Chương 62: Lessons Between Shelves

Over the next several days, Prince Lyth became a regular fixture in the library. He began arriving almost every afternoon with near-perfect consistency, always accompanied by the same patient knight who seemed to have fully resigned himself to the fact that a significant portion of his duties now consisted of standing quietly near bookshelves while a prince developed a mild reading obsession. Not that Lira minded. She had quickly settled into a routine.

She kept her mornings for magical pursuits and acted like a dutiful caretaker each time Lyth arrived. She would greet him politely, guide him toward a comfortable reading area, and discreetly use her divination spell to select a book she thought he would enjoy, or rather, a book the spell thought he would enjoy... the distinction was very thin since the magic used her future knowledge as a reference. She also started bringing a pitcher of juice and a platter of snacks in anticipation of his visits.

After enough repetitions, the process became almost effortless. Lira would absorb the contents of books before handing them to him, either out of caution or curiosity, which meant she was always prepared when Lyth inevitably grew eager to discuss whatever he had just finished reading. At first, those conversations had been somewhat formal. The prince was polite and reserved, clearly uncertain how casually one was permitted to interact with a palace maid.

That hesitation quickly faded over the following days, especially once Lyth realized Lira could not only recommend good books but also discuss them intelligently. He relaxed considerably around her after that. He would sometimes march straight to the front desk and immediately begin talking, discussing a character decision he disagreed with, complaining that a story's ending was unfair, or excitedly explaining a plot twist as though Lira had not already read the book herself. Lira found the routine oddly enjoyable.

It was... refreshing. Most nobles she interacted with, especially in her early days as a maid, barely acknowledged her existence, and even when they did, their conversations were usually exercises in ego, vanity, or subtle hostility. Talking to Lyth, by contrast, was straightforward. The boy had simply developed a new interest in books and seemed genuinely delighted to have someone willing to indulge that interest. After a few days of this new routine, even the bodyguard began to relax around her.

He started removing his helm, and he sat opposite the prince, facing the door. He also partook in the snacks on offer, which was a great show of trust considering that Lira could now technically drug the man and abduct the prince, if she was inclined to do so. So it was probably why Lira did not immediately panic when Lyth arrived today, accompanied by unexpected company. The library doors opened, and Lyth entered with considerably more enthusiasm than usual.

Behind him walked not only his usual bodyguard, Knight Henry, but also Prince Aric and Knight Deren. Lira straightened immediately behind her desk. Well. That was significantly more dangerous than usual.

"Miss Lira!" Lyth called cheerfully, approaching with all the subtlety of a child.

"I brought my brother." Yes, she had noticed... It was somewhat difficult not to. She schooled her expression, trying not to show the discomfort on her face. She curtsied.

"Your Highnesses." She turned toward Deren and the other knight and curtsied again.

"My lords." Lyth gestured proudly toward her, as if presenting some great personal discovery.

"Aric, she is very smart and very good at finding books." Lira resisted the urge to facepalm. That was what she got for involving herself with royalty. Now she had attracted attention to herself. Still, there was something deeply amusing about being endorsed like a talented hunting dog. Fortunately for her, Prince Aric did not seem offended by his younger brother's complete lack of decorum when interacting with a lowly maid.

"I can attest to that." To her surprise, it was Sir Deren who spoke next, giving her a wink.

"She was the one who gave me Swordsaint Yohan's manuscript." Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator. That immediately caught Aric's attention. His brows rose slightly as he looked at her with renewed interest. Deren's endorsement seemed to carry more weight than his little brother's.

"Fine," Aric said, crossing his arms.

"I will bite. Find me a book as well." There was a mild challenge hidden beneath the casual tone. Lira recognized it immediately. She curtsied again.

"Of course, Your Highness." Truthfully, she already had a fairly strong idea of what would interest the second prince. She had already divined it on the same day she found the Swordsaint manuscript. Still, she decided to do it again just in case something had changed since then. Lira stepped casually through one of her mana obfuscation zones and activated her divination spell, "Ladar. Linasara. Oshkan. Cognar. Turat." The magical pull came almost immediately.

She followed it toward the exploration and travel section, eventually retrieving a weathered volume bound in dark leather. Travel Logs of the Southern Expedition to Lost Almara. Lira had already absorbed its contents, so she was reasonably certain this would work. She returned to where the prince and Sir Deren were seated and presented it with both hands.

