Even though we were still alive and well, the sudden realisation that we might not be getting out of the library for several days shook all of us. It was like being lost in the biggest maze in the world where supplies were as scarce as the number of exits.

"Okay, Amy, how much food and water do you have in that backpack?" Rogier asked, taking the initiative. Amy quickly tried to shake off her shock and began listing all she took with her that could qualify as being edible or drinkable.

"Alright, that should last us for three days at least if we ration it. Good. That already gives us better chances than I had when I got stuck here. What about the rest of you? Packin' any snacks?"

Corwyn and I both shook our heads.

"Well, I didn't exactly plan on staying here that long," I tried to justify my lack of supplies.

"Yeah, yeah, I know. People rarely take food with them. Well, I'd say we're doing pretty well though. For now, we've got some reserves, but it still won't last us that long. The first steps will be to look for a place that can be used as a shelter and then for something to eat."

"Would shelter even be possible in a place like this? I-I mean, wouldn't the Shuffling kinda... take it away?" Corwyn asked.

"Nah, the only thing that shuffles are the bookshelves and the ground around them. Glassrooms always stay the same, more or less. Like that forest with the shrine that we went to, remember? It will never just split off. Once a forest, always a forest."

"B-But to stay in a G-Glassroom?! If there's some dangerous artefact there, w-we would be..."

"That's why I said we need to find a place that can be used as a shelter. That means a Glassroom that is more or less safe. On this floor, that will be quite the challenge though, so we need to be very careful. For now, though, I'd just say we should go and explore." Rogier pointed towards one of the exits and took a few steps its way before Amy stopped him.

"W-Wait! I... I can't do this. It's too dangerous. The Glassrooms at these depths can kill us without us even having time to react. And there could be Guardians. We need weapons. Or traps. Or..." Her breathing was becoming more and more rapid and shallow as her eyes darted around the room, possibly looking for anything that would guarantee safety.

"Amy, it will be alright. Take some deep breaths."

"No!" I tried to approach her but Rogier's shout stopped me in my track. "It will not be alright. We're fighting for our lives now."

"Rogier! Can't you see she's scared?"

"Yeah? So what? Are we just gonna drag a coward with us? She will only weigh us down."

"Y-You can't be serious!"

"Of course I am! What the hell do you plan on doing, Amy? Staying a coward for the rest of your life?"

"That's coming from you? You ran when the Guardian showed up!" I yelled back at him.

"That was not out of fear. It was a strategy! I knew I could never do anything to help in that fight, so I ran instead. Retreat is not the same thing as freaking out in the corner while your friends are in danger. Which, by the way, is exactly what Amy did during the fight with the Guardian as well." He walked over to her and looked into her eyes filled with tears. "You can be scared. I'm too. Everyone would be. Fear is a normal human emotion. But you can't let it hold you in place. Bite down on that fear and take that step forward! Because you are the only one in our group who holds knowledge, including the basics of first aid. I don't want to leave you behind. You're a valuable member of the team. But right now, you're being more of a liability. So, what the fuck will it be? Cry in the corner, or on the go?"

Amy wiped the tears from her eyes, but new ones quickly flooded them again. "I'm sorry... I can't stop it."

"That's not what I asked. You can cry all you want, as long as you don't make too much noise. I want to know if you can do that and still come along and help us."

Amy nodded and only a faint "Yeah..." left her lips.

"Good! Then we can finally get going!" Rogier commanded and we all followed him into one of the dimly-lit corridors.

I stayed beside Amy. I had no idea how to help her or what to say, but I hoped that at least staying close to her would make her feel like she was not alone in this.

"Alright, a few rules," Rogier continued. "We won't be reading any books for fun. No history, no fiction, no fucking cookbooks. If you find anything actually useful though, be sure to suck it dry of knowledge. Encyclopedias about herbs, info about the Guardians, combat tactics, survival guides, and so on. Only something practical like this is useful to us, understood?"

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

"Yes!" We all replied. For a moment, I was tempted to say "Yes, sir!", but I figured that given Rogier's dislike for authority and fondness of illegal book smuggling, it wasn't the best way to address him.

"Also, Amy? I don't want to see you reading any more books today, alright? You have already read plenty and you are not doing okay mentally."

"I-I can take it," she mumbled through her tears.

"That is not up for debate. We cannot risk overloading our brains. Three books per day for each of us is a maximum. Two for Amy until she feels better again. That's rule number two."

"Is there a rule number three?" I asked.

"Yeah. No fucking around with artefacts. They might help us and be useful, but they might also kill us. As soon as we get to a Glassroom, we will first identify what exactly an artefact is, if there even is one, and then we'll stay as far away from it as possible. There is no rule four yet, but I am open to suggestions."

