Nathan arrived in a desert city right at the entrance of the Maldhi Desert. This was the first time he came to a desert, so he was a bit surprised by the intense heat.
It was no wonder why the people in this place had tanned skin. They either wore little clothes or fully covered their bodies.
Nathan raised his head, looking at this small cube-shaped building as if it were a sand castle.
“Is this the place?” Nathan examined the building. Vivian considered this person as her friend, so he thought such a person would live in a better place, not in a small hut like this. There was only one door and a window, which couldn’t be compared to Vivian’s mansion.
To his surprise, the door was opened from the inside as a skinny old man came out. He asked while inhaling the churchwarden pipe, “What are you doing, kid?”
Nathan looked surprised. The old man didn’t wear his top, so he could see his thin and fragile frame as if he hadn’t eaten anything for the last few months. At the same time, the old man was giving him an indescribable pressure that told him something would happen if he provoked him.
Nathan politely bowed to him and said, “Hello, my name is Nathan, the student of Vivian Lorelei.”
“Vivian Lorelei?” The old man squinted his eyes before coughing as if he remembered something. “Ah. That cheeky girl.”
‘Cheeky girl?’ Nathan was surprised. Even though Vivian wasn’t among the strongest, she was still a top summoner. He never thought that this old man would call her a cheeky girl.
“Come in!” The old man opened the door for him while nodding up, signaling him to enter.
The building was surprisingly much cooler than he originally thought. The heat didn’t enter the house and the cool air was being isolated completely inside this place.
Of course, Nathan noticed the foul smell of tobacco. He didn’t like it because of his past experience, but it wasn’t something he couldn’t endure.
The old man sat down on a bamboo chair with one of his feet up. “So, what kind of favor does the cheeky girl want from me?”
“Huh?” Nathan tilted his head in confusion.
“What? Did she not tell you anything?” The old man frowned. “Whatever. I owed her in the past, so what do you need from me, kid?”
Nathan noticed that while he was easy to talk to, he wasn’t the type of person who would accept jokes like the Dragon King. Hence, he just cut to the chase. “I’m planning to visit the Ancient Library of the Fairy Queen.”
“The Ancient Library, huh?” The old man thought for a moment before examining Nathan closely. “Why do you want to go there?”
“Is it possible not to answer that question?” Nathan definitely couldn’t share the fact that his blood was special. Although the old man might not necessarily spread this information, he didn’t know if he could be trusted.
“I’m just curious. I don’t really care if you tell me or not.” The old man nodded. “In that case, what do you need?”
“I don’t know where I should go. My teacher told me I should visit this place and learn from you.”
*Pak!*
A crispy sound echoed after he gently smacked the table with his pipe, startling Nathan. He stood up while saying, “Wait here.”
The elder returned a few minutes later, bringing several items. “Change your clothes to this. Cover your body if you don’t want to get sunburn. Also, use these sunglasses so that both the sun and the sand don’t hurt your eyes.
“Before going to the desert, you should bring at least seven days’ worth of water. Just double the number of what you usually need for seven days since it’s going to be hot out there.
“Because of the Fairy Queen’s library, the desert is pretty much safe, so you don’t have to worry about the sandstorm.
“However, you have to be careful because the night is extremely cold. That’s all.”
Nathan nodded. “What about the Ancient Library? Where should I go?”
“From this town? Just enter the desert and keep chasing after the sun.”
“Chasing after the sun? The sunrise?”
“Of course not. You will have to adjust your direction by following the sun and making that meandering path. However, the moment the sun is set, you have to stop.”
Nathan imagined the meandering path he had to take. Since he had to stop right after the sunset, he should be ready to move before the sunrise.
“Once you reach the library, there will be someone to guide you. This someone can be anything from a kid to an elder, from male to female. It will appear based on your characters.
“This person will give you a task, and you have to complete it. The degree of your completion will determine how much you can access in that library.”
“How much? Does that mean the library has several levels?”
“Indeed.” The elder nodded. “It’s hard to explain, so it’s better for you to just complete it with flying colors and get access to the entire library.”
“I understand. I’ll do my best.” Nathan thought for a moment. “Can I fly there?”
“Of course not. Are you dumb?”
“Ahaha.” Nathan scratched the back of his head.
The elder extended his hand.
Nathan thought he wanted a handshake, so he stretched his hand. To his surprise, the elder suddenly grabbed his hand and flipped it so that he could see his palm.
“You are such an unlucky child. No, what the hell is this? What did you do for all the luck to go to a single place?”
“A single place?” Nathan didn’t know anything. He transmigrated to this place, so how could he know? At the same time, he couldn’t help but think, ‘Is this the legendary palm reading?’
The elder sighed. “Your life will be filled with problems. However, all your luck has gone to women. Basically, your luck with women is the highest one I’ve seen in my entire life. So you either die because of those problems or lead a fulfilling life. If in the future you have something you can’t resolve, the answer lies in the north.
And with this, the debt has been repaid.”