"I thought Your Highness might appreciate this," she said.

"It is a detailed account of an expedition to the lost city of Almara." Aric accepted the book, glancing skeptically at the cover.

"You think I enjoy travel logs?"

"I think," Lira replied carefully, "that Your Highness is a man of action, and that you would prefer practical information over fiction." Aric studied her for a moment, one brow lifted.

"Is it a legitimate account?" he asked. A fair question, considering the rarity of information regarding the lost city. Lira bowed her head slightly.

"It was part of your great-grandmother's personal collection. I think forgery is unlikely." That earned more interest from him. Aric opened the book, and within less than a minute, both Deren and he appeared increasingly absorbed in its contents. Lyth, meanwhile, looked absurdly pleased with himself.

"I told you she was good," he said proudly. Lira could not help smiling faintly. The boy folded his arms with visible satisfaction, as though her successful recommendation somehow validated him personally. Then he looked back at her expectantly.

"Do you have a book for me today?"

"Of course, Your Highness."

"This time," Lyth said with sudden seriousness, "I want something more grown-up. Not a story, but more like what you gave my brother." He attempted to look stern. It was a deeply unconvincing effort. His round cheeks and earnest expression made him look less intimidating and more like an unusually determined squirrel. Still, Lira understood the underlying request. He wanted to be taken seriously. That was important to him, especially since his brother was here to see what kind of books he was reading.

"As you wish, Your Highness." She nodded solemnly, as though receiving a matter of grave significance. Lira returned to one of her concealed magical zones and cast divination once more, "Ladar. Linasara. Oshkan. Cognar. Turat." This time, however, she asked a more dangerous question. Not merely what book Lyth would enjoy, but what text would have the greatest positive impact on him. What book might help shape him into a wise ruler?

It was an ambitious request, and Lira was aware she was likely pushing her spell far beyond its intended practical limits. Her divination was not true future sight. It relied on patterns, associations, probabilities, and her own understanding of the future. Her weather prediction could barely see weeks ahead. She doubted her book divination spell could pierce the veil and see years into the future. Still, the spell responded. The pull guided her toward the history section. Interesting.

Her fingers landed on a thick, intimidating volume, The Rise and Fall of the Abadi Empire. Lira raised a brow. That sounded considerably heavier than Lyth's usual reading material. She quickly absorbed the text, "Pika. Linasara. Cognar. Coopar. Nagla." A flood of information entered her mind.

The book was a comprehensive historical account of one of the greatest empires in recorded history, charting its ascent through military expansion, bureaucratic innovation, and trade dominance, followed by its gradual decline into corruption, administrative stagnation, aristocratic decadence, and institutional collapse. Lira quickly paged through it while she thought. While the first half of the book was an engaging read, what unsettled her was how familiar the second half felt.

It discussed noble indifference toward worsening conditions among the lower classes, weakening legal institutions, restrictions on magical education and knowledge distribution, tax collection failures caused by aristocratic gambling, debt, and incompetence, and worst of all, the scapegoating of the peasantry and laborers for systemic decline. Lira swallowed. That hit far too close to home. The similarities were uncomfortable enough that she briefly considered selecting something safer.

But the book itself was surprisingly engaging. The early sections covering imperial expansion were full of military campaigns, political intrigue, engineering achievements, and fascinating cultural details. There were maps, diagrams, charts, and timelines woven throughout the text. Dense, certainly, but not unreadable. It was the perfect book for educating a clever child on the heavy burdens of leadership. Lira stared at the cover for several seconds. Then she made a decision.

If Prince Lyth was serious about wanting something more mature, perhaps this was exactly the kind of book he needed. Or perhaps Lira simply wanted an excuse to plant dangerously subversive political rhetoric inside the mind of a royal child. That was admittedly difficult to rule out. Still, she returned and handed him the volume.

"This one may be to your liking, Your Highness." Lyth looked down at the thick historical tome with visible surprise.

"A history book?"

"You asked for something more grown-up." That seemed to satisfy him immediately. His posture straightened slightly as he accepted it with renewed seriousness. Lira watched him settle into his seat and open the first page. For a brief moment, she wondered whether this was a terrible mistake. Then again, if a history book was enough to destabilize a kingdom, the kingdom probably had it coming. Lira quietly returned to her desk, hoping no one would accuse her of radicalizing a prince.