Garindan slips past the pavilion flap into a dim store-room, where damp wool, lamp smoke, and old grain press close. Behind him, the camp noise surges, then fades into the wall. The Knight follows at his shoulder. The Friar lingers near the entrance, pale and sweating.
The Knight
Quickly. If the steward keeps men inside, we find him before the shouting ends.
The chamber is narrow, lined with stacked chests and hanging cloaks. A lantern burns low on a hook, throwing long bars of light across a curtained inner door.
Hugh
That way. The steward’s accounts and cargo lists are kept beyond this curtain.
The Friar
No one must look too closely. Not here. Not now.
Garindan reaches the inner curtain first. The cloth stirs under his hand, and from beyond comes the faint scrape of a chair, as if someone is already inside.
✓ Quest Accepted
Secure the steward’s accounts and cargo lists
✓ Quest Accepted
Expose the steward
“I signal the Knight to wait while I peek through the gap in the curtain.”
SUCCESS (Fair Perception, rolled +3)
Garindan lifts two fingers, a small warning to wait, then eases the curtain apart just enough to see through.
Garindan
A desk lamp. Shelves. Papers.
Beyond the gap, the steward’s room is neat and cramped, with an inkpot, rolled vellum, and a ledger laid open beside a narrow bench.
A man sits with his back half-turned in the candle glow, shoulders rigid, one hand pressed flat over the pages as if to hide them.
The Knight
There he is.
The Friar draws a sharp breath behind Garindan, terror flashing at the sight of the sealed room and the name that now has a face.
The Knight
Keep the curtain there. If he moves, I want the proof in sight.
“Is the seated man the steward?”
YES, AND MORE (VeryLikely, rolled 14)
The man turns his head, revealing the sharp, angular features of the steward, but his eyes are not on the ledger.
The Steward
I expected the Friar, but I did not expect a soldier to be so bold as to bring a knight into my private quarters.
Garindan
He knows exactly who we are.
“Is the ledger within my reach?”
YES, BUT (Likely, rolled 60)
The ledger sits upon the desk, yet the steward keeps his hand firmly pressed against the heavy leather cover. He watches Garindan with a predatory stillness that makes the distance between them feel like a chasm.