It was an agreeable end of the afternoon, when Lapin the wolf-dragon heard some metallic noise coming from the library. People weren't supposed to be walking around the shelves wearing metal equipment, even less so as the library had closed an hour ago.

Lapin, intrigued by the sound of the footsteps, and mildly annoyed, shouted in the library asking the group to identify themselves. His ears swiveled, attempting to catch any indication about the source. The library remained silent, the metallic footsteps had stopped, so had the book shuffling noises. The duo of thieves froze in their position, trying to not make any noise, and were regretting being wearing their noisy armor at this moment. The intimidation factor and fear of getting caught didn't help to stop regrets.

From experience, Lapin knew something was odd, and it's not the first time he had been with knights attempting to steal from his library. To make a classic misdirection and induce the thieves in error, he thought loudly that the noise « must have been the wind », then he closed the door, feigned locking it and remained silent. The knights had no idea if the owner of the library was still around or was truly gone from the room. They looked at each other, whispered what they should do and stayed put. It wasn't even 30 seconds later that the shuffling noises recommenced. Lapin used the air skating technique to slither around the shelves, stalking the thieving knights with the help of the noise they were making.

When he was closer to the duo, Lapin decided to have some fun at their expense. Instead of just pulling up and questioning the knights, he was going to make them live a nightmare.

The show began with a brief cold wind and some heavy footsteps. The thieves stopped what they were doing, took a quick look around, without a second thought and got back to shuffling books, knowing they haven't been as alone as they thought. A maniacal laugh resonated through the room, it says: « Looks like I found two thieves acting innocent, waiting for the library closure to commit their little act of theft. How unfortunate. Look behind you… » The knights stopped rummaging through the shelves and look behind, as commanded. They saw a vision of horror on the top of a shelf: two circle outlines, one blue, one yellow, were shining brightly in the dark. A sinister smile appeared, the saber teeth glistering in yellow and blue. A few seconds later, the grim face disappeared. An intangible grotesque projection reappeared in front of them. The voice continued with a nightmarish tone: « Did you think I was going to let you do your little affair and turn a blind eye, especially after the closure of the library for the day ? What were you exactly thinking to be stealing from a librarian, eh ? » The armored knights stared at the ominous projection in horror as adrenaline was rushing through their veins, unable to take their eyes off of it. A magical lightning struck behind the wolf-dragon, briefly lighting the library in a blinding flash and outlining Lapin's menacing pose. The knights briefly screamed. One of them told his partner, grabbing his arm: « Kevin, let's get out of there, right now, mission be damned, or we're doomed ! »

For the wolf-dragon whose glowing eyes reappeared in the sinister ambiance, it was time for the hunt. Heavy, running footsteps hurling towards the knights. While the reaction time from the knights was long, they got up fast, grabbed their loot and ran for their lives in heavy armor.

« Run all your want… a distorted voice says
– I will always find you… another voice continues
– No matter where you hide…
– I'll find you… »

The petrified duo of thieves ran aimlessly in the maze of bookshelves in the dark. They occasionally bumped into a table or a chair, but they kept running. After what felt like an eternity running, one knight tripped over of exhaustion and fell flat to the ground, the other filled with panic was fumbling with a door handle and a lock, without success. The distorted voice laughed like a maniac, one last time.

Suddenly, the light turned on, blinding the thieves a short moment. Lapin looked at the duo holding themselves and says in a normal voice: « Well well well, look who I caught red-handed stealing books. Conveniently, I have the proof of the act… and the fact they came from the Kingdom of the Red Mountains, the kingdom whose king hates me because I defend myself from the aggressors he sends me. » The knights looked bewildered at the ability of the wolf-dragon to accurately pinpoint where they came from.

