Hearing the commotion from afar, Estelle hurried over. As soon as she arrived, she saw her long-searched-for daughter straddling Eros and vigorously shaking his head.
Her temper flared instantly, and the gentle expression on her face was replaced by a frosty glare.
"Wendine! Get off him this instant! How can you bully your brother like this?"
The moment Wendine heard her mother's voice, all the anger on her face disappeared, replaced by fear and panic. She jumped up abruptly, ready to make a run for it.
"Wendine, stop right there!" Estelle shouted angrily from afar when she saw her daughter trying to escape.
Wendine froze in place immediately, her head drooping like a defeated little hen. Estelle quickened her pace, striding over.
Looking at her daughter, whose temperament she couldn't quite figure out who she inherited it from, Estelle was filled with anger. In a stern tone, she asked:
"Why didn't you attend your lessons today?"
Wendine, with her head hanging low, mumbled hesitantly, "Mr. Boroka's class is so boring."
Her voice grew softer and softer, until it was almost inaudible.
"Boring, so you skip class? Look at your brother—he's two years younger than you, and he's already finished his etiquette lessons. Does he think they're boring? You're the older sister; you should be setting an example for your younger brother."
Estelle looked at her daughter in front of her, filled with frustration and disappointment.
When Wendine heard her mother praising her brother, she glanced over at Eros, only to see him winking and making faces at her, his expression full of smug delight.
Her anger flared instantly, and she was about to lunge at him for revenge when Estelle scolded:
"Wendine, are you planning to use your hands again? What if you hurt your brother by shaking him like that?"
Wendine froze in place, her hands retreating as she lowered her head once more, not daring to move.
Only then did Estelle turn to Eros, her tone filled with concern:
"Are you okay? Did you get hurt anywhere?"
Eros shook his head. "I'm fine, Mom. Sister was just playing with me earlier."
Looking at her obedient and sensible son in front of her, then at her unruly and wild daughter beside him, Estelle felt her anger flare again.
"Look at your brother, and then look at yourself!"
Wendine turned her head away, pretending not to hear. Under her breath, she muttered, "Tattletale. Just wait and see how I'll get back at you later."
Not long after, Wendine was carried off by Estelle, who lifted her by the back of her collar. Eros, watching from the side, was utterly shocked.
Even though Wendine wasn't heavy, her figure was already beginning to show hints of elegance—she was definitely not light.
Yet, Estelle's slender arm had effortlessly picked her up with one hand and carried her away? Eros found it hard to believe.
Although he kept getting interrupted, Eros hadn't forgotten the purpose of his trip.
With his mind filled with curiosity and questions, he continued walking toward the library.
I hope I can make more discoveries today. The supernatural side… hehe.
To be honest, this was his first time visiting his family's library.
When he finally saw the massive structure in front of him, he couldn't help but be astonished once again by his family's wealth.
He found it hard to imagine how, in this technologically backward society, people had managed to construct such an enormous and exquisitely designed building.
"But well… hehe! All of this will be mine someday. All mine!"
He grinned and stopped overthinking, extending his small hands to push open the heavy doors. To his surprise, the doors opened effortlessly.
What struck him as odd, however, was the absence of anyone inside. He had heard the library was supposed to have staff on duty, but there was no one at the counter or anywhere in sight.
Originally, he'd planned to ask someone where the history section was located, but it seemed that idea was now out of the question.
Fine! Guess I'll have to find it myself.
He started walking on his short legs, scanning the bookshelves one by one. As he looked up at the rows of books before him, he noticed titles like:
How to Capture a Noblewoman's Attention
How to Interact with Noblewomen
How to Win a Noblewoman's Heart
What… what are these ridiculous books? This is completely out of line!
After wandering around for ages, he still hadn't found any history books, but he had stumbled across a mountain of nonsensical ones.
What surprised him, though, was that the library actually had a decent collection of novels.
Unfortunately, most of them were about knightly tales and biographies.
He randomly pulled out a few to skim through, only to find that most of them followed the same tired formula: a knight heroically saves a princess, but in the end, the princess marries the prince instead. Despite this, the knight remains devoted to protecting the princess.
What is this? Some kind of tragic loyal sheep trope? Just looking at it made him angry. Frustrated, he shoved the book back into its place. If he kept reading, he felt like his early-2000s-era brain aneurysm might just resurface.
But when he came across a book titled The Treasure of Pirate King Sally, it unexpectedly brought him some joy.
The opening chapters of the book included an introduction to the seas surrounding the Croatia Continent—something he hadn't known about before.
After all, his family's territory was deep inland, countless miles away from the sea. Nobody had ever bothered to tell him about the ocean. First, because it wasn't relevant, and second, because he was still so young.
He hadn't even finished learning about the geography near his own territory—thinking about faraway seas would be jumping the gun.
As a result, his knowledge of the world's oceans was virtually nonexistent—a complete blank slate.
However, after reading the section on the surrounding seas, his spirits lifted.
According to the book, all the surrounding seas eventually connected to a single vast expanse of water about 500 kilometers offshore—the Sea of Mist.
According to the book's description, the Sea of Mist was perpetually shrouded in fog.
Any living being venturing into its waters would become lost, with fewer than one in a hundred ever returning alive.
For thousands of years, countless capable individuals had tried to conquer that sea, only to fail. Thus, the Sea of Mist had also earned the nickname "The God-Forsaken Sea."
Eros was stunned. Based on the records in the book, didn't this mean that all of humanity on the Croatia Continent only had access to the sea up to 500 kilometers from the coastline?
That was hard to believe. It was normal for the sea to have fog, but for it to never dissipate, year-round? That was anything but normal.
What was even more bizarre was the consistent range of the fog, always starting precisely 500 kilometers from the coast.
This didn't seem like a natural phenomenon at all. Could this be one of the mysterious events of this world? Incredible.
The discovery excited him even more. It confirmed that the supernatural side of this world did exist—and it was so close to humanity.
Still, despite his excitement, he wasn't reckless enough to charge off to the Sea of Mist on impulse.
Hadn't the book explicitly stated that fewer than one in a hundred made it back alive? The world was vast, and staying alive was so much better than taking such a risk.
After finishing the geographical introduction in the preface, Eros lost interest in the rest of the book. He shoved it back oto the shelf and resumed his search for other related books.
This time, he expanded his search criteria. Books that described the Sea of Mist now became his primary targets.
He scanned the shelves row by row, but the process was painfully slow. Normally, he could have asked the library staff to help him search.
Yet, for some unknown reason, none of the staff who were supposed to be on duty were present today. The massive library felt eerily empty, leaving him as its only occupant.