Raze shut the door to his room and leaned against it. The quiet inside was almost heavy compared to the cold pressure of his father's office.
He sighed and moved to his desk, dropping into the chair. His eyes fell on the book he had carried earlier and then drifted around the room. The bed was neatly arranged, the shelf half full of books and scrolls, the faint smell of dust and wood in the air.
As his gaze wandered, something caught his attention.
A small figure sat on the lowest corner of the shelf.
It was carved from stone, or something close to it. Shaped like a man in robes with a book in his lap, head bowed as if reading.
Raze frowned. This wasn't in the story. He had read the book the so many well enough to remember all, He never remembered anything about Raze Grimhold owning a statue like this.
Curious, he stood. The floorboard by the bed creaked. His toe clipped the edge and pain shot up his foot.
"Ah, damn," he muttered, stumbling forward.
His palm struck the statue. The sharp corner of the stone book pressed into his hand, and a thin cut opened across his skin. Blood welled and dripped before he could pull away.
The drop hit the open book of the statue.
And vanished.
The room froze. The air tightened, thick and still.
Raze's heart skipped.
[Ding!]
A voice rang clearly in his head.
[Special Feature: Dimensional Library Activated.]
His eyes widened. "What—"
[Registration complete.]
[User: Raze Grimhold. Soul signature: Peter Orion.]
He froze. His name from Earth appeared in the text. His breath caught in his throat.
"This… this is the gift she gave me?" he whispered.
The cut on his palm closed, leaving only clean skin behind. The statue glowed faintly, light running across its form like liquid silver.
The world tilted.
The shelves blurred, the walls stretched into long streaks of light, the floor vanished beneath his feet. He felt no weight, no fall, only movement, endless and slow, like turning a page.
Then suddenly he was standing again.
But not in his room.
His mouth dropped open.
All around him were books.
Rows and rows, towers of shelves stretching upward until they vanished into shadow. The air smelled of ink and paper, old yet alive. Faint lights drifted above like lanterns with no chains, filling the vast space with a glow both soft and clear.
Raze turned in a slow circle. His body trembled. He had imagined things like this countless times while reading, but this was real. This was no dream.
[Welcome to the Dimensional Library.]
The words slid gently into his mind, calm and certain.
"This… this is…" His voice cracked. He pressed a hand against his chest. His heart was hammering. "The goddess… she really gave me this."
[The Dimensional Library exists outside of time. Only the registered user may enter. Here, knowledge is stored. Here, knowledge may be learned.]
The message faded, leaving silence again.
Raze swallowed hard. His throat was dry.
"Knowledge," he repeated. His fingers twitched, wanting to reach for the nearest shelf. His eyes darted, scanning the endless spines. Some bore words in strange languages, some glowed faintly, some looked so ordinary it almost hurt.
His body shook. His lips curled upward, almost against his will.
Books.
An entire world of them.
This wasn't just a gift. This was a dream made flesh.
Raze laughed suddenly, the sound harsh and sharp in the quiet, echoing faintly before being swallowed by the shelves. He pressed both hands to his face and dragged them down, trembling.
"I can't believe this… I really can't believe this…"
He took a few steps forward, the stone floor cool under his bare feet. Every shelf seemed to lean toward him, waiting.
The goddess had said she gave him something even beyond her. Now he understood.
[Basic access granted.]
[Novice Section unlocked.]
Raze blinked. "Novice…?"
[The library is vast. Sections unlock as the user grows. At present, only beginner knowledge is accessible.]
He nodded dumbly. His eyes darted to the closest shelf, where plain spines lined up in neat rows. His hand lifted, hesitant, almost shaking.
He reached for a book, fingers brushing against its surface.
The book glowed faintly beneath his touch, letters shifting on the spine until they were readable.
Basic Magic.
Raze froze. His throat tightened. He stared at the title.
Basic Magic.
The story had always been cruel to Raze Grimhold. He was talentless. No gift for the sword, no gift for mana. A reader, nothing more. Fated to die.
But here in front of him was something different. A book that promised a way forward.
His breath came short. He pulled the book free, holding it close. The cover was plain, the leather worn, but to him it was more precious than gold.
[Do you wish to learn from this book?]
The system's question rang clearly.
Raze's lips parted. His chest rose and fell.
"Yes," he whispered.
The book opened in his hands.
Light poured from the pages, wrapping around him. Words unfolded across the air, glowing.
Magic is not talent. It is understanding. It is listening until the world answers back.
Raze stared, eyes wide, heart racing. He could barely breathe.
The words burned themselves into his mind.
[Skill seed detected.]
[Imprint available: Mana Sense (Unawakened).]
Raze's hands shook. He looked down at himself, then back at the glowing page.
"This… this is real," he whispered. "I… I can actually…"
The system cut in again.
[Note: The Library does not grant strength. The Library grants knowledge. The rest is up to you.]
Raze's knees weakened. He stumbled back a step, clutching the book tightly.
He was shaking all over, not from fear, but from the weight of realization. In this new world, he had something greater than magic, or strength, he had access to am infinite amount of knowledge, and with it he could rise to he far more than anything that was known before.
He held the book in hands, he looked around the library, a smile formed his face.
"Hahaha, i guess this time I'll really live my life." He said.
Bang bang bang.
Suddenly a loud hitting sound reached him from outside the library.