The Villain Wants to Quit

Save the Traitor (4)

It took about an hour for Theo to find the library, but when he did the smell of books was intoxicating.

The library was full of scholarly luxury. Bookcases towered over Theo's head and stretched as far as he could see. The ceilings were vaulted and the library consisted of several floors that were open in the middle.

Theo tucked his hands behind his back to resist the urge to pick the books up. Their jewel colored spines were beckoning him.

Sadly, the oath around his neck would strangle him if he dared to flip through them.

It was truly disappointing. In the village where Theo was raised there had not been many books to read. And since he was grown Dullahan had forbidden him from reading unapproved books to keep Theo from learning about magic.

A bitter sigh burst out of Theo's mouth. He was a bookworm at heart.

'Torture, torture.'

Theo thought to himself as he walked around the book shelves.

Soft carpet softened his steps, so he didn't even have to worry about quieting his footsteps as much.

Still, he had to be careful not to be seen by any of the libraries approved patrons.

Thankfully there didn't seem to be anyone around.

However, Theo would have a huge task finding the book Dullahan wanted. He had no idea how the books were organized, and it wasn't like he could ask a librarian for help stealing a book.

Well, he could with the right threats, but Theo preferred not to operate that way.

Instead, he just wandered the stacks while reading the spines of each book.

If Theo had put his mind to it, he could probably have figured out a more efficient way to find the book he needed but...

'I wish I could stay here longer.'

Theo smiled as he imagined what the contents of each book would be like.

History of the Middle Continent.

Legendary Warlocks and the Secrets of their Spell Work.

An Adventurer's Guide to Flora and Fauna.

As Theo was losing himself in the forest of books, he nearly stumbled on a studying duo.

Their words were too faint to understand from where he was standing, but Theo decided to creep a little closer to eavesdrop.

Maybe he would find some valuable information by listening in.

And he liked hearing gossip.

Theo wasn't able to get a look at the duo's faces, but one voice was feminine and one was masculine.

"-still don't you think there are a lot of ethical implications behind this," the feminine voice said.

"Well that's the case for everything," the masculine voice said.

'Ah. Ethics. Boring.'

Theo started to turn away. He wasn't that interested in a philosophical debate.

"It just seems like the only ones that could actually get their oaths broken would be the very rich or influential."

Theo stopped in his tracks.

'Did she just mention breaking an oath?'

Theo hadn't even known such a thing was possible.

He could feel the oath tightening around his neck as a warning to stop listening in on this conversation.