Mercer breaks the prefect’s seal and reads beneath the science-room lamp. His expression barely changes, but his quill stops moving as the note’s instructions settle.
Mercer
The attendance ledger, is it? Very well. You may see why it matters before you carry it back.
He draws the heavy book across the desk and opens it beside the note. Names, dates, and thin remarks fill the pages in orderly columns.
Mercer turns several pages. The spiteful comments align into a sequence: boys marked for correction before any ordinary offence appears beside their names.
Mercer
There. The charge comes after the selection, not before it. The record is made to follow the punishment.
Roald Dahl
The names are chosen before the reasons exist.
Mercer watches Roald over the ledger’s open spine, measuring his stillness. Behind the closed door, the science block remains quiet, while the dormitory boys stay behind under the prefect’s authority.
Mercer
You understand what I have shown you, Dahl. The question is whether you understand what becomes dangerous once it is understood.
“Is Mercer planning an imminent punishment from this list?”
NO, BUT (Likely, rolled 71)
Mercer turns back through the pages, slower now. The marked names end several leaves before the current date, and no fresh instruction bears Roald’s name.
Mercer
No. This list is not preparing your next punishment. It records selections already made, and nothing here orders an immediate summons.
His quill resumes, but he keeps one finger on the old entries. The certainty Roald expected does not appear; the page offers history, not an approaching command.
Mercer
But do not mistake that for safety. The list shows who was chosen before anyone needed a reason, and that makes it useful to the right person.
Mercer closes the marked section and reveals a narrow slip tucked beneath the binding. It carries room numbers and dates, but no punishments, only movements between the masters’ quarters and the service passages.
Mercer
If you want the living arrangement rather than the old accusations, follow these rooms. The names are absent, but the routes are not. That is where the truth has gone.
✓ Quest Accepted
Make Mercer aware you are too junior to investigate this
✓ Quest Accepted
Learn to accept Foxley’s punishments without complaint
“I politely tell Mercer that I am too junior to get involved in investigating any of these issues.”
SUCCESS (Legendary Diplomacy, rolled +0)
Roald Dahl
I am too junior to involve myself in investigating these matters, Mercer. I should be better employed carrying the ledger back.
Mercer
A sensible answer, Dahl. Curiosity is a costly luxury for a boy in your position.
Mercer studies him for another moment, then folds the narrow slip back beneath the binding. His suspicion loosens into approval, as though Roald has chosen the safe boundary precisely.
Mercer
You will carry the attendance ledger to the prefect who sent you. You have seen enough for one evening, and I will not ask you to see more.
He closes the book over the old names and slides it across the desk. The room-and-date slip remains hidden under the binding, beyond Roald’s reach but no longer offered as a temptation.
Mercer
Take it back promptly, Dahl. Tell them only that I returned the ledger. That is all you need carry from this room.
Mercer lifts the ledger into Roald’s hands and turns back to his papers. The science-room door opens onto the quiet passage, and the errand is restored to its simple shape.
Quest Complete
Make Mercer aware you are too junior to investigate this
+ New Item Acquired
Attendance ledger