Knowledge Thief

Is Reading That Fun!

As they travelled to the gates, Lee got to know that the city was named Azaria and that it was the capital city of the fourth territory. Mana also informed that the city was well-known as a major trade center. That was one of the reasons that the city had a large footfall.

In around an hour or so, both Lee and Mana reached the guards who were in charge of the admission. Lee understood what Mana meant when they reached the gate. There were three queues segregated between three different classes.

One line was filled with rich merchants and nobles of the city.  The people in this line were treated with respect and they were let in almost immediately without any checks. The next line seemed to be for travelers and adventurers who were not part of the city. Although everyone in that line paid a standard sum of money for entry, they were also respected by the guards.

The third line had people who looked poor with torn clothes. The soldiers humiliated the people in the line and only let them in if they felt like it. 'Why are all these people treated bad?' enquired Lee.

'They are slum dwellers who do all the labor works. Most of them would not survive outside the city without any jobs, so they bear this t*****e to survive.' said Mana.

Lee wasn't shocked to hear that as he knew that discrimination is something that was prevalent even in his world but he was disgusted with the way the soldiers treated the people. He somehow controlled his anger as he knew that this wasn't an issue that would be changed overnight.

Within sometime both Lee and Mana neared the gates. Mana took Lee and entered the first line. The soldiers manning the gates started staring at Lee because he was dressed shabbily. As a soldier was about to grab him to throw him out of the line, 

Mana reached out and showed her bracelet. When the soldier saw the bracelet, she was let in without any concern. She then pointed out to Lee and told the guards that he was her servant. They let him go without any fuss. Lee was amazed at how easily the situation was resolved.

'Is that bracelet something like the one you mentioned earlier?' asked a curious Lee.

'Yes. It is actually something that is given to both the champions and the guardians. It would store all our information and skills, and it could be displayed to the guards when one wishes to do so' replied Mana.

'Hmm! Something like a bar code I guess...' Lee wondered aloud.

'As far as I know, the bracelet also has some other features. Mine allows me to shape shift into animals.' added Mana.

Lee perked up hearing this. He didn't know why, but he felt a strong urge to own that special bracelet after Mana said it has other features. It was something like a boy wanting a new toy, but he quickly calmed himself down and focused himself on the current goal. He was also a little worried by this sudden urge, as he was never a person with strong desire in his previous life.

He was contemplating about his strong desire to own the bracelet when the entrance of the library came into their view. Designed like an old Victorian building, the library looked bright and was constructed using smooth marble that shone bright in the sunlight.

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As Lee entered the library, the shadowy figure approached the gates of the city. She bypassed all the queue to enter the city, but she was stopped by a bulky guard, ‘You need to pay if you wish to enter.’

The shadowy figure didn’t reply. The guard thought the figure was a mercenary with an attitude. As he saw a menacing look in the mercenary’s eyes, he wished to make an example out of the mercenary. The bulky guard lunged towards the mercenary with an intention to hit. Just as his right fist was about to connect, he saw the figure dodge it gracefully. Immediately he felt a sharp pain in his right temple and he became unconscious and fell down like a doll.

The whole crowd became deadly silent because of the development. Almost all the guards became angry and surrounded the shadowy figure. As both the sides prepared to attack, the captain who was stationed atop the tower shouted, ‘Stop, you fools! Put down your weapons!’

Even though they were hesitant, the troops dropped their weapons while the captain hurried down the tower. The captain reached the shadowy figure and kneeled down, ‘Welcome back, commander Gin. I am extremely sorry for their behavior.’

The troops were stunned by this development, and everyone gave a deep bow to show their respect for the commander.  Gin looked at the captain and asked, ‘Did anyone new come in the last few hours?’

The captain looked at the person manning the gate, who replied ‘Actually there were around twenty new people that came in. Five were slum dwellers, two were noble and eight of them were mercenaries and merchants.’

‘Anyone without any ID?’

