Addicted to it?
Lillian did not quite understand what Beatrice meant, but he did not dwell on it and returned to the original topic.
"So, can you accept my proposal? I only need some knowledge."
"…"
Beatrice looked at him and remained silent for a long time. She suddenly thought that if what this man said who had appeared out of nowhere was true—if he could really allow her to see that person again—then there were indeed things she wished to ask. Unlike Roswaal, Beatrice did not possess the same mad desire to "slay the dragon." Of course, the contract also made such things impossible for her.
Let alone slaying a dragon—if she left this Forbidden Library, her mana supply would cease. Unless she formed a contract with another human and obtained mana from that person, she would not be able to survive.
And if she could not survive, she would die.
Beatrice did not fear death. But as a spirit, once she had entered a contract, she would honor it. Otherwise, she would not have waited alone in this Forbidden Library for four hundred years.
That was why she wished to ask "Mother" how much longer she must wait before that person would appear.
"…I can agree to your request," Beatrice finally said. "But the books in the Forbidden Library cannot be taken out. You may only read them here."
---
Because of her contract, she had to deliver all 103,000 books—without losing a single one—to "that person." Naturally, she could not allow Lillian to take any away. However, as long as he read them here, it would not violate the contract.
"I see."
Lillian thought to himself: although the Forbidden Library did not exist in the physical world, time flowed here at the same rate as outside—there was no such thing as "one year in the library, one day outside." That was highly inconvenient for him. He still had many matters to deal with in reality, and besides, when Subaru returned, if he saw him here, there would be no way to explain.
"This is Betty's bottom line. If you cannot accept it, leave at once," the girl in the Western dress said as she returned to her wooden chair and picked up a book, her expression seemingly calm.
"Um…"
"What do you want?" Beatrice asked without looking up.
"Well, it's nothing really. Your book seems to be upside down."
"… "
Lillian saw the girl's cheeks change color and her gaze grow fierce. Before she could flare up, he quickly said, "I accept." He added, "I won't take any books away. I'll read them here. In return, in the future I'll find a way to let you see… the soul of the Witch of Greed."
At the mention of "Witch of Greed," the anger rising within Beatrice transformed into a complicated emotion. She nodded slightly, her blue pupils lowering as if lost in thought.
Lillian knew her feelings toward Echidna were complex, so he did not ask further. "In that case, please tell me which books are related to curses and magic connected to lifespan."
Without raising her head, Beatrice waved her hand. A massive bookshelf suddenly flew toward Lillian. Though tilted at an angle of dozens of degrees, the books upon it remained perfectly still within their compartments. The shelf halted just before striking him. Lillian looked up at the towering bookshelf—nearly a meter taller than himself—packed full of books, and the corners of his mouth twitched slightly.
"These… must be hundreds of volumes, right?"
"A total of 1,249 books. Take your time—there's no hurry."
Lillian could not shake the feeling that the little girl was mocking him. Still, the number far exceeded his expectations. He had thought a few dozen or perhaps a hundred books would suffice—but more than twelve hundred? Even if he merely skimmed through them, it would probably take years. He simply did not have that much time.
"Is there anything more concise?" Lillian asked. "Like a general summary or condensed essence? Or perhaps you've read most of them—could I just ask you my questions directly?"
"Betty has no obligation to answer your questions."
Lillian sighed. At that moment, a book suddenly flew out from the shelf and hovered before him.
Can a Magician Achieve Immortality?
Research Records of a Legendary yet Evil Archmage
Seeing the title on the cover, Lillian paused, then thanked Beatrice and reached out to take it. Upon opening the first page, a portrait of an elderly man appeared. The figure in the painting wore a long robe and looked quite advanced in age.
The author was a mage named Galeka Bodo, not a citizen of Lugunica but a mage from the northern country of Gusteko—the same nation as Elsa.
A casual flip through the book revealed that since childhood he had pursued the dream of immortality. After discovering his talent for magic and becoming a magician, he devoted himself entirely to this field. The king of the northern nation had even provided substantial "research funding." Lillian did not need to guess the final result—it had clearly failed. Otherwise, such a remarkable figure would have long been famous.
Of course, failure did not matter to Lillian. He himself had never sought immortality; living for several decades would be enough for him. His purpose in seeking methods to extend lifespan was merely to allow certain people in the world of AOT to live ordinary human lives—not to turn them into undying monsters.
Putting aside these wandering thoughts, he began reading from the first page. He had only recently learned the written language of this world, so his reading speed was not fast, though he could still understand it. After reading the opening pages, he grasped the mage's idea—
The transformation of humans into spirits.