A few minutes later, the hands of both knights were tried to their back, despite their struggle to remain free. They started protesting and barking at the wolf-dragon. « SILENCE ! Lapin shouted nearly out of patience, I'll remind you are in my own playing field and I caught you stealing red-handed ! » He took the suspiciously-book-shaped bag next to him and began unpacking it. Once he had a particular book authored by himself, Lapin smiled and let a small chuckle out: « Oh hehe, your mandator wanted this particular book I authored, I'm flattered. I suppose you will not answer my questions tonight, will you ? » Silence. « That's what I thought. »

The knights were escorted to their temporary homes for the night, cells preventing any communications, as Lapin was devising a plan to ruin that king's day. Since he wasn't a monster, the knights were fed appropriately so they had no bad story to tell, aside from being frightened to their bones.

The next day, the thieves were sat on the same chairs they have been the day prior, in front of what could have been their loot.

« So, Lapin began, you had the whole night to think about this. We can do it the easy way or the hard way, and you get to pick which one.
– We won't answer any question, one knight barked.
– You are free to do whatever you want as I'm free to interrogate you two, Lapin answered, I have all day; the library is closed. At the end of the imparted time, you'll return to your cells to reflect a bit. If you want to get out, then you know what to do.
– (Silence)
– Then let's start, shall we ? Why were you in the library well after the closing time ?
– We didn't see the time pass.
– I'm not buying this. I make an announcement one hour before the closure, then 30, 15 and 5 minutes. I deny entry 15 minutes before. How many books were you planning to steal from this library ?
– (Silence and blank stare from the knights)
– Great start ! Gauging by the size of the bag and your physique, seven or maybe ten large books looks like the limit. Let's see what we have in front of us. "Exploring the Red Mountain" by an explorer, "Living in the Red Mountain Kingdom: an immersive report as an inhabitant and a knight" by myself, and "Royal bankruptcy: How-to using real examples" by an economist. The rest is booklets from adventurers telling their tales…
– Yeah, and ?
– And ? I think you're smart enough to know which question I'm going to ask. If I found these books together in your bag, there must be a reason, which one ?
– (Silence)
– Still quiet, I see. »

Every question Lapin asked were met with a silence and a blank stare. When the interrogation time has elapsed, he printed the transcript and had them sign. He escorted the knights to their respective cells where they were left to think.

A few hours later, Lapin escorted them back to the same table. He opened the questioning session.

« Second session is open. I'm sure you used that time to think deeply about your next moves. If you ever have read "Living in the Red Mountain Kingdom", you surely know a few critical things. Your king has a tendency to hang knights he deems "too incompetent" out to dry. They may just have been missing some skills or have been on an unlucky streak, but he doesn't care. Other times, he disposes of them like old rags when a deed has been accomplished. The main question is why would you try to defend him by withholding information when he won't care about the risks you took to fulfill his orders ? Do what you want of this information. I'll ask the same question, feel free to keep your silence if you wish.
– (Silence and not-so-blank stare)
– Okay, so how many books were you planning to steal ?
– (Shuffling noises, then silence)
– I'll ask again, since this question made you react. How many books were you planning to steal ?
– Ten bags worth of books, one knight finally answered
– (The other one gave a bombastic side-eye.)
– Ah ! Lapin exclaimed, An answer. Ten bags worth of books, you say ? How were you planning to carry them back ?
– With a horse pulling a cart. A third knight was waiting for us a bit further away.
– Mhm… When searching your bags two days ago, I found these books and a few more in other bags. There must have been a motive for stealing these books precisely and a bunch of booklets to dissimulate them. If you were deeply interested in the matter, you would be borrowing them, not stealing them.
– We were ordered to seize these books. Apparently the king hates them so much. He told us they contain facts and descriptions that damage his reputation, the kingdom's reputation and his ability to keep an army together. Trading hasn't been going very well for him lately as he's been denied some goods due to fear of not getting paid or he had to pay upfront.
– (Another stinky side-eye from the other knight)
– What happens to the books he has stolen through the knights he sends out ?
– We don't know, they're probably burned, torn apart or hidden from the public in secure locations only a few knights are aware of. »

Lapin stood up and walked around the room while reflecting. The knight remaining silent was looking at his partner with a stink eye, as if to tell him to quit spilling the beans. Long minutes of silence followed.

