magisternihil's 100-word story for October 6, 2025

magisternihil wrote the following micro-story on Hectalex on October 6, 2025. Each story on Hectalex is inspired by a daily visual prompt and must be exactly 100 words.

Martin has a tried and true test for the quality of a used book store. He has four authors he looks for — Vonnegut, Pratchett, Forester, and Chesterton — and if any one of them show up on the shelves, he gives it his personal stamp of approval. “Don’t be such a dinosaur,” his son chides him, “branch out into newer authors.” “But this is a USED book store, my boy,” he answers. “They sell dinosaur relics to dinosaurs like me. It’s their trade.” The spine catches his eye. Chesterton’s ‘Manalive.” Martin smiles. His son was right, this is a good shop.

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