Reaching into his pocket, Winter crouched down and took out a small amount of dried knotweed. He blew it into the padlock and released the lock. He unclipped it and placed it carefully to one side, while I lifted up the trapdoor and gazed downwards into the dark, dank hole that had been revealed. It was little more than a foot and a half wide and there was a rope ladder stretching downwards. The air that rose up from beneath felt humid. I was betting that somewhere down there was water. Knowing my luck, this led directly to the Order sewers. How lovely.

Determined not to complain again and give Winter more cause to snap, I twisted round and began to climb down, swaying dangerously on the first few rungs until I found my balance. It was difficult to keep going, not least because the further I went the darker it got. Above my head, I felt Winter test the ladder’s strength then, apparently deciding that it wouldn’t hold both of us, he pulled back and waited while I continued to descend. I looked neither up nor down; I simply kept ploughing on. I’d wanted to be anywhere other than the library and this was what I got. Be careful what you wish for indeed.

The basement light from above was only just visible by the time my feet landed on solid ground. I tugged on the rope ladder to let Winter know he could come down then used a rune to magic up enough light to see. It definitely looked like a sewer. It smelled a lot like a sewer too.

There were concrete paths on either side of a small, unnatural looking river of gunk. From behind me there was a skittering sound as a rodent of some kind darted along on its merry way. I shivered; mice were one thing but sewer rats were entirely different. The curved walls on either side were covered in dark, slimy moss that only added to atmosphere of despair. If the person who’d stolen the sceptre had brought it down here, I’d certainly award them a gold star for determination.

I edged forward and peered into the gloom, half expecting to see the eyes of some tunnel-dwelling monster staring back at me. As far as I could tell, I was completely alone. Then something touched my back.

I leapt about a foot in the air, banging my head on the low ceiling and almost slipping into the smelly river below. The only reason I didn’t was because Winter grabbed my arm and hauled me to safety. I blinked at him in acknowledgment. I’d have expressed my gratitude but he was the one who’d scared me in the first place.

He turned to the slime on the walls and immediately began bagging some of it up, no doubt for some spell he was planning later. This is one of the many reasons why I prefer focusing my energies on runes rather than herbs. If you have to climb into a sewer to get the ingredients you need, I reckon it’s probably never going to be worth it.