None of us had any. We were still so flabbergasted by this whole situation that we most likely wouldn't have come up even with the first three, no matter how logical or simple they seemed.

The hallways in this part of the library seemed to be endless. We wandered for what felt like hours, even though our watches have shown that it could've been barely twenty minutes.

"We don't have a way to track exactly when the Shuffling will happen again. Our watches got all scrambled by that fucking guardian," Rogier said after making us sync our times. "From forty minutes onward, we will stick close together. After fifty, we will stop exploring and just wait for the Shuffling."

We all agreed with the rule. Even though I would've welcomed almost anyone else as a leader, I had to give it to Rogier that he knew what he was doing and seemed to be keeping his worries in check, unlike the rest of us. Unless he asked us something, we've all been quiet. Amy eventually stopped sobbing but the posture full of fear could still be seen on her. Corwyn wasn't doing much better. He kept on turning around every minute or so as if he was expecting a Guardian to pop out of the walls all of a sudden and slaughter us all. However, I can't really blame him for such behaviour. Mentally, I wasn't in the best place either. My thoughts kept going back to Them. How big were the chances that They would find us? If it happened, we would not be able to do anything. If They were able to best both Cristina and Gier within a fraction of a second, neither of us would stand a chance. Even though we were technically incredibly far from where we encountered Them, I couldn't leave these feelings behind.

"Finally! Glassroom number... one?" Rogier called as soon as he saw a bright light coming from around the corner. All our worries and anxieties were briefly dispelled by the idea of finally reaching some destination. The corridor was narrow, with a low ceiling, and faintly glowing lamps. It was like walking through a cellar. Spend enough time in a place like that and it surely won't lift your spirits. The Glassroom we found, on the other hand, did the exact opposite.

The room was dome-shaped with sky and clouds painted all over the ceiling. At the very top, there was a massive chunk of a glowing orange rock, which illuminated the entire place like a bright summer sun. Closer to the floor, the dome was then decorated with detailed paintings of trees, hills and distant mountains. If it wasn't for the obvious fakeness of it, I would almost feel like I went outside again.

As soon as we entered, our ears were flooded with the sounds of waves. The floor was made of a walkway made of unprocessed stone, while the rest of the massive area was filled with water. It was churning and mixing, creating small ripples, which, however, could never make as much noise as we were hearing. Therefore, I came to the conclusion that the sound must've been made somehow artificially, just like the illusion of the outside painted on the walls.

In the middle of what essentially was a massive lake then floated a small fortress. Even though calling it a fortress might be an overstatement. It was more like a small hideout, only about as big as a tiny house. Its walls were tall, so we didn't know exactly what was inside. The only insight into that was offered to us by one of the three bridges connecting the stone walkway to the fort. It led all the way up to an open gate, through which we managed to see bookshelves and pedestals standing inside. What caught our attention even more, however, were the floating gardens placed just outside the fort. The colourful plants growing there suggested they were edible, but it was impossible to further identify them from this distance.

"Wow... It's so beautiful here," Amy gasped.

"T-This might be a nice place to stay, no?" Corwyn asked. "It seems s-safe."

"It seems almost like a paradise. Since there are crops growing, the water is probably not salty, so it might be drinkable if we boil it. And whatever is in the gardens might be edible, no? Plus, the fort might be well-defendable. Sounds like a dream come true." I added. To be honest, this room seemed like a place I wouldn't mind spending my holiday in.

"Hmm..." Rogier muttered. "It does seem perfect. Glassrooms don't change during the Shuffling, only the bookshelves and the floor around them swap. But since the shore is nowhere near the books, it should always stay the same even if the inside of the fort changes." He crouched down and carefully dipped his pinky finger into the water. "Doesn't hurt. Not harmful to the touch. Nothing's moving in the drops, so likely no parasites, unless incredibly tiny. No odd smell... looks clear... Yeah, might be drinkable."

"I-I can maybe... test it? My stomach is an artefact too," Corwyn said.

"That's exactly why you can't test it! Your stomach won't tell us anything. We need something that can be digested by the rest of us too."

Corwyn only let out a disappointed "Oh..." and went quiet.

"Well, guess we have water. Now, let's see about the crops. Anyone can recognise them?"

Before any of us could say that it was too far, Amy was already handing us a small, collapsable spyglass. Rogier took it without a moment of doubt and looked at the plants again.

"Hmm... nah, can't tell shit from here. Could be something we grow on the outside, but I'm not sure. Someone will have to go inspect that closely." He briefly looked at the three of us who were all trying to avoid direct eye contact. "Ugh! It's up to me, right? I'm the oldest and the most experienced. Responsible elder and all that."

"Technically, yeah," I muttered.

"Great... When the fuck did I sign up for babysitting again?"