Linh's breath hitched as she spun around. The door was gone.
The old man, still watching her with that unreadable smile, gestured toward a chair in front of the desk. "Sit."
Heart pounding, she hesitated before slowly lowering herself onto the chair. "Where am I?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
The man leaned forward, resting his hands on the desk. "You are in the Library of Lost Books. A place where forgotten stories, vanished texts, and books that never found their way home are kept."
Linh swallowed. "That's… impossible."
The man chuckled. "Impossible things happen more often than you think."
She glanced around. The towering shelves stretched endlessly, fading into the dim candlelight. The books looked ancient—some wrapped in silk, others bound in leather, a few with titles that seemed to shift as she looked at them.
"What do you mean by 'Librarian of Lost Books'?" she asked.
The old man stood up, walking around the desk. "Every librarian has a purpose. In the world you came from, books are borrowed and returned. But here? These books were lost. Some were misplaced, some were stolen, and others were forgotten entirely. Your job is to guide them back to where they belong."
Linh frowned. "And if I refuse?"
The man tilted his head, amused. "Then you will remain lost with them."
A shiver ran down her spine. "That's not funny."
"It's not a joke."
She opened her mouth to argue, but something in his gaze silenced her. Instead, she swallowed and asked, "What do I have to do?"
The old man nodded approvingly. "Good. First, you must follow the rules."
He held up three fingers.
Rule One: "Never read a book aloud."
Rule Two: "If a book whispers your name, do not answer."
Rule Three: "When the clock strikes midnight, lock the doors. No matter what you hear."
Linh's stomach twisted. "Why?"
The man's smile faded. "Because not all lost books wish to be found."
A gust of cold air swept through the library, and somewhere deep within the shelves… a book rustled.
Something was awake.