A Zoologist’s Guide to Surviving Magical Creatures

I turned back to Usumgallu. "You said this place is some kind of connection realm, so—"

"No. You're wrong," Usumgallu interrupted briskly. "This place is not part of the Forest of Forgotten Tales."

"Huh? It's not?"

"This place is the center of all realms." He paused, watching my face twist in confusion before sighing. "If you need a proper explanation, visit the Early Knowledge Book Mall."

His tone was flat, his expression less than impressed.

I could tell Usumgallu thought I was an incompetent owner—and honestly, I didn't blame him. I had been thrown into this "Owner of Realms" status without so much as a manual.

But right now, my priority was finding a way out of this place—and more importantly, gathering clues about the missing creatures.

If my hunch was correct, they had either gotten lost… ended up like Amaterasu, or worse, drained dry in ruins and have no idea what happened.

I shoved that unsettling thought aside.

"I see. In that case, show me the knowledge about the Forest of Forgotten Tales and cross-realms," I said, retrieving the token from Usumgallu.

"Very well. Follow me."

He led me past rows of ancient bookshelves, but instead of stopping, we continued deeper into the archive. The air grew heavier as we reached the far end, where massive stone steles stood like silent sentinels. Usumgallu finally halted in front of the tallest, darkest one.

"This is the information you seek," he said, glancing at me.

I stared at the monolithic slab. "Uh… I don't suppose I can just carry this back with me?"

Usumgallu gave me a deadpan look. "No. Why would you? This is the original copy."

"Oh."

He remained still, clearly waiting for me to do something. I hesitated. "Um… so, this is kind of embarrassing, but I have no idea how this whole… cosmic book mall thing works."

Usumgallu sighed. "To purchase knowledge here, you must impart your essence to the stele. The token you hold contains the necessary essence to trigger the transfer."

"Oh." That made sense—sort of. I took out the token and pressed it against the stele. It reacted instantly, glowing bright.

A beam of light shot from the stone, straight to my temple.

The flood of information was immediate—and overwhelming. My mind reeled as countless images, symbols, and concepts poured in all at once. The sheer volume burned through my skull, shifting from pressure to numbness, then to an unbearable, razor-sharp pain.

I clutched my head, gasping. My vision blurred.

And then—darkness.

I collapsed, consumed by the knowledge overload.

When I finally woke up, my surroundings had completely changed.

I was no longer in the C.C.C. Book Mall. Instead, I was seated in what looked like a classroom. In front of me, a handsome man sat, rubbing his chin as he studied me.

"Interesting," he mused. "How did you manage to get in here?"

I blinked at him, still disoriented. "Who… Where am I?"

"You're in heaven, kid," he snickered.

"H-Heaven?" My stomach dropped. "Which one?"

He raised an eyebrow. "Whoa. How many heavens have you been to?"

"A few," I admitted.

The man smiled. "Well, this is a different kind of heaven."

A different kind of—wait. My thoughts reeled. The last thing I remembered was the unbearable pain from the information overload. Then darkness. Did I… die?

"Am I dead?" I blurted out.

The man burst into laughter, wiping an imaginary tear from his eye. "If you're dead, then what does that make me? A ghost?"

I frowned. So, not dead. That was… reassuring?

I studied him more closely. He was still grinning, clearly enjoying my confusion. Who was this guy? And why couldn't he just give me a straight answer?

"Who are you? And where exactly am I?"

"I told you, you're in heaven," he said with a lazy wave of his hand. "The old gods called this place Araboth. Babies called it Anu's Heaven. But I prefer to keep things simple—I call it the Seventh."

Seventh? As in Seventh Heaven? Great. I'm truly dead now.

"The babies? You mean children—"

He wagged a finger. "Uh-uh. Not those babies. The Babylonians, kid. Their names were too long for my taste, so I shortened them."

Wow. This guy might actually be lazier than Agnos.

"So… what do I call you?" I asked.

"My name's not important," he said, leaning forward with renewed interest. "But you—you're intriguing. What's your name?"

I hesitated for a second before answering. "I… I'm Carl."

"So, Carl," the man leaned back, watching me with amusement. "What are you doing here?"

"I—" I hesitated. That was a good question. It wasn't like I wanted to be here. More like I was… transported.

"Actually, I'm not sure," I admitted. "I'm a little confused."

He raised an eyebrow. "Go on."

"I was at the C.C.C. Book Mall, purchasing information," I explained. "Next thing I knew, I woke up here."

His expression shifted. "You were at the Ziggurat Bookstore?"

"Y-Yeah?"

"And after purchasing knowledge, you woke up here. In the Seventh. My heaven."

"Something like that," I nodded. "I, uh… fainted. Information overload."

The man studied me for a moment, then let out a low whistle. "I'm surprised you survived. Absorbing knowledge from the Ziggurat Mall is no small feat, especially for a mortal. That place is reserved for Owners of Realms."

I swallowed. "I'm… an Interim Owner."

For a second, he just stared at me. Then, suddenly, he threw his head back and laughed.

Why is he laughing? What's so funny?

"Oh, don't look so flustered, kid," he said, wiping the corner of his eye. "It's just… amusing. A mortal as an Interim Owner of Realms? That's a first."

His laughter finally died down, but the curiosity in his eyes remained. "Which realm do you hold?"

"Mythica," I answered.

The moment the word left my mouth, his smile vanished.

Uh-oh. I knew that look. I'd seen it too many times since stepping foot in Mythica. That look meant trouble.

His expression darkened. "Why are you holding Mythica? What happened to Kaleon?"

Wait—he knew Kaleon? And why was he suddenly looking at me like I was a wanted criminal?

"Kaleon—" I started, but before I could finish, he flicked his wrist.

The token hanging around my neck reacted instantly, yanking itself free and floating toward him.

The man caught it effortlessly, his gaze sharpening. "This…" His fingers curled around the token, his entire demeanor shifting. Gone was the amused stranger. In his place stood someone dangerous.

His jaw clenched. "This is Kaleon's essence."

I barely had time to react before his eyes locked onto mine, filled with barely restrained fury.

"What did you do to Kaleon?"