Lazarus didn’t waste any time!
He quickly closed the door of light, severing his connection to reality as quickly as possible.
Only after he succeeded did he breathe.
"Haa... haaa..." Beads of sweat formed on his face as he hurriedly composed himself while reeling from the fright he just had.
’Thankfully, I reacted in time. I don’t dare to imagine what would have happened otherwise...’
As a Historian, Lazarus knew how frightening the Nameless Entities were.
He also knew their ultimate goal!
Every Nameless sought the destruction of existence, but they lacked the means to. This was because they were all confined to the present, and as such, even if they destroyed reality, the history of the world still existed—serving as proof of its existence.
Thus, the Nameless sought their gaze on a a better goal.
—Invading the Celestial Library!
Nameless invaded Fables for this very reason.
They would try to corrupt this projection from the Celestial Library in an attempt to trace back to its source. Once the Fable was theirs to control, they could use the connection to the Celestial Library to enter into the sacred, primeval space, and distort reality.
Of course, the Celestial Library had its defenses.
It wouldn’t let the Nameless have its way by wreaking havoc into its holy place.
As such, the Nameless would only be restricted to the ’History’ that was directly connected to the Fable that had been consumed.
This History would belong to the Nameless, no longer existing in reality.
Depending on the type of History, which corresponded with the cadre of Fables, it could range from a negligible point in time, to a core aspect of existence itself.
If the former was affected, humanity would only suffer a mild but noticeable inconvenience.
However... the latter could spell the end of humanity!
This was why Historians existed... and it was why their duty could not be overlooked.
To fight against the Nameless meant preserving history.
Doing so saved reality.
’Right now, that Nameless Entity could have invaded the Celestial Library by relying on its connection to the door of light. Thankfully, I shut it tight before anything could happen...’
Despite his apparent relief, Lazarus was still in a panic.
After all, the corruption of Sir Winston would soon be complete, and it would lead to a disaster unlike any other.
"Such speed of corruption... This isn’t a Nameless Forbidden. It’s like a Nameless Corruption or higher. Judging by how Sir Winston doesn’t seem to have noticed the infection, and he’s at Rank 5, that means the Nameless could even be of a corresponding Rank—a Nameless Sin!"
Lazarus’ gasp echoed in the hall at that moment.
He instantly knew that there was no longer any time to waste or experiment.
’Two things... First, I have to descend as quickly as possible to eliminate this problem. Secondly, I must not leave the door open for too long, or else that Nameless Entity could invade the Celestial Library.’
Even if this was his private space, likely cut off from the rest of the Library, that didn’t make Lazarus feel any better.
After all, if the Nameless took over this space, it would be able to conjure a door that led to the outside world. That meant the seal he placed in this room would be ineffective, and the spread of the Nameless would be uncontrollable.
’Sigh...’ He silently glanced at the wall where a door once stood.
’I can’t rely on whatever entity is on the other side. After all, it could be on the side of the Nameless and working with it could bring me more harm than good.’
In the end, the best way to solve this problem was to open the door of light and quickly descend in the fraction of a moment before the Nameless Entity could invade. After doing so, he would find a way to destroy this creature.
’But how can I descend organically?’ He silently wondered. ’And how am I so sure that my descent won’t trigger the same problem and lead to assimilation once again?’
When facing this problem, Lazarus’ mind couldn’t help but wander to an alternate solution.
’What if I draw the Nameless Entity here... to the Celestial Library?’ His eyes bulged as he seriously considered it ’I would summon as many Historical Projections as I can to battle against it. That should suppress the Nameless Sin and kill it once and for all!’
As a former legend himself, Lazarus had amassed all manner of powerful Historical Projections in his lifetime.
Normally, a Historian couldn’t summon the same Historical Projection after they perished. This was because their connection would be severed, and said Projection would no longer be available for summoning.
However... Lazarus was in a new body!
He had access to all of the Historical Projections in his past life since he possessed the corresponding knowledge and could establish a new connection!
