I shake my head at her with an amused smile on my face. I'm still a little confused by what she meant by ryoku, but it must be something important if Thea is so happy about it. Truthfully, their relationship warms my heart, and for a moment, I just stare at her departing figure with a wistful expression on my face.

Family.

The most important thing in the world. And humans are not the only ones to prioritize it. In a way, it makes the concept of deities less daunting to realize they have the same fears and desires as us mortals.

They might have powers beyond belief, but deep down, they also love and want to be loved.

Well, except Ze. He operates entirely outside that sphere.

The mere notion of a library gets me giddy, though, and turning toward the hall, I wander from door to door until I find the library Thea mentioned—although library is a bit of an understatement. The room is the size of a football field!

The door opens and I step inside, my heart beating wildly in my chest, a hum of excitement building in my stomach.

Wow.

I should have guessed that a palace such as this would house a grand library too.

The shelves are ceiling high—and considering the ceiling is over four meters in height, that says everything. The walls are entirely filled with bookshelves, with a few rows on either side, too. In the middle of the room, there's a spiraling staircase made out of marble that leads to a second floor. All around, there are tables with book weights on them, almost as if this were a study hall.

As I close the door behind me, I walk inside, brushing my palm against a massive oak table. I swallow hard in an attempt to temper my excitement and not run around like a kid in a candy shop.

This is fabulous.

Better than chocolate—okay, maybe not better, but equal...almost

equal.

I look right and left, not knowing where to start my exploration. But there's only one thought that permeates my mind.

Do deities have romance novels?

If I were to make an educated guess, if they do have them, they are going to be mostly censored. After all, with everything I've heard about their world, even talking about sex is taboo. Of course, that would reflect in the literature.

A giggle escapes me.

Who would have thought that gods would have banned books? Yet it just goes to show that even when one has limitless resources, boundaries must still exist to allow for society to function and avoid mayhem. Maybe because they have limitless powers, they have to ensure that everything is carefully organized and curated.