The Oath-Tender led them deeper into the fifth chamber. And the longer they walked, the more life they saw. It was like the city above them was made from plywood.
This section looked like a silent library, full of books and thick carpeted floors. But when Lucian looked above them, there was no ceiling. Just the endless expanse of a frozen night sky.
And then they heard it—close to the core. A bell rang, and it echoed toward the surface.
Lucian dropped to one knee.
The sound didn't strike like thunder, but his sorrow sank deep like a bone marrow at the bottom of a stew.
I know this feeling. It's a funeral bell. The same ancient resonance. Lucian didn't dare lift his eyes from the floor, not until the bell had stopped ringing.
Next to him, he heard the Grimoire flare open, its pages flipping madly. His gray eyes glanced down at the book and saw symbols--some for funerals, some for life--twist and glow.
