The authorization document felt heavy in my hands, the crimson wax seal bearing Daedric's emblem still warm to the touch. Getting it had taken Magnus's direct intervention and hours of diplomatic wrangling. Daedric's reluctance was evident in every carefully worded restriction on the document—we could enter the sealed room, but only for two hours, with our original team composition, and under the continued supervision of Advisor Koren.
"Small victories," Jin murmured beside me as we approached the unassuming door that had blocked our progress yesterday.
Advisor Koren was already waiting, his posture rigid with displeasure. When he saw us, his lips thinned to nearly nothing.
"You have your authorization, I see," he said, the words clipped and precise.
I handed him the document. "Signed by Lord Daedric himself."
