At the corner of a bookstore, a head of pretty pink dyed hair poked between the shelves. In her hands rested a book filled with the author's imagination of magic – from sorcerers to powerful creatures. A fantasy novel beautifully wrapped in hardbound.

I want to be in this kind of world, she thought as her finger fiddled with the corner of the page she was reading, Then I could probably escape this hellhole.

With a sigh, she closed the book and stared at the cover.

Of Thorns Within.

An indie novel about a man, Ezekiel Montgomery, who would eventually rise up and become the most powerful warlock in the land. He would go through so many challenges, power struggles, and even romance. It had a happy ending though, that much was predictable.

He defeated the current Master of the Magic Tower, became the highest-ranking sorcerer, and had the love of his life at his side.

His humble beginnings was that of an orphan, abused by the poor system and society they lived in. He desperately tried to survive, taking care of his little sister along the way who was born without any magical powers as they picked up comrades along the way.

That must be nice, was the final words in her head before sliding that book back into the shelf.

She didn't have enough money to spare to buy any book but because it was just a small local bookstore, she easily befriended the owner and was allowed to sift through the books whenever she wanted. She made sure that everything was returned in tiptop condition.

"You're leaving already, Aria?" the owner asked, a kind woman who everyone treated like an older sister, "I thought you would be here for another hour."

When asked why she opened a bookstore as small as this one, she simply shrugged and claimed that all she wanted was a cozy little shop after years of being a corporate slave. Aria openly admitted that she was jealous of her, she wanted to leave her mundane job as well.

"I was just rereading one of my favorites," Aria shrugged, "Besides, I had a long day today so I think I prefer to lie down in my bed more than anything else."

The owner nodded in understanding, "So you were reading Of Thorns Within again?"

Aria laughed before humming in confirmation. She had lost count of how many times she went inside this store just to read through that book again. She heavily related to the main character, especially his past, so she felt some sort of connection.

And it gave her a small ounce of hope that she would also make it through her own hardships.

Or maybe one day she could quit and open a small shop of her own. All she wanted was to quit her job and get away from her ridiculous bosses and rude co-workers.

"Go get it," the owner said with a smile, "I'll give it to you as a present?"

"What?"

"You've been reading that thing over and over again, that book is practically yours at this point," she said with an amused tone, "One of the reasons why I opened this store is I love the look of people's faces when they get immersed in the story they're reading. Watching you be fascinated by the same book, no matter how many times you've read it, makes me happy so I'll let you have it for making me smile."

No wonder everybody in the neighborhood adored her.

"Well, I'm not going to reject that offer," Aria grinned, excitedly racing back to the shelf and plucking the book out again, "Thank you so much, Nissie!"

"Just promise you'll visit again," she waved her goodbye as Aria walked to the door, "I get bored easily if I don't have anyone to talk to."

Aria nodded, her pink hair swaying along to her movements, "Got it, see you!"

She tucked the book safely in her bag as she continued her way home. The neighborhood she lived in was rather close with each other, something she was quite thankful for after moving from one place to another throughout her childhood and teenage years.

She wasn't the kind of person who had a bright personality, but being surrounded by people who greeted you with a smile could do wonders for your disposition. Eventually, she began opening up and accepting the warmth they gave her.

She climbed the steps of her three-floor apartment building – it was rather old but the space was good for its rent. One of her neighbors gave her a friendly wave as she headed into her apartment, her keys already jiggling in her hands.

When she was young, she had no place to call home. Her mother died due to an accident when she was young and her father, the first person to ever abuse her, left her to fend for herself until she was taken away. However, the foster care system barely did her any good.

Not all of the houses she lived in were completely horrible, some were simply ignorant of her. They gave her the basics and that was it – nothing more.

So she never knew what actual love was because she was too busy trying to survive. Classmates from school were nothing more than acquaintances that she cut off contact with after graduation. She held off going to college for a year in order to build up her savings, but predictably, it wasn't enough.

She was working multiple jobs while she was studying and still, she accumulated a mountain of student debt.

So until she could finally pay it all off, she was exactly what the bookstore owner used to be – a corporate slave.

But if there was something to be admired about Aria, it was her tenacity.

She walked over to her small kitchen and opened one of the cupboard to get a pack of ramen. Her food options were limited while she was on a budget so she had to make do with this for dinner.

As she waited for the water to boil on the stove, she reached into her bag to take out her new book. She immediately turned to the last page, reading the last line over and over again.

Ezekiel, with Athena fast asleep with her head on his shoulder, stared beyond the tall walls of the tower. Every day of his life, he assumed that the thorns that pierced him would only come from outside, but he learned the real thorns was found within.

This was in reference to Ezekiel's magical prowess. He was no doubt powerful, but there was such a thing as being too powerful. One of many plot points of the story was controlling that said power, which often became overwhelming.

