Five days after Sanctuary’s judgment, the rooftop garden rests above the town’s noise. Herb boxes, rain-dark tiles, and low stone walls frame a broad view of chimneys, towers, and the river beyond.
Alleria has spread a worn map across a garden table, beside modest provisions wrapped in cloth and a small bundle of handwritten rumors. L’Sara takes her hand across the table.
Alleria
I brought enough to begin, not enough to decide everything for us. There are roads north into old forests, west toward ruined keeps, and south along the river.
A warm breeze stirs the climbing vines and carries up the smells of bread ovens and wet stone. Alleria leaves the maps open beneath their joined hands.
Alleria
We have settled reputations now, and Sanctuary knows our names for better or worse. What kind of future do we want to build, L’Sara?
The question hangs gently between them, open as the sky above the rooftops. No pursuit presses close, no document demands concealment, and the first choice of their new life remains L’Sara’s.
“I ask which road Alleria truly favors”
SUCCESS (Great Reasoning, rolled -1)
L'Sara T'Lvanni
Which road do you truly favor, Alleria? Not the safest one, or the one that sounds wisest. The one you would choose.
L'Sara closes her hand around Alleria's across the map. Alleria studies the roads in silence, weighing more than distance while the breeze turns one loose rumor-page against the table.
Alleria
North. The old forests are dangerous, but they still hide people the towns have forgotten. I could do some good there, and you could find roads no map admits.
Her finger settles on the northern route. The choice is clear at last, though the ink has faded beneath a smear of rain, leaving the first village's name unreadable.
Alleria
I favor the north, but I cannot yet tell whether its danger comes from desperate folk, old magic, or something worse beneath the trees.
Alleria
That is my honest choice. We should spend part of tomorrow checking the northern reports before we leave. I want our first promise to the future grounded in truth, not wishful guessing.
The answer gives them a direction, though the missing village name and unverified rumors will cost an afternoon of careful asking before the road begins.
✓ Quest Accepted
Learn what danger threatens the northern forests