Chapter 256: SEAN’S HIDDEN MOTIVES II

"She is in safe hands.I have been able to gain allies that can help with our goals.

I’m here to provide information concerning these allies," Sean explained calmly, his tone measured to convey trustworthiness and urgency without alarm.

"Don’t tell me you told these allies of yours about our plans.

You know we swore an oath of secrecy," the young man said coldly to Sean, his stance shifting defensively, arms crossing over his chest.

"You don’t need to worry about that.

He has no knowledge of us, as well as our plans.

I just gave him the information I am required to give," Sean explained reassuringly, his words chosen carefully to alleviate concerns.

"Can I come in? The longer I stay outside, the quicker it is for me to get caught by someone I don’t want to and risk our plan," Sean reasoned with the young man still blocking the entrance by standing resolutely in front of the open door, his body a human barrier.

After some seconds of careful consideration, weighing the risks in his mind, the young man stepped aside, opening the door wider to allow Sean entry.

Sean entered the room, the door closing behind him with a soft, secure click that sealed them inside.

The room was extremely large, far more expansive than what one would believe when viewing the modest building from outside, its interior dimensions defying external perceptions through ingenious design.

The room was filled with all forms of books and shelves, stacked meticulously from floor to vaulted ceiling, occupying every available inch until there was barely any open space within the large room, the air thick with the rich, musty aroma of aged paper, leather bindings, and faint dust motes dancing in the candlelight.

The large room was poorly lit by scattered candle sticks that flickered with warm, unsteady flames perched on wrought-iron holders, casting long, wavering shadows across the cluttered surfaces, creating an off-putting impression of the place since the majority of the room’s contents were made of wooden shelves and flammable books which could easily ignite from a slight accident or errant spark, the risk hanging like a silent threat.

The young man continued to lead Sean through the labyrinthine shelves of books, his gaze fixed ahead and steps calm and deliberate, navigating the maze with the familiarity of one who had traversed it countless times.

If one was to pay perfect attention, they would realize his steps had a subtle rhythm to them, like a drummer beating a slow, methodical cadence on an invisible instrument, each footfall precise and intentional.

Sean and the young man remained silent throughout, no one uttering a single word within the room, preserving the quiet like a necessary, sacred ritual that was integral to their secretive operations.


After walking for a while through the dimly lit corridors of accumulated knowledge, the young man stopped in front of a particular book shelf that loomed indistinguishably among its counterparts.

The book shelf had no special characteristics compared to the others, blending seamlessly into the uniformity.

Its characteristics were just the same as every other shelf within the room, tall, sturdy wood groaning under the weight of tomes, crammed with dusty volumes of varying sizes.

If a random stranger was asked to observe and give a reasonable reason why the young man stood in front of this particular shelf, he would be unable to provide a plausible explanation, the choice appearing arbitrary.

The young man stretched his hand forward, reaching to a particular book amongst the hundreds crammed into the shelf, his fingers grasping its spine before pulling it out with a soft, muffled thud.

With the book pulled out, the shelf shifted smoothly out of the way, its hidden mechanisms whirring faintly as it revealed an underground passage leading to an unknown location shrouded in deeper, beckoning darkness.

Beckoning to Sean with just a subtle gesture of his hands, and still maintaining that unbroken silence, they both descended the flights of stairs leading downward into the mysterious depths, the air growing cooler and damper with each step.

The entire room and underground passage were meticulously designed by master engineers for absolute secrecy and extreme difficulty in being discovered by anyone unauthorized, layers upon layers of deception and safeguards woven into every aspect.

The library room was built with an advanced sound detector embedded discreetly in its walls and floors.

Should the sound detector so much as pick up a single noise within the room when the door was closed shut, it would lock every access to the underground space for two hours, ensuring no one could breach it no matter how persistently they searched or pried.

The stairs leading to the underground location were created with a sophisticated mechanism that constantly changed the particular shelf and book required to access it every five minutes, a rotating enigma of concealment.

To know the particular shelf and book needed to unlock the underground passage, one had to master a specific walking pattern that interacted with hidden pressure plates and acoustic sensors.

The walking pattern was learned together with a specialized listening skill honed through years of discipline.

While walking with the specific rhythm, the floors provided unique, subtle sounds. Faint resonances or vibrations that the person could interpret to know the next step to take, like deciphering a cryptic language inscribed in the very ground beneath their feet.

The difficulty of it all was extremely great, demanding fifteen years of constant, unrelenting practice to be able to navigate the room with any reliability, a barrier that weeded out the unworthy and ensured only the dedicated could penetrate the sanctum.

Sean descended the stairs into the underground passage alone, the young man remaining behind within the library room to reseal the entrance and maintain vigilance.

Sean continued his movement downward, the flickering candlelight from above fading as he delved deeper, until he arrived at a hidden hall filled with masked beings sitting in an arc formation on chairs built atop a high-rise overhanging beam that loomed like a judgmental tribunal overlooking the chamber floor.

"What brings you here, Sean.

You were given the duty of taking care of the seed," one of the masked humans asked the moment Sean walked in, his voice muffled yet authoritative from behind the concealing fabric.

"I am.

For the time being, she is safe, my lord.

But not only safe, I think the plan will begin ahead of schedule," Sean informed respectfully, his tone measured with cautious optimism.

"We did not ask you to hasten the plan, Sean.

Have you not learned anything while being with us.

Patience is our most prized gift.

It’s the very reason we have lasted this long and achieved so much," another masked human chided sternly, disapproval dripping from every word.

"Forgive me, my lord.

But this man has offered to help the seed reclaim her throne.

His strength is commendable, and I think he has what it takes to set her upon the throne," Sean explained earnestly, hoping to convey the opportunity.

"Fool.

You brought someone strong to help her ascend the throne?! We want to maintain our secretive and hidden nature like we have done for several centuries, but as a result of your impatience, you risk causing that to fall apart," another chided harshly, the collective murmurs of discontent rising.

"All in favor of exterminating this disgrace, your hands up," one of the masked beings started the motion coldly, initiating the vote.

Soon, a majority of hands slowly lifted up in favor of the extermination of Sean, the raised palms like silent condemnations sealing his fate.

Sean swallowed hard, his throat dry and constricted, his heart beating faster in a frantic rhythm as he feared his fate after the voting, sweat beading on his brow in the dim, oppressive hall.