The crossroads holds steady beneath a thinning veil of mist. Cracked boundary stones lean around the sealed summoning mark, while the god remains nearby, watching the glow beneath Kannon’s palm.
The narrow light beneath her skin turns toward a half-buried road marker, tugging faintly like a compass needle. The old stone bears no readable name, only a weathered crown.
the god
There is shelter beyond the eastern rise. Come there, and I can keep the mark from drawing hostile eyes before we understand it.
At the far edge of the crossroads, the hooded spirit stays with its pale-faced attendants. They neither depart nor approach, their weapons lowered but their attention fixed on Kannon.
the god
That road marker is answering your anchor. It may reveal who summoned you, and why. Do not mistake a revealed path for a safe one.
the hooded spirit
He offers shelter as though his hand did not bind you here. Ask what price waits beneath his roof, mortal.
The god does not answer the spirit. Wind moves over the moor, stirring ash around the sealed mark while the eastern path remains open before Kannon.
✓ Quest Accepted
Reach the shelter beyond the eastern rise
✓ Quest Accepted
Discover who summoned Kannon and why
“I study the crown-marked road stone before leaving.”
SUCCESS (Mediocre Perception, rolled +2)
Kannon approaches the half-buried marker and studies its weathered crown. Beneath the lichen, fine grooves form three nested crowns, each surrounding a different symbol.
Kannon
The lowest crown is newer than the others.
When her marked palm hovers over the stone, the newest crown fills with pale light. Hidden lettering rises from the grit: WARDEN OF THE THRESHOLD.
the god
That title predates the kingdom. It names a keeper of passages, not a ruler of lands.
A second line appears beneath it, briefly visible in the glow: WHEN THE CROWN OPENS, SEEK THE UNCOUNTED DOOR. The eastern road answers with a faint silver trail.
the hooded spirit
There. Now you know the stone was not merely pointing toward his shelter. It was naming a duty someone expects you to inherit.
the god
Or warning you that the path between worlds has a guardian already. We should leave before the mark calls anything else to this place.