The further I strayed from the library’s heart, the thicker the eerie air grew. Faint footsteps echoed in the dark. Countless gazes pierced the shadows, tracking my every move. My lamp illuminated only a small circle. Bookshelves loomed taller in the gloom, morphing into ancient stone walls—a phantom labyrinth taking shape.

"Child… help me. Please place the lamp before me."

From the shelf’s shadow, an old man stretched a withered hand toward me, eyes pleading. He lay sprawled beside the shelf, one leg twisted unnaturally—as if he’d fallen and broken it. The pitiful elder begged humbly, but I turned away, sidestepping him with deliberate distance.

"Damn you! Are you a devil? To ignore a helpless elder! Heartless! Stone-cold!"

I left his hysterical cries behind, never glancing back.

"Ahahaha—how amusing," Sharafi slithered closer, her serpentine form coiling. "A tiny shadow demon trying to exploit a girl’s compassion? Did it forget? Not a single sane soul walks these library halls."

Truth be told, I wasn’t heartless. The trap was just too obvious—I couldn’t even be bothered to expose it. Even formidable Sharafi stayed cautiously outside the lamp’s glow. This lamp was my only shield. Why would I hand it away?

"Press on, Victoria," Sharafi murmured. "But heed this: the one you seek… ah, it’s not human anymore. Never mind. Just know—the being ahead is a total freak. Believe not a single word it speaks."

I nodded, accepting the warning.

"Good. Let’s enter."

Sharafi tapped the void between shelves with a sharp nail. A golden door materialized from nothing. I’d long ceased marveling at this realm’s wonders—but this door? Absurdly ornate.

Solid gold, etched with intricate patterns. Gems and jade glittered under the lamp’s light, casting an intoxicating shimmer. With a metallic creak, the door swung open. Beyond lay a corridor of piled books and scrolls. At its end, a hall overflowed with tomes, where blue spectral flames drifted—shifting into ancient arcane symbols, whispering lost secrets as they danced.

Undeniably, a treasure trove of knowledge.

"Go in," Sharafi urged. "Remember: trust nothing that thing says. Not one word."

"Thank you, milady."

I bowed to the ancient serpent deity with a human head, then stepped through. My black mage robes swayed. Even the lamp dimmed—the unstable energy here shrinking its glow.

"Mortal… what knowledge do you seek?"

A hollow voice echoed. A colossal eyeball floated at the hall’s center, ringed by countless slime-slick tentacles.

"I am Thoth," it intoned, "Master of Endless Arcana, Bestower of Knowledge. Welcome to my Sanctum of Knowledge. Here lies wonders beyond imagining—from humanity’s first written character to spells that shatter nations. Crave forbidden lore? Pay the price. All shall be yours."

The eyeball drifted nearer. The lamp’s flame flickered weakly, dancing on the verge of extinction. Slimy magic brushed my skin—a chilling touch that raised goosebumps. Within that unnatural aura, I sensed cold mockery for the foolish who overreach. This deity, lurking deep in the library, was waiting… to devour me.

"Mortal… what do you desire?" Slimy tentacles groped the dark. "All-powerful magic? The secret of turning stone to gold? Or eternal youth?"

They returned, coiled around forbidden tomes. Priceless treasures to any mortal—but to me, mere roadside pebbles.

"Pay the price, and knowledge is yours," Thoth’s eye drew close. "But the cost is steep. Can you afford it?"

"I’m sorry, sir," I said firmly. "None of these are what I seek."

"Oh? Then what *do* you want, mortal?"

"Research materials on Alchemical Lifeforms."

Hohohohahaha—!

Thoth’s deafening laughter shook the hall. Its pupil flared open—a dazzling Arcane Formula spinning within, probing my soul.

*Sting!*

A sharp pain shot through my eyes. Something etched deep in my soul reacted to the intrusion.

An… incredible sensation.

"Demon Contractor… fascinating." It blinked slowly. "How did a six-year-old forge a pact with a Lord-tier Abyssal Demon? Your secret. To learn it, I’d trade knowledge. Barter is law here—remember that. Yet… mortal, you astonish me. Alchemical Lifeforms are the ultimate taboo. Why seek such peril?"

"Sir," I answered plainly, "I am six. I cannot stand alone in society. I need an agent—a being of absolute loyalty."

"Heh. Narrow thinking," Thoth mused. "Humans bend for trifles: coin, power, beauty… Loyalty is cheap. No need to touch such danger."

"I’m sorry. Only humans… won’t do."

Hohohohahaha—! "Mortal… how deeply you despair of your own kind! Remember—you *are* human. Part of the species you scorn. Accept it. Ponder it. Paths are rarely singular."

"Sir," I stepped forward. The lamp’s flame brightened with my will. "I need the Alchemical Lifeform research. That is why I came."

"Hmm. Very well…" Slimy tentacles writhed. "I admire resolute seekers. They pay willingly."

A book emerged from darkness. A tentacle presented it. The cover bore a serpent nailed to a cross—the emblem of the Great Alchemist Hohenheim.

"This is Hohenheim’s manuscript," Thoth intoned. "Sole creator of a true Alchemical Lifeform. Yet… merely mortal. Lost in a futile family game, he tried rebuilding his warm home through alchemy. All in vain. He met ruin. A tragic end."

I stared, utterly captivated.

"What must I pay?"

"Your lamp."

Shock froze me. Surrender the lamp? Survival leaving this Sanctum of Knowledge was uncertain. Even if permitted to go, reaching the library’s safe zone felt impossible.

But retreating now meant total failure.

"Very well." I set the lamp on the floor. "I accept the price."

Instantly, tentacles lashed from the dark, coiling my body, hoisting me aloft. Slimy tendrils slithered across my skin—a nauseating, suffocating crawl.

"Mortal… you fool," Thoth’s eye loomed. "A free offering! You won’t even touch the manuscript. Such stupidity… willingly sacrificing life. Unless… you hide a trump card. *Let me see!*"

An Arcane Formula of counter-rotating triangles blazed in its pupil. Under its gaze, my soul felt stripped bare.

"Ahahaha! Fascinating… You have worth. As my plaything."

Shame flushed my cheeks crimson. I had to act. In this unstable realm, I held more power than in reality.

"Thoth! Release me!"

*Sting!*

As I roared, pain seared my eyes. Thoth shrieked in agony. Tentacles thrashed wildly, toppling book-mountains. Only its eye remained frozen.

In its reflection, my pupils blazed with kaleidoscopic light—dazzling, mysterious, mesmerizing.

"P-Please… forgive my insolence… Milord! No—*Your Majesty!* I beg you… quell your wrath!"

Eyes throbbing, I shut them. Pain faded. Magic drained from me, leaving near-collapse.

Tentacles loosened, lowering me gently. I pressed freed hands to my eyelids, then opened my eyes. Thoth had shrunk. Tentacles halved. It almost looked… pitiful.

What happened?

I had no idea…