The Travels of a Hairy Hermit

Baron Edric Vale draws a fresh warrant from his writing chest and lays it beside the shipment records. Aritik and Halric remain at the table, while Odran Pell stands ready to receive its command.

The baron writes that Nilsar will act as sergeant for the transfer of recovered cargo into guarded storage. The warrant limits that duty to custody and transport, leaving command of the watch with Odran.

Baron Edric Vale presses his signet into the wax, then stamps the warrant before the assembled witnesses. Aritik checks each line against the ledger while Halric watches the limits of his former office being recorded.

Nilsar lifts the freshly sealed warrant from the table, taking it directly from Baron Edric Vale’s custody. The wax remains unbroken, and the written limits are clear.

He carries the warrant through the tower and down into the fortress yard, his healed shoulder moving freely. Morning activity parts around him as he crosses toward the watch offices.

Captain Odran stands beside the eastern training line, reviewing assignments with a ledger under one arm. He turns as Nilsar approaches with the baron’s sealed command.

Odran accepts the warrant, checks Baron Edric Vale’s seal and its stated limits, then records the transfer of command in his ledger. The order is now in his hands and ready for execution.

A broad-shouldered veteran steps from the eastern line. Kazej Sykes, with sun-browned skin and a square jaw, is a middle-aged man with a weathered face, close-cropped iron-gray hair, a scar across one eyebrow, and a worn green surcoat over his mail.

Odran assigns Kazej to the transfer detail and records his duty in the watch ledger. The veteran takes position beside the receiving table, where he can see every crate, bundle, and written number.

Kazej moves to the receiving table and examines the cargo seals one by one. Nilsar’s Legendary Perception catches fresh wax, disturbed edges, and clean impressions, while his Skilled Craftsman’s eye distinguishes sound seals from flaws in the material.

Kazej records the seal condition beside each cargo number, pressing his witness mark into the watch ledger. The inspected loads remain closed, with their custody clear before the count begins.

Kazej takes his place beside the ledger, ready to compare every number against the sealed loads. The transfer begins with the cargo’s condition established and witnessed.

Nilsar begins the witnessed tally. He reads each cargo number from the Storehouse Issue Books, compares it with the wagon marks, and directs Kazej’s inspection without disturbing the intact seals.

His Legendary Perception catches every crate, bundle, and recorded unit. His Skilled Craftsman’s eye recognizes standard packing and weight, while Keeps Reliable Accounts preserves the sequence from wagon to receiving table.

Nilsar completes the count across all recovered loads, finding every listed crate and bundle present. The figures match the Storehouse Issue Books exactly, and Kazej signs beside each witnessed total.

The transfer record is sealed with the matching totals. Nilsar’s precise count also reveals an unasked-for advantage: one crate bears a second merchant mark hidden beneath its outer tally, identifying its original northern consignee.

Nilsar Yarb leaves fortress yard, beside the eastern training line behind and arrives at his cottage.

Nilsar reaches his cottage with the Storehouse Issue Books secured beneath one arm. Captain Odran waits outside, while the quiet room holds his usual travel clothes beside the bed.

He changes swiftly, checking each fastening and buckle with practiced precision. The familiar clothes sit properly, and he is ready with a moment to spare, carrying the books without damage.

Nilsar and Odran return to the keep without delay. The sealed transfer record remains with the books, while the hidden merchant mark is preserved for the baron’s review.

In Baron Edric Vale’s chamber, Aritik is already arranging the inquiry papers. Nilsar places the books before the baron, and Odran sets the witnessed tally beside them.

Nilsar stands beside the chamber table in green clothes with gold trim, brown pants, and brown leather boots. His shield and two-handed axe hang across his back, while his longsword rests ready at his waist.

He sets the Northern Helmet beside the damp map and checks each strap, buckle, and balance by touch. Gravam’s green, brown, and partly gold-rimmed shield keeps the painted donkey visible, while the axe remains secured without obstructing his sword.

His craftsman’s eye organizes the table for the inquiry: helmet to one side, map centered, Storehouse Issue Books within reach, and the sealed tally placed above them. Every item can be inspected without shifting the evidence.

Reading the damp map against the wagon marks, Nilsar identifies the safest order for presenting the cargo records and keeps the merchant mark covered until the baron calls for it. The map’s softened ink still leaves one route junction uncertain.

