The king leads Shiro through a side arch into a quieter gallery. Lutes, harps, and long-necked horns rest beneath portraits of vanished rulers, while old court records fill cedar shelves.
A broad-shouldered palace guard remains beside the carved doors, one hand near his sword but his posture measured. The fiend's emissary stays behind in the audience chamber.
the King
Here, words may be weighed without a court listening for an excuse. Tell me where your road has taken you.
The king pauses beside a portrait of a solemn elf holding a silver harp. Dust glimmers in the high windows, and the gallery's instruments seem to hold their breath.
the King
What do you know of your family, and what have they left you besides this troubling claim?
the King
And your songs? Are they learned from teachers, from wandering, or from the places that receive you?
He gestures toward a cushioned bench beneath the records, offering rest rather than command. His expression remains stern, but his attention is patient and undivided.
“*shiro sits on the bench* "well, your majesty, to be honest, I haven't seen my family much in recent years. I play the harp to fill the silence of my home since they are usually out somewhere that they refuse to elaborate to me..."”
SUCCESS (Fair Diplomacy, rolled +1)
Shiro sits on the cushioned bench beneath the records. The quiet gallery receives his weight, and the harp at his side settles against him with a soft wooden creak.
Shiro
Well, Your Majesty, to be honest, I haven't seen my family much in recent years. I play the harp to fill the silence of my home, since they are usually out somewhere they refuse to explain to me.
The king listens without interruption. Beyond the carved doors, distant court voices blur into a low murmur, leaving the confession undisturbed between the shelves.
the King
You have been left with absence where answers should have been. That is a poor foundation for a debt placed upon your name.
His gaze moves from Shiro to the cedar records, then to the silver harp in the portrait overhead. His sternness gives way to measured sympathy.
the King
Did they leave any letters, ledgers, keepsakes, or names of places behind? Even a fragment may tell us what this claim is truly connected to.
✓ Quest Accepted
Learn the truth behind the debt claim
“"hmm... well, they forbade me from entering their quarters while they aren't there. It may be related, but I can't say for certain..."”
FAILURE (Fair Diplomacy, rolled -3)
Shiro
They forbade me from entering their quarters while they were away. It may be related to the debt, but I cannot say for certain.
The king's patient expression tightens. He glances toward the cedar shelves, weighing the distinction between a hidden room and an unproven accusation.
the King
That is a circumstance, not yet evidence. Your uncertainty is honest, but honesty cannot tell us what lies beyond a forbidden door.
The a guard straightens by the gallery doors. The king raises one hand, preventing any hurried movement toward the audience chamber.
the King
You will not enter those quarters alone, Shiro. I will have the royal records searched for your family's names and any lawful claim attached to them.
He turns to the guard and gives a quiet order to bring the appropriate ledgers, making the matter an official inquiry rather than a question Shiro can settle by trespass.
the King
If the records reveal nothing, we will consider what testimony or witness can be sought next. Until then, the door remains closed.
“I just... don't understand, your majesty. I'm but a simple commoner. What could a fiend want with my family?”
FAILURE (Fair Diplomacy, rolled -1)
Shiro
I just... don't understand, Your Majesty. I'm but a simple commoner. What could a fiend want with my family?
The king studies Shiro across the quiet gallery. His expression softens at the confusion, but his answer carries the firmness of a judgment carefully restrained.
the King
Do not mistake common birth for insignificance. A fiend may want a debt honored, a promise enforced, or your family used as leverage.
the King
But I will not pretend to know which. Your question asks me to speculate where evidence is required, and speculation would serve the claimant better than it serves you.
He taps the closed ledger shelf with two fingers, turning the inquiry away from the fiend's motives and toward the records that can test its claim.
the King
The useful path is now clear: we search your family's names, their former residence, and any promise recorded under the crown or another lawful authority.
the King
If those records reveal a place or witness, you may finally learn what your family hid from you without risking yourself by entering their quarters.
✓ Quest Accepted
Find evidence supporting Shiro's account
“hm... I wonder if its related to a certain incident a few years ago...”
SUCCESS (Legendary Reasoning, rolled +3)
Shiro
I wonder if it is related to a certain incident from a few years ago, Your Majesty.
The king's fingers stop against the shelf. His eyes sharpen, and the gallery's quiet seems to gather around Shiro's carefully offered suspicion.
the King
That is the first possibility you have offered rather than merely endured. What incident do you mean?
Shiro
The royal records may finally connect what my family hid from me.
Before Shiro can elaborate, footsteps approach beyond the doors. A palace clerk, a young adult woman with a slender build, warm brown skin, tightly curled black hair, and a cream shirt beneath a russet vest, enters carrying three ledgers, including one bound in dark green leather and marked with the year Shiro names.
the King
There is an entry from that year bearing your family name. It was sealed after an inquiry and never resolved.
the King
You have given us a useful direction, Shiro. The record may identify both the incident and the authority that witnessed it.
“hm... All I can remember from that incident was someone talking about slavery. It's all a bit hazy as I was fairly young at that time”
SUCCESS (Legendary Reasoning, rolled +3)
Shiro
All I can remember is someone speaking about slavery. It is hazy, Your Majesty. I was fairly young when it happened.
The memory surfaces in fragments: a guarded voice, the word slavery spoken with alarm, and adults abruptly lowering their voices when Shiro approached. The king listens without interrupting.
the King
That is not a small fragment. If your family was connected to the buying or selling of elves, the crown's inquiry may have been meant to expose it or stop it.
The palace clerk opens the dark green ledger to the marked year. Beneath the sealed inquiry, a faded annotation names an inspection at a riverside counting house and bears the royal seal.
Palace Clerk
Your Majesty, this note was cross-referenced but never copied into the summary. It says the testimony concerned elven persons transferred under false debt claims.
the King
Then we have more than a suspicion. We have a place, a royal inspection, and a record of false debt. Clerk, prepare the witness index.
The king closes one hand over the ledger, no longer treating Shiro's recollection as uncertain background. The inquiry now has a lawful trail, and the fiend's claim stands beneath it.
Quest Complete
Learn the truth behind the debt claim
Skill Upgrade: Diplomacy Fair→Good
Quest Complete
Find evidence supporting Shiro's account
Skill Upgrade: Lore Good→Great