LSRO: Chapter 75 - So Many Choices (Patreon)

Hi there!

Everything was rather ambiguous of her, right?

~~

Chapter 75

So Many Choices

Everything, as it turned out, was a lot.

Despite the in-cahoots maniacal laughter she shared with Malakai when she declared that she wanted to do everything, Quinn really meant it. Now there'd actually be time to dive into the nitty-gritty of the Library, to build herself up. From everything that she understood, the Librarian was supposed to be strong and able to defend the entire space all by herself.

Even though she had people who would fight alongside her, she'd never really had to depend on anybody else in her life, and she wasn't about to start now. Even if, to some extent, she even thought she sounded a little arrogant thinking that way. The others might be there for backup, just in case.

"So what are you thinking then, Quinn?" Malakai asked as she stood in front of a massive listing on the HUD that extended to be taller than herself as she scrolled through it.

"Hmm, I mean, I could start with everything, or I could just narrow down a few things since Hirish and Siliqua are almost done fixing the problem. I want to learn about combat affinities. I know I'm not the strongest person," she said to forestall Malakai's comments. "I understand that. But at the same time, I could become stronger by using the affinities. There are strength tomes, agility tomes, tomes on martial arts, on sword-wielding, and not just a bloody machete. Machetes are sincerely not what I thought I'd be fighting with."

"Really?" Lynx asked, sounding a little offended. "I thought they quite suited you."

Quinn laughed. "Seriously? Have you seen my coordination with sharp objects?"

Lynx cringed. "Fine. I won't take offense then."

"Good. I didn't mean to upset you. But I was hoping I could maybe use a staff... Perhaps I'd be better with blunt weapons. I don't know. I've never used them." Quinn shrugged.

Malakai crossed his arms and leaned back against one of the counters. The three of them were completely ignoring the rest of the check-in desk. "I could see that. I can train you in blunt weapons. It's not quite at the expertise level of my sword, but I am proficient in bow and staff usage."

Quinn grinned. "Perfect. So you can help drill the knowledge into me."

"I can." the elf prince nodded.

But Quinn wasn't done yet. "I also want to learn about making regeneration food and energy replenishment food. I want to see if I can try and come up with new recipes. I'm not the best person in the kitchen, but I make pretty decent, okay-tasting food."

"I'm sure Cook will help you, he seems to have a soft spot for you." Malakai hesitated and then asked: "You know, okay-tasting food isn't really a good benchmark to brag about, don't you?"

Quinn rolled her eyes. "It doesn't matter. I want to absorb cookbooks. I want to have all the elemental knowledge, all the abilities and skills and spells and however the things I don't know about work. It's all necessary... Because you know they're going to come after me outside of my dreams if they can't get me in them, right? Eventually."

"I'm sort of surprised they haven't yet," Malakai said. He scowled slightly, deep in thought for a moment. Quinn was still running through the massive list of books. She asked it to refine itself down to the specific areas she wanted to address.

"You know," Malakai said, "it has only been, what, four weeks since you got here? Considering they didn't realize that the Library would be able to get a Librarian at all, I would say the enemy is currently not in a position to continue their sabotage of the Library. It's probably trying to amass forces or to figure out a different way to get to you."

Quinn paused. "What do you mean by a different way to get to me?"

Lynx cleared his throat very loudly so he could butt in. "Look, you two little trouble makers," he said. "At some stage here soon, you're going to have to retrieve books that haven't yet returned. That's probably the easiest opening for them to get you... or try to."

"Well, I'm going to take my bodyguard Malakai here and absorb all the knowledge in the Library so I can just obliterate them on the spot." Quinn said, attempting to laugh the threat off.

"Not quite how it works, but I like your gusto," Lynx said.

"Gusto?" Quinn asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes," Lynx said. "But that is food for later thought, because right now we still have ten days until the 30 days are up, and then we're going to have to send out warnings. Oh, it's going to be magnificent." He rubbed his hands together, the runes in his hair suddenly swirling like a vortex.

