Audree and Lief walked up the worn stone steps to the weathered doors of the old library. The place looked more like a crypt than a center for knowledge, at least according to lief.

Audree motioned lazily to the large, iron-handled door. “This is where the grumpy old man lives. Haldo. Well, I think he lives here--I don’t see him anywhere else, so it might as well be home.”

Lief, trailing just behind, looked around cautiously. “Uh yeah… I’ve heard of Haldo before.”

“Oh? That’s surprising. I rarely see anyone around here. Honestly didn’t think people even knew he existed with the way he complains about everyone.”

Lief scratched the back of their head. “Well… his family is, like, rich. They funded half of this rundown town. So people kind of have to know about him.”

Audree paused at the door, clearly caught off guard. “Wait, seriously?” He tried to picture Haldo in a nobleman’s coat, decked in gold and lace, surrounded by pompous nobles sipping tea. The image didn’t fit. At all. “Huh. Never knew that. Guess we learn something new every day.”

He glanced back. “So… have you actually met him before?”

Lief shook their head furiously. “Nope. You know how your family has a, erm... reputation? Because of the potion stuff?”

Audree’s expression soured, but he let it slide for now. “Sure,” he said quietly.

Lief continued, “Well, Haldo’s kind of known for being problematic too. Like… stuck-up and super private. And since his family's got money, they supposedly mess with anyone they don’t like. I just don’t want to end up on their radar, you know?”

Audree raised a brow, processing that. Rumors, again. So many of them. And once more, they didn’t match reality. Haldo might’ve been a grump, but he was helpful. And definitely not the type to wave around noble privilege. He was too busy being irritated with the world.

Audree sighed, “Lief, I think you really need to stop putting so much stock in these rumors. You’ve been wrong twice now.”

Lief blinked. “Twice?”

Audree nodded, stepping up to the door. “Yeah. My family isn’t what people say we are. And from what I’ve seen, Haldo’s not some tyrant noble with a vendetta. He’s just… tired. Maybe a little lonely.”

Lief looked down, mumbling, “Yeah… maybe you're right. But sometimes rumors come from something, you know?”

“Maybe,” Audree said, pushing the door open with a long creak. “But I’ll judge people by what they show me, not what someone else said. Come in or don’t--it’s up to you.”

He disappeared into the shadows of the library.

Lief hesitated. Then stepped inside.

The library was dark--unnaturally so. The usual faint smell of parchment and dried ink hung in the air, but the stillness made it feel like stepping into a forgotten tomb.

“Are we early…?” Audree muttered, glancing at the windows. The storm outside made it hard to tell the time. “Door wasn’t locked, though. Someone's got to be here.”

Just then, with a soft fwoosh, the lights around the room ignited in bursts of flame--lanterns and sconces roaring to life in perfect sequence. The sudden brightness cast long shadows that danced across the shelves.

“Ah, welcome back, Audree,” came a familiar voice from deeper in the library. “Thought you’d forgotten this old man.”

Audree instinctively rubbed his bandaged arm. “Ah, no. Just got… sidetracked. Messing with stuff I probably wasn’t supposed to.”

Haldo’s voice echoed through the aisles. “So I heard. Well, don’t go planning to mess things up here. Last time, you left this place looking like a windstorm hit it.”

Rounding the corner, they spotted Haldo standing at a tall bookshelf, calmly sorting through stacks of books. But something was off. Instead of his usual patchy robes, he wore finely embroidered mage garb--deep purple with gold threading, a brooch pinned to the collar, and a long tasseled sash. A steaming cup of tea floated beside him in a lazy circle.

Audree blinked. “What are you wearing?” he muttered under his breath.

He barely had time to process it before Haldo tossed a glance over his shoulder. “I thought I’d dress for the occasion. Important guests, and all that.” He sipped his tea smugly.

Audree narrowed his eyes. “Wait. You're not still blaming me for that mess from last time, right? That was you tearing the place apart looking for that hairy book or whatever.”

