Arren thinks Wyler is open and forthcoming. It feels more like a story told over a drink than a questioning, as if he might have said this had you happened to sit by him at the bar one evening.

"It was ah... something orange. Tasted like a carrot. Probably carrot liqueur or the like. I never tasted booze made from carrots before, so I was curious," Wyler replies. "It's still down there, I believe. I didn't touch it since, and nobody else was here, I think." 

If Arren searches the cabinet under the bar, he finds a bottle labelled 'Carrot Liqueur', a little under three-quarters full. The label doesn't mention the strength of the beverage, but if you open and smell it, you feel a very strong scent coming off of it. No doubt, it is a strong drink. Wyler will also corroborate that this was the bottle Emma poured his drink from.

"Like I said, I don't quite remember." Wyler pours more wine directly into his mouth. Indeed, it doesn't seem like it's having much of an effect on him. "I didn't pay attention to whoever went in at the time. It could have been one of you two for all I know. Shouts from the kitchen weren't exactly strange here, so, I didn't pay that any mind either. You know, Emma and her husband didn't quite get along so well." He pauses, as perhaps here Arren interjects with his question. "His name? Emma called him Hecky, if not 'darling', 'honey' or the like, though I think it was short for something. I never really cared. I'm not from here myself, you see, I don't meddle in other people's lives so much. Except what I can see right in front of me, of course. He wasn't exactly nice to her, that man, but you could see she loved him despite anything he'd say or do."

Lastly, to your last question, he replies: "I saw it lunge, but it was blurry. Then I saw Emma's face passing near me in a flash, and disappearing out the back door." He points in the direction of the door through which you entered. "I got up to see what happened there and found Emma's husband lying there in his own blood, already dead. I stumbled out to the street and called for someone to come and help me because I was sure anything that did this couldn't mean any well for Emma."

"Ok, you are losing me here, Wyler", 'Tace' says calmly. "Perhaps it is time to put the bottle down and truly think about what actually happened in the kind of detail we need. We are interested in the actual details that might help us understand. So first of all tell me. Did you truly see what happened?".

"Right now, I am struggling to believe you did. You have told this story before, and the details are different. You remember seeing Emma's face flash past, but cannot tell us whether she was being carried or moving under her own steam. You told the people who arrived on the scene the creature killed Emma's husband right in front of you, now it was in another room, blurry and only half seen. You said the person who turned into a monster looked innocent, but you remember no details of them".

He looks at Wyler closely, trying to gauge whether any of what he says is true at all. Is this all made up to encourage folk to buy him drinks? Is he the real perpetrator making a story up to cover his tracks?

"Right now, you are the only witness, no-one else was there. But you know what, that makes you the only suspect as well. So, let's start again, put the bottle down and literally walk us through what happened. I want to sit where you were, and want you to show us exactly where Emma was, and the husband Hecky, and the creature. How close she passed by you as she left", he says, motioning for Wyler to get up and making sure he leaves the bottle on the table as he literally walks them through what happened.

Insight: 2+5=7

Arren nods firmly as Tace speaks, especially when the Elf tells Wyler to put the bottle down and when he names him as a suspect. The Half-Elf's jaw tightens, and his arms cross slowly over his chest—a clear sign that his patience begins to wear thin.

Once Tace finishes, Arren leans forward in his chair and fixes his green eyes on the man, saying, "I'm also finding it hard to believe that the carrot liqueur—or whatever that was—got you so drunk you can't remember anything. Not when we're watching you down that wine like it's water and it's not affecting you at all. You're steady, clear-eyed... focused." He narrows his gaze. "I'm starting to think you just don't want to remember. Why is that, Wyler?" He pauses briefly, letting the question hang before continuing. "We were told this 'Hecky' was scum. So tell me—is your memory failing because you don't want his killer to be found? Are you covering for Emma, perhaps? I find hard to believe that she loved him that much, when it looks like he wasn't particularly kind to her." (Intimidation: 9+5=14)

Bryn cannot tell whether Wyler lies. He seems a little nervous, but with both of you pushing as you do, and Arren clearly trying to intimidate the man, it's not too surprising that he is. But rather than being scared, you feel like Arren's attempt to intimidate him (although successful) achieved an undesired effect: he looks less open, now more guarded, opposing.

