They said the Library of Alexandria burned to ash centuries ago.
But that wasn't the whole truth.
The original library—the one that held the names of forgotten gods and the spells to unweave reality—had never existed in just one timeline.
It was hidden in a fold of space where knowledge outran time.
And Aarav had found the key.
Inside the Hogwarts Room of Requirement, Aarav opened a locked stasis vault he had received from Goldfang as a bonus reward. Inside was a parchment map and a small object: a book with no spine, no title, and pages made of glass.
The moment he touched it, the room rippled.
A gate formed in the air: a whirl of symbols spinning like constellations.
> System Notification:
Unlocked Portal: The Library Beyond Alexandria
Warning: Magic Density - Extreme
Non-linear Time Zone Detected
Status Effects Disabled While Inside
Questline: "Words Forgotten, Spells Forbidden"
Objective: Retrieve Time Shard 4/5
Bonus Objective: Learn a Class-Level Marvel Universe Spell
Aarav stepped through.
He emerged inside a vast, floating structure above nothingness.
Shelves spun like planets, scrolls hovered midair, and ancient spirits wrote in languages no longer spoken. Magic hummed in the very air molecules, and the laws of gravity shifted with thought.
The Librarian appeared before him: not a man or woman—but a robed silhouette made of parchment and shadow.
> "You are the first mortal in nine hundred years," it said.
> "You seek what should not be remembered."
Aarav bowed slightly. "And yet it remembers me."
The Librarian tested him.
He was shown riddles in forgotten runes, asked to finish spells halfway through creation, and forced to resist the pull of infinite knowledge—the kind that could melt minds.
He passed.
Barely.
The Librarian led him to the Annulus Index—a ring of floating scrolls.
There, it handed him a scroll titled:
> The Convergence Bindin – A Crossworld Spell of Marvelian Fabric
It described binding two universes at a single magical point. A Level 5 spell. Forbidden. Illegal.
But exactly what Aarav needed.
> Skill Learned: Convergence Binding (Level 5
> Allows one-time stabilization of a rift between magical universes (e.g., Earth-616)
> Required for entry into multiversal realms
> Side Effect: Permanently links a part of the caster's magic to the multiverse
> Side Skill Gained: Runic Fusion Theory (Basic)
> Combine spells from different magical systems
> You can now merge Hogwarts and Marvel spell structures (experimental)
As he finished the scroll, a glyph flared in the center of the library.
A transparent cube descended—frozen in it was a heartbeat, suspended in time.
The Librarian bowed.
> "This is the fourth piece. A shard of time tied not to memory, or action—but to thought never spoken."
Aarav touched the cube.
It melted into his chest.
> System Update:
Time Shard 4 of 5 Acquired: The Thought Unwritten
Mental Passive Gained: Spell Theorist – You gain +15% efficiency on spell fusion and conceptual casting
Multiverse Trait Gained: Crossworld Anchor – You can detect stable points between magical dimensions
EXP +9500
Next Shard Hint: Where death is born, and never buried—The Valley of the Hollow Grave
As he turned to leave, the Librarian said:
> The final shard was once guarded by Death itself. Now… it is hunted by something far worse.
Aarav hesitated. Worse than Death?
The Librarian's shadow flickered.
> "A version of you, who made all the wrong choices."