The barred door opens. The royal attendant steps into the corridor and gestures for Hazel to follow, while the royal messenger remains in the receiving room with the secured dispatch.
Queen Theria accompanies Hazel through guarded passages, her dark blue gown whispering over the stone. Spearmen watch from each archway as the attendant leads them toward the council chamber.
the royal attendant
The King has been briefed on the document's alleged contents. He will ask what the claim could mean for the crown, the council, and Islesbury.
The chamber doors stand open beneath the royal standard. Inside, King Alta waits over a broad map of Athea, with the road to Islesbury marked in red wax.
King Alta is a large, muscular middle-aged man with swept-back dark hair streaked with gray, a thick beard, and a black coat fastened with gold.
King Alta
Lady Hazel, come nearer. I want your account before rumor reaches the council. If Matre's designation is genuine, what will your house seek from the crown?
Queen Theria
She has not yet been permitted to examine the evidence, Alta. Let her distinguish what the Forrest family knows from what others now allege.
✓ Quest Accepted
Win King Alta's support for the Forrest succession claim
“I will seek only a lawful hearing of Matre's designation and its evidence. I do not wish to upend the status quo by trying to take the crown for myself, and I do not wish for things to change.”
SUCCESS (Good Diplomacy, rolled -2)
Hazel Forrest
Your Majesty, I seek only a lawful hearing of Matre's designation and the evidence supporting it. I do not seek the crown or upheaval.
Hazel's words settle over the map table. The marked road to Islesbury remains between them, while the council doors stay open to listening ears.
King Alta
Then you shall have that hearing. The designation, its witnesses, and every relevant Forrest record will be examined before crown and council.
Queen Theria
Her position is clear, Alta. She asks for judgment under law, not advantage through uncertainty.
King Alta draws a heavy seal from beside the map and presses it into warm wax on the hearing order. The royal clerk, a young adult man with a narrow face, cropped dark hair, and a brown wool tunic beneath a gray recording robe at the chamber wall begins recording Hazel's declaration.
King Alta
Your refusal of the crown will be entered beside your request. It protects the realm from panic, but it also places your house under public scrutiny.
the royal attendant
The order names Islesbury's records and portrait for immediate preservation. No Forrest representative may remove or alter them before examination.
“I ask King Alta what evidence he requires”
SUCCESS (Good Diplomacy, rolled -1)
Hazel Forrest
Your Majesty, what evidence do you require to establish Matre's designation and its lawful force?
The royal clerk pauses, quill lifted. Beyond the open doors, listening councilors shift closer, and the red wax on the Islesbury route gleams beneath the candles.
King Alta
First, the original designation, or a chain of custody strong enough to prove its copy faithful. Then the witnesses' names, their seals, and the council record that confirms Matre received the authority.
King Alta
We will compare the handwriting and wax with authenticated Forrest documents. The portrait may identify Matre, but it proves no succession by itself.
Queen Theria
Household ledgers, letters, burial records, and testimony from Islesbury may establish where the document was kept and who knew of it. Each claim must be separated from family tradition.
The clerk writes every requirement into the hearing order, adding Hazel's question as the first recorded request for clarification. The growing audience now knows precisely what her house must expose.
King Alta
You have the standard, Lady Hazel. In return, the examination becomes public before crown and council, and any contradiction in the Forrest records will be entered without concealment.
✓ Quest Accepted
Establish Matre's designation before the crown and council
“I request that the Islesbury records be preserved and examined publicly.”
SUCCESS (Good Diplomacy, rolled -2)
Hazel Forrest
Your Majesty, I request that the Islesbury records be preserved and examined publicly before crown and council.
The royal clerk records the request beneath the hearing order. King Alta takes the seal from the wax, while the councilors lean forward to hear his ruling.
King Alta
Granted. The Islesbury records, portrait, ledgers, letters, and burial registers are to be secured at once and examined publicly under royal authority.
Queen Theria
The examination will include Forrest witnesses and the crown's appointed notary. No record may be removed, altered, or privately withheld.
The royal clerk adds the preservation order and presses fresh wax beside the first seal. His quill breaks under the force of the final stroke, scattering ink across the margin.
the royal attendant
I will dispatch riders to Islesbury before sunset. The keepers must surrender the materials into guarded custody and prepare the public chamber.
King Alta
Your request is entered and fulfilled, Lady Hazel. The cost is scrutiny: the council will hear every contradiction your family records reveal.