"Well, I'm really sorry, but I'm a man who came to enjoy a drink, not an all-seeing record keeper." He stands up, but he keeps a firm hold on his bottle. "I can retell the story, but I can't force you to believe me. This," he raises his bottle, "is wine. Wine is weak, and this wine is weak even for wine. Even the likes of you probably won't get drunk from this. Though I've been drinking for years, maybe I forgot how it was when I just started."

If you let him, he'll walk over to the bar - with his bottle - and place the carrot-liqueur bottle on the countertop, but he doesn't open it. Otherwise, he'll just point in that direction. "This (or that) is strong stuff. Drink enough of it on an empty stomach and see how well you remember the face of every person you pass by. Drinking isn't a crime, and neither is not remembering."

He takes a short yet deep breath. If you let him walk over to the bar with his bottle, he'll pull the chair closest to the back door back. If not, he'll point to it. "I was sitting here, as I always do. Come sit, tell me what you see." If you sit, you find that you can see most of the kitchen, but the spot where the husband died is a little hidden by everything in the kitchen. Such that, if something happened there, you'd see action but perhaps not in great detail. "Now, where do you want me to start from?"

"This is a waste," Arren thinks as he stands up. He tells Wyler, "Indeed. Drinking is not a crime, and neither is not remembering. Interfering with an investigation, on the other hand, is." He pauses. "You'd do well to do exactly as the Corporal asked," he adds, casting a pointed glance at the bottle of wine Wyler's been asked to leave, and subtly reminding him of the exact questions Tace had posed.

As Wyler may—or may not—continue speaking to Tace, Arren tries to give the room one final inspection before concluding that there's nothing more to be gleaned from The Stewpot. They've seen two locked doors. The one at the end of the kitchen must be the pantry. That would leave the locked door outside as Emma and Hickey’s private quarters.

He isn't interested in breaking into private property—he still has the Commandant's warning in mind—but if they could find the key, they might investigate further without causing damage. It's a long shot, but he wants to exhaust that possibility. With that in mind, he returns to the kitchen, this time keeping an eye out for likely places to store a key—drawers, jars, and similar hiding spots.

As he's searching, he remembers that the compartment where the alcoholic beverages were stored had a lock, though it's currently open —as Wyler demonstrated a moment ago— and undamaged. "Wyler," he asks, "you don't happen to have the key to the beverage compartment, do you?" Perhaps that same key opens the door at the back of the kitchen?

The Sergeant will also retrace their steps back to the door they entered through, now that it's confirmed the stranger left with Emma via that same exit. Two weeks have passed since the murder, and in that time there's been both an earthquake and a heavy downpour. It's almost certain no trace remains—but he looks anyway. He also gives The Stewpot's surroundings one final glance. Are there any notable buildings nearby? Any demolished homes? Does the inn stand near a path that leads directly out of Ersta?

If he finds nothing of interest, he'll return to the Corporal and quietly suggest, "Perhaps it's time to try with Emma's mother, next to the Sole Mate? Unless you have another idea?"

As the Sergeant admonishes Wyler, 'Tace' does indeed take the seat and check out the view into the kitchen. He largely ignores the grumbling of the man, trying hard to concentrate on the facts and important details.

"Ok, I see. That is good", he says. "Now, if you would, head into the kitchen and then do your best to head out the back door as you remember Emma doing. I will stay here and you pass by me as close as she did. It would be useful to know if you had to look up or down to see her face. And if you could, show me what the monster did it once it lunged".

Assuming Wyler does as he is asked, whether with wine bottle still in hand or not, he will just watch and try to get a better feel for what happened.

Once Wyler is done, he asks. "Wyler, you didn't happen to pick up anything after this all happened? You have been staying here, right?".

When the Sergeant comes back after his search, he will think for a moment. "I would be keen to search the living area, but you are right, we might need to speak to the mum first". Or perhaps not, but I don't want Wyler to hear me suggest picking the lock. It might not be the best thing to say to the Sergeant either.

