The archive settles into a hush of dust and lampglow. Azera presses her staff to the floor, and the shelves stop their slow drift, as if listening.
Xene
That is much better. I was beginning to dislike the room's temperament.
Bince lets out a breath from the far side of the moving oak, then laughs once, low and shaky. The wall of shelves no longer shifts, only creaks softly around them.
Bince
I swear, this estate would rather eat folk than sort its papers.
Azera
The shelves are keyed to motion and spellwork. They respond to her resonance like a lock.
A strip of clean desk light falls across a narrow table in the center aisle. Dust, ledgers, and old seals sit undisturbed, waiting to be read instead of fought.
Xene
Laska used to say every archive has a heartbeat. I never thought she meant this literally.
Bince edges closer to the table, trying not to disturb anything, while the room holds steady around Azera's spell. For the first time all night, no one is chasing anyone.
Xene
When you're ready, we can look together. No rush.
+ Scene Quest Added
Read the archive ledgers for clues about Laska
+ Story Quest Added
Find Laska in the archive room
“I inspect the old seals for Laska's mark”
SUCCESS (Great Arcana, rolled +0)
Azera leans over the table and lets her spell sense run through the seals. Old wax answers her touch with a thin, clear hum.
One ledger bears the same crescent-and-key stamp three times, each impression tucked beside a different date, as if someone keeps returning to the same name.
Inside the binding, a margin note catches the lampglow. Laska. Delivered to the west annex. Keep separate from the copy books.
Xene
There. That hand, I know it. Laska wrote that sort of cramped slash across the page.
Bince
And the west annex is no storage closet. That's where lord Loridulus keeps private records.
Azera turns the seal over once more, and a second mark appears in the wax, hidden until the magic brushes it clean. It matches the silver clasp's ink exactly.
Xene
So the clasp was a key, or a warning. Either way, we know where they tried to hide her trail.
Quest Complete
Read the archive ledgers for clues about Laska