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Chapter 4 – Inside the Book rescript
After discovering the exact location where Tony Stark was being held captive, Alice still didn't go after him immediately. Something nagged at her, a curiosity fluttering in her chest like a moth trapped in a glass jar. She needed to check something first: the Book of Truth (copy). What was happening inside it? What kind of "guests" had been drawn into its pages?
Curiosity won over haste. After all, Tony Stark wasn't going anywhere in the next two days.
— Book of Truth, bring the copy of the Book of Truth — she ordered, her voice calm but laden with expectation.
Suddenly, a book appeared in her hands as if it had always been there, waiting to be called. The cover was identical to the original — dark as ebony, with golden letters that seemed to glow with their own light. Alice didn't hesitate. The book opened on its own, pages flipping in a frenzied dance, and an invisible force sucked her inside.
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Inside the Book
The sensation of being absorbed into the pages was no longer strange. It was like diving into an ocean of ink, where words danced around her like schools of shimmering letters. When her feet touched the ground again, Alice found herself in the main hall of the book's interior world — a space that resembled an infinite library, with corridors stretching as far as the eye could see and numbered doors glowing softly.
She looked around. The Great Serpent wasn't at his usual post behind the polished mahogany desk.
Probably entertaining some new guest, Alice thought. Or just wandering around, discovering what it means to exist.
Without haste, she walked to the door marked with the number 1. The doorknob was cold to the touch, but it turned smoothly. Upon opening the door, Alice entered a private world.
What she saw made her eyes widen slightly.
The room — if one could call that infinite space a "room" — was a perfect replica of a futuristic metropolis. Glass and steel skyscrapers rose toward an artificial sky of deep blue. Flying cars buzzed between the buildings. Holographic advertisements flashed on every corner, displaying products that didn't exist in the real world.
And at the center of it all, in a luxurious penthouse that dominated the skyline, was a very famous person. Someone who appeared on every television channel, whose face graced magazines and billboards worldwide.
That person probably wanted to be very famous, Alice thought, an ironic smile dancing on her lips. And succeeded. At least in here.
Then Alex — the guest of that page — noticed something different. Someone different.
Amidst all that ostentation, all that artificial perfection, there was a figure that completely clashed with the environment. A little girl in a simple dark dress, with a ribbon shaped like two butterfly wings on her head. While everyone around her was elegant, rich, refined — creations of his own imagination — that child was... real. Different. And this instinctively captured his attention.
He approached the little girl with a mixture of curiosity and caution. His manners were polished, almost rehearsed — the result of years observing the elite he so desperately wanted to emulate.
— Who are you, little girl? And how did you end up here?
Alice raised her eyes to Alex. Her gaze was calm, deep, carrying a wisdom that grotesquely contrasted with her childish appearance.
— I'm Alice, and I came here because I'm looking for someone.
Alex, at that moment, realized a flaw in his own conduct. A pang of embarrassment shot through him.
— Forgive me, I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Alex. I'm truly sorry for not introducing myself formally. Just... old habits from the past.
But then, like a dam breaking open, memories flooded his mind.
"Old habits"... I heard that almost my entire life.
My family consisted of four members: me, my sister, my father, and my stepmother. It was a good family — or so I believed — until my father's "accidental" death. The police said it was a brake problem with the car, so they ruled it an accidental death. Case closed.
But after that, my stepmother and sister showed their true faces.
They began treating me with inexplicable contempt. At first, it was just words — criticism of everything I did, insults whispered when no one else could hear, cruel comparisons to my father. Then came the physical aggression. A shove here, a slap there. And then the housework. I was the only one who cleaned, cooked, washed. If I didn't do what they ordered, it was like asking to go hungry.
The only reason I didn't starve to death was school. When the lunch bell rang, I ran as if my life depended on it. And it did. I ate like an animal, devouring everything I could. So almost every day, everyone talked about my "bad habits" — even though those "bad habits" were just... eating.
I reached adulthood. A tiring phase, where you see people much younger than you succeeding. I looked at a billboard with Tony Stark's face: a genius, billionaire, at the top of society. Deep in my heart, I wanted to be like that person.
I entered a library. After all, I barely had enough money for rent, food, and other expenses. There was nothing left to buy a phone. So, how about a book? Suddenly, something caught my attention: a book I had never seen before. On the cover was written: "The Book of Truth." There was no author's name, absolutely nothing. I decided to open it.
Suddenly, I felt my body being sucked in. When I regained consciousness, I came face to face with a very strange serpent. It looked at me and said:
"So you are the first guest of the great Book of Truth. In this place, all your desires will be fulfilled, but you cannot leave your designated room until the day the great eternal party begins."
After saying that, it simply left. That left me with many doubts in my heart. One moment your life is hell, the next a serpent says all your desires will come true inside that room. It's a shock, a huge shift in reality. But after a while, that feeling simply faded.
I tested the limits. I realized the only limit of that room was imagination. I did things anyone would do: I stopped time, manipulated how it flowed inside that place. I created people, worlds, experiences. Even... a harem. But in the end, I fulfilled my greatest dream: to be like Tony Stark.
Alex blinked, returning to the present. The memories had flashed through his mind in an instant, but they carried the weight of a lifetime. He looked to where the child had been, only to see that the little girl had vanished.
