You will enter this section from either the Great Corridor on the same level or by stairs from Level 2 - Palace Corridor. A long corridor winds round three sides but you have to explore it in two sections, and there are six main areas above, all of which have locked rooms - without keyholes.
An NPC will tell you that there are a lot of secret doors in this area but he can't work out the correct sequence to open them. He wishes he had a more complete map of the area. He also says you won't get anywhere unless you have the King's Ring. Another says that once you find a key in this area, seek the hidden door and follow your destiny. The door appears only when you have the right key. Where it leads he doesn't know. A third talks about the Mausoleum. There are many ways through it but few are rewarding. The most direct ways are the most challenging. You are warned not to continued unless you have what the King demands. (This, we know, is his robe, crown and scepter). A fourth tells you that beneath the King's living quarters is the Thieves' Den. Only a thief or one with thieves' skills will pick his way through it.
From our fight with King Cleowyn and the info we got from the tapestry afterwards, we know we are looking for a two-faced Y. Check your map. Ah ha! In the middle of the bottom three areas is an area that looks like a Ys joined together (if you close your eyes a bit and squint ...). The four doors to this area are sealed shut with a bas relief of a royal ring. They will only open if you have the King's Ring. Once inside, you'll find four switches which you flick by moving back and forwards or turning. Switches can be open or closed and there are 16 combinations. Gulp. Unless there is an easy way to do this, you have to try out each combination with all the doors. A secret door at I11 leads west and cuts down some walking. Now, I painstakingly wrote down which combination opened which doors, but when I had to re-enter one room, the combination didn't work - it must be random.
Compiler's Notes: Actually, you must exit the switches in the opposite direction as the door(s) you are trying to unlock (i.e. - if the door(s) you are trying to enter face east, then you need to exit the switches going west, regardless of which direction you entered the switches from). This will unlock all doors that face east. This also means that there are only 4 possible combinations, not 16. Try it and see for yourself!
There are a few important locations to find. Tapestries at K2 give useful info. You must take the crown, robe and scepter to the Mausoleum and use the correct niches to open the true path to the King's Tomb. The other says to go west, but not farthest west and give the crown when you can go no more. Go east, but not farthest east and give the robe when you can go no more. When crown and robe are given, continue to the door of the tomb and give the scepter there to be rewarded.
But what we need right now are three keys. At O1 , you will get the O Rune Vowel Key, at M10 , you will get the I Rune Vowel Key, and at M14, you will get the E Rune Vowel Key . You'll have to open the door in each case using the switches and fight for them. When you are carrying one of these keys, facing south at G8 will make a door appear in the wall. Through here are three more areas, each with a locked door. Back to the switches!
Each door leads to a corridor, some stairs and a Secret Room on Level 2. Yes, they are the three areas we couldn't enter in the Palace Corridor. Mystery solved! In each case, entering one particular room (the door to which is sometimes unlocked using a Rune Vowel Key - you'll certainly need it at least once in each section) will get you into a major fight. The key will be taken from you and you'll win the crown, robe or scepter. Using the map refs from the Palace Corridor, you'll get Cleowyn's Scepter at J16, Cleowyn's Crown at N1, and Cleowyn's Robe at M5. Phew!