Emerging from the shadows on the top of the staircase, the uncanny boot gave way to a large abnormal human figure. Wrapped in an oversized brown buttoned up trench coat and a bowler hat on the top of its head decorated with roses and gems, the mysterious stranger stood eerily tall at about 10 feet. Its body was covered in a smoky haze, as if there was a blur that was censoring its very existence. Having no pants between the strange boots and its coat, the humans were lucky that the trench coat was so big that it went to its knee to cover its primitive parts, less they wanted to see even more horrid sights. While the being was awfully familiar to a human in how it was shaped and dressed, no one among the group dared to think that it could be something so simple. The way its skin stretched as it contorted into an unnatural grin was too ghastly of a sight for something with humanity
“What the fuck…” Marco said aloud.
The humans creeped back out of sheer disturbance from the uncanniness of the beings head, instinctively knowing it was something to be feared. With unsettling large glimmering eyes with golden irises and the lack of normal human body parts such as a nose and ears, the being in front of them scared them more than Gus had ever done throughout their talking.
“Now, now. It’s rude to stare so long at someone, Marco,” The strange one said.
Marco’s confident mask, which had even managed to hide his true fears from the mighty golem, shattered in front of this being. This was not someone that can be compromised, manipulated, or even deceived. It was just too powerful to be bound to such conventions. Marco knew all too well that in front of it, all such hopes are meaningless. The only thing he can do now is to glean its intentions and prove his worth to live.
“W-who are you?” Marco asked in fearful suspicion.
“Me? I’m merely just the host of this event. Your regular old…merchant, yes. You should know a thing about how merchants work, yes, isn’t that right Marco?”
Marco uncomfortably shifted from its words, not daring to say more now that he knew the Merchant had information on him. Yet that message was not sent to everyone in the group.
“What do you want with us, you freak!” one of the more scared members of the human group yelled.
If that young man had retained his wit instead of giving into fear, he would have known that Marco went quiet for a reason. At his words, The Merchant froze in thought, and then a slight frown developed on its stretchy skin. It then turned towards the man who was the source of the voice that yelled out, and the frown suddenly went away. Then, the Merchant disappeared. Too fast for human eyes, the being instantly appeared in front of the scared man, not even giving him a chance to react. It then leaned its neck down toward the man staring into his eyes like a giraffe looking down upon an ant.
“You want to ask me that question again, Jack?”
The group, in horror, stepped away from Jack, not wanting to remain anywhere close to this mysterious entity for a second longer. The Merchant, however, did not care about this reaction and instead got even closer to Jack’s face. Only when it got close enough to where they were only an inch away, did the Merchant take out its long discolored tongue and wrapped it slowly around Jack’s neck. The terrified man’s face turned ghostly pale from the disgust yet even then, he dared not to resist. Jack only kept his eyes shut and gritted his teeth, too scared to stare into those horrifying eyes again. Gus could not help but look away, disgusted by the scene he saw. Yet what could he do? Stop this horrifying monster? While Gus liked being a hero to these humans, he just couldn’t muster the will to challenge this divine insane being. It was like it was ingrained in his very soul that to commit such folly would be not only worthless, but fatal. Luckily, none of the humans could criticize his decision, as the same applied to most of the human group as well.
“...sto…” Jack finally whimpered.
“I can’t hear you, Jack. Speak louder, yes.”
“Please, s-stop.”
“There we go, there’s your voice. Why couldn’t you be this obedient from the get go. We wouldn’t have gone through this pointless act, yes, if you just stayed silent like a good guest should.”
Letting its tongue go, the Merchant patted Jack’s shoulders and then turned back to the group, who were silent in shock and fear at the monstrosity in front of them.
“Sorry about the interruption. Got a little sidetracked there, yes, with this cute little human. Where were we?”
The crowd, however, remained quiet, no one wanting to be violated by the Merchant like with Jack.
“Oh right, silly me, I was supposed to explain the details of your stay here. Sorry Jack, I guess I was already going to answer your question, yes, before you interrupted.”
Jack let out a yelp and his body shook at the call of his name. The merchant snickered at his reaction, and resumed his speech.
“Humans, I’ll keep it simple. I am here to test your humanity, yes, and see which one of you has what it takes to survive. Those with strong wills and the power to achieve their desires will be rewarded. Those weak, however, will be forced to struggle to keep up with their comrades or give up.”
“A test…?” Marco asked, finding his voice once again.
“Yes, Marco, a test, but also an essential learning experience. I suppose I should sum it up, yes, for all the dear folks here. Each of those doors you all saw in the hallway contains a trial that everyone is going to partake in, and this library shall be your first trial.”
“Can’t you just let us go!? None of us knew about there being a test here,” Primis yelled, her face no longer green like it had been moments before.
“Unfortunately, that is not something I can or will do. For it is fate that has led your team here, yes, your team specifically.”
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“What about the injured ones? Can you at least let them go,” a member of the group who was taking care of a particularly bloody victim asked.
“If they die, they die. The weak are here to nourish the strong, yes, for that is the only way to survive Havory.”
Havory?
Memories began to rush into Gus’s mind, like a river flowing through a broken dam. Scenes one by one began to play within Gus’s mind, all containing lines from the book titled Havory he had read before. Whether it be characters, locations, or even dialogue, all within the story had exactly matched what had just occurred with the events unfolding now, all except for two differences. One was that the hero who wielded light was a part of the band of humans. The other was that there was no talking golem within Havory like Gus.
