The Young Master in the Shadows - Chapter 456: All men were the same!

The gate shimmered and in the next moment, everyone was ejected and thrown onto the hot desert sand!

“OUT AT LAST!” Mina said as she stood up and she dusted her battle suit.

“Yeah…. Damn… Those things were nasty!” Mana, who was thrown a few feet away, said. “Thankfully, that boss Crystal Golem was manageable since we already knew where his core was! If Lily didn’t tell us, we would have really been in trouble!”

“Yeah…” Mina nodded. “How is your hand?” she turned and asked Mona who was behind her. She was no longer dressed in a battle suit, but in a strange shimmering armor, and on her back, she carried a giant sword like the ones found in video games.

“I am fine… It’s completely healed thanks to Ruby!” Mona said as she moved her hand a little. No one would believe that it was completely broken an hour ago. All due to that nasty Golem grabbing her!

“Good… I was honestly very impressed by how you managed to maneuver that large sword using only one hand to strike the Golem’s eye as it held you… As Victor said, you are a natural!” Mina nodded, not forgetting to remind her sister about Victor.

“Ah…. Un…” Mona nodded. She had never learned to use a sword before, let alone this stupidly giant thing she found by chance after her old one broke. She had no other choice as enemies began attacking and it was the only thing in sight hanging on the wall… She thought it would be a little useless, and she planned to use it as a shield, but the moment she touched it, she realized she could use it as if she had always known how to! It was so natural that it felt unreal.

Probably all thanks to her Sword Saintess Class.

“Remember to keep your class a secret!” Mana reminded her, then turned to one side and looked at Donald and Opal, “The same goes for you two!”

“We already know!” Donald said, feeling as if he was in a dream. No… Wait… The pain in his butt proved that this was the real world. Damn those perverted eagles, why did they have to aim for his butt? Why not attack the girls? Were they gay…. AHHHHHHHHHHHHH…” he screamed as someone slapped his butt, it was a girl dressed in black. He remembered her name was Nora.

“It is healing alright!” she said with a smirk.

“IT IS ALL YOUR FAULT!” Donald yelled. “Damn sadistic bitch!” he added under his breath. This bitch and her other sadistic sisters drove him crazy in the dungeon, using him as bait to hunt the sand eagles that obstructed their path… Not to mention those slutty girls who seemed to purposely want him to die!

“It is your fault for getting the class Bait in the first place, It is as if the world itself was telling us to use you!” Nora spat. “Be a man and stop Whining!”

“SOMEDAY I WILL SHOW YOU HOW MUCH OF A MAN I AM…” he whispered, not daring to really talk loud, those girls were crazy.

Nora smirked looking at him then turned to Opal. “You did good too… Your class is nothing special, but it has a good window for growth, you have to keep practicing the technique I taught you!”

“I understand…” Opal nodded with complex eyes.

Donald sighed. Another nice girl was getting corrupted by control freak bitches.

“SISTER…” someone suddenly ran, it was Theta who headed quickly to a rock where a very depressed girl was sitting. “Why didn’t I see you in the dungeon? Did you get locked in like Margret did or something?” Theta asked as the slutty girls followed her toward the depressed girl and bowed respectfully.

“…” The depressed girl, AKA Alpha sighed.

“What?” Theta asked.

“I couldn’t enter…” she whispered.

“WHAT?” Theta asked again, she couldn’t hear her.

“I COULDN’T DAMN ENTER!” Alpha yelled. She had been staying here waiting for the last 5 days. In this time she tried to enter the dungeon multiple times but was pushed away every single time!

“Really?” Mana who heard the conversation asked.

“DO I LOOK LIKE I AM LYING?” Alpha asked with clear annoyance, it was as if all her dreams to level up and get stronger than a certain young master had shattered.

“No, but you don’t seem that Tan….”

Alpha just glared at her, yes… For some strange reason, her skin tone didn’t change at all despite spending all this time under the sun. Could this have something to do with that Eternal Spark something?

