At the library entrance, Rhino says goodbye to buy some snacks so Clara enters the library alone. After paying the membership fee of two Royals, she walked over to the shelf which contained the grimoire.

Library itself is quite crowded. Throughout this short trip, Clara heard interesting rumors about the peace treaty with the Demihuman Kingdom. It seems like many people disagree with this idea and take part in acts of terrorism to reopen the war.

"Sometimes people can be so stupid, don't they?" Clara thought.

Whatever. That is none of her business.

Upon reaching her destination, Clara closed her eyes and focused. In the vacuum of her soul, she scatters streaks of light everywhere.

Those lines were the embodiment of mana in her soul. Once someone has successfully depicted magic power in their soul, the next step is to manifest it in the world through chanting.

Clara's method is the most basic way to manipulate mana and belongs to tier-one magic. 

Magic itself is divided into five tiers based on the amount of mana consumption and its effect.

The higher tier of magic, the harder it is to learn; The greater the mana consumption, the greater the effect.

"With magic, anything is possible!"

That was a famous slogan among the magicians. Simply put, magic is the power to turn fiction into reality. 

Those who have reached the pinnacle of magic are called grand mages.

How hard is it to be a grand mage?

Well, for an ordinary person mastering level three is satisfactory. Attaining level four requires sufficient talent. As for tier five magic… Nah, forget it for now.

Clara scatters mana around the bookshelf as a replacement for her eyes. She slowly looks at the books from one to another. After a while, she finally found a book that attracted her attention.

Clara rushed over only to find that the book was out of reach. Her tiny fingers can touch the book's cover, yet it remained motionless no matter what she tried.

"Usually the main character would be helped by a handsome man at this point," thought Clara.

She was about to give up when a huge hand—compared to Clara—took the book and handed it to her. She was shocked for a moment.

"It really happened!" thought Clara.

Clara looked at the man who stood behind her. He had a tall and sturdy body, but not excessively. His face shows the richness of life experience he had. He wore a brown jacket and a wide hat and exuded a very strong, reliable aura!

For a moment, Clara felt like a country girl who saw Romeo on a white horse.

The man asked, "Where are your parents?"

"Dead..."

Just kidding. 

Clara couldn't possibly dare to say that. Although the sentence is somewhat true...

"Uncle Rhino is buying sweets," said Clara.

A faint smile spread across that man's face as he said, "Your mana control isn't bad."

He left soon after saying that but his voice still echoes in her ears. 

Your mana control isn't bad.

Not bad.

Not bad.

Just a simple compliment was able to make her heart flutter. She subconsciously followed him to an empty table in a well-lit corner.

“What is this, Clara, what is this! Clara, why are you following a man you just met!”

“But-but he doesn't look like a bad person, does he?”

"Don't judge a book by its cover! Think, Clara, Think!"

"But, but ...."

Clara's mind is in the middle of chaos!

The man didn't seem like a bad person. But remember kid, following people you just meet is still not a good idea.

That man put his hat on the table and began to read a thick, rotting book. Clara on the other hand forcibly ended her inner conflict and sat a little further from that man's table. It should be okay here. Yeah, probably...

Suddenly, Clara notices a thick, old tome covered with a strange aura lying on the table. Clara scrutinized the tome out of curiosity.

"Basic Necromancy. Even Idiots Can Learn Necromancy Magic In Just 10 Minutes!"

The title is a bit annoying but the content is the real deal. The book Clara read contains explanations of basic necromancy with some level one spell.

"Why on earth a book like this lying around here..."

Should be noted that necromancy magic is taboo because it is considered to desecrate the dead. That's why necromancy books are rarely to be found. Although the Denia residents are somewhat open-minded, leaving this book lying around would certainly get people in trouble.

"Are you interested in necromancy, little girl?"

Clara was startled by the voice that came right next to her. She turned around and saw a woman in black, slightly taller than her, with a black veil covering her face. Just by her appearance, Clara knows she is the tome's owner.

"Ye-yeah. A little bit..."

"Good, good!" The woman looks enthusiastic. "Then come with me to the dark side! I will teach you many interesting things!"

"Cl-Clara..."

Clara was struggling to get away from her. Fortunately, the prince from before once again lends a hand. He standing between her and the tome owner.

"If I need to guess, you must be that famous necromancer Sister Friede. You are not welcomed here," said that man.

"Aw! Did you know me? Even though I think I have a good disguise."

"Leave before I call the guards."

However, there's no doubt she didn't listen to his warnings.

"Scawy! ... wanna fight?"

The atmosphere between them suddenly became tense. Their dispute has attracted a lot of attention.

"Hm, whatever."

The woman, Friede, decides to withdraw. Just like that, Friede leaves the library. That man also didn't pursue her any further. 

"Thank you," said Clara.

"No problem... I will take this."

"Ah, okay."

Pedro takes the tome with him and quits the library immediately, leaving Clara alone. 

That poor little girl can't process the sudden change of events. Luckily Rhino soon comes with a handful of candy.

"What's the problem?" asked Rhino.

"... Nothing."

They spend some time in the library before the distant sound of bell-ringing reminds them it's time to go. Clara and Rhino head to the restaurant they arranged with Uncle in advance.

