Chapter 463: Chapter 462: Just a librarian

"Sir, what is the Tanji Leaderboard?" Azar asked as the man’s eyes lit up.

"Oh, that. Those who make it onto it are the best of the best. And don’t think your shared points aren’t monitored—you won’t qualify for the Tanji Leaderboard if you rely on that. But for those who genuinely venture out, kill, and grow stronger, you will be able to enter it," the man explained.

"It is limited to one hundred people, and those hundred are the strongest of the strongest. They have been on this battlefield slightly longer than you all, so their points are..." he paused.

"Sir, how many points are needed to reach the Tanji Leaderboard?" Azar asked again.

"Sir, is there any benefit?" a noble asked as the man rolled his eyes.

Azar’s question was good, but the second one... typical nobles.

"Fifty thousand points and tier 3 mana-devouring beasts only give thirty points." 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

What!

Not only Azar but the rest were shocked, with many losing interest immediately.

"And the benefit? Not much. It is more of recognition of power," he added.

Instantly, most of them lost interest. The man was already used to this. Except for a few nobles, most were cowards who did not want danger. At least the higher-ranked Tier 5 nobles were more sensible, but these brats...

Sigh... the commoners would suffer for them. He could already imagine them being forced to fight while the nobles stayed back, lured by benefits they could not resist.

"Well, you will learn more as you stay at the base. As for me, I am just a common librarian, so if you need books or spells, though not the strongest, they are free and go up to Tier 4. Feel free to come back," the man said.

"Yeah, okay," they replied, their attitude already shifting as they walked out—except for one. For them, their families already had good and strong tier 4 spells and this was just a casual library, it definitely can’t have good tier 4 spells.

"These brats..." the man thought, then chuckled. Well, it did not matter. He expected it anyway.

But what he did not expect was that one of them actually stayed.

No offense, but this batch of nobles were spoiled brats. He had seen a few decent noble groups before, but most were like this.

With a wave of his hand, the room returned to normal as chairs were gone.

"Sir, how can I get stronger?" Azar asked as the man smiled.

"I already explained it, through MP," the man said.

"No, sir. I mean strong enough to enter the Tanji Leaderboard," Azar added. He had a feeling the Tanji Leaderboard was not as simple as the man made it sound. Something about it pulled at him.

And if he wanted to control his fate and chase his dream, he needed to reach that leaderboard.

Hearing this, the man showed a surprised expression.

Hmm... a different kind of noble. But like the others, after the first battle, this one would likely give up once he saw the reality of war.

"Heh, are you serious?" the man asked.

Azar nodded.

"Alright. My name is Osiris. I am a librarian, like I said. I have books and spells that can guide you—up to Tier 4. They are free. You might learn something from them."

"Also, try to fight above your rank. If you kill beasts stronger than your tier, you will gain more MP. More importantly, you will get noticed by higher-ups, and better resources will be given to you."

"You will obtain stronger spells much more easily," Osiris continued.

"And if you reach the Tanji Leaderboard, you will be exposed to a completely different world," he said with a grin.

This... this was good. At least now he knew what he had to aim for.

Watching the thoughtful boy, Osiris felt impressed.

This kid was truly serious.

Good... good.

"What’s your name, kid?" Osiris asked, adjusting his glasses.

Azar looked up briefly and felt slightly uncomfortable. Being called "kid" by someone who looked barely older than him felt strange, but he still replied.

"Azar, sir."

"Good name. I hope to see you at the library soon."

"Thank you, sir," Azar waved as he left.

"That kid..." Osiris muttered, genuinely impressed. He did not expect that level of determination. Interesting.

With everyone gone, his job was done.

Osiris stood up, now wearing a white T-shirt and neatly ironed black trousers. He brought out a mirror and smiled at his reflection.

"Perfect..." he muttered.

At the top of his chest, slightly unbuttoned, an infinity symbol could faintly be seen etched into his skin.

Then the entire building began to shift. Shelves moved, rearranging themselves as new rows of books appeared, filling the space.

He was still a librarian, and because of Azar, he suddenly felt more motivated to redesign the place.

Not because of the strange looks Azar and the others gave him when he mentioned "library"...

No.

He just felt like... redecorating once in a while was good.

Yes.

That was it.

Osiris convinced himself as he started dancing with a bright smile.

Cough cough.

Suddenly, a middle-aged man coughed.

He was wearing enchanted mage battle armor—Tier 7 magi. The same one who had saved Azar and the others earlier.

Osiris’ head popped out from between the shelves.

"Yes? What is it?" he asked.

The man bowed.

"Sir, among the two thousand fortresses, only four hundred landed without problems. The remaining ones were destroyed to varying degrees, but only about three hundred were destroyed with the youths still inside," the man reported, his face solemn.

Although this was not rare, these were thousands of Tier 3 magi and this was only before they had even entered the battlefield.

Among the survivors of the remaining 1,700 fortresses, maybe fewer than two hundred would survive to the end.

And that was the reality of the war.

"I told you... frowning and not smiling will always make you ugly. Look at how you look," Osiris said as he appeared and patted the general’s shoulder.

The general’s face twitched slightly.

Look at me and you... you look ordinary. As long as a person isn’t blind, they can see I’m more handsome than you.

But the general could only think it and not speak. After all, this was the leader of the entire military.

"I understand. It’s tough, but we are conflicted. I and the others cannot move rashly, or we will make this war even worse. So it is left to you and the younger generation. Bear with us," Osiris said.

The "us" Osiris referred to were the Tier 8 magi—planetary beings. With even a single move from them, the entire planet could be altered.

They maintained balance against the Tier 8 monsters and even the Tier 8 leaders of the X16 organization.

So in this war, Tier 7 magi like the general were the absolute limit of direct involvement, and it would remain so until the climax of the war and they were still far from it.

"Change the school system, especially for the nobles. It seems we have been too soft on them," Osiris said.

The general nodded with a slight smile.

Yes... that was exactly what he wanted. And for Osiris to make this decision meant it had likely already been discussed with the king and the heads of the noble factions.

He had grown tired of those spoiled brats.

And now, there was finally going to be a change.

"Yes, sir," the general said with a bright smile.

******

Mass release done, enjoy