Library System Reset: Limiter (A Magical Library LitRPG Adventure), page 1
LIMITER
LIBRARY SYSTEM RESET
K.T. HANNA
Copyright © 2025 by K.T. Hanna
All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except as permitted by U.S. copyright law. For permission requests, contact author at kthannaauthor@gmail.com
The story, all names, characters, and incidents portrayed in this production are fictitious. No identification with actual persons (living or deceased), Nightowls, golems, places, buildings, worlds, Aracnios, Serpensirils, wormholes, Unusceros, Petraligno, superellex futora, or pocket-dimensions, and products is intended or should be inferred.
Book Cover by Illustration by Marko Horvatin
Typography by Inorai
1st edition 2025
Eric
Both imp and human form
Thank you for being unapologetically you
CONTENTS
Previously in the Library
1. Three Books Away
2. Rumblings Beneath
3. Under No Illusions
4. Thousands of Pieces
5. Best Efforts
6. Not to Invite Disaster
7. Excellent Mimicry
8. First Sign of Discomfort
9. One Step at a Time
10. So Many Questions
11. Sigh of Relief
12. Sounds So Simple
13. Knowledge and Magic
14. In Their Own Right
15. Off Kilter
16. Diametrically Opposed
17. Befitting My Station
18. Ominous Premonition
19. Mana Nodes
20. Beam of Light
21. Personal Invitation
22. Root System
23. Highly Susceptible
24. Vibrato Bees
25. Life Signs
26. Blur of Feathers
27. Complete Certainty
28. Oddly Familiar
29. Faster Than Expected
30. Too Convenient
31. Sleeping Dragons
32. Farinth Sprite
33. With a Flourish
34. Stronger Together
35. A Few Moments
36. Process on Hold
37. Calibrating and Resetting
38. Dimension Shift
39. A Cacophony of Others
40. What She Needed
41. In This Capacity
42. Mere Hundreds
43. To the Training Area!
44. Simply an Extension
45. Contemplative Silence
46. Delegation
47. Absolutely Fabulous
48. Contingency Plan
49. Worthy of the Magic
50. Like a Vacuum
51. Sleeping Dragons Lie
52. Way Past Time
53. Internal Redirection
54. Nefarious Was A Good Word
55. Hazy and Vague
56. Remembering to Reinforce
57. Outstretched Arms
58. No Remorse
59. A Universal Thing
60. Connecting to Her
61. Of Other
62. On Board
63. Ready to Dive
64. The Right Place
65. Something About Everything
66. One Bit Like Her
67. Practically Palpable
68. Renewed Determination
69. Crackle of Fire
70. Fighting Chance
About the Author
Acknowledgments
Also by K.T. Hanna
LITRPG
More LitRPG
PREVIOUSLY IN THE LIBRARY
After being isekaid into the Library of Everywhere, Quinn and Lynx (the Library manifestation) begin the arduous task of restoring the Library.
Milaro the grandfatherly king of the elves, and his grandchild Malakai become an integral part of the hunt for overdue books and help teach Quinn all about what it means to be the Librarian.
The Library is full steam ahead. With Misha, Tim, Tom, Cook, and Farrow, she has the golem contingency thriving. Her helpers Dottie, Jasper, Eric, Geneva, Finn, Narilin, and Aradie assist in managing the day-to-day organizing of staff, book returns, and borrows.
The books they retrieved from the wrecked Dabilian homeworld allow Quinn and her team to truly begin rebuilding the Library. Now that the filtration chamber is back online and ramping up the amount of filters that pump mana back out into the universe, the team has to focus on getting Ashiron (the tenth pillar), back up and running.
With Quinn’s first synchronization out of the way, and her cosmicisodracus heritage revealed, her depths of power and the reason for her affinities means more focused training.
The holes in the memories of Lynx and the Library aren’t filling in as quickly as they’d like. Different times require different approaches, and many aren’t revealing anything like what they’d imagined.
Only the Culinary branch has opened so far, but two more are hot on its tails. The Librarya’s enemies are tricky, often visiting Quinn in dreams she is almost certain are traps.
Kajaro and his allies, that include but aren’t limited to the Library’s cosmicisodracus brother Dravishk, don’t want the Library to retrieve the books, or maintain power, or exist. They’ll do everything they can to complete the sabotage they started.
After walking into a trap that leaves many of her allies either injured, dying, or dead, Quinn understands the stakes on a more intimate level and knows she’ll have to train accordingly.
1
THREE BOOKS AWAY
A subtle blue shift of light permeated the infirmary.
Quinn stood at the window—she could have sworn that wasn’t there before this whole fiasco—looking out at the vastness beyond. It reminded her of the windows in the restricted vault and how she could stare at the universe beyond for days.
Hundreds of thousands—if not millions—of stars glittered back at her, through an expanse of space she couldn’t even perceive properly.
Looking out into the nothingness but stars, she held up her hand and willed her shielding into place.
Scales subtly shifted from under her skin to over it, encasing her in an ethereal blue and golden glow. She still didn’t understand the mechanics of it. If it came through her skin, shouldn’t it break through and leave blood everywhere?