That was right. Rather than refining some elixir of immortality or developing special life-extending magic as Lillian had expected, the goal was to transform the human body into that of a spirit—retaining only the soul crystal (the soul itself) while constructing the body entirely from mana.
Lillian could not help but think, "That's actually possible?" The first page explained that the author had consulted extensive records and ultimately concluded that immortality could not be achieved through magic alone. Therefore, a new path was necessary. He then considered which beings in the world possessed long life. The first word that came to mind was "spirit."
Strictly speaking, spirits were not truly immortal, but their lifespans were vastly longer than those of humans. There were also demi-human races, yet their lifespans were only slightly longer than humans—or sometimes even shorter. Thus, choosing spirits as the direction of research was entirely logical.
"Turning humans into spirits… no matter how you think about it, that seems impossible," Lillian muttered while reading, speaking to himself—yet someone unexpectedly responded.
"Of course it's impossible. How could humans ever become spirits? Hmph."
Lillian raised his head and glanced at Beatrice, who was seated not far away, then said calmly, "Yes, humans can't become spirits—but they can create spirits."
"… "
Beatrice shot him an irritated glare, but he ignored her and continued reading. The two of them read in silence, not disturbing each other, and several hours quickly passed. Lillian gradually became immersed in the book, as its contents were indeed rich and substantial.
At the beginning, the author proceeded cautiously, conducting investigations step by step and searching for possible approaches. However, as the book progressed, everything gradually slid into the abyss of sin. The volume itself was not very thick, and Lillian did not read it strictly in order. After skipping ahead, he discovered that the author's later diary entries had clearly been written from the perspective of a madman.
"Today I captured four… If I infuse them all, it might work… No! It will definitely work! I… I cannot fail again… The king's hounds have already begun chasing me… Time… I need time…"
Reading this passage, Lillian could not help asking Beatrice, "This Galeka Bodo must have ended up pretty miserably, right?"
"I don't know. But someone like that either goes completely insane in the end or gets captured and executed."
"That makes sense."
Someone who had gone so far as to seize innocent people for human experimentation had clearly crossed an unforgivable line.
Lillian turned to the final page. As expected, the book was unfinished. Yet on the last page, a single line was written:
"This is the limit… A half-human, half-spirit… At the very least, the lifespan can be doubled… If only I had more time… How could those fools ever understand the great achievement I was about to create?!"
The handwriting was messy, stained with what appeared to be blood—likely written in the author's final moments. The fact that Echidna had managed to obtain such an original manuscript was impressive in itself. But what made Lillian's heart race was the first half of that sentence: half-human, half-spirit.
"So he actually reached this stage… turning a human into a half-spirit… like Emilia?"
Beatrice quietly raised her eyes and looked at him, noticing the excitement and anticipation in his expression. She frowned slightly.
This could be another path… Lillian thought. All this time, he had focused on how to remove the curse. But if he changed his perspective and directly altered the fundamental nature of the human body… It was undoubtedly a mad idea, yet it was still a possible route.
He flipped through the pages, returning to the section where the mage recorded his specific methods. The instructions were extremely detailed—it required a powerful spirit, the blood of certain magical beasts, magic—
Whoosh!
The book suddenly snapped shut, flew out of Lillian's hands, and returned to the bookshelf. He froze for a moment, then looked at Beatrice, who was holding up a small hand.
"What are you doing?"
"Betty should be asking you that," she replied. Her blue eyes reflected Lillian's face—a face filled with a mixture of expectation and excitement.
"If you intend to replicate the experiment described in that book, Betty will not allow it."
"…I'm not."
Was he really not? Lillian wondered. Only he himself knew what he had truly been thinking just now.
"In any case, that's enough for today," Beatrice said, closing her book and placing it on the wooden table beside her. "Betty is tired. Leave this place."
Lillian instinctively glanced at the book before turning away. "…I'll come again later." He walked to the door and pulled it open. Beatrice watched as his figure gradually disappeared behind the closing door, and after he vanished completely, she let out a soft sigh.
"What… exactly is your purpose?" she murmured.
She slightly raised her hand, and the mana surrounding her body instantly swelled. The tremendous power caused the space itself to distort faintly. Thinking of Lillian's final words, she muttered quietly, "If he comes again next time, what if Betty can't hold herself back?"
Bang.
The door shut. Lillian glanced back at the wooden door, thinking that if he opened it again, it would probably lead only to an ordinary room. Just then, a sharp voice suddenly rang out, interrupting his thoughts.
"Who's there?!"