Wyler does not let go of his bottle, but (assuming you take no action about the matter), he seems a little more wary and drinks a little less often. At this point, he walks a little less steadily, but strangely, it looks more natural for him. He doesn't bump into anything, and he doesn't lose his balance as he walks. He does seem a little clueless, trying to recreate the scene. "Well, I... I did sit on the other side, where you are. So ah..." He has to walk a few times back and forth, and he doesn't seem sure of anything. He might ask Arren to stand somewhere to see from the same angle he did back then. "I think it was around there, umm, maybe a little to the left? Yes, that's good, I think."

Playing it all out helps Bryn get a clearer image of the story, and it seems more or less believable, at least if you assume a monster exists and is the culprit of this case (whether intentionally or not). If one were to sit there and attentively watch everything, as in Wyler's story, they'd roughly see what was told. But as you can imagine, with greater details than he can provide you with. The retelling is about the same as before. He cannot explain in detail what the monster did once it lunged, but he details the state in which he found the husband's body, which matches the description Zaba gave you.

(OOC: If you have any specific questions you want to get an answer to again, please rewrite them for me.)

Between perhaps helping Wyler with positioning occasionally, Arren can search the kitchen again. He finds many jars and drawers, and eventually, he finds a key under a jar of honey near the locked door. As he guessed, once he unlocks the door, he finds the pantry stocked with raw ingredients, especially (though not only) root vegetables like potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots, beets and the like. The key doesn't match the lock of the drinks beneath the counter, and if Arren goes outside to test the external door, it doesn't unlock it either.

"Uh, do you want me to run, or just retrace the path? She moved out very fast." Wyler asks 'Tace' in response to being asked to retrace Emma's exit. The path seems to be the fastest path from the kitchen and out of the tavern without jumping over any furniture, provided that one does not want to exit through the front door. Bryn determines that exiting through the main door would have been faster.

If you ask Wyler to run, he prepares for a moment and then dashes out of the tavern. He is surprisingly swift, and even more surprising is how well he runs despite drinking all day. Bryn thinks he could beat him in a race, but with significant effort. He shortly returns to the tavern, slightly wet despite being outside only a few seconds. "It was probably faster than that, I think." He's not even panting. 

Arren doesn't find any traces of interest outside the tavern, except perhaps Wyler's if 'Tace' did ask him to run. There are buildings nearby, but nothing that seems outstanding. Closest to the tavern, there is the external restroom you saw before and a few small gardens where it seems they grow some herbs. 

"A key? No. Only to my room, which I paid for in advance," Wyler replies. "But I haven't touched anything, if that's what you think. I've been eating and drinking at the 'Frogs' across the street. But they don't have spare rooms, and I can't afford two rooms, so I stayed here."

((I forgot to add regarding your last question: ))

The tavern is located by the main road that crosses the town. Additionally, by now, the fog has cleared a little, though it still rains heavily, and so you can now see a little farther than you could before. Arren can see blurry treetops behind the buildings next to the tavern, and assumes the forest isn't far from here. There are no demolished homes nearby.

"Ok, that was helpful and makes more sense to me now. As much sense as a monster attack can make anyway. Thank you, Wyler", 'Tace' says, deciding to continue to use the 'good watchman', 'bad watchman' strategy after the Sergeant went for intimidation.

He looks to the front door, "It would have been quicker to go out the front door, which means Emma and perhaps the monster did not want to be seen. And if Emma was running away to get help, again the front door would be the natural choice. Wyler, I know I have asked this before, but I want you to think back one last time. Did Emma run out the door herself, or was she carried out?".

"No luck," Arren tells the Corporal. "This key only opens the pantry, not the door outside. It was only logical, though—it wouldn't have made for the safest of houses otherwise." He pauses, then adds, "Oh, and from the back door, the forest looks to be very near. Might be the place they escaped to."

The more Wyler and the Corporal speak and recreate the murder, the more inclined Arren is to believe this wasn't a random act of violence—that Hickey was the intended target. His concern over Emma's possible involvement deepens, but he's not ready to assume she's guilty just yet. Instead, he stays attentive, watching carefully to see how Wyler responds to the Corporal's last question.

Meanwhile, he slips the key back under the honey jar. He doesn't particularly care if Wyler notices; Arren doubts the man is going to wander into the pantry and start cooking with raw ingredients on his own.

The Sergeant wants to investigate the part of the building that looks to be the couple's private quarters as much as the Corporal does. But with no other key found, and not wanting to force their way in, they are left with one possibility: the mother must have a copy. He just hopes Emma didn't have the only one.

