Si traveled to Unio using his unofficial Gate, the one in his red room. He was supposed to arrive at Alena’s house a few minutes later, but the Gate he chose in Unio was very close to her house. He ended up being too early.

  The door was open, so Si went into the house without any problem. They had it scheduled; he assumed it was open for him to go in.

  Inside, it was quite peculiar. The main space was empty, and the floor looked like it was polished. A space for dancing? He sensed energy in the library and thought it had to be them—Luna and Lukai.

  Si had heard about the Alena family’s library; he was aware it was protected by the energy layers. He was curious: was it similarly secured as his Gate in the Shadows’ library? He simply decided to check if he could pass it and go in. They were already there; she shouldn’t be angry. Si also wanted to surprise Luna a bit. He sighed.

  Anna, Luna, Luna, Anna.

  Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

  He went in. There was no one, though.

  “What a…?” Si started to murmur, but suddenly, he was attacked.

  Something materialized near him. He could detect energy that arose rapidly, but before he could fight back or defend himself, he was knocked down.

  Si wanted to change into Shadows’ swirl and escape, but he was halted, and he recognized the touch: his waves were as grabbed. It felt as if his internal, core energy was caught. It was it, again!

  He tried to release his energy fully, but then this something started to suck it from him.

  That scared Si. What was it? What kind of protection did this library have, and why did it work like this?

  Wasn’t it illegal?

  Was it even known to be called illegal? Wasn’t it something his mother said was lost for years—not lost, hidden by Shadows and before, Abilitiers from the Sect?

  What was that?

  Before he could decide what to do next, he was further overpowered, thrown to his knees, and then onto the floor, under the table. He couldn’t move; he couldn’t shout.

  He was held by something, and this something was silent.

  Powerful and silent.

  Si started to panic; his energy was trapped. At the same time, he was losing his power, and he couldn’t fight back, couldn’t do anything.

  A moment later, someone entered the library.