The rusted iron hinges groaned under Raziel's hands.
He pushed the heavy vault door open and stepped into the underground darkness.
Dust fell from the stone ceiling and coated his tunic.
He held the brass key Brother Thomas gave him hours ago that proved his new Quintile title and granted him access to the shadows.
Lucian walked in behind him holding a lit oil lamp.
This was the Quintile's Library of St. Celeste.
It sat three levels beneath the main archives and shared zero connection to the ancient runic chamber in the East Basement.
The Church built this specific vault to hoard knowledge they refused to burn but deemed too dangerous to teach.
Thousands of heavy books and bronze scroll tubes lined the towering wooden shelves.
The sheer volume of restricted information overwhelmed the senses.
Over three thousand texts rested in the gloom.
