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Kael’s summons was brief and wordless. A glance in Emil’s direction during morning drills, then a sharp gesture to follow. No explanation, no expression behind the steel visor. Emil obeyed, nerves raw. His hesitation in the forest still burned in his chest. Kael’s silence about it was worse than any reprimand. They passed through corridors seldom used by candidates, where the stone walls were darker, the air cooler, torches burning low in sconces. Emil had never walked these halls. They smelled of old dust, of sealed spaces. At last, Kael stopped outside an iron-bound door. He did not speak, merely turned and fixed Emil with a stare that seemed to strip the flesh from his bones. Then he lifted the latch and pushed the door open. Inside was a library. Not the vast, vaulted library of t
- Writer