Along the way, Rhino started to get curious because Clara's mood dropped. So he once again asked her, "C'mon, tell me what happened?"

"Nothing... ha. Rhino, are you familiar with a man that looks like Ind*ana Jones?"

"I don't even know who is Ind*ana Jones..."

After a brief explanation, a malicious smile appeared on Rhino's face.

"Ah, that person! I know him!" 

Clara started to smile brightly. She asked, "Who is he?"

"Aiya! Suddenly I forgot everything about him! Hahaha-aw! Don't stomp my toes!"

Clara puffed out her pale, red cheeks. She gave Rhino a silent glare.

"Ha. Okay, okay. If I am not mistaken, he's Pedro from Kiri Village. A hunter-class adventurer. Fairly famous. The most famous rumor about him is that he's not interested in women... oh, wait a minute. Maybe he is a lolicon? Aw! I said don't stomp my toes!"

Clara begins to walk away completely ignoring Rhino's grievance. There's no way such a gentleman like him is a lolicon… maybe?

When they arrived at the restaurant, the other party had not yet arrived, so they had to wait a few minutes before the other party arrived.

"My apologies for keeping you two waiting," said Uncle.

Besides Rhino, Uncle has two other bodyguards. The one is Shina, a kind-hearted woman who dresses like a punk. The other is a four-eyed man wearing a business suit with a very bad mouth, Neet.

Rhino lost at rock-paper-scissors this morning, so he was assigned to babysit Clara while the other two accompanied Uncle to carry out business negotiations.

They exchanged stories with each other while waiting for orders. There is Clara who is mad at the Adventurer's Alliance's new rules, Rhino and Neet who have a catfight, Shina who is often late with her responses, and Uncle who often tells dad jokes...

This feeling where they exchange stories while joking around seems like a long-awaited dream to Clara. She doesn't know how to react to it.

"Ouch! What do you want!"

Clara unconsciously stepped on Rhino's feet to hide her tears that were almost falling.

Uncle who noticed it smiled gently.

****

The Hunter from Kiri Village, Pedro, hurriedly enters Alliance Headquarters. He ran over to the receptionist counter and then asked, "Where is Big Sis Anna?"

"She got called by the Chairman," answered one of the receptionists.

Without a second thought, he went to the chairman's office. In his hurry, he forgets to knock on the door and finds out... ah, forget about it.

"Sorry to bother you... where is Anna?"

"She left already. What's going on? It's rare for you to look worried"

Pedro, who could not find Anna, tells Erick about the situation.

"In the library, I see one of the Friede Sisters."

Five-star fugitive, The Grandmaster of Necromancy, Three Friede Sisters, has managed to sneak into this city.

"Oh no. Anyway, pretend you don't know."

"Hah?"

The Chairman seemed not surprised about it, almost looks like he already knows this fact beforehand.

"Now is not the time to catch her. Just prepare for the battle."

Pedro still nods despite not understanding. He's done his job. The rest just follow the orders.

****

At the same time, a group of people gathered in an empty warehouse. Some wear plate armor while others are completely naked. It is obvious from their appearance that they are seasoned soldiers.

A man who looked young entered the warehouse in a hurry. Then he asks the person who looks like a mage. 

"Where's captain?"

"She is sleeping. Well, you should also take time to rest."

The youngling looks upset by the answer. "Now is not the time to rest! If we don't hurry, many lives will be lost! I can't let Denia become the second Byzantine."

"Don't be impulsive, kid. Just follow Sir Greyhorn's instructions, and we will be fine."

"Fine my ass! We followed his instructions last time and it turned out to be a disaster!"

"Hold on, Buddy. Don't cross your line. Cody and Sir Greyhorn are still your superiors regardless." 

A full-platted man tried to calm him down but that only ignited his anger even more.

"You talk so easily because you don't know what it's like to lose everything!"

Instead of being sympathetic, many people in the room felt offended by his grumble.

"Now, now. In the first place, I never had parents or lovers so I would never know how it feels to lose them. Just so you know, in this unit there are people who have suffered more than you," retorted the full-platted man.

"You-"

Before the argument continued any further, Cody—a mage-like person—interrupted them.

"Stop it! Kid, get out. Calm your mind."

That younger man looked dissatisfied but still followed Cody's instructions and left.

"Tch. That recruit is so full of himself."

"Just let it slide. He isn't thinking clearly."

A man with a bottle of beer in his hand muttered, "Man, I'm more worried if we have to act immediately. Only less than half of the battalion in this city. Not to mention lack of equipment."

"Yeah. I'm worried too." Cody took over the beer. "Our morale is as bad as our equipment, especially the captain."

"Yeah, Blackjack's betrayal is unimaginable. Hope the situation doesn't get worse soon."

"Yeah ...."

As they were chatting, an electric bird came and landed on Cody's shoulder. The bird comes with an urgent message.

"Oh, boy ...." 

Cold sweat fell from Cody's forehead after he read the letter.

"What's wrong?"

Cody got up with a sour face then immediately gave an order, "Brace yourself, gentlemen! Get ready for an urban battle! Whether this city would become the second Byzantine or not all depends on us..."