Dante stood before the enormous Academy Library. Its towering structure rose several stories into the sky, constructed from pristine white stone that radiated an ancient dignity.
"...Looks expensive."
The great doors silently slid open as he approached. Stepping inside, he immediately noticed the librarian seated behind a long reception desk. The elderly woman looked up from the book she had been reading, her eyes sweeping across the academy bracelet on his wrist before settling on his face. After confirming he was a first-year student, she spoke first.
"If you're looking for advanced books, don't waste your time. The second and third floors are restricted. They're primarily intended for second year students."
Dante tilted his head.
"Why?"
She answered matter-of-factly.
"You don't have enough Academy Points."
Dante blinked.
"...I have to pay to read information?"
The librarian blinked in return.
"Excuse me?"
Dante repeated himself.
"Man should be able to read information freely. What a strange world we live in."
The librarian stared at him for several seconds, then slowly shook her head.
"Young man... I don't know where you found the confidence to say something like that, but nothing in this world is free."
Dante snapped his fingers.
"...That's also true. My mistake."
The librarian found herself blinking again.
What is wrong with this child...?
She decided not to question it further.
"The second and third floors aren't simply locked because of rank. You also require enough Academy Points to qualify. Even if you qualify, reading a single book generally costs between three and four thousand Academy Points. The fifty thousand point requirement merely grants you permission to purchase access."
Dante nodded thoughtfully.
"That actually makes sense. What about the first floor?"
She gestured toward the endless rows of books.
"Most of the material here supports what you'll learn during lectures. Some of it expands upon classroom topics. Some of it contains knowledge unavailable anywhere outside Midvest Academy. Although these books are considered introductory, they're still priceless compared to what ordinary institutions possess. They're worth both your time and your Academy Points."
"I see."
Dante raised his academy bracelet. A small holographic scanner projected itself from the reception desk before silently scanning his identity.
First-Year Student Confirmed. Library Access Granted.
A transparent barrier vanished, and Dante stepped farther inside. The library was enormous, bookshelves stretching endlessly in every direction, each section clearly labeled — Business, Commerce, Kingdom Administration, History, Skill Theory, Skill Evolution, Alchemy, Rune Engineering, World Geography, Beast Ecology, and dozens more, perhaps even hundreds.
Dante stared blankly.
"...That's way too much reading."
After standing there for nearly a minute, he sighed.
"System."
[Yes, Master.]
"What should we start with?"
The System answered almost immediately.
[Anything. Whether a book requires one minute or one hour to scan depends only upon its volume. The order is irrelevant.]
Dante nodded.
"Fair enough."
His feet naturally carried him toward the History section. Rows upon rows of thick books lined the shelves. His gaze wandered across countless titles before one finally caught his attention.
The Northern and Southern Centre Continents
"Hm?"
He picked it up.
"Is this geography... or history?"
Shrugging, he leaned casually against one of the bookshelves rather than searching for a seat.
"I'm too lazy to walk somewhere else."
He opened the first page.
Ten minutes later, the book slowly closed. Silence. Complete silence. Dante remained motionless — absolute shock, absolute disbelief, absolute resignation.
"...For fuck's sake."
He pinched the bridge of his nose.
"What the hell did I just read?"
His breathing became noticeably slower.
"I knew my family came from some ridiculous legacy... but... what the hell is this?"
The contents hadn't merely surprised him — they had shattered almost everything he believed he knew. The book described one of the greatest events in recorded history: the event responsible for separating what had once been a single supercontinent into the Northern and Southern Centre Continents.
Originally, the Central Continent had been one enormous landmass. Then a war unlike any before it erupted. The conflict involved beings whose levels weren't even listed — only their names remained, names so legendary that history itself had preserved them.
Hundreds of thousands had gathered.
Hundreds of thousands had died.
The continent itself had eventually broken apart, not solely because of the battle — the tectonic fracture had already begun naturally, but the war had accelerated the process beyond recovery.
At the very center of that war, one name appeared repeatedly: Justin II Sandrian. An Elf. A being who had lived roughly seventy thousand years ago.
Dante slowly returned the book to the shelf.
"...I picked up one random history book... and the main character was basically my father."
He stared blankly into space.
"...Whatever.... How strong is that old man?"
The book hadn't described many details, only enough to establish historical significance. At the time of the war, Justin II Sandrian had already reached the realm of an Ancient Sovereign.
Alongside him fought numerous other Ancient Sovereigns. Some had died by his hand. The book even listed members of Dante's own bloodline that he had never heard existed — a great-grandfather, a great-grandmother, additional uncles, entire branches of the Sandrian family. People he had never once bothered asking about.
"..."
He slowly closed his eyes.
"...Yeah. This one's probably on me."
The System spoke gently.
[Master. You also never showed much interest in learning about your family's history.]
"Shut up."
The System obediently fell silent. Dante sighed.
"...You're not wrong."
He simply hadn't cared. Why would he ask questions about people he'd never met? Now he regretted it slightly.
Ancient Sovereigns — beings capable of altering continents through war alone. Just how absurd was his family truly?
The System quietly cleansed the lingering shock from his mind. The uncomfortable pressure gradually disappeared. Dante exhaled.
"Regardless, the book ends here."
He glanced toward the final page. Apparently, most surviving records had either been lost, destroyed, or remained restricted, some outright conflicted with one another.
A continuation existed — Volume Two. Unfortunately, access required permissions far above his current rank. Most likely third-year. Possibly even fourth-year authorization.
Dante quietly slid the book back into its proper place.
"...That was definitely not the right book to start with."
He rubbed his forehead.
"I nearly gave myself a heart attack."
After calming himself down, he deliberately avoided the history shelves.
"No more family secrets today. I'd like to survive the afternoon."
Instead, he wandered toward another section. Skill Theory.
"...Now this. This is something I can actually use."
He reached for the first book on the shelf.
"Let's see if this academy can teach me something useful."