Your car rolls into the cul-de-sac beneath a gray afternoon sky. A moving truck idles beside the newest target house, while a tense elderly CEO in a charcoal suit, a lean man with close-cropped silver hair and a deeply lined face watches from the porch.
the paranoid CEO
Nobody leaves. Nobody calls anyone. One of these people has been steering the purchases from inside this neighborhood.
Through separate windows, you spot the sellers, including n2, a young adult woman with a sturdy build, curly dark hair, and a red cardigan over jeans in the kitchen, where n3, a middle-aged man with a broad build, sandy hair, and a blue work jacket, grips the keys, the two neighbors, including n4, a middle-aged woman with a stocky build, short auburn hair, and a green sweater, clutching a folder in different rooms, while n5, a young adult man with a slim build, close-cropped black hair, and a yellow windbreaker, stands by the mailbox, and a realtor hovering near a locked front door, a young adult woman with a slim build, straight black hair, and a beige blazer over dark trousers. The CEO has arranged everyone like suspects.
The Seller in the Red Cardigan
Maya, please. He changed the closing terms after we signed. Then he told us the money was already committed.
The Neighbor Clutching a Folder
Don't listen to them. I found the shell companies, and someone here warned Vale before I could show anyone.
The Neighbor by the Mailbox
You should ask the realtor why every offer appeared within hours of a private listing. She knows the pattern.
The Realtor with the Tablet
I know the paperwork, not the conspiracy. But someone keeps deleting the addresses from my client portal, and I need you to look at it now.
The Seller with the Moving-Truck Keys
Maya, he has my deposit, our truck, and a room full of witnesses. Find out who he thinks betrayed him before this gets worse.
✓ Quest Accepted
Unite the residents around a credible account of the conspiracy
✓ Quest Accepted
Identify the insider steering the neighborhood purchases
““I’ve been investigating this for a long time. There’s a conspiracy with this company buying up all of the single family homes in the area to create a housing shortage and drive prices up. They’re sending police after me for this. I won’t be able to stay long, and there is not much I can do now, but I can advise that nobody else sell their homes so long as they can afford to keep them.” My voice is hushed as I address them secretly through the window.”
FAILURE (Great Diplomacy, rolled -2)
Maya Patton
I’ve been investigating this for a long time. The company is buying single-family homes to create a shortage and drive prices up. Police are already being sent after me. I can’t stay, but if you can afford to, don’t sell.
Your hushed words pass through the window, careful and urgent. The mention of police changes the room immediately: shoulders tighten, eyes turn toward the street, and the sellers stop looking persuaded and start looking afraid.
the paranoid CEO
There. You hear it yourselves. She admits she is wanted, then tells you to wreck your only guaranteed offers. That is not advice. That is pressure.
The Seller in the Red Cardigan
I believe the prices are being manipulated. I do not know if I can risk losing this sale while the police are looking for you.
The Realtor with the Tablet
Do not sell today, at least. I can export the deleted portal history from my tablet, but only if someone gets me a secure place to send it.
Your warning has not become a united refusal. Vale has turned your vulnerability into leverage, but the realtor with the tablet’s offer leaves a usable thread: the erased listings may identify who is coordinating the purchases.
““You are all my friends. Remember when I lived only a few doors down? This man here.” I point to the CEO. “When I refused to sell to him he shot my boyfriend with my own gun. He had the local government cease my property and he bought it on the county auction. Ever since I have had to live in the shadows trying to prevent him from doing it to all of you. Please. You have to trust me.” My eyes show nothing but truth.”
SUCCESS (Great Diplomacy, rolled +3)
Maya Patton
You are all my friends. Remember when I lived only a few doors down? This man here. When I refused to sell, he shot my boyfriend with my own gun, seized my property, and bought it at the county auction. I have lived in the shadows trying to stop him doing this to all of you. Please. You have to trust me.
Your face gives them no easy escape from the truth you are offering. A police siren rises somewhere beyond the cul-de-sac, and the sound keeps your wanted status hanging over every frightened calculation.
The Neighbor Clutching a Folder
I believe her. Vale took advantage of the county process, and I have enough records to prove he planned it.
The Seller in the Red Cardigan
Then we do not sign today. Tom and I will stand with Maya, even if the police come asking questions.
The Neighbor by the Mailbox
You have my trust. Priya, get that portal history out. Vale does not get another house from us.
The Realtor with the Tablet
Agreed. I will send the export to a secure address, and nobody here signs anything until the records are public.
the paranoid CEO
You are making a grave mistake.
The warning lands without its old force. The seller in the red cardigan and Tom move together, the neighbor clutching a folder opens her folder, the neighbor by the mailbox leaves the mailbox, and Priya begins exporting the deleted history while Vale stands isolated on the porch.
Quest Complete
Unite the residents around a credible account of the conspiracy
Skill Upgrade: Diplomacy Great→Superb
“With a final statement telling the people to spread the word about Vale the sirens get too close for me to ignore. I have to go.”
SUCCESS (Great Agility, rolled +0)