A mounted royal bailiff appears beyond the iron gate, flanked by two armed escorts. Ser Aldren Vey, with close-cropped brown hair and a weathered face beneath his trimmed beard is a lean middle-aged man in a blue surcoat, with a trimmed beard and rain-dark eyes.
One escort holds the reins of a spare horse while the other scans the garden wall. Aldren raises a parchment stamped with the Baron’s seal, keeping his gaze fixed on the hedge.
Ser Aldren Vey
Open in the Baron’s name. I conduct a routine search for a dangerous fugitive, believed to have fled this road.
Under the yew, Maurice becomes utterly still, his broad hand hovering near his sword. The steward’s fingers tighten around the gate bar, but he does not lift it.
the castle steward
Routine searches do not usually arrive with a sealed writ and drawn attention to a private garden. State the fugitive’s name.
Ser Aldren Vey
The name is less important than the description. A silver-marked woman, wounded and dangerous, traveling with a condemned killer.
The steward’s eyes flick once toward Elianor, then back to the bailiff. Aldren waits beside the unopened gate, parchment lifted, while the escorts settle their hands on their weapons.
✓ Quest Accepted
Prevent the bailiff's search of the garden
✓ Quest Accepted
Expose the Baron's warrant as unlawful
“Tell Ser Aldren the Baron has no jurisdiction in Garden of the Duchess”
SUCCESS (Fair Oratory, rolled +4)
Elianor Vale
Ser Aldren, the Baron has no jurisdiction in the Duchess’s Garden. You will not enter it under his seal.
Elianor’s voice carries cleanly across the gate. The silver brand at her throat catches the gray light, while the steward stands firm beside the lowered bar.
Ser Aldren Vey
You speak with authority for someone the Baron claims as his fugitive.
the castle steward
She speaks under the Duchess’s protection, Ser Aldren. This garden is her household ground, and your writ does not grant entry.
Aldren studies the steward, then the sealed parchment in his hand. The rain-darkness in his face gives way to measured caution, and he lowers the document.
Ser Aldren Vey
Very well. I will not cross the gate. I will record that the Duchess’s household denied the search, and send the matter to the proper court.
Ser Aldren Vey
For what it is worth, the Baron’s writ names the old chapel beyond Blackmere. His men are searching there, not this garden.
Quest Complete
Prevent the bailiff's search of the garden
“Warn Ser Aldren that the Court may consider the Baron's attempt to search the Duchesses Garden may in and of its self prove the Baron's treason toward the Duke.”
SUCCESS (Fair Oratory, rolled +2)
Elianor Vale
Ser Aldren, the Court may judge the Baron’s attempt to search the Duchess’s Garden as an act of treason against the Duke.
The warning hangs between the rain and the iron gate. The castle steward remains rigid, while Maurice Headsman watches Ser Aldren Vey from beneath the yew without touching his sword.
Ser Aldren Vey
You understand the danger plainly. A baron cannot use his seal to treat the Duke’s household as hostile ground without inviting that question.
the castle steward
And the writ names no lawful cause beyond a description. That will read poorly before any court willing to examine it.
Ser Aldren Vey folds the parchment once, his expression tightening as he glances toward the castle windows. The escorts exchange a wary look and lower their hands from their weapons.
Ser Aldren Vey
I will report the attempted search precisely, including the Baron’s claim and this household’s refusal. Whether it becomes treason is for the Duke’s court to decide.
Ser Aldren Vey
Keep the marked woman within the garden if you can. The chapel search will bring questions, and the Baron will not welcome witnesses who remember his orders.
✓ Quest Accepted
Have Ser Aldren depart
“I tell Ser Aldren to deliver his report and leave the garden.”
SUCCESS (Good Diplomacy, rolled +0)
Elianor Vale
Deliver that report, Ser Aldren, and leave the garden.
Elianor’s command settles cleanly across the gate. Rain beads on the ironwork, and the castle steward keeps the bar lowered while Ser Aldren Vey weighs the demand.
Ser Aldren Vey
I will. The report will state that the Baron’s writ was refused under the Duchess’s protection, and I will withdraw.
Ser Ser Aldren Vey folds the parchment beneath his blue surcoat. He turns his horse from the gate, and the escorts follow, leading the spare mount through the rain.
the castle steward
You heard him. Lift the bar only after they have reached the road, and keep the garden closed until the Duchess decides otherwise.
Maurice Headsman
The old chapel is no longer merely a place to hide a prisoner. It is where the Baron’s men expect to find answers, or silence them.
Hooves fade beyond the wall. Beneath the yew, Maurice Headsman studies Elianor and the castle steward, while the sealed writ’s warning remains: witnesses at the chapel are now in danger.
Quest Complete
Have Ser Aldren depart