Hauer keeps writing, but the scratch of his quill now sounds like a blade on stone. The Clerk glances to the windows, then away, as heavy boots stop outside the hall door.
The door opens. Two bailiffs bring in a robed canon with a folded writ and a hard mouth. He plants the paper on Hauer’s desk and names Bishop Eisenfaust’s demand: halt the hearing, surrender the evidence, and hold Frieda for questioning.
Magistrate Hauer
This court has accepted the record. If the Bishop wants the chain broken, let him answer it here.
The Canon
You mistake boldness for lawful standing. The Bishop calls this matter his own, and his seal outranks your table of papers.
The Clerk goes pale. Hauer does not reach for the writ, only turns it with two fingers, making the Bishop’s seal face Frieda and the room.
Magistrate Hauer
Then let the seal be read into the record. Frieda, if you name the riders and swear to the chest, this court will bind the summons before sunset.
✓ Quest Accepted
Seal the summons before sunset
“"Surely the Bishop does not challenge the authority of the Emperor? His Holiness the Pope may do so if he wishes, but until he does, we are all bound by the governance of the Empire. I swear to the evidence presented by my oath as a priest of God."”
FAILURE (Good Oratory, rolled -3)
Frieda lifts her chin and swears to the evidence in her priestly office, but the words land thinly against the canon's seal. Hauer keeps his gaze on the writ, not the cloth of her vow.
The Canon
A chaplain's oath does not outweigh a bishop's command. Your appeal is noted, and disregarded.
The clerk's pen keeps moving anyway, careful and fast, as if speed itself can shelter the page. Hauer does not flinch, yet the canon's smile tightens when Frieda's challenge fails to move him.
Magistrate Hauer
Then we weigh this by law, not by threat. Clerk, continue the summons.
The Clerk
At once, my lord. The record stands, if the seal is entered before the hour turns.
The canon draws back half a step, forced now to watch the ink instead of command it. On the desk, the torn scarf and the Bishop's seal sit side by side, as plain as accusation.
Frieda
The summons is still being written.
“"You have forgotten the Omne Datum Optimum of 1139, issued by Pope Innocent II, which grants the Templars independence from the orders of bishops and archbishops. We answer only to the Pope himself, and you have no more authority here than I do."”
SUCCESS (Fair Theology, rolled -1)
Frieda
You have forgotten the Omne Datum Optimum of 1139, from Pope Innocent II. The Templars answer to the Pope alone, not to bishops or archbishops.
The canon’s chin lifts, then stalls. Hauer turns the page with one steady hand, and the clerk keeps the line straight in the record.
The Canon
Then I am answered by Rome, not by your chaplain’s office. Here, this hearing stands under law until Rome says otherwise.
For a breath, the writ in his hand looks smaller than the ink on the desk. The torn scarf and the Bishop’s seal sit exposed beside the ledger, no longer the whole of the matter.
Magistrate Hauer
Then let Rome speak through our court if it must. Clerk, enter the summons as sealed, and note the canon’s protest in full.
The Clerk
As you command, my lord. I have it marked, sealed, and witnessed.
The clerk’s pen slows only long enough to press the final stroke, then he sands the line and sets the wax. The canon falls silent, watching the fresh seal dry while Hauer keeps his hand on the record.
Quest Complete
Seal the summons before sunset
Skill Upgrade: Oratory Good→Great