Chương 49: A Visit from Flame

With her alcove sealed off for the time being and magic temporarily forbidden by her own increasingly paranoid rules, Lira found herself with an unusual luxury: free time. So she sat behind her newly claimed desk, posture straight and expression composed, reading a book on mining operations. If anyone asked what she was doing, the answer was simple: those books would not arrange themselves, even if they really could thanks to magic, but that was a secret.

To her own mild surprise, the book turned out to be fascinating. Apparently, certain underground tunnels could develop what miners referred to as "bad air," pockets of invisible gas that displaced breathable air and rendered entire shafts dangerous. According to the text, experienced miners would bring small birds with them underground. If the bird died, it meant the air had turned lethal, and everyone was expected to evacuate immediately. Lira stared at that section longer than necessary. The logic baffled her.

How did people not notice bad air on their own? Did it not smell different? Did their lungs not immediately protest? How exactly did one fail to notice the rather urgent problem of no longer being able to breathe? She was sorely tempted to cast a divination spell and summon another book specifically answering that question. Her fingers twitched slightly. Then she forcibly folded both hands together on the desk. No magic. Not until the court wizard had visited and left.

That self-control turned out to be fortunate because perhaps five minutes later, he arrived. Lira heard footsteps first, accompanied by the soft rustle of fabric. She looked up as the door opened, and a man entered the library. She immediately froze in recognition. Court Mage Edward Emberborn. She had never met him personally, but his reputation preceded him, enough that all servants knew the name.

He was somewhere in his forties, fit, upright, and carried himself with the effortless confidence only highly competent people seemed capable of cultivating. His most defining feature was his outfit, which was impossible to ignore. Blue trousers, a red chemise, and an orange vest. Draped over it all was a long, flowing yellow cape that trailed dramatically behind him with every step. If Lira squinted just right, she could see the vision: a candle flame.

The blue was the base, the red and orange the inner flame, and the yellow cape the outer glow. Even his boots were polished black, resembling a charred wick. It was ridiculous, completely and utterly ridiculous. And yet somehow, through sheer confidence and excellent tailoring, the man made it work. Trailing behind him were two much younger men, likely apprentices around Lira's age. Both wore considerably less offensive clothing, simple midnight-blue suits with practical belts and satchels.

Lira quickly composed herself, rising from her chair and stepping around her desk.

"Welcome to the library, my lords," she said, dipping into a careful curtsy.

"My name is Lira. I am the caretaker." Edward studied her openly.

"Oh, right," he said, brushing a hand through his styled hair.

"You are the one responsible for fixing this place." His gaze traveled across the room.

"You have done quite well." The compliment caught her slightly off guard.

"Thank you, my lord."

"I visited once when I first arrived at court," he continued casually, glancing toward the shelves.

"I had hoped to find something interesting. Unfortunately, the place had already been thoroughly picked clean." Lira nodded.

"That appears to still be largely true. Even after clearing the entire first floor, the magical section remains nearly empty." She pointed discreetly toward the southern wall where the designated magical studies shelves stood.

"The only relevant volume currently on display is a basic guide to identifying magical artifacts." Edward clicked his tongue.

"A pity. I heard the library once had an impressive magical collection." Lira filed that information away. She decided to behave as a librarian ought to: helpful, organized, and entirely harmless.

"There are still many unopened rooms upstairs," Lira offered.

"Most of the books are in poor condition, and I have not yet begun properly cataloging them. If I uncover anything of interest, I would be happy to inform you." Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. That earned her a charming smile.

"Please do." He gestured behind him.

"Allow me to introduce my apprentices. This is Samy." He pointed to a blond young man with sharp features and a serious expression.

"And this is Nabi." The second apprentice had brown hair, warmer features, and looked marginally less tense. Lira curtsied again.

"A pleasure to meet you both." They each offered polite nods. Edward clasped his hands together.

"Well then. Show me one of these heating runes I have been summoned to inspect." Lira guided them toward the nearest wall plaque. It was one of the rusted metal plates she had noticed earlier and carefully cleaned without understanding its purpose. If runes were supposed to be etched there, she certainly did not see any. Edward leaned in, inspected it, then clicked his tongue in disapproval.

"No. This will absolutely not do." He stepped aside slightly.

"Samy. Tell me what happened here." The blond apprentice studied the plaque.

"The iron plate has rusted to the point where the inscription is no longer legible, Master."

"Correct." Edward nodded approvingly, then turned.

"Nabi. How could this have been prevented?" The brown-haired apprentice answered quickly.

"Using silver or gold instead of iron." Edward shook his head.

"No. That would be appropriate for personal enchantments or decorative commissioned work." He tapped the rusted plate.

"For public installations, copper is preferable." Nabi frowned.

"But copper tarnishes too."

"Yes," Edward said.

"But the tarnish is manageable." He glanced toward Lira.

"Provided the staff maintaining the building knows what they are doing." Both apprentices looked at her. Lira straightened slightly.

"Copper should be cleaned with acidic solutions when it starts turning green," she answered.

