( that's confirmation enough to her. arcane it is, then. but where to even begin? it is not as though she's caught even a wisp of evidence that any such spell based on aetherology has been cast in their proximity, let alone the threads that might unravel it. there is always, always a trace, and the fact that she could see none at all makes something deep in her belly twist uncomfortably.

not that she could even say that much with certainty these days, which makes it all the worse for them. so maybe it is well and truly the time to address the other obvious solution: the set of keys, lures with their names - it rules out the possibility for the mechanism to be triggered by thieves. something they did here sealed them to their fate. )

Might I see your box? Our kind benefactors left a note in mine, which I thought to be naught more than a snide taunt. Perhaps yours has the continuation to this riddle. The city is utterly bereft of most other forms of written word, so the fact that this remains strikes me as strange.