Everyone froze. That raspy voice like it had crawled out from inside the walls sent a chill straight to their bones. Even Luna, who once sleepwalked into a nightmare and laughed about it, actually took a step back.
Alice narrowed her eyes and muttered,
"That's a guardian's voice. Probably some kind of protective spell tied to the library. If we don't respond, or do something wrong, it might—"
Selena cut her off, half-serious, half-sarcastic:
"Might what? The books attack us? Start biting?"
Fayra shot her a look but couldn't hold back a tiny smirk.
The voice echoed again, louder this time:
"Answer… Are you ready to know what lies beyond understanding?"
Luna mumbled,
"We got trapped in an S-rank dungeon once, fought a monster with three heads… If this is another deadly spell, I just hope it doesn't bite hard."
They all rolled their eyes—but then…
