Several days later, in the library on the seventh floor of the Mage Tower.
Openwork Ovesto runes floated beneath the dome. Across the ceiling, runes like stardust radiated brilliant magical light. The floor tiles had been polished until they shone like glass, with star-like gems embedded along their grid lines and intricate, mysterious patterns traced in gold and silver.
Roland walked through the spacious, magnificent hall, looking around. His gaze swept over the interweaving, sacred lights, and he remarked sincerely, "I never imagined the library's work would be so much more complicated than I expected."
As an institution devoted equally to teaching and research, the Mage Tower also fulfilled its responsibilities by continually providing various services to the mages stationed within it and the surrounding region.
These included, but were not limited to, managing knowledge, with particular emphasis on magical knowledge that could grant power.
"I thought it would be just like an ordinary library, only handling basic matters such as borrowing, returns, reservations, and compensation for damaged books..."
"Heh, those are all miscellaneous tasks we can leave to the servants.
As mage librarians, our responsibility is to examine and manage things related to magic.
That includes approving eligibility to borrow and consult materials, distributing and supplementing course materials, filing and organizing documents, and keeping forbidden knowledge confidential.
That last duty also extends to managing classified documents, which falls under archival management."
Nearby, a senior mage of around thirty enthusiastically introduced Roland to the library's work, explaining these points in detail.
"Overall, this is a position that spans multiple disciplines and involves teaching, administration, archival management, and many other duties. Anything involving magical knowledge can only be handled by mages of the appropriate rank."
Roland looked thoughtful. "The fundamental reason for all this is probably that knowledge is power!"
In