Since he was a poor orphan, nobody was there to teach him how to properly control his mana. He only got a semblance of training when he met other rogue magicians.

That was how Athena and his romance progressed. A smart sorcerer from a noble family, who not only taught him how to control his abilities, but also gave a part of her soul to seal a chunk of the main villain's abilities.

This became integral to how Ezekiel managed to defeat him and steal his title as the most powerful sorcerer.

The villain was eventually locked in the dungeons of the tower. Even though Ezekiel wanted to kill him, Athena was a pacifist who sought as little blood as possible. This was her real motive to giving part of her soul.

Also because she felt pity for the villain, who used to be her fiancé through an arranged engagement.

"He was never purely evil though," Aria said loudly, closing the book and heading back to the stove, "He just didn't like that Ezekiel was too ambitious."

Besides, who would just sit there idly while some other person threatened your position and possibly your life?

The ramen, as always, was too salty for her taste but she finished it all nonetheless.

She hopped into bed, her tired eyes trying to get in a few more lines from the book before she placed it on the side of her pillow. She closed her eyes, bundled herself up in her single blanket and fell asleep.

However, the thing that greeted her when she woke up the next morning was not the unpainted ceiling of her old apartment. It was a beautiful crystal chandelier with instead of light bulbs, had candles as its source of light.

She thought she was dreaming, but when she sat up and immediately felt a sharp pain from her abdomen, her eyes widened in realization.

This was definitely not her apartment.

She looked around, ornate furniture made up of gold and velvet decorated the entire room instead of the cheap thrifted furniture she managed to wrangle up.

She reached up to scratch the side of her hand in wonder and she jolted up in surprise when she realized that even her hair was different. Instead of it being dry from years of bleaching and being dyed pink, it was now silky, long, and black.

Without a moment too soon, she jumped out the bed and sprinted to the full-body mirror she saw earlier. Her legs almost gave out at what she saw.

From her complexion to her stature, it was completely different. In fact, the person staring back at her was akin to a stranger. Instead of being greeted by dark brown irises, it was shimmering gold.

However, no matter her movements, the reflection followed so it definitely had to be hers.

Where am I?, she desperately asked herself as if it would lead her to an answer, And who am I?

Was she still Aria Madden or did she take up some different form?

She had read stories of people finding themselves in different bodies, but those were all works of fiction. There was no possible explanation for what was has happening to her.

"Feri, are you awake?" a knock on the door sounded. She had this desperate need to run and hide as if she was going to caught breaking in, but she felt her whole body freeze. When she didn't reply though, the door clicked open.

Bright red hair fell from behind the door and piercing gold eyes gazed upon her, "Oh you're already up. Why didn't you answer?"

Aria, or apparently Feri, couldn't speak. Her mouth was so dry that she couldn't even gulp to show her nervousness.

She swiftly crossed the room towards her, her eyebrow scrunched up in worry as she placed a hand on Aria's forehead, "Are you okay? Do you still feel sick?"

As if she didn't already feel stuffy with just the two of them in the room, another man entered without so much of a knock, "Athena, Ezekiel is looking for you in the dining room."

Athena? Ezekiel?

"Alright," Athena sighed, briefly turning back to Aria, "You obviously need more rest. I'll have someone bring your meal."

Aria could only nod numbly in response. As Athena was about to exit the room, she told the man sternly, "Make sure she goes back to bed, Kali."

Kali rolled his eyes the moment Athena had her back turned. Once she was out of the room, he marched menacingly over to Aria. With a smirk that was filled with ill intent, he grazed the back of his hand on her cheek, "My dear Feronia, I hope you kept your promise to keep your mouth shut."

For extra measure, he tapped strongly on her abdomen where the pain erupted once again. She gasped for air, clutching the area in attempt to soothe it.

He didn't bother to spare her a second glance, simply walking out of the room and slamming the door behind him.

No matter how much she was writhing, she still tried to wrack her brain to comprehend the situation. Even though she was never the smartest student, she still had a pretty good head on her shoulders so she quickly assessed her situation.

For one, her name was Feronia but that other woman called her Feri.

Second, the man named Kali definitely had something to do with the pain she was experiencing.

Three, the names of the people she had heard all lined up to one conclusion.

She was Feronia Montgomery, the little sister of Ezekiel Montgomery from the Of Thorns Within.

She was in the book.

-------------------

So all I've been reading lately had been historical transmigration stories, whether it's in novel form or webtoon. Either way, I'm obsessed with them and like I always do, I have this craving to write a story in that genre.

This is going to be my first full-blown fantasy story, with all the world building and such so I hope you guys like this.

Also heavily debating with myself to give this a Mature Rating or nah, so what do you think (though tbh, I think I already know you want it to be)? Even if yes, I'm not going to make this full on smut, that's for sure.