The Hooded Figure lifts the lantern higher, and its light catches a line of fresh tracks in the snow, leading north. High Point lies that way, beyond the black stones and the storm. If Brandon Dubois wants to reach the king's message in time, he must pass this road or take the freezing fields.
Valerius
You are carrying more than a sword, traveler. Show me whether it is worth the road.
Brandon Dubois
What do you want?
Valerius
A test, and a choice. Stand down, or prove you can keep what matters.
The wind tears at cloaks and hurls snow between them. Brandon Dubois does not lower his guard, and the lantern glow trembles over the hidden scroll pressed beneath his armor. Somewhere beyond the ridge, the road to High Point waits under ice.
Valerius
Hadrin Bellwrought passed here not long ago. If you chase him, you chase war itself.
✓ Quest Accepted
Learn whether Hadrin Bellwrought is a threat Brandon must stop
“Does the figure know if Hadrin is heading directly to High Point?”
YES, AND MORE (Likely, rolled 9)
Valerius
He does not merely head for High Point, knight. He carries the seal of Iska to the king's own gates, intending to present it as a false peace offering before the army marches.
Brandon Dubois
If he reaches the capital with that lie, the king will be blind to the invasion until the first blade is drawn.
“I demand Hadrin's true purpose”
SUCCESS (Good Willpower, rolled +0)
Brandon Dubois
Tell me Hadrin's true purpose.
Valerius
To blind the king before the first march. A false peace, carried by a trusted hand, buys Iska its opening.
The words land hard. Brandon holds steady, but the effort costs him, his grip tightening until the hidden scroll presses painfully against his ribs beneath the armor.
Valerius
He is not coming as a messenger alone. He is the knife behind the smile, and his route runs past the black stones to High Point.
Brandon Dubois
Hadrin is a threat. The route is real.
Snow needles across the road between them. The lantern's glow trembles over the jagged stones, and the hooded figure waits for Brandon's next move without lowering the light.
Quest Complete
Learn whether Hadrin Bellwrought is a threat Brandon must stop