflexible. Everyone thought that she wouldn’t be able to bear working as a slave to Ruruta.”

  Hamyuts said.

  “There’s also the option to not accept. In that case we will erase your memories with the water of Argax. Naturally you will not be able to assume office as the Acting Director, though. But I don’t know how much better doing that will be.”

  Yukizona said nothing.

  “Brother…”

  Yuri also said nothing besides her brother’s name.

  Yukizona suddenly reached for a Book. It was an ancient one, close to being the oldest Book stored in the entire Library.

  There was once a certain warrior. His name didn’t matter.

  In the ancient society he lived in, people came to fight and pillage his village as a daily occurrence. He fought to protect his village ever since he was young. He became stronger by simply fighting again and again. Even the modern Armed Librarians were probably all a bunch of weaklings when compared to him.

  He kept the village peaceful with his powers. In this dark world, only his village was surrounded by smiles.

  However, that gave birth to misfortune. It happened one night. The warning bells were rung. The sounds of burning torches and a neighing horses came into the village.

  He already knew of the presence of Book looters. As well as their repulsive name of “Armed Librarians”.

  The several tens of Armed Librarians were trampling the village with the loud sounds of hooves.

  “Books!”

  “Give us your Books!”

  The bandits wore inferior, dirty clothing. They had a cruel expression, intoxicated by slaughter. The warrior took out his sword and charged ahead to fight the wicked Armed Librarians.

  “Everyone, get your weapons! Get the women and children away!”

  While swinging his sword, he called out to the other villagers.

  “As if we’d let you!”

  One of the Armed Librarians cast Magic to put the villagers to sleep. The warrior barely held on with his mental strength, but everyone else couldn’t resist. The Armed Librarians started crushing the villagers that collapsed along the road.

  “You bastards, you bastards!!!”

  The warrior shouted as he knocked off the Armed Librarians all by himself. He shouted for the villagers to wake up, but they all passed away while sleeping peacefully.

  “Surround him!”

  “Shoot arrows from behind!”

  He defeated seven, or even eight people all by himself, but he was still heavily outnumbered. He was surrounded, stabbed by spears from all direction and collapsed.

  Unfortunately, since he was so robust he did not die immediately. Even as his blood flowed, he could barely open his eyes and hear things. He witnessed the slaughter of the villagers he was supposed to have protected.

  Soon, there were no more any moving people around.

  “Is it all over? My dear friends the Armed Librarians.”

  A single man appeared. This man, holding a stone dagger in hand, felt different from the others.

  “It is over. We leave everything to you, Lascall Othello-dono.”

  The man stabbed his blade into the ground. A Book was suddenly created.

  Reading it, all of the Armed Librarians starting laughing among themselves.

  “What a happy village. They’ve never been hungry or sick.”

  “Hahaha, a big catch. With just this Ruruta-sama will be satisfied for a whole year.”

  The warrior thought it was devilish. Could humans really do such cruel things to each other? Compared to the Age of Paradise several centuries ago this was hell. It was better not being born into this world.

  “I will kill… kill…”

  The fallen warrior clenched the earth. Seeing that, a single Armed Librarian spoke.

  “I wonder how’s that guy’s Book?”

  Peeking into his face, another Armed Librarian spoke.

  “No, he’s no good. He’s not happy, after all.”

  At long last, after hearing these words, he died.

  Part 3

  Yukizona touched another Book. It was the same ancient world as in that man’s Book. This time it was the Book of a woman.

  She went on a journey to search for her lost husband. She missed him. She wanted to see him again even only once. She just wanted to see him; she kept journeying while thinking this.

  Her journey didn’t end even when she found out about her husband’s death. Her wish was to be at his side. She wanted to live the rest of her life with his Book. Wishing just for this, she dove into the mines.

  The mines were like living hell. The scary Armed Librarians mercilessly whipped and enslaved the miners. The corpses of those who became sick from harsh labor were piled next to the mine. The mountain of bodies grew larger by the day.

  During all that, the woman merely kept working with her wish to meet her husband.

  However…

  “GIVE HIS BOOK BACK!”

  She was finally able to excavate her husband. However, the Book was taken before she could even lay a single finger on it. She begged for them to let her have a glance, to let her read it even once, but they rejected it. She shouted, rampaged and was restrained.

  “Shut up!”

  An Armed Librarian whipped her hard. Since she was an ordinary person had body became covered in blood and pieces of her meat scattered.

  “It’s my Book! That person’s Book! It’s mine!”

  She yelled. The Armed Librarian swung his whip down with scorn.