"Wyler, do you happen to know Emma's mother? Did she use to come by The Stewpot before all this happened? It'd be helpful if she had a spare key so we could keep investigating."

On hearing the Sergeant mention how close the forest is, 'Tace' has a thought.

"That sounds likely, but the other destination that would make the back door the obvious choice, is what we think is the living quarters. Surely someone would have thought to check Emma wasn't just hiding out in her home? I mean, it's unlikely, but so is this whole situation".

"I wouldn't bet my money on that, seeing how everyone here thinks Emma was kidnapped—or, well, murdered. But hiding there for two weeks? She would've needed to leave for food. Either she's very sneaky, or someone would’ve noticed. Wouldn't they?" Arren pauses. "It's worth checking. But we need the key to open that door anyway."

"I'm not sure. It didn't look like two people running one after the other," Wyler replies after some thought. "And I never imagined Emma could run so fast. So, I suppose, she must have been carried?" 

"Her mother? I don't know the woman." He answers without hesitating. "She could have come here - there have been older women who came here occasionally - but I wouldn't know."

Seeing that you two are done with your questioning (OOC: Assuming that you are), Wyler will excuse himself and disappear back upstairs, wishing you good fortune with your search.

((I didn't get a strong impression you're heading anywhere, so I'm not describing the scene. If you both wish to walk over to a destination you've already been to, you'll find it with no problems on the way, so you can already describe what you do when you get there.))

After Wyler has excused himself, 'Tace' will look to the Sergeant.

"Ok, so we are heading over to the mother's then", he confirms, and makes ready to leave back out into the rain.

"I don't know about you, but I am still very confused about what is going on here. Wyler's story is unrealistic, but I believe he believes what he is saying at least. But where did the person go that entered the kitchen? Why did Emma run out so quickly? There must be some history here", he ponders aloud on the way.

When they finally reach the mother's house, he lets the sergeant take the lead, standing just behind him outside the door. 

If she doesn't have the key to Emma's living area, I am going to have to find a way to pick the lock without the Sergeant becoming suspicious of me.

Arren nods slightly. "There's definitely more going on than what we thought initially, before speaking to Wyler. And there have been no other murders in two weeks—just Hecky. Something's off about this alleged monster," he agrees.

Once they locate the correct house, the Sergeant knocks gently, hoping he won't have to insist—he doesn't want to trouble an elderly woman whose daughter is missing more than necessary.

If the woman answers, he offers a polite greeting and says, "We're Sergeant al-Nasrid and Corporal Peite from the Katton army, currently investigating the events involving your daughter and her husband. We're sorry to trouble you, but we were hoping you might be able to help us, Mrs...—forgive me, we didn't quite catch your name."

Arren lets the woman reply, then adds, "Could you tell us more about Emma and Hecky? Do you think anyone in town might have held any ill will toward them? We were also wondering if you might have a key to their quarters so we could investigate further and perhaps find a lead on what happened."

As told, the house is near the Sole Mate. It is a small house with a large garden outside, and it looks like it is tended to frequently, though now it is flooded by the rain. You knock, and a reply soon comes: "Come in! Come in!"

The door is unlocked, and once you enter, you find an older Human woman standing up from her armchair to greet you. "Oh, handsome soldiers! What are you standing there in the rain for? Come in, come in!" She doesn't look too old, perhaps seven decades at most, and she looks healthy, as healthy as a person of that age can look. There's a small kitchen connected to what appears to be a dining room and a living room. A mix of all three in one shared space. Another room, separated by a doorway but without a door, holds a collection of gardening tools. There are only two doors that you can see, both closed.

She motions for you to sit on a small couch in the living room. "I would have made some food had I known I was going to have visitors. But I always keep some sweets in case Emma decides to visit. Sit here for a moment, I'll make us some tea." She fills a kettle with some water and places it on a designated spot over a hearth. The flames are small, but they heat the small house well enough. 

Once she's done with all of that, she brings a jar with cookies and sits with you in the living room, in her armchair. "Well, dears, how may I assist you?"

She listens to your introduction, a little confused. "My daughter? You must be mistaken, Emma isn't married yet. She went to Pyorre to apprentice under some chef, but I'm sure she'd tell me if she found anyone there! Besides, she's not a troublemaker, I can't imagine what the military could want of her. Oh, don't tell me something happened to her!" She sounds terrified at the thought, as one might expect a mother to sound.

