Chapter 91 - The Second Floor

After Loki left the room, he spotted his siblings coming towards him. They had a look of satisfaction and excitement on their faces. Even Alisa who has been reluctant since the start was showing such excitement which made Loki smile as well. 

"Hey, look at what they gave us. I'm going to use this meditation technique to improve quickly." Liam excitedly showed him a thin book.

"That's cool, so how about you Alisa, did you pick something nice as well?" 

"Yes," Alisa nodded her head as she hugged the book she was holding. Loki found that so adorable so he patted her head. The two then excitedly explained what they saw within the hall of skills. Loki listened to the two of them while nodding his head. 

"Alright then, I guess now that you two are done you can go back home." 

"How about you big bro?" 

"Oh right, I was so excited I nearly forgot. How was the test, what rank did you get?" 

Loki started to tell about what he experienced during the test he went through and the gifts he received. 

"Damn, I wonder if I get to have something like that if I do better in the ranking assessment test." 

"Congtulations big bro." 

"Thank you, oh right, we better talk about what to do with your school when we get home." 

"... Wait does this mean we need to change schools?" Liam asked looking a bit worried.

"No, don't you remember that our school is the best one with a martial arts course," Alisa answered. 

"Oh right... Wait do we need to take the exams for transferees?" 

"If I remember correctly changing courses from the normal course to the martial course or vice versa does indeed require you to take the exam for transferees." 

"Damn, I thought it would just be a simple transfer and that's it. Can I just stay in the normal course and practice martial arts on the side?"

"I thought you wanted to become some famous martial artist?" Alisa smiled as she teased her brother. As Liam was about to respond Loki cut him off. 

"Alright, alright, both of you stop talking, we can discuss this back home. So you two go first, and I'll be staying here for now. I still got some things to do." 

"Huh, why don't we wait for you here?" 

"I have other things to do after this." 

"Like what?" 

"Grown-up stuff, so the two of you better head back now." Loki's two siblings look at him weirdly as Alisa suddenly asked. 

"Big bro, are you going to meet Ms. Matsuri? If you are, you shouldn't go meet her looking like that." Alisa pointed at Loki's sweatshirt and sweatpants. 

"What's wrong with..." Loki stopped himself from finishing his sentence and he shook his head. "It doesn't matter what I'm going to do next, you two just need to go." 

Loki then pushed his siblings away after which he asked the lady employee how to get to the hall of skills. 

...

Loki was surprised at the sight of the hall of skills, he was expecting it to look similar to the library where he worked, but it was very different. It was similar to a mages tower he infiltrated in his old world. Towering bookshelves being lit by candlelight and a few lightbulbs, he could even sense more mana here than in other places. It wasn't at the same level as the concentration of mana in the library at school, but it was still a higher level than any other place he has been in this world. 

Loki unconsciously did a quick scan of the first floor looking for any escape points. He could not find any, the ventilation shafts were too small for a human to fit into, and there were no windows, the only way in and out was the door he came in. 

...

There were several people present looking at the books and scrolls. Loki didn't stay too long on the first floor and headed to the stairs. There was someone standing guard at the stairs holding a digital tablet. Loki could sense a powerful aura being emitted by him. The person guarding the stairs wasn't as powerful as the two Grandmasters but he was near that level. When Loki approached, the guard looked at him with an indifferent expression. 

"Where are you headed?"

"To the second floor." 

"State your name." 

"Loki Matsuda." 

The guard tapped on his tablet and after a short pause looked at Loki. The expression on the guard's face didn't change much but Loki noticed that his eyebrows twitched a bit. 

"Please show me your badge." Loki handed the badge Bernard gave him. The guard pressed the badge onto his tablet and after several seconds later he gave it back to Loki. "Now hand over all electronic devices on you." Loki handed his phone to the guard. 

"You may head to the second floor now. The director already told me that you are allowed to take one book for free. Once you have chosen your book do not take it and just come back to me, and I will give you a copy of that book. Also, I should inform you that the hall of skills will close at exactly five p.m. So you better be finished before then, I will call out three times when the time is near. Those who are in the hall of skills after the allotted time will be considered trespassers." 

"I will remember that." Loki then headed to the second floor. Once he reached the second floor he noticed that there was no stairway to the supposed third floor.

'Is it hidden?' The thought briefly flashed through Loki's mind when he looked at the second floor. Unlike the first floor, the second floor was nearly empty, with only two other people present. Also unlike the first floor, there seem to be several people watching from the darkness most likely the guards of the second floor. 

Loki looked at the huge clock hanging on the wall, it was already three o'clock he only had two hours to check the books on the second floor. 

'It's been some time since I last needed to do quick scans of important documents. I wonder how much I can learn within the two hours..' Loki smiled as he approached the nearby bookshelf.