They ordered a full breakfast. Bread, cheeses, fruits, and scrambled eggs, which Lukas had never tasted in this world and found delicious, soft, and creamy, with a smoky flavor that reminded him of bacon. More Lirium juice for Lukas, who was already beginning to love the sour drink.

"What are we doing today?" Lukas asked, wiping his mouth with a napkin.

Clavor cut a large piece of bread, spread butter on it, and took a bite.

"We’re going to buy magic manuals for Judith." He pointed at Lukas’s sister with his chin.

"She needs to start training. The sooner she learns to control mana, the better."

"Why?" Judith asked, her voice still sleepy.

"Because uncontrolled mana can be dangerous," Clavor replied seriously.

"It can leak. It can accumulate. It can cause headaches, dizziness, even fainting. That’s why it’s important to learn control from an early age."

Judith’s eyes widened.

"I can faint?"

"You can. If you don’t train."

"Then let’s buy the books right now!"

Clavor laughed.

"Relax. After breakfast."

After eating, they left the inn. The sun was already high, painting the streets in golden hues. The city was awake, merchants shouting offers, children running around, guards patrolling.

Clavor led the way to the largest bookstore in Great Rock City.

The route passed through busy streets, with merchants opening shop doors, stacking goods on the sidewalks, and sweeping the steps. The smell of coffee and fresh bread lingered in the air, mixed with the scent of tanned leather, flowers, and exotic spices.

The bookstore was called "The Eternal Scroll."

It was a two-story building with a dark wooden facade, so old that the wood had darkened to an almost black shade. The windows were large, with spotless glass, and behind them... books. Stacks of books. Mountains of books. Books piled in the display windows, hanging from ropes, heaped on tables.

The sign above the door was made of metal, with golden letters. "The Eternal Scroll, New and Used Books."

Inside, it was paradise for Lukas.

Tall shelves reached all the way to the ceiling, so high that wooden ladders were necessary to reach the books at the top. They were made of dark wood, polished by years of use, filled with leather-bound volumes, rolled scrolls, and loose sheets tied together with cords.

The smell was unmistakable. Old paper, ink, leather, dust. A scent Lukas had loved since childhood on Earth, when he spent hours in the orphanage library, escaping the real world within the pages of books.

A thin old mage stood behind the counter.

He wore a faded light-gray robe with ink stains on the cuffs. His hair was white and sparse, his beard long and poorly trimmed. Round glasses rested on the tip of his nose, and he looked at customers over them with pale blue eyes that were almost transparent.

"Welcome," he said, his voice hoarse, like someone who hadn’t spoken in days.

"Looking for something specific?"

"Magic manuals," Clavor answered directly.

"For beginners. For a five-year-old child."

The mage raised his eyebrows.

"Just awakened?"

"Yes."

"Ability?"

"Enhanced Mana."

The man’s eyes lit up.

"Rare. Excellent. I have a few books that may help."

He stood up with difficulty, his knees cracking, and disappeared among the shelves. Minutes later, he returned carrying three thick books in his arms.

Clavor examined each one.

The first. "Mana for Beginners: Controlling Internal Flow." It had a dark blue cover with golden lettering. It seemed basic and theoretical.

The second. "Elements in Motion: A Practical Guide for Young Mages." It had a red cover, no golden letters, only a symbol of fire and water on the front. More practical.

The third. "Advanced Magical Theory: The Nature of Mana." It had a black cover with a silver spiral in the center. Much denser.

"How much?" Clavor asked.

"The first costs five silver coins. The second, six silver coins. The third..." He hesitated.

"The third is a bit rare. Eight silver coins."

Clavor did the math mentally.

"Five plus six is eleven. Plus eight is nineteen. One gold coin and nine silver."

"That’s right."

"It’s expensive."

"Magic is expensive."

Clavor sighed. He opened the pouch on his belt, counted the coins, and paid. The mage wrapped the books in brown paper and tied them with string.

"For now, this is enough for Judith to get started," Clavor murmured, handing the package to Aurora.

Lukas watched everything in silence.

’Learning magic is expensive.’

’Very expensive.’

’But I’ll need a lot of money for my zoo. I need to plan a way to make money...’

They left the bookstore and stopped at a stall to eat something quick.

The stall stood on a corner near the central market. A chubby woman sold sweet fried pastries, small balls of fried dough covered in sugar and cinnamon, filled with a creamy dulce de leche-like filling. Lukas ate two, licking his fingers afterward.

Tilbo stayed in his pocket, quietly resting.

That was when Lukas saw something that immediately caught his attention.

Across the street, inside a small metal cage displayed at an exotic animal stall...

A spider. A large spider. A very large spider.

Its body was glossy black, like polished obsidian. Its legs were long and jointed, covered in tiny hairs that gleamed under the sunlight. Its multiple eyes, black and shiny, reflected the light in small white points. Its abdomen was thick and rounded, marked with a dark red hourglass-shaped pattern.

Lukas had never seen a spider like that on Earth.

"Is that... a spider?" he murmured, eyes wide.

His heart raced. A small smile spread across his face. His curiosity, that insatiable curiosity that defined him, drove him and had made him choose zoology in his previous life, it exploded like a rocket.

’I need to see.’

’I need to see it up close.’

Without thinking twice, without thinking even once, Lukas slipped away from Aurora’s hands and ran across the street.

"Lukas!" Aurora shouted, but he was already far away.

His little feet slapped against the cobblestones. His arms swung as he ran. Tilbo, inside his pocket, clung to the fabric to avoid falling.

He stopped in front of the cage. 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

Breathing hard. Heart pounding. Violet eyes glued to the spider.

"You’re... beautiful."