  “You idiot! As if there’s something like ‘your Book’ in this world!”

  She was struck again and again and again. Poison entered her body from the wounds and she died with agony. She asked to read her husband’s Book until the very end.

  Having finished reading the Book, Yukizona shook with ang
er. It wasn’t simply an inexcusable act of brutality; they also unashamedly called themselves Armed Librarians.

  “Yukizona. These are the real Armed Librarians. Their way of doing things was different, but the things they were doing were the same.”

  Hamyuts said.

  “Unforgiveable…”

  Yukizona murmured while tightly grasping the bookshelf. Hamyuts sighed.

  “If you won’t agree it’s quite troublesome. Since Mokkania is like that, and Bonbo is useless, and Kyasariro or Marfa don’t have enough power…”

  Hamyuts was already starting to think of her next plan.

  Yukizona then touched another Book.

  It was later than the previous two Books. It was from the period when the Armed Librarians had been reborn as protectors of peace. He felt no anger at this Book. They were fulfilling their duties as defenders of the populace.

  It was the Book of an Armed Librarian – a person second in place to the Acting Director.

  “Bantorra Library Director Ruruta-sama.”

  He and the Acting Director of the time knelt in front of the tree. The Acting Director was next to the tree and the other man behind it.

  “We present to you chosen Books from the world that you own. Please accept them.”

  The Acting Director held several Books. He brought them closer to the tree in order. As they got close to it, the Books started breaking apart and disappeared.

  He touched the final Book. Both the Acting Director and the man behind him tensed.

  “This is the last Book.”

  Saying so, the Acting Director brought the Book closer.

  Now, the other man thought.

  The next moment, the Book was turned into a short sword. It was only about as long as a middle finger and had the appearance of a caterpillar. It was one of the Memorial Weapons, the Ever-Crying Magic Blade Acharai. He had located it in order to destroy Heaven.

  He made the Magic Blade appear to be a Book using his Magic.

  The Acting Director thrust out the Ever-Crying Magic Blade. His speed was not inferior to Mattalast or Hamyuts. It was supposed to be the perfect formation to destroy Ruruta.

  However, nothing happened. The Acting Director who held the short sword was stuck in place with it pointed ahead. He failed. The moment he was ready to die, he heard a voice inside his head.

  ‘Offer up the Acting Director’s Book.’

  The one speaking was Ruruta.

  ‘That fool is now inside my dream. A dream where he destroyed me and became a hero. He is probably enveloped in happiness inside that dream right now.’

  The Acting Director’s head fell down like a wilted camellia flower. The other man trembled while being showered in the Acting Director’s spurting blood.

  His feet wouldn’t move.

  ‘Let us forgive your foolish act. But there will not be a next time.’

  No sooner had he heard these words than he bowed down. He cried, wailed and apologized while wetting himself. He could do nothing else to escape his fear.

  ‘You’re telling me to forgive you, huh. You are a foolish human. I also have people who are useful and those who are useless. You have the duty to deliver his Book to me. Therefore I need you.’

  Just as he was told, he offered up the Acting Director’s Book.

  And even after this, he kept living as an Armed Librarian. And he said the following to the next Acting Director, repeating it again and again:

  You must never go against Ruruta. No matter what happens, do not go against him.

  If another rebel appears, kill them. If anyone seems like they would rebel kill them as well.

  Yukizona read yet another Book.

  It was a somewhat new Book. The Acting Director 500 years ago was a great Magic researcher as well as warrior.

  He and his comrades used the Spinning Doll Ückück in an attempt to destroy Heaven. They gathered in one corner of the Sealed Labyrinth, sitting around it.

  What they wanted was pure destructive power – pure power to surpass Ruruta. They believed that it wasn’t impossible.

  A pebble containing mineral matter was placed in front of the crouching Spinning Doll. The precious metal inside that pebble became the origin of their Magic.

  The Acting Director recited the chant.

  “A certain weight possesses the exponentiation of the speed of light, and will turn weight itself into power. Bend space, unfix time, basing yourself on the principle of relativity, grant power into our Spinning Doll.”

  They were executing the biggest taboo in the history of Magic. Later, the people who feared this excessive force and killing power made another Spinning Doll to activate a Magic that would impose that forbidden technique to never be used again.

  This forbidden technique brought forth a pure, overwhelming destructive power. Controlling it was impossible all along. Ruruta, us fools and the entirety of Bantorra Library will all be erased. But I don’t mind that, thought the Acting Director.