« Okay, Lapin concluded, according to your statements, your king attempted to censor these books by stealing them and effectively destroying them. If your king is so determined to get his hands on them, they must contain some uncomfortable truth, and I'm flattered by this profound desire to get a hold of a book I authored. You see, "Living in the Red Mountain Kingdom" has been written with how I lived diverse situations and what my experiences were. If your king didn't miss FIVE debt payments, I wouldn't have written "The governor of the Red Mountain Kingdom doesn't seem to be worried about repaying his debts, especially to a dragon living in the mountains further away." So far, I only heard excuses in the hopes of buying some time before I come knocking to his castle door. Anyway… session's over. »

The wolf-dragon repeated the same acts when returning the knights to their temporary homes. This time, they were bickering at each other before their separation.

The next day, the knights were sat on the same chairs, except everything had been cleared out. They were wondering what the wolf-dragon has planned for them. While they could have escaped long ago, they knew that would have brought more problems than they already have. Lapin thinks out loud: « While I could have killed you on the spot a couple of days ago, your governor doesn't deserve an event, build an epic story to depict me as a soulless monster and use it as an excuse to pester me more, does he ? No, I think he deserves something more… let's say… exciting. » He continued while looking at both knights: « Because responsibilities should be shared between you and your king, it makes the deal more fair. He sent his two best knights, which makes the deal even sweeter. Whatcha think ? Not like you had a choice, though, you are on my playing field, after all… »

Lapin revealed a faint circle and started his magical incantation. Colored shapes shifted and danced while smoke and particles swirled around both knights who didn't look very reassured. At the end, a pair of magical lightning bolts struck the prisoners. They looked a bit dazed but recovered quickly. Lapin, with a smile of satisfaction, explained the mission to the knights: « Now, listen closely. You will return to your king and give him this letter. It contains a very important message for him. It looks like a garbled mess, but he will understand. »

The knights looked at each other, wondering how they will fare if their king discovers what happened during the last few days. The wolf-dragon magician already anticipated the question: « Don't worry about yourself. He won't be able to get rid of you just because you pissed him off. In fact, you're rather safe from his temper tantrums. You're free to go. »

Lapin has cast a spell on the knights, a rather complex curse, layered with complicated tricks and words an experienced human mage will take a long time to decipher because they're so ancient and no longer taught in schools since generations. Any swords they will wield will mysteriously be blunt and not do anything. A weaponsmith could sharpen the blades very well, they will always be blunt when handled by the knights. In order to protect the duo from their governor temper tantrums, the king will mysteriously forget what he's firing them over. If he decides to break the curse with the swing of a sword, that blade will spark, bend and break in wonderful ways. Rotting in prison ? Not an issue anymore. In other words, getting rid of these knights has become practically impossible as they turned into a very inconvenient dead weight.

This complex curse was a way to punish the king as their relationship reached a new low point. The letter folded like a booklet contained some scripture ordering the king.

Hello governor of the Red Mountain Kingdom,

You tried to steal from my library through the work of two of your best knights to advance your censorship efforts. I'm actually flattered you tried to get a hand on a book I authored, "Living in the Red Mountain Kingdom: an immersive report as an inhabitant and a knight". Using your determination as a proxy to measure how badly you want it censored, it must contain some very uncomfortable truth you don't want anyone else to know.

I've heard you appreciate tearing apart, burning or hiding books you "seize", more like steal. Let's play a little game, since you adore playing with my patience when repaying debts you owe me. I give you seven calendar days to return me every single book you and your little gang stole from me. The roll of paper contains 750 book references. Failure to return books or returning them damaged will result in a monetary penalty ranging from not much to a lot of money. Considering how many times I saw smoke coming out of your royal residence, good luck.

I'll be expecting the next payment in a couple of weeks. Failure to meet the deadline will result in repossession of items in your palace to be auctioned. Finally, I'll let you appreciate to how low our relationships has degraded.

Good luck The Memory Keeper of the Adventurer's guild and mysterious magician