The smell came first.

  Smoke.

  Thick, bitter, burning in his throat.

  Tsukishiro opened his eyes with difficulty. The ground beneath him was cold and soaked. Mud clung to his hands as he struggled to stand.

  For a moment, his mind went bnk.

  Then the sounds arrived.

  Screams.

  Running footsteps.

  Wood cracking under fire.

  He lifted his head.

  An entire vilge was burning.

  Wooden houses bzed like giant torches. Fmes lit up the night as vilgers ran through the streets carrying buckets of water—or just fleeing.

  Tsukishiro blinked several times.

  “…This can’t be real.”

  His heart started racing.

  The st thing he remembered was the library.

  Endless shelves.

  The woman dressed in bck.

  And the curse she had cast on him.

  He looked at his own hands.

  Mud.

  Cold.

  Pain in his body.

  This was too real to be a dream.

  Then a scream cut through the chaos.

  “CATCH THE WITCH!”

  Tsukishiro turned his head immediately.

  A crowd surged down the main street.

  Men with torches.

  Some carrying makeshift spears.

  In the center, someone was being dragged.

  A girl.

  Chains bound her wrists. Two men yanked at them as she stumbled over the dirt.

  The crowd shouted.

  “Witch!”“Monster!”“Burn her!”

  The girl fell to her knees.

  One of the men jerked the chain with brute force.

  “Get up!”

  She lifted her head.

  For a second, her eyes met Tsukishiro’s.

  He froze.

  There was something strange in that gaze.

  Not just fear.

  Confusion.

  As if she were trying to understand why he was there.

  One of the men noticed him too.

  “Hey.”

  The crowd slowed.

  Torches turned toward him.

  “Who are you?”

  Tsukishiro opened his mouth.

  No words came out.

  Good question.

  Another man stepped closer, examining him.

  “You’re not from this vilge.”

  Suspicion spread quickly.

  “Outsider.”“Maybe another witch.”“Grab him too.”

  Spears were raised.

  Tsukishiro’s brain finally reacted.

  Danger.

  He raised his hands slowly.

  “Wait. I—”

  A crash echoed behind them.

  One of the houses colpsed, sending sparks into the air.

  For a moment, the crowd was distracted.

  That’s when Tsukishiro felt something in his pocket.

  He frowned and reached inside.

  His fingers brushed smooth wood.

  He pulled it out.

  A bookmark.

  A single symbol carved into it.

  栞

  Shiori.

  The moment he held the bookmark, the world wavered.

  For an instant.

  It was as if two images overpped.

  The burning vilge.

  And pages.

  Huge white pages floating in the air.

  Tsukishiro held his breath.

  “I’m… inside a book.”

  The words slipped out in a whisper.

  “What did he say?”

  A man stepped forward.

  Tsukishiro gripped the bookmark tightly.

  If this really was a story…

  Then it had a plot.

  And that girl was probably a part of it.

  He looked at her again.

  Now she was staring back.

  Attentive.

  Almost hopeful.

  The crowd surged forward again.

  “Take the witch to the square!”“Let’s finish this!”

  The chains dragged the girl forward again.

  She tripped.

  Fell.

  A man raised his hand to strike her.

  Tsukishiro’s body moved before his mind decided.

  “Wait!”

  Silence.

  “Who do you think you are?” the man with the torch demanded.

  Good question.

  Tsukishiro took a deep breath.

  The bookmark still glowed in his hand.

  If he really could interfere with the story…

  Then there was only one way to find out.

  He stepped forward.

  “I just want to ask a question.”

  Murmurs spread through the crowd.

  “What?”

  Tsukishiro pointed to the girl.

  “What exactly did she do?”

  The man spat on the ground.

  “That damn witch brought fire to our vilge.”

  He pointed at the burning houses.

  “Witchcraft.”

  Tsukishiro looked at the fmes.

  Then at the girl.

  She shook her head slowly.

  “I didn’t do it…”

  Her voice was weak.

  But firm.

  “I only… tried to warn them.”

  The crowd shouted again.

  “Liar!”“Witch!”“Burn her!”

  Tsukishiro tightened his grip on the bookmark.

  Something inside him said this scene was already written.

  This story had an ending.

  And it probably wasn’t a happy one.

  The wind scattered sparks across the dark sky.

  For a moment, Tsukishiro had the strange feeling that someone was watching this story unfold.

  He looked at the bookmark again.

  If it really could affect the story…

  There was only one way to find out.

  He stepped forward once more.

  “Then let’s find the truth.”

  The girl’s eyes widened.

  Not at him.

  At the bookmark.

  She looked directly at it… then back at Tsukishiro.

  And whispered:

  “…You can see it too?”

  Tsukishiro frowned.

  “See what?”

  She slowly lifted her head.

  And pointed to the sky.

  Tsukishiro followed her gesture.

  Above the burning vilge, something impossible was written.

  Like ink across the night.

  Chapter 1 — The Witch of the Burning Vilge

  A chill ran down Tsukishiro’s spine.

  Because one question crossed his mind:

  If this was chapter one…

  Then who was writing the rest of the story?