The bishop is unfathomable.

Thomas pulled the blanket around himself tighter and took out a can of baked beans he had bought a while ago from the cupboard.

He didn't have the money to buy coal to start a fire, let alone afford the cheap gas that the city council claimed to provide.

The weather isn't considered cold for young people right now, but for him, an old man in his seventies, it's already a rather unbearable temperature.

The chill, like a maggot clinging to the bone, seeped into the body from some corner of the sleeves and trouser legs, and then lingered for a long time.

He could only wrap himself in a blanket to keep warm, and then eat a cold can of beans with some hard, cold black bread.

Seven years ago, although he wasn't exactly a wealthy man, he lived a comfortable life thanks to his occasional "small transactions".

But since that fire, everything is gone.

His bookstore, which he had run for half his life, was burned to the ground. He was also targeted by the authorities, and a large amount of his property was confiscated. Even his original house was sealed off.

Fortunately, he had anticipated this and had hidden some money in advance.

But the amount of money was not much... just enough for him to rent a room in this apartment near the edge of the slums.

However, this is the best possible outcome.

At least I'm still alive and haven't been imprisoned. Although I'm struggling financially, at least I still have my freedom.

Thomas has comforted himself in this way every night for the past seven years.

"Knock knock knock"

The knocking came just as Thomas was about to have dinner.

Thomas coughed, then moved toward the door.

He was not wary of this at all.

He knew that his existence was now worthless and posed no threat whatsoever.

It's probably time for the landlord to come and collect the rent; after all, it's about this time of year.

But when he opened the door and saw the unfamiliar young man standing outside, he couldn't help but be stunned for a moment.

"Who are you?"

"My name is Li Wei. I'm the newly appointed librarian of the forbidden books section at the Norren Grand Library."

As soon as he finished speaking, Thomas seemed to hear some strange whisper, and his whole body trembled like a leaf.

His lips began to turn white, and a look of horror appeared on his face as he started to back away. Then he lost his balance, fell backward, and slumped to the ground.

Li Wei: "?"

No, am I that ugly? Why do you look like you've seen a ghost?

Or is the problem with your self-introduction?

After all, Thomas's unusual behavior only appeared after he introduced himself as the librarian.

"He...he's telling the truth...it's true, someone...someone will come looking for him..."

Li Wei tried his best to show his friendliest expression, then squatted down to help the old man up, but Thomas pushed Li Wei away, his eyes filled with panic.

This utterly terrified appearance is completely different from the Thomas that Li Wei saw eight years ago at the promotion ceremony.

But Thomas's words made Levi wary.

What do you mean by saying it's true, that someone would come looking for him?

Does this person refer to themselves, or to the identity of the forbidden book administrator?

Thomas was so frightened that he collapsed to the ground without even asking how he had found him.

Just as Li Wei began to ponder, Thomas stumbled to his feet, ran to the bedside table next to the bed in the room, and took out a box.

The box was a common aluminum box for storing cookies, but a complex ritualistic pattern was drawn on it.

Immediately afterwards, Thomas stumbled over, shoved the box into Levi's hand, and then used all his strength to push Levi toward the door.

"Get out! Get out of here!"

"Take this and get out of here!"

"Bang!"

Without resistance, Levi was pushed out of the room by Thomas, then looked down at the box in his hand and fell into deep thought.

Clearly, there must be something extraordinary inside this box.

After thinking for a moment, he turned and left the apartment, boarding the carriage to depart.

"Sir, is everything alright?"

"Things went fairly smoothly. By the way, Barney, find a suitable opportunity in the next few days to..."

Before Li Wei could finish speaking, he saw Thomas leap out of the room window and launch a headfirst attack on the brick road.

The sound of bones breaking rang out, followed by the sound of flesh being pierced by the broken bone fragments.

Li Wei observed all of this through the carriage window.

Before Levi could say anything, Barney rushed out of the carriage and ran to Thomas's side to observe him. Then, with a grim expression, he walked to the window by the carriage and said to Levi, "Sir, he's dead."

"I can see that. Looks like you can relax a bit now."

Li Wei sighed, then frowned.

He initially came here to ask about the resale of banned books, but he never expected things to turn out this way.

He considered that Thomas might refuse to tell, that he might just be an individual seller independent of the internet, and he considered other possibilities as well.

The only thing they hadn't considered was the possibility that the old man, upon seeing them, would go berserk, shove a box into their hands, and then jump off the building to commit suicide.

Although there are no direct clues at the moment, Levi feels that this Thomas is very likely related to that fire.

After all, not only the library, but also his used bookstore suffered a fire of unknown cause.

As he thought of this, the ritual array on the box suddenly disappeared, turning into a faint light and vanishing.

The box made a click and could be opened directly.

Li Wei opened the box, inside which was a slightly yellowed, unremarkable diary.

He opened the notebook and saw the first sentence recorded inside.

October 10, 1860, today is my first day as the librarian of banned books.

Immediately afterwards, the system's analysis panel also started up and displayed a message.

[A resolvable item, "Administrator's Log," has been detected. Begin parsing?]

Li Wei frowned and said calmly, "Take me home, Ma Wei. It's getting late."

……

……

"call……"

"Concentrate...concentrate..."

"Recall the incantation for the Cat Transformation spell, the flow of psionic energy, and the most crucial focal point..."

"Yes, almost there..."

Felicia sat cross-legged on the sofa, focusing all her attention and the meager spiritual energy she had gained through arduous meditation in cat form.

She spent several days saving up enough spiritual energy to break free of the cat-transformation spell.

Although she felt there was nothing wrong with being a cat, and it even helped her hide temporarily.

But it's still best to be able to change your form at will.

Otherwise, if something happens, there's no way to escape.

"Bang!"

With a flash of white mist, the black cat disappeared from its spot, and then a figure with long white hair appeared in the smoke.

Amidst the smoke, those amber-like eyes gleamed with a faint golden light.

"It worked?!"

"Bang!"

"Meow?!"

The good times didn't last long. Although she briefly regained her original form, the transformation process was not smooth. It only lasted for five seconds before Felicia was forced back into her cat form.

However, she was not discouraged by this, because she knew that she had mastered the release rhythm of the cat transformation technique, and all she lacked was spiritual energy.

Although the transformation doesn't require a lot of psionic energy, it's clear that the psionic energy he's accumulated in his cat form is still too little.

"It should take about another week to revert back to normal."

"When the time comes, I just need to find a suitable time at night to transform back into human form, meditate, and accumulate spiritual energy. After a few days, I can make my escape."

"Even if Li Wei is that esoteric bishop, he won't pose a threat."

"Even a fourth-level bishop is no match for me."

As Felicia was thinking this, Levi opened the door and went straight to the study on the third floor.