The Charming Villain Just Wants To Be A Salted Fish - Chapter 12.2

They carefully walked up the stairs.

All of a sudden, the girl’s eyes were mesmerized on the bookshelf under the stairs, and her heart started beating faster.

“Hurry up,” Joyce said as she went from the second floor to the third. She heard what sounded like the students entering the library. They kept reaching where Joyce and the girl had gone. She sped up on the third floor, but bumped into a barrier.

“Damn it! What is this?!”

The girl snapped out of it because of Joyce’s voice. She put her hands out and pushed the invisible barrier. In a flash, it turned into fireflies that dispersed everywhere and the barrier disappeared.

Joyce was speechless when she looked at the girl next to her.

At the moment, they had no time to discuss what had happened. They heard footsteps behind them coming up the third floor.

The barrier promptly came back after they went past this point. They bolted warily along the empty third floor of the library.

“Aretha—”

The girl immediately froze.

She stared stiffly at the dark bookshelf at the end as if something was calling her name.

“Why aren’t you moving?” Joyce instantly stopped and grabbed her hand.

“Did you hear… Someone…” The young girl’s voice was in a daze.

“Cassinio?”

When Joyce spoke Cassinnio’s name, the girl regained some control.

“I-it’s not him, but this voice… is very familiar…” The girl finally got a grip of herself and said, “Let’s go.”

They stopped speaking and ran on together.

In their hurry, the girl collided into the side of a bookshelf. It shook slightly, but fortunately did not fall over. However, a book fell from it to the ground.

“This…”

The handwriting emitted a beautiful light. It felt like it was guiding her to read it.

This was a journal with an ancient marking painted on it. She picked it up and opened it carefully.

“Magic is to be explored, it is not a tool that can be imprisoned in books.”

The writing boldly boasted how a person’s inherent magic could be improved, but these words gave her a strong sense of familiarity. The girl’s heart skipped a beat and flipped through the journal to the end.

*Man can never refuse a gift from the gods. Just as when love arrives. Just as when death opens the door. —Cassinnio*

She suddenly gasped.

“This is…” Joyce used the moonlight to read through the small words on the last page of the journal. She covered her lips as she giggled, like she was aware of what was going on. She questioned, “What is this? A love journal?”

The young girl’s face was instantly stained with a suspicious scarlet hue.

At this moment, an elegant sparrow flew in through the window.

Joyce and the girl glanced at each other. Then, Joyce took the girl’s hand again and dashed through the dark and empty floor. They did not stop until they found a secluded corner between some bookshelves. Joyce gasped for breath and peeked behind her.

“Oh, damn it! Why do I need to run away with you?”

“I-I’m sorry.” The young girl’s voice carried guilt and nervousness.

“Oh, it’s all right, don’t worry about it.” Joyce quickly grinned. “Did he bully you? If he bullies you, then beat… You can’t beat him. You’re right to run away from him.”

“…” The girl looked at her bewilderedly but then nodded obediently under her embarrassed and polite smile. “Anyway… thank you.”

While they were talking, the moon’s swaying shadow among the trees outside gradually accumulated into dark clouds. The window closed, but at the same time they felt a faint breeze that flowed through the books.

“Why is there a wind…”

Joyce murmured, and before she could finish, the lights in the library were lit at once—and in the flickering light’s shadows, she saw a slender and tall figure.

“Run!” *:･ﾟ

Joyce grabbed the girl and ran again. They ran frantically, but the footsteps behind them always followed them lightly, slowly, and closely.

Just after making a sharp turn around a bookshelf, Joyce could not stop herself from bumping into a man.

“Ah!!”

The panic from being forced to stop made her yelp, but as soon as she looked up, the man in front of her made her freeze in place.

“Why is it you?”

Sean frowned and looked disapprovingly at the way she was out of breath from running. He was about to say something, but his eyes were immediately focused on the girl who Joyce had pulled closely behind her.

“How…”

His eyes held a look of astonishment, but Joyce had already grabbed his hand. “There’s no time to explain! Someone… Oh, he’s violent! Chasing us! Run!!”

“…?”

Before Sean could react, Joyce was pulling him along and running forward—

But the three of them did not run very far yet when the person following them seemed to have lost his patience. He gradually solidified into a figure that was more dazzling than the statue.

“Cassinio…” Without needing an explanation, Joyce had already guessed who the man in front of her was.

“Sean, I can’t believe that you have not improved after all these years. How can you fool around with a vampire?” It was like the two of them were nothing to him and were pushed aside by his eyes, which finally landed on the girl behind them. Those frosty eyes took on a glint of gentleness.

“The game is over. My little girl, it’s time for you to come with me.”