The Bookstore Mage

The next morning, Lucien woke up feeling that something was different. He didn't know what it was exactly, but he had a distinct feeling that something had changed. Moon was surprisingly up next to him. She was staring at him with a strange expression.

"Morning, sunshine. Strange how you didn't wake me up." He said and patted her head. Moon meowed in response before she jumped out of bed and made her way out of the room.

A yawn escaped Lucien's lips as he turned to grab his phone, the clock read 8 am. He lazily got out of bed and dragged himself to the toilet. The second he faced the mirror, however, the events of yesterday came rushing to his mind. Lucien wanted to subconsciously avoid it, yet he hesitantly studied his reflection.

After making sure that nothing was wrong, Lucien tried to convince himself that he must have been tired yesterday. Still, that scene in the strange astral world made him shiver. Shaking his head, Lucien hopped in the shower to get ready for his day.

What he did not see, however, was Moon who had pushed the bathroom door open and was watching him closely. Her green eyes seemed to shine with intelligence as she stood guard.

After Lucien finished getting ready for his day, he made his way back to his room and dressed in another one of his grandpa's favorite suits. A dark blue one. After making sure everything was alright, Lucien placed the Goldhearts ring on his pinky, grabbed the ancient book, and the one about the study of magical beings with Imer before he made his way downstairs.

Lucien then placed them on the counter and moved to raise the curtains of the windows. He glanced at the streets seeing that traffic was still as light as always. He then walked back behind the counter and checked if any books were due to be returned today, after finding none Lucien made his way upstairs and fixed a quick breakfast for both himself and Moon.

By the time the clock hit 9 am, the old bookstore was open and ready for business. Lucien in his suit made for a strange sight as he used a broom to sweep the floor. After making sure that everything was clean and tidy, Lucien walked back behind the counter and opened the book on magical creatures, and leaned back into his chair.

Moon who was seated next to him jumped into his lap and closed her eyes. Lucien didn't mind, his lips curved upwards as he used one hand to pat her head and the other to hold the book.

The book of magical creatures was an extremely precious gift for Lucien, with its help, he managed to learn about the existence of many strange beings. Ones, that inhabited foreign dimensions, and others that simply lived hidden away from the mundane eye.

One of the creatures Lucien felt the most curious about was called a house fairy. It had the appearance of a bald ash-skinned humanoid child, with dark black eyes, no pupils, and no ears. Despite their rather terrifying appearance, house fairies were rather harmless.

As implied by their name, house fairies need a home to survive. If you ever manage to contract one, then they would take care of cleaning your house, doing the chores, and even cooking the food for you. All of this is in exchange for staying in your house. Most of the time, you wouldn't even know they were there.

Lucien leaned back on his chair and imagined how convenient that must be. To have an almost invisible servant, no need for cooking, cleaning, or doing the dreaded laundry. "Must be nice." He mumbled before reading the instructions on how to find, and contract one.

Unsurprisingly, house fairies were hard to find. One's best chance at encountering one would be in an abandoned home. This, however, comes with its own set of risks. When the owner of the house dies, the house fairy that inhabits it tends to turn aggressive and territorial. Their meek and generally harmless personality can take a turn for the worse with the death of their masters. So caution is advised if you encounter one in an abandoned home.

Some people, mostly the mundane tend to confuse house fairies with ghosts, both of which are two very different entities. The way of calming an aggressive house fairy is to use cookies.

Reading that line, Lucien couldn't help but burst out laughing. Something about the image of a creepy fairy eating cookies was strangely funny to him. Shaking his head, Lucien put the information to the back of his head and grabbed the magic book instead.

He began his training session by training the hand gestures and memorizing the patterns of the spells he already learned. Usem, the lightning spell was avoided as it was too destructive to use inside the bookstore.

It was then that the bells above the entrance door chimed, announcing the arrival of a new customer. Lucien placed the book down under the counter and raised his head to gaze at the newcomer.

An old man in his mid-sixties, his white hair was still surprisingly thick for his age. His skin was strangely pale, akin to that of a corpse, and his eyes were bright golden.

'A vampire!' Lucien almost blurts out. The man's features screamed that of a vampire. The pale skin, the golden eyes, and most importantly, the bizarre aura surrounding him.

Lucien was able to see that the mana particles that gathered around the man were all dark. The rest of the brightly colored elements seemed to avoid his presence, steering away from him. Trying his best to remain calm, Lucien donned a professional smile and spoke:

"Welcome, how may I help you?"

The old man glanced at the bookshelves and then turned towards Lucien, his eyes turned into slits as his lips curved upwards into a wide unnatural smile. His teeth looked sharp and dangerous, causing Lucien to feel uncomfortable.

He raised his guard and waited for the man to speak.

"Interesting." The old man spoke in a deep voice.

"Excuse me?" Asked Lucien, as he prepared himself for anything that could come. Moon who was seated on his lap jumped off and bared her teeth at the old man.

"I smelled the presence of something, very interesting," said the old man and raised his finger to point at Lucien before he continued:

"You."