Mentioning the word "ghost," the first thing that surfaced in Ultear's mind was the kind of entity with no hands or feet, draped in white cloth, with two large eyes, a long red tongue, a translucent body, and a tendency to float around in the air.
Fortunately, there didn't seem to be anything like that in this library at the moment. It wasn't that Ultear was terrified of ghosts, but having never seen one before, she felt a bit creeped out.
The old man seemed to see through the girl's thoughts and couldn't help but laugh.
"No need to look. The Fairy Academy has been built for a while now, but no one has ever died here, so there won't be any ghosts!"
"Hmm... even if there were, they'd definitely have drifted over from the town."
Hearing this, Ultear felt slightly more at ease, though another question immediately followed.
"Old Man, have you been in the school for many years? Why does it seem like I've never seen you? Who exactly are you?"
The old man closed the magic book, his gaze drifting off into space for quite a while.
"As for that question..."
"I stayed here for a period of time in the past, then I left, and recently I returned."
"For now, I suppose I am the librarian of this Magic Library."
Ultear had an epiphany.
"So you're the Mr. Librarian!"
"No wonder I've never seen you in the academy before; you only arrived recently. Then you must have only recently become the librarian of this Magic Library, right?"
The old man's eyes crinkled with a smile: "Heh... you really are a clever child!"
"Since you're so clever and so cute, I'll tell you another secret!"
"Oh? What secret?"
Ultear gave a light kick off the ground and sat down opposite the old man. She wasn't actually that curious about "secrets," but since the old man had praised her for being clever and cute, she figured he wasn't some ill-intentioned criminal. It wouldn't hurt to listen to his "secret."
The old man said mysteriously: "Before I arrived, the Fairy Academy's Magic Library had no librarian. Do you know why?"
Ultear rested her elbows on the table and cupped her chin with both hands, following the old man's lead: "Why?"
The old man replied: "Because many powerful magics are stored here. If they hired a librarian, that person might embezzle the knowledge—learning the magics here and then going out to harm people!"
"To avoid any accidents, the academy never established a librarian position since its founding."
Ultear nodded, seemingly understanding: "Then why were you able to get the job?"
"Because I'm incredibly powerful, of course!"
The old man seemed to have been holding onto this answer just waiting for Ultear's question. He looked much more energetic as he spoke: "I'm not bragging, but I learned all the magic in this library a long time ago!"
"Since it's something I learned long ago, there's obviously no need for me to embezzle anything!"
"Uh..."
Ultear suddenly fell silent, blinking blankly.
This expression, this tone—why did it feel so familiar?
She suddenly thought of her father, who was clearly henpecked but frequently talked nonsense at the guild—
"I'm not bragging, but at home, Ur listens to me in everything!"
She also thought of Uncle Bluenote, who clearly couldn't hold his liquor but always tried to act tough—
"I'm not bragging, but I can drink all three of them under the table today!"
And then there was Grandpa Makarov, who was clearly a lecher but acted like a dignified elder in front of the children every day—
"I'm not bragging, but even if three beautiful girls were sitting in my lap acting spoiled, I wouldn't even blink an eye... wait, no, I mean I wouldn't even spare them a look!"
Under the influence of these older men, Ultear had understood a truth at a young age.
Whenever a man says the phrase "I'm not bragging," whatever follows is basically a total boast and absolutely cannot be believed.
Originally, she felt that since the old man could serve as the academy's librarian, he must be a powerful hidden master. But now, he looked more like a guy whose bragging skills far surpassed his actual strength!
The old man keenly caught the girl's expression, and his brow furrowed in dissatisfaction: "What's with that face? Do you not believe my words?"
Ah-ya? Was it too obvious?
That seems a bit impolite...
Ultear waved her hands hurriedly: "Ah... no, no, I believe you! I completely believe your words!"
"...Liar!"
"That guilty look on your face clearly means you don't believe me at all!!"
The old man's eyes darted around: "How about this, let's play a game!"
"You set the questions, and I'll answer. The content just has to be related to the magic in this library!"
"If you can ask something I can't answer, I'll give you a mysterious gift!"
What a childish game!
Hearing this, Ultear was even more convinced that "The old man in front of her had no real skill." She curled her lip and said, "What a boring game, I'm not playing with you!"
"Eh? There's a mysterious gift!"
"I don't need any gifts."
The old man thought for a moment, then suddenly chuckled: "Since you won't cooperate, don't blame me for using my ultimate move!"
Ultear immediately grew tense: "...What do you want to do?"
"Hehehe... little girl, you wouldn't want the matter of you 'trespassing in the Magic Library' to be discovered, would you?"
"Eh??!"
Ultear was stunned for a moment, then her expression changed. She stood up with a kuang-dang: "The matter of sneaking into the library—didn't you already offset that with the flick to my forehead?"
"That was just my punishment as the librarian; ultimately, it still has to be reported to the school!"
"How can you..."
"Aya, aya, I vaguely remember that since the founding of the Fairy Academy, there has never been a precedent of a student being expelled..."
"What?! Expulsion?! I only snuck into the library; does it really have to reach such a severe level?"
"Since no one has ever committed this mistake before, I naturally have the final say on how it's punished."
Ultear panicked. She panicked completely. Cold sweat slid down her face.
She did not want to become the first student to be expelled from the Fairy Academy!!
Although with her current strength, she had already learned everything the school's basic courses had to offer and it wouldn't matter much if she left, she would lose a massive amount of face. Not only would she fail the high expectations of her dear father and mother and set a bad example for her bratty brother, but she would also completely lose her authority as the "Academy Big Sis." Finally, she would be mocked mercilessly by that "dead blondie" Laxus, whom she always viewed as a rival!
"I-If I play this magic guessing game with you, can you guarantee you won't report me?"
"I guarantee it!"
"Fine then, I'll play with you!"