Relaxing was a nice little reward, even if it had fewer benefits. Still, reading promoted imagination, storytelling, mental stimulation, and much-needed ease that was rare to gain otherwise. He had to switch off today. He simply had to.

  In truth, William began to like these excuses more and more, and it wasn't because of laziness or a lack of options. Mi-Yung was just very demeaning, yet worth a lot of praise because it was good to listen to her.

  Those ten days could be weeks' worth of efforts, or even two months, and if it made even more sense, then Mi-Yung gave him a blessing in disguise and learned a lot more about him than ever. William took a big leap in his ways and felt as if he had devoured a whole month under her guidance.

  Compared to it, these books and stories written on the old pages or copies were like a poke to his head, and his reward, and no one will stop him today! Not even Celeste or Ellie.

  He met them after a few days, and they didn't seem any different on the surface. Both were busy, and, well, Ellie was busier than ever, and Celeste was still the same as usual. Her dress was cool, her legs lacked shoes, and her eyes and face were a little brighter as her manners improved.

  Hound was also there, napping on the floor right beside Celeste, staying alert like a good boy against the twisted nature of these sick paper contraptions.

  Celeste was right beside William's sofa, where he sat and read a big book called Queen of the Rings.

  She eyed it from time to time, as if interested in what it was about, or she was bored with her own book that Ellie pushed into her hands. She still had trouble reading, and her wincing at Ellie didn't help anyone or anything. So, she aimed it at William, who was in a suitable position.

  “Want to read it?” He asked her when she went closer.

  She furrowed her brows and shook her head. “You do it.”

  “I read it. Yes.”

  “Read me.” Celeste recycled her lost thoughts and reconsidered her words very carefully.

  William looked at her and supposed he had never had such an interaction with her. Perhaps this was a good way to get to know others, or just her?

  “Are you curious about fantasy? A world of glory, escape, imagination? A tale of legends, by a person long dead?”

  Her eyes widened, and she nodded thrice, sat even closer to him, and waited. For what? For him to start reading to her. Ellie did it a lot, and she was way too busy writing something down.

  Hound perked up as well, pivoting his head just to notice that she moved to that weird brat.

  “A lot of books can suck us into different worlds with plays and sentences alone. It's a lot about imagination, understanding words and characters, and being free, taken, yet wild. This one tells a tale of a fellowship. They want to take a ring to the deepest depth of the ocean in the world and stop the dark queen from advancing and lifting the earth upside down.”

  Celeste liked what she heard and wondered where such an earth was, or was it just a cliff like her former home? Dreadus lifted it... so that was fun. Maybe she had seen one just like that, but how exactly could that queen lift the earth upside down? It was so damn heavy.

  William was still at the start, and the style of this book was quite high. Back then, writing was a bit different, and the world was different. It was still different, like authors from the nineteenth or twentieth century, who had very different feelings and styles from those that emerged later. Not many of them escaped the passage of time. No. They eclipsed it, wrote their stories to history, and lived on with their works. In William's eyes, that was absolutely incredible.

  William wondered less about the upcoming weeks and more about tonight. He thought of creating rules for the remaining four weeks. It didn't seem like a lot, and as he became more familiar with the library, it was impervious to focus on true matters and leave the rest behind, or gone.

  Waking up early had already turned into a hassle, but it was still manageable because of Mi-Yung, who thrice got into his room and dragged him out even when he didn't want to. Getting to the library was easier, spending hours on the upper floors was enjoyable, and researching Walkers, Darks, or other locations seemed endless.

  Arranging information was like planning or reading new books. There were numerous sets, pages, and plans within them, as well as lessons, even though they weren't real.

  Nothing fancy or precious was lost because of them.

  He relaxed, having no doubt that Mi-Yung would hate it. Not as if she were here to look at him oddly. Celeste was enough.

  He started to read to her, almost whispering because of others on the floor.

  There were times when he felt overwhelmed by the number of things to hear, read, or even believe. It was better to forget it, and the worst thing was the complexity of history, which was rather particular and very special. He often had to take a break from digging deeper, yet with Mi-Yung, it wasn't the brightest idea. The world of Walkers and Darks was immense, and their history and factors had to come in one way or another.

  As for this sofa, a place to calm his mind for a couple of hours was his self-entitled reward, until the sun dropped.

  It felt suitable even with the obligation to Mi-Yung, his former jobs, or Miss Anderson. There was no Kaufman either, so it seemed his departure was real and there was no catch.

  It wasn't boring or lonely, and reading to Celeste was fun because her reactions were genuine, interesting, and fun. She even asked a lot of questions, until something poked around the large book, suspending the reading.

  This novel's true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.

  William put it down and looked at the bright smile of a girl who wasn't bothering him one bit—quite the opposite, actually, since he found her lovely compared to his devilish guide.

  Much to Ellie's dissatisfaction, he had yet to figure out any of her hints. Sometimes, it hit Ellie like a hammer, hurt her self-confidence, and her ideas. What if she wasn't pretty enough? Could William even have such, or even any, standards? Him? Was she too bothersome, or were they way too different? Was the last ten days too long? Nope. She still thought about it and felt that way about him. What about her clothes? Hair, and so on?

  Did he have different feelings, or was he too preoccupied to even think about such things? What about Celeste, whom she had been taking care of for the past eleven days?

  She had no idea how to fish or find a boyfriend since she had never had one before. It was her dream to work in this library, and beyond that, modifying Walker's education was next. She had already overcome one hindrance and felt there were no breaks for her dreams. After years, she met two fascinating youths who needed her, and it finally bore fruit.

  “What are you reading to her?” Ellie asked. It couldn't escape her mind even when she tried.