Haldo tutted, “Ah yes, shifting the blame to a frail old man. The hallmark of youthful irresponsibility.” He gave a dramatic sigh. “A shame, really. Such a bright mind wasted.”

Audree rolled his eyes. “You’re full of it.”

He was about to snap back with something else when--suddenly--he felt a jolt, a pull. Like a cold force had physically shifted him a few inches to the side.

From behind him, Haldo’s voice sharpened. “Well now… who do we have here?”

Audree turned to see Lief, who had been quietly hiding just behind him, freeze in place under Haldo’s gaze. The old man’s eyes locked on the boy like a hawk spotting something curious--and possibly dangerous.

“A new friend, perhaps?” Haldo mused, stepping forward slowly. “Or just a new visitor?”

Lief didn’t speak. He shrank back instinctively, unsure whether to run or bow. His eyes darted around like he was calculating escape routes.

Audree raised a hand. “Relax, he’s with me. And no, he’s not breaking anything.”

Haldo’s eyebrow arched. “Hmm. That’s yet to be seen.” He turned back to his shelf, but his tone remained amused.

“So, what brings you here today, boy? And with a friend, no less. I never thought I’d see the day,” Haldo said, casting a side glance at Lief.

Audree shrugged, arms crossed. “Well, I wouldn’t say ‘friend’ just yet… maybe assistant. He’s been quite helpful so far.”

Lief blinked. “What?! What do you mean assistant? I thought we were friends!” His face dropped into a pouty frown.

Audree chuckled, and Haldo let out a low, amused laugh as well. Lief looked between the two, clearly bewildered.

“Ah, so you can talk,” Audree teased. “Here I thought you were going to be shy the whole time.”

“Well, you said that in such a mean way—how else was I supposed to react?” Lief huffed.

Audree just smiled, genuine this time, and reached over to ruffle Lief’s hair, leaving it messier than before. Lief scowled playfully and tried to fix it.

Haldo leaned back against a shelf. “Ah, it’s good to see you found someone you enjoy being around. Don’t want to end up like me—some grumpy old man haunting a dusty library with nothing but tea and half-finished thoughts.”

Audree gave a soft sigh. “That doesn’t sound too bad, honestly.”

“Well, enough banter,” Audree added, straightening up. “I actually came here for a reason. Did a woman named Velra stop by? She said she was going to talk to you.”

Haldo’s expression shifted, the amusement fading slightly as his gaze sharpened. “Ah, yes. I did speak with her. About you, in fact.”

He glanced briefly toward Lief, then slipped on a peculiar pair of glasses from a shelf behind him. The lenses shimmered with faint runic etchings. He peered at Lief for a moment, then squinted—surprised. “But not about him…”

Lief stiffened, taking a small step back. “Wait, what? What’s that supposed to mean?”

Audree blinked. “What? What’s going on?”

Haldo waved the thought off and took the glasses off. “Nothing urgent… for now. Anyway, I assume you’re here about your arm.”

Audree nodded. “So she told you?”

“More or less,” Haldo said, his tone turning serious. “Your arm is laced with ambient energy. And not the good kind. It’s foul—heavy—and it’s leaving a trail everywhere you go.”

“What energy? I can’t see anything. I don’t even have a mana pool, so how is that even possible?” Audree asked, brow furrowed.

Haldo held up the glasses. “Because it’s not mana. Not in the traditional sense. This is raw, unfiltered energy. Best way I can describe it. These glasses let me see all kinds of magic, even those normally invisible to the eye. Not that they’re very useful outside a place like Embershade. Too much interference elsewhere—mana, curses, enchantments—it all blends together.”

Audree’s eyes widened slightly. For once, the old man was speaking to him about magic, not brushing him off or warning him away. There was real curiosity in Haldo’s voice—genuine interest. It was strange… almost encouraging.

Maybe, Audree thought, I should’ve blown up my arm a long time ago.

Haldo stepped forward, his teacup now long forgotten. “Go on then, boy. Show me the arm.”