‘No ma’am’ came the reply. Gin nodded and started to move into the city while another guard added, ‘Sorry ma’am, there was one person who didn’t show his ID. He came in with Mana and looked like a mercenary.’

Gin nodded again and walked into the city.

…………………………………………………………………………………

Lee slowly walked the broad stairs to enter the library along with Mana. Just like the exterior, the interior also impressed him. The interior had a clean Gothic look and there were three floors of neatly stacked bookcases that were segregated into sections. The rows were broad and the bookshelves were as tall as a wall. There were also ample seats near the entrance where several people were enjoying their favorite books.

Beside the reading area was the reception where a beautiful elven girl stood. She was glowing like a goddess and had a smile that could brighten up the whole room. Lee was looking at her intently when her yes shifted towards the pair. Almost immediately after she noticed Mana, she smiled bright and shouted, 'Hey Mana, when did you get back? Did you go home? Do you know how worried I was?'

Mana jumped over the counter and hugged her tightly and gave a meek 'Elvie, I am sorry' as a reply. 

Elvie was one of the very few people who stood with Mana during her exile. She visited her every year and wrote to her to cheer her up. So, Mana has a special place in her heart for Elvie. Elvie reciprocated her hug and patted her head. She was about to ask something else but saw Lee standing there and refrained from asking.

'Who is your companion?' asked Elvie in a low tone. Mana took a moment to answer the question as she was tempted to reveal Lee's identity as a champion to Elvie, who was a close friend. But she refrained from doing so. Mana glanced at Lee and informed 'He is a friend whom I met while travelling. His name is Lee.'

Lee introduced himself to Elvie in a formal tone, 'Hi, my name is Lee.'

'Pleased to meet you Mr. Lee. I am Elvessie and I am the receptionist here, may I know if you are interested in reading any of our books?' questioned Elvie.

'Is there any restrictions on reading the books?'

'No, there aren't any restrictions in the library. At the very least, knowledge must be free' answered Elvie in a serious tone.

Lee understood her intention and gave a warm smile to acknowledge what she said. He somewhat understood that discrimination and restrictions are prevalent in the city, but her answer made him realize that there is a high degree of restrictions applied to the city people.

As he was thinking, Elvie was looking at him curiously. She didn't know why but she felt a great deal of comfort with Lee, and that was the main reason why she added her opinion. She started regretting it almost immediately because the opinion would not be received well by most people. However, her regret was shattered by Lee's warm smile. Something inside her urged her to find out more about him.

'Can you state where you are from, Sir. I could suggest a few books based on the same' enquired Elvie.

This question put Lee on the spot, and he couldn't find a decent reply. As he was thinking about his answer, Mana jumped in to rescue him.

'Actually, I had found him in the outskirts near granny's place. After treating him, granny said he lost his previous memory. So she asked me to take him on a journey to see if something triggers his memory.'

Lee gave a soft sigh of relief as Elvie looked convinced. He then looked at Mana with admiration as he was thoroughly impressed by her story spinning skills. He felt that she would be an asset to have, and hence made a mental note to treat her as a partner from now on.

Lee then turned to Elvie and said, 'If you could point out the place where the history of the whole world, I would like to start there.'

Elvie answered, 'Actually the basic history books are in the second row of the first floor, but it is a vast section...' but she stopped as she saw Lee slowly walking off towards the row she pointed.

'Mr. Lee, let me see if I can suggest you something to start with' she called out to Lee.

Lee turned, waved apologetically and replied, 'No need, I am going to read everything anyway' and sped off to the row. Elvie just stood there staring at the fleeting Lee with a confused look.

 'Didn't I say a row of books! Who in their right mind would be eager to read a while row of books! Is he a bookworm! And did I see a smile on his face, is reading history that fun for you, Mr. Lee!'

As so many thoughts crowded Elvie's mind, Mana, who was standing next to her, let out a giggle after looking at her confused face.

'It seems that he does have that effect on everyone.'