  “What is it, Ellie?” William lowered his book to his chest as he leaned on the sofa. Celeste shifted and glanced at Ellie, who was probably over her writing already and wanted to check on her. It didn't sound like it, considering her eyes and overall face. William changed that about her all the freaking time and Celeste found it fascinating.

  “He read me. Is it wrong?” Celeste asked in a tone and with words that were much greater than ever before. Her words were smooth yet simple, and they were effective for what they had to accomplish.

  For now, that is. Ellie had plans to get her to one-tenth of her own tone if she would hurry enough, and there were many ways to accomplish it and fix it.

  “How long do you think you have been here?” Ellie asked, leaning forward to reach his book. “Are you wasting Celeste's time? Are you even trying?”

  “I've been here for just a few hours,” he answered without a speck of shame, pointing to his left wrist where there was a small token of friendship. A watch to tell the time.

  It was a great tool that Mi-Yung and Ellie decided on a few days ago.

  “At least you wear it. It took quite a bit of work, persuasion, and time for you to buy it.” Ellie added, crossed her arms, and looked at his watch.

  Celeste looked at that simple, round, and glossy object. It reminded her of that crimson that whispered under the other arm, but this thing didn't do anything but click and show time. How? Magic. That's how. Also, it wasn't bloody red, so that was wrong.

  It had been a long day for Ellie, and no one bothered her about spending time with them. In fact, she wasn't even doing anything different from before. It was elevated to another level, and secrecy followed.

  William and Celeste were visitors who needed attention, and where did they find it? That was what the attendants were for, but not every one of them was equal. In this place or world, nothing was fair or equal. Maybe love was the same?

  Ellie was no longer giving William any feedback or lectures. She was way too busy with Celeste, and she felt it was sometimes more than she could handle. Literally. That hound was tough, wild, caring, and heavy as a mountain. If it wasn't for Mi-Yung, who came over from time to time with joint lessons on the upper floors, Ellie thought she would have collapsed a while ago.

  That's why a change of pace was acceptable, so she never protested anything because Mi-Yung was an expert on this ideal. Maybe she was, too? Spending time with Celeste assured her even more about her choices, and she felt she could refine her methods, and even those of William's. Her promise of showing him the Federation was a useful excuse for a date. At least... according to her logic.

  She felt that the first time barely counted. That single beach was not much, but to William, it helped immensely, and she didn't even know how much.

  By luck and work, three days ago, she forced William on a "date", asserting the dominant role that wasn't as right for her as she assumed. It was just to buy a watch. It was a simple excuse, and by that point, Ellie gave up expecting much and let William focus on what was ahead. She heard it from him, and how Mi-Yung was really blazing and guiding him around, and even trained him! That sounded curious and harsh.

  Looking at that, lecture this, or learn that, that's how Mi-Yung's constant objectives advanced. Ellie felt good about herself, and William's attitude made her less relaxed than she would admit. It felt like she was hovering over a gift that was before her, but she couldn't take it.

  “I know. I know. For a dozen credits, it is a nice thing to have.” William said, tapping his watch without reading into her obvious mockery or hope.

  At the moment, Elle wore a long dress of her great choice. With strides around her shoulders, it went all the way below her knees. It exposed her shoulders and arms, all bright and light in color.

  Celeste liked soft materials, and Ellie took advantage of that. She forfeited her usual uniform and began to dress like no librarian at all, which both of them appreciated, but... not him, it seemed.

  With the night closing and Celeste having had enough of today, it was time to leave. Maybe with William? Celeste knew her way home, so Ellie wasn't too concerned about her.

  “What do you want? Aren't you going home after a long shift with Celeste to plan your next steps? You write a lot of things about that,” William said, not knowing what she was looking for. It had been like this three meetings in a row, and he didn't know what to even say to that. He was tired and busy as well.

  “Why so many questions? Can I not spend my time however I want after work?”

  “Sure, you can. Why at work, though?” William asked with a dubious amount of clues, or no mind to care.

  “You... I am going home if you don't want my company.” Ellie pouted and stormed out of the floor.

  William looked at her swirling dress, which looked especially dazzling and striking, unlike her usual uniform. It looked great on her, but his mind was doubtful or clueless about girls. Even if he liked her company, what else was there? He couldn't know.

  “What was her problem?” he wondered, glancing at confused Celeste, before returning to their reading.

  There was still time to waste, and Celeste didn't find this amusing or strange anymore. Her new teacher and this friend felt weird, yet close to her, and they kept at it, which was cool.

  Things often argued about anything, be it logic, blood, or rocks, and Ellie wanted something strange out of William for sure. Celeste felt it but didn't know much about it.

  Maybe she could help out, if it made Ellie odd? Dreadus said that help, value, and friends were handy, and one should never be empty or alone.

  Handy was a weird word for sure, and Celeste learned the meaning of a lot of them recently. Some of them made no sense at all, as if mere talks and concepts of those symbols were wicked magic spells.

  Celeste got a small gist of people, and Ellie was notable because there was much fun in being in the presence of others. She liked Ellie. She also found being around William fun. Both were fun, talking, and helping her a lot, and nothing was stopping it.

  William was someone with a shared fate, or so it felt like. He had that crimson madness in him, curiously waiting and doing things.

  Celeste was curious about whether she should spend more time with him, help him, or just not do it, as he was also busy and doing what was right. Maybe? She didn't know much, but he was trying to get it too.

  When he didn't seem to follow Ellie, Celeste no longer minded it either and hoped the world wouldn't flip on them. It didn't sound like a good thing, but fun? Imagination and fantasy were a weird magic for sure.