The Lantern Rest’s rear room is cramped but secure. Felix’s belongings lie undisturbed beside the bed, while Mara keeps watch at the shuttered window, one hand resting near her sword.
She closes the shutters against the village street and draws a charred fragment from the lining of her coat. The parchment shows the southern trail, a nameless ruin, and a section torn away with deliberate care.
Mara Vey
This is what Varek Dhal wanted me to recover. I took it before I ran, but the missing section was already gone.
Mara spreads the fragment across the small table. A faint mark near the ruin catches the lantern light, shaped like the crown scratched into the silver coin outside.
Mara Vey
That mark was not visible when I stole the map. It appeared after the summons found us, which means the ruin may be changing, or waking.
Mara Vey
I stayed beside you because the road made us allies. Now tell me, Felix: do we study this here, or leave before the coin outside calls something to the door?
✓ Quest Accepted
Reach the nameless ruin