The tentacle shot toward me, and I narrowly avoided it. My breath came in ragged gasps, clearly startled—and in my dazed state, the tentacle grabbed me by the throat and lifted me off the ground.
A crushing sense of suffocation hit me. I clawed desperately at the slimy surface, nails scraping uselessly. My vision blurred. Through the haze, I saw something dash by, but I couldn't make out what it was.
Then, in the corner of my eye, I saw someone reaching out to me.
Yes! Someone was going to save me!
A flicker of hope sparked inside me. I reached out, and strangely, the tentacle didn't resist. It just hung there, frozen. I managed to grab the person's hand—and they were surprisingly strong, pulling me down with ease.
I caught a glimpse of their face, just for a moment, before I bolted.
I ran toward the stairs. If I could reach the surface, I'd be safer—probably. But as I neared the stairwell, I realized with dread that half of it was gone.
I had two choices: stay here and definitely die… or take the risk. Jump. Maybe survive.
The decision was obvious.
I leapt with everything I had, legs straining. My hands barely caught the edge of the remaining staircase. I dangled for a few seconds, muscles burning, heart pounding—then pulled myself up.
The moment my feet hit the wooden flooring of the second floor, the rest of the staircase collapsed behind me with a deafening crash.
I should've felt relief… but all I felt was guilt.
The person who saved me—they were still up there. On the third floor. And now, the only way down was gone.
I had completely forgotten about them in the panic. Guilt crashed down on me like a wave—but I forced it aside and sprinted toward the other stairwell that led to the first floor.
Luckily, that one was untouched. I ran down it with no problem.
Now on the first floor, I felt a breeze drift in from outside. Fresh air. Freedom.
I rushed toward the exit. No more tentacles. No more monsters. Just—
I stepped outside the library.
And froze.
The world outside was worse.
Buildings lay in crumbled heaps. Smoke curled into the sky. People ran in every direction, screaming. Alarms blared, car horns blared louder—and above it all, the sky looked wrong, like someone had scribbled over it with black ink.
I had walked a decent distance from the library when I heard a loud thud behind me.
Startled, I spun around, heart in my throat.
It was a man. Just standing there.
I let out a breath. Okay… no tentacle monsters. Just a guy.
But then… I noticed something behind him. Something poking out from the edge of the steps.
I stepped slightly to the side to get a clearer view—
And my face went pale.
A body.
A dead body.
Was that the sound I heard?
I looked back at the man. He was staring at me—and our eyes met.
Mine were wide with terror. His were calm, collected… calculating.
And then I recognized him.
He was the man from the library.
What was he doing here!?
Before I could react, he suddenly stepped forward and grabbed me by the collar. I barely had time to shout before he pulled out a sword—where the hell did that come from!?—and pressed it against my throat.
The blade was cold.
I froze. My breath caught.
"W-What are you doing!? Who even are you!?" I rasped, voice shaking.
He didn't answer immediately. He just pressed the sword tighter, drawing a thin line of blood.
Then, finally, he spoke.
> "I should be asking you that."
His words made no sense. Frustration burned in my chest, but I said nothing. I wasn't in a position to argue.
He continued, voice even and low, but with an underlying threat I couldn't ignore:
> "Now why don't you tell me your name… before things escalate further?"
I didn't hesitate.
"My name is Khalem! Okay!? Now can you let me down!?"
He stared at me for a moment, then replied:
> "My name is Lucan Virellan."
I scoffed. I didn't really care—
Wait.
Wait.
Lucan Virellan…
That name—
That's the name of the main protagonist in the book I've been fixing for most of my life.
No. No, no, no, no, no—
This can't be happening.
It's just a coincidence. It has to be.
Right?
…Right!?