Sir Kaelen didn't move for a long moment. He stared at Xavier's outstretched hand, then at the three glistening Mana Crystals piled on the counter, and finally back at the Keeper's calm, indifferent face. The absurdity of the situation—a high-ranking knight begging a young man in a glass shack for a miracle, only to be hit with a mandatory membership fee—was staggering.
But the memory of his brother's vacant, haunted eyes, consumed by the creeping crimson taint of the Blood Curse, crushed any lingering pride.
With a heavy, rattling sigh that sounded like armor grinding stone, Kaelen snatched one of the crystals from the pile. He dropped it into Xavier's palm.
"Registration," he grated out. "Done. Now, show me the cure. My brother doesn't have time for bureaucracy."
Xavier nodded, satisfied. The crystal felt warm and heavy, buzzing with condensed energy. He placed it on the small black reader on the counter.
BEEP.
[Transaction Complete. Patron No. 002: Sir Kaelen (Tier 4 Knight) registered.]
[Main Task Progress: Register 10 Patrons — 2 / 10.]
Xavier swept the remaining two crystals, gold, and gems toward the Knight. "Your property. The Library charges one crystal per Reading Chamber session. Only you can decide what knowledge to seek."
As Kaelen was gathering his remaining wealth, the system interface flashed a new, celebratory message for Xavier:
[Side Task: Acquire Rare Knowledge Fragment (1/1) – Pending.]
[Condition Met: Patrons demonstrate severe existential need beyond Tier 1 knowledge.]
[Reward: Rare Knowledge Fragment Acquired.]
[Fragment identified: The Crimson Star Elixir – Formula of Purity (Tier 5 Alchemical Method).]
Xavier looked at the Knight. He now knew the answer, or at least, the Library did.
"The knowledge you seek is available," Xavier said, pointing toward the shimmering, multi-hued nebula at the far end of the vast room. "That is the Dimensional Nexus Gate. Step through it. State your intent clearly in your mind—focus on the cure for the Blood Curse. The Library will construct a Reading Chamber specific to your needs."
Kaelen looked at the shimmering light wall as if it were an active lightning field. His exhaustion seemed to lift, replaced by a cold terror.
"What is that? What kind of illusionist trick is this?"
"It is the truth," Xavier replied simply. "A place of perfect, integrated knowledge. If a cure exists, you will find it there. The longer you hesitate, the shorter your brother's time becomes."
That was the only argument Kaelen needed. He fastened his helm, drawing his battle-scarred greatsword and holding it low, ready to fight the illusion if necessary. He walked with long, heavy strides toward the Gate.
He hesitated for a moment at the threshold, then, without a word, he stepped into the light.
Kaelen felt no transition—no sense of travel or teleportation. One moment he was on marble, the next, he was standing in a silent, echoing void. There was no pain, just a sudden, dizzying sense of absolute silence.
[Welcome, Patron No. 002: Sir Kaelen.]
[Initializing Reading Chamber.]
[Assessing intellectual profile... scanning Battle Mana signature... prioritizing immediate existential threats.]
[Target Knowledge Identified: The Crimson Star Elixir.]
The void solidified. Unlike the gentle, scholarly room granted to the mage Lin Yijun, Kaelen's chamber was a massive, desolate amphitheater carved from black obsidian. In the center, suspended in the air, was not a scroll but a complex, pulsating Schema—a three-dimensional, glowing model of a corrupted human nervous system, crisscrossed with veins of deep crimson corruption.
A single, luminous thread detached itself from the model, forming the title: "Purification by Extremis: The Crimson Star Elixir."
Kaelen dropped his greatsword. It hit the obsidian floor without a sound.
He reached out, his mind screaming I need the cure!
The knowledge hit him like a thunderbolt, not as gentle flow, but as a violent download of pure, conceptual information. It was overwhelming—hundreds of years of forgotten alchemical theory, forbidden knowledge of Dark Arts to understand the curse's root, and precise biological requirements.
He didn't just read a recipe; he became the alchemist, the poisoner, and the healer all at once.
He saw the delicate structure of the Blood Curse—a parasitic mana construct designed to corrupt the very soul. He saw the formula for the Elixir: an impossible combination of the Heart of a Deep Earth Elemental (Tier 5 rarity), the Tear of a Celestial Wyvern, and Refined Moon Silver.
The integration was brutal. Kaelen fell to his knees, clutching his head, his Battle Mana surging uncontrollably as it fought to absorb and organize the forbidden lore. He had sought a simple antidote, but the Library demanded he master the complexity of the poison first.
When the rush finally subsided, he was trembling, soaked in sweat, but completely changed. He was still a warrior, but now his mind held the terrifyingly precise knowledge of life and death. He knew exactly what he needed, and exactly how impossible it was to obtain.
[Knowledge Integration Complete.]
[Patron Sir Kaelen has achieved: "Minor Epiphany – Curative Protocol (Blood Curse)."]
[Processing reward bonus for Library Owner: +10 Knowledge Points (High Urgency Bonus).]
Back at the counter, Xavier blinked at the sudden influx of points. "Ten points? That guy must be under serious pressure."
A moment later, the Nexus Gate rippled violently, and Sir Kaelen stumbled out, looking ten years older but with a terrifying focus in his storm-cloud eyes.
He didn't look at Xavier. He simply scooped up his remaining two crystals and greatsword, now moving with a single-minded intensity that was chilling.
"It works," Kaelen whispered, his voice hoarse. "The cure exists." He met Xavier's gaze, his eyes burning with a desperate gratitude that was almost frightening. "It requires ingredients... things I don't have. I need to leave."
He was already at the door, but he paused, turning back.
"Librarian," he said, his hand resting on the glass door. "If I find what I need and my brother is saved, I will bring you a mountain of crystals. But I need to know one thing."
Xavier waited.
"Do you have knowledge of where a Celestial Wyvern might be found in the Valoria Continent?"
Xavier smiled faintly. "That would require another registration, Sir Kaelen. One crystal."
Kaelen didn't argue. He simply drew his sword, used the tip to pry one of his remaining crystals from his coin pouch, and tossed it onto the counter. It rang against the marble.
"Keep it open," he ordered, his voice now steel. "I'll be back."
The heavy glass door swung shut behind the Knight, leaving Xavier alone once more, staring at his newly increased point total and the third crystal on the counter.
[Transaction Complete. Patron No. 002: Sir Kaelen registered for a second session (Intent: Celestial Wyvern Location).]
[Main Task Progress: Register 10 Patrons — 3 / 10.]
[Side Task: Facilitate Patron Knowledge Integration – Progress 1/1. Complete.]
[New Main Task Unlocked: Acquire Artifact of Power – The Fabled Compass of Fate.]
Xavier sighed, resting his chin on his palm. "It seems my business model is now based entirely on the desperate and the impossible. A Wyvern hunt... I definitely need more chairs."
Xavier has successfully navigated his first crisis patron and now has a secondary, highly profitable task tied to Sir Kaelen's impossible quest.