Morning light fills the Guild guest room. Coco’s boots wait beside the bed, and his journal remains secured beneath his cloak, close enough to guard without effort.
Downstairs, the common hall wakes around him with clinking cups and low conversation. Tessa Vale stands beside the Guild’s posting board, one fresh notice in hand.
Tessa Vale
You look rested enough for a first assignment. This posting concerns Briarhollow, a remote village along Valedorn’s forest road.
Tessa Vale
Residents report bells ringing beneath the earth, though the old shrine has no working bell. Travelers have also vanished near it. The Guild needs the truth, not a rumor.
She offers the parchment without stepping closer than necessary. Its seal bears the Guild mark, while the ink sketch shows a weathered shrine beneath tall, dark trees.
Tessa Vale
You would investigate, protect the villagers, and return with a report. Another recruit may join you, if one accepts before departure. Otherwise, you face Briarhollow alone.
Tessa Vale
It is a grounded beginning, Coco. You may find an ally there, or discover why the missing travelers were never brought home. Will you take the posting?
“I accept the Briarhollow posting”
Coco
I accept the Briarhollow posting. I’ll investigate the shrine, protect the villagers, and return with a report.
Tessa accepts the parchment back with a satisfied nod. Around the common hall, cups clink and chairs scrape as the Guild’s morning business gathers pace.
Tessa Vale
Good. I will register the assignment under your name and prepare travel provisions. The forest road is well marked as far as Briarhollow.
She adds Coco’s name to the posting ledger, then seals a smaller copy of the notice for his journal. No one asks to inspect the book beneath his cloak.
Tessa Vale
Briarhollow lies two days east by foot. Leave after breakfast, follow the old stone markers, and ask for the village elder when you arrive.
Bram Hallow
I can provide a road map and point out the safest campsites. The route is quiet this season, and the village should be expecting Guild assistance.
Tessa places the map beside the sealed notice and gestures toward the breakfast tables. For the moment, Coco has a lawful task, a destination, and time to prepare carefully.
✓ Quest Accepted
Prepare to depart for Briarhollow
“"ok" I take the map and eat breakfast and study Bram's map for the safest campsites.”
SUCCESS (Great Perception, rolled +1)
Coco takes Bram’s map and settles at the breakfast table. He eats steadily while the Guild’s morning noise moves around him, warm bread and herbs easing the last stiffness from sleep.
Bram Hallow
The safest campsites are marked in blue. The first lies beside a spring beneath the old beech grove, about half a day from Aurelia.
Coco studies the inked road between bites, tracing the stone markers and wooded bends with one gloved finger. The map shows no bridges washed out or crossings left unmarked.
Bram Hallow
Avoid the low ground after dusk. It gathers mist, and travelers lose the road there. The ridge path is longer, but it stays firm and offers a clear camp.
Coco
The ridge path has two marked campsites before Briarhollow.
By the time Coco finishes breakfast, he has memorized the safest route: the beech-grove spring tonight, the ridge camp tomorrow, then the forest road down toward Briarhollow.
Bram Hallow
Keep the map dry and follow the old stones. If you leave after the hall clears, you should reach the first campsite before nightfall.
Uncover the truth behind the bells and disappearances
Quest Complete
Prepare to depart for Briarhollow
+ New Item Acquired
Road Map