The reeve steps forward reluctantly, holding the tally board in both hands. Chalk marks and hurried figures cover its dark wood, while the open storehouse yawns behind him.
The Village Reeve
Here is the record. Every sack, basket, and cart is marked, and the villagers received the stores in the open yard.
The lead rider accepts the board without dismounting. One gloved hand steadies the reins while the other studies the columns beneath the dampening dusk.
The Lead Rider
A neat account does not erase a broken seal. Who ordered the release, and under what authority did he act?
The Outlaw Archer
The harvest failed, rider. The food was measured before witnesses, and no private cart carried away so much as a root.
The archer remains beneath the bare ash tree, her short bow lowered but ready. The two other riders watch her closely, hands resting near their swords.
The Lead Rider
The sealed order names this village and its stores. I will read it aloud after the man in the road answers for his command.
✓ Quest Accepted
Have the riders acknowledge Bruck’s authority to release the stores
✓ Quest Accepted
Learn what the sealed order demands
“I will name my order and demand its authority be acknowledged before these witnesses.”
SUCCESS (Superb Willpower, rolled +0)
Bruck Luckas
I ordered the stores opened when the harvest failed. Let that order, and the authority behind it, be acknowledged before every witness here.
Bruck’s declaration carries across the yard. Villagers pause over their baskets, and the reeve raises his tally board so the written record stands visible beside him.
The Village Reeve
It was his order. He gave it plainly, and I obeyed it before the village and under my own seal.
The Outlaw Archer
There is your witness, rider. His authority came from the need before us, and the people received the food openly.
The lead rider looks from Bruck to the marked board, then across the gathered villagers. Several adults step forward, their empty sacks and measured baskets plainly visible.
The Lead Rider
I acknowledge the order as yours, Bruck Luckas, and I will record that it was declared before witnesses. Its legality remains for the lord to judge.
The Lead Rider
Read the tally to me, reeve. Then the scarred man will come before the lord’s authority and answer for the command he has claimed.
Quest Complete
Have the riders acknowledge Bruck’s authority to release the stores
“I politely asked the sealed order to be read aloud and clear for the people as well as me.”
SUCCESS (Superb Willpower, rolled +1)
Bruck Luckas
Read the sealed order aloud, rider, so the people and I may hear clearly what authority it claims.
The lead rider breaks the wax before the gathered villagers. The parchment crackles in the damp air as the other riders, two young adult men with lean builds, weathered faces, and dark riding cloaks over mail keep watch over the yard.
The Lead Rider
By order of Lord Alwin, this village’s grain, seed, carts, and stores remain under the reeve’s seal until the next levy is collected.
The Lead Rider
No store may be opened, sold, or distributed without authority from the lord’s household. Any breach is to be reported, and the responsible party brought before him.
The final words settle heavily over the yard. Villagers glance at their baskets, while the reeve lowers his tally board and studies the mud.
The Outlaw Archer
It says nothing of a failed harvest, nor of starving families. The order names property, but not the lives that property was meant to sustain.
The Lead Rider
That omission is plain. So is Bruck Luckas’s admission. I will carry both the sealed order and this public account before the lord.
Quest Complete
Learn what the sealed order demands
Attribute Upgrade: Willpower Superb→Legendary
“I spoke towards The Lead Rider, "That is a fair point, but my reasons remain to be unspoken and the amount of logic I am able to uphold upon your claim. So, I will go with you and head towards Lord Alwin with you for my actions and defense of what I stand for."”
SUCCESS (Good Agility, rolled +2)