Eyes Among The Shelves

…

Kakogawa ward’s streets were quiet beneath the night sky. It was already nine, and the majority of people sought where they belonged.

“Here it is.” Enji and Sarai stood on the sidewalk, facing the destination they had sought all along, the Kakogawa Municipal Building.

It was five stories of gray concrete, squared windows, and a nameplate so generic it blurred into the street. There were no guards, barely any cameras. Suspicion faded, and nothing invited a second glance.

It's the building I found before Kraus and his men kidnapped me.

“Let's get in.” Enji stepped forward, followed by Sarai. The automatic sliding doors opened with a chime for the duo, beyond them was a shared lobby with seats sticking to its walls, some of which were occupied by citizens.

To the right was a coffee shop, glass partitions containing tables, counters, warm lights, and low voices inside it.

Occasionally used elevators waited at the rear wall. Without announcing it, Enji walked towards them, and Sarai only followed, his eyes roaming in this space he was unused to.

After witnessing the efficiency of this agency’s cover, he felt a sense of dread crawl through his senses. No one would guess this was a sanctuary of secrets. It was too unsettling.

“Where are we going now?” he asked, entering the elevator.

“You’ll have to go through a simple procedure to join. The librarian will take care of it, we're going to meet her,” Enji replied.

Her? I see. I wonder if she's a maniac like him.

Enji clicked the third floor button; the elevator shook in response and headed up.

I've never used an elevator. In fact, I’d never been into this kind of place before. Makes me realize how much I haven't lived…

Enji glanced at Sarai. “Most of the staff members here are Faithful. They all belong to the agency.” he explained in a calm tone.

“I see. What's your job here?”

“Haha! I got the coolest job!” Enji smirked, “Private investigator!”

“Oh, you solve murder cases?”

Enji's smile faded. “Nah, I get told to find lost keys or cats. It's actually boring…” He admitted the cruel reality.

“Fits you, actually.” Sarai chuckled.

The elevator stopped.

It opened onto a space of muted light, a carpet that swallowed sound itself, and bookshelves running in rows. Old tables sat beneath narrow windows, and the fragrance of paper and dust suffused the atmosphere. It could be called an aroma of knowledge.

This is it. The library.

To the right of the entrance, a young woman sat at a low desk, staring at a computer screen, her hands resting on a neat stack of forms.

She glanced up, her high-knotted black hair swayed with the motion.

“Mitsu-chan!” Enji rushed towards her with excessive familiarity, his arms opening for a hug.

She stood, tightened her hand into a fist, and punched him in the nose, slamming him to the ground.

Thud. He fell and stood up almost instantly. “Sarai-kun, this is our librarian, Hitomi Mitsu. She gets violent if you invade her personal space, so be careful,” he added.

As if I'd do something like that…

Sarai bowed politely. “I'm Sarai, it's nice to meet you, Hitomi-san.”

“So, this is the new kid?” Mitsu grabbed a set of black glasses from her desk and slid them on. She was wearing a loose brown cotton shirt and a set of black dress shorts. Her legs were covered in stockings, and her feet rested in short heels.

Those glasses seem to be lenseless, why is she wearing them? Also, what happened to her eye? She seems like a careful person.

Sarai stared warily at Mitsu’s eyes. One of them was liquid black, while the other was blind white.

“Yes. I convinced him to join with my unmatched skills!”

“You mean your harassment skills?”

Someone agrees with me at least.

Mitsu approached Sarai. She faced him, extended her hand, and gripped his cheeks, pulling him closer to her face.

Uh… What's her problem?

Mitsu glanced at his eyes deeply. “You have beautiful eyes.”

“Mitsu! Don't,” yelled Enji in a worried tone.

What are they talking about? Sarai's face didn't hide his confusion.

Mitsu smiled, let go of Sarai, and ordered, “Follow me, Sarai.”

“Tatsu, the boss left on a business trip. He wants to speak with you about something, you better call him.” She turned and walked into the library.

“Okay. Good luck, Sarai-kun!” Enji entered the elevator and departed.

Good luck? Why? He stood still for a moment before following in Mitsu’s steps in a hesitant rhythm.

In the tables at the corner, a few people sat. Some read journals, while some stared at books. They all seemed careful and observant.

“Most of these people are Faithful, they came here to receive requested information and paid for it.” Mitsu sighed, stopped walking, and turned to Sarai. “Some of them are so powerful they could tear this entire building apart, and we'd all be dead,” she muttered with a smile.

“Why are you telling me this?” Sarai almost knew the answer.

“This is the nature of this job, it's a dangerous, risky one. You should have that in mind before joining.”

“Don't worry, I'm used to such danger. In fact, I don't think it matters to me at all.”

“Good for you.” She continued walking.

Weird. Did Enji hide something from me? Whatever, I have nowhere to go to begin with. He turned his head and allowed his eyes to sink in the sea of bookshelves.

I really love this place. The only library I've ever been to was the orphanage’s. They didn't allow us to read much, so I had to steal books from there and get occasionally beaten up… Sarai felt as if he was home. A place he hadn't known how to feel about.

Mitsu noticed his awestruck eyes and asked, “Do you like books?”

“I love them.” Sarai answered, subconsciously excited.

“Same.”

At the rear wall, behind a row of dusty bookshelves, loomed a door. The sign “Staff only” hung slightly above it.

Mitsu held an iron key with her left hand and inserted it in the keyhole, twisting it to open the door.

Creak. She entered the obscure space behind the door. Sarai followed her. She closed the door and turned the lights on.

The walls were dusty and old, more bookshelves stuck to them. Tables, chairs, and drawers were scattered in disarray, a sight that hurt the eye.

“This room is protected by a magical spell. It activates once the door closes.” Mitsu pulled a chair next to a table and sat on it, her legs crossed.

“Anything that happens here is detached from the rest of the building and engulfed with darkness. It would take a dedicated attempt to break the spell.”

I see. Why this room, though? And why is she telling me this now? Sarai felt uneasy about his unsettling situation.

“Sit down,” Mitsu ordered.

She's scary… Sarai sat obediently.

“Uh, why are we here?” He couldn't help but ask.

“Did Enji tell you about the business we operate in?” she asked.

“Yes, it's information, right?” replied Sarai in a serious tone.

“You see, betrayal is very common in Faithful circles. Everyone seeks benefits individually, and it's very rare for one to develop feelings for their companions.” She leaned with a sigh, “That would just make stepping over their bodies more difficult.”

She's right. It's not only in the Faithful world, the human world, in general, is a battlefield of individuals’ beliefs and goals.

“That's why the boss and I decided to have an effective security system, one where I make a sacrifice.” She pulled a necklace from beneath her shirt. At its end, a small, sharp sword hung.

“After all,” she held the cross-like sword tightly in her fingers, “the boss is a person I'm willing to sacrifice myself for.” She pierced her blind eye with it, planting it deeply as blood swelled down her pale cheek.

What is she…

The lights began to flicker, and the air around Mitsu cracked into rifts, fracturing into dark eye-shaped patterns. Porcelain. The black pupils that appeared at the eyes’ center struck Sarai's spirit with a petrifying terror.

Their gaze stripped his very soul bare.