Agh, my mind! That was simply too much information at once for mere remembering!
Fighting against what felt like an emotional storm, Gus turned to the group, hoping to see if that same hero was a part of the crowd of humans. But sadly, no one seemed to fit the description, and only the side characters were present.
Dang it, all these mysterious things are just ticking me off! Are you trying to tell me I’m in a story? That’s just…that’s just too lame! There’s no way I am stuck in some fairy tale book with predestined events. I want free will! No wait, Cogito ergo sum, I think therefore I am. That means I still have autonomy. I can still do something about that mysterious book. Yet how? If only…if only Syuna was here. Agh, I can’t take this anymore, I’ll have to ask that Merchant.
“Merchant…do you know the story—?”
“Who said that?”
The being called the Merchant jerked in surprise from the Golem and immediately twisted its neck 90 degrees backward to face its viewer. Their eyes bulged wide open, with Gus just noticing the creature had no pupils.
“You can talk?”
“What…? Did you not know?”
“Of course I didn’t! You're merely a trial golem, yes, you aren’t supposed to talk. Who made you this way?”
“Trial Golem? I don’t understand sir—”
“Why of course you don’t understand, you sack of pebbles! You aren’t supposed to even think, yes, much less be intelligent. Now answer my question!”
“Hold up, Mr. Merchant, what do you mean by that golem’s purpose?” Marco interjected in worry.
The Merchant shot a look back at Marco in short anger, frightening the once brave man. It had momentarily forgotten its duty, replaced by the distraction that was the intelligent Golem and its mysterious origin, neglecting the humans it was once holding a test for. As if realizing its error, the Merchant’s face turned back to its frightening joyful face and then laughed.
“Oh…oh Havory! What a mess up I just did. Sorry about that humans, I may have spoiled you there, yes a small spoiler.”
The Merchant said to the humans, twisting its neck once again with a noise of rubbery torsion before quickly returning its neck back to facing Gus.
“Golem, we shall continue this conversion later. For now, we may as well get on with the show, yes, and start this first event. From what I saw, I just know you will love it.”
With a snap of the Merchant’s fingers, two large books from the fifth level of the library came flying from its shelf and into the air. Hanging above the crowd at the center, the two books began to gently descend until they floated at a comfortable eye level for the crowds. Gus, however, was surprised to see that he had never seen the two books before, despite reading everything there was to offer within this library.
Whatever happened with remembering that book called Havory will have to wait...I have a bad feeling about this.
The first book opened before the humans who were now crowded into one group, mysterious light flashing only momentarily until it dulled. Inside were blank pages of paper, empty without a single dot of ink. Just as the humans grew in confusion over this lack of information, a word in ink was suddenly dabbled onto the paper from thin air. Shortly after, more words began to be written on the empty paper, appearing as if a ghost had just inscribed them. After only a couple of seconds of this mysterious magic, did a cohesive paragraph form in big written letters.
Trial of Knowledge
Humans:
[ On each layer of the library, there will be rows of books containing subjects necessary for human triumph in Havory. Five books from each layer will be chosen for each human depending on their current knowledge, none being repeated from the other. Study them to their finest details to pass the Golem’s test for each layer. There will be a two month time limit for each layer for when one should take the test. Lastly there are no second chances for tests. Cooperation is encouraged, but Cheating will not be tolerated. ]
“What a wonderful show, Mr. Book! Everyone, make sure to give a round of applause, yes, for my most trusted partner and friend Mr. Book!”
Despite the Merchant’s cheerful efforts, not a single clap could be heard from the crowd. Instead, only horror could be seen on their faces.
“Tch, I expected better from you savages, yes, how shameful. I’m sorry you had to see that Mr. Book.”
The book titled slightly down while also partially closing itself, as if to express it was saddened by the humans reaction.
“Selfish creatures indeed. And such overthinkers, too! Thrown in some words like death, yes, and all they can think about is how to avoid that. Not a single human here thinks about the benefits such teaching could offer! You would think a band of talented and smart humans like them could conquer this test quite easily. Yet here they are, shitting their pants because I said they could be killed for failure. Soft…too soft, yes, but don’t worry, I will mold each and everyone of you to be the perfect survivors in Havory. But dare not underestimate my teaching, for arrogance will be your downfall if you dare think I’m easy!”
Yet, despite its thunderous words, the humans could still only think about the dangers ahead. As they grew lively in worry, discussing what should be done, how they would survive, and most importantly, what would happen if they fail, they all forgot about one other detail the Merchant left out. Gus, however, had noticed with much concern.
“What about me…? What’s in the other book?” He asked.
The Merchant only grinned in response, an ugly and sinister grin that had nothing good to accompany it. A dread grew within Gus as it became more clear to him that he would not be a contestant in the trial, but something else.
“Well, well, well, little golem, I suppose it's your time now. Mrs. Book, get ready to prepare the presentation, yes, and with much flair! I’m excited to see what a golem with intelligence would think when given its duty.”
Going through the same flashy presentation as with Mr. Book, albeit with a much more dramatic lightshow, the same title was written on the top of the paragraph. The contents below however, were enough to shake Gus down to his very flame.
Trial of Knowledge
Golem:
[ Accept your job details and enforce your Duty! Monitor the humans to ensure no unfair conduct is occurring. After a human is done with a level, hand out the prepared corresponding test to the contestant. If they do not obtain a 90% or above on the test, kill them in any way you see fit. Sparing is not an option. ]