"Lime juice or vinegar is preferable." It was information she had gained from one of the books she had randomly absorbed. Edward snapped his fingers once.

"Excellent." He smiled brightly.

"Our inscriptions shall be safe in your care." Lira blinked. That had gone unexpectedly well. Edward rummaged inside a leather satchel and withdrew a polished copper plate. Then he raised his hand.

"Pika. Milaga. Farshum." The spell activated instantly. The copper shifted beneath his fingers as though softening, the metal subtly reshaping itself. Then a carving of a rune emerged. Lira's pulse quickened. She recognized two of the words immediately: Pika and Farshum. As for Milaga, it was likely either metal or copper. More importantly, she knew the rune itself. Her breath nearly caught. It was Fila, as in fire. She recognized it from her father's lexicon.

Edward removed the old, rusted plate entirely and slotted the new copper one into place. Then he cast again.

"Kisar. Fila. Coopar." His fingers hovered over the rune. A faint warmth began radiating outward, subtle but noticeable. Lira's heart pounded harder. She recognized all three components this time. Kisar. Symbol. Fila. Fire. Coopar. Containment. The spell was a direct combination of two spells she had already learned: the runic ignition spell and the warm pocket spell. The effect was similar to the warm pocket, but coming from the rune rather than being targeted on the self. A fire was contained and localized. No.

In this case, it was not localized. She watched more carefully. The heat spread outward gradually rather than remaining isolated. That made sense. It was missing the pocket component. Her thoughts were confirmed a second later when one of the apprentices raised a hand.

"Master," Samy asked, "why use the cantrip structure instead of the Tier One heating formation we practiced with the medallions?" Edward smiled approvingly.

"Excellent question." He tapped the plate.

"The medallion we created isolate a pocket of warmth." He gestured around the room.

"But in this case, we want diffusion of heat."

"Contained heat would only create one warm corner," he continued.

"This configuration encourages outward radiation across a wider space." This was a very useful confirmation. Still, Edward frowned after a moment.

"One plate will not be sufficient for a library this size." He pulled out several more copper blanks and distributed them among his apprentices.

"Your turn." Both apprentices immediately began casting.

"Pika. Milaga. Farshum." Their plates shifted and court Mage Edward inspected Samy's first.

"Acceptable." But when he checked Nabi's, he frowned slightly.

"It is crooked." Nabi blushed at the remark but nodded.

"Do it again. Slower this time." His tone remained patient.

"You are relying too much on the spell to compensate for a weak visualization." Nabi smoothed his plate before trying once more.

"that's better, but you need more practice carving by hand." Lira found herself mildly surprised. Edward was… pleasant. Competent, theatrical, charming, and undeniably a good teacher. Not at all the tyrannical magical enforcer she had subconsciously imagined. Though admittedly, if he discovered she was illegally learning magic unsupervised from stolen primers, his pleasant demeanor might deteriorate considerably. She briefly entertained the wildly irrational thought of asking to become his apprentice.

Then immediately dismissed it. She knew for a fact that magic was deeply restricted. Showing too much interest would only reveal her hand. She watched quietly as Edward supervised the creation of eight total heating plates, each installed in carefully selected locations for optimal distribution. Most importantly, he did not cast anything else. No scanning spells, nor divination incantations, only copper shaping and heating runes. Relief settled quietly into her bones. She had worried for nothing.

That was mostly true, though she suspected that if he had found active mana signatures all over the library, things might have gone very differently. When the final plate was installed, Edward dusted his hands off.

"There we go." Warmth was now gradually filling the library, enough to take the edge off the cold stone. He nodded in satisfaction.

"These runes will remain active for a long time." He pointed casually.

"but If you wish to deactivate them in summer, simply mark across the symbol with chalk." Lira nodded attentively.

"But that would permanently deactivate them, so wait for summer to do it. One of my apprentices will return in autumn to refresh the inscriptions." As they prepared to leave, Lira asked a question that a librarian would ask.

"My lord." Edward paused.

"Should I remove the magical section entirely, given the lack of inventory? Or are magical texts permitted for display?" He considered this.

"You certainly cannot leave primers unattended." That answer nearly made her soul leave her body. But he continued.

"This is still the royal castle; we should be able to display something appropriate." He tapped his chin thoughtfully.

"I will send a small selection from my personal collection." Lira blinked.

"You will?"

"Nothing too dangerous," he assured her.

"Beginner texts, magical theory fit for children, basic history, and introductory enchanting principles. Harmless things suitable for curious nobles and their offspring." That was unexpectedly helpful and generous. Lira curtsied deeply.

"Thank you, Master Mage." Edward gave her a casual salute. Then, with his apprentices trailing behind him, he swept out of the library in a flamboyant swirl of yellow cape. The doors closed behind him, and silence returned. Lira remained standing still for several seconds. Then she slowly exhaled. The dreaded visit had happened, and somehow, against all odds, nothing had gone catastrophically wrong. More importantly, the library was now warm. A comfortable warmth spread gradually through the stone halls.

Lira smiled faintly. She genuinely respected the mage and hoped he would never come to hunt her.