When Mei Gui and I opened our eyes again, we were facing some kind of castle.

Wait...I remember this scene. Count Draculus had a castle too.

That being said, this castle was very different from the ancient vampire's - his was dark and gloomy, while this one was royal and grand, like a real castle should be. The environment here was vastly different too - the sky was a beautiful shade of pink, compared to the lightning-filled stormy night of Count Draculus' place. The difference was as clear as day and night.

There was also one more distinct difference - Count Draculus' castle had been the only building in sight, no matter how far I looked, but here, Mei Gui and I were currently in the middle of a street. We were surrounded by buildings, in fact. The castle, which I assumed to be our destination, could only be seen over the rooftops of the structures all around us.

However, it was pretty weird. Despite the clear city-like environment we were in, no one was walking around. The weather was good - warm with a light breeze, neither too cold nor too hot. The sun had just began to set - the perfect time for people to come out of homes to enjoy the view. And yet...not a single soul could be seen around.

Mei Gui noticed this too, and the two of us kept our guards up, always remaining vigilant of our surroundings.

[Master, shall I activate my Third Eye?] Mei Gui asked telepathically, since we never knew who could be listening.

[Nah. Best save your mana. This is definitely another one of the Founders. They won't hurt us.]

[Understood, Master.]

After a long while of walking, we finally reached the castle. A beautiful garden lay between the open metal gates and the castle itself. In the center of the garden was a majestic fountain, with a grey statue of a man shooting water out of it. Mei Gui and I walked past it, admiring the view all around us. We reached the entrance, and the doors of the castle opened.

A man walked out. But he wasn't human.

He had two black horns on the top of his head, but longer and more curved than the ones Mei Gui had. He wore glasses and a sleek butler suit, accompanied by a gentle smile on his face.

"Welcome to Lord Luisfer's castle," he greeted, bowing deeply. "My lord has been waiting for you. Please, allow me to escort you inside."

"Lord Luisfer...?" I murmured to myself, but did as told anyway.

I began walking through the entrance, Mei Gui following behind, but-

"My apologies, but...Lord Luisfer never informed me of your companion here. I'm afraid she cannot enter," the butler said, instantly teleporting to in front of Mei Gui and I.

Tch...he seems to be quite powerful. I can feel the strong aura emitting from him too...was that Space Magic or just really high level Blessing Magic just now?

I narrowed my eyes. "She's coming with me."

"...This..." he seemed to be uncertain what to do. He had probably been told to treat me like an honored guest or something of the sort, given the polite attitude he was using towards me. He didn't want to make me mad, but at the same time couldn't disobey his lord's wishes.

"Let her in as well," a deep male voice echoed from deeper within the castle, and the butler's eyes widened.

"I see...understood, Lord Luisfer."

He took a deep breath, and smiled at us once more. "Well then, let's head inside, shall we?"

*****

We were led through the grand castle. It was enormous, but still, nowhere as large as the maze-like death castle of Count Draculus. The interior was exquisitely designed. Vintage paintings lined the walls, and countless treasured artifacts were put on display in the corridors. We headed up the polished stairs, our footsteps reverberating against the empty castle's walls.

Soon, we reached what seemed to be a throne room, given the excessively decorated door, even compared to the rest of this place. The butler knocked gently, and a voice soon responded.

"Come in."

The butler pushed open the door and welcomed us inside. After we entered, he closed the door again behind us, and knelt down.

Facing Mei Gui and I was an aged man, sitting on a throne. He had horns similar to the ones on top of the butler's head, but surprisingly, I couldn't feel an aura from this man at all. However, from the way the butler revered this man, it was clear this person was Lord Luisfer...and even stronger than the butler. Just like the other Founders, I couldn't feel a strong presence emitting from him. However, the truth couldn't be further from that.

I glanced at the butler, kneeling in front of Lord Luisfer, and chose to not do the same. Luisfer seemed to be evaluating me, seeing if I would kneel down the same way. Seeing my decision, a grin crept up his aged face.

"My lord, I have brought the guests here," the butler said.