“Didn’t the same happen to you with the moon dungeon?” Mina asked.

“YEAH…”

“Do you know why?” Mana asked.

“…. DO I LOOK LIKE I KNOW FUCKING WHY?” Alpha yelled. Could her situation be related to that Spark? DAMN IT! IT WAS ALL VICTOR’S FAULT FOR GIVING IT TO HER!

“No need to be angry, ok!” Mina interrupted. “I am sure Victor will find a solution to your problem!”

“…” Alpha glared at her. She didn’t want to meet that guy ever again, especially after she got her new family mission to court him! DAMN IT! Hopefully, that pervert would never return from whatever shit-hole world he was in.

“Now where should we go?” Mona asked.

“Another dungeon of course!” Mina said. “Come on!”

“Can’t we get some rest?” Donald asked.

“Yes… I want to check on my mother!” Mona nodded.

“No, we can do that later. We have to hurry. Lily contacted me yesterday, she will be at that dungeon and she wants to pass a few things to us!!” she said as they started getting onto the bus.

Alpha sighed and followed right after. Hopefully what was happening was just bad luck, and she would be able to enter the next dungeon.

***

The Royal Library was not close to Rosette’s castle, but in the middle of the capital, so Victor, who was accompanied by Emira in addition to both Aerith and Lyra, had to take a carriage to get there.

“Do you mind stop staring at me like that?” Victor asked uncomfortable as he glared back at Lyra who was staring holes into him. “I am really thin skinned you know!”

“Blah… Thin-skinned?… You bastard has the thickest skin I have seen in my life!” she spat. “They should make shields out of your damn skin!”

“Well… No matter what, it is not as thick as your butt’s skin apparently… I didn’t expect you to walk after…” he began to respond.

“SHUT THE FUCK UP, YOU BASTERED!” Lyra flared and tried to jump Victor, but one look from Aerith was enough to reign in the mad girl.

“Right… You can’t see your butt’s skin…” Victor added in a soft voice, further enraging the mad girl.

“BASTARD….” she spat under her breath. She was warned not to make trouble with him. In fact, the only reason she agreed to accompany Victor here was because her mother only allowed her to take a pill for the pain if she did…. They planned to go shopping after visiting the library.

“Lyra… Come on… You should really make up with Victor, he already forgave you!” Aertith, who felt a little awkward said. “We are already family!”

“Isn’t that all your fault!” Lyra spat and looked away.

“…” Aerith sighed. She didn’t mean it like that, what she meant was that Victor was technically their mother’s step-son.

“Not all young masters are bad, you know!” Victor suddenly said after a brief awkward silence.

“Most of them are!” lyra spat.

“…” Victor sighed, she had a point. “You can’t judge a book from its cover!” he said.

“And what about your cover?” she turned and glared at him.

“…You can ask your sister… Yesterday she peeled it off my delicate skin piece by piece!” Victor smirked.

“AH….” Lyra glared at him and then turned to her sister who was blushing a little.

“You were the one who sent him to me…” Aerith finally said it, as she turned and glared at Victor.

“A…” Lyra didn’t know how to respond to that. “What’s with the little girl anyway?” she, who quickly changed the subject, asked pointing at Emira who was dressed like a little princess and was busy sucking on a candy bar beside Victor.

“What’s about her?” Victor tilted his head. “Can’t a young master be accompanied by a little girl without making you think of something improper?”

Aerith nodded, she was the one who dressed Emira, and she seemed to have grown a little fond of her.

“…. Forget it…” Lyra sighed, she was not going to go there. Arguing with this guy was as futile as speaking with a donkey. “What are you going to do at the Library anyway? Can you even read our language?” she asked.

“The books I am after don’t need reading!” he replied like every wise man would.

“… Are there books like that?” Lyra turned to Aerith and asked. They didn’t have such books in this world.

