“True,” Gordian said.
Emily nodded. The towns and villages she’d seen had a striking air of impermanence about them, as if constant maintenance was the only thing that kept them from decaying into rubble. It wasn’t entirely uncommon to see deserted villages in the countryside, villages that had been abandoned by the inhabitants when they’d decided they were no longer viable. The cities and castles would last longer, but even they would be worn down by time. It was easy to believe that Dragon’s Den might have—unknowingly—been built on a long-forgotten settlement. A fair-sized town might have vanished completely between the castle’s completion and Lord Whitehall’s arrival.
“We thank you for your time, Lady Emily.” Akanke smiled. “It is our intention to study the documents that were discovered last year.”
“And to search for others,” Oscine said.
Emily glanced at Gordian. His expression was artfully blank.
She thought, fast. She’d reviewed all the documents while she’d been hiding in the tunnels under the school, waiting for her timelines to reintegrate. There were some secrets she would prefer to keep hidden, but Gordian had already reviewed them. Besides, they were largely useless to anyone without a nexus point.
And the rest are really nothing more than historical curiosities, she thought. Lord Whitehall and Master Wolfe had been powerful and smart, but they hadn’t learnt from generations of previous magicians. There weren’t any long-lost magics after all.
“I think you will find them interesting,” she said. Discouraging others from searching for non-existent secrets would be a good deed, even if there were many who would find it disappointing. “And I don’t know if there were any other documents stored under Whitehall.”
“None of our inspections have found any,” Gordian put in. “But we believe we have barely scratched the surface. There are tunnels and hidden chambers that have yet to be searched.”
Emily winced, inwardly. There were thousands of protective and concealment spells woven into the tunnels. Professor Locke would never have found the control chamber without her, although neither of them had realized it at the time. Back then, the idea that she had helped found the school would have been laughable. They’d certainly had no reason to think that she had permission to go where she liked.
But anything could be concealed under the school, she thought. And we wouldn’t know anything about it until we stumbled over the hidden chamber.
“We do intend to look,” Akanke said. “I trust that will meet with your approval?”
“As long as you stay out of the control center,” Gordian said. “We decided to leave that well alone.”
He looked at Emily. “Perhaps you would care to escort them?”
Emily shook her head. “I don’t have time.” She wondered, briefly, if she could convince Gordian to let her pass the dueling club to Cirroc. If he wanted her to talk history with the history monks, something else would have to be put aside. “I’m going to be busy until after graduation day.”
Another thought struck her, making her wince. It had been nearly a year since she’d set foot in the underground complex, let alone made her way to the control center. She certainly hadn’t bothered to check for other hidden compartments. In hindsight, that might have been careless. Whitehall and Bernard might have lacked her knowledge, but they’d also been less reluctant to tamper with the nexus point. There might be a hundred sealed chambers below the school. Perhaps she should find them before anyone else.
And the control center should be checked too, she thought, grimly. It wasn’t something she wanted to discuss with Gordian. Grandmaster or not, she didn’t trust him that far. I should see to it before anything else.
“I’ll arrange for a couple of my staff to escort you,” Gordian said, addressing Akanke. He didn’t seem unhappy that Emily had declined to do it. “We can start tomorrow, if you wish.”
“That would be fine, I believe,” Akanke said. “We can spend the rest of the day compiling our notes. If we could borrow the office ...”
Emily was caught between amusement and offence. “This is my office,” she said, dryly. Did they think she’d let them kick her out of her own office? “But there are study rooms you could use.”
Gordian raised a hand to conceal a smile. “I’ve had the pair of you assigned to a guest suite,” he said. “There are offices attached, which you are welcome to use. And I look forward to the pleasure of your company for dinner.”
Oscine shot Emily an apologetic look. “That would be suitable. And thank you.”
“I’ll take you to them personally,” Gordian said. “Emily, thank you for coming on such short notice.”
“You’re welcome,” Emily lied. She was going to be second-guessing herself for the rest of the day. And she was going to have to sneak down to the catacombs. Frieda would probably want to come with her, too. Emily wasn’t sure that was a good idea, but at least it would keep Frieda out of trouble. “If you don’t mind, I have work to attend to.”
Gordian bowed. “Of course. I’ll send you a message if they require any further assistance.”
“We will want to discuss some secondary matters,” Oscine grunted. He put out a paw-like hand and shook Emily’s, firmly. “But we thank you for your time.”
Emily nodded, keeping her face expressionless. She’d considered becoming a historian, once upon a time. That dream hadn’t lasted, but she still had great respect for historians. Writing down what had really happened was important. And yet, she wasn’t sure what would happen if some version of the truth got out. Too many people would start asking too many questions about where the truth had come from. The only real consolation was that there weren’t any long-forgotten super-magics lurking in the past.
Unless you count demons, she thought. But the modern world doesn’t need them.
Chapter Twenty-Four
“YOU NEVER TOOK ME DOWN INTO the tunnels,” Frieda muttered, as they walked down the stairs to the armory. “Is it anything like the tunnels under Mountaintop?”
“It’s very different,” Emily said. It was safer now, but she still felt tense as she approached the hidden door. The staff, including Gordian and Sergeant Miles, would be at dinner, yet there was still a risk of getting caught. “Give me a moment to work on the defenses ...”