((In light of the above, I ignored Arren's prepared questions after her reply, so ask again if you still wish to.))

Arren, having not eaten for several hours—he really should've gotten something at The Three Frogs when Walnuts mentioned it—is truly grateful for the tea. He takes a few sips, letting the warmth chase away some of the lingering cold. But when the woman gives them a confused look and insists that her daughter isn't married, he blinks in surprise. Carefully, he sets the cup down, making sure not to spill a drop.

The old man at The Three Frogs had warned that Emma's mother could be difficult to speak to. Arren had assumed she might have some memory problems—but not to the point of not knowing her daughter was missing. Had no one in town told her? Or had they, and she simply couldn't remember?

The Half-Elf clears his throat and addresses her gently, choosing his words with care and avoiding the matter of Emma's disappearance for now.

"Excuse us, Mrs…" he leaves the sentence hanging, hoping she'll provide her name, since they still don't know Emma's surname.

"When was the last time you spoke with your daughter? We've heard she went to Pyorre to train with a chef, yes, and that she returned some time ago. Did she come back recently, or has it been a while?"

He pauses, regretting not having asked others in town for more details regarding the timeline to compare with the woman's answers.

"Did you not know she came back from Pyorre accompanied by a man named Hickey?"

He doesn't press further, not wanting to overwhelm the poor lady just yet.

"Tace' enters the small home behind the Sergeant, removing his raincoat and finding somewhere to hang it by the door, or to at least place it. 

Whilst he waits for the tea to be made, he look around the room, looking for any pictures the might be portraits of Emma, and then takes a seat on the small couch next to the Sergeant.

Having eaten at The Three Frogs, he is not hungry, but he does accept the tea and cookie out of politeness. He simply holds them though, not wanting to remove his helmet at the moment.

Listening to Emma's mother, he is also confused. She appears to be living in the past.

He watches her closely as the Sergeant explains that Emma returned some time ago. Does she think Emma is still in Pyorre? How far in the past is it in her mind?

"Pesa, Veda Pesa." She introduces herself. "She went there in the summer, so..." Veda peeks outside the window and notices the rain. "Must have been about half a year now, but she hadn't come to visit yet. You say that she came back? But she didn't come to visit. I don't believe it. My daughter wouldn't miss a chance to eat at home. And with a man? She didn't write about anything like that. I didn't hear of that. Are you two sure you've come to the right family? Or is it just some cruel joke?"

There is no family portrait in the room, nor are there any paintings hanging. It truly is a simple house without any decorations. A few pots with flowers or other houseplants are placed by the windows where they can receive some sunlight on sunny days. Nonetheless, you're certain it is the right house, as others in the neighbourhood (either the cobbler or the previous house you checked) confirmed so.

There is a flicker of doubt in Arren's expression as he exchanges a glance with his companion. They have come to the right place, haven't they? Yes, he's sure of it. Everyone in town is certain they'e talking about the same person—the kind owner of The Stewpot. So, what is happening here? Is Mrs. Pesa's memory truly so distorted?

The Sergeant's expression is serious, though tinged with concern, as he moves to sit nearer the old woman and gently takes one of her hands between his.

"Mrs. Pesa, I can assure you that we're not joking. There must be a reason behind what's happening," he says, carefully skirting the most likely explanation—what they had already been warned about: that this would be a difficult conversation, probably due to Emma's mother age. "Perhaps Emma didn't want to mention that man in a letter, and planned to speak to you in person. Perhaps she arrived only recently and didn't have the chance to visit yet. Let's not worry about that right now."

He softens his tone even further. "What's important at the moment—and we're truly sorry to have to tell you this—is that the townsfolk believe Emma to be missing. We're investigating this, and we would deeply appreciate any help you can provide."

He gives her a moment, then continues, still gently. "Can you tell us about her? How old is she now? What does she look like?"

Another pause. "We may also need to access her personal belongings, to search for anything that could help us find her. Would you be willing to allow that?"

Arren avoids asking about the key to Emma's house at The Stewpot. What if that is also news to her mother? Maybe asking in general about her daughter's belongings will be more helpful.