“….” Aerith hesitated. Adult books, let alone being very rare, were forbidden in the kingdom, so her little sister had no idea of their existence. “The library has all kinds of books…” she finally said, deciding to keep her silence. She came here to accompany Victor fearing he might really get into a fight with Lyra, but now, she was regretting her decision.

“I want to see those then!” Lyra said.

“NO!” Aeriht responded directly.

“WHY?” Lyra frowned.

“They contain forbidden lore!” Victor was the one who responded.

“DEMONIC MAGIC?” Lyra frowned.

“… No comment…” Victor looked away.

“How can Esteemed Mother agree to let him see those?” Lyra asked, turning to Aerith for an answer.

“You can ask her when we return…” Aerith also professionally dodged the question.

…

“LADY AERITH… WE ARE HERE!” the driver suddenly called from the front as the carriage slowed down after a few minutes.

“Finally…” Aerith sighed. “Let’s go…” she said as she took a wide hat that had a thin veil and put it on.

Victor softly inspected her but said nothing. He could understand why she wanted to hide her beauty, and it was not a good thing for people to know how horny she was.

Slowly the four descended from the carriage into the stone-paved plaza and looked at the high 6-story building in front of them. In this world, it was considered a pretty high-rise.

“It is magnificent right?” Lyra asked proudly.

Victor sighed…

“What?”

“In my original world, we have buildings 10 times higher…” he said.

“Can’t you stop lying…” Lyra spat.

“…” Victor shook his head, “I am not lying!” he said. He couldn’t wait until they went back to Trilaria. If this girl were to return with them, she would be in for the shock of her life… Wait… he had a question, would Lyra who was originally from this world go with him to Trialira, what about Emira… Would the world destroy them or lock them in a dungeon? Probably not but he better get some scapegoat to try on first!

“It is true… Mother did tell me about something like that!” Aertih told Lyra as they walked into the library.

“Oh…” Lyra frowned as she climbed the stairs leading to the library.

“STOP! ONLY NOBLES MAY….” The fully armored guards who were going to stop them quickly stepped back and bowed down as soon as Aertih flashed a golden badge with a poop insignia and three strips above it. No wait… That was a storm insignia, the girl was holding the badge upside down!

“They don’t seem to recognize you…” Victor commented.

“I use a different Veil each time, and Lyra never comes here in the first place…” Aerith said, making Lyra in the back puff her cheeks.

“Oh…” Victor nodded. “Why change Veils?” he asked.

“Pest control!” she replied quickly.

“Oh…” Victor nodded. “The hormones do attract pests…” he nodded, making her almost stumble, thankfully they reached the reception disk just in time for her to grab onto it and turn back to glare at her husband. He had a point, but she didn’t like it.

“Can’t you drop that joke?” she asked as she noticed Lyra’s smug looks. Damn it, even this brat was now making fun of her.

“What joke?” he asked.

“… Nothing!” she spat, she was not going to say it, not with the receptionist bowing to her.

“How can I help you, lady Aertih?” the receptionist asked. She was an old woman with a smiley face. A very scary old woman with a smiley face.

; ;

“Aunt Germina, we need to access the forbidden section!” Aerith directly said.

“Oh… Only the High Disciples and their direct family can have access without a written permission from her Lordship“ Germina frowned. “This is?” she asked, looking at Victor.

“…” Aerith hesitated for a moment. “He is my husband…” she whispered. Unfortunately, the library was very quiet, so when the couple of employees in the reception hall looked at her with shock, it was clear that they had clearly heard her!

“…”

“…”

“…. So can we get in…”

“Ah… Your…. Husband….?” the old woman who didn’t expect that answer had to take a few moments to restart her brain.

“Um…”

“Right… Congratulations, your highness!” she quickly said.

“…Thanks…” Aerith replied with a complex look.

“ All of you want an entry?” she asked, looking at Emira whom she didn’t know her identity. Could she be their daughter?

