A Lover of Books

I spent the day searching through the school's library. If what Sir. William has told me is true, I must find what I am looking for immediately. I scanned through the books quickly, strangely, in the low-access section, I found the book titled The Sable King. The book itself is unassuming, though it contains knowledge the church and governments seek to hide. However, the origin of the book is quite strange, never being bought or acquired by anyone, simply appearing on the shelves. With no author, the book seems to have simply arrived into existence.

I perused the book's contents, eventually finding the information I sought. The book itself did not contain the information; however, it stated quite plainly where I could find it. It was as if the book had been written for me specifically, or could read my mind. No matter, it allowed me to find the spell, in the forbidden section of the library, the one I need for you, Lunia.

I await our reunion.

-Excerpt from the recovered journal of Absalon Ramorski.

♕♛♕♛♕♛♕

“Tch.” Almost in an instant, Manako jumps out of the way of the man. The man storming past.

“GET OUT OF MY WAY!” He screams as he runs down the street towards the square.

“Are you alright?” I ask instinctively.

“Yeah…” Manako replies,

“Hey!” Yoshida calls out, starting to run after the man.

“HIIRO! Where are you- Ugh!” Eris shouts at him. “You guys keep searching!”

“O-okay! When you finish, just search the other side!” I answer, watching the two of them disappear down the road. Eris sticks a thumb up and chases after the two men.

♕♛♕♛♕♛♕

The two of us continued searching for the next hour. Store after store denied having any idea of where to obtain the tickets we needed.

We had already gathered two. Depending on what Helia can purchase at the train station, we may be able to make this work. No, I shouldn’t get my hopes up.

“Are they gonna be okay?” Manako asks from beside me on my left. We had now checked the entire left side of the street and had reached its peak. We had turned and were now searching the opposite side.

“Yeah, I don't think we need to worry.” I look down at her. “How about you, are you doing alright?”

“Yes, thank you.” She says, walking forward slightly faster. “Today has been a long day, hasn’t it?”

“Yeah… “ I agreed. A strange woman spouts philosophy, I teleport, get stuck between a giant and a hero, that hero reveals he's a demon, I almost get crushed by some rocks, and attend a funeral. All in less than twenty thousand words. I’d say I got cursed, but this kinda luck is normal for me. All without actually doing what I came here for… Wait.

Just as I think that, I notice the sign on the next building. The building is a rickety wooden one, its wood stained an orange color. In front of an awning above the door is a sign that reads GOT Books.

“Let's go in here,” I tell Manako as we reach the door,

“Wah?! In here?”

“Yeah.” I grab her hand and pull her into the store

Ding

A bell rings out as I open the door.

Crash

The sound comes from the left of the door. Looking over, I see a counter. Rising from behind the counter is a young boy about 12 years of age.

“Hello! Welcome! Hk,” The young boy looks at us and catches his breath. “Is-is there anything I can h-help you with?”

“We’re just looking.”

“L-let me now!” The boy leans down and grabs a chair from the floor. He places it upright and sits.

I walk into the store, it has 3 shelves stocked with books, the walls also lined with them. The store is small, no larger than a one-room apartment.

I walk into one of the aisles. Dotted in uneven intervals are nametags reading: Medicine, Monsters, Romance, History, Writing, Etc. I search for the genre I seek, walking through an entire row, doubling into the next one.

“Hey…” Manako calls to me quietly. “You didn't come in here to look for tickets, did you?” She stares at me suspiciously.

“O-of course I did… Who's to say someone didn’t use one as a bookmark while reading one of these?” I stumble out. Her expression doesn’t change; she simply stares at me unimpressed. I reach for a random book and pull it off the shelf. I open it to a random page, there's nothing.

“It would have been cool…”

“Hah- Just don’t take long…” She tells me before walking back into the first aisle.

I return to searching the shelves, the second row being once more a dud. Turning onto the third row, I immediately spot what I’m looking for: A nametag reading Magic.

My eyes fall onto the books above it; the section is small, taking only two shelves' worth of space. Maybe 20-30 books max…

I read the titles quickly, scanning each book. Guide to Clewes, Beginners Magic, Scars guide to petrification (and how to undo it). All I had already read.

I had come to this city in hopes of coming to this bookstore, not this one specifically, but whatever tiny bookstore was in this town. Bookstores are only now on the rise, with literacy being at an all time high thanks to Saionia. Large bookstores and libraries are popping up all over, but small stores like these are often overlooked. Large stores keep catalogues, Libraries keep track of what they bring in, oftentimes the harder to find stuff either sells out immediately, is sold for a higher price than anyone should pay, or is kept from the public. That’s why I wanted to come here, in a city where people from all over pass through, a small, old bookstore may have the gem I’m looking for.

I reach the few final books: Monsters and Magic, Lost Magics, and The Sable King.

Wait…

I had already read the first two, Lost magics being particularly useful. However, the last title was new. I had never seen it before, but the name reminded me of something. That books has been banned the entire world over.

I grab the book on the shelf and look at its cover. A basic skull is painted on the leather cover, in its maw an orb. The title is similarly painted on, though no author’s name is stated.

I look at the boy sitting at the counter, his eyes darting back and forth between the row Manako is in and me. Knowing that age, he’s probably not looking at me because of the book… The thought gives me a headache.

If there's a problem buying it, that would be bad… I’m not sure what the punishment is for trying to buy a banned book… But it's worth it, if anything has what I’m looking for, it's this book.

I look back at the shelf, next to the magic section, and see the nametag Fairy tales. I look over the titles, many tales of heroes slaying dragons, Fairies, and elves, and war tales line the shelves. However, one title speaks to me. I grab it and walk to the counter.

I place the books down. “How much for the two?”

“U-um- Let me see!” The boy grabs the two books and flips them over. The Fairy tale has a tag that says 15 J. The boy flips the other book over. “It doesn’t have a price…”

“Is that going to be a problem?” I ask him nervously.

“N-no! It’s the same size as the other one, so I'll just charge you the same!” Thanks, I hope you don’t get chewed out.

The boy places the books together, luckily with the fairy tale on top.

“I-is that it?”

“One sec…”

I peer into the aisle and see Manako reading a book; she’s standing in front of the section that reads Medicine and another that reads Plants.

“Do you want that book?” I ask her.

“H-huh? N-no, it's okay. She places the book back on the shelf.

“You sure?” To be honest, I'm already low on my personal funds…

“No, I'm fine.” She tells me.

The two of us return to the counter and pay for the books.

As I hand the boy three coins with red crystals in the center, he motions to the top book.

“H-have you read it before? It’s really popular here.”

“No, I haven’t.” I look at the book, its title reads The First Magus, Nia.

“I-it’s very popular around here! There are even rumors that the book takes place here!” The boy says, full of pride.

“I see, I’m very excited to read it.”

“W-well, here you go, enjoy your books!” The boy hands me the books, and I place them in my bag. As we walk out of the store, I can’t help but notice a look of disappointment on the boy's face as we leave.