The riders escort Bruck and the village reeve through the darkening lanes, leaving the villagers in the yard beneath watch. The outlaw archer remains beneath the ash tree, bow lowered but ready.
They enter Lord Alwin’s manor hall, where rushes cover the stone floor and a household seal hangs behind the high seat. The tally board and opened order rest on a table.
Lord Alwin, an elderly man with a lean frame, pale lined skin, and thinning white hair, sits beneath the seal in a dark wool robe clasped with silver.
Lord Alwin
Bruck Luckas, you ordered stores under my seal distributed without permission. Explain why my authority was breached.
The reeve sets both hands on the tally board. Its columns show each sack and basket, while the opened order lies beside it with its broken wax plainly visible.
The Village Reeve
My lord, the harvest failed. I recorded every measure and released nothing secretly. Bruck gave the command, but the village received the stores openly.
Lord Alwin
A careful record may lessen the charge, reeve, but it does not answer the breach. Bruck, the defense is yours to make.
✓ Quest Accepted
Defend the villagers before Lord Alwin
“Here is what I have to say, "The reason why I let the stores to be breached by the villagers, so they may eat and gain strength. As the Village Reeve, has evidence that the harvest has failed leading towards that poor village has only little remains of living. But more importantly to be broken apart at any moment due to its poor condition. The villagers must eat to gain strength in order to create another harvest to be successful and guaranteed. If you have taken the stores, the village will go hungry, population decrease greatly, then the village will be a ghost town with no people, wasted area, and importantly no harvest at all to be gathered for you, Lord Alwin. That is my defense and reasoning."”
FAILURE (Fair Reasoning, rolled -1)
Bruck Luckas
I ordered the stores opened so the villagers could eat and regain strength. The failed harvest and dwindling food left the village near collapse, as the reeve’s tally proves.
Bruck Luckas
If the stores remained sealed, hunger would empty the village, leave its fields wasted, and give you no future harvest to collect. Feeding the people protects your authority’s future.
Bruck’s defense fills the hall, but its practical promise cannot erase the broken seal. Lord Alwin studies the tally, then the opened order, weighing survival against obedience.
Lord Alwin
You argue for my future harvest, yet you presume authority reserved to me. Necessity explains your breach, Bruck Luckas, but does not make it lawful.
The Village Reeve
My lord, the figures support him. Had the stores remained closed, there would have been little strength left for sowing or tending the fields.
Lord Alwin’s fingers rest on the tally board. The charge does not vanish, but the written figures give him a narrower judgment than simple theft or rebellion.
Lord Alwin
I will not call this theft. The tally shall be entered as emergency relief, and the reeve will report the village’s remaining stores and next harvest. You, Bruck, still answer for acting without leave.
Quest Complete
Defend the villagers before Lord Alwin
Attribute Upgrade: Reasoning Fair→Good
✓ Quest Accepted
Make up for the lost harvest with food for Lord Alwin and possibly his village
“I spoke towards Lord Alwin, "Of course. I understand my actions has consequences. So, I shall do this...I will stay here for a whole week but in return, for the entire week on each day. I shall bring you good game of meat and fur, as I will be a hunter for you."”
SUCCESS (Good Reasoning, rolled +1)
Bruck Luckas
Of course. I understand my actions have consequences. I will stay here for a whole week, and each day I shall bring you game, meat, and fur as your hunter.
The offer hangs beneath the household seal. The reeve glances from Bruck to Lord Alwin, while the riders remain still beside the hall doors.
Lord Alwin
You offer labor in place of obedience, and you offer it plainly. I accept the week, provided every catch is surrendered to my household and honestly recorded.
The Village Reeve
My lord, that would spare the village another burden. The stores can be measured, while Bruck’s hunting strengthens the manor’s provisions.
Lord Alwin
So it shall be. For seven days you will remain under my authority, hunt the surrounding lands, and bring each day’s meat and usable fur to my steward.
Lord Alwin takes a narrow strip of parchment and writes the terms beside the opened order. His seal presses the arrangement into wax, making Bruck’s service an entered obligation.
Lord Alwin
At week’s end, I will judge whether your service answers the breach. Until then, the village remains accountable through its reeve, and you remain accountable through your work.
“I spoke towards Lord Alwin firmly, "Then I shall get to it today before the sun reaches down..." As I left and waved goodbye from behind without looking at Lord Alwin.”
SUCCESS (Legendary Willpower, rolled +0)
Bruck Luckas
Then I shall begin today, before the sun descends.
Bruck turns from the high seat and walks across the rush-strewn hall. At the doorway, he lifts one hand in farewell behind him without looking back at Lord Alwin.
Lord Alwin
Go, then. The steward will provide no more than a bow, arrows, and a knife. Every catch comes back to my household.
The Village Reeve
He accepts the burden without asking the village to pay for it.
The heavy doors close behind Bruck, leaving the manor hall and its sealed obligation within. Outside, afternoon light lies pale across the muddy yard and stable roofs.
A stable servant, a young adult woman with a slim build, dark braided hair, warm brown skin, and a russet wool dress beneath a gray apron, points points toward a small lean-to beside the kitchens, where hunting gear has been set out for him. Beyond the manor walls, leafless woods rise over the fields.
Lord Alwin
Let the record show that his service began today. At sunset, I expect his first report and whatever the land has yielded.
+ New Item Acquired
Bow
+ New Item Acquired
Arrows
“I thank the stable servant and be on my way for the hunt ahead.”
SUCCESS (Good Survival, rolled +0)
Bruck Luckas
Thank you. I shall make good use of these.
Bruck takes the bow, arrows, and knife from the lean-to, then steps beyond the manor yard toward the leafless woods. The knife’s worn sheath catches his belt and tears a small strip of cloth from his tunic.
Stable Servant
Keep to the lower ground, Bruck Luckas. The rain has softened the banks, and fresh tracks show best there.
He passes through the manor gate and enters the field path, mud pressing around his boots. Behind him, the stable servant watches until the hedges hide him from view.
Bruck Luckas
The bow is sound, but the string is stiff from damp.
At the woodland edge, Bruck tests the bowstring and lowers his steps. Hare tracks cross the wet soil beneath hazel branches, while crows lift noisily from the bare canopy.
The manor roofs recede behind him. His first hunt has begun, with the evening report and Lord Alwin’s household waiting beyond the trees.