Arimari eases out from the hedge, keeping his shoulders low and his palms open. Rain beads on his cloak and runs off the gatepost in silver lines.
Old Goro
You move like a pilgrim, but you watch like a spy.
Old Goro narrows his eyes, then the suspicion in his face loosens by a fraction as he sees no weapon in Arimari’s hands.
Arimari Tiarasan
The postern seam is close enough to touch.
Old Goro
If you seek the lord, you are late for a fine afternoon to stand in this mud. Names pass through here every day. Paper too, sometimes.
He rubs rain from his mustache, grumbles at the weather, and shifts his weight under the eaves. The gate beyond them stays shut, but the moment grows less hard.
Old Goro
You are from the road, then. Road folk know how to bow properly. Show me that again, and tell me where you mean to rest once the rain eases.
“I show him the proper road bow”
SUCCESS (Good Willpower, rolled +0)
Arimari answers with a deep road bow, slow and exact, cloak folding around his knees as the rain runs off his sleeves.
Old Goro
Ha. That is the shape of it. Better than most who come here with clean sandals and dirty intent.
Goro straightens from the eaves and gives a small approving grunt, his eyes following the line of Arimari’s lowered back before returning to his face.
Old Goro
You say where you mean to rest, and I may tell you whether the road lies to your favor. Some inns flood. Some welcome. Some are only roofs with bad memories.
Arimari Tiarasan
The latch seam sits close, and Goro has softened enough to answer.
Old Goro
Those papers you carry, they matter to someone worth the mud. I know that look.
He taps two fingers against the postern wood, not unkindly, and keeps his stance open beneath the dripping eaves.
Old Goro
Come now, traveler. Tell me your resting place, and I will tell you if the gate will treat you kindly.
“Is Goro likely to admit me through the postern?”
YES (Likely, rolled 23)
Old Goro
You have the look of a man who knows the weight of a secret, and that is a currency I respect more than coin.
Old Goro
If you seek the inn at the valley floor, you will find only damp straw and soldiers, but the small shrine near the western gate is quiet, and the keeper there is a friend to those who carry heavy burdens.
Goro shifts his weight, his hand sliding away from the latch to gesture toward the path, his expression softening into a conspiratorial nod.
“Ask goro if i may use the postern”
SUCCESS (Fair Social, rolled +1)
Arimari Tiarasan
May I use the postern?
Old Goro
You ask properly. Yes, you may. Keep low, and if anyone inside asks, you came on my word.
Goro turns at once, reaches for the seam, and works the hidden latch with practiced fingers. The rain on the wood shines brighter as the panel loosens.
Old Goro
This gate has heard many footsteps. Fewer honest ones. Yours may be one of them.
The postern opens just enough for a man to slip through. Beyond it, a narrow strip of stone and shadow waits inside the estate wall.
Old Goro
Before you go, tell me this. Do you carry only papers, or something worth hiding from the lord's eyes?
“I answer Goro with only the papers”
SUCCESS (Good Willpower, rolled -2)
Arimari Tiarasan
Only the papers.
Arimari keeps his voice low and steady. The words land plainly in the wet hush beneath the eaves.
Old Goro
Good. A man who names the burden before it reaches the threshold is easier to trust.
Old Goro
He studies Arimari's face, then the hidden passage, as if weighing both against the rain.
Goro shifts aside from the seam, his hand still on the door, making room without hurry.
Old Goro
What are these papers for, then, and who sent you with them?
“Is Goro testing whether I am trustworthy?”
YES (VeryLikely, rolled 73)
Arimari Tiarasan
He is not just checking my papers. He is measuring the weight of my loyalty to the cause.
Old Goro
The ink on these pages carries a heavy scent of defiance, and I have seen many men falter when asked to name their master.
Old Goro
Tell me, do you carry these for the sake of a printer, or for the sake of the future you hope to see?
“For the future”
SUCCESS (Good Willpower, rolled -1)
Arimari answers with quiet steadiness, and Goro’s hard look loosens at once.
Old Goro
Then you carry them for more than paper. A future needs hands willing to be known.
He shifts aside, opening the postern wider, and the damp stone of the courtyard shows beyond him.
Old Goro
I once hid messages for a better lord than the one we served. It cost me sleep, but not my conscience.
Goro taps the bundled pamphlets, then bows his head in rough respect.
Old Goro
If these words help build a road that does not drown the weak, take them in.
The gate stands open, rain whispering on the wood, while Goro waits for Arimari to choose his next step.
“I step through the open postern”
Arimari steps through the postern at last, boots sinking once in the wet threshold before finding the stone inside. Goro lets the way clear, his bow held low as the gate closes behind the choice already made.
“Head to the lords manor”
SUCCESS (Great Agility, rolled +1)
Arimari crosses the courtyard at an even pace, the pamphlets held dry against his robe. The wet stones shine black under the eaves, and the manor lies ahead beyond clipped shrubs and a low corridor.
Old Goro remains by the postern, one hand on the closing door, watching Arimari go without calling him back. Behind him, the gate settles into place with a muted wooden thud.
A steward at the veranda notices the bundle and straightens at once, then lifts a sleeve in a brisk summons toward the inner hall.
Old Goro
Go on. The lord is in the main room. Take them straight in.
Arimari Tiarasan
The route is clear. The pamphlets stay dry.
Arimari reaches the covered walkway, where sandals and rainwater are lined neatly by the posts. Inside, a servant is already pulling back the curtain to announce him.
“I present the pamphlets to Lord Matsudaira”
SUCCESS (Fair Reasoning, rolled +2)
Arimari steps through the curtain into the main room, rain dimming behind him. Lord Matsudaira sits before a low table, and the steward clears a space without a word.
Arimari kneels and sets the pamphlets down with both hands, the bundle landing squarely before the lord.
Lord Matsudaira
So these are the printed words. Bring the printer's hand, but keep your own.
The lord breaks the cord himself, scanning the first pages while the steward leans in, tense and silent.
Lord Matsudaira
Good. These names are copied cleanly. And this seal mark, it is bold enough to be noticed.
He places one pamphlet aside and taps the other, as if weighing its message against the room.
Lord Matsudaira
Tell the printer I have received them. Stay a moment, I may have one more question for the man who carried them.
Quest Complete
Bring the pamphlets to the lord the printer names
Attribute Upgrade: Reasoning Fair→Good