Quinn eyed the runes with some trepidation until they calmed down a bit. "Don't I have to send out another pulse to let them know to return the books?"

"Oh, yeah. No time like the present. May as well do that now." Lynx seemed giddy with the thought of being able to leverage fines again.

"Okay, shouldn't we wait until we have the other assistants in place?" Quinn asked.

Lynx blinked. "You know, that also sounds like a better and more logical idea. Get ready for the influx and all. You pick. You're the librarian. You managed the whole Library for several days while I was completely out of it. I know you can do this."

Quinn's eyes narrowed as she stared at the manifestation. "What are you concocting?"

Malakai spoke up instead. "He's realized that you're in danger, and now he's trying to figure out ways, without you knowing, to protect you."

Quinn raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

Lynx sighed. "You're no fun, Elf."

"I know," Malakai said. "It's part of my charm."

"Charm, schmarm," Lynx muttered.

"Is he right, Lynx? Are you trying to figure out ways to keep me safe?" Quinn asked, her voice soft.

"I'm trying to figure out ways to keep you safe while still allowing you to learn all of your abilities. So... yes." Lynx answered begrudgingly

"Thank you," Quinn said, really meaning it. "I want to learn all the elements, horticulture and alchemy, and..." She paused. "Wait a second. If it exists as an affinity, then I have that affinity, correct?"

"Yes," Lynx said so. "Essentially, you can absorb every single book in the Library, if you so choose."

Quinn nodded slowly. "Doesn't that mean that chaos is also an affinity? I mean, it's magic of creation and destruction... right?"

Lynx blinked at her. So did Malakai but the manifestation spoke first. "Well, yes, but... Not just anyone can use that without being devoured."

"Kajaro uses it, right?" Quinn asked.

"Yes," Malakai said and rushed to head off anything else she might say. "And did he seem normal to you, Quinn? Did he seem normal?"

Quinn had the good grace to laugh. "No, he doesn't seem normal, but then none of this seems normal to me, although maybe it is here. Still, he had enough of his mind left to work out a pretty devious plan."

"Still not normal," Malakai piped up. "It's not normal to try and implant dream control into your opponent's mind."

Quinn shrugged. "Well, I mean, it might not be normal, but it's definitely logical in a really weird magical sort of way. I mean, wouldn't we do the same thing if we thought we could get him to stop what he was doing? Or if we thought we could get in deeper and understand what they were doing? Or hell, if we wanted to stop what he was doing and we were strong enough in that dreamworld. I mean if I was strong enough in there... If I could use that magic effectively? I totally get it."

"You do have a point," Lynx said. "But still, Quinn, grappling with chaos is just not how things are done. There's a level of danger there... of losing yourself completely, of being overrun."

"Yes, but pulling somebody from a completely non-magical world into this one is also not done. It seems we're breaking all sorts of rules here." She sighed. "I'm not trying to be rude or to say you're wrong because I have no idea what I'm doing. But at the same time, I think we can all agree that from the very start with the sabotage, the way things are usually done? That hasn't been a thing for a really long time. It's all changed and still changing."

Lynx looked extremely thoughtful at the comment and he shut up. Quinn returned to gleefully scrolling through the titles for the areas she was interested in and selecting those she wanted mentally. Wind and air and ice. She definitely wanted some more ice powers. She had a feeling that if she tried hard enough, she'd be able to freeze somebody from the inside out, even just using their veins to freeze the water content in their blood.

Quinn paused and looked for anatomy. Her jaw dropped when she saw the huge list of them. "There are books on every single species' anatomy, every single creature's anatomy. How is that magic?"

"It's not magic," Lynx said like that answered everything.

Suddenly Misha materialized in front of them. "It is magical application. You see, for some types of magic execution, you must understand the creatures or the species that you are fighting against."

"Know the makeup... and you know where its weak points are?" Quinn asked.

"Technically. If you know how something is made up and you can basically unmake them, destroy them," Misha said.

"Isn't that a very chaotic way to think?"

