On the inside of the tower, in the shade of the trees, a three-story library stands quietly. The dilapidated façade was covered with vines and green leaves, and with a rare sense of silence and serenity, Rhodes pushed open the door, and soon saw the petite figure sitting at the table reading a book quietly. Hearing the sound of the door opening, the girl looked up curiously, and then smiled excitedly.

"Ah......... Rhodes ........."

"Christie, are you reading again?"

Rhodes said, glancing around, the secluded library in front of him was also part of the tower, and the elders said that this was once a valuable cultural treasure house for the Sunia family. It's been a long time since anyone came. On the contrary, Christie seems to like it very much, and she runs here every day to read books. To Rhodes' surprise, although the book is not written in lingua franca, Christie seems to have no problem reading. But when you think about the other half of her soul, it doesn't seem unacceptable.

The other half of the soul ...............

That's why Rhodes is here right now.

The reason why Marlene followed her has been figured out, so the only thing left is Christie. Originally, it would have been cruel torture to let a frail child like Christie travel into the Land of Chaos, and Rhodes didn't want to bring her if he could. But after hearing Christie's words, Rod eventually changed his mind. But the problem is that so far, Marlene has made her intentions clear, and Christie has not changed much as before. After coming to the Tinder Source. She was basically sitting in the library reading a book, as if she didn't have anything to do.

"Christie, how does it feel to be here? Are you okay? ”

Rod walked over to Christie's side, nodded to Suzu, who was silently standing behind Christie, and then reached out and stroked Christie's head as he spoke. And feeling Rod's touch, Christie narrowed her eyes with a happy smile. Then he nodded slightly.

"Hmm......... Rhodes, it's quiet and very comfortable. There are so many more interesting books to read........."

"That's fine."

Hearing Christie's answer, a reassuring smile appeared on Rod's face. Although I don't know what "another Christie" must let Christie come here, looking at her current appearance makes Rod feel a lot more relieved. Originally, she thought that she would be tired from the long journey, but now it seems that everything is fine. Thinking of this, Rod glanced at Suzu, who was standing quietly behind Christie. At this moment, she stood behind Christie in a daze, looking at the pages of the book in Christie's hand without blinking, as if she was reading a book with Christie.

These two little ones are really funny. I saw this scene in front of me. Rod nodded, then quietly stepped away. Giving Suzu to Christie seemed to be the right choice, for Christie, she needed a friend of a similar age, and for Suzu, who had never been in contact with the outside world, she needed someone who could help and guide her. And for her, Christie is the best guide.

Let's do this for now.

Come to think of it. Rod took two steps back, allowing the two girls to almost immerse themselves in the world of the book. I wandered around the library. Although I don't know what the "other Christie" plans to do, but after the evacuation tomorrow is the beginning of the battle, if it really can't be done, let Christie follow him into the copy of the Tinder Source, which is dangerous, but it is relatively safe compared to the outside. And Rhodes believes that there is himself. No matter how dangerous it is, you can protect Christie. With Suzu by her side, there wouldn't be any particular danger. Perhaps, in the same way that Marlene only told Rhodes about her purpose after she came here, Christie has something to do. Since Christie didn't plan to explain what she meant until now, it was that she hadn't gotten any news from her other self.

"Boom."

"Oops!"

Just as Rhodes was leisurely strolling through the library tube and diverging his thoughts. Suddenly, he felt a slight impact on his chest, and then only heard a soft cry, and then the sound of the book falling to the ground sounded, Rod subconsciously lowered his head, only to find that not far from him, there was a girl sitting at the moment. She has long, black hair that is soft and reaches to her waist. He wears a black, plain dress with stockings of the same color, and dark brown leather shoes. At this moment, the girl fell to the ground, and beside her, the books were scattered all over the ground.

"Sorry, I didn't notice anyone was there."

Rod said, holding out his hand. The girl quietly glanced at the man in front of her, then took Rod's hand and stood up, and then spoke. "No, I'm sorry, my lord, I didn't notice you." After saying this, the girl squatted down and began to pack up the books here.

