He also mentioned that the second floor had no current use, so it was off-limits.
"The third floor used to be a large reading room, but everyone gathered there and cleared it out."
What should have been a crowded third floor with bookshelves and books had turned into a wide-open space.
In the far-right corner, there was a long table stocked with dry food and snacks, and in the centre, a long desk with chairs.
"We used to gather and eat in the basement, but now we eat here. Meals are served twice a day: at 10 AM and 4 PM."
"Ugh, uhhh, ah, it hurts! Brother Bruno, it hurts!"
"Shut up, you little bastard. Stop screaming like a girl!"
Bruno was moving Sam's injured foot, observing it closely.
Meanwhile, beside the limping Smith, a woman was hurriedly attending to him.
"…Who's that?"
"Oh, that's Katherine, the librarian. You can just call her 'Librarian'."
I had assumed she was a doctor since she was attending to the injured.
But seeing her use the old-fashioned method of taping the arm to a book to stabilize it, I realized she wasn't a doctor.
If she used tape like that, it might actually make things worse.
But, well, that wasn't my problem.
After finishing the first aid, Katherine approached us. If I had to guess her age by her face… early thirties?
"You said you were going to get food, but you've just been talking more."
"Haha, I'll go further out tomorrow."
"That's fine. Just don't die."
"And, hello there. I'm Katherine. I'll speak comfortably since I'm older than you."
"Ah, I appreciate that. I'm Palmer."
"Let's try to get along."
After a much more simple introduction compared to Nina, we finally reached the 4th floor.
"The 5th floor is the rooftop, so it's not important. Uh… by the way, how old are you?"
He sure asked quickly.
Once again, I marvelled at this man's behaviour, it seems age is always important to him, even in this kind of situation, and opened my mouth.
"Me? I'm 27."
"…Wow, you don't look that old."
"That's just a common compliment. But thank you."
"Hahaha, I'm 23. Drop the formalities, Brother Palmer."
Looking at Kane, who was grinning warmly, I thought to myself that this guy must have hit his head pretty hard.
He was the leader of this group, yet he was calling me "Brother" just because I was older than him?
That mentality was something I couldn't even begin to understand.
"Well, then I'll speak comfortably."
"Phew, I can finally relax. The 4th floor used to be a digital library, but we cleared it out and turned it into a personal space for people to rest."
"Personal space?"
"Well, it's not anything grand, just a place to sleep. The regular library is for the guys, and the digital library is for the women."
"Is there anyone else I haven't met yet?"
"Nope. The librarian is the last one. There used to be a lot more people, but... they left the shelter due to some differences in opinion."
As I watched Kane trail off, I pieced the situation together. So, including me, there were only 8 people in this camp. It was a very small group.
Well, for now, I could make useful people into my followers and farm the others.
If my telekinesis level increased, I would be able to lift both myself and someone else at the same time.
"Hmm… this spot can be my place."
This was clearly a space that someone had used before.
In a small area blocked off by bookshelves, there was a blanket and a pillow, along with books scattered around.
"Well... there aren't many blankets. We didn't have a choice."
"I'm not picky about hot or cold food."
"Haha, I'm glad to hear that. Brother, I'll go down now. See you at 4 PM on the 3rd floor. Oh, the clock's over there."
Kane pointed at the clock in the center of the wall and waved as he left.
He probably gave me some time to prepare for what was coming.
"Alright. Let's get started."
I checked my skill again in the status window and activated it.
[Sanctuary Declaration Lv.1]
[The leader needs a territory where their followers can gather. Create a religion and declare a sanctuary.]
(Warning: This skill can only be used once.)
[Executing Sanctuary Declaration Lv.1!]
[Do you want to set 'Liverpool Central Library' as your sanctuary?]
I nodded, and a warning pop-up appeared.
['Liverpool Central Library' currently has an overwhelming number of non-believers compared to believers. Are you sure you want to proceed?]
Ah, right.
[A small religion will be born in 'Liverpool Central Library'! Please choose a name for the religion!]
Ugh, the worst part of RPGs is coming up: naming.
I wasn't planning on coming up with anything grand anyway.
I just combined my name and the stereotypical suffix.
"Palmer Salvation Church."
[The religion 'Palmer Salvation Church' is born. The leader is Palmer. The birthplace of the religion is 'Liverpool Central Library'.]
[The Sanctuary Management tab has been activated!]
[The leader's abilities are amplified within the sanctuary! All skills have double efficiency, and a mini-map is now active!]
[The exclusive skill 'Sanctuary Declaration Lv.1' has changed to 'Lord's Seduction Lv.1']
…
Tip: You can manage the sanctuary through the Sanctuary Management tab!
Along with a flood of messages that made my head spin, a familiar interface appeared in the top right corner of my vision.
"Wow, this is... amazing."
It was a mini-map I often saw in games.
It showed the library's overall layout, along with everyone inside's locations.
Currently, everyone except two people was gathered on the 3rd floor.
One was me on the 4th floor in the general library, and the other was Cristine, quietly holed up in the women's bathroom on the 4th floor.
Instantly, I could feel both my telekinesis and mana double in strength.
Now, no one in this library could stop me.
I checked the status window and began to walk toward the women's bathroom.