Patterns of Friction

The Academy loomed in the distance, its towering spires bathed in the eerie glow of moonlight. Even from here, Cael could see the runic wards pulsing along the outer walls—layers upon layers of magical defenses meant to keep people like him out.

He pulled his cloak tighter around his shoulders, his mind racing.

Breaking into the Academy Vaults was suicide.

But it was also the only way to save Lirienne.

And if Malrik truly had the Codex Obscura, then Cael needed to see it with his own eyes.

"Tell me again why we're doing this?" Veyna muttered beside him.

"Because we don't have a choice."

"Oh, we have choices," she countered. "It's just that all of them end with us dead."

Cael smirked. "Then we better make sure we don't get caught."

Rhyne had provided them with the entry point—a forgotten passage beneath the Academy, once used by the first scholars to transport rare magical artifacts. It had been sealed for centuries.

But not to everyone.

Cael traced his fingers over the runic script on the ancient stone door. It was old magic, predating the Academy itself. With a deep breath, he pressed his palm against the cold surface and whispered the words burned into his memory.

"Veltir noxas."

The runes flared, then faded.

The stone door groaned as it slid open, revealing a dark corridor leading downward.

Veyna let out a low whistle. "You really do have a knack for getting into places you shouldn't."

Cael didn't respond. He just stepped inside.

The passage was damp, the air thick with the scent of old parchment and dust.

Veyna moved silently beside him, her blades strapped tightly to her belt. Rhyne had refused to come, of course. Said his part was done.

Coward.

"How long until we reach the Vaults?" Veyna whispered.

"If the map is right? Ten minutes."

"And if it's wrong?"

"Then we improvise."

Veyna sighed. "You're going to get me killed one of these days, Mavros."

"Not today."

She shot him a glare but followed him deeper.

The Vault Doors

The corridor ended in front of a massive set of iron doors, etched with glowing runes. Unlike the entrance, this magic was new—Academy-forged and deadly.

"This might be a problem," Veyna muttered.

Cael studied the runes. They pulsed with a security spell, designed to alert the Chancellor himself if triggered.

He had seconds to disarm it.

Placing both hands on the metal, he let his magic flow—threading through the intricate spellwork, searching for weaknesses.

There.

A fracture in the weave.

With a deep breath, he twisted the energy, redirecting the alarm into a meaningless loop. To any Academy enforcer watching the security network, the doors would remain sealed.

No sign of intrusion.

"We're in."

Veyna pushed open the doors, and they slipped inside.

The air was thick with magic.

Rows of ancient tomes, artifacts, and relics lined the chamber, each stored in glass cases or locked within enchanted chests.

And at the very center—

A pedestal.

A single book resting atop it.

"The Codex Obscura," Cael whispered.

The moment he stepped forward, the temperature in the room dropped.

Something was wrong.

"Wait—" Veyna started, but it was too late.

The shadows around them moved.

The Guardian

A figure stepped forward from the darkness—cloaked, face hidden behind a mask of silver.

"I was wondering when you'd show up, Mavros."

Cael's blood ran cold.

The voice was familiar.

Too familiar.

The figure removed their mask, revealing sharp, pale features and piercing blue eyes.

Cael took a step back.

"Lirienne?"

She smiled. But there was no warmth in it.

"You shouldn't have come here, Cael."

Betrayal

The weight of the moment hit him like a blow to the chest.

Lirienne Valis—the one person he had trusted beyond all others—was here.

Guarding the Vaults.

Guarding the Codex.

Veyna tensed beside him, hand hovering over her dagger. "Tell me this is some kind of joke."

But Cael already knew the truth.

This wasn't a rescue.

This was a trap.