You walked silently along the path, relying on the rope.

A bizarre situation where with each step, the lighting changed, the sense of distance disappeared, and the air transformed into something like water.

The you outside the monitor guessed: This is an illusion.

The you inside the Tin Knight argued: This is reality.

Both were correct. Both were incorrect.

A vague understanding fleetingly crossed your mind.

This was an undetermined world.

This was a sequence of unwritten characters on a blank page.

The only thing confirmed here was the single sentence.

[This library exists on the second highest floor of the tower.]

Beyond that, neither sky, nor ground, nor even space itself was fixed.

The current chaos was the result of various books within the library revealing their sentences to fill in the remaining blank spaces.

A sentence like, “Methods of remote arson using dust in the air as a fuse,” made the surroundings hot with blazing flames, and in the next step, a sentence like, “The archmage once said, ‘My life is nothing but regret’” created a gloomy and dark space, so naturally everything seemed to be going haywire.

But at the same time, you realized.

The sentences affecting you and your companions right now weren’t that powerful.

Looking at the phenomena occurring around you, they should have been serious threats to your bodies, but the fact that there was almost no tangible damage was proof of this.

You, walking at the very front, said.

[The ‘Tin Knight’ evaluates that while the visual effects are flashy, their actual influence is insignificant!]

[The ‘Tin Knight’ says it’s similar to how a 4D movie shows a massive earthquake on screen, but the audience only experiences a slight shaking of their chairs!]

The witch walking second grumbled, “It seems like a space created by the resonance between the magic cast on the library itself and the magic books inside. I can’t even begin to grasp how it’s all tangled up.”

The scarecrow walking third muttered, “How should I put it, it seems like a very conceptual space. The fact that despite our different stride lengths, we all advance the same distance with each step, or how earlier when the rope stretched, it should have affected our bodies, but we didn’t feel anything…”

The little lion walking fourth expressed concern, “The more we advance, the stronger these illusion-like things seem to become! At first, the flames didn’t feel like anything, but the recent flames were as hot as being under the midsummer sun!”

After walking for a while, engaging in this peculiar conversation that might or might not have been connected, you suddenly asked something that occurred to you.

[The ‘Tin Knight’ wonders how many steps we’ve taken!]

Sophia answered, “We’ve just taken forty-five steps. While speaking, we took two more steps, so now it’s forty-seven.”

[The ‘Tin Knight’ says we’re two steps away from the rival’s record!]

“We’ve already passed that while you were talk—tch.”

The witch, who was about to scold you, clicked her tongue and stopped.

The same was true for you and the other companions.

You could understand why Gale and the White Knight had walked exactly forty-nine steps before returning to the tower once.

Forty-nine and fifty were different.

Not just in terms of numbers, but it seemed that you and your companions felt that the realms themselves were entirely separate.

From here on, your lives could truly be in danger.

[The ‘Tin Knight’ asks whether to advance or turn back!]

The one most surprised by these words was none other than yourself.

Usually, you would have urged your companions to move forward quickly, anticipating new adventures and crises.

Sure enough, your companions also reacted as if to say, “What’s wrong with you?”

“We’ve come this far with all that fuss, we can’t just go back. Whether it’s information about the Witch of the North or the kingdom’s sacred treasure, we need to get at least something from this tower to be satisfied.”

At the witch’s words, you stepped forward with a cheerful feeling.

The next moment, the scenery changed completely.

A vast, truly boundless space as far as the eye could see.

Various rune characters shone like stars in the sky, and constellations formed by these connected rune characters could be seen wandering through the air like living creatures.

The ground, neither soil nor rock, felt as if you were stepping on thousands or tens of thousands of huge overlapping sheets of paper.

“Ah, over there!”

As the little lion raised her voice and pointed somewhere, you turned your gaze in that direction.

The silver horse that had gone ahead of you was sitting on the ground, wagging its tail as if taking a rest.

The problem was that there was a familiar face nearby.

Shimmering blonde hair and blue eyes. A gorgeous white dress.

Gale Elilaz, the girl who looked like Dorothea flipped upside down except for her blue eyes, was there.

Moreover, for some reason, she was sitting at a tea table, sipping from a teacup.

The sight of the White Knight standing beside her with something like a white towel draped over one arm, as if he were a butler, was truly the finishing touch.

Gale slightly raised her head towards the party, who were staring at her dumbfounded, unable to say a word.

Meeting Dorothea’s bewildered gaze, she blinked her blue eyes.

“Would you like a cup if you’re thirsty?”

“Is that important right now!?” Dorothea screamed.

Of course, Gale didn’t seem to care much either way. Her level of self-absorption was in a league of its own.

“Wait, no, you… how?” Dorothea stammered.