Then he heard the sound of a door closing.
It was door number 2.
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Alice, at that moment, was in room 2.
The environment was, to say the least, strange. The laws of physics seemed like mere suggestions that had been enthusiastically ignored. The floor was made of solid clouds. Stairs floated in the air, leading nowhere. Clocks melted down the walls like wax, and the sky was a mosaic of colors that shouldn't exist together.
Nothing in this world makes sense, Alice thought, her eyes scanning the surreal landscape with insatiable curiosity. But that's what makes it interesting.
She walked among the impossible constructions, observing every detail. A fountain gushed water upward. Trees grew upside down, their roots exposed to the "sky." Creatures that were neither animals nor people wandered aimlessly, their forms constantly shifting.
When I absorb all the knowledge specifically from this room, what kind of knowledge will I gain? Alice reflected. Thoughts for the future. Whoever lives in this place isn't quite right in the head. That's a fact.
After wandering for a while — a concept that seemed malleable in that place — she finally managed to find the door to the third room. Upon opening it, she came upon a familiar scene.
The Great Serpent was there, imposing in his perfectly tailored suit, his green scales gleaming under a soft light. Before him, a girl dressed entirely in pink — pink dress, pink shoes, pink bow in her hair — listened attentively to the serpent's words.
"In this place, all your desires will be fulfilled, but you cannot leave your designated room until the day the great eternal party begins."
Alice observed the scene with an amused smile. The pink girl had bright eyes, full of hope and naive dreams.
Don't tell me she's that type of girl who likes stories of princesses trapped in castles, charming princes, and true love, Alice reflected. But deep down... I already know the answer.
After finishing his speech, the Great Serpent simply teleported to room 0. Alice did the same.
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Room 0
Room 0 was the heart of the book — a neutral space, simple, almost cozy. A polished mahogany desk, a few chairs, empty shelves waiting for stories to fill them. It was the only place where the rules were stable.
Upon seeing Alice, the Great Serpent felt a slight shiver run down his reptilian spine. He still vividly remembered the "educational" methods of his older sister. The feeling of being tiny, insignificant, an ant about to be crushed... it wasn't something one forgot easily.
Therefore, his voice came out surprisingly polite:
— So, big sister, why have you come? Is it something important?
Alice smiled — a genuinely warm smile, but one that, for some reason, made the Serpent's scales bristle involuntarily.
— I came to tell you that you can go out a little from inside the book — Alice replied.
The Serpent's golden eyes widened. Go out? Of the book? He hadn't even considered that possibility. His entire existence — though short — was contained within those pages.
— But with three conditions — Alice continued, raising a pale finger.
First: As soon as new knowledge (a guest) appears, you must return inside the book immediately. No delay, no excuses.
Second: Once you're out, you cannot turn everyone into knowledge. That would draw too much attention, and I would consider it theft of knowledge. And you, more than anyone, know that I don't like anyone messing with my knowledge.
She said this with a beautiful smile — a smile that lit up her face like the morning sun. But at the same time, it was chilling to look at. Her pupils were slightly dull, like windows showing an infinite void.
Third: If you go out, you must change your form to look like a human. No scales, no forked tongue, no golden serpent eyes. An ordinary human.
Alice clasped her hands together, as if she had just given a gift.
— I just came to say that — she concluded. — And one more thing on my mind... I also came to see if the guests have desires as crazy as the original.
Of course, she kept the end of the sentence to herself. And also to see if any of them might be useful.
The Great Serpent processed the information slowly. Leave the book. See the outside world. Experience something beyond those paper walls. The idea was... fascinating.
— I... thank you, big sister — he said, his voice still hesitant but laden with a newfound excitement. — I will fulfill all the conditions.
Alice affectionately ruffled the scales on the top of the Serpent's head — a gesture that was already becoming a habit.
— Good boy. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a billionaire playboy to visit.
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Outside the Book
When Alice emerged from the pages and her feet touched the cold floor of the real world again, she noticed something curious. She looked at the clock on the wall — a simple, analog object she didn't even know why was still there.
Only a few minutes had passed.
She frowned, intrigued. Inside the book, she had spent hours. She had talked with Alex, explored room 2, observed the pink girl, had an entire meeting with the Great Serpent. And yet, the outside world had barely moved.
Time flows differently in there, she concluded. Interesting. Very interesting. This could be useful in the future.
She stored that information in some corner of her mind — one of those corners that now seemed infinite, ready to store any amount of knowledge.
Then she straightened her posture. The dark dress rippled softly with a breeze that didn't exist. Her eyes gleamed with renewed determination.
It's time.
She turned in the direction that her mind — now brimming with information extracted from Obadiah Stane — indicated. Somewhere in the Middle East. A cave. A captivity. And inside it, a man who would change the world.
Tony Stark... I can't wait to see you in person.
With a thought, the butterfly wing emerged from her back again — immense, translucent, pulsing in shades of purple and blue. She launched herself into the night air, disappearing among the artificial stars of New York.
The wind whistled in her ears as she flew. Far below, the city lights grew smaller and smaller, replaced by the darkness of the ocean and then by the endless sands of the desert.
I'm coming, Iron Man. Prepare to receive an... unexpected visit.
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To be continued...
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Thanks for reading this far 👊 😄 👍
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