Misha blinked. "Was that not what you were just speaking of? It is a very unique way to use magic. Not everybody can unmake things. You, however, have the ability to unmake everything as long as you understand the theory behind it."

"Just me..." Quinn said, a little scared by the prospect of that type of power.

Misha's moon-like eyes flashed. "Currently from what I can extrapolate. Yes."

Quinn suddenly found it hard to swallow and turned back to her catalog perusal. She paused, finding something else she found odd. "There's blood magic?"

"Of course, there's blood magic," Malakai said. "What? You think you can have water magic and fire magic and you can't have blood magic?"

"Wouldn't that be sort of evil?" Quinn asked.

"I can see your prejudice is showing up there," Malakai said. "It's just like this whole elf business with you."

Quinn blushed slightly. "I just, I was thinking vampires and stuff."

Malakai rolled his eyes. "Not this again."

Quinn was about to change the subject when Misha spoke up again, "What other elements are you looking to learn, Librarian?"

"Well, I sort of want exciting ones and ones that can give me immediate results." Quinn said after some thought.

Misha somehow managed to raise one of their golem eyebrows. "Exciting ones? But you can eventually absorb them all."

"Well, yes, but some seem frightfully dull," Quinn said.

"Quinn," Misha said, "some might seem dull and mundane to you at first glance, but any information can be useful given the right sense of circumstances. What you currently find dull and mundane, could perhaps one day salvage your life."

"Oh," Quinn said, feeling sufficiently chastised. "I'll try to remember that," she said.

She continued to leaf through and select the books that she wanted to grab. This constant being told what she needed to learn had dried up, especially since Milaro wasn't looking over her shoulder. She accessed areas of mind magic that seemed to lead on from areas she'd already studied. Then there were books on ice magic. And she took a beginner book on blood magic because she couldn't help but find it fascinating. And why wouldn't she be able to combine ice and blood magic? Surely there wasn't anything that stopped that. And that's when she turned to the species and picked out a manual on the serpensiril physiology.

There was no way she'd ever let him get the upper hand again. Plus, perhaps she could find a way to stop him from coming back next time Malakai killed him. The thought lingered in her mind for a moment and she felt guilty for entertaining killing... but only for a second.

"Do you think I can get all of these sent up to my quarters, please?" She asked, suddenly a little nervous about learning this much information. It'd be a lot to take in, a lot to absorb, and she'd definitely have to stop by the kitchen. Quinn let out a long sigh.

"I still have two days, right?" She said suddenly thinking of the pillars. "I don't need to be here when the 24 hours clicks over on the third pillar, do I?"

Lynx shook his head. "You do not need to be here for that."

"Hey," she asked, "those chaos books we retrieved, where are they kept, and why aren't they on this list?"

Lynx clucked his tongue in exasperation. "You've already learned them, Quinn. Why would they be on that list?"

"Oh," She could feel the heat rising in her cheeks along with a flush of embarrassment. "Well, why aren't there any other chaos books on this list?"

"Because chaos books are a restricted item."

"Well, surely studying the effects and nature of chaos essence is like the best way to incorporate it so that, you know, you can nullify it, right?" Quinn paused for a second making sure she'd said what she thought she'd said. "Doesn't that make sense?"

"Well," Lynx said, "We do have a restricted vault. We haven't shown you that yet because all of the items in there are, A, dangerous, and B, above the level you can currently absorb with your knowledge level."

"Oh," Quinn was mostly unphased about not being able to absorb it yet. She got that she needed to rank up through the different skill levels first. "Still though, we have like a high security vault?"

"Yes."

"Oh, now you're talking," she said. "You have to show me that."

Lynx sighed, and she knew where they were headed next.

Quinn really liked getting her way.

~~

Don't we all like getting our ways?

So... I thought there should be a restricted vault of books. Ones that had been proven to have been misused. But it's going to be relatively select and small.

But pretty... I'll probably make it pretty.

Let me know what you thought.

Much love

KT