Nilsar opens the sealed tally and places it before Baron Edric Vale. Keeps Reliable Accounts preserves every crate, bundle, and total in order, with Kazej Sykes’s witness mark beside each figure.

He then uncovers the second merchant mark on the crate record and sets the corresponding notation beside it. Records Research connects the mark to the wagon entry and Storehouse Issue Books without disturbing the cargo’s custody.

Aritik copies the mark, crate number, tally total, and custody notation onto a clean sheet. Her legal record keeps the discovered mark distinct from any conclusion about the cargo’s proper consignee.

Odran studies the tally, then turns toward the yard. His authority gathers the nearby defenders, who leave their routine posts and form a disciplined watch around the storage entrance.

Four watch guards take position around the storehouse. Two cover the main doors, one watches the side passage, and one remains ready to summon Odran without leaving the cargo unobserved.

Odran records the reinforced watch in his ledger and assigns the first relief by name and hour. The storage now has continuous protection under his command, while Nilsar’s authority over the transfer remains intact.

Nilsar Yarb leaves Baron Edric Vale's chamber behind and arrives at northern road.

The northern road runs between wind-bent pines and low stone markers, its hard-packed surface silvered by morning frost. Nilsar arrives with Kazej and the road watchman nearest the table, both carrying travel gear and weapons.

Nilsar checks the patrol’s bedrolls, waterskins, straps, and provisions with swift, practiced movements. The baron’s permission and the captain’s custody order are secured among his papers, authorizing an indefinite patrol along the northern road.

The road watchman tightens his cloak and checks the patrol’s signal horn. His attention settles on the northern bends, where wagon tracks fade among frost-stiff grass and scattered birch.

With the patrol prepared, Nilsar leads them north beneath the pale sky. Their pace is steady, their supplies secured, and their lawful duty begins without a fixed end date.

Nilsar slows the patrol beside three merchant carts waiting at a roadside marker. He asks each trader about their routes while Kazej and the road watchman keep the horses and cargo lanes clear.

Nilsar checks seals, painted boards, and stamped bundles against the Storehouse Issue Books. Keeps Reliable Accounts fixes each merchant, route, cargo number, and answer in sequence, while Records Research compares every mark with the existing entries.

One northern-station crate bears a black hook beneath its tally cord, and a coastward bundle carries three small crowns beside an older merchant stamp. No other inspected load shows either symbol.

Nilsar enters both symbols, their cargo numbers, routes, and the merchants’ statements in the report. The patrol moves on with the marks documented and the traders’ answers preserved as witnessed information.

Nilsar leads the patrol farther north in an anti-ambush formation. His Gilded Round Shield covers the forward side, while the Two-Handed Axe rides ready across his back and the Longsword stays balanced at his hip beneath the concealed Chainmail Armour.

His Perception catches wagon tracks, disturbed frost, and concealed hollows before the patrol reaches each bend. Kazej watches the road center, while the road watchman scans the verges and rear approach.

Two more merchant carts yield to the patrol’s signal. Nilsar checks their boards, seals, and bundles without breaking anything, recording each route and mark while the shield keeps his hands protected.

The merchants continue north under witness. Nilsar finds no black hook or three-crown symbol among their cargo, and the patrol resumes its measured march with every approach covered.

The second scout and the road watchman nearest the table leave the formation, moving ahead along opposite verges. Nilsar opens the Damp Map and marks the bends, hollows, and side tracks where carts could disappear from view.

Nilsar rallies the local defenders with a clear hand signal, assigning Kazej and the remaining patrol to hold the merchants in place and prepare for either movement or a guarded inspection.

The scouts return before the patrol advances. Their route matches the Damp Map, and their observations cover each side track beyond the merchants’ position.

Nilsar now has a confirmed report and a prepared patrol. Kazej keeps the merchants gathered while the defenders await his next lawful movement along the northern road.

The three defenders answer without hesitation. Nilsar’s Rally Local Defenders gives their service a proper place in the patrol, while his diplomacy earns direct reports instead of guarded silence.

The patrol now has three names and a useful route lead. Kazej keeps the merchants gathered as Beran, Sella, a young adult woman with a slim build, freckled face, auburn braids, and an olive wool coat over a pale shirt, and Teren wait for Nilsar’s next order.