The story begins with a man in a library. He spends his days ordering and cataloging the books on the shelves, and his nights reading them on his cot in the library storage room. He leaves the library once a day to visit the market where he purchases food, as well as the occasional item of clothing or hygiene product. This has been his arrangement for the past twelve years of his life, ever since the librarian took him on as an apprentice.
It was the type of life that other people called lonely and boring, but to the apprentice it was comfortable, purposeful, and filled with exploration. To him, books were islands filled with buried treasure and undiscovered wonder, and the library was an endless sea. He was the captain of an expedition to explore it all, making detailed charts of every island on which he made landfall and gathering any treasure he could along the way. It was an apt metaphor; he was chosen for the apprenticeship at young age due to his outstanding memory, and his role as apprentice was to help others access the information contained within the shelves upon shelves of books residing in the library.
The apprentice had even larger motives than exploration on his mind. The profession of librarian was one of the few that allowed working class commoners to rise above their social status. While many were commoners were condemned to a life of farming, blacksmithing, or serving in the army, he would have the opportunity to assume governing roles in addition to his responsibility as librarian. One day, he knew he would be named Count, or Duke, or Governor, or even High Counselor.
ZAEREN!
The apprentice's dreams of grandeur were blasted away by the voice yelling from upstairs.
ZAEREEEEEEEEEEEEN!
Yes, that is my name, thought the apprentice, a smile forming on his face. That is my name, for now.