The tea house annex is hushed, its screens drawn tight against the street. The Noble lays out a scroll on the low table, red names glaring from the parchment.
The Noble
This one. A courier carries word that can gut the temple's hold here. Bring him to me, and the temple bleeds in the dark.
He taps the marked line with one gloved finger, then slides a folded route sketch toward Miyamoto Mifune. At the door, The Watchful Retainer stays still, hand resting on his blade, making the exit feel shut.
The Watchful Retainer
If Mifune balks, I bar the way. If he accepts, I follow close.
Miyamoto Mifune
The route runs through streets where the mark could draw hunters.
The Noble watches Mifune carefully, his tone calm but hard. This is no favor offered for free, only the first test of a retainer's blade.
The Noble
Take this task, and you prove useful. Fail, and you waste the shelter I give you.
✓ Quest Accepted
Bring the marked courier to the noble
✓ Quest Accepted
Obtain the noble's salve
“Does the noble have a way to mask the glow of my tracking mark?”
YES (Likely, rolled 15)
The Noble
You worry about the light on your skin. I have a salve of crushed lead and mountain ash that will dampen that beacon until it is nothing but a faint, harmless itch.
Miyamoto Mifune
The noble holds a small, heavy ceramic jar, its lid sealed with wax, resting beside the route sketch.
− Scene Quest Removed
Bring the marked courier to the noble
“I apply the salve to my glowing wrist to silence the beacon.”
FAILURE (Good Health, rolled -3)
Miyamoto Mifune spreads the salve across his wrist, but the waxy paste resists his skin and smears away from the glowing mark instead of sinking in.
The light dulls for a breath, then flickers brighter beneath the residue, as if the beacon has only been rubbed awake.
A sharp sting crawls under the old burn on his forearm, and the sour smell of ash hangs in the small annex.
The Noble
Not enough. Use less, press it into the skin.
The Watchful Retainer
Careful. Too much and it will stain him like paint.
The jar sits open on the table now, its contents streaked by his failed touch, while the route sketch waits beside it like an accusation.
“I press less salve into my wrist”
SUCCESS (Legendary Agility, rolled -2)
Miyamoto Mifune lowers the pressure of his thumb and works a smaller amount of salve into the burn. The glow under his skin dims to a bruised ember, and the sting bites once, then settles.
A thin scent of wax and bitter herbs rises from the smear. Most of the paste stays where he places it this time, leaving only a pale trace on his wrist instead of a broad sheen.
The Noble watches the change from across the table, his patience sharpening into appraisal. The Watchful Retainer shifts at the doorway, no longer casual, his attention fixed on the faintly dulled mark.
The Noble
Better. Keep it there, and do not rub it raw again.
The retainer’s gaze drops to the opened jar, then back to Mifune’s hand, as if measuring how much of the medicine remains and how much trust it buys.
The Watchful Retainer
You have enough to hide the mark for now. After that, we move before the temple scent finds you again.
The jar is still open, but the salve on Mifune’s wrist now looks deliberate, not wasted. The room has gone quiet around that small change, waiting for him to either follow the next instruction or refuse it.
Quest Complete
Obtain the noble's salve
Attribute Upgrade: Health Good→Great