The Belief Of The Hierophant.

Merlin had always been a man of knowledge. At 21, while others chased fleeting ambitions, he sought the timeless wisdom hidden in books. He read not for power, nor for prestige, but simply because he found comfort in understanding. History, philosophy, magic, even the mundane—every page turned was another step closer to unraveling the mysteries of the world.

Then, one day, everything changed.

He didn't remember how it happened. One moment, he was in his small apartment, his fingers tracing the words of an old book about forgotten civilizations. The next, he awoke in a world unlike his own—a world where knowledge wasn't just power, but something alive, something dangerous. Magic flowed through the air, cities stood upon floating islands, and creatures from myths walked beside men.

But Merlin remained the same.

Even in a world of swords and sorcery, he sought books first, not weapons. He explored libraries instead of battlefields, deciphered ancient texts rather than wielding spells in combat. In this new world, knowledge could shape reality, and that only deepened his obsession.

However, knowledge was not without its price. The more he learned, the more he realized—this world had secrets better left undiscovered. And yet, how could he stop? To Merlin, the pursuit of knowledge wasn't a choice. It was who he was.

"The world changes, people rise and fall, but knowledge is the one thing that lasts. Strength fades, power shifts, but understanding? That stays. I don't chase knowledge just to be the smartest person in the room—I want to know the truth, to see things as they really are. But knowledge without purpose is meaningless. If you don't have a reason for what you learn, then what's the point? I believe in seeking answers, not for control, but to help guide the way. And if even the gods try to keep the truth hidden... then maybe they need to be questioned too."

Merlin believed that knowledge was more than just facts written in books—it was the closest thing to truth a person could grasp. But truth itself was never simple. Every story had different sides, every history was shaped by the hands that wrote it, and every so-called fact was subject to change.

He didn't chase knowledge to be the smartest or to prove others wrong. He pursued it because, to him, understanding was the only way to navigate the world without being blinded by assumptions. He wasn't arrogant enough to believe he knew everything. In fact, he found comfort in the idea that he never would. That meant there was always something more to learn, something more to uncover.

He wasn't bound to a single ideology, nor did he worship knowledge as an absolute force. He simply saw it as the closest thing to freedom. The more one knew, the less they could be controlled. The more they understood, the harder it was for fear and ignorance to take hold.

But Merlin also understood that knowledge alone wasn't enough. Wisdom was what made knowledge meaningful. A fool with a library was still a fool. A man who knew the weight of his own ignorance, however, had the potential to grow.

And that was the real reason he kept reading. Not to be above others, not to hold power, but to ensure that he never became someone who mistook knowledge for wisdom.