After saying goodbye to Quevedo, Florent, who was still unfamiliar with the National Library of Trier, decided to first familiarize himself with the different floors. Once he knew them well, he could then decide which books to read and make a more precise plan for what to do.
Classifying books in a library is a rigorous discipline. Its aim is to make it easier for readers to find the books they might need, so they can spend their time reading rather than searching.
It took a lot of work and effort by renowned scholars. As long as books exist, as long as they remain valuable, and as long as someone wants to create a publicly accessible library, whether on the original Earth or in this more mystical version of Earth, this effort is universally recognized.
In this world, perhaps because civilization developed based on that of the previous Earth, the classification of libraries is surprisingly similar between the two worlds.
The library is divided into ten categories:
Generalities, Theology, History, Social Sciences, Natural Sciences, Technology·Engineering·Industry, Industry, Arts, Languages and Literature . The National Library of Trier adds, apart from these ten categories, a section called "Subsistence", which is located on the first floor of the library.
The only major difference between these two worlds is that philosophy is replaced by theology.
To this day, philosophy remains considered a part of theology. This may be due to the fact that the deities of this world sometimes appear as manifestations of their power. Thus, even Gekai Allen, the most famous philosopher of Intis—comparable to Lurmie of Loen—must publicly acknowledge that philosophy is an extension of theology: it is through theology that philosophy can develop.
In reality, even secular philosophy masters are fervent defenders of theology, at least on the surface. Lurmi is a devotee of the "Storm Lord" and has received the "Disciple of the Storm" medal—the highest distinction for a non-believer of the Storm Lord cult.
Likewise, Gekai Allen is a devout follower of the "Eternal Sun" and possesses the "Morning Dawn" medal, the highest distinction for non-believers of the Sun cult.
On Earth, there is a saying that defies common sense: "Science leads to philosophy, philosophy leads to theology." Unfortunately, in this world where gods are real, where divine power completely dominates royal power, and where real gods oversee this world, this saying has become reality.
Returning to the structure of the library's floors: the first floor is dedicated to subsistence. This category contains the books most easily exploited to transform knowledge into wealth. The classification is less rigorous and the content of the works relatively superficial.
The second floor is divided into three areas. Upon entering, Florent saw that the space in front of the staircase was divided into three sections: left, right, and center.
The left and right sections are much larger than the center one, but it is the central area that deserves the most attention from newcomers: the Generalities area.
The General Information section is regularly updated, as the library frequently purchases new books. Occasionally, certain works require major revisions, especially in today's age of technological explosion.
The majority of the works in the Generalities are written by followers of the god of steam and machines. After all, writing the Generalities requires a broad cultural background. For the cult of the god of steam and machines in Intis, this is a good way to increase the number of followers. A small portion of the works are written by followers of the god of knowledge and wisdom, simply because some of the works are essential classics.
The left-hand area is devoted to theology, the right to history. Historical works cover only the Fifth Era. Books from the Fourth Era have either been destroyed or survive as fragments with unclear contents. The Fourth Era is known as the Age of the Gods—for mortals of the Fifth Era, the gods appeared directly in the world, influencing the perception of their power and mystery.
"The reasons are complex. Primarily, no god directly rules a kingdom, and the way gods gain faith has changed. In the Fourth Era, gods appeared directly.
They obtained faith both by their immense power and by the adherence of their thoughts by mortals.
At that time, there was no distinction between good and evil gods: the only criteria were whether they directly ruled a country or not." — Fourth Era — The Age of the Gods , by Ron Louis.
Ron Louis's work, a witness to the final years of the Fourth Era, documents the changing methods of acquiring faith by the gods in the Fifth Era.
Shortly after his death, this book, which had enjoyed some success, was banned by the main churches because it questioned the new strategy of domination of the allied gods.
Today, only fragments remain. Researchers assume that Ron Louis died at the beginning of the fifth era, and he is best known for designating the different eras:
Fourth Era — Era of Gods, Third Era — Era of Catastrophes, Second Era — Era of Darkness, First Era — Era of Chaos, Fifth Era — Era of Black Iron.
Florent shook his head. This knowledge was useless. People don't care about the emotions of the gods, because it doesn't concern them. Even a superficial believer can cope with it, provided they have faith.
As you ascend, the third floor contained two types of books: social sciences and natural sciences. Of course, the definition of science here differs somewhat from that on Earth.
The fourth floor is divided into two sections: arts and languages. The languages section is less extensive than the arts section. Current linguistics distinguishes between the languages of the northern and southern continents, as well as a few regional languages. Although the southern continent has not yet been discovered, numerous books attest to it, suggesting the existence of an almost mythical place.
The fifth floor is entirely devoted to literature, with works by authors and poets: novels, poems, songs, and many others.
The sixth floor contains books on technology, engineering and industry.
The seventh floor is devoted to industries. Although these two floors are still relatively sparse compared to the first five, new books will soon be added to them. The seventh floor also symbolizes, in a way, the existence of the seven gods, because the god of steam, arriving last, can only prove superior to the other six in minor details.
Finally, the library has several large and well-stocked basements for consulting additional copies. Most books have only one copy, only a few have up to five copies. Trier's library is so vast that it is impossible to have five copies of every work.
(End of chapter)