At dusk, festival lanterns glow across the market square. A breathless shrine attendant hurries in from the shrine path, clutching a cloth-wrapped bundle to her chest.
Mara Vell
Please, wait. This was found beneath the festival shrine, under the boards where offerings are gathered. It matches the description of Hugh's missing treasure.
The Baron's Representative steps forward and reaches for the bundle. The Wandering Swordsman remains between Guard One and Guard Two, their grips fixed around his upper arms.
Guard Two
Hold. Fresh red wax is clinging to the cord.
Mara Vell
I saw it when I lifted the bundle. I did not break the seal. I brought it here so the truth could be witnessed, not hidden beneath the shrine.
The representative's hand stops inches from the cloth. Around the square, the watching crowd falls quiet as the red wax catches the lantern light.
✓ Quest Accepted
Secure the sealed bundle
✓ Quest Accepted
Determine whether the bundle contains Hugh's treasure
“I inspect the red wax seal and bundle without breaking it.”
SUCCESS (Fair Perception, rolled +1)
Kelnozz the Shiney leans close without touching the seal. His careful inspection follows the cord, the wax, and every fold of the cloth.
The wax bears the baron's crest, but its surface holds a second, fainter impression beneath the fresh red layer. The token's wax crest matches the impression on Hugh's locked chest.
Mara Vell
There is another mark under it. I did not see that in the shrine's lantern light.
The cord remains unbroken, and the cloth shows no tear or stain. From the bundle's shape alone, its contents cannot be confirmed.
The Baron's Representative
Then the seal has been renewed. We open it here, before witnesses, or we carry this uncertainty into the night.
A murmur passes through the crowd. Mara tightens her hold on the bundle, while Hugh stares at the layered wax and the guards keep the swordsman in place.
“Is the bundle a dangerous substitution?”
NO (Even, rolled 89)
The bundle is not a dangerous substitution. Beneath the layered seal, its contents remain harmless and consistent with the recovered treasure, though the sealed wrapping still prevents confirmation without opening it.
“I question Mara about who entrusted it”
SUCCESS (Good Willpower, rolled +1)
Kelnozz the Shiney
Who entrusted this bundle to you, Mara?
Mara studies Kelnozz's steady gaze. The question carries over the quiet square, asking for a name rather than an accusation.
Mara Vell
Keeper Odran of the Lantern Shrine. He placed it in my hands after finding it behind the shrine's old offering stone.
Mara Vell
He saw the baron's crest on the wax and sent me here, because witnesses matter more than a locked room.
The answer gives the bundle a clear chain of custody, while its layered seal and unbroken cord still leave its contents unopened.
The Baron's Representative
Then Keeper Odran must stand as a witness. Shall we open it here, before the square, or carry it under guard to the shrine?
“I summon Keeper Odran before opening the bundle”
SUCCESS (Good Willpower, rolled +1)
Kelnozz summons Keeper Odran with a calm authority that carries through the square, calling the shrine's witness into the open before any seal is touched.
The festival crowd parts along the shrine road. A lantern sways there, and measured footsteps approach beneath its glow.
Keeper Odran
I am Keeper Odran. I placed the bundle in Mara Vell's keeping, and I will witness what lies within it.
He enters the market's open space carrying only a ring of shrine keys. His arrival gives the gathered witnesses a clear chain from offering stone to sealed bundle.
The Baron's Representative
Then the shrine keeper stands beside the claimant. No one opens it in secret.
Keeper Odran
Before these witnesses, then. Shall Mara place it on the market table, or shall I hold it while the seal is examined?
“Does the bundle contain Hugh's treasure?”
NO (Likely, rolled 79)
The bundle does not contain Hugh's treasure; beneath its intact wrapping lies only an unrelated substitute, leaving the recovered treasure still absent.
“I question Mara about the substitute's source”
SUCCESS (Good Reasoning, rolled -1)
Kelnozz the Shiney
Mara, where did this substitute come from?
Kelnozz's question cuts through the square's uneasy silence. The bundle remains on the table, its false contents exposed but untouched.
Mara Vell
From behind the old offering stone. Keeper Odran gave me the bundle exactly as he found it, sealed and bearing the baron's crest.
Keeper Odran
That is true. I found no broken cord, no discarded wrapping, and no second bundle. Whoever placed it there meant the shrine to deliver the lie.
The answer identifies the substitute's immediate source, but not the hand that planted it. A murmur spreads through the witnesses, and several faces turn toward Mara as suspicion finds a new target.
Mara Vell
I did not make the substitution. Search me, search the shrine, search the stone. But do not let Hugh's missing treasure vanish behind another accusation.
Quest Complete
Determine whether the bundle contains Hugh's treasure
Attribute Upgrade: Willpower Good→Great
“I ask Mara to lead me to the shrine”
SUCCESS (Great Willpower, rolled -1)
Kelnozz the Shiney
Mara, lead me to the shrine.
Mara studies Kelnozz for a hard moment, then leaves the bundle on the table beneath the witnesses' eyes.
Mara Vell
Very well. Keeper Odran, keep everyone here from touching it.
Keeper Odran
By the shrine's law, it remains where it lies. I will guard the witnesses and the bundle.
Mara turns onto the shrine road, and Kelnozz follows. The square exhales as the investigation divides cleanly instead of collapsing into accusation.
At the old offering stone, dusk pools between the weathered carvings. Mara points to a narrow hollow behind it, where dust lies disturbed around a faint smear of red wax.
Mara Vell
That is where Odran found the substitute. If the true thief came here, this stone may still hold the next proof.