The woodcutter’s hut crouches beneath black pines, its chimney cold. Before the door, a retired knight stands over a fallen pilgrim, sword drawn, his battered armor darkened by blood.
the retired knight
You arrive at a poor hour, stranger. This pilgrim was murdered for the sake of a friend’s vengeance.
He is an elderly man with a broad, weathered frame, iron-gray hair, and a trimmed beard. His faded blue surcoat bears a cracked silver crest beneath the stains.
the retired knight
I found him here, but I did not strike the blow. Swear that you saw nothing, and you become my witness.
A twig snaps among the firs. Then another, nearer. Footsteps approach along the leaf-strewn path, measured but hurried.
the retired knight
There. Someone else comes. Now tell me, necromancer, are you witness, suspect, or ally?
✓ Quest Accepted
Create a skeleton ally
“I arm the skeleton with my ceremonial dagger. Then wait for a response.”
SUCCESS (Fair Agility, rolled +1)
Lazorus draws the ceremonial kris and places its bone-carved hilt into the waiting skeleton’s grasp. The corpse’s fingers close around it with a dry click.
He waits beside the hut, pale mist curling around his boots while the skeleton stands silent at his shoulder. The approaching footsteps halt beyond the firs.
the retired knight
A necromancer with an armed dead at his side. Your answer grows more troubling by the breath.
A young adult woman steps from the trees, lean and mud-streaked, with cropped auburn hair and a green wool cloak. A broken arrow shaft juts from her satchel.
the young woman
Knight, lower your sword. I followed the pilgrim from the western road, and I know who wanted him silenced.
the retired knight
Then speak plainly, messenger. Was this vengeance, or murder dressed in another name?
the young woman
Both, perhaps. The dead man carried a letter bearing the crest of a lord who does not forgive betrayal.
Quest Complete
Create a skeleton ally
Attribute Upgrade: Agility Fair→Good
