Forewarned by practice in the Mechanism, Livira slips behind a door as the head librarian passes, then picks the lock into Yamala’s private library. Aware discovery would mean ruin or exile, she persists despite shaking nerves and enters a chamber packed with coveted, near-mythic volumes.

After searching aisle by aisle, Livira locates a heavy, locked, iron-bound tome and hides the gap on the shelf. As she turns to leave, a pitch-black hound—shorter than her but long and massive—blocks the aisle. Recognizing it as the guide-dog she once heard of, she freezes as the entry door bangs; trusting the hound’s turn of head to mark Yamala’s approach, Livira crawls beneath the animal and slips away.

She latches the door, but the hound effortlessly phases through the thick wood, tangible to her touch yet leaving no mark. When Yamala calls, "Volente!", the dog obeys and returns, letting Livira flee back through the corridors to her rooms.

Inside, Livira stumbles into a scheduled gathering: Carlotte, Jella, Neera, and Katrin are drinking and gossiping. They prod her about love and access to the library; Carlotte argues the library itself is a lock. Livira deflects by complaining about the locked book she’s brought, and eventually ushers them out.

Alone, Livira bolts the door and carries the satchel to her bedroom to examine the prize—only to scream as she finds the black hound already waiting. The apparition’s presence in her private space signals that Yamala’s agent can reach her anywhere.