"I got this list from the Amanuensis Office." He holds it out. "I'm also looking for some additional study material on Imperial Law and a general primer on the various orders and how they work."

The Late Librarian examines the list. "Fundamental Principles of the Arcane...The Code of the Order...The Colloquia...A Unified Theory of Magic...Yes, these have all been Indexed." He places one hand on an enormous ledger and extends the other sideways as if reaching for something. A moment later a book emerges from the shrouded upper shelves and zooms into his outstretched hand. He places it on the desk and repeats this process until there is a neat stack of books whose titles match Alex's list. 

"For Imperial Law, section four-eighteen." He extends a bony finger towards a set of bookcases to Alex's left. "Petronian Orders, section four-eleven." A slightly different set of bookcases.

"Thank you." He will pick up the books and then go to look on the indicated shelves. He doesn't quite resist the temptation to prioritize information about the orders.

There are books about the Orders! In at least seventeen languages! Would he like a memoir written by a long-forgotten Quaesitor? A political thriller between Vision and Viscera? A steamy romance about the Order of Aetherics? A series of peasant fables featuring magi, gathered by a scholar of Sustenance? A mathematical analysis of the numerological correspondences of a century of magus names? A collaborative treatise on demonology by former rivals in Cognizance and Chains? A six hundred page accounting of certamen duels, their stakes, and their outcomes? 

(If these books are organized, it is not in a way that is immediately obvious to Alex. Imperial Law isn't much better. If he wants to find something remotely introductory or comprehensive, he may have to venture deeper into the stacks.)

As fascinating as all this is he assumes there's some system in place. He will return to The Late Librarian and ask a question. "Excuse me, is there a way to find books more easily than just looking at everything in a section if I don't know the title I'm looking for?"

The Late Librarian ponders this. 

"There are always books to find. Always more books in the Library. Specific title, specific book, this is easy. One to one. Specific author, more complicated, still workable. Bounded selection. Books checked in, books that are Indexed, can be retrieved. Topic? Not easy. Cannot isolate, only cluster. This stack, that stack. Manual search. Perhaps you find what you seek, even if you do not know it. Perhaps you are never found again." 

... he can get lost forever in the library? As romantic as that sounds, the reality would be horrifying. "Are there principles to using the library safely?"

"The pursuit of knowledge may be worthy, but it is never truly safe. Nonetheless, there are indeed precautions. Do not damage books or other Library contents. Do not remove the substance of books from the Library without prior authorization, only images thereof. Do not disturb the peace nor hinder quiet contemplation. If you are lost, seek the familiar." 

That seems to imply it isn't easy to get lost at least. So there's that. Still why is this library not organized in any sort of useful way? "You mentioned an Index. Is that something those like myself can access or simply a part of your Name?"

"Lesser Indices are open to all scholars upon request. One must be precise, and note that many indicators are incomplete." He sounds almost apologetic. Then he points to the enormous tome on his desk. "The greater Index is as much a part of me as a part of the Library, and not easy for others to consult.  It lists the books which have entered the Library from without." The Librarian frowns. "And a few which...insert themselves. Frustrating. I meant to track down the source. Where are my notes? Let me see..." He begins rummaging in the enormous desk. A minute later he emerges and blinks at Alex. 

"Title, or topic?" 

Oh. "I'm looking for a lesser index of the books on Imperial Law."

The Late Librarian opens a drawer and produces a significantly pared-down volume. 

Within are several lists of the same books, first alphabetically by title, then alphabetically by author, then chronologically by date of publication (with a considerable number of empty spots in the latter two.) An Early History of the Empire by Quintus Trebatius is listed as a summa on Imperial Law; most of the others look like legal documents and opinions, listed as tractatus. 

"Could I get a copy of An Early History of the Empire by Quintus Trebatius please?" That will be more than enough books to start with he can't read books this complex that fast.