Audree hesitated for a moment. “Well… it’s pretty weird, so don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

Haldo scoffed. “I’ve seen many things in my years. Don’t think you can scare me off from something interesting.”

Audree gave a small sigh, muttering under his breath about nosy old men, before carefully unwrapping the cloth from around his arm.

The runes gleamed faintly—etched deep into his skin, pulsing with a soft gold light. As the last of the wrappings fell away, a wave of subtle energy flowed through Audree’s arm, tingling up to his shoulder.

He blinked. Was it absorbing magic again? That had to be it. The last time it had glowed like this, it had drawn in energy from somewhere—like it was hungry.

Haldo leaned in, adjusting his enchanted glasses. His eyes narrowed, lips moving as he muttered to himself. “Hmm… it’s stealing energy from the room. Not much, but—yes—definitely siphoning ambient magic.”

Audree watched the old man’s brows furrow. “That bad?”

Haldo didn’t respond immediately, too caught up in whatever calculation was running through his head.

Meanwhile, Lief stood frozen, mouth slightly open in shock.

Audree glanced at him. “What?”

Lief blinked rapidly as the two turned toward him. “I-I didn’t know it looked like that.”

Audree shrugged, casually letting the cloth fall back into place. “Oh well. You’re in it now.”

Haldo rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “It seems you really did something both interesting and incredibly stupid.” He adjusted his glasses again, his eyes scanning Audree’s arm. “From what I can tell, you were attempting something akin to a mental command. A rudimentary bonding spell—intended for beasts, maybe slimes. The foundation is there… but the structure is sloppy. Missing a few key symbols. Added others that don’t belong.”

He gave Audree a side glance. “Honestly, this spell shouldn’t have activated at all—much less triggered whatever catastrophe you managed.”

Audree looked down at the glowing runes with a tight frown. “Well, it did.”

“Yes,” Haldo said with dry amusement, “that much is painfully obvious. But there’s something missing here... something we don’t quite see.”

He reached into his robes and pulled out a pair of old gloves, worn but clearly magical—etched with faded symbols. Audree recognized some: Stop. Seal. Dark. Others he didn’t know.

“I assume those are for stopping my arm from trying to snack on you like it did Velra?” Audree asked.

Haldo gave a noncommittal grunt as he slipped them on. “Miss Runeswell did mention your... arm’s appetite.”

Lief, still hovering a bit behind, gave Audree a puzzled look.

“Long story,” Audree said quickly, not wanting to explain how his arm had drained magic like a cursed siphon.

Haldo firmly grabbed Audree’s arm, holding it up to the light of a nearby lantern. He leaned in, pointing to a small rune near the wrist. “Tell me, what does this one mean?”

Audree squinted at it. It was elegant, almost too clean compared to the others. But he didn’t recognize it.

“I... don’t know. I don’t remember drawing that one.”

Haldo didn’t react, only moved his finger slightly. “And this?”

Audree frowned. “No idea.”

Another.

“No.”

Another.

“Definitely not.”

A long silence passed. Haldo let go of the arm and stepped back, eyes narrowed in rare seriousness.

“That’s what I feared.”

Haldo looked down thoughtfully, then let out a low sigh. “So… you woke up with those golden runes after your ‘dream,’ yes? You didn’t have them before?”

Audree shook his head firmly. “No. Before the dream, I only used normal ink like the book said.”

Haldo raised an eyebrow. “Do you still have that book?”

Audree let out a heavy sigh. “No. It was my journal—not a single reference. I lost everything, including the notebook and the bag, in the explosion.”

Haldo’s gaze drifted around the dim library, the lantern scones flickering with every breath. “I see… Very well.”

He cleared his throat and stood. “This… might be a good time to do something I’ve been putting off.”

Audree exchanged a quick look with Lief.

Haldo continued, “Could you two follow me? I have a question—and perhaps a task.”

Audree nodded. “Uh… sure, Haldo.”

Lief’s eyes widened, a silent tremor running through him—but Audree placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

The old mage led them through winding aisles, past stacks of arcane manuscripts, and into a hidden passage behind a heavy curtain.