“No, just me and Victor… “ Aerith, who decided not to explain, said then turned to Lyra, “Take Emira, wait for us…”

“What? What would you take me for a babysitter….”

“Do you want to go inside and read with us then?” Aerith asked.

Lyra frowned. She didn’t want to read. Libraries were boring.

“Then take care, we will go shopping as soon as we are finished here!” Aerith said, taking Victor’s hand and dragging him inside.

He could only get dragged along as he secretly gave Emira instructions to be careful. She was pretty safe with Lyra. That girl was a little crazy, but this was exactly why no one would really dare to mess with her in the capital!

…

“You can find the books you want here…” the old woman said with a stoic face as soon as they reached a certain portion of the library in the 7th basement below ground. “Forbidden books can’t be checked out, but you are free to use one of the private chambers there to ‘read quietly’… Remember to keep your silence and do not damage the books!” she warned sternly. He was not the first one to come here to see those.

“Oh… I understand!” Victor said as his eyes sparkled. “See you later!” he told Aerith as he ran toward one of the shelves and began to search through it for something to ‘read’.

“We need to leave in two hours!” Aerith reminded him.

“I know, I know… “ he dismissed her.

“…” she could only sigh. “Wait for me… This place can be like a maze so don’t wander alone!” she warned again.

“Aha…” he nodded absentmindedly as he seemed to have spotted a book he liked.

Germina sighed watching them but said nothing. All men were the same! “What can I do for you princess?” she asked.

“Do you have any books about demon hunters?” Aerith, who was glaring at Victor with complex eyes, turned and asked in a low voice.

“Demon hunters… Like the ones used to roam the wilds in the old days?” the old woman asked.

“Yes… Do you have anything with a list of known ones and their specialties?” Aerith asked.

“I guess we can find something like that in the secret biographies section…” the old woman nodded. “This way please!” she said as she watched Victor go into one of the reading rooms with three thick books in hand.

Yup… All men were the same…

…

As soon as Victor entered the reading room, he quickly inspected it. This place, contrary to the building, was newly added.

Victor had noticed this ever since entering the Library. While the upper floors were clearly new, the lower ones were much older, and from the way it was arranged it was clearly not meant to be a library when it was built, but more like a fortress.

Making sure there were no monitoring devices, he placed the books at the reading table inside before sitting down. He opened one of them and started to casually leaf through it.

Garbage…

He sighed… like those old books, would never be able to turn him on with their primitive… he paused as he eyed an illustration… That was a good technique…. Oh, that can be done too? He quickly read through the entire page, flipping to the next without realizing it.

Ah! Without knowing it, he finished the entire book… Very interesting. Let’s see…

NO! SHIT!

He pushed the table away and stood up realizing what had just happened…DAMN IT! He wasted a full 30 minutes fully engrossed in this ‘techniques’ manual! If his appraisal skill didn’t show that the book was a totally normal one, he would have thought it had some attraction skill!

It was just that good! But Damn, he had no time for this.

He sighed taking a deep breath as he flipped another book open then slowly applied his disguise skill, hiding his presence, and at the same time, he created an illusion of a man engrossed in ‘reading’ appeared.

The reason he requested to come to view the porn was for a very simple reason. Those things were usually kept in the forbidden zone, quite close to the real forbidden stuff.

By getting down here with Aerith, he didn’t have to go search by himself, and it alleviated a lot of the risk of having to bypass all kinds of crazy defense mechanisms that he spotted on the way.

Other than getting that cookbook, the reason he came to the library was simple. It was to find out the truth about many things in this world, including the rumored Fate artifact.

As someone who worked as a librarian, he had long learned that all royal families have the bad habit of keeping books, and they were especially fond of those forbidden ones that should be destroyed, keeping them tightly sealed just in case they were needed.

With that thought he passed right through the reading chamber’s thin wooden wall, then proceeded to head deep into the library.