The Wildemount Irregulars (2020)

Unless anything else comes up, yes, Silent wants to head to Tember's house at first light. 

Magnum agrees.

And so, shortly after sunrise, you find  yourselves knocking on the door of a rather rich-looking residence, though not in a particularly wealthy part of town.  The door opens - a human servant who bows.  Yes, gentlemen, the master is expecting you.

You are shown to a study where Tember Husseldorf sits behind a large desk; the room looks rich without being gaudy - it's a place of work rather than a place to show of money or status, but it belongs to someone who has money to spend.  One side is dominated by a large library of books - they look used, and some of them look very old.  

Tember smiles as he stands.  I'm glad you came.  I have a good feeling about you.  Though, as I've said, you're not the only ones I'm hiring.  If someone else finds what I need first, you'll get a flat free, ten gold each.  The hundred is for getting me what I need.  Names.  Proof.  Something to satisfy the ones who rule this town.  

Four nights ago, and then again three nights ago, one of the grain silos of my family's business was damaged.  Broken apart.  Some grain taken, not much.  Then two nights ago, same happened to a different silo, right across town, nowhere near the first.

I'm not calling it a theft.  I think it's a... demonstration.  In preparation for a blackmail attempt.  The grain is grown on our own lands, used to make our ale.  Someone wants to say they have the power to hit us hard, and then take money to play nice.

He smiles.  I say 'our', but I'm hardly the head of the household.  I am, however, the one they come to when there's trouble like this.  Something that needs sorting out.  I'm not asking for anything underhand, or illegal.  Let's say you find proof that this is some hothead Baumbauch third cousin, and you decide to bring me his head.  Bad move.  Brings trouble, in a small town like this.  I want this all handled nice and proper.

I can give you directions.  No leads, though.  I have my suspicions, but that's the problem. Too many old feuds in this town, too many biases.  Needs an outsider with a clear head.  What do you say?

I gotta say, this is a nice change o' pace. I've been hired for much, uh, bloodier work as of late. If my partner here agrees I'm happy to take a crack at this. 

I'm amenable.  I think this could be a good use of our skills.

Seems like a good start would be taking a look at these silos. Where can we find 'em? 

Tember looks... pleased?  Relieved?  It's hard to say.

Go out the east gate, he says, a few hundred feet down the road and then turn left.  You can see the Husseldorf crest on the sign outside the farm.  The other is beyond the south gate, a bit further - half a mile, then head west; the farm is near a forest.  Speak to the farmers, find out what you can.  That's all I can do.  That and give you this - he indicates a letter on his desk - I'll need your full names, but if you show this to the farmers they'll help.  Most townsfolk will.  And the other group I've hired will have the same letter - don't mess with them.  Again, I don't want trouble, I want to get rid of trouble.

Full names, eh? Silent will have to do for me, that's what I go by. We'll steer clear of the others, don't you worry about that. 

Magnum Opus is my full name.

He writes a little, signs the letter, and hands it to Magnum.  Then go with my blessing, and report back when you are successful, or tomorrow morning if you have not yet finished the task.  I... have no idea how long it will take.  That's up to you, I imagine.  

He shakes your hands, and then a servant shows you out. 

Where are you headed first?

Magnum suggests going to the silos and examining them physically.  Then talking to locals to get a feel for what anyone might have seen or heard.

You have two locations to choose from: one to the east where the first attacks took place, the other to the south.  Where will you go first?

How about the most recent site first?

Silent nods in agreement. He mentioned the southern one was near a forest. Seems to me that the real culprit could be some wild beastie instead of a scheming brewer. Let's scope out that one first. 

Now that's an interesting thought. If who or whatever did this damaged the silo to get into it, perhaps they left some marks.  I'll investigate to see if there are tool marks or...claw marks, maybe?  If a creature did it, though, I wonder how we'd prove that.

Silent grins. He said he didn't want no heads of other brewers, fair enough. If we find a monster with a den full o' grain, though, I reckon its head might satisfy Tember. 

About an hour later, you stand looking at a large building fairly full of grain, with some boards covering a large hole.

At your side, Deret Misle the farm overseer stands with you.  Great big hole, he says.  We fixed it up.  Took some grain.  Not much.  He shrugs - since you arrived that's the most he's said unprompted.  Go look.

It's still morning, though the day is cooler than the last few, and the sky is cloudy though not threatening to rain.  It looks like the harvest has mostly been collected from the fields, and much of the wealth of the Husseldorfs must lie in silos such as this.  Around you, various farm hands see to their work; the farmer herself, Mistress Corta Odenel, is in the town today but expected back this evening.

Silent will walk over to the boards and check them out, focusing on the shape of the hole's edges and trying to determine if the hole was made by something sharp, a blunt impact, or something else. 

(In case this calls for an Investigation check, 19 )

Magnum examines the area that's been repaired.

Investigation - 11

With a natural 20, you find that the there's evidence both of something sharp and something blunt.  In the end, the hole was bashed open, not cut open, but there are definitely scratch marks from something as well, around the edges.  Looking around the ground, too much has been disturbed by other investigators or by the workmen who did the repairs, but you do find a small patch of brown hair or maybe fur.