Karliah and Ethnir are waiting for me in The Frozen Hearth inn. They've made a temporary base of operations in the cellar, it seems.
Ethnir translated Gallus' journal using the rubbing I obtained. The results confirms Karliah’s suspicions - Gallus did suspect Mercer Frey, and he confided in the journal that he had enough evidence to confront Mercer Frey for stealing from the Guild vault to fund his lavish lifestyle. Gallus also mentioned that in doing so, Mercer Frey had 'desecrated the Twilight Sepulchre'.
But the Twilight Sepulchre is just a legend - a shrine of the elite thieves know as the Nightingales, dedicated to the Daedric Prince Nocturnal... or is it?
Now that the secret is out, Karliah confessed that the three of them were actually the leaders of the thieves network - the legendary Nightingales, favoured of Nocturnal. It was - is - the duty of the Nightingales to guard the Twilight Sepulchre - a connection between the material world to the realm of Nocturnal. The only way to access the Sepulchre is to unlock the door that blocks it, with the Skeleton Key - an artefact that unlocks any door. Use of the Key is taboo to the Nightingales because it makes breaking in any door a matter of fact, not chance or skill.
In his journal, Gallus reasoned that Mercer Frey could only access the Vault (which is designed to be unlocked by two keys and two persons) unseen because he had been using the Key. This closed off the Sepulchre and the connection to Nocturnal and her blessing, which the Guild sees as the source of the Guild’s luck. As the result, where once the thieves operated with unnaturally good luck, the Guild now suffers from the bad luck that everyone talks about.
Righting Mercer Frey's wrongs might restore the relationship with Nocturnal... at least, that's what Karliah hoped.
Armed with the decoded journal, Karliah is ready for the next part of her plans - revealing the truth to the Guild. We headed to the Ragged Flagon in Riften to see if we can convince Brynjolf of Mercer Frey's betrayal.
Brynjolf is stubbornly loyal to Mercer Frey - Frey had been there to rebuild the Guild after Gallus and Karliah disappeared, after all. But then Karliah suggested Brynjolf check the Vault - she knows that the Vault can only be opened by two Guild members. So if Mercer Frey had been stealing from the Vault as Gallus suggested, the Vault will be pretty empty...
And it is empty. Brynjolf had no choice but to agree that Karliah is right - Mercer Frey had absconded with everything of value in the Vault.
Brynjolf thinks that Mercer Frey might have left plans in his mansion in Riften - Maven gifted the property to him a while ago, but he never stayed in there. Instead Brynjolf learnt that the master thief used it as a sort of planning base for his heists. Raiding the mansion might reveal where Mercer is headed.
We sneaked into the room to discover supplies, letters, and maps - enough to give us an idea of Mercer Frey's plans. He’s planning to steal the fabled Eyes of the Falmer. Karliah says that the Eyes of the Falmer were Gallus' final planned hit - one last big score before retiring. Mercer Frey must be planning the same before he quits Skyrim for good. This might be the last chance we have to stop him and retrieve the Key.
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