The tunnel stretched endlessly, cold water sloshing around my ankles as Lena led the way through the underground passage. The auction house was behind us, but the danger wasn’t gone. If Valcairn’s men had half a brain, they’d be searching for exits right now.

  "How much further?" I asked, my breath fogging in the damp air.

  "Another five minutes," Lena replied.

  "To where?"

  "Safe house. Well, safer than this."

  I didn’t argue. My legs ached, my shoulder throbbed from the landing back at the auction, and my mind was still spinning from the sheer insanity of the heist. I had written high-stakes thefts before, but living through one?

  Not as fun as it sounded.

  We emerged through a rusted grate into an abandoned warehouse. Crates and barrels lay scattered around, the scent of old wood and dust heavy in the air. Lena moved swiftly, checking the hidden runes on the doorframe—wards against tracking magic.

  "We’re clear," she said, exhaling as she slid to the floor.

  I wasn’t convinced.

  "And Ryn?"

  "If he's not dead, he'll show up," she muttered, closing her eyes.

  I hesitated, then sat down across from her, gripping the stolen grimoire tightly. The book felt heavy, not just in weight but in what it represented.

  The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

  The High-Level Grimoire—or at least, the incomplete version of it. The real, complete formulas? Locked away in the royal archives, known only to the kingdom’s top court magicians.

  Someone had been collecting these grimoires, trying to piece together something that shouldn't exist. And now, I was right in the middle of it.

  I let out a slow breath.

  "Lena… what do you know about these grimoires?"

  She opened one eye, watching me.

  "Why?"

  "Because," I muttered, flipping through the pages, "I wrote them."

  Lena’s gaze sharpened.

  "Explain."

  I hesitated. Telling her the truth—that I was the creator of this world—was not an option. But I could tell her a version of the truth.

  "Before I ended up here, I studied mathematics and physics. I… theorized how magic would work using formulas, equations, fundamental laws of energy transfer."

  Lena frowned.

  "So you just happened to come up with the exact same grimoire that this kingdom considers its greatest magical secret?"

  I exhaled.

  "Yeah. And the worst part? This isn’t even the final one."

  Lena straightened.

  "The Forbidden Grimoire."

  I nodded.

  The first grimoire was for basic mathemagic.

  The second—the one we had now—contained incomplete high-level formulas.

  But the last one… the Forbidden Grimoire… was something far worse.

  A book that shouldn’t exist.

  A book that could break the system of this world itself.

  And whoever was after these grimoires?

  They weren’t stopping until they had all three.

  The door creaked open.

  Lena and I jumped to our feet, hands on weapons—until Ryn stepped through, bloodied but grinning.

  "Miss me?"

  I let out a breath I hadn’t realized I was holding.

  "Took your time," Lena muttered.

  "Had to make sure Valcairn wasn’t on my tail," he said, wincing as he collapsed onto a crate. Bruises covered his arms, his jacket was torn, and there was a deep gash along his side.

  "You look terrible," I muttered.

  "Yeah, but you should see the other guy."

  Lena tossed him a small healing vial.

  "So," Ryn said, popping the cork, "did we just make the entire kingdom our enemy?"

  I glanced at the grimoire in my hands.

  "Not just the kingdom," I muttered. "Whoever’s collecting these books won’t stop. And now, we have a target on our backs."

  Lena exhaled.

  "Then we’d better make the next move first."

  Ryn smirked.

  "Now that’s what I like to hear."

  We couldn’t stay here for long. The city was on high alert. Every bounty hunter, mercenary, and soldier would be looking for us.

  "We need to figure out who else is after these grimoires," Lena said.

  "And where the Forbidden Grimoire is," I added.

  Ryn stretched, cracking his neck.

  "Then let’s start digging."

  I stared down at the stolen grimoire.

  This world wasn’t ready for the knowledge in these books.

  And if we didn’t destroy the Forbidden Grimoire before someone else got it…

  I might not survive in this world at all or maybe this world might not survive at the end.