The library was quiet in the way only old buildings could be—like even sound was afraid to speak too loudly inside it.
Adrian liked it that way.
Between tall shelves of forgotten history and dusty records, he could pretend the world outside didn't exist. No chores. No shouting. No rules.
Just silence.
That afternoon, he wasn't looking for anything important. He was only passing time until his mother finished her errands. His fingers traced the edges of the books as he walked, reading titles he didn't understand.
Then he saw it.
It wasn't large. It wasn't bright. In fact, it looked almost hidden, squeezed between two heavier books as if it didn't want to be found.
The cover was dark, worn at the edges, with faint letters etched into it:
THE TALE OF QUEENDOM ELIZ
Adrian frowned.
"Queendom… Eliz?"
He pulled it out carefully. Dust rose into the air like it had been waiting years to be disturbed.
He sat down between two shelves and opened the book.
The first page was not a story.
It was rules.
Rule 1: Freedom of speech is accepted but not in disrespect.
Adrian blinked.
"That doesn't make sense," he whispered.
He kept reading.
Rule 2: The words of an adult must be listened to, but not disagreed with.
His brow furrowed deeper.
Rule 3: Opinion matters, but not by force.
He shifted slightly.
Rule 4: Knowledge is power only for males.
That one made him stop.
"Only males?"
The library felt colder.
He turned the page faster now, as if speed could explain what logic couldn't.
Rule 5: If you disrespect, it is either you are burned in fire or buried alive.
Adrian's throat tightened.
He glanced around instinctively, as if someone might hear the words out loud.
But there was no one.
Only shelves.
Only silence.
He continued.
Rule 6: The society must be followed, good or bad.
Rule 7: Fools are not accepted.
Rule 8: The rights of society are above the rights of the individual.
The rules continued like an endless wall.
Ten.
Twenty.
Thirty.
Each one heavier than the last.
By the time he reached the fiftieth rule, his fingers were stiff around the edge of the page.
His eyes burned slightly from reading too fast, too deeply.
He didn't even realize how long he had been there until a voice cut through the silence.
"Adrian!"
He jolted.
"Are you still in that library?" his mother called from outside.
Footsteps approached.
"I told you we're leaving soon!"
Adrian quickly shut the book, but his hand lingered on the cover.
The Tale of Queendom Eliz.
"…coming!" he replied.
He stood slowly, the book still in his hands for a moment longer than necessary.
Then he placed it back on the shelf.
But as he walked away, he remembered the last thing he had read.
'During the 31st century, there was a country known as Edor. Where every citizen good or bad abided by the rules. Don't get me wrong; this was not some kind of paradise or safe place. One thing was sure, the rules were supreme and men dictate the rule.'
That was the summary. The writer clearly hated his job. Adrian chuckled.