Exploring Technology in a Wizard World
Chapter 470 - 469: The Novel in the Library

Chapter 470: Chapter 469: The Novel in the Library

Bathed in the illumination of the Sunshine Crystal, Richard’s gaze swept across the entire library, only to realize that although it bore the label "private," it was by no means small. The layout was a long rectangle, approximately twelve or thirteen meters wide and over twenty meters long, covering an area of nearly three hundred square meters.

The floor was paved with polished bluestone, which, in the light of the Sunshine Crystal, shone like it was waxed. Rows of towering, gold-colored bookshelves stuffed with books stood on the bluestone floor. Although not made of pure gold, their opulence was unmistakable.

After scanning the entire library, Richard couldn’t help but internally exclaim: So this is what the personal libraries of the wealthy look like in this world.

Princess Rose, standing to one side, reacted indifferently to the library’s appearance. Whether it was the gold-colored bookshelves or the multitude of books, she found them all rather commonplace, and blandly said, "Nothing special, huh? It’s a bit smaller than I expected. I really don’t understand why father forbids me from coming in here so casually. Hmmph, I’ll build a bigger one and not allow him to enter freely either!"

Richard: "..."

"Hmm, what’s this?" Suddenly, Princess Rose discovered something new and stepped over to it. Richard followed and saw a row of statues in the corner of the library.

Each statue was life-sized, and though they were entirely black in color, the details appeared incredibly lifelike, as if real people were standing there. However, upon touch, one would find them undeniably cold and lifeless, made not of wood but some kind of metal. Richard guessed it might be a sort of anti-corrosive alloy.

After examining the statues a bit more, Richard lost interest, withdrew his gaze, and headed towards the bookshelves. He began to quickly skim through books, trying to find content related to the secrets of the Black Spirit Empire and the Black Spirit King.

Princess Rose admired the statues for a while, then she too lost interest and walked away with a shake of her head. Initially dutifully surveilling Richard, she soon started to yawn out of boredom. She sat down in a corner, leaning against a bookshelf, her head nodding almost to the point of falling asleep, until she couldn’t resist grabbing a book from the shelf in hopes of passing the time through the night.

And why does it feel like I’m being imprisoned?

This thought crossed Princess Rose’s mind as she frowned displeasedly and flipped open the book in her hand, only to be greeted by densely packed, tiny print that made her head spin, and she couldn’t help but toss it aside.

Who would want to read this stuff?

Princess Rose thought to herself, returning the book to its place and pulling out another, only to find it was also full of text. She tried reading a few lines with a forced effort but couldn’t understand a thing, and huffily stuffed it back onto the shelf.

Then the third book, the fourth book, the fifth book...

Boring, uninterested, can’t understand, uninterested, can’t understand, can’t understand...

Princess Rose picked through books one by one, and finally, at the very corner of the shelf, she found a book with a colorful cover.

Her spirits lifted, Princess Rose thought it might be a rare Knight novel and quickly began reading from the first page.

However, just as she finished the opening section, her eyes flickered, sensing that something was off, though she couldn’t pinpoint exactly what it was.

"Elizabeth Jona, who lives in Nobe City, is the eldest daughter of Countess Elizabeth I. Her mother was once the most beautiful and appealing female noble in the lands of Nobe City. From a young age, Elizabeth Jona inherited her mother’s traits and enjoyed making many friends. Hmm, making friends."

She continued reading.

"...On March 15th, the day of the Full Moon, Elizabeth Jona and her beloved Baron Filido had a secret rendezvous in the castle..."

"Is this a romance novel for nobles?" Princess Rose read up to this point, feeling like she had uncovered the truth, and muttered to herself, "I thought it was a knight’s adventure novel, which is a bit disappointing. But it doesn’t matter, it’s good to have a novel to read. I just don’t understand why this seemingly unappealing novel would be hidden here."

With a hint of confusion, Princess Rose continued to read, and her expression gradually changed.

"Elizabeth Jona chuckled, tapped the Baron on the forehead, and gave a giggle. The Baron returned the smile, leaned forward, and moved closer to Elizabeth Jona’s cheek..."

"Whoosh!" Princess Rose abruptly looked up, her face as red as a beet, feeling feverishly hot. She instinctively gripped the book tightly, realizing that what she was reading was not a romance novel, nor was it a knight’s novel—it was the kind of indecent novel she had heard about from the maids.

Ah, the indecent novel!

"How could such novels truly exist in the world!" exclaimed Princess Rose, bewildered, her tone mixing indignation with a hint of guilt. She stealthily glanced at Richard, who was browsing books in the distance, and let out a long sigh of relief.

"Phew—luckily, it seems he hasn’t noticed me reading this. Better put it back quickly and pretend I never saw it," she whispered to herself and quickly shoved the book back in its place.

In the process of stuffing it back, she accidentally flipped through a few pages, and her eyes widened. There was a page with vibrant colors featuring a realistic oil painting. On it, a graceful woman was sitting under a tree, sporting a sweet, enchanting smile...

"So this is Elizabeth Jona, that’s what she looks like. She’s pretty after all. I just don’t know what that Baron Filido looks like. Is he very handsome?" thought Princess Rose unconsciously, her hand irresistibly flipping the pages forward in hope of finding another oil painting.

After turning two pages, she suddenly stopped, feeling both embarrassed and guilty, she covered her face and chastised herself, "What am I doing? I can’t keep reading this, it’s corrupting, I must stop, I must put it back right away. Yes, put it back."

"But, then again, just a little peek can’t hurt, right? Yeah, it should be fine."

"No, no, I have to put it back."

"Why be so naive, now that I’ve started, does it really matter how much I see? Might as well finish it."

Princess Rose was tormented, feeling as though a white-winged angel and a black aura-spewing demon had emerged in her mind.

The demon was tempting her, convincing her that continuing to read the book in her hands was not such a big deal.

The angel, however, spoke with conviction, urging her, "The demon is right, don’t waste time, just do it!"

Princess Rose: "..."

In the end, Princess Rose made up her mind, deciding there must be nothing wrong with listening to the angel—and started to act.

That’s when the "tap, tap, tap" of footsteps suddenly sounded, as Richard approached. At that moment, in Rose’s ears, the footsteps seemed unusually loud, or perhaps it was an illusion, but she even thought she heard echoes.

"Tap, tap, tap..."

"Tap, tap..."

"Tap..."