The last human standards vanish beyond the river. On the ridge, Maerith Voss holds the survivors in formation while ward-masters and high guards remain beside Ulkesh. His brother has stayed behind at the Muster Hall.
A mud-streaked halfling climbs toward the command line beneath a strip of white cloth. One hand lifts a royal seal darkened by blood.
the halfling courier
Prince Ulkesh Valen, servants within the king’s sickroom entrusted this seal to me. I was ordered to bring it beyond the court’s walls.
Serath Vael, escorted under oath-cord and guarded watch, goes rigid at the seal. Pale fire crawls across his bound wrists, answering the royal mark.
Serath Vael
That blood is not from a battlefield. The sickroom has opened a door that should have remained sealed.
the halfling courier
The king’s condition changed suddenly. He woke before dawn, spoke a name none of us recognized, and then the physicians barred the chamber.
Maerith Voss
Courier, place the seal before the prince. No one moves until its authority and message are witnessed.
✓ Quest Accepted
Learn what the king's sealed message says
“You read it to yourself you show no emotion no matter what you see then you stare at Serath emotionless.”
SUCCESS (Superb Willpower, rolled +1)
Ulkesh accepts the blood-darkened seal and breaks its wax beneath the gathered eyes. He unfolds the narrow vellum, keeping the message turned inward, away from the hall.
The king’s hand names Serath Vael as the keeper of a sealed chamber beneath the royal chapel, then commands Ulkesh to open it before the seventh bell. One final line bears a stranger’s name: Vaelor.
Ulkesh Valen
The king’s hand is steady in the final line.
Ulkesh folds the vellum, reseals it within his grasp, and reveals nothing in his face. The wind moves his dark hair while the ridge falls silent around him.
Ulkesh turns toward Serath and stares at him without expression.
Serath Vael
You have read the king’s last private command. Do not ask whether I know the name. Ask why your father remembered it now.
the halfling courier
The physicians ordered the sickroom sealed after the king spoke Vaelor’s name. They said no royal servant was to enter without the chosen witness.
Open the sealed chamber
Quest Complete
Learn what the king's private command binds
Attribute Upgrade: Willpower Superb→Legendary
Quest Complete
Learn what the king's sealed message says
+ New Item Acquired
King’s message