The next day, Adrien found himself alone in the library.
The place was quiet, with only the faint crackling of the small flames along the walls filling the silence. No servants were walking between the shelves, and Ravel was nowhere to be seen.
Until now, Adrien had been surrounding his body with a thin layer of demonic energy. It was just enough to make him pass as a normal old devil. After all, if he gave off no presence at all, they would surely become suspicious of him.
But now that he was alone, he stopped. The faint trace of demonic energy around him disappeared completely and in an instant, his presence became hidden completely.
Adrien adjusted his monocle and walked deeper into the library, moving toward the shelf he had seen yesterday. His eyes, still half-closed under the disguise—he's just doing it for the love of the game—stopped on one particular book.
History of Phoenix Tears.
Adrien opened the book right there, standing between the rows of shelves. He was not foolish enough to sit in the middle of the library and openly read something this suspicious. If anyone walked in, he could close it and return it to the shelf before they noticed.
"Why would they keep this book in the open like that, they're stupider than I thought"
Adrien lowered his gaze to the old pages and began reading.
"Phoenix Tears are one of the most famous healing medicines in the supernatural world. They are created and distributed by the Phenex Clan, whose bloodline is known for its strong connection to the power of regeneration."
...
"However, Phoenix Tears are not a perfect cure. They can restore wounds and recover the body's condition, but they cannot replace large amounts of lost blood or recreate organs that have already been destroyed. In some cases, they may be used to help reattach a severed limb, but only if the missing part is still present."
...
"The creation of Phoenix Tears requires a pure-blooded member of the Phenex Clan. The Phenex devil must enter a prepared magic circle, and a specially prepared cup of water is used for the ritual. When a single tear falls into the cup, the water becomes Phoenix Tears.
...
"For the ritual to succeed, the tear must be shed with an empty mind. A tear filled with emotion, whether sadness, anger, love, or pity, remains only the tear of that individual and carries no healing power."
...
"Phoenix Tears are extremely expensive because their creation is difficult and their effects are valuable. Even among nobles, they are treated as precious items, not something to be—"
Adrien closed the book and returned it to the shelf.
"I should've known the information in this book would be completely useless to me," he muttered. "This is just general knowledge. Stuff everyone already knows."
He stared at the spine of the book for a moment. "So why is it in the private section of the library…?"
Click.
The sound of the library doors opening reached his ears.
Adrien moved immediately. Without making a sound, he left the aisle and headed back toward the main hall of the library with slow, quiet steps. At the same time, he wrapped his body in a thin layer of demonic energy again.
If the person who entered failed to sense him clearly, it would not seem strange. They would simply assume that Sir Mordain Ashwell was an old devil with very little demonic energy left. That was the trick he had been using since the beginning.
He saw a gorgeous woman standing near the entrance. She looked almost exactly like Ravel, with the same blonde hair and clear blue eyes. The only difference was that her hair was styled much higher, decorated with elegant ornaments and a very curvaceous body.
He lowered his head in a graceful bow. "Lady Phenex, it is a pleasure to meet you. I am the newly appointed librarian of your castle, my lady. My name is Mordain Ashwell."
The woman smiled warmly. "Oh, so you must be the librarian Ravel told me about. She said you were very well-versed in magic. It is a pleasure to meet you as well, Sir Ashwell."
'Where the fuck did Riser and Ravel get their personalities from?'
"May I help you with anything, my lady?"
Lady Phenex gave him a small, graceful smile. "Ah, no need. I'm only here to get a book I was reading."
"I see." Mordain lowered his head politely. "Then may you have a wonderful day, my lady."
Lady Phenex nodded softly and walked past him, moving deeper into the library with calm, elegant steps.
Adrien followed her with his eyes then he turned and slowly walked toward another row of shelves, pretending to inspect the books again.
Mordain Ashwell was hired by House Phenex as a temporary archive restoration specialist. His task was to inspect the older records of the castle library, restore damaged texts, translate outdated scripts, and create a new catalogue for the private archive. So basically all the boring stuff that librarians usually did.
Lady Phenex picked out the book she had come for and left the library not long after.
Once the doors closed behind her, Adrien returned to his work.
He spent the rest of the day moving through the shelves, searching for any book that might contain the information he actually wanted. Most of what he found was useless. Family records, public histories, noble achievements, old financial reports… nothing that pointed directly to the origin of the Phenex power.
From what Adrien knew, hundreds of years ago, the Phenex Clan had not been part of the Seventy-Two Pillars that made up the highest class of devil society.
Back then, they were only a middle-class House. They even had a different name that Adrien could not be bothered to remember.
But something had changed.
The lord of the clan at that time, the father of the current Lord Phenex, had suddenly gained an enormous amount of power. Including their signature abilities that they have right now. After that, the family rose rapidly and became one of the noble Houses.
Adrien was searching information on that, from where did this power come from?
--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>--<>
After a few days, Ravel was once again studying in the library.
To Adrien's surprise, she really seemed to be the studious type. She came here almost every day, usually with a different book in front of her and a serious look on her face.
Adrien helped her from time to time whenever she asked, of course while still wearing his old-man disguise.
"Mordain, can I ask you a question?"
Adrien, who was sitting at another table translating an old book, paused his work.
He was actually doing the job assigned to him. If he only wandered around searching for hidden records, it would eventually attract suspicion from the Phenex Clan. So he spent part of each day restoring, translating, and organizing old texts like a proper librarian.
He placed his pen down and slowly approached Ravel's table.
"What troubles you, Lady Ravel?"
Ravel was studying double casting.
Several diagrams were spread out in front of her, each showing two magic circles being formed at the same time from different energy points.
After he answered her question Ravel looked up at the old man, "You're really good at this stuff."
Adrien gave a gentle laugh. "Ho-ho. I have spent many years with dusty books, Lady Ravel. Some knowledge was bound to stick."
Adrien already knew what Ravel's next question would be.
After the past few days, he had started to notice a pattern. Whenever she asked about magic theory, sooner or later, the conversation would somehow turn toward Prince Adrien.
Ravel tried to act casual about it, but she was honestly terrible at hiding it.
She looked down at the double-casting diagram, pretending to be focused.
"So…" she began, her voice a little quieter than before. "How many spells do you think Prince Adrien can cast at the same time?"
Mordain's smile twitched. There it is.
He adjusted his monocle with one wrinkled finger. "From what this old man has heard, Prince Adrien can cast four or five spells at the same time if he wishes."
Ravel's eyes widened slightly. "Four or five…?"
"Indeed. Though strangely enough, he does not seem to use that method often."
Ravel tilted her head. "Why not? If he can do it, wouldn't it be stronger to attack with several spells at once?"
"Usually, yes. But Prince Adrien appears to prefer one particular attack. He calls it Dismantle. It is difficult to explain simply," He said, rubbing his chin like an old scholar "But if I had to put it in an easy way… it is like an absurdly powerful demonic slash. A cutting attack that tears through almost everything in its path."
Ravel's face lit up before she quickly tried to hide it. "Whoaaa…"
Then she cleared her throat and sat up straighter.
"I-I mean… that sounds rather dangerous. And impressive, I suppose... Well, maybe a little cool too…"
Adrien gave a gentle laugh. For a moment, she looked back down at the book, but her curiosity won. "Mordain," she said slowly, "you really know a lot about Prince Adrien."
The Old man gave a weak smile, "That's because I am Prince Adrien."
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yo when we reach 300 power stones I'll drop a bonus chapter