World's Best Protagonist [BL]

The glow of the World Tree pulsed as it absorbed my question, seemingly thinking deeply about how to explain things to me the way my stupid head would understand.

The weight of the knowledge it carried pressed against the air, like an unseen tide shifting around me. But the surroundings, to me, felt like home. My eyes landed on the single door where that mirrored coffin was.

Another thing I need to ask.

"What was tilted must be steadied," the World Tree finally answered.

My head turned away from the door, but I stopped looking above. My neck hurt, so I just settled at walking slowly between aisles, tracing the spines of the books I passed by.

Who knows, maybe I’ll find something interesting. Something like Noir’s book.

As I roamed around the library with my hands on my back like an old, strict librarian checking books, the World Tree continued to explain. It was like an old friend I hadn’t met for a long time.

It only gave an answer to every question I asked, but now, after talking to it comfortably, I did not need to ask, and it would still continue the conversation.

"The cracks between worlds must be sealed, and what does not belong must return."

I rubbed my eyes. Have I been staring so much at this dimly lit space that my eyes were now exhausted? The words on the book covers looked faded and vague, and I knew my eyes had reached their limit.

"You mean... the variables? The people who shouldn’t be in this world?" I asked as I decided to sit on the floor. This place doesn’t have a chair, a table, or even a footstool. I did not see any ladder as well.

So, am I supposed to float here if I want to check the upper rows of books?

"Yes. The protagonists, the anomalies, and the wandering souls. Those who have stepped into places they were never meant to be."

A strange, heavy silence filled the space between us. My stomach twisted as I pieced it together. The ’protagonists’ means someone like Noir; the ’anomalies’ are probably the monster escaping the vortex; but what about the wandering souls?

What are they?

"Their worlds need them back," the World Tree added.

"As long as they remain displaced, the imbalance will persist. The longer they stay, the greater the distortion. The destruction of one world will lead to the ruin of another."

I exhaled sharply. "Okay, yeah. Sounds bad. So, I have to bring them back to their world. But how do I do that? How will I know which world they belong to?"

My mind flashed back to Noir. If what the World Tree was saying was true, then Noir wasn’t supposed to be there. He belonged in his own world. And he must go back.

Well, I don’t see the problem with him. It is highly likely that he wanted to go back. But after delivering them into their own world, what happens next? Am I going to search for every single protagonist in each book, dragging them to their worlds, over and over?

Sounds exhausting and too bothersome.

Haa...what the hell has my life become?

If it was only Noir, I’d be happy to kick him back to his rightful place with a middle finger, but it wasn’t just him, right? There had to be others.

"They will know. You will only need to guide them."

I frowned. "But how do I even do that? I can’t just grab these people by the collar and throw them back into their own universes and say ’Hey, this is your world, so get your ass there and bye’. That’s not exactly an option."

Or should I phrase it better?

Either way, the choice is up to them. What if someone’s life was so shitty and cruel in their world and after experiencing the ease of transport, communication, and great food on Earth, they refuse to go back?

How can I pull them away from a better life and deliver them back to their hellish past? No one will be willing to turn away in a bright, bustling street to walk in a narrow, dark alley.

The World Tree’s branches rustled, imitating a sound like distant whispers.

"That is where your power works."

I let out a short, dry laugh. "Yeah? I’ve tried it before. I used it against someone who was much bigger and taller than me, and did you know what it got me? Multiple bruises and broken bones. Shouldn’t you at least give me an ability that can turn me into a giant?"

The World Tree did not answer. I leaned my back on the edge of the bookshelf and played with the Rune of Babel on my hands.

Some people ran through my mind, exhausting my thinking capacity, then left one by one, except one person who overstayed, unwrapping chocolates while sitting lazily on the couch.

I recalled what Noir had said before. About chocolates. He mentioned that Claude likes ’this world’s chocolates’. Does it mean the captain too...

Claude Vanderheinz. The first time I saw him, it was his back turned to me while facing a monster. What did I think back then?

I vaguely remember thinking he looked familiar. Why, though? If he is also a character in one of these books, then why did I have that thought? I was not aware of this place at that time.

After a long moment, I sighed. "Alright. Say I do find these lost protagonists. What happens after? Will their memories stay? Will their worlds even accept them back?"

The tree’s glow softened.

I felt refreshed when I entered this place, but now I’m exhausted. Does talking to this divine, ancient tree exhaust my energy? Was that why it just always watched over me?

"That depends on the world itself. Some will welcome them as though they had never left. Others... may not."

I hesitated. "That’s kind of sad."

"It is the nature of things. But the balance must be restored. If they stay where they do not belong, all worlds—yours included—will collapse."

The weight of its words settled on me like a stone. For a moment, I stared at an empty space, wondering if there was a way to run from all this. The responsibilities I have to take are too burdensome for me. It’s making my knees buckle a bit.

I closed my eyes and thought for a while.

This ordeal wasn’t just about saving poor Mother Earth. It was about stopping a chain reaction that could destroy everything.

I sighed, rolling my shoulders. "Alright. I get it. I have to find these guys and send them home before the universe implodes."

The World Tree’s lights pulsed in quiet approval.

I ran a hand through my hair, already feeling exhausted. Maybe this is my fate. The purpose of my existence. I should start embracing it.

A slithering branch came up to my feet and gently wrapped its tip on my ankle just like a cat’s tail playing with me. I reached my hand out, and it moved up, hovering into my fingers before it slowly rested on my palm.

"It’s time for you to return, old friend," the World Tree solemnly mumbled, yet I sensed sorrow and grief in its tone.

I yawned. Return to where? And why does it sound so sad?

Ah, right. I’m an Earthling. I need to return to them, or else they might do something like summoning a vortex to try and pull me out. It’s impossible but, imagining those people panicking when I suddenly vanished warmed my heart a little.

It means I made a few good friends. Something the old Jade would not even bother to do.

"Come this way," the World Tree muttered again.

I stood, my hand was held by the branch, pulling me to the door that led to the coffin room. I rubbed my eyes and just let the branch guide me inside.

Once we were, the branch let go of me and pointed at the coffin. Hm? Is this the exit? I did remember getting locked inside the coffin the first time I found this place, and then I was suddenly back on Earth.

Just like before, I lifted the lid and watched my own reflection in the mirror below. It also mirrored my background. But when I touched it, my thoughts focused on a certain place, and magically, the mirror’s reflection clouded.

When it cleared, it revealed the place I was thinking about. An incredulous laugh escaped my mouth. Should I step in, or should I change the location first?

I don’t know what came to me, but when the reflection showed that person’s face, grim and angered, while yelling at someone over the phone, my feet moved on their own.

Before I knew it, I was falling.

Thud.

I prepared my eardrums for a barrage of hot profanities when I landed right on Claude’s head, and we toppled over his bedroom floor. Yet moments passed and I still did not hear anything.

I searched for his face, which was stuck in my armpit while his body was beneath me. I hastily moved my shoulder away and tried to get up, mumbling frantically, "Ah, ow, sorry, sorry. It doesn’t stink, I swear."

But then, as I got up, a hand grabbed my arm and gripped it tightly. Then, a deep, menacing voice echoed.

"You’ve got a lot of explaining to do, Jade Dela Torre."

I know. But wait, why did his gaze look relieved and tender at the same time? He should learn to match his mouth with his expression. He confused me, but a small smile still tugged in my lips.