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"...phew!"

Ashton let out a huff as he stared at the scene of devastation he caused.

The grenade launcher was still smoking in his grasp, the wild white fire raged in his surroundings, and the agonized cries and looks of terror on the demons' faces were still visible around yet none of this bothered him.

With what he just did, there's no way that any of the demons would survive. They are trapped in purifying flames and the only way for them to get out is by dying miserably.

Some might say that he's overdoing it, and they might be correct. But at the same time, they can't blame Ashton. He's stressed about having to figure out a way to defeat the Demon Prince. He had been thrashed by the thing too many times that he was all out of mercy at this point.

He vented his frustration to this hoard of demons, and it was satisfying as fuck. Therefore, Ashton regretted nothing.

And just as he predicted, he demolished this test. It didn't take long before a bright light swept his surroundings and he found himself back where he started.

"Congratulations, challenger." The androgynous voice sounded in his ears, "You've completed the test with flying colors. Your status is now upgraded."

Ashton then felt something muddling his senses. He involuntarily closed his eyes as sparks of light suddenly appeared around him. These specks of light then began condensing on his forehead, forming a golden eight-pointed star tattoo that was imprinted on his forehead.

"From Chief Keeper, you are now the Master of the Grand Archives." The voice continued, "The Grand Archives is the real form of the Grand Library. Most of its secrets are now revealed to you."

"As the Master of the Grand Archives, this place is your rightful home. This place will shelter you anywhere and anytime you please. You also have better control over it and you are also free to modify its structure as you please."

"The lower area of the Grand Archives is now available to you. Only you are allowed in this place. If you want to unlock the upper levels of the Grand Archives, you must upgrade your status again."

Ashton listened to all of this rapt attention, hiding the shock that he was currently feeling.

He didn't expect that there are more secrets hidden within this place.

Just now, Ashton could feel it clearly, his connection with this place got stronger. He felt closer to it than ever before. He also felt the freedom to move it and re-arrange its structure as he pleases.

This also meant that he could add more rooms if he needed to. He can create luxury areas or research areas, it truly depends on him.

With the ease of how he could control this place, the Mobile Safehouse had lost its purpose. After all, the only reason why Ashton was using that in the first place is to serve as a buffer for his entry to the library.

Now that he could come and go here as he pleases and he could control the position of the library while it's hidden from prying eyes, he does not need the Mobile Safehouse anymore.

He'd still keep it, probably to sell to someone else in the future. But for now, this will be kept on his Inventory.

"Grand Archives..." Ashton mused as he opened his eyes. The exit already manifested behind him, he stepped out and saw that his sense seems to be pointing him somewhere.

The door that was previously locked, the one beside the one he entered to upgrade his status, is now unlocked to him.

Upon stepping inside it, he was greeted by more rows of bookshelves. This time, every single one of these books looked ancient. He could feel the influence of mana here. There's also a faint calming tune ringing in his ears, allowing him to concentrate more and focus more easily.

A flight of stairs leading to two upper floors was in the distance. At the foot of the stairs, he could see some kind of a transparent barrier preventing him from going any further.

In front of him, was a station that looked like the ones in the library. Something tells him that this is his spot. He can go here with the books that had taken his interest, a place where he can sit down and read them peacefully.

Walking at the station, he saw a strange stone tablet embedded in the center of the table. He frowned and touched it, then all of a sudden, a bright golden light emerged out of nowhere.

The light formed a silhouette of a person, someone who Ashton doesn't know.

"Greetings, New Master of the Archives." The silhouette said while looking at him. "I am the previous Archive Master, a remnant will of sorts. I am here to tell you more about the Grand Archives and its contents."

Ashton confirmed two things. One, this is a recording of some sort. The kind that plays automatically when the new Master of the Archive touches the tablet.

And two, this recording was done through magic. Ancient Magic to be precise is something that was told to have been lost for thousands of years now. This meant that the mystery surrounding the Grand Archives are deeper than he initially expected.

"The Grand Archives is more important to Humanity than you initially expected. As you've been chosen to become a Keeper of it, you must've been warned that this place should never fall in the hands of the Celestials nor the Hypogeans. If you're not aware of that well...now you know."

"Let me reiterate this one more time for you." The silhouette's voice turned more solemn and icy. "You must never hand the key of the archives to the Celestials nor the Hypogeans, lest you doom the entirety of humanity on your own."

"Destroy it if you must, but never give the key to them. I hope you keep that in mind."

Ashton already knew of this beforehand and he wasn't planning on doing that anyway. Hand over the key? Isn't that the same as handing over Aria to his enemies? Why would he even think about doing that?

"But...Celestials? Hypogeans? Is he referring to Demons and Angels?" Ashton frowned as he mused to himself.

"Anyways!" The silhouette clapped his hands and said: "Let's move on. Secrets of the Archives, yes!"

"If you're someone who has been living under a rock your entire life, then you must've never noticed anything weird about the situation of Humans before. But if you were, congratulations, your brain is still working properly. That curiosity is a sign that you are still humans at your very core and far from stupid. Very good!"

Ashton's lips twitched in annoyance, yet he didn't speak.

"Whether you wondered why you feel like the situation of humanity is weird or you had come to conclusions by yourself. I am here to enlighten you on what truly goes on behind the scenes. So sit back, relax and grab some food since this will be a long-ass exposition. A long drama if you will."

Ashton blinked, yet he can't argue with that. So, he sat down on a chair and waited for the silhouette to continue.

"Humans are one of the, if not the most, progress-obsessed race that has ever walked the face of the earth. We are so obsessed with progress that sometimes it forces us to do unspeakable things for the sake of it."

"If you were someone who has no idea what's going on and never bothered to question it, I truly wonder how you managed to get up until this point, but I digress. Don't you find it weird?"

"Humanity had existed for far too long now. We were here even before the Celestial and Hypogeans arrived. Even after the devastation, they caused to us, almost causing our race to go extinct, we persisted."

"We awakened with gifts and started fighting back. At least, that's how your history teachers would lay it to you. But don't you find that weird? That even with the long line of Heroes who were born, took arms, and fought against demons, we still haven't progressed that much?"

Ashton's eyes hardened. It seems that he was correct, this remnant will is truly going for that topic.

"I mean, having the Last Bastion is good an all. We all owe it to the First Hero who walked so that we can run. He even sacrificed himself to build a protective bubble around the area which protected us all this time."

"...but have we ran yet?"

"Seriously, think about it for a second. Recall what the Last Bastion looks like and then recall how many heroes had been added to your History books. Read their biographies real closely and then look at the Last Bastion again."

"..."

"Weird isn't it?" The remnant will smiled mockingly. "We really haven't progressed much even with all the sacrifices that our Heroes made. So much for a progress-obsessed race right?"

"Forget about running, we haven't even made a real step forward at all!"

"So! Let me ask you again...don't you find it weird?"

Ashton bit his lips and nodded bitterly: "Oh it's weird alright."