The Travels of a Hairy Hermit

Nilsar completes the first northern road patrol report beside the gathered carts. He records each merchant route, the black hook and three-crown marks, cargo numbers, and every witnessed statement.

Kazej signs the report while Beran, a young adult man with a lean build, tawny skin, cropped brown hair, and a weathered green cloak over a rust-red tunic, Sella, and Teren remain with Nilsar. The merchants stay beside their carts, and the patrol prepares to turn back toward Anuncagra.

A mounted woman approaches with a narrow, stern face, dark hair braided beneath a gray riding hood, and mud-stained boots from the southern road, an adult with a lean build, dark traveling coat, silver-edged brown cloak, and a sealed writ held visibly in one hand.

She dismounts before the patrol and offers the writ without lowering her guarded expression. Its royal seal outranks Baron Edric Vale’s local authority, and no merchant or defender mistakes the demand for a request.

The patrol falls silent. Kazej keeps the signed report ready, while Beran, Sella, Teren, and the merchants remain present for the royal justice’s examination.

Nilsar accepts the sealed writ and reads its instructions without breaking the royal seal. Alwen watches closely as he lays the patrol report beside it.

Reads Legal Records clarifies the writ’s authority, required report, and stated limits. Its wording follows the formal structure used in the baron’s lawful orders rather than imitating them loosely.

Nilsar compares the royal impression with the seals recorded on the original orders. The crown points, border spacing, wax depth, and stamped lettering align without signs of substitution or tampering.

He opens the Storehouse Issue Books and checks the writ’s referenced cargo numbers against the earlier orders. The entries match the recorded routes, marks, dates, and custody sequence.

The comparison succeeds: the writ is genuine, its royal seal authentic, and its instructions consistent with the documented orders. Nothing in the seal or wording supports calling it a forgery.

Nilsar opens the Storehouse Issue Books Kazej has kept and places them beside the patrol report. The merchants remain gathered by their carts while Alwen watches the record work.

Keeps Reliable Accounts preserves each merchant’s route, cargo number, mark, and statement in sequence. Records Research matches those details against the earlier orders and custody entries.

Lore (Local) identifies the northern station wording and the significance of the black hook and three-crown marks, separating what the merchants witnessed from what the books establish.

Nilsar writes a clean copy of the report for Alwen to carry to the King, including every merchant testament without changing its meaning or presenting suspicion as proof.

At the bottom, he adds a compact coded warning: the betrayal by Lucas Harris may be linked to these diversions and may signal preparations for a greater invasion.

Alwen folds the completed copy beneath her sealed writ. Kazej’s signed original remains with Nilsar, while the merchants’ accounts and the coded warning now travel toward the King.

The patrol turns north again, leaving the merchants and royal writ behind. Nilsar marches at the front beneath his Northern Helmet, its close fit keeping wind and road noise from dulling his hearing.

He signals the defenders into a listening pattern through Rally Local Defenders: Kazej watches the road, Beran questions travelers, Sella reads the western verge, and Teren checks the eastern track.

Nilsar slows the march and listens beneath the helmet’s rim. The report is recent, and Beran’s knowledge places the men beyond the next bend, near ground suited to a small ambush.

The patrol now has a confirmed rumor and matching tracks for three lightly equipped raiders ahead. Nilsar’s defenders hold their formation, ready to approach the charcoal cut under his lawful command.

Nilsar sends Teren Voss, Sella Marr, and Beran Holt with the remaining patrol behind the three men, spreading quietly along the charcoal track while Kazej Sykes follows him alone.

Nilsar approaches openly with his Longsword secured at his hip and the green-and-brown Gilded Round Shield forward, its painted donkey and partial gold rim visible. Concealed Chainmail rests beneath his clothes.

The three men turn from their small fire. One is broad and bearded in a patched brown coat, one is a narrow-faced younger man in gray wool, and the third is an older man with a red scarf and weathered hands.

Nilsar and Kazej sit within easy reach of the fire. His shield stays across his knees, protecting his hands without threatening, while the Longsword remains sheathed and the hidden mail gives quiet security.

Nilsar keeps the round green-and-brown shield across his knees, its partial gold rim and painted donkey making his open hands visible. His Rally Local Defenders training gives the question a calm, trustworthy authority rather than the pressure of an interrogation.

Kazej listens without interrupting, while the three men lean closer to the fire and draw the locations in ash. Their directions place both points beyond the main road, hidden from ordinary cart inspection.

The charcoal-track men have supplied two concrete drop points and described how each conceals a load. Kazej looks to Nilsar, ready to remember the directions and act under his lawful command.

Nilsar keeps the round green-and-brown shield across his knees, its partial gold rim and painted donkey plainly visible. His longsword remains sheathed at his hip, while concealed chainmail protects him beneath his clothes.

The three men rise from the fire and brush ash from their hands. Kazej shifts beside Nilsar, ready to keep them under watch without treating cooperation as arrest.

The charcoal-track men point north along the hidden path. Nilsar gathers his patrol, and the men begin guiding him toward the split birch hollow, with the lime shed next on their route.

Nilsar keeps the round green-and-brown shield across his knees, its painted donkey and partial gold rim visible. His longsword stays sheathed, and concealed chainmail protects him beneath his clothes as he asks without drawing either weapon.

Their names and weapons are entered plainly: an axe, a boot knife, and a concealed hatchet. Nilsar’s calm authority earns the answers, but the questioning leaves a concrete suspicion among them.

Nilsar draws his Longsword in one firm motion. The Gilded Round Shield rises before him, its green and brown face, partial gold rim, and painted donkey showing plainly, while concealed Chainmail protects his body beneath his clothes.

Teren Voss steps from the eastern brush, Sella Marr appears along the western verge, and Beran Holt closes the track behind the charcoal workers. Their drawn weapons and disciplined positions make escape impossible.

Rusk lowers his hands first. Jorin pulls the knife from his boot and sets it beside the fire; Varric places his hatchet on the ground, while the broad axe remains untouched until Beran orders it down.