"It's so nice to live in such peaceful times," Elyre said. "Unlike the times of wars thousands of years ago."
"Right," Aristhaeus replied. As he was going to be busy with his own research, he showed her a few sections of the library she could start with: Medicine, History of Allyria, and Legendary Herbs.
She wanted to start her own research immediately, but the library was so unique and she was too excited. Moreover, she was not sure what she was looking for... except for the name of princess Nymphica Svetlidaris, she didn't have any other clues.
~When you don't know what you're looking for, this definitely slows down your progress,~ she thought and shook her head. Perhaps she could try to investigate different plant diseases similar to maginopia in symptoms? Even if there was a cure available, it didn't have to be directly related to the name of Nymphica.
There were so many books! The library was like a labyrinth. The ceiling was so high above you could hardly see it, and there were shelves of books from the bottom to the top of the walls.
No wonder legends claimed every book ever written was there.
There were mostly mages near Elyre, quietly reading something at small tables. There was also one woman who asked her if she needed some help just as Aristhaeus was leaving.
"I heard you were looking for something. Maybe I can help you?" she said.
"Ah, thank you. My friend just showed me the Medicine and Legendary Herbs sections, but I am really not sure where to start," Elyre wondered. "I am sorry for bothering you. It would be great if you could help me a little bit!"
"Sure," the woman said. "Don't worry. I know exactly how you feel! You come to this magnificent library, for sure bigger than some castles, you see all those mysterious and silent faces around you. You must feel afraid to speak with anyone because you might disturb them. But let me tell you a secret - many people here are not so serious as they appear! There's nothing to worry about."
The woman pointed at a small table in the distance surrounded by a group of mages who were much louder compared to other parts of the library.
"In fact, you can see here all kinds of people. There are great scientists, philosophers and some clowns too. And some tourists who came just to tell their friends they visited the great library. And that's great. Isn't the beauty of the world in its diversity? I am a bard. My name is Coralia."
"I am Elyre," she answered. Now Elyre vaguely remembered that she'd seen this woman earlier aboard the ship, but she hadn't introduced herself to her.
"You see these people sitting together at the table... over there?" Coralia looked at them. "Actually, they usually talk about runic inscriptions." She observed them for a few seconds to make sure that this time their topic was the same as usual. "See? They have cloaks with various runes on them. They point at some runes and comment on them, and laugh or are scared or serious. Most of them are simply showing off their runes." She laughed. "Let me show you around."
Elyre was too curious. She indeed saw that the mages at the table were looking at some runes.
"So why are they so excited about that?" Elyre said.
"Ah," Coralia gave her a knowing smile. "How could you not know? Runic inscriptions to mages are like collectible pictures to children... They are very important to mages. Usually when two mages meet, one will inevitably say, 'Let me see your runic inscriptions.' And if somebody does not have runic inscriptions, they are always like, 'And you have none? Have you been robbed?!' Well, maybe they would say it in a different way."
She laughed again. "Unfortunately we are unenlightened about the language of magic. So we don't pay the proper attention to runic inscriptions. Or maybe it's better we're unable to read them?..." She pondered over this for a moment. And she continued, "When they are students, they duel for runic inscriptions. The more runes they gain, the more authority they have. After they graduate, runes remain a symbol of prestige. At least that's what I've heard..."
"Alright..." Elyre smiled.
"So, what are you looking for?" Coralia said.
"I am looking for a cure for a certain plant disease. But it's a rare kind of cure... Perhaps I could have a look at some books about the history of Wild Wood."
"Hm, maybe you could ask librarian Heliona for some help. She's very well-read."
"Where can I find her?" Elyre wondered.
"I am not sure, but I think I've seen her office. Let's try to find her," Coralia said.
"Okay. Thank you so much." On the way, Elyre asked, "And how about you? Why are you here? Do you work at the library?"
"Actually, no. The Scholars' Convention is coming soon. It's a time of the year when there are many contests in Vahara Arta. I came to compete with other bards. But the contests haven't started yet, so I have free time..."
Unfortunately, Coralia couldn't find librarian Heliona's study.
"Then let's just have a look around the library," Elyre suggested. "Later I will ask someone who works here for help."
***
Of course, Elyre told Mage Phabian about her meeting with Coralia.
"Have you heard of a librarian named Heliona?" she asked.
His reaction was strange. He looked up from his book and said,
"You should be careful when you take advice from random people. There are all kinds of people."
Elyre shrugged and supposed this meant "no" so far as her question was concerned.