  The era was just after the Ever-Laughing Witch Shiron had scattered the seeds of disaster. All around the world innocent people had lost their lives to Dragon Pneumonia.

  The Acting Director was tortured by his feelings of self-reproach; the sin of his inability to stop Shiron and Wyzaf. He was probably trying to atone for it by at least taking Ruruta along with him.

  “Spinning Doll, activate.”

  In accordance to his voice the Spinning Doll began dancing. Immediately afterward, Ückück’s head fell off.

  And at the next moment they could all hear a voice coming from afar.

  ‘I have told you this again, and again and again.’

  We weren’t supposed to be noticed by Ruruta until after we had activated it… Ruruta used his own power to drown out the Spinning Doll’s.

  ‘It is my intention for this world to exist. The world exists because I need it to.’

  An arrow of light came flying from far away. One of the men sitting in the circle was pierced by it.

  Penetrated by the light arrow, his body rapidly swelled and burst apart.

  ‘Perhaps you were all thinking that everything would be settled with your death. I must act in order to correct that misunderstanding.’

  The could hear explosive sounds from the Library overhead. Even from this deep in the Labyrinth.

  ‘You might still not understand by me killing just several hundreds of people. So listen. How many sacrifices will be required until you do? Thousands? Tens of thousands? Or will you not understand until I kill seventy percent of the world?’

  The Acting Director’s expression was already a step before complete insanity. He was unable to stop Shiron, could not defeat Ruruta, and caused many other innocent people to die.

  ‘Well then, can you understand?’

  “…We… understand.”

  ‘What?’

  “That no matter what we do it’s useless.”

  ‘Indeed. Bring me the Books of happy people. Attempting anything else would be meaningless.’

  The Acting Director slowly brought his hands to his neck. He tightened his grip until he broke his neck with a snap.

  Ruruta announced further.

  ‘If you understand I will pardon you. All so you can live in this world.’

  Unable to look anymore, Yukizona released his fingers.

  ‘No matter what we do it’s useless’.

  Yukizona felt as if he could hear these words beyond space and time.

  It was not an illusion: Ruruta sought the understanding of all Acting Directors and all humans.

  The world was his possession. He told them to understand that fact.

  “Are you able to accept it?”

  Hamyuts said with a tone without any expectations. Yuri averted her gaze from Yukizona. They were probably both thinking that he would refuse.

  He certainly thought of doing so at first.

  “Accepting it due to half-hearted feelings such as because there are no other alternatives won’t be good at al
l. If you’re going to accept it you have to accomplish your duty even in exchange for your life.”

  Hamyuts said.

  “Brother. There is no need to think about this. Let us refuse and leave Bantorra Library. We are being made fools of.”

  Yuri said. Yukizona kept silently staring at the tree and thinking.

  “I…”

  How long was he hesitating? Yukizona spoke somewhat quietly yet with a firm will.

  “I will accept it. I will serve Ruruta Coozancoona and bring him Books of happiness.”

  The one to be surprised was not only Yuri. Hamyuts also seemed to give up on making him accept it.

  “…Doesn’t seem like it’s on a whim.”

  “Yes.”

  “Do you understand? If you become the Acting Director, you will have to carry about evil deeds.”

  “I realize that. Even so, I accept.”

  “Brother, will you not reconsider?”

  Yuri pulled on his sleeves in an attempt to stop him. However, Yukizona did not change his thinking.

  “But why, brother?”

  “Yuri. It’s to protect the people of the world.”

  “…”

  Ignoring her confusion, Yukizona began to talk. He spoke towards the silent tree.

  “Ruruta Coozancoona. Do not misunderstand.

  I do understand that one cannot win against you and that we have no choice but bring Books to you. But I will not swear my loyalty to you.

  My duty is to protect the people of the world. I will become the Acting Director to protect the people from you.

  As long as I’m here, I won’t let you kill anyone. Absolutely.”

  The tree’s branches swayed.

  “Ruruta Coozancoona. Don’t think you can control even people’s hearts.”

  Yukizona stared at the tree. It showed no other response other than swaying its branches. What was he thinking? Or was he not thinking at all? He couldn’t tell.

  Four years later, Yukizona ran ahead to fulfill his duty. He wanted to protect the people of the world against Ruruta who’s started his move.

  Yukizona passed through the Fourth Sealed Archive and entered the Third Sealed Labyrinth. Starting there the Labyrinth became complex; it would take about a third of the whole distance to pass through. Yukizona wondered if Ruruta was still inside the Second Sealed Archive. Or did he already move aiming for the surface?