Luisfer nodded. "Good work. You may leave now."

The butler stood back up, bowed, and left the room.

"Now then...your name is Xuan Kai, correct?" he asked.

It was clear he already knew either way, so I didn't see a point in lying to him. With his power, finding out my name was as easy as breathing.

"Yes...and you're Lord Luisfer, I take it?"

"Just Luisfer is fine," he replied. "I can tell you dislike bowing down to anyone, from how you did not kneel just now. However, you still show due respect. I must say, I admire you."

"I see...thanks?" I murmured hesitantly. "You're one of the sixteen Founders of the Library, right? Otherwise, there's no way you would see me here."

Luisfer nodded. "Indeed. I am the representative from the Demon race."

"Ah, that explains the horns, then...but what about that butler? Is he affiliated with the Library as well?"

Luisfer averted his gaze. "Actually...he is not. However, he knows of my affiliation with the Library, which is supposed to be taboo."

"Taboo? Why?"

He sighed. "You see...the sixteen Founders of the Library of Infinite Beginnings are all some kind of high-ranking and exceedingly strong member of their own respective races. Because of this, they are not supposed to be spending so much time and resources on something else - in this case, the Library. For this reason, no one else is supposed to find out about our identity as the Founders of the Library, no matter how close someone is to us."

"But then, that butler..." Mei Gui muttered.

Luisfer nodded. "He found out about my identity by chance, because of a slip-up I made. The other Founders had wanted to silence him immediately, and the most surefire way to do that was to kill him. However, I protected him with my life, and eventually, the other Founders succumbed, not wanting to create discord amongst ourselves."

I frowned. "I still don't get it. Why go to such lengths to hide your identity?"

"...The matter of the Library is more complicated than you can imagine," Luisfer said after a short silence. "You are not yet ready for that knowledge. Perhaps, once you have met all sixteen Founders...you will be closer to discovering the truth. The truth about this world, that is."

"...What?" every word he said only served to make me more confused.

Luisfer shook his head. "Nevermind. Let us talk about you. You have refrained from telling any of the previous Founders any information, and I am not so naïve as to believe I will be any different. However...if possible, can you tell me who this girl beside you is? I feel a familiar energy from her that closely resembles one of the other Founders..."

"That must be because she's an Elemental," I replied. I didn't mention the 'Chaos' part though.

"Ah, I see...that is indeed it. However, human-type Elementals are rare. The Elemental Founder is also one, but apart from her, I have never seen any other ones."

I shrugged. "Is that so? I found her just lying in a forest somewhere, injured, and decided to help her out a bit. She's been following me ever since."

My ability to come up with bullshit on the spot was truly impressive, if I do say so myself.

"Huh. Is that so? I did say she was similar to my good friend, the Elemental Founder, but she appears to be...somewhat different as well."

"Well, she got kidnapped, some shit happened, and now she's not 100% an Elemental anymore," I responded truthfully. I didn't have a reason to lie about this, since with some digging, the Founders could easily find out the whole incident with Exurtra Labs.

"Hm. I understand. That is all I wanted to know."

"Huh? You're really not going to ask about this 'power' you're all insistent on me having?" I blinked in false surprise.

"No. I am different from Draculus, who I am sure you met on the previous floor. After all, that would be the only reason why you're a half-vampire now. Here is the gateway that will lead you back to the Library."

He snapped his fingers, and a door appeared near me.

"Master...?" This was the first time Mei Gui has heard of the whole half-vampire incident, so she turned and looked at me in confusion.

"Ah, I'll explain later," I quickly said, before turning back to Luisfer. "Thank you for the good intentions. But...if you're trying to warm up to me by acting nice, and then finding information that way, it's not going to work."

Luisfer's expression changed. His smile froze on his face, and I confidently strode out the portal he had so kindly opened up for me.

I had seen through his plans from the very beginning. The warm welcome, the polite attitude, the 'admiration' he had for me...was all nothing but a farce used to convince me he was a nice guy. Unfortunately for him, I wasn't so easily deceived. Not anymore, at least.