Crest of the Strongest Knight

Chapter 145 - Wake Up Soon

Viviane sat on the ground, her gaze lingering on Medrauta's sleeping face. The knight's silver hair gleamed beautifully in the soft lighting of the room, casting an almost ethereal glow against her face.

Viviane pursed her lips, conflicted. Despite the situation they were in, the noblewoman couldn't help but admire Medrauta's fairy-like beauty as the knight laid still in her lap. Medrauta's breathing was soft and quiet even in the silence, and for a moment, the forbidden thought of wanting this tenuous peace to continue for a little longer crossed Viviane's mind. While Viviane didn't know what exactly was happening to Medrauta at the moment, the knight's vital signs seemed to be fine and she appeared to be resting so peacefully.

The only problem was that she had no idea how much time had passed since Medrauta first fell unconscious, nor was Viviane aware of the consequences of Medrauta's condition. A wish to prolong it would be irresponsible to say the least. Viviane lowered her head and pressed her lips against Medrauta's cheek gently, allowing herself that fleeting moment before finally wrenching her gaze away from her beloved.

Countless books were strewn across the floor around them, their contents spread wide open for ease of access as Viviane attempted to peruse their pages for any information that could be of use to her current predicament. Earlier, Viviane had spent most of her time going through the plethora of books in the library, attempting to divert her attention from the overwhelming worry and concern that she felt for her knight while also working toward a solution to their troubling circumstances.

As Viviane's goals were simply to awaken Medrauta or reach the top of the tower so she could somehow destroy the orb powering the witchspawn and signal for reinforcements, she focused her efforts on finding anything related to the tower they were currently inside or even something that might elucidate the nature of Medrauta's condition.

While the latter ended in failure, the same couldn't be said for the former. The tower's library was filled with a vast variety of books from history and religion to architecture and mathematics. However, its method of organization vastly differed from the structured method that Viviane was used to in Avalyne Academy that emerged as a result of Lady Rose's efforts, making it difficult for the noblewoman to find what she needed in the tower.

However, her efforts hadn't been completely in vain. Perhaps it was simply luck or perhaps she had Aluvsha's hand guiding her, but Viviane had managed to find several books detailing not only the history of the tower she was currently within, but also a more general treatise on the towers themselves and their purpose.

That said, learning more about the tower's history didn't exactly help her when it came to finding whatever hidden mechanism that opened the way to the top. Viviane sighed as she flipped through the pages of an adjacent book. She'd already gone through the ones surrounding her, but she'd need to move in order to get new ones.

Just a bit more... Viviane thought to herself as she accepted her fate. Her gaze had already alighted upon the tomes of a distant bookshelf, her sharpened vision easily making out a few of the titles written upon their spines. She knew she had to get up, but even so, she wanted to allow Medrauta to rest on her lap for just a little longer before begrudgingly getting up.

After collecting a few books and stacking them to make a passable book-pillow for Medrauta to rest her head on, Viviane gave her beloved knight one last look before heading toward the bookshelf that had caught her interest earlier.

"According to the stuff I read before, this tower is called a 'shield tower', huh?" Viviane murmured to herself as she browsed the contents of the shelf. If she was being completely honest, all the titles caught her eye, but she was looking for something very specific.