The Late Librarian summons a thick volume and sets it down next to the wooden-framed glass pane. "Copy, yes. Use the Booking Glass. Place it gently upon the tome, remove the image."

Oh, that's what The Late Librarian meant about removing images. He hadn't really thought about it, he's still a little off kilter from interacting with the ghost? shade? remnant? he's not sure what the correct term is.

He tries putting one of the books he's collected under the glass.

If only there were a place he could find information about various states of not-quite-dead, like a library. 

He has to place the glass on top of the book — it's a little bit awkward but not too heavy — and after a moment there appears another book of similar size but considerably more embellished cover sitting on top of the glass! 

"Interesting." Aside from the cover does this weigh the same? Are there any other differences he can notice?

It feels like it ought to have heft to it, it is a large book, but it seems to actually not weigh anything at all? It takes approximately no effort to move. It has texture, though! It's silky. There's eerie little illuminated drawings on the pages that look like they might be gilded. This would be an absurdly expensive book if it were real.

That's convenient. He'll go through making copies of the rest of the books. And then, "I'm finished with these." He puts the stacked originals near the large Tome.

The book-images all come out almost tastelessly embellished. They can be stacked despite their apparent lack of substance, though it's harder to put them in a pack or bag because they don't really exert outward force. 

The Late Librarian taps the originals one at a time, murmuring "Shelve," and they vanish from his desk! He then resumes his perusal of the Index. 

Alex has time to at least look at the introduction to some of these before dinner right? He looks around for somewhere to sit.

There's an incredibly floofy ancient-looking armchair over here, and a writing desk wedged against a bookcase there, and a table with four mismatched chairs in a...clearing...over there.

He'll claim the armchair for the moment. Is there anything useful he can gather from a brief perusal? Do any of these books have brief introductions?

(The armchair is exactly as cozy as it looks, but smells faintly of licorice.) 

An Early History of the Empire opens with a long-winded foreword about the glory of a long-dead Imperator and several officials, whose political significance is probably lost on Alex. There's a chapter listing, though, and a quick skim can tell Alex that the book spends a lot of time talking about the legal code set forth by the first Imperator in between his glorious conquests of various city-states, and discussing the deals and alliances that were later codified into law. It's dense and kind of archaic Miezan, and although Alex reads better than he speaks it's still going to be a bit of a project to extract details.

Fundamental Principles of the Arcane is surprisingly accessible. It contains precise, practical summaries of the five Techniques and ten Forms of Petronian magic, the importance of Vim (raw power or metamagic) in magical combat, the known limits of magic, principles of spell development and item enchantment, magic resistance and the bypassing thereof, raw vis and its usage, ritual and ceremonial casting, arcane connections, personal sigils, certamen, and a selection of concentration techniques. It touches only briefly upon a number of other subjects, including magical regios, warping, magical creatures, and the mystical realms.

A Unified Theory of Magic is a four-volume set written by Petronus himself; Alex is already familiar with a somewhat adulterated verison of Volume III. It appears to cover all these subjects in greater depth, but the language is older and a bit harder to understand. It uses terms closer to "manifestation" or "channeling" than the more modern "spellcasting" and is if anything more confusingly worded than the Charlenius copy. There's plenty to puzzle over, though.

The Code of the Order is a comparatively compact summary of explicit Petronian law, grafted onto a massive corpus of tribunal decisions and centuries of precedent.

The Colloquia appears to be a compendium of tales told by various characters, set in the town square of Arbis, and was largely recommended as a way to practice Miezan vocabulary.

Aside from the first one they all seem like excellent choices. That's probably not a coincidence. At some point he should ask what the recommended course book for Imperial law is because it probably isn't this.

In the meantime, he will reluctantly part from this comfy chair and the call of Knowledge and make his way back to the dorms to drop these off and then assuming the time is right he goes to the ... he thinks it was called the Prytaneum. That seems like far too fancy a word for the dining hall though.