The Lion’s Key is a spell set down upon parchment in ancient Greek, found hidden away in a secret compartment within a study. Its office is to open any locked or sealed door within ten feet of the one who casts it — though the transcription may carry flaws or errors of copying that could yet mar its working. It is thought that even a hand untrained in magic might wield it, provided the instructions be followed to the letter.
Jean-Zera Mongé and Rufus Dimitrious came upon the scroll whilst exploring a cave near Constantinople, and marked at once its worth for the unbarring of doors. Jean-Zera judged that the spell might indeed answer, allowing that its discrepancies could hinder it; Rufus, for his part, chose to make the scroll over to Jean-Zera for safe keeping. Later, meeting a great square door graven with the image of Aphrodite and fitted with snake-handled pulls, Jean-Zera traced a ward in the soil bound to the spell — proof that the door's own ward formed part of the opening, and knitting the Lion's Key into their quest to reach the chamber that lay beyond.