Mara remains beside the records cabinet as Lufy reaches the ajar street door with the black ledger secured in evidence custody. The cane mark continues across the gritty threshold.
Just outside stands a thin middle-aged man with a pinched face, sandy hair under a flat cap, and a threadbare brown coat. He holds a bundle of unsold newspapers and watches the cane mark, not Lufy.
Ivo Kells
You are looking for the man who made that mark. I know where he went, but the ledger comes first.
Mara Venn
He was not here when I sent the detective through. Do not touch that evidence, Ivo.
The vendor's eyes flick from Mara to the ledger's sealed wrapping. His grip tightens on the newspapers, as though weighing whether this request has already been made elsewhere.
Ivo Kells
Ivo Kells. I gave the same warning to another gentleman not five minutes ago. Show me the black ledger, and I will name the destination.
Mara stays inside the corridor, one hand near the locked cabinet. Beyond Ivo, the street offers several directions, but the fresh grit and cane trail remain the only clear path.
✓ Quest Accepted
Learn where the man with the silver-headed cane went
Director's note
requests ID and allows Kells to look at ledger within evidence bag
“Show me some ID mr kells and then if that checks out you make look at the ledger within the sealed evidence bag. Now which way did the man with the cane go?”
FAILURE (Good Psychology, rolled -2)
Lufy
Show me some identification, Mr. Kells. If it checks out, you may look at the ledger through its sealed evidence bag. Then tell me which way the man with the cane went.
Ivo produces a battered press card from inside his threadbare coat. The name and photograph match, but the card is badly creased, and its publication line has been partly rubbed away.
Ivo Kells
There. I am Ivo Kells, licensed vendor and occasional correspondent. I will not touch the seal.
Lufy holds the ledger up inside its wrapping. Ivo leans close without contact, but his eyes pause at the spine before jumping to the evidence label. The helpful ledger gives him something real to react to, and his guarded posture loosens only halfway.
Ivo Kells
That is the black ledger. The cane man went east, toward the tram underpass. I saw him turn there.
The answer arrives too neatly. Ivo's attention had fixed on the ledger before he named the route, and his fingers now crush the corner of one newspaper. He is bargaining, but the failed read exposes a second lead.
Mara Venn
Detective, the underpass is east, but the records corridor has a service gate there. If he used it, the cane mark will not continue on the street.
The destination remains uncertain, but the service gate offers a concrete alternative to Ivo's polished direction. Mara keeps the cabinet secured while the sealed ledger stays in Lufy's custody.
Director's note
brings kells to service entrance to verify his story on the way he asks further questions about the cane mans apperance
“OK mr kells, come with me to the service entrance and we will find the cane man together”
SUCCESS (Good Psychology, rolled +0)
Lufy
All right, Mr. Kells. Come with me to the service entrance. We will find the cane man together.
Lufy keeps the sealed ledger in evidence custody and leads Ivo along the records corridor. Mara remains by the cabinet, watching the pair pass through the service gate.
Ivo Kells
Together, then. He was a thin man, middle-aged, with a weathered face. The cane was dark, and he carried it in his right hand.
Lufy
What else did you notice about him? His coat, hat, or anything distinctive?
At the service entrance, Ivo points through the open gate toward the eastbound tram underpass. The cane trail ends at the threshold, leaving the direction verified but the man himself unconfirmed.
Ivo Kells
Brown overcoat, low felt hat. A silver head on the cane. I did not see his eyes clearly. I was watching the crowd, not his face.
The escort has cost several minutes, and the underpass now offers too many exits for certainty. Still, Ivo's account confirms the gate as a real route, not merely a polished guess.
Quest Complete
Learn where the man with the silver-headed cane went
Skill Upgrade: Psychology Good→Great