Since there was so much she wanted to ask, she seemed unable to decide what to say first.

You thought you should help this poor witch.

[The ‘Tin Knight’ advises that she should request a one-on-one talk!]

“Right, a one-on-one talk… Don’t interfere!!”

Dorothea’s staff hit your head.

You felt wronged, thinking you were just trying to help.

In fact, you felt more regret that if you had pushed a little more, she might have gone along with it.

“Oh my, that’s a good hit. Do you perhaps have some skill in martial arts too? By the way, I’ll pass on the one-on-one talk. If we’re going to do something, I prefer tag team matches with Sig.”

“Stop talking nonsense and answer. What’s this situation? What is this place, and why are you drinking tea in a place like this?”

“Hmm, so many questions. And shouldn’t you start with a greeting—it’s been awhile after all, hasn’t it?”

“You’re the one who started with nonsense instead of a greeting first!!” Dorothea yelled.

Gale shrugged her shoulders, then slightly tilted her wrist holding the teacup to point at the silver horse. It was a strangely casual action compared to her unchanged appearance.

“I saw that child arrive here. So I thought one of the other compass holders would arrive soon and was waiting.”

“Waiting? Why?”

Just as Gale opened her mouth to explain with a “Well—“ that was when it happened.

A door suddenly appeared in the empty air, and something popped out of it.

The reason you judged it as “something” rather than “someone” was simple.

The entity that came out of the door had no body.

Two hands wearing white gloves. One mask in the shape of a rabbit with a monocle attached. One pocket watch located roughly where the waist would be.

That was all.

The sight of various parts floating in the air was truly bizarre.

《Welcome to the game, everyone!》

“What’s this now?”

Dorothea glared at the floating rabbit mask with narrowed eyes.

The rabbit mask continued its explanation, undeterred.

《You are adventurers challenging the labyrinth to obtain the legendary sacred treasure!》

《Survive the intricately tangled paths, countless traps, and dangerous magic beasts to reach this labyrinth’s exit!》

《Some choices will become a light of hope for you, while others will lead you into deep darkness!》

《May glory and blessings be with you at the end of your adventure!》

Bam bam ba-bam.

A strangely cheap-sounding effect echoed in the air.

You tilted your head at the overflowing scent of classic nostalgia.

Dorothea’s eyes turned towards Gale.

“Hey.”

“I’m not sure if you noticed on your way here, but the magic of this library itself and the magic of the books stored here are all tangled up, distorting the space bizarrely. While space is one thing, there are multiple books, so they’re competing to become the master, so to speak.”

After moistening her throat by tilting the teacup, Gale continued her explanation, “If a book of flames had won, this place would have become a blazing hell. If someone’s adventure story had won, a world based on that adventure story would have been created. If a theoretical book had won, the laws and formulas of that theory might have been reflected in the space.”

“Then, what’s this game thing now? What kind of book took control to make it like this?”

“A game book.”

“What?”

“It’s both a game and a magic book that my mentor created based on popular amusements. The original amusement has a structure where the reader turns pages like ‘You’ve reached a fork in the road. If you go left, turn to page 3, if you go right, turn to page 8,’ but what my mentor created is a book where the entire content of the next page changes completely depending on the choice.”

Dorothea’s eyes twisted.

Perhaps because she usually lived a life far removed from play culture, she seemed unable to easily understand the current situation.

At that moment, Sophia, who had been quickly absorbing various cultures you knew recently, stepped forward, “So, you’re saying the content of that game book has become reality here?”

“Yes, I’m sure because I’ve experienced it directly.”

You suddenly felt a question and asked.

[The ‘Tin Knight’ says that if you’ve experienced it, it means you actually participated in the game, so he doesn’t understand why you’re still here!]

If Gale and the White Knight had been successful in the game, it would be strange for them to be stuck inside the library for so long that they were considered missing from the tower.

Conversely, if they had encountered great difficulties in the game and couldn’t escape, their current unscathed appearance wouldn’t make sense.

When Dorothea questioned this based on your words, Gale sighed, “Because we reached that ending.”

“What?”

“‘You have defeated the guardian of the dead protecting the legendary sacred treasure and obtained the labyrinth’s sacred treasure. However, due to the labyrinth’s curse, you have also taken on the fate of becoming the new guardian of the labyrinth. For you to escape the labyrinth, you must either leave behind a guardian to replace you or lift the labyrinth’s curse itself. You decided to wait for an opportunity that will come someday. Normal Ending.’”

After saying this, Gale rose from her chair.

The shoes she was wearing were a vivid silver color.

“I sincerely hope that you and your companions reach a good ending, Dorothea. Settling things like this in a place like this is truly not my intention.”

***

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