Episode 160

At that moment, Noah placed the book he had been holding on the table.

The book looked strangely familiar, but the text was too small for me to make out the title clearly.

“What’s the book about?”

“It’s about the Black Forest.”

“The Black Forest?”

At the mention of the Black Forest, a specific book immediately flashed through my mind.

‘Could it be…?’

I quickly picked up the book to check the title.

**The Secret of the Black Forest.**

It was the same book I had seen in the Imperial Library.

“How did you get your hands on this?”

“You know this book?”

“Huh? Oh, yeah. I saw it in the Imperial Library.”

“The Imperial Library?”

“Yes, it was there, but I didn’t get to read it.”

“How did you get access to the Imperial Library?”

“I asked the Crown Prince for a favor, hoping to find something useful…”

“And you found this book there?”

“Yeah. Why? Shouldn’t it have been in the Imperial Library?”

“No, it’s not that. I just didn’t expect it to be there. I had a hard time tracking this book down.”

“You went through a lot to find this?”

“Yes. Not long after it was published, the author went around collecting all the copies and burned them.”

“The author burned their own book? Why would they do that?”

“I couldn’t find out why. Apparently, the author believed that the book shouldn’t exist in the world, and they went to great lengths to destroy it.”

“How did you find this out?”

“I learned it from someone in the village where the author used to live.”

“What could have happened to lead to something like that?”

“We’ll have to figure that out. For now, take a look through the book.”

“Alright.”

I hadn’t been able to read the book back in the Imperial Library because of the Crown Prince’s watchful eyes, but now, here it was in my hands.

I immediately opened the book and began skimming through the pages, eager to see what it contained.

Noah waited patiently while I read.

About ten minutes later, I placed the book back on the table and looked at him.

“Where did you get this book?”

“From a small village near the Black Forest.”

“Near the Black Forest?”

“Yes. To be honest, I’ve been staying near the Black Forest this whole time.”

“You’ve been staying near the Black Forest?”

Surprised by his revelation, I widened my eyes and asked again.

“Yeah. I wanted to uncover its secrets.”

“So, your travels were…?”

“Yes, I left specifically for that reason. Did you manage to get a good look at the book?”

“I did, but there’s so much more information here than anything I’ve gathered so far.”

“Exactly. After finding this book, I was able to delve deeper into the mysteries of the Black Forest.”

Noah fell silent for a moment, lost in thought, and I, too, needed time to process everything. I didn’t speak but instead picked up the book again, flipping through it more slowly this time.

The *Secret of the Black Forest* contained numerous details about the forest’s mysteries, just as its title suggested.

Among all the information, what caught my attention the most was the map of the Black Forest.

The first page of the book had a detailed map of how the forest was laid out.

The following chapters provided in-depth descriptions of the creatures living within the forest. Some of the creatures were noted to have intelligence comparable to humans.

The book also mentioned that there was a ruler of the Black Forest, one who led these creatures.

‘Who could have written such a book?’

It was bizarre that the author would go to such lengths to destroy their own work after publishing it.

What had happened after the book was completed to make the author regret it so much?

As strange as it all seemed, the book felt like it was leading us closer to the forest’s secrets while simultaneously pushing us further away.

We sat in silence for a while, each of us deep in thought.

It was Noah who broke the silence first.

“Fascinating, isn’t it?”

He nodded towards the book I still held in my hands.

Noah placed the book he had been holding on the table, and for a moment, I felt a sense of familiarity.

“What’s that book?”

“It’s about the Black Forest.”

“The Black Forest?”

The name instantly triggered a memory of another book I had come across.

‘Could it be…’

I quickly grabbed the book to check the title.

<The Secret of the Black Forest.>

It was the same book I had seen in the Imperial Library.

“How did you get this?”

“Do you know this book?”

“Huh? Oh, yes. I saw it in the Imperial Library.”

“The Imperial Library?”

“Yes, but I didn’t read it then.”

“How did you get into the Imperial Library?”

“I asked the Crown Prince. I was hoping there’d be something useful…”

“And this book was there?”

“Yeah. Why? Is it strange for it to be there?”

“No, not strange. Just… I didn’t expect it. I went through so much trouble trying to find it.”

“You did?”

“Yes. After it was published, the author tried to retrieve and burn all the copies.”

“The author burned their own book? Why?”

“I don’t know. Apparently, they believed the book shouldn’t exist and went to great lengths to get rid of it.”

“How did you find this out?”

“I heard it from someone in the village where the author used to live.”

“What could have happened to make them do that?”

“We’ll figure that out in time. But for now, there’s something else I found out.”

“What is it?”

“It’s about your illness.”

“My illness?”

In the middle of talking about the Black Forest, Noah suddenly shifted to the topic of my sickness.

“We never knew how it started or what caused it.”

“Yes, that’s true…”

Even in the original story, the cause of Daliah’s illness was never explained in detail. The focus was on how Ian’s magic cured her. There was almost no mention of the Black Forest.

‘If only there had been more information.’

In the original, Daliah was given a short time to live, but her illness was cured by Ian’s magic. There was no mention of prophetic dreams like the ones I had been experiencing.

Of course, I couldn’t remember every small detail of the story, but I was certain this wasn’t in the original.

‘So, am I the only one having these dreams?’

But my dreams seemed tied to my illness, starting with visions of paths that appeared in my sleep, paths that I couldn’t escape.

Realizing I had been lost in thought, I quickly refocused and looked at Noah.

“What did you find out about my illness?”

“It was one of the reasons for my travels.”

“Brother…”

It finally dawned on me.

Noah hadn’t just been traveling. He had ventured into the world to find answers—for me.

“When you said you were going on a journey, I thought you were finally free.”

“I was. Traveling to different places is still a journey.”

“No, that’s not what I meant…”

I knew Noah’s tenacity all too well. When he became obsessed with something, he would pursue it tirelessly for days, even weeks.

And now I realized that his obsession had been me—my illness.

When he had given up his life as a priest and said he was going on a journey, I had felt relieved, thinking he was finally living for himself. But I had been wrong.

He had been living for me all along, putting my wellbeing before his own.

“I’m completely healed now. So, please…”

“I know. I heard that you’ve recovered.”

“Yes, so now, please, start living for yourself. Stop doing all this for me…”

I trailed off, overcome by guilt and frustration. The strongest emotion I felt was a deep sense of guilt toward Noah.

My brother, who had spent his life worrying about his sick little sister, was still sacrificing his own desires for me. It broke my heart.

“I’m really fine now. Look, I don’t even have the dreams anymore.”

“I heard from Jade that you’ve been having prophetic dreams.”

“Yes, I’ve had prophetic dreams. Isn’t that strange?”

“But did you know? I knew you would have them.”

“What?”

I was so shocked that I stood up from my seat.

“How did you know?”

“I discovered why you fell ill in the first place.”

“You mean there’s a reason why I got sick?”

“Yes.”

Noah’s words were a series of shocks, leaving me dizzy and unable to process it all.

I collapsed back into my seat, staring at him in a daze.

“Are you alright, Ayla?”

“Huh? Yeah… just give me a moment. It’s… a lot to take in.”

I took a few deep breaths, trying to calm my racing thoughts and emotions.

He knew why I got sick? And he knew about my prophetic dreams?

I had to know. I needed to know.

I had wondered my entire life—why I had been cursed with this illness. Every time I had felt helpless, every time I had watched my family suffer because of my sickness, I had wanted answers.

Now, the truth I had always longed for was right in front of me.

I gathered myself, determined to stay calm, and spoke.

“Tell me everything, Brother. Tell me everything you know about my illness.”