Scarcely before had anyone witnessed a box of such apparent unimportance.

Professor Krylin brushed the wrapping aside, setting the box on the desk corner very, very close to a swift fall. She squared it with the edges, with such deliberation that Nemo, despite the fear that it may fall, couldn’t bring himself to move it away from its apparent demise.

“You never got the chance to see it at your parent’s enchantery?” Tilo asked.

“Well, yes, but I don’t always know what items I’m bringing to other places as packages. My younger siblings always wrap them.”

Nemo looked at the box closely, careful to not so much as breathe on it.

“It’s beautifully crafted, but I’m not sure why it would be worth restoring for anything less than sentimental reasons. It can’t be more than a few decades old.”

“I can see why you’d say that, but it’s supposed to be centuries old, not decades.”

“Are you sure?

“Not personally, but a variety of tests have been performed that say so.” Professor Krylin moved towards the door, pulling on a cloak as she moved towards the door.

“Then how come-”

“I’d love to explain everything, really, but I need to go. I’ll be back very soon, so if you still want to talk, you can wait here or come back a bit later.” She glared at Tilo. “Besides, a certain someone needs to set things right.”

Tilo evaded her eyes until she disappeared into the hallway.

When she was finally out of view, Tilo let loose the largest exhalation of stress Nemo had seen in his lifetime. 

“What? She makes me nervous.”

Nemo rolled his eyes, redirecting the conversation.

“What was in the other package?”

“The other package?” Tilo’s palm met his forehead. “I almost forgot. Now we definitely need to wait for Professor Krylin to return.”

Nemo pulled the second package from its place in his bag. “Do you mind if I…”

“Not at all.”

Like a child receiving their first birthday gift, he tore it open. Just like the first, the actual item was inside a separate box, though this time the item was a compass.

“I recognize the restoration work, but there are no enchantments on this.”

“I need Professor Krylin to enchant it.”

“So, you sent it to an enchantery, only you decided not to get it enchanted?” Nemo was in awe of Tilo’s logic.

“The enchantment I need can only be done by someone who has been to the place I’m trying to explore.”

“A guiding enchantment, then? I haven’t seen one done in a long time, for obvious reasons.”

“Exactly.”

“Where are you trying to explore?”

“The ruins on Furvoe.”

The Furvoe ruins were the one place Nemo knew better than the back of his hand, excluding one section. He had once been dared to enter when he was very young and, with a group of friends, they had explored the multi-tiered underground ruins. He had done so happily, comfortably avoiding the traps and navigating with relative ease. On the other hand, his small friend group had grown smaller with each passing level until he was the only one left, running away in fear until only he was left. 

From that moment onward, it had become his favorite place, if only to explore the random items that littered each floor. That is, except for the last five levels. He had once gotten curious and glanced down the stairwell to the next level, only to be scared out of his wits by a red glow and the growl of an unidentifiable beast. From that point onward, he was careful to remain in the upper levels. Which wasn’t difficult, given that there were a lot.

“I can guide you,” he said finally. “You won’t need the compass if I come. Why didn’t you ask me in the first place?”

“...”

Nemo sighed.

“It’s pretty straightforward, you need only worry about the traps. However, I’m confident I can guide you around them. Except on the last five levels.”

“What’s so different about them?”

Nemo hesitated. “There’s a beast down there. I don’t know what it’s like because I’m not someone gifted at all in combat, so I felt it was a bit safer to remain on the upper levels. That, and when I last visited the level above where the monster is, I was fifteen.”

“Ah. Well, I’m not worried about that. If you can get me to the last five levels, I’m confident we can improv from there. But I’m not letting this compass go. I brought Professor Krylin this package in exchange for the compass, so even if it’s only a backup, I spent enough time on this that I should follow through with my original plan.”

“I agree.” Nemo leaned back on the desk instinctually. He miscalculated how close it was and bumped against it forcefully.

He had no time to comprehend what he had done as the precariously set box fell to the floor.