"Are you a resident of this place too?"

Rhodes looked at the girl in front of him curiously, her dress was different from what Rhodes had seen elsewhere before, that is, it was not the white leather armor that the pseudo-humans would wear similar to the cyborgs in science fiction dramas, nor the somewhat rough robes and tunics worn by the inhabitants of the fire source here, on the contrary, the girl was wearing a kind of clothes that were somewhat similar to those worn by the eldest lady of the ancient aristocracy. This couldn't help but make Rhodes a little curious, if he remembered correctly, the elders here had introduced himself to the composition of the residents of the Tinder Source before, in this world that has been completely closed and isolated from the outside world, there is no class distinction, although there are rulers and the ruled, but there is no such existence as nobles.

Hearing Rod's inquiry, the girl raised her head, looked around at the tall, quiet, and somewhat dark library in front of her, and then nodded.

"Yes, I am a resident here, my lord."

…………… Although the meaning seems a little out of place, it doesn't matter if you can communicate.

"Anyway, why do you want to call me Lord Lord?"

Seeing the girl silently tidying up the book, Rod couldn't help but ask curiously. Hearing his inquiry, the girl glanced at him with dark, seemingly inorganic eyes.

"Because I heard those outsiders call you lord, don't you? This is the honorific title of the ruler of a territory in control of the outside world. Although according to the customs here and your current status, I should call you Elder, but in order not to be confused with the previous Elders, I use the title of the ruler of the outside world. If you think there's something wrong, I can change the name. ”

The girl's voice was like this quiet library, soft, quiet, not even echoing, but it came clearly into Rod's ears. Hearing the girl's words, Rhodes shrugged his shoulders, and then he reached out and picked up the girl's thick stack of books, which had been neatly arranged. This made the girl in front of her involuntarily stunned.

"Your Excellency?"

"Since I hit you, let me apologize, where are you going to put this?"

There are dozens of stacks of books in front of me, and they are already stacked high, and it is difficult to see the road in front of them in this case, no wonder the girl just now bumped into herself. But...............

"Please follow me."

The girl didn't react to Rod's help, but turned around as a matter of course, and then took Rhodes around the library for a long time before finally stopping under a bookshelf that seemed to be being organized.

"This is it, please give me these books."

"No problem."

Rod put down the book in his hand and looked at it curiously, there was no dust on the floor, even the windowsill and bookshelves next to it were very clean, and it could be seen that this place had been carefully sorted out and cleaned. Merely.........

"Is there a need to tidy up here? If I remember correctly, it seems that no one comes to the library to read books. ”

Rhodes did ask the elder curiously before, but the other party said that ordinary people would not go to this library, and it seemed that it was because he was not interested. And Rhodes also noticed that there were no other guests here except for Christie and Suzu, of course, considering the current situation, I am afraid that those who are interested are also preparing to evacuate and evacuate.

"Even if no one comes, it's my job. And ........."

Saying this, the girl raised her head and looked at the two petite figures who were reading intently in the distance.

“……… For now, my work is not meaningless. ”

"That's true."

Seeing Christie and Suzu, a smile appeared on Rod's originally expressionless face, but soon, he regained his original calm and indifference.

"Well, those two children, please leave it to you. By the way, tomorrow is the worst day to evacuate and evacuate, and before that you should almost be ready to evacuate. From the day after tomorrow, we will face quite a fierce attack, and I am afraid that we will be attacked here. ”

“……… I know it, thank you for your kindness. ”

"You're welcome."

In response to the girl's words, Rod waved his hand and turned to leave. But he had only walked a few steps, and suddenly turned his head as if he remembered something.

"That's right............ Well? ”

In Rod's eyes, he saw that the books that had been scattered on the shelves before were now quietly and neatly arranged where he should be. And in front of the bookshelf, the girl who was standing there just now has disappeared without a trace at this moment. (To be continued......)