"No!" Lazarus yelled, quickly rising to his feet. "It’s too risky! I can’t let such an existence into this place until it’s the worst case scenario. Although I have Historical Projections that could easily deal with a Nameless Sin, I cannot underestimate the opponent."
Thinking deeply about it, there were still many things he didn’t know about this Nameless Entity, and many preparations were yet to be made.
He couldn’t simply rely on his past life’s memories in this space.
’Also, how confident am I in remotely controlling powerful Historical Projections with this weak, immature, and untempered mind? If the Historical Projections manifest in reality, at least they’ll be able to act independently!’
But here came the problem... They would need a connection with someone in reality to be able to maintain their existence.
"I’ve got it!" Lazarus beamed as soon as he said this.
"I’ll summon a Historical Projection to reality and quickly return so that it can establish a connection with me before it dissipates. That way, both of us can exist in reality and it will be able to act autonomously."
The only remaining problem was how to ensure that he wouldn’t become assimilated once he returned to reality.
This was also an easily resolvable problem.
’I will seal off my memories!’
How was this possible?
Lazarus had already thought about it at length when considering ways to return.
’The Celestial Library is made up of knowledge, and Historians control knowledge. Since I can command everything in this domain of mine, it only makes sense that I should be able to control my own memories. Memories are knowledge in the end. Same with Historical Projections. All I need to do is remove the bulk of my memories while leaving a tiny amount that will lead me to this space. I can easily regain all my memories if I read the books containing my life."
This way, Lazarus could remember that he reincarnated from the past and that he was once a Legendary Historian. He could even remember that he had the ability to summon powerful Historical Projections, among other things.
The only things missing were the details, which contained the bulk of his knowledge.
’But... how do I get back here?’
Lazarus had another idea regarding this.
And that was to not erase all of his problematic memories, but to simply bury them while leaving behind a psychological cue.
In essence, he could know that he had buried memories, and he could unlock those memories by saying a magic word or doing a specific ritual. It had to be a simple, but also not easily accessible method that would ensure that he could return to this space anytime he wanted.
After all, unearthing those problematic memories would cause him to be assimilated into this secluded domain of his.
As for the fear of returning to that dark room, Lazarus wasn’t so worried.
’I already have a inexplicable connection to this place. In fact, that dark room is likely just another component attached to this private domain. By sealing it off, I have ensured that this is the main place I will appear in whenever I remember the corresponding knowledge!’
Lazarus had created the perfect mechanism for himself.
Now, it was time to implement it.
Without any delay, he extracted the necessary knowledge in his Mind’s World and placed it in a new book that spontaneously appeared on his desk. Afterwards, he buried all of the problematic information within his mind’s world, shrouding them in a layer of fog.
Then, he thought of the key to unlock them.
It had to be an easily performable action, so he could use it in cases of emergency while going unnoticed. However, it couldn’t be too simple, since doing so unconsciously would cause him to return here even without his will.
After thinking about it for an extended period of time, he found the answer.
"The Supreme Desecrator of Heaven and Earth." He muttered. "I will whisper that name while snapping my fingers. This can be done with any finger and any hand, so even if I lose a limb, I can still perform the corresponding ritual. Doing so will cause me to remember the right amount of information that will ensure I return to this space."
Lazarus knew that the higher his Integration Level, the greater the information he would need to store in his Mind’s World so he would be able to return.
He never forgot this fact.
This also meant he had to periodically return here before his Integration Level became too high for the knowledge he gained to be regarded as excessive.
As for why Lazarus couldn’t simply shove in all his knowledge and shroud it in the fog of forgetfulness, his mind was simply not strong enough to hide so much knowledge. As such, he could only retain as much as could be hidden at once.
’There’s also that other problem to watch out for, which makes this necessary...’
With all of his preparations already made, Lazarus took a deep breath and had a determined look on his face.
First, he had to open a Door of Light.
Then, he would cause his Historical Projection to descend.
After, he would also return.
All of this had to happen at nearly the same time, leaving no room for error.
’Alright! Here we go!’