The dozen or so people in the library were stunned by the sudden turn of events, their legs trembling as they fought the urge to flee.
Only two figures hurried toward the man who had suddenly gone mad.
One was Lloyd. Even without using [Probe], he could guess the man had likely entered a state of [Severe Madness].
According to the books, once madness reached this stage, a person was basically beyond saving. They could fall and become a Demon at any second—what was classified as an "Out of Control."
So Lloyd instinctively ran over, wanting to see if there was anything he could do...
And the other figure? It was the perpetually drunk administrator, the one with seaweed-like hair that completely obscured her face. The Drunkard?
She sobered up in an instant. Moving faster than Lloyd, she rushed over in just a few steps and blocked his path, whispering in a low voice:
"Get back!"
Then, she extended her right hand, revealing several silver chains wrapped around the back of it. She opened her fingers, letting an 'X'-shaped pendant hang down as she intoned:
"In the name of Veto!"
Lloyd felt an invisible power extend from her, weaving an unseen net that enveloped the man on the floor.
Bound by this power, the man immediately stopped struggling. His wild laughter subsided, replaced by muffled roars rumbling from his throat.
'Are these Extraordinary Abilities? From the [Veto] system?'
This was the first time Lloyd had witnessed the use of Extraordinary Power firsthand, and it was a little different from the scenes he had imagined.
'It's so... unadorned. I thought there would be a ton of flashy lights, but there were no visual effects at all. If I didn't have inspiration, I wouldn't have even known she did anything...'
The drunkard administrator then closed her hand around the 'X'-shaped pendant and walked over to the madman's seat. From a book lying open on the table, she pulled out a yellowed page that was emitting a bizarre aura.
"Damn it, it's Forbidden Knowledge! Everyone, suppress your inspiration!"
she shouted, hurriedly tossing the page out the window.
But while the page was still in mid-air, it burst into flames and vanished in an instant.
The next second, Lloyd heard a dull DRONE in his ears. It felt like a steel needle had been jammed into his brain, the pain so intense he nearly passed out. His legs went weak, and he collapsed into a nearby chair.
The others in the room had the same reaction. Shrill and agonized wails rose and fell. Some clutched their ears, writhing in pain on the floor; others slammed their heads against walls and tables, trying desperately to knock themselves unconscious.
Lloyd's [Dizziness Resistance] kicked in at this moment. It allowed him to remain partially conscious even on the verge of blacking out, and it slightly eased his headache, enough for him to hear the notification in his ear:
[Ding~ Madness Value +????]
But the notification was quickly drowned out by a series of faint whispers, as if someone was leaning close to his ear, endlessly murmuring insane things no one could understand.
The whispering intensified, growing louder and clearer, transforming from soft murmurs into a deafening chorus.
Hallucinations began to form before Lloyd's eyes. He saw a group of inhuman, spectral things singing and dancing on a vast Wilderness, seemingly performing some kind of celebration or ritual.
Their forms were blurry and indistinct, their dancing grotesque, like a jumble of chaotic lines twisting erratically.
The cries from their mouths merged, rising and falling in pitch to form a bizarre anthem:
"Praise the supreme Sovereign, and with it, fall into the Abyss..."
"Praise the supreme Sovereign, follow its steps, and touch reality..."
"Praise the supreme Sovereign, become one with it, and embrace madness..."
They repeated these three lines of praise endlessly. Intertwined with the continuous wails and screams in Lloyd's ears, the sound was utterly sinister and eerie.
This continued until a weak, feeble voice echoed through the room, as if someone was gritting their teeth and using their last ounce of strength to say:
"In... the name of Veto!"
An invisible power suddenly appeared above everyone's head and struck each person without prejudice. It [Veto]-ed their last shred of consciousness, and they mercifully fell into a faint.
In the entire library, only Lloyd remained awake.
'In fact, he felt the blow to his head so keenly that it actually made him *more* awake...'
Then, he heard a series of footsteps from outside. Someone was rushing toward the library.
After a moment's thought, Lloyd decided to lie down on the floor and close his eyes as well.
'It wasn't that he was faking it. His head really did hurt.'
A moment later, he heard the sound of tall leather boots on the floor, followed by Weiya's characteristically cold voice:
"Tend to the casualties with all speed. Then, lock down the library and inspect every book in the collection."
Then, a large group of black-clothed Priests swarmed into the library, with a few other Priests among them.
Weiya spotted Lloyd immediately. She walked straight to him, knelt by his side, and touched his forehead.
"Huh? His condition is surprisingly good. Just take him to the prayer room."
Two Priests came over at her words. They hoisted him onto a stretcher, one at the front and one at the back, carried him to the sixth floor, placed him on a hospital bed, and then quickly left.
Lloyd stealthily cracked an eye open. Seeing no one else around, he let out a long sigh and murmured to himself:
"Phew... that was close."
'He wasn't referring to almost getting caught faking it, but to that terrifying wave of Spiritual Contamination—or maybe it was more of a psychic assault?'
'Judging by the notification at the time, the contamination he'd suffered in that instant had definitely surpassed the limits of his Rationality.'
'Luckily, [Dizziness Resistance] played a key role, preventing him from passing out immediately. This allowed the panel to convert the Madness Value into upgrade points in time.'
'If he had fainted, the panel wouldn't have been able to operate, and that overflowing Madness Value would have certainly inflicted incalculable damage to his psyche.'
He had gained 5 levels directly from that one assault, with 25 Attribute points waiting to be assigned.
On top of that, there was another unexpected, though not entirely welcome, gain—
[Ding~ Extraordinary Enlightenment complete. You have entered the [Twist] system. All Attributes +5]
[Current [Transcendence] Count: 1]
[Delve deeper into the system to achieve more [Transcendence]]
These three simple lines meant that Lloyd, without any warning, preparation, or sense of ceremony, had completed his first Transcendence. He had ascended from an ordinary person into a true Extraordinary Being.