Deep beneath the cellars of Castle Aurumice, a portal leads to a musty basement in suburban Pennsylvania. Jessica Ravenwolfe has been crossing that Gate for five years, adventuring with her eclectic friends and occasionally making poor choices. Now she is ready to leave the suburbs and the castle, accepting an invitation to the mage academy in resplendent Katanzarko City.

Jessica’s choice has caused a ripple across Castle Aurumice. Nicoveren Verdian has fallen in love with the woman from earth, but he cannot join her and abandon his responsibilities to the castle. Nico’s dreams are plagued by the cries of Jessica’s lost cousin, trapped in an arcane magic Nico cannot breach. Meanwhile, the forbidden mage Zia Casimirio threatens the castlefolk, and echoes of the past begin to sever the entire Ravenwolfe family.