But instead, it shifted into an invisible wall around her, leaving her to question if it had ever really appeared at all. And right now, she still had to concentrate to maintain it.
The last two weeks had taught her that sometimes magic was the only explanation, even if it was difficult to get her logic around that fact.
Quinn shrugged to undo the tension in her shoulders and continued to focus on her shielding of scales. After a fortnight of relentless instruction and practice, she was finally able to manifest it and maintain her shielding through a fair amount of interference and combat. It wasn’t second nature yet . . . but it was progress.
“Quinn?”
Malakai’s croaking voice pulled her out of her reverie, and she let go of her hold on her scales, tsking in annoyance as she turned to look at the elf in the bed.
He still wasn’t healed up, and she felt such waves of guilt for it. She’d do almost anything to make it better again.
Though turning back time didn’t seem to be a viable option. She knew because she’d researched it.
Desperation gave her illogical ideas.
His face looked fine, like nothing was wrong, apart from the undertones beneath his skin. In some areas it almost seemed like a pale blue light shone through, making it thinner than it should have been. She studied him for a second before speaking. “You doing okay?”
“Mm.” He sounded croakier. “What are you doing here?”
There was some worry in his voice, and Quinn just took his hand and gave it a light squeeze. “Thought I’d check in on my favorite elf.”
Malakai laughed, but a second later it devolved into a horrible, racking cough. Quinn cringed as she watched him settle. She still woke up in a sweat every night, memories of that damned attack by Kajaro that was meant for her. One load of those vortex frisbees was possible to recover from, but two of them . . .
She remembered Milaro muttering something about Malakai’s energy and mana pathways being all messed up. Guilt gnawed at her, vying with her desire for revenge.
“You don’t have to look like a thundercloud,” Malakai rasped out.
“And you’re supposed to be resting and not worrying about me.” She sighed out the words, knowing he’d take no notice of them at all.
“I’d be out of here if I could.” He chuckled, even if it sounded like his chest was rattling, and then he stopped, sobering up. “You know Arnekai is here.”
Quinn winced slightly. She understood why he refused to call her Mother. Arnekai always put her work and position first. So Quinn couldn’t really blame him for it. Still, even though it was mostly her doing . . . Milaro’s begrudging agreement meant Arnekai was here to treat her son.
Funnily enough, despite the history Malakai held against her, she’d dropped everything when they sent for her. Well, not immediately. It took her three days, but Quinn was under the impression that for Arnekai, that was paramount to leaving immediately.
“And since she got here, you’ve stopped looking like living death. So please, don’t discount her too much.” Quinn offered a smile, even if her mind was starting to work over ten thousand problems at once again. “At the very least, she’s a competent Darigháhnish healer, right?”
“It’s fine.” Mal sighed and his eyes fluttered closed as if he was trying to fight it. “I’m so sleepy.”
“Then sleep,” Quinn said softly, watching as his breathing evened out, before returning her concentration to the view outside the newly expanded window.
You must practice holding your scales in place until it’s second nature. The Library spoke into her head once Malakai’s slumber was obvious.
Their connection had deepened yet again once the Library’s power levels increased. They were only one away from optimal efficiency now. But there was still so much to do to get it there.
Yeah. Yeah. I know. Quinn closed her eyes, summoning her innate protection again with a single thought. She was proud of her improvement, even if a part of her seemed to think she should be further along. She moved out of Malakai’s room and toward the hall, determined to check on the others.
Ikeshal still hadn’t woken up. Hal went back to Halschius to prepare for Ikeshal’s treatment. Something to do with acclimation of the injuries and lava. She didn’t pry.
“You’re moping around again,” Eric said, startling Quinn out of her thoughts. His wings were still healing, and he couldn’t hover as long as he used to yet, but the rest of him was fine. That appeared to be one of the perks of being nigh-indestructible.
“No. I’m thinking. You should try it sometime.” She flashed him a grin, secretly grateful he’d pulled her out of those darker thoughts. Their ambush went so terribly wrong, they were lucky any of them returned home.
Her scales flared for a split second, as if recalling the entire incident gave her a power surge. And for a fraction there, her veins felt like they were on fire again. Quinn took a breath, forced herself to focus on the here and now and not be swept up by memories, overwhelm, and frustration . . . and resettled her entire power center.
“You’re getting better at that,” Eric noted, settling on the edge of Ikeshal’s bed, which was the partition over from Malakai’s.
Quinn nodded, unsure of how else to respond. The foundations of her innate abilities were difficult to grasp and keep a hold of, but she made progress every day. Her fingertips practically itched to be able to grab onto more power.
“That look in your eye, eh?” Eric laughed, and the sound peeled up into the high ceilings.
“What look?” Quinn said grumpily.
“Little taste of power, eh? Careful, Librarian, power can go to your head.” Eric winked at her and flitted out of the room, listing slightly to the side of his injured wing.
Quinn rolled her eyes. “Me? Power hungry?” She wanted to play it off, but there was a part of her that yearned for enough power to deal with the problems that kept cropping up. To just wave a hand and say begone. That was only logical, right?
The imp’s chuckles could be heard all the way to the front desk.
She sighed and turned around, glancing at Ikeshal’s prone form. He was still pale, especially considering he was a satyr. But Hal was coming to get him, so he’d be okay too. He had to be. So engrossed was she in her thoughts that she failed to sense the light footsteps that approached her until Arnekai spoke.
“You’re lingering in here. Shouldn’t you be training?” Arnekai’s tone was more subdued than when Quinn met her originally. It made sense though. Her son was severely injured and required some hefty healing, and she seemed entirely preoccupied by it, or at least by something.
“Yes, to both of those,” Quinn said, smiling tightly. Lately, it hadn’t felt like a smiling environment.
Arnekai’s white hair didn’t flow freely this time, instead, it was braided tightly falling most of the way down her back. It still contrasted with her almost navy skin in a starkly beautiful way, yet this time Quinn wasn’t as intimidated by the almost seven-foot-tall Darigháhnish. Perhaps it had something to do with Quinn being on her home turf.
Mal’s mother glanced at the Librarian, a slight frown on her face. “You know none of this was your fault, right?”
Quinn shrugged. She might technically know it, but she was also the one who had the dream. Surely, there were hints about the trap and she’d missed them. “Maybe. But I should be able to protect people.”
Arnekai laughed. “Maybe. We all wish we could protect everyone, right? Don’t be too hard on yourself. My son will be fine, he just needs a few more treatments, and some magic free time to regain his strength.”
“I hope you’re right,” Quinn said.
“Of course I’m right. Go do your work. We have a healing session, and he’ll probably welcome your company for a bit later. Don’t . . .” Arnekai paused, glancing toward the cubicle curtain that concealed her son. “Don’t wallow in a past you cannot change. Seek out the knowledge you need for the future instead. It’ll make us all stronger.”
And then she practically teleported to Malakai’s bed, disappearing behind the partition.
Quinn watched the empty space for a few seconds, speechless. Determination stole over her and she found the spark of a new resolve. Stepping out of the infirmary, she decided to absorb more of what the Library could teach her as soon as possible. Drevicia was an extremely exacting task master, but at least Quinn had finally gotten her own core control down.
Mostly.
“Librarian!” Dottie stood directly in the way of exiting the infirmary.
Not that it bothered Quinn. She was genuinely fond of the talking bench. Superellex futora—the sapient furniture. She felt like she was in an animated movie on a regular basis. All she had to do now was find the bloody teapot. “What can I do for you, Miss Supervisory Assistant?”
Dottie’s laughter rang through the hall, adding a levity the area sorely needed. “Oh, it’s good to have you back in high spirits, Librarian.” Dottie sounded genuinely happy.
“Well, I don’t know if you’d call them high, but I’m definitely feeling better right now.”
Dottie frowned, even though Quinn still wasn’t sure how she could tell. Perhaps it was a sense, more of a telegraphing the aura than anything else. “You’re positively glowing. Is that . . .” The bench trotted closer. “My dear! Your scales are showing.”
Quinn felt the blush keenly. “Yeah, been practicing.”
“But does she have wings yet?” Geneva’s soft voice asked, and Quinn spun to see the Furionas fae. She hovered at eye level with Quinn, her tiny two-and-a-half-foot frame resplendently gold as usual. Her hair cascaded down her back and her gorgeous red outfit accentuated the whole fairy vibe she gave off.
“I don’t have wings yet.” While Quinn knew she’d eventually be able to shapeshift, she wasn’t relishing the idea. For all intents and purposes, it was supposed to hurt like the dickens, and she didn’t do pain well. Plus, what had Hal called her? An egg? She was technically still a baby.
“Soon enough. And then you won’t even need a spell to fly.” Geneva smiled gently, as if she was trying to lessen the blow. “We needed to talk to you, if you have a few minutes.”
Quinn cast a furtive glance toward the Restricted Vault that was slowly getting out of reach for the day and sighed. The Library needed her to get stronger, but it also needed her to run the Library, to take care of it, considering how many functions it performed simultaneously. There were reasons the Library had a manifestation and a Librarian.
Sometimes, Quinn had to choose. As much as she might want to spend another three years simply powering up, she couldn’t neglect the duties she had outside of the acquisition of power. “Sure. I have a few minutes.”
“Excellent!” Dottie trotted in front of them, leading the way to Quinn’s office. “You know, Lynx sent out another recruitment message. What after the debacle with the Aracnio twins, and then the whole trip you just took to get Ririn’s book back? With the other two branches getting so close to opening, we’re going to . . .”
Quinn stopped short. “Wait, back that up. What did you say?”
“Oh. It’s just been so busy the last few weeks, and Geneva and I spent a large amount of time making sure we focused on book collections, like you gave us permission to do. We’ve been spread quite thin with all the assistants that require time off.” There was distaste in that last phrase. Like the bench didn’